With the swearing-in ceremony moved indoors, I am cancelling my trip to Washington, DC for the second inauguration of Donald Trump. There’s no need to fly to Washington, DC just to watch it on a screen…
With Swearing-In Moved Inside, I’m Skipping DC For 2025 Inauguration
I attend every presidential inauguration not as a sycophant but as an American citizen and political scientist. Long before January 6, 2021, I celebrated the smooth transition of power on this blog as a hallmark of the American experiment in ordered liberty.
Four years ago, you might recall I flew to DC anyway even though the public was disinvited from the inauguration due to COVID-19 concerns. Then, I thought that I could find a way in and I thought it would be newsworthy to cover what DC looked like under military control. I never got it, the District of Columbia was quite a sight to behold.
> Read More: Photo Essay – The 59th Presidential Inauguration
With a storm hitting DC tomorrow and below-freezing temperatures expected on Monday morning, the President-Elect moved his swearing-in ceremony indoors. That means me…and the thousands of other ticket holders to view the swearing-in ceremony from outside the US Capitol…are suddenly holding commemorative souvenirs rather than real tickets.
My mom and dad, newly married, attended the 1985 inauguration of Ronald Reagan in Washington, DC which was also moved indoors due to frigid weather. At least they had inaugural ball tickets and made a fun weekend out of it.
40 years later, I do know there would be some interesting stories I could write about the weekend festivities and I was also planning on attending the “One America, One Light” prayer service at the Capital One arena tomorrow and the National Prayer Service on Tuesday at the National Cathedral, but I just canceled my United Airlines tickets to DC and will sit this one out.
Oh, I’ll cover it on Monday with some thoughts that will hopefully be tangentially travel-related but I’ll watch it from the comfort of a screen rather than watching a jumbotron in the frigid cold or watching it from my mobile phone in the lobby of the Willard Hotel.
I’ll very much miss going, but unless you can convince me otherwise, I don’t see the point considering the outdoor events have been canceled and I have no chance of getting inside the Capitol.
This is the right call. Although, I feel bad for the folks that might have had non-cancellable hotel reservations. Would be great if hotels had more flexibility than they do.
He’s the oldest man to ever be inaugurated. I don’t blame him. It’s too chilly outside. He won’t be comfy. Sure, Obama and JFK could handle the cold, but to be fair, they had millions of people in the crowd there to warm them up. Trump just won’t have that.
Exactly right. This about crowd size .
Thanks for admitting it’s about crowd size.
I attended Obama’s first inauguration where I remember it being incredibly cold. My kids and I were wearing thermal coats and underwear, and we were still freezing!
I mean, that’s just my hunch based on my knowledge of Trump. But I’m very disappointed (and hardly surprised).
Others are saying it is due to security…folks worried about a drone attack. I just don’t buy it.
Even real estate brokers were already using drones to film properties and communities in the years before Trump’s first inauguration. And we have since had Trump and Biden have an inauguration outdoors at a time when lots of people have flying drones.
The drone thing is indeed just an excuse being used by the crooked or gullible to convince the gullible and to be used by the crooked to make excuses for why the inauguration is being moved inside. Trump’s an old man scared of getting sick “from the cold” and dying because of it. Sort of ironic he’s chickening over the cold when it’s not even a year since he almost got assassinated by a frustrated MAGA supporter who wanted to show off his shooting skills and get attention for it even if it meant “suicide by cop”.
So does this mean the incoming Commander-in-Chief Crybaby won’t be crying about the size of the Inauguration crowd being at a 40 year record low or whatever?
The moving of the inauguration indoors speaks to Trump being an old guy afraid of getting sick and dying because of “bad weather”.
The cold weather chicken has also claimed it needed to be done for security.
….. as if security concerns with Inaugurations are novel to the convicted conman-in-chief.
He’s also really worried about his hairdo; can’t handle bad weather. Kinda like last term when he ditched the end of World War II ceremonies in Europe because of the rain….total loser.
