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Even if your plan for Donald Trump’s second presidential term is to donate a lot of money to abortion funds and then dissociate as necessary, it’s worth it to stay on top of what’s going on in Washington—especially on Inauguration Day.
Indeed, this Monday was jam-packed with appearances from the likes of Carrie Underwood, Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg, and—notably—neither Nancy Pelosi nor Michelle Obama. Read on for everything you need to know about Trump’s second inauguration.
When did the inauguration take place?
Opening remarks and musical performances started at 9:30 a.m. EST on Monday, January 20, with Trump’s official swearing-in ceremony beginning at 12 p.m. EST.
Is the inauguration always on the same day?
Yes! As dictated by the 20th amendment of the Constitution, the presidential inauguration always takes place on January 20, no matter what day of the week it is—or if it coincides with Martin Luther King Jr. Day, as it did this year.
Where did the inauguration take place?
The first event of the day—a church service—was held at the historic St. John’s Episcopal Church, Lafayette Square, in Washington, D.C., followed by tea at the White House just one block away.
Then, due to the Arctic blast sweeping through Washington, Trump and his vice president, J.D. Vance, were sworn in not outside the United States Capitol, as is customary, but indoors, within the building’s rotunda. “I have ordered the Inauguration Address, in addition to prayers and other speeches, to be delivered in the United States Capitol Rotunda, as was used by Ronald Reagan in 1985, also because of very cold weather,” Trump posted to Truth Social on January 17.
After the ceremony, Trump attended a lunch hosted by the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies.
Who performed at the inauguration?
After performances by the University of Nebraska-Lincoln combined chorus and the United States Marine Band, American Idol winner Carrie Underwood sang “America the Beautiful” a capella, due to an unspecified technical glitch.
Additionally, opera tenor Christopher Macchio performed “O, America!” and the National Anthem with the Armed Forces Chorus.
What did Trump say in his inauguration speech?
“The golden age of America begins right now,” Trump promised before going on to decry the “vicious, violent, and unfair weaponization of the Justice Department and our government” and scapegoat “dangerous criminals, many from prisons and mental institutions, that have illegally entered our country from all over the world.”
Trump also touched upon the recent hurricane devastation in North Carolina and ongoing wildfire emergency in Los Angeles as examples of the outgoing administration’s perceived failures; called out “an education system that teaches our children to be ashamed of themselves in many cases” (presumably referring to his ongoing conflict with schools teaching children the history of slavery in America); announced his intent to reinstate his Remain in Mexico policy and “declare a national emergency at our southern border”; and state that it would “henceforth be the official policy of the United States government that there are only two genders, male and female.”
So, too, did Trump promise the audience that his administration would end the Green New Deal and take a “drill, baby, drill” approach toward the climate change-hastening extraction of natural resources; and declare that he would rename the Gulf of Mexico the “Gulf of America” before going on a long rant about the Panama Canal.
Who did (and didn’t) attend the inauguration?
While key Democrats like Michelle Obama, Nancy Pelosi, and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez skipped this year’s inauguration, outgoing President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris attended, as, of course, did first and second ladies Melania Trump and Usha Vance (who wore Adam Lippes and Oscar de la Renta, respectively) and former presidents Barack Obama, George W. Bush, and Bill Clinton.
Former first lady Laura Bush and a Stella McCartney-clad former secretary of state Hillary Clinton were there, as well, in addition to tech CEOs Sundar Pichai, Shou Zi Chew, Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg, Tim Cook, and Jeff Bezos (along with his partner Lauren Sánchez, who dropped jaws with a bra-exposing white Alexander McQueen look).
See more from the 2025 inauguration below:
