Jan 20, 2021
President-elect Joe Biden and Jill listen during a COVID-19 memorial, with lights placed around the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, Tuesday, Jan. 19, 2021, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
WASHINGTON (AP) President-elect Joe Biden made a sober entrance to the nation’s capital Tuesday, ready to assume power as America reels from the coronavirus pandemic, soaring unemployment and grave concerns about more violence as he prepares to take the oath of office.
Biden, an avid fan of Amtrak, had planned to take a train into Washington ahead of Wednesday’s Inauguration Day, but scratched that plan in the aftermath of the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol.
It was an inauguration like no other.
In a city on high alert and amid a still-raging pandemic, Joe Biden took the oath of office Wednesday, becoming the 46th president of the United States, declaring it a victory for “the cause of democracy.”
“This is America’s day. This is democracy’s day,” Biden said in his inaugural address after being administered the oath office by Chief Justice of the Supreme Court John Roberts. “Today, we celebrate the triumph, not of a candidate, but of a cause. The cause of democracy.”
The swearing-in took place from the same Capitol steps overrun by a mob of Trump supporters exactly two weeks ago, seeking to disrupt lawmakers from formally counting the electoral votes that affirmed Biden’s victory in last fall’s presidential contest.
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