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Notice an unusual lightness in your chest? A strange unclenched quality to your fists? A palpable absence of malarkey wheresoever you turn? It can mean only one thing: President Joseph Robinette Biden, Jr., of Delaware has taken office.
- Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris were sworn in at the Capitol on Wednesday, two weeks after violent insurrectionists mobbed the same steps to prevent a peaceful transfer of power. In one particularly poignant moment, Capitol Police officer Eugene Goodman, who lured rioters away from the Senate chamber, escorted Harris to the ceremony. Biden matter-of-factly confronted the challenges he inherits in his inaugural address, calling for an end to “this uncivil war,” and acknowledging the unusual gravity of the day: “We've learned again that democracy is precious, democracy is fragile, and at this hour, my friends, democracy has prevailed.”
- Biden set a hopeful tone, but paired his defining calls for unity with a frank, forceful condemnation of the right-wing disinformation purveyors who sowed division in the first place: “Recent weeks and months have taught us a painful lesson. There is truth and there are lies, lies told for power and for profit. And each of us has a duty and responsibility, as citizens, as Americans, and especially as leaders, leaders who have pledged to honor our Constitution and protect our nation, to defend the truth and defeat the lies.” U up, Fox News? U done trying to induce mass amnesia with shameless normie inauguration tweets, Ted Cruz?
- The preservation of American democracy aside, (Bill Hader voice) this inauguration had everything: Jewish Second Gentleman (and...Only Gentleman) Doug Emhoff! A monochrome outfit contest narrowly won by Michelle Obama! Bernie Sanders stopping by on his way to the post office! Jennifer Lopez bravely shoehorning “Let’s Get Loud” into “This Land Is Your Land!” Lady Gaga performing the national anthem under the weight of a life-size gold bird! Also, a Trump-shaped void: The twice-impeached, disgraced former president left for Florida earlier on Wednesday morning, with the ominous parting words, “We’ll be back in some form...Have a good life. We will see you soon.” The next time you encounter a strange slime or noxious vapor, say hello and flip it off, for it may be Donald Trump.
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Out of all the day’s thoughtful speeches and childish absences, the most memorable words might be those of a 22-year-old poet.
- Amanda Gorman, the first national youth poet laureate and the youngest inaugural poet in U.S. history, delivered a stunning reading of “The Hill We Climb,” a poem she finished writing on the night of the insurrection:
We’ve seen a force that would shatter our nation rather than share it,
would destroy our country if it meant delaying democracy.
And this effort very nearly succeeded.
But while democracy can be periodically delayed,
it can never be permanently defeated.
Here’s where to watch the whole thing.
- After the proceedings, Biden got to work signing 17 executive actions, reversing a number of Trump’s signature debacles, issuing a mask mandate for all federal grounds, and asking agencies to extend moratoriums on evictions and student loan payments. Harris got to work swearing in Sens. Jon Ossoff (D-GA) and Raphael Warnock (D-GA), and her own replacement, Sen. Alex Padilla (D-CA), thereby cementing Democratic control of the Senate. Not bad for a first afternoon.
The country wasn’t magically fixed at 12:01 p.m., as viewers were reminded with every glimpse of masked attendees, National Guard troops, and Justice Amy Coney Barrett killing the vibe on the dais. But the formal beginning of the Biden era means that democracy has prevailed and profound change is already underway, because you voted for it. What a feeling.
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"That was a great inauguration, but still I thirst for inauguration content." We gotchu. On this week's Let’s Break It Down, Dan Pfeiffer and Alyssa Mastromonaco discuss the ways in which this year’s event is unprecedented, how Al Gore and George W. Bush came together after a contested election, and what the schedule usually looks like for the president, hour by hour. Watch & subscribe → youtube.com/crookedmedia
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On this bright, hopeful day, let us take a moment to recall that the brand new Biden administration has already been crowbarred in the knees. The Pentagon’s obstruction of the transition was just as bad as the Biden team suggested: Civilian Trump administration officials blocked Biden aides from accessing information about the troop drawdown in Afghanistan, vaccine distribution, and the SolarWinds hack, among other critical issues. Crucial briefings never happened or were delayed until the last minute. When the transition team did wrangle meetings with Defense Department officials, it was clear they’d been given strict instructions about what they could and couldn’t say, and many requests for information were either thoroughly “sanitized” or never answered at all. That unprecedented obstruction effort threatens to hobble the Biden administration on key national security matters, a completely insane final scandal.
