WASHINGTON (AP) — The last time a president was inaugurated, there was a global pandemic and a violent siege at the very spot at the U.S. Capitol where the ceremony takes place. This time, the event is happening as part of an unprecedented string of high-stakes security events in the nation’s capital.
The Jan. 20 swearing-in caps a two-week stretch of national special security events — occasions of the highest national significance that get a boost in federal funding and are led by the U.S. Secret Service. The others include the electoral count on Monday and former President Jimmy Carter’s state funeral on Thursday. There’s also a major rally planned for President-elect Donald Trump on Jan. 19 at Capital One Arena.
“This has never happened before,” Matt McCool, the U.S. Secret Service special agent in charge of the Washington field office, said of the back-to-back-to-back events. “But we’re flexible and adaptable. … We’re going to be prepared.”
Trump and Vice President-elect JD Vance will take the oath of office from the west front of the Capitol amid extra tight security. Some elements, like a sea of federal agents and police, will be visible. Others, like bomb detection devices, snipers and radiation detectors, will be harder to spot.
The outgoing president, Joe Biden, will attend the inauguration, and it’s customary for the living former presidents to attend as well. Trump, a Republican, is also putting his own mark on the event by being the first president-elect to invite world leaders to his inauguration. At least one, Argentine President Javier Milei, is planning to be there.
Trump’s inauguration will stand in stark contrast to Biden’s four years ago, an event Trump skipped amid his false claims that the election had been stolen from him and after sparking an insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. More than 1,000 people were charged in the riot, and Trump was eventually charged in federal court with seeking to subvert the results of the election.
The cases against him are vanishing after his victory in the 2024 presidential election. He has also pledged to pardon the rioters.
Biden, a Democrat, said in an opinion article in The Washington Post this week that he was “determined to do everything I can to respect the peaceful transfer of power and restore the traditions we have long respected in America.”
“The election will be certified peacefully,” he said. “I have invited the incoming president to the White House on the morning of Jan. 20, and I will be present for his inauguration that afternoon.”
Law enforcement is preparing for potential demonstrations this time around but is not anticipating any major problems.
“At this time, we are not tracking any credible or specific threats associated with these events,” said Dave Sundberg, the assistant director in charge of the FBI Washington field office.
That said, federal law enforcement is operating at a heightened threat environment, especially following the New Year’s attack in New Orleans.
Unlike demonstrations or other major events in the District of Columbia, traditional red tape is cleared for national special security events, allowing federal, city and state law enforcement agencies to work together. Other such events include the State of the Union speech. Monday’s electoral count was also considered as such following the violent riot four years ago by Trump supporters.
The District of Columbia National Guard will deploy roughly 7,800 soldiers for perimeter security, which includes traffic control and patrolling Metro stations. Thousands of federal agents, police and other law enforcement will be on hand.
The Secret Service is in charge of running security for national special security events, and planning for the inauguration began as soon as the last one ended. But this year, the agency is under increased scrutiny and pressure after Trump was wounded in a failed assassination attempt at an outdoor rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, and after a second failed attempt at his Florida golf course. Trump wasn’t injured in the second one.
Among the biggest criticisms was that the multiple local, county and federal law enforcement agencies weren’t communicating effectively and that lapse allowed the Pennsylvania gunman to slip through their fingers until it was almost too late. The gunman was shot to death on a rooftop by a countersniper after firing at Trump.
But national security events are the “Cadillac of security models” with top-level protection, said U.S. Secret Service spokesperson Anthony Gugliemi. There will be a joint information center where agencies work together and communicate.
But he noted that not every rally or demonstration can be designated a special security event.
In preparation for the inauguration, the FBI has set up command posts at the Washington field office and FBI headquarters to act as “central hubs for employees to gather intelligence, assess potential threats, coordinate investigations, and surge resources as needed,” the bureau said in a statement.
Analysts at the Washington field office will be working before and during the inauguration to assess and share intelligence with other law enforcement, and the FBI will have “personnel and other assets at the ready to respond immediately to address any safety concerns or threats that arise,” the bureau said.
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Associated Press writers Alanna Durkin Richer and Ashraf Khalil in Washington contributed to this report.