“Loser” worth billions and now, again the most powerful man in the world. Yea, everyone would hate their kid to turn out like him.
What a fucking ass clown you must be. Don’t worry, you will still be able to suck c#ck and be treated as almost normal.
He’s a massively failed businessman — as his return on what he inherited is way worse than what a monkey would earn from parking the money in the S&P 500. And even otherwise he’s a bankrupt character.
Having a child like him turn out like he has is a sign of having a big loser as a child. But there have even been big losers as emperors, kings and so on. But if money and power impress a person so easily, it speaks to the person being a loser too or even a classic prostitute where it’s just about what the market-clearing price is since we already determined it’s a matter of price.
His dad hated him, so I would say his parents wouldn’t like way he turned out. His dad is rolling over in his grave that his “son” can’t handle a little cold weather. Sad
Weather at around noon for the inaugurations:
https://www.weather.gov/lwx/events_Inauguration
As someone who has been at some Presidential inaugurations in DC and even waited outside from as early as around 7am, it’s much colder for the waiting audience outside than those who come out in the mid or late morning for the Inauguration.
Exactly. There’s no excuse over this…it’s not about the people, who would dress accordingly, it’s about his size.
If he would come out and just be honest that he’s old and afraid of dying from “getting sick from the cold” or knows the crowd would be smaller this time than at even his first inauguration, then at least that could be respected. But here he is again bamboozling his own biggest fans, and that’s contemptible.
@Matthew … What is a “political scientist” ? “Science” involves experimentation and testing hypotheses , no ? Is “political science” merely a glorified term for “civics” ?
A “good citizen” is not exactly a “scientist” , no ?
During the 2024 election the poll-takers ( “public opinion scientists”) appear to have manipulated findings . Sneakily unscientific perhaps ?
@Matthew … Second paragraph : “… as an American citizen and a political scientist” ?
Your definition of science is too narrow. Political Science is a social science…
@Matthew … I won’t be rude to ask you , but cannot imagine an answer to “What did you do as a ‘political scientist’ ?”
Perhaps , “Oh , I read the New York Times or the Manchester Guardian , and I bark back whatever their opinions” ?
Or , Perhaps , “Oh , I was the failed Mayor of Los Angeles” ?
So , what has anyone ever done as a ‘political scientist’ ?
Political science is much broader than “civics” and political science is the very term that has been used in American schools going back to at least the 1800s.
Says the Middle East scholar who tells Israel what to do , after Arab invasions of Palestine since 1929 , during the past 96 years . They never learn .
Middle East scholar, who? You? ROTFLOL
I am no Middle East scholar, but I have had the great privilege of being extraordinarily curious, information-obsessed, well-informed, well-positioned, well-connected and no gullible apologist or kiss-up for anyone when it comes to history, people and dynamics of that region. It doesn’t make me a Middle East scholar, but it sure does help me to avoid being a dunce, (if even different) an apologist for rogues or a lazy-minded tribalist.
The “Arab invasions” continue , although they are always failures . So they are the “dunces” . no ?
Matt, when did you get a PhD in Political Science?
Your local weather guy doesn’t have a PhD in meteorology, but he’s still a meteorologist.
No , the ‘stacked weather girl’ is not a ‘meteorologist” .
“Stacked weather girl?” Are you like 80 and from the Archie Bunker generation?
A PhD in political science is not the only way to be deemed a political scientist, and this is coming from someone with a PhD (but not in political science). Longtime readers of this blog find credence in Matthew’s claim to be a political scientist regardless of what academic credentials he may or may not have.
@Tom … Please explain the ‘credence’ in a claim to be a ‘political scientist’ , if one lacks the PhD .
Does a schoolchild with a chemical set claim to be a “chemist” ?
BA, JD…my empahsies, even in law school, were on politcal and constituational matters.
@Matthew … O.K. , you have now proved it .
Thomas Jefferson was quite the political scientist and a lawyer but he had no PhD in political science.
