President Donald Trump will move his second inauguration ceremony indoors at the U.S. Capitol because a dangerously cold front is expected to hit the nation’s capital on Monday, making a traditional outdoor swearing-in ceremony unsafe. Announced.
“Washington, D.C.’s weather forecast calls for severe, record-low temperatures, in part due to wind chill. An arctic blast is sweeping the nation. I don’t want to see anyone hurt or harmed,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social.
“Therefore, in addition to prayers and other speeches, I ordered that the inaugural address be delivered in the Rotunda of the United States Capitol, as used by President Ronald Reagan in 1985, also because it was very cold.”
Exact details of how the ceremony will take place are unclear because President Trump announced the news before transition officials and the Congressional Joint Planning Committee had finalized plans, officials said.
For example, President Trump promised that “guests and donors” would be present in the Rotunda to watch him and Vice President-elect J.D. Vance take the oath of office. However, there is still no clear guidance for other ticket holders and donors.
The Rotunda is often used for special Capitol events, such as state funerals, and has the infrastructure to accommodate up to approximately 600 people.
President Trump said in his post that the parade, which normally then heads to the White House along Pennsylvania Avenue, could be rerouted to nearby Capital One Arena, so guests who are unable to travel could watch the inauguration there. He suggested that it could be done.
Capital One Arena, the sports venue where the Washington Wizards basketball team plays its home games, has already been used for President Trump’s first rally since his election victory, and construction is underway for that event scheduled for Sunday night. Safety measures have been strengthened.
President Trump also said that all other events held in conjunction with the inauguration will continue as scheduled. After being sworn in at the Capitol and signing a flurry of executive orders, Trump is expected to attend a number of events, culminating in a Starlight Ball for major donors.
The last president to take the oath indoors was President Ronald Reagan in 1985, when temperatures dropped to 7 degrees Fahrenheit (-13 degrees Celsius). Trump’s second inauguration is expected to be wind-chill and temperatures around 8 degrees Celsius, with snow expected to fall the night before.
President Trump’s inauguration and return to the Oval Office is scheduled for Monday when he returns to Washington. During the warmer months of the U.S. transition, the ceremony draws large crowds, and outdoor celebrations and protests.
This article was amended on January 17, 2025 to clarify that the Washington Wizards are a basketball team and not an ice hockey team as stated in a previous version.
