DON’S GONE ... LET’S GO JOE!
As Trump exits, defiant to the last, Biden is sworn in vowing to end the ‘uncivil war’ tearing America apart
JOE Biden vowed to unite his nation last night after being sworn in as the 46th President of the United States.
trying to turn the page on four of the most turbulent years in America’s history, he called for an end to the ‘uncivil war’ between Left and right. the main architect of that war, donald trump, had earlier walked away from the White House for the last time, leaving a legacy of chaos and division.
Mr Biden pledged he would serve those who did not vote for him as diligently as those who did. He gave his inaugural address on the steps of Washington dC’s Capitol building – stormed only two weeks ago by rioters urged on by his predecessor.
‘democracy has prevailed,’ said Mr Biden. ‘this is our historic moment of crisis and challenge. And unity is the path forward.’ in a message to other nations
he said: ‘America has been tested and we’ve come out stronger for it. We will repair our alliances, and engage with the world once again.’
The US, he told the drastically scaled-down and socially distanced crowd, would ‘lead not merely by the example of our power but the power of our example’.
For Mr Biden, 78 and the oldest person to become President, the swearing-in ceremony was the culmination of three White House campaigns that started on June 9, 1987 – 12,279 days before he eventually claimed the Oval Office.
He took the oath on his family’s 127-year-old, five-inch thick Bible held by schoolteacher wife Jill.
Minutes earlier, Kamala Harris was sworn in as his Vice President, the first woman to hold the role, sparking celebrations among those striving for equal opportunities.
Aged 56 and of Jamaican and Indian heritage, she has served as both attorney-general and senator for California. She had sought the Democratic presidential nomination herself but dropped out before the primaries began.
Former presidents Bill Clinton, George W Bush and Barack Obama attended the ceremony with their respective wives. Buckingham Palace sources said the Queen sent a private message to President Biden ahead of the inauguration.
In a final act of petty defiance, Mr Trump broke a 150-year tradition by snubbing the event.
He left the White House with wife Melania, dressed all in black, earlier in the morning, later addressing a small crowd of well-wishers and vowing ‘We will be back in some form’.
Washington DC was surrounded by a ring of steel – including 7ft security fences and barbed wire – manned by an army of police and 25,000 National Guards.
Mr Biden, whose ill feeling with his predecessor is no secret, did not mention Mr Trump by name in his inauguration speech.
However, he repeatedly alluded to the fractious, weakened state in which Mr Trump had left the US and to the Capitol invasion.
‘Recent weeks and months have taught us a painful lesson,’ Mr Biden said. ‘There is truth and there are lies. Lies told for power and for profit. And each of us has a duty and a responsibility as citizens, as Americans and especially as leaders. Leaders who are pledged to honour our constitution to protect our nation. To defend the truth and defeat the lies.’
In a sombre but typically folksy speech, he tried to drive home the need for Americans to overcome their differences, particularly in the face of a pandemic that has claimed 400,000 lives and left millions without jobs.
In what he said was his first act in charge, he paused to lead a ‘silent prayer’ for the dead, who were represented in the National Mall in front of him by a sea of flags.
Mr Biden warned of a ‘dark winter’ with a crisis-hit economy, millions out of work and a virus that ‘silently stalks the country’ and kills more than the 9/11 terror attacks every single day.
He said: ‘Few people in our nation’s history have been more challenged or found a time more challenging or difficult than the time we’re in now.’
In a rebuke to the acrimonious Trump years, he insisted that people could differ politically and still get along.
‘Politics doesn’t have to be a raging fire destroying everything in its path,’ he said.
‘Every disagreement doesn’t have to be a cause for total war and we must reject the culture in which facts themselves are manipulated and even manufactured.’
He acknowledged that expecting fellow Americans to overcome their considerable differences could be seen as ‘foolish fantasy’ and admitted the ‘forces that divide us are deep and they are real’. But, calling
‘Defend the truth, defeat the lies’
for ‘a little tolerance and humility’, he added: ‘We must end this uncivil war that pits red against blue.
