President-elect Trump starts day off with tweet, then church, coffee with Obamas
WASHINGTON — President-elect Donald Trump is starting inaugural day off with a tweet, saying “It all begins today!”
Trump also says: “I will see you at 11:00 A.M. for the swearing-in. THE MOVEMENT CONTINUES – THE WORK BEGINS!”
Trump and his wife Melania will begin their day at St. John’s Episcopal Church, located across Lafayette Park from the White House. They’ll then meet with President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama at the White House before joining them for the trip to the Capitol for the swearing-in ceremony.
It all begins today! I will see you at 11:00 A.M. for the swearing-in. THE MOVEMENT CONTINUES – THE WORK BEGINS!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 20, 2017
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7:25 a.m.
It’s still early in Washington on Inauguration Day, but the protesters who vowed to keep guests with tickets from watching Donald Trump take the oath of office weren’t having much luck.
Dozens of protesters are lined up at the “blue gate” entrance to a seating area on the West Front of the U.S. Capitol, holding signs that read “Free Palestine” and “Let Freedom ring.” Some are wearing orange jumpsuits with black hoods over their faces, protesting U.S. detention facility at Guantanamo Bay.
But police are behind the protesters, allowing those with tickets to make their way through the gate. On the other side of the Capitol, things are quiet and orderly at the “orange gate.”
Eleanor Goldfield helped organize the #DisruptJ20 protests. At the “blue gate,” she says they want to show Trump and his supporters that they will not be silent throughout his presidency. She calls Trump supporters “misguided, misinformed or just plain dangerous.”___
7 a.m.
It’s not just voters from across the country visiting Washington to celebrate the inauguration of Donald Trump.
On the eve of the inauguration, Brexit leader Nigel Farage toasted the president-elect at a reception on the top floor of a hotel overlooking the White House.
Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant joined him on Thursday night, describing himself as the matchmaker between Trump and Farage.
Farage noted that in 2016, British voters chose to leave the European Union and American voters picked Trump. It said it would be a year remembered as a pivot point in history, and the crowd of lobbyists, Trump boosters and British political and media figures cheered.
Farage said he agreed with Trump’s assessment of himself as “Mr. Brexit plus-plus-plus.” He added that Trump is “the only person I’ve ever met in my life who makes me feel like an introvert.”
6:45 a.m.
Before dawn on Inauguration Day in Washington, only a few lights were at the White House residence, where President Barack Obama and his family have lived for the past eight years.
Klieg lights brightened the viewing stand from which incoming President Donald Trump will view the parade route later in the day.
Trump and his family were spending the night at Blair House, just across Pennsylvania Avenue from the White House.
Lafayette Square outside the White House was fenced off with large metal barriers and security lines moved briskly to let outgoing White House staff and members of the media into the White House complex early in the morning.