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- Donald Trump’s wave of last-minute pardons and commutations included Steve Bannon, who was charged with defrauding Trump supporters who thought they were paying for a border wall, as well as corrupt GOP donor Elliott Broidy, Lil Wayne, and (as an afterthought) Jeanine Pirro’s husband. Joe Exotic went conspicuously unpardoned, prompting some of the finest writing of our time: “I was too innocent and too GAY to deserve a Pardon from Trump.”
- There were no right-wing rallies in Washington, DC, on Wednesday, and only a sad little handful of anti-Biden protesters showed up at state capitols. Consequences: What a concept.
- A number of states have begun reporting vaccine shortages and canceling appointments. How could President Biden have let this happen?
- On his final day in office, Trump freed administration officials from a five-year ban on lobbying their former agencies, a ban the Trump administration hadn’t bothered enforcing anyway. Fill! The! Swamp!
- Trump also extended post-presidency Secret Service protection for his Large Adult Children. One last unnecessary taxpayer-funded luxury for the road.
- Surgeon General Jerome Adams confirmed he will resign, per Biden’s request. Biden’s nominee for the position, Vivek Murthy, is still awaiting his Senate confirmation hearing.
- Also hitting the road on Wednesday: Michael Pack, Trump’s appointee to lead the U.S. Agency for Global Media, who spent his tenure trying to turn Voice of America into a pro-Trump propaganda machine.
- Proud Boy leader Joseph Biggs has been arrested for storming the Capitol after being identified in several photos and videos, including one in which he pulls down his face mask and declares, “This is awesome.” Criminal masterminds, all.
- Chinese billionaire Jack Ma has re-emerged after a nearly three-month public absence, appearing relaxed and un-kidnapped after criticizing China’s financial regulators.
- Joe Biden owns a peloton and it might be the worst thing any president has ever done. We’ve arrived safely back in Tan Suit Land, and everything dumb is just where we left it.
- GET HIS ASS, GRETA.
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QAnon believers are having a communal meltdown now that Joe Biden has been sworn in, throwing a major wrench into their shared delusion that he would be arrested or killed at or before the inauguration. Some adherents have finally realized they were duped (“I don’t think this is supposed to happen,” wrote one poster on a QAnon forum as Biden took the oath), while others pleaded with each other to stay patient, or began spinning off new theories about Biden’s secret involvement in the QAnon universe. Ron Watkins, the administrator of the right-wing conspiracy-theory message board 8kun and suspected Q-poster himself, said on Telegram that it was time to pack it up and move on: “As we enter into the next administration please remember all the friends and happy memories we made together over the past few years.” Maybe the real QAnon was the friends we made along the way! It’s unclear where the cult goes from here, but the adherents who stuck around this long could become even more radicalized, and white-supremacist militia groups hope to recruit those who have been disillusioned.
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Take Action with the ACLU to Demand the Equitable Marijuana Legalization
The War on Drugs has failed. That's clear. Yet hundreds of thousands of people are still arrested each year for marijuana possession, disproportionately Black and Latinx people.
In fact, a Black person in America is 3.6x more likely to get arrested for marijuana possession than a white person, despite similar usage rates. The ACLU is fighting not only legalize marijuana, but do so in a way that addresses these harmful disparities once and for all. Add your name today if you agree.
Our nation is ready to put an end to the destructive and racist policies of the War on Drugs. Critical legislation in Congress could have a huge impact on making that happen: The House has passed the MORE Act and now it moves to the Senate. Sign our petition and demand that the Senate pass the MORE Act as soon as possible. Take action with the ACLU today and make your voice heard.
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