On Monday, members of Congress, tech companies, former presidents, and other prominent persons from across the world will gather in Washington, D.C., for the inauguration of President-elect Donald Trump. However, a small number of notable individuals will not be attending.
The inauguration of a new president is often graced by the presence of the outgoing president. Even though Trump skipped Biden’s inaugural four years ago, the outgoing president still plans to attend Trump’s second inauguration, according to last month’s interview with the MeidasTouch network. The White House has also announced that First Lady Jill Biden will be in attendance.
The Associated Press also states that Barack Obama, George W. Bush, and Bill Clinton, the three living past presidents, have all confirmed their attendance at the inauguration. At Trump’s second inauguration, former first ladies Hillary Clinton and Laura Bush will also be in attendance.
However, the inauguration will not be graced by the presence of several notable Democrats. This week, former speakers of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Michelle Obama (former first lady) declared their intention to boycott the event.
The former first lady did not show up for the funeral for Jimmy Carter earlier this month, and an Obama official declined to comment more when asked by the AP about Michelle Obama’s absence.
Similarly, tech moguls like Elon Musk (CEO of Tesla and SpaceX), Jeff Bezos (CEO of Amazon), Mark Zuckerberg (CEO of Facebook), and Shou Chew (CEO of TikTok) will be in attendance and will sit on the dais with other distinguished visitors.
According to a source who spoke with HeadlinesForever Digital Chew, the Inaugural Committee sent an invitation. Word got around that Chew would be there thanks to the NYT.
Several other foreign leaders, including Xi Jinping of China, were also invited by Trump.
According to Karoline Leavitt, the soon-to-be White House press secretary, Xi was invited to the inauguration in December after Trump expressed his desire to have the Chinese leader attend the ceremony.
“Here we have President Trump establishing an open line of communication with the heads of state of nations who are not just our friends but also our enemies and rivals. The first term was when we saw this, according to Leavitt. “He is willing to talk to anyone, and he will always put America’s interests first.”
On Friday, China’s foreign ministry stated that Chinese Vice President Han Zheng will travel Washington for the event, even though Jinping will not be in attendance.
Argentine President Javier Milei and El Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele were reportedly invited by Trump, according to the AP. Similarly, Politico states that Hungarian media claimed that Prime Minister Viktor Orbán would not attