Today We Welcome a New President – It is Inauguration Day
Photo by Syed F Hashemi on Unsplash
At around 10 a.m. local time, Joe R. Biden, Jr. will be sworn in as President by the Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court by citing the 35-word oath of office.
To recognize this time-honored tradition, here are a few facts about this historical day:
Prior to 1933, the Constitution of the United States had established March 4 as Inauguration Day. With the advancement of our voting systems and ease of transportation, it now takes place on Jan. 20 under the 20th Amendment.
Inauguration speeches are historically shorter than any other presidential speech. President William Henry Harrison gave the longest inaugural address during a snowstorm but died a month later from pneumonia contracted on Inauguration Day.
In 1925, President Calvin Coolidge’s inauguration was the first to be broadcast over radio. President Harry Truman’s inauguration would be the first to be televised in 1949. President Bill Clinton’s second inauguration in 1997 was the first to be live streamed on the web.
The blueberry Jelly Belly was created for President Ronald Reagan’s inauguration as jelly beans were his favorite candy after he quit smoking. Red, white and blue Jelly Belly’s were used for his inaugural celebrations.
While presidents today are sworn into office at the U.S. Capitol building, there are many presidents who were sworn into office in unusual places. President Lyndon B. Johnson is the only president to be sworn into office by a woman and it occurred mid-flight on Air Force One, following the assassination of President John F. Kennedy.
And of course, today we will swear in the first woman, the first African American, and the first South Asian American as vice president, Kamala Harris.
