The 60th Presidential Inauguration

What a big donation gets you, and other things you probably don’t know

In the middle of a summer night in 1923, a courier ran up to a farmhouse in Plymouth Notch, Vermont. He had urgent news. President Warren G. Harding was dead, and Calvin Coolidge, who had to be roused from sleep, needed to be the new president.

The Coolidges didn’t even have electricity. But there, in the early hours of August 3, Calvin Coolidge took the oath of office, administered by his 78-year-old father, who was a notary public. Coolidge then reportedly went back to bed.

After the sun rose, he began his journey to Washington with his wife and two federal employees who were “hastily pressed into secret service duty” according to a newspaper report from the time.

Like other presidents who were sworn in quickly after the death of their predecessor, Coolidge didn’t have a fancy inauguration as he became the 30th president.

But now, inaugurations are a multi-day affair with a televised ceremony, parade, and lavish balls in Washington, DC.

Planning an inauguration

On Monday, January 20th, Donald Trump will be sworn in as the 47th president of the United States. Jan 20th is the date set for all inaugurations, with the only exception being if that date falls on a Sunday, which pushes the inauguration to Jan 21.

Before that change was made, the presidential swearing in was set for March 4. But when March 4 was on a Sunday in 1849, Zachary Taylor refused to be sworn in that day as he wanted to keep the Sabbath. He ended up taking the oath of office on Monday, March 5 instead. That was years before the 20th Amendment was ratified in 1933, which moved the inauguration up to January to reduce the amount of time between the election and the new president taking office.

This year, the inauguration falls on Martin Luther King Day, and not long after Jimmy Carter’s state funeral.

President-Elect Trump has said he’s unhappy that flags will be flying at half-staff at the Capitol during his inauguration (they were lowered for 30 days following a White House declaration, as is customary following a president’s death). But Speaker of the House Mike Johnson said Tuesday that he will order the flags raised on Monday, with them lowered again the day after the inauguration.

Trump’s second time

The events this year begin on Saturday, Jan 18.

That’s when Trump will hold a “Victory Rally” at the Capitol One Arena. Ticketed guests will be able to see Kid Rock and Billy Ray Cyrus perform. After that, guests will attend a dinner reception and the “Vice President’s Dinner.”

On Sunday, Jan 19, Trump will join guests at a church service. After, he will attend a wreath laying at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. He will end the day with a “Candlelight Dinner” later in the evening.

Inauguration Day brings a packed schedule with a Church service at St. John's Episcopal Church near the White House to start the day. Then Trump and his wife Melania will head to the White House for tea with the Bidens.

The Trumps and the Bidens will go to the Capitol for the swearing in, which is meant to be a powerful symbol of American democracy – the peaceful transfer of power, especially as a president from one party cedes power to someone from another. Joe Biden attending Trump’s inauguration after Trump refused to go to his is likely going to be a photo op you’ll see broadcast around the world.

At the inauguration ceremony, Carrie Underwood will sing “America the Beautiful,” country singer Lee Greenwood will perform as Trump walks out to take the oath of office. Greenwood has performed his song “God Bless the USA” at many Trump rallies.

At noon eastern time, JD Vance will be sworn in as the Vice President by Justice Brett Kavanaugh and Trump will be sworn in by Chief Justice John Roberts.

The swearing in will be followed up by benedictions by Rabbi Dr. Avi Berman, Imam Husham Al Husainy, Pastor Lorenzo Sowell, and Father Frank Mann.

Classical singer Christopher Macchio will sing the National Anthem.

Back in the Capitol, Trump will head to the President’s room, a room outside the Senate chamber, where he will participate in a ceremony signing nominations.

Trump and guests will gather for a lunch hosted by the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies in Statuary Hall, followed by the President’s Review of the Troops. Trump and Vance, alongside their wives, will observe a military parade outside the north front of the Capitol. The Trumps will then parade from the Capitol to the White House.

It is unclear if Trump will walk for a portion of the parade as has been the tradition since Jimmy Carter. While he did walk during his first inauguration, the security situation is even more challenging this time around, because of the assassination attempts against Trump during his campaign.

Along with the Secret Service, more than 4,000 police officers and 7,800 national guard troops will tackle security. The Secret Service security perimeter is bigger than any before it, with 30 miles of anti-scale fencing going up.

Special Agent in Charge Matt McCool said they are pulling Secret Service agents from across the country to “provide a full slate of visible and invisible security measures.”

At the White House, Trump will hold the Oval Office Signing Ceremony, where it is tradition to sign executive orders.

What’s happening behind the scenes at the White House during the inauguration?

A team will be working tirelessly to revamp the White House residence during the five to six hours they have while the inaugural events are happening. White House permanent staff members, under the direction of the Chief Usher, will execute a perfectly choreographed plan to change the White House over from the Bidens to the Trumps.

Former White House staffer Gary J. Walters explained that the White House staff preps “first family briefing books,” which ask questions like: "Are there any dietary restrictions? What kind of mattresses do you sleep on? What kind of toothpaste do you use?” This helps the staff prepare for the new residents and have everything ready from the moment they arrive.

The incoming president can request they bring in new furniture, paintings, bedsheets, wallpaper, and anything else they want, which will be placed in the White House while repairs are done and walls are painted.

Before the inauguration, the president and his family have the option to go to the White House’s permanent collection, which is held in an offsite storage facility, where they are able to choose furniture and artwork. The collection includes 65,000 pieces and even has works from artists like Cezanne and Monet.

Soon-to-be First Lady Melania Trump says she’s already packed and has selected the furniture she wants for her husband’s second term. She says she will be splitting her time between New York, Washington, and Palm Beach. Her son Barron is currently a student at New York University, and she said he’s living in Trump Tower in New York City, but he’ll have a room in the White House for when he comes to visit.

But before anything can be moved in, the Bidens have to be moved out. Around 8:30am on Inauguration Day, the staff will gather to say goodbye to the President and First Lady.

They traditionally give the presidents a gift, including a box made of historic White House wood, and the flags that flew over the White House on the day of their inauguration and their final day in office. That tradition was started under Reagan.

Their belongings will be moved into moving trucks outside, set to be taken to Delaware, where the Bidens are expected to return home to their house in Wilmington. They also have a second beach home in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, and while they have not said so explicitly, they will likely continue to spend time with their family at both homes.

The inaugural balls

The day ends with several balls, and Trump will attend and speak at all of them.

The Village People, known for their hit Y.M.C.A., are expected to perform at the Liberty Inaugural Ball, alongside Country Singer Jason Aldean and the Rascal Flatts. The Liberty Inaugural Ball is meant to celebrate Trump’s supporters.

The Commander in Chief Ball is expected to honor members of the military, where active duty members of the military will be in attendance alongside donors. Finally, the Starlight Ball will celebrate Trump's high dollar donors.

The balls have become star-studded affairs, and while the first president to be honored with an inaugural ball was James Madison (tickets cost $4), the Kennedys took the tradition to another level.

The day before John F Kennedy was sworn in, Frank Sinatra held a ball with some of the biggest celebrities of the age, including Harry Belafonte, Nat King Cole, Tony Curtis, Bette Davis, Ella Fitzgerald, Gene Kelly, and more. The party was used as a fundraiser for the Democratic National Committee, and raised more than $1 million.

There was a second ball on Inauguration Day, where Jackie Kennedy wore a custom made gown that she helped design and is now in the Smithsonian. Melania Trump’s inaugural gown from 2017 is in the Smithsonian too. Melania worked with designer Hervé Pierre, who was once the creative director for Carolina Herrera, to design the gown.

For her inauguration ceremony look, Melania previously worked with Ralph Lauren to create a Jackie Kennedy-esque coat.

Where do the inaugural donations go?

So far, the Trump Vance Inaugural Committee, Inc., has raised a record-breaking $170 million, nearly triple what Biden raised.

Donations have come in from companies like Uber, OpenAI, Meta, Amazon, Google, and Microsoft. While no one has explicitly said why they are donating the money, the speculation is that donors are hoping to curry favor with the new president.

But donations also secure tickets to special events. Donors who donate $50,000 or more can get two tickets to the Make America Great Again Victory Rally, entrance into the balls, and entrance into the Cabinet Reception before the Vice President’s Dinner.

That won’t get them into the Vice President’s Dinner though, they’ll have to donate $1,000,000 or more. Interested guests can either donate the ticket price, or raise twice the total. Higher tiers allow attendees to get more tickets and access to the president.

On Sunday, for a donation of $100,000 or more, guests can attend a church service with the President. The Candlelight Dinner later that day is reserved for guests who donated $250,000 or more.

But according to The New York Times, there are so many big donors that there aren’t enough VIP tickets to go around. Some donors who have given $1 million or more are being put on waitlists for events.

The money that doesn’t go to funding the balls, banquets, and rallies will likely be used for Trump’s presidential library, according to the NYT.

Who’s invited, and who isn’t showing up?

Several foreign leaders have been invited, including Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, Chinese President Xi Jinping, President of El Salvador Nayib Bukele, and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban. We don’t have confirmation yet on who will be attending.

Other high-profile guests include Supreme Court justices, members of Congress, business leaders, members of the military, religious leaders, celebrities, and 1,600 others who will be sitting on the Presidential Inaugural Platform.

At Trump’s last inauguration, 60 democratic lawmakers avoided the inauguration, and, so far, 14 have said they will not attend, according to Newsweek. Many, including Rep. Jasmine Crockett of Texas, cited the event falling on Martin Luther King Jr. Day in their announcement.

Crockett said, “Considering this is also Martin Luther King Day, it just seems like the worst way to spend the day knowing that I would be celebrating someone who really is going to work very hard to tear down the legacy in which literally he lived and died for.”

After all the balls and events have concluded, the final inaugural event will be a prayer service on Tuesday morning at the Washington National Cathedral.

Will you be attending or watching the inauguration? I’d love to hear your thoughts below.