Biden inauguration to feature virtual nationwide parade
WASHINGTON — President-elect Joe Biden’s inauguration will include a “virtual parade across America,” consistent with crowd limits during the coronavirus era, organizers announced Sunday.
Following the swearing-in ceremony on Inauguration Day, Jan. 20, on the west front of the U.S. Capitol, Biden and his wife, Jill, will join newly sworn-in Vice President Kamala Harris and her husband in a socially distanced Pass in Review, a military tradition in which the president reviews the readiness of troops, on the Capitol’s opposite front side.
Biden will receive a traditional presidential escort, with representatives from every branch of the military, from 15th Street to the White House. That will also be socially distanced, the Presidential Inaugural Committee said, while “providing the American people and world with historic images of the President-elect proceeding to the White House without attracting large crowds.”
President Trump was recorded pressuring the top Georgia election official, Brad Raffensperger, to alter votes and throw him the election. Raffensperger refused.
Workers in recent days began dismantling an inaugural parade reviewing stand in front of the White House as Biden’s transition team continued to prepare for festivities that would be mostly virtual. Accordingly, organizers said they would hold a virtual parade nationwide to “celebrate America’s heroes, highlight Americans from all walks of life in different states and regions and reflect on the diversity, heritage and resilience of the country as we begin a new American era.”
The televised parade will feature “diverse, dynamic” performances in communities across the country, the inaugural committee promised. Participants will be announced in coming weeks.
“We are excited about the possibilities and opportunities this moment presents to allow all Americans to participate in our country’s sacred inaugural traditions,” said Presidential Inaugural Committee Executive Director Maju Varghese in a statement.
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