Donald J. Trump has pledged to “preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States,” taking the formal oath of office and completing an unlikely trajectory from real-estate mogul to the nation’s 45th president.
A crowd that stretched along the National Mall assembled under gray, Washington skies to witness the ceremony. So did nearly every living former president, from Jimmy Carter and George W. Bush to Bill Clinton and his wife, Hillary, who was defeated by Trump last November after a costly and divisive campaign.
“We, the citizens of America, are now joined in a great national effort,” Trump said. “We are transferring power from Washington D.C., and giving it back to you, the people.”
Trump used his 16-minute remarks to promise an era of populist change, even as he was surrounded by members of Congress and all eight sitting members of the Supreme Court.
“For too long, a small group in our nation’s capital has reaped the rewards of government while the people have borne the cost,” Trump said. “Washington flourished but the people did not share in its wealth. The establishment protected itself.”
He criticized an educational system “flush with cash” that fails to fulfill its mission to students. He lamented factories left to rust while jobs flowed overseas. And he decried crime and gang violence, despite reports from the FBI and criminologists that the U.S. crime rate remains near historic lows.
“This American carnage stops right here and stops right now,” Trump said, amid cheers from the crowd.
Soon, Trump and his vice president, former Indiana Gov. Mike Pence, will travel a little under two miles from the U.S. Capitol to the White House, part of a parade that includes 8,000 members of the military, school marching bands, the Boy Scouts and veterans groups.