I was curious and looked in the Hyatt app and plenty of standard rewards available in DC for next Sunday and Monday night. Of course cash prices are high — why not as the event is a gala for oligarchs and their minions. Now I’d be the last person to ever attend a Trump inaugural but I found the availability of a large number of reward nights curious as speculation about how the weather might be hiding concern about crowd size. There’s a data point for you.
Award nights and even regular paid nights in DC and nearby VA and MD hotels were nearly impossible to find in the 0-9 nights before Obama’s inauguration in 2009. I ended up having to put up people at Hyatt Place BWI and then Omni in DC when the latter came available last minute (because some others I knew meeting up with Richard Branson changed plans and found a house to stay at), but nothing else more convenient came up when I was looking. Trump’s inaugurations aren’t as popular. And Biden’s was during a pandemic.
Did you still find a way to s#ck their c#cks to thank them for being lazy f#cks and “using” your “service”?
You have a lot of perverted fantasies you like to share about yourself, as you did above. And it is your right to have whatever perverted dreams you leant, but I want no part in your dreams about male genitalia. But you be you with your perversions and demonstrable lack of self-respect, lack of manners and being a low class schmuck. Thus no surprise that you have Trump as your Lord. Do you also like to sexually assault people like your Lord Trump has done, or is that just a continuing perverted fantasy of yours?
Smart move. Too cold and only get to see a screen.
I’m sure Comrade Melania didn’t want to wear a coat over her Chanel, Gucci or Louis Vuitton outfit and this way she can show off her outfit on the air and increase her prenup again!!!
@ Matthew — This is all about Trump not wanting to suffer the humiliation of poor attendance. Hotels are about 70% occupied in DC, probably because most of the morons who voted for him can’t afford the cost to attend. I think it is awesome that his inauguration has turned into a giant flop.
@Gene: Yes, nobody cares for his inauguration, right? https://www.politico.com/news/2025/01/16/trump-inauguration-corporate-donors-004242
Pay to pray!
What passes for discourse on this site is getting pretty f’n sad. Both sides should be ashamed of themselves. I doubt any of you would have the stupidity to behave this way in person. At least I hope you wouldn’t.
Thank you for the (shared) observation. When anything political is discussed (and that happens even with the weather nowadays), people are acerbic and cruel which, to me, is indicative of a strained and troubled society. I read that we increasingly live in a bubble society where our friends are typically politically similar to us and in our socio-economical caste but yet not connected via geography.
When I grew up near Scranton, I knew nearly everyone for about a 2 block radius. As Gen-Xers, the 8 year olds were ordered out of the home to play and not return until dusk hoping none of us would be abducted. There were Democrat and Republican voters and different religions but this didn’t matter.
Before VHS and HBO (for Matt, this would be known as home video) and the internet, people socialized more at arcades and later, internet cafes where the women would be on IRC chat and the men would be playing FPS games. Highly recommend the movie “Joysticks”. People would spend their weekends and nights at the movie theater, mall, or K-mart going for some pizza while jumping on The Blue Light Special. My father spent a lot of time at bars which was a sort of social club for about 2 hours before coming home. If you wanted a plane ticket, you had to get on the phone and ask an agent to order one for you and interact with a fedex guy to deliver it or get a human to give you one. People often paid bills in person at the office! (The expression “I gave at the office” no longer is funny).
In other words, we don’t interact much with people outside of our bubbles so we’re rather harsh particularly when anonymity is involved.
Matt didn’t have this blog back in 2009 for Obama’s inauguration but I remember this: A friend of mine attended and it wasn’t that cold. The line for the Metro payment machine was long so I just bought him fresh metro smartcards to get him on his way. The crowds were immense so all he did was watch it on TV in the street as a sort of shared experience but I think he enjoyed it. Matt should have perhaps come anyway as a general observation of the “vibe” of the city and watched it from one of the hotel or bar lobbies, particularly the former Trump hotel in DC which is lovely.
I was at Capitol Hill from 7am or so until 2pm or so on January 20, 2009 when I was at the Supreme Court. In the morning, it was much colder than usual with windchill. And I’ve been to plenty of inaugurations over the years and called DC home for decades.