‘We can overcome the deadly virus, we can rebuild work, we can rebuild the middle class and make work secure, we can secure racial justice and we can make America once again the leading force for good in the world’.
Echoing the words of Abraham Lincoln when he freed America’s slaves in 1863, Mr Biden insisted that his ‘soul’ was in his call for unity. However, some Republicans
were sceptical whether Democrats, now in control of not only the White House but also both chambers of Congress, were in much mood for unity and compromise.
Critics also pointed out that Mr Biden’s claim that ‘racism, nativism and fear have torn us apart’ were hardly the words of a leader hoping to win over Republicans.
Later in the day, Mr Biden headed to the Oval Office to pass a slew of executive orders, many of them designed to roll back Trump policies. Among them were commands to end work on the Mexican border wall and the travel ban on certain Muslim countries. Others covered climate change, immigration and coronavirus.
According to a document outlining the schedule for his first two weeks in office, another 38 such orders, repealing much of Trump’s policies, are coming next.
Although the usual pomp and circumstance of the glitziest day in the US political calendar was distinctly muted in an eerily silent Washington, the showbusiness world that had shunned Mr Trump turned out in force for the Democrat leader. Lady Gaga, wearing a huge gown that overshadowed any other of the day’s fashion statements, sang the national anthem and Jennifer Lopez belted out America the Beautiful. Tom Hanks later hosted a star-packed televised celebration that featured performances by Bruce Springsteen, Justin Timberlake, Katy Perry and Jon Bon Jovi.
Fears that the day would be overshadowed by violent protests failed to materialise with only a handful of Trump supporters turning up at meeting points across the country, and none in Washington.
Four hours after he was sworn in, Mr Biden entered the White House for the first time in total charge.
Following a trip to the Arlington National Cemetery to lay a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, he travelled back into Washington in the Beast, the presidential car. The whole Biden family got out and walked the last part of the journey, waving as they went.
Asked how it felt to enter as a President, having served for eight years as vice-president to Mr Obama, Mr Biden said: ‘It feels like I’m going home.’
The inauguration had run 11 minutes ahead of schedule, leaving overlapping presidencies.
‘We can overcome the deadly virus’
CLUTCHING a Bible that had been a family heirloom since 1893, Joe Biden was yesterday sworn in as the 46th president of the United States.
Simultaneously, many around the free world will have offered up their own prayers – of relief and thanks.
For Donald Trump, who tore into the White House four years ago, a whirlwind of rancour and scorn for democratic norms, had vacated the most powerful seat in the West.
Contrary to his critics’ claims, the tycoon’s time in office was not an unremitting calamity. Until Covid intervened, he had overseen an economic miracle, avoided starting wars, brokered Middle East peace deals and stood up to China.
Despite his belligerence, he came within a whisker of winning November’s election. But these accomplishments were trashed by his attempt to subvert democracy and whip up a riot.
Repairing this carnage is perhaps Mr Biden’s most onerous task. The Democrat acknowledged as much, stressing in his inaugural address that ‘unity’ was the key to restoring America’s soul.
After Mr Trump’s isolationism, Mr Biden has vowed to ‘repair alliances’ and ‘engage with the world again’ – good news for Global Britain. Boris Johnson will now await anxiously to see if he is the first European leader to receive a presidential phone call.
In truth, this is mere bragging rights. But if he is not, it will be seized upon by the misery-minded as a sign the Special Relationship is crumbling.
In the real world, the pair have much in common – on free trade, climate change and security. And Britain remains America’s oldest and closest ally.
Of course, while decent, honourable and statesmanlike, there are concerns that at 78 Mr Biden’s cognitive abilities are fading. There are also concerns he will be hijacked by his party’s socialist wing.
But after the most disruptive and troubling months in US politics, the Mail welcomes the opening of a new chapter.