United States presidential inauguration

==Ceremony elements==
Inauguration procedure is governed by tradition rather than the Constitution, the only constitutionally required procedure being the presidential oath of office (which may be taken anywhere, with anyone in attendance who can legally witness an oath, and at any time prior to the actual beginning of the new president's term).<ref name="eapi">Terri Bimes, ed. Michael A. Genovese, ''Encyclopedia of the American Presidency'', p 262-63.</ref> Traditionally, the president-elect arrives at the White House and then proceeds to the Capitol Building with the out-going president. Around or after 12 noon, the president takes the oath of office, usually administered by the [[chief justice of the United States]], and then delivers the inaugural address.

===Oaths of office===
{{main|Oath of office of the president of the United States|Oath of office of the vice president of the United States}}
[[File:US President Barack Obama taking his Oath of Office - 2009Jan20.jpg|thumb|left|[[Barack Obama]] takes the [[Oath of office of the president of the United States|oath of office]] from Chief Justice [[John Roberts]] during his [[First inauguration of Barack Obama|2009 presidential inauguration]] on January 20, 2009.]]
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The vice president is sworn into office in the same ceremony as the president. Prior to 1937, the [[Oath of office of the vice president of the United States|vice presidential oath]] was administered in the [[United States Senate|Senate Chamber]] (in keeping with the vice president's position as president of the Senate). The oath is administered to the vice president first. Immediately afterwards, the [[United States Marine Band]] will perform four "[[ruffles and flourishes]]", followed by "[[Hail, Columbia]]". Unlike the presidential oath, however, the Constitution does not specify specific words that must be spoken. Several variants of the oath have been used since 1789. The current form, which is also recited by senators, representatives, and other government officers, has been in use since 1884:

{{cquote|I do solemnly swear (or [[Affirmation in law|affirm]]) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter. So help me God.<ref>{{usc|5|3331}}</ref>
}}

At noon, the new presidential and vice presidential terms begin. At about that time, the president recites the constitutionally mandated oath of office:

{{cquote|I do solemnly swear (or [[Affirmation in law|affirm]]) that I will faithfully execute the office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States.}}

According to [[Washington Irving]]'s biography of George Washington, after reciting the oath at his (and the nation's) first inauguration, Washington added the words "so help me God".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://2002-2009-fpc.state.gov/40871.htm |title=Presidential Inaugurations Past and Present: A Look at the History Behind the Pomp and Circumstance |publisher=2002-2009-fpc.state.gov |access-date=November 7, 2012 |archive-date=February 22, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130222000457/http://2002-2009-fpc.state.gov/40871.htm |url-status=dead }}</ref> However, the only contemporaneous source that fully reproduced Washington's oath completely lacks the religious codicil.<ref>''Documentary History of the First Federal Congress'', Vol. 15, pages 404–405</ref> The first newspaper report that actually described the exact words used in an oath of office, Chester Arthur's in 1881,<ref>{{cite news
|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1881/09/23/archives/the-new-administration-president-arthur-formally-inaugurated.html
|title=The New Administration: President Arthur Formally Inaugurated
|date=September 22, 1881
|work=The New York Times
}}</ref> repeated the "query-response" method where the words, "so help me God" were a personal prayer, not a part of the constitutional oath. The time of adoption of the current procedure, where both the chief justice and the president speak the oath, is unknown.

The oath of office was administered to Washington in 1789 by [[Robert R. Livingston (chancellor)|Robert Livingston]], Chancellor of New York State. Four years later, the oath was administered by [[Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court|Supreme Court associate justice]] [[William Cushing]]. Since the 1797 inauguration of [[John Adams]], it has become customary for the new president to be sworn into office by the Supreme Court's [[Chief Justice of the United States|chief justice]]. Others have administered the oath on occasions when a new president assumed office intra-term due to the incumbent's death or resignation.  [[William Cranch]], chief judge of the U.S. Circuit Court, administered the oath of office to [[John Tyler]] in 1841 when he succeeded to the presidency upon [[William Henry Harrison]]'s death, and to [[Millard Fillmore]] in 1850 when [[Zachary Taylor]] died. In 1923, upon being informed of [[Warren Harding]]'s death, while visiting his [[Coolidge Homestead|family home]] in [[Plymouth Notch, Vermont]], [[Calvin Coolidge]] was sworn in as president by his father, [[John Calvin Coolidge, Sr.]], a [[notary public]].<ref>Glenn D. Kittler, [https://books.google.com/books?ei=Rdf2UaOmJ9Ol4APT44CICg&id=XZ4MAQAAMAAJ&dq=porter+dale+swearing+in+calvin+coolidge&q=porter+dale Hail to the Chief!: The Inauguration Days of our Presidents], 1965, page 167</ref><ref>Porter H. Dale, The Calvin Coolidge Inauguration Revisited: An Eyewitness Account by Congressman Porter H. Dale, republished in Vermont History magazine, 1994, Volume 62, pages 214-222</ref> Most recently, [[United States federal judge|federal judge]] [[Sarah T. Hughes]] administered the oath of office to [[Lyndon B. Johnson]] aboard [[Air Force One]] after [[John F. Kennedy assassination|John F. Kennedy's assassination]] on November 22, 1963.