And for perspective, I dislike hot weather, love the snow and grew up skiing on icy slopes in Upper Peninsula Michigan on January’s coldest days. The idea that January 20, 2009 was on the warm side for POTUS inaugurations is a blatant lie or willful ignorance.
I was there, too, that day and it was incredibly cold and uncomfortable. But we knew in advance about the temperature and winds and had dressed accordingly. My kids and I had standing tickets on the lawn on the Senate side of the Capitol. We really couldn’t see or hear much – the crowd on the Mall in back of us had Jumbotrons and loud speakers – but it was so cool to be standing with hundreds of thousands of people, who had gathered to watch Obama inaugurated.
I was there 8 years later, at the 2017 “Women’s March”. I’d love to find out what the crowd sizes were on both days, but supposedly the government gave estimating crowd size.
Some of the January 6, 2021 “stop the steal” attendees at the Capitol in DC are furious about the 2025 inauguration suddenly being taken indoors and their expensive travel plans being for nought to see Trump’s inauguration in person next week.
Realistically, even if they held outdoors you weren’t going to be close enough and would see it on a screen anyhow. As for the “too cold”, get a grip. Dress for it. The pansy in chief is such a snowflake.
Depends on the tickets held, and the vision of a person. It’s not only people with seat tickets who can see the Inauguration without staring at the Jumbotrons the entire time. There are traditionally also some ticketed standing areas on the Capitol grounds that are close enough to see the VIP action without relying upon the Jumbotrons.
@Lance: I had yellow tickets – I would have been able to see without the screen.
Lol love the usual parade of Trump hating retards in the comments.
He won and there’s nothing you losers can do about it.
@Chi … +1 . For a sane outlook on the world , I recommend the magazine “Spectator UK” .
“Spectator UK” is the oldest Free magazine in English .
Just a reminder: Liberty does not mean 51% dictating to the other 49%. That’s actually the opposite of liberty. So much of this country is screwed up because the most basic words and concepts are conflated with those that mean the opposite. Democracy is not freedom. Being forced to pay tax is not freedom. Being forced to hire who you don’t want is not freedom. Schools having to let biological men play on girl teams is not freedom.
@David … +1 . I might add that Religion is freedom , and reading “Spectator UK” is freedom .
Big Brother ( in 1984 ) would first attempt to cancel religion and “Spectator UK” .
It’s gonna be dangerously cold in DC on Monday. Any moron with half a brain would move a ceremony indoors.
We have the usual panicked empty grocery stores around here already (Potomac MD) so please don’t tell me this is a Republican/Democrat thing. No one is planning on going out and the Federal government will of course be closed for the week.
Dangerously cold for wusses who don’t know how to dress properly and for the poor and homeless.
Dangerously cold Monday for those living in Potomac, MD? ROTFLOL Have to go cry for my family and friends living in Potomac. ROTFLOL since Monday’s not a good day for golfing at the Congressional Country Club down the road.
And can’t forget about how poorly DC metro area drivers do with driving when there is even a little bit of snow on the ground. But snow is not why Trump wanted the inauguration moved indoors.
GU you’re one of those guys I’d be thrilled to meet in person and smack the shit out of. I obviously nailed you.
Bundled up in 47 pounds of clothes bitching about your Range Rover warranty and crying because Giant is out of milk.
You’re the epitome of an internet coward. You don’t even any empathy for those who might be poor and homeless and yet pretend to. You’re pathetic.
I’ll meet you in front of Giant Food in Potomac MD at noon on next Tuesday.
Be there or STFU. I’ll wear a blue hat, jeans and a leather coat.
Let’s see what you’re really made of.
Cairns, a thug wannabe. ROTFLOL Just don’t cry to me when you find out that your attempt to be a thug doesn’t fly so well for you.
Which Giant? There are two. I mean, personally I would prefer a Whole Foods to watch this go down. Better quality snacks to enjoy the show.
