Jan. 20 (UPI) — President Donald Trump celebrated with an estimated 20,000 supporters at an indoor inaugural parade Monday at Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C., after he was sworn in earlier as the 47th president of the United States inside the U.S. Capitol rotunda amid bitter cold weather outside.
Trump, who is expected to sign a series of executive actions before the crowd, started with his signature dance move and fist pumps to the chants of “USA, USA, USA.” Trump, Vice President JD Vance and their families took their seats to watch marching bands and other performers parade inside the arena.
Among the parade participants were Butler County sheriff’s deputies, fire officials, emergency services and hospital staff from Pennsylvania who honored Corey Comperatore. Comperatore was killed during the July assassination attempt on Trump.
Earlier, thousands braved the cold to wait hours to get inside the arena or line the route that Trump’s motorcade took to Capital One, where dozens of speakers — including Elon Musk — had fired up the crowd before his arrival.
“I’m super fired up!” Musk said. “I can’t wait. This is going to be fantastic.”
“This is what victory feels like!” Musk, who will lead the new Department of Government Efficiency, exclaimed as he pumped his fists in the air before the roaring crowd. “And this was no ordinary victory. This was a fork in the road of human civilization.”
“There are elections that come and go. Some are important, some are not. This one matters. Thank you for making it happen,” Musk said. “It is thanks to you that the future of civilization is assured.”
“We’re going to have safe cities, secure borders, sensible spending, basic stuff,” Musk, who also founded SpaceX, added. “And we’re going to take DOGE to Mars!”
“How awesome it will be to have American astronauts plant the flag on another planet for the first time? Yeah!” Musk exclaimed. “How inspiring that would be?”
Vivek Ramaswamy, who was tapped by Trump to co-lead the Department of Government Efficiency with Musk, is reported to be leaving his leadership role at DOGE to run for governor of Ohio, according to CNN and Politico. Ramaswamy is expected to kick off his gubernatorial bid next week.
Other headline speakers, including Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin, celebrated the future and a return to America’s “golden age.”
“Ladies and gentlemen, we stand here on the dawn of a new age, where life, liberty and pursuit of happiness are available to every American.”
