Trump makes his mark on second inauguration

WASHINGTON – Monday 60^th the inauguration of an American president, who will again be Donald Trump, will be a day of pomp and pageantry with plenty of tradition – but also some new twists.

And while there will be Minnesotans in the crowd, which Park Police estimate will be around 250,000, as well as on the platform that has been built on the west front of the US Capitol to host the inauguration, some notable figures from the state do not participate.

They include rep. Betty McCollum, D-4^th The District, which plans to honor Martin Luther King Jr. Day, which also falls on Monday, is instead participating in activities to honor the civil rights leader in the Twin Cities.

Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-5^th District, will also honor MLK in her district instead of attending the inauguration in Washington.

However, other Minnesota lawmakers plan to attend, and Sen. Amy Klobuchar will play a role in Trump’s swearing-in. As chairman of the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Activities, the Democrat will make brief remarks before Trump places his hand on a Bible and takes his oath to serve the United States.

Like McCollum and Omar, former first lady Michelle Obama has said she will skip Trump’s inauguration. But former presidents Barack Obama, Bill Clinton and George W. Bush are expected to attend.

The swearing-in and other inauguration activities will take place outside on what is expected to be one of the coldest days this year in Washington — a chill that will test the mettle of those who undergo unprecedented security measures and wait for hours for the ceremony begins.

A cold Inauguration Day – and it was held in March, not January – is said to have claimed the life of the ninth US president, William Henry Harrison, who died of pneumonia about three weeks after delivering his inaugural address in cold weather without the protection of a hat or coat.

Despite Harrison’s death, Inauguration Day was moved to an even colder month, January, in 1933 to shorten the term a “lame duck” president would serve if he did not win reelection the previous November.

Rep. Pete Stauber, R-8^th District, who has invited a group of family and friends to attend the dedication, shrugged off reports of cold weather, saying it would have little effect on his guests from Minnesota.

“It’s just going to be another Monday,” Stauber said of the expected deep freeze.

Over the years, a basic activity pattern has been established. Around noon, the President is sworn in on a platform at the US Capitol by the Chief Justice of the US Supreme Court – in this case Justice John Roberts. After taking the brief 35-word oath of office, the new president delivers an inaugural address and then hosts a luncheon for congressional leaders in the US Capitol.

Trump has also said he will get to work after that lunch, promising to sign a flurry of executive orders on issues ranging from border security to gas and oil production on his first day as president.

Those executive orders, many of which are expected to be challenged in federal courts, will overshadow the festivities, which will feature a parade down Pennsylvania Avenue to the White House and an evening of gala festivities.

Still, initial activities begin several days before Trump is sworn in, and he has put his stamp on them.

Inaugural events kick off Saturday with a party that includes fireworks and a reception at Trump National Golf Clubthe President-elect’s golf club in Northern Virginia.

On Sunday, Trump plans to visit Arlington National Cemeterywhere this summer he created flak by filming an advertising campaign among the graves. This time, Trump plans to place a wreath on the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.

He’s also planning a rally at the downtown arena best known for hosting Washington Capitals hockey games, which Trump has dubbed the “Make America Great Again Victory Rally.”

And in the evening, Trump plans to give a speech at a “candlelight dinner,” a black-tie affair at the National Building Museum, where donors and lobbyists will be able to gain access to the president-elect if they pay at least $250,000 to the inaugural committee or a Trump- adapted political action committee.

There will be at least 15 unofficial proms over the weekend and Monday night. They range from the long-running Texas State Society’s Black Tie & Boots Ball to a new one called the Crypto Ball. Minnesotans usually celebrate at a ball sponsored by several Midwestern states, but Stauber said that could not be arranged this year.

Trump has committed to attending only three official balls: the Commander in Chief Ball, the Liberty Inaugural Ball — which Stauber and other lawmakers plan to attend — and the Starlight Ball. All of the official balls will be held Monday night, and Trump is expected to make remarks at each.

New jobs and reappointments to old ones

This week, several Minnesota lawmakers received new jobs in Congress.

Freshman Rep. Kelly Morrison, D-3^rd District, was awarded seats on the House Small Business Committee and the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs. Morrison’s husband John is a veteran.

Also this week, Rep. Tom Emmer, R-6^th District, a cryptocurrency enthusiast, was named vice chairman of the House Financial Services’ Digital Assets Subcommittee. Emmer has frequently criticized federal agencies for their perceived hostility to crypto and has been a constant critic of Securities and Exchange Commissioner Gary Gensler, whom the lawmaker has accused of overstepping the law.

Meanwhile, Rep. Betty McCollum, D-4^th District, continues as the top Democrat on the House Appropriations panel that determines the Pentagon’s budget.

And rep. Pete Stauber, R-8^th District, has been reappointed head of the House Natural Resources Committee with jurisdiction over energy and mineral resources.

ICYMI:

• Pete Hegseth was in the hot seat for more than four hours this week as the Senate Armed Services Committee considered his nomination for secretary of defense and came out largely unscathed. Few policy questions were asked of the nominee, who has come under fire from Democrats for his inexperience, a sexual assault allegation and reports that he mismanaged funds at two veterans groups he once headed. But Republicans on the panel praised the nominee, who grew up in Forest Lake, Minnesota, and defended him against the reports of wrongdoing — and Hegseth’s own controversial writings.
• Minnesota’s statehouse was in turmoil this week, and Peter Callaghan explained why there is an unprecedented battle for control of the chamber.
• Winter Keefer wrote about efforts to convert vacant commercial buildings into residential units, focusing on the New Groove Lofts at the Northstar Center in downtown Minneapolis, a project that has set aside 44 apartments for tenants earning less than half the median wage.

Your questions and comments

A reader weighed in on the appointment of Minnesotan Pete Hegseth as Secretary of Defense. He had some concerns.

“Hegseth denied heavy drinking, but claimed he will stop if confirmed. It’s almost never easy for problem drinkers,” the reader said. “It seems that among his red flags that are omitted by by most reports, is his attempt to clear or pardon those who have committed war crimes … In his first term, heavyweights talked Trump out of rash and illegal military actions, something Hegseth will never do.”

Feel free to continue with your comments and any questions. I will do my best to answer. Please contact me at [email protected].

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