Bethesda has a Whole Foods, but it’s about a 30 minute walk from the Friendship Heights metro station. And we know cairns is more into thuggery than friendship. 😀
Oh and given the weather I’ll expect you to be in shorts and a t-shirt. ROTFLOL.
God what a loser.
Thank you for confessing about yourself. It explains your bitter heart and fondness for illegal violence. No surprise you’re a Trump supporter.
Did you get tickets from your representative in congress?
Yes.
Guess he’s gonna wuss out. Says it all.
Internet coward.
]
Unlike you and your Lord Trump, I am not a fan of criminal activity and won’t encourage a loser’s desire for illegal violence — and since you want that illegal violence to take place on someone else’s property, you obviously don’t even respect the property rights of others since Giant and/or the property owner won’t provide consent to engage in criminal activity on the grounds where Giants’ customers are concerned. You will be you with your thuggery, but you have zero ability to land a hit on me. 😉
Hey GUWonder, If you’re not a fan of criminal activity, you should be against democrats and they thuggism, not in bed with them and encouraging their criminal activity.
Americans saw through the lies and voted for Donald trump. Democrats could not get a single state that had mandatory ID. Stop with your bs about criminal activity. People don’t buy it anymore. More people are democrat party every single day. The more you know about them, they more you want to be far from them
GUWonder still in meltdown mode lmao
Meltdown in your dreams and only dreams but not in reality.
As I said well before the election, I was counting on Trump winning the election. Amusingly, he did worse than I expected, but he’s a loser and a predictable sore loser at that. And Trump is notorious as the biggest adult crybaby in the world.
lmaoooo the butthurt is real T_T
Was great being at Obama’s Inaugurations. Yep Both of them.
Impeachments are interesting too, and it’s indoors unless waiting outdoors to get inside. Only had 3 chances to attend impeachments of a President. And only one of those 2 impeached Presidents turned out to be a convicted felon. The twice impeached convicted felon is going to become POTUS as of noon on Monday, and Putin will be celebrating it along with the usual suspects.
You know, no one cares about the impeachments and convicted felon talking points. Everyone knows these are the products of corrupt, politicized systems trying to harass and destroy Trump. For many like myself, it made us support him MORE.
So whenever I hear some dumb leftist go on about it, I cant help but chuckle because not only did they fail to destroy President Trump, but you actually made him a victim of a corrupt system, and a sort of martyr, It actually probably helped him get re-elected.
It makes me laugh.
So excited for Monday. THE Ohio State will be National Champjons and President Trum inauguration. I’m undecided between Moet and Chandon Imperial Rosè or a 2012 Lanson.
Rumor in DC is it’s as much if not more over rising security concerns.
Global warming at its best. Crank up the heat!
It’s no colder than it was for the Harrison inauguration and that one wasn’t moved inside.
ROTFL
It’s colder but dryer tomorrow than it was for Harrison’s Inauguration. And nowadays, there are more advanced textiles available to deal with cold weather and to deal with rainy days in their 30s and 40s (F) than back during Harrison’s time. Trump is old and in questionable physical and mental health, so chickening out over weather is not surprising. And then there is that big matter of a small(er) crowd size.
Akshualy, the low on Harrison’s Inauguration Day was only an estimated 34, but it was raining.
Seems all the state society parties and other receptions are still going on as planned. There were some protests in DC yesterday, but only a few thousand attended. Drizzle but no snow in NOVA yet, but I’ve got to think some flight cancellations at DCA will start when it does and the temperature drops below freezing at the same time. (IAD does better in bad weather.)
Wow. So many Trump hating crowd here in the comment section including the author, who only things it could be because of weather. Do you conveniently forget that he had two assassination attempts in the last 6 months? So many articles about Local Police Departments Are Refusing To Help DC Secure Trump’s Inauguration.
You still speak about crowd?
People voted him to be President. One thing I find it very common with Trump hating crowd is, they also hate America. Why live in a country that you hate?
Yes, there were two assassination attempts against him, evidence of the sin of man and the sin of a nation.