Since 1789 there have been 59 inaugural ceremonies to mark the commencement of a new four-year term of a president of the United States, and an additional nine marking the start of a partial presidential term following the intra-term death or resignation of an incumbent president. With the [[Inauguration of Joe Biden|2021 inauguration]] of [[Joe Biden]], the oath has been taken 73 different times by 45 people. This numerical discrepancy results chiefly from two factors: a president must take the oath at the beginning of each term of office, and, because the day of inauguration has sometimes fallen on a Sunday, five presidents have taken the oath privately before the public inaugural ceremonies.<ref name="inaugUSCap">{{cite web|url=https://www.aoc.gov/nations-stage/inauguration-us-capitol|title=Inauguration at the U.S. Capitol|publisher=Architect of the Capitol|access-date=January 22, 2017}}</ref>

There is no requirement that any book, or in particular a book of sacred text, be used to administer the oath, and none is mentioned in the Constitution. By convention, incoming presidents raise their right hand and place the left on a [[Bible]] or other book while taking the oath of office. While most have, [[John Quincy Adams]] did not use a Bible when taking the oath in 1825;<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.loc.gov/rr/program/bib/inaugurations/jqadams/index.html|title=U.S. Presidential Inaugurations: John Quincy Adams|work=Web guides|publisher=Library of Congress|access-date=January 29, 2017}}</ref> neither did [[Theodore Roosevelt]] in 1901.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.loc.gov/rr/program/bib/inaugurations/theodoreroosevelt/index.html|title=U.S. Presidential Inaugurations: Theodore Roosevelt|work=Web guides|publisher=Library of Congress|access-date=January 29, 2017}}</ref>  In 1853, [[Franklin Pierce]] affirmed the oath of office rather than swear it.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://guides.loc.gov/presidential-inaugurations/1829-1857#s-lg-box-wrapper-31051987|title=U.S. Presidential Inaugurations: Franklin Pierce|work=Web guides|publisher=Library of Congress|access-date=January 22, 2024}}</ref> More recently, a Catholic [[missal]] was used for Lyndon B. Johnson's 1963 swearing in ceremony.<ref name=wapo>{{cite news|author = Glass, Andrew J.| title = Catholic Church Missal, Not Bible, Used by Johnson for Oath at Dallas| newspaper = [[The Washington Post]]| date = February 26, 1967| url = http://jfk.hood.edu/Collection/Weisberg%20Subject%20Index%20Files/M%20Disk/Manchester%20William%20Unclassified%20Part%203/Item%2024.pdf| access-date = June 15, 2014}}</ref><ref name=indy>{{cite web|author = Usborne, Simon| title = The LBJ missal: Why a prayer book given to John F Kennedy was used to swear in the 36th US President| work = [[The Independent (UK)|The Independent]]| date = November 16, 2013| url = https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/the-lbj-missal-why-a-prayer-book-given-to-john-f-kennedy-was-used-to-swear-in-the-36th-us-president-8940643.html| access-date = June 15, 2014}}</ref>

Bibles of historical significance have sometimes been used at inaugurations. [[George H. W. Bush]], [[Jimmy Carter]] and [[Dwight D. Eisenhower]] used the [[George Washington Inaugural Bible]]. [[Barack Obama]] placed his hand upon the [[Lincoln Bible]] for his oaths in 2009 and 2013,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.pic2009.org/blog/entry/president-elect_barack_obama_to_be_sworn_in_using_lincolns_bible/|title=President-elect Barack Obama to be Sworn in Using Lincoln's Bible|publisher=Presidential Inaugural Committee|date=December 23, 2008|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090119012923/http://pic2009.org/blog/entry/president-elect_barack_obama_to_be_sworn_in_using_lincolns_bible|archive-date=January 19, 2009}}</ref> as did Donald Trump in 2017.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2017/01/18/the-symbolism-of-trumps-two-inaugural-bible-choices-from-lincoln-to-his-mother/ |title=The symbolism of Trump's two inaugural Bible choices, from Lincoln to his mother |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |first=Katie |last=Mettler |date=January 18, 2017 |access-date=January 29, 2017}}</ref> [[Joe Biden]] placed his hand upon a large leather-bound family Bible.<ref>{{cite web| last=Schumaker| first=Erin| date=January 20, 2021| title=The significance of the Bible Joe Biden is using on Inauguration Day| url=https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/significance-bible-joe-biden-inauguration-day/story?id=75369058| website=[[ABC News|abcnews.go.com]]| access-date=January 21, 2021}}</ref>

