Washington [US], January 20: US officials are scrambling to change security plans for President-elect Donald Trump's inauguration, as he signals what he will do on his first day in office.
At 12 noon on January 20 (around 0:00 on January 21, Vietnam time), Mr. Donald Trump will be sworn in at the Capitol in Washington DC, becoming the 47th president of the United States. After that, Mr. Trump will head to the Capital One Arena sports and entertainment complex to attend the presidential parade before arriving at the White House in a motorcade on Pennsylvania Avenue, according to Fox 5 DC. At the White House, Mr. Trump will attend the traditional Oval Office signing ceremony for executive orders or nominations.
Change security plan
Meanwhile, CNN cited several sources saying that the US Secret Service and other agencies are working to determine how holding President-elect Trump's inauguration and the aforementioned indoor parade will change the security plan for this important event. The agencies have only 3 days, starting from January 17, to come up with a new security plan, replacing the previous plan that took months to prepare.
On January 17, President-elect Trump announced that his inauguration ceremony would take place inside the Capitol lobby due to the dangerously cold temperatures forecast in Washington DC. Later, the Joint Congressional Committee on Ceremonies (JCCIC) announced that JCCIC would honor Mr. Trump's request to move the inauguration ceremony from outside to the Rotunda, the central building with the Capitol dome, according to CNN.
The JCCIC always has contingency plans to hold inaugurations in multiple locations in case of bad weather or other obstacles, but the challenge now is not being able to fit thousands of people into the Rotunda. The building can hold about 700 people and is only open to lawmakers, their spouses and VIPs, according to a source familiar with the matter, CNN reported.
Capital One Arena has a capacity of more than 20,000 people, but law enforcement officials said more than 200,000 people had tickets to the inauguration. Officials said the cold weather prevented the vast majority of guests from attending the inauguration ceremonies in person and they could keep their tickets as souvenirs.
Security arrangements for Capital One Arena and the surrounding area are still being worked out between the Secret Service, the Capitol Police and other agencies. About 25,000 law enforcement officers and military personnel are expected to be present for Mr. Trump 's inauguration, according to CNN.
What will Trump do on inauguration day?
President-elect Trump arrived in Washington DC on January 18 (US time) to attend a series of events before his inauguration. In an interview with NBC News earlier in the day, Trump revealed that he planned to sign a record number of executive orders after being sworn in, starting "immediately" after delivering his inaugural address. When asked if that number would exceed 100, Trump replied: "At least that much."
Mr Trump is expected to sign an order rescinding several policies put in place by the outgoing administration of President Joe Biden, including an executive order related to the mass deportation program of illegal immigrants in the US. Mr Trump stressed to NBC News that the deportation of undocumented immigrants in the US will "start very quickly".
Meanwhile, thousands of protesters marched through the streets of Washington DC on January 18 to protest the policies of Mr Trump and the Republican Party. Demonstrators highlighted a range of issues they said were under attack by Mr Trump and Republican leaders, including abortion rights, climate change, the need for better protections against gun violence and immigrant rights, according to AFP.
Source: Thanh Nien Newspaper