But remember, I’ve been to the inaugurations going back to George W Bush and there’s tremendous layover upon layver of security. If the POTUS cannot be safe outside surrounded by hundreds of secret service officers, what kind of country do we live in?
And no, the so-called “Trump-hating crowd” (I don’t hate him at all) doesn’t hate America…most love America and see the world differently. Please don’t reduce patriotism to supporting the man currently occupying the White House or the one who will occupy the White House starting tomorrow afternoon.
The Russian-Ukrainian war has shown how warfare has evolved with drones taking center stage including AI (ever see Terminator 3?). We may be entering an era when it will be difficult to maintain outside security without a full electronic lockdown such as disabling mobile phones, GPS, and electronic jamming which have limited effect on drones particularly those with fiber optic connections good up to a 20km. Yeah, a 20km cable for a single drone. Amazing.
Trump is accustomed to a certain luxury standard of living such as being able to roam around a vast golf course while the white house probably makes him feel claustrophobic including much of the building are boring offices. Matt probably knows a lot about the white house as an intern. Imagine the COVID era of working from home except the home is considerably larger but you’re used to being able to go out.
FYI, weather today in Northern Virginia next to DC wasn’t so bad today. A light sprinkle of snow but otherwise ok to go out if you bundled up. I grew up in Scranton so this is “shorts” weather for us.
“political scientist” LOL
I’m happy that we have Trump 47 inauguration as a national holiday tomorrow.
Award space availability in DC and nearby Metro-accessible VA and MD hotels was very plentiful last night and is also very plentiful tonight. Cash rates are crazy high, but availability using points is the most extensive I have seen it in most of the POTUS inaugurations over at least the last 32 so years.
Not only did Trump’s 2024 popular vote count substantially underperform Biden’s in the pandemic, his 2026 inauguration hadn’t been filling up DC area hotels as much as in most other inaugurations during the last 32 or so years. But the cash rates for rooms are extremely high even as it seems like hotel occupancy is lower for this inauguration than in most prior ones during Matthew’s life.
And this was the case even before Trump had the Inauguration moved indoors for his own personal reasons,
DC kids — even the poor ones with less easy access to the best clothes for the weather — typically walk to school just fine on days when the weather is like it is today in DC.
But Trump’s an old guy and a crybaby; and so like with his bad parents, he got coddled by a nation that should have given him a proverbial spanking and disowned him permanently. Now we will get what we deserve as a nation where too few do their duty to vote and stand up for good character in leadership.
Best of luck to all of us. And keep the faith in a better future even with setbacks like this. The sun will rise again.
GUWonder,
I really wonder you know anything about DC area.
Here are the list of school closing or school opening late for tomorrow
https://wtop.com/closings-and-delays/
It’s better to keep your mouth shut and appear stupid than open it and remove all doubt.
Today was MLK jr day in a city with a very large African-American population. So schools being closed is to be expected. Tomorrow which DC public high schools are shut?
None, listed in that link. 😉
And I am talking about publis schools in DC proper, not VA and MD ones.
By the way, MAGA Steve Bannon called out the inauguration being moved indoors:
*****
Days before Trump’s inauguration, Bannon took another swipe at the “oligarchs” surrounding Trump by slamming the decision to move the inauguration indoors. Bannon claimed the move was most likely precipitated as a protection measure for the billionaires in Trump’s midst.
“It ain’t gonna be that cold,” said Bannon on the Saturday episode of his WarRoom podcast. “Just because the oligarchs are there. They’re too tender, coming from Silicon Valley. Are they too soft?”
*****
And no DC public elementary and middle schools are listed on the site from BlackHill’s as beinf closed or having delayed openings t today (January 21, 2025).
Speaking of schools, BlackHill has been schooled for failure to provide any examples of DC public schools being closed today or even having delayed openings this morning. Go back to school, BlackHill, and here’s a basic geography lesson: DC is DC; VA is not DC; and MD is not DC. And public schools in America are not private schools in America, and I explicitly mentioned DC public schools for kids.