{{listen|filename=Four Ruffles and Flourishes (pause) and Hail To The Chief -short version-.ogg|title=Four ruffles and flourishes played before "Hail to the Chief"}}

Immediately after the presidential oath, the [[United States Marine Band]] will perform four "ruffles and flourishes", followed by "[[Hail to the Chief]]", while simultaneously, a [[21-gun salute]] is fired using [[artillery|artillery pieces]] from the Presidential Guns Salute Battery, [[3rd United States Infantry Regiment (The Old Guard)|3rd United States Infantry Regiment "The Old Guard"]] located in Taft Park, north of the Capitol. The actual gun salute begins with the first "ruffle and flourish", and "run long" (i.e. the salute concludes after "Hail to the Chief" has ended). The Marine Band, which is believed to have made its inaugural debut in 1801 for Thomas Jefferson's first inauguration, is the only musical unit to participate in all three components of the presidential inauguration: the swearing-in ceremony, the inaugural parade, and an inaugural ball. During the ceremony, the band is positioned directly below the presidential podium at the U.S. Capitol.<ref name="thepresident'sown">{{cite web |url=http://www.marineband.marines.mil/Unit-Home/Presidential-Inauguration-2017/ |title=Presidential Inauguration 2017 |publisher=[[United States Marine Corps]] |access-date=January 27, 2017}}</ref>

===Inaugural address===
{{Listen|filename=The Inauguration of the 46th President of the United States-q5iCPKDp4V4.webm|title=Inaugural address of President Joe Biden.

|description=The inaugural address, in full, made by [[Joe Biden]] after being [[Oath of office of the president of the United States|sworn]] in as the [[List of presidents of the United States|46th]] president of the United States on January 20, 2021.|format=[[WebM]]}}
Newly sworn-in presidents usually give a [[speech]] referred to as an inaugural address. As with many inaugural customs, this one was started by George Washington in 1789. After taking his oath of office on the balcony of Federal Hall, he proceeded to the Senate chamber where he read a speech before members of Congress and other dignitaries. Every president since Washington has delivered an inaugural address. While many of the early presidents read their addresses before taking the oath, current custom dictates that the chief justice administer the oath first, followed by the president's speech.<ref name="JCCOIC"/> [[William McKinley]] requested the change in 1897, so that he could reiterate the words of the oath at the close of his first inaugural address.

[[William Henry Harrison]] delivered the longest inaugural address, at 8,445 words, in 1841. John Adams' 1797 address, which totaled 2,308 words, contained the longest sentence, at 737 words. In 1793, Washington gave the shortest inaugural address on record, just 135 words.<ref name="JCCOIC">{{cite web |url=https://www.inaugural.senate.gov/days-events/inaugural-address/ |title=Inaugural Address |publisher=Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies |access-date=January 23, 2017}} {{PD-notice}}</ref>

Most presidents use their inaugural address to present their vision of America and to set forth their goals for the nation. Some of the most eloquent and powerful speeches are still quoted today. In 1865, in the waning days of the [[American Civil War|Civil War]], [[Abraham Lincoln]] stated, "With malice toward none, with charity for all, with firmness in the right as God gives us to see the right, let us strive on to finish the work we are in, to bind up the nation's wounds, to care for him who shall have borne the battle and for his widow and his orphan, to do all which may achieve and cherish a just and lasting peace among ourselves and with all nations." In 1933, [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]] avowed, "the only thing we have to fear is fear itself.” And in 1961, [[John F. Kennedy]] declared, "And so my fellow Americans: ask not what your country can do for you – ask what you can do for your country."<ref name="JCCOIC"/>

On the eight occasions where the new president succeeded to the office upon their predecessor's death intra-term, none gave an address, but each did address Congress soon thereafter.<ref name="eapi" /> When [[Gerald Ford]] became president in 1974, following the resignation of [[Richard Nixon]], he addressed the nation after taking the oath, but he characterized his speech as "Not an inaugural address, not a [[fireside chat]], not a campaign speech{{snd}}just a little straight talk among friends".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ford.utexas.edu/LIBRARY/speeches/740001.htm|title=Gerald R. Ford's Remarks on Taking the Oath of Office as President|publisher=Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library and Museum|access-date=November 18, 2008|archive-date=November 10, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081110192301/http://www.ford.utexas.edu/library/speeches/740001.htm|url-status=dead}}</ref> ({{Cws |title=Full text |link=Gerald Ford's assumption of the Presidency|nobullet=yes}})

===Prayers===
{{further|Prayers at United States presidential inaugurations}}
[[File:Invocation at 1981 Reagan inauguration.jpg|thumb|right|The Reverend [[Donn Moomaw]] delivers the [[invocation]] at the [[first inauguration of Ronald Reagan]], 1981.]]
Since 1937, the ceremony has incorporated one or more prayers.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://fpc.state.gov/40871.htm|title=Presidential Inaugurations Past and Present: A Look at the History Behind the Pomp and Circumstance}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.restorethepledge.com/live/past_litigation/inaugural/docs/2004-12-17%20complaint.pdf|title=Appendix D: Inaugural Clergy|last=Newdow}}</ref>  Since 1933 an associated prayer service either public or private attended by the president-elect has often taken place on the morning of the day.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://inaugural.senate.gov/history/daysevents/morningworshipservice.cfm|title=Morning Worship Service}}</ref>  At times a major public or broadcast prayer service takes place after the main ceremony most recently on the next day.<ref>{{cite web| title = Washington National Cathedral: Presidential Inaugural Prayer Services| publisher = Washington National Cathedral| url = http://www.nationalcathedral.org/about/presidentialInaugurals.shtml| access-date = January 16, 2009| url-status = dead| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20090120055714/http://nationalcathedral.org/about/presidentialInaugurals.shtml| archive-date = January 20, 2009| df = mdy-all}}</ref>

===Poems===
[[File:Angelou at Clinton inauguration.jpg|thumb|[[Maya Angelou]] delivering her poem "[[On the Pulse of Morning]]" at Bill Clinton's inauguration in 1993]]
Six inaugural ceremonies since 1961 have included a reading by a poet.<ref name=wp>{{cite news |author=Michael E. Ruane |title=Selection Provides Civil Rights Symmetry |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/12/17/AR2008121702027.html?wpisrc=newsletter&wpisrc=newsletter&wpisrc=newsletter |newspaper=Washington Post |date=December 17, 2008 |access-date=January 15, 2009 }}</ref> The following poetry readings have taken place: 
*[[Inauguration of John F. Kennedy]] (1961): [[Robert Frost]] read part of "[[For John F. Kennedy His Inauguration|Dedication]]" and recited "[[The Gift Outright]]"<ref name="tuten">Tuten, Nancy Lewis; Zubizarreta, John (2001). ''The Robert Frost Encyclopedia.'' Greenwood Publishing Group, {{ISBN|9780313294648}}</ref>
*[[First inauguration of Bill Clinton]] (1993): [[Maya Angelou]] read her poem "[[On the Pulse of Morning]]"<ref name="kelloway">Kelloway, Kate. (January 24, 1993).  "Poet for the New America," ''The Observer''.</ref>
*[[Second inauguration of Bill Clinton]] (1997): [[Miller Williams]] read his poem "Of History and Hope"<ref>{{cite news|last=Rosenthal|first=Harry|title=Poet Addresses Inaugural Event|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/national/longterm/inaug/mon/williams.htm|access-date=February 1, 2013|newspaper=The Washington Post|date=January 20, 1997}}</ref> 
*[[First inauguration of Barack Obama]] (2009): [[Elizabeth Alexander (poet)|Elizabeth Alexander]] read her poem "[[Praise Song for the Day]]"<ref name=ny>{{cite news |author=Katharine Q. Seelye |title=Poet Chosen for Inauguration Is Aiming for a Work That Transcends the Moment |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/21/us/politics/21poet.html?partner=permalink&exprod=permalink |newspaper=The New York Times |date=December 21, 2008 |access-date=January 15, 2009 }}</ref>
*[[Second inauguration of Barack Obama]] (2013): [[Richard Blanco]] read his poem "[[One Today]]"<ref>{{cite news|last=Bruce|first=Mary|title='One Today': Full Text of Richard Blanco Inaugural Poem |url=https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/today-richard-blanco-poem-read-barack-obama-inauguration/story?id=18274653|access-date=January 22, 2013|newspaper=ABC News|date=January 21, 2013}}</ref>
* [[Inauguration of Joe Biden]] (2021): [[Amanda Gorman]] read her poem "[[The Hill We Climb]]"<ref>{{cite news |last1=Domonoske |first1=Camila |title=Poet Amanda Gorman Reads 'The Hill We Climb' |url=https://www.npr.org/sections/inauguration-day-live-updates/2021/01/20/958743170/poet-amanda-gorman-reads-the-hill-we-climb |access-date=January 20, 2021 |work=[[NPR]] |date=January 20, 2021}}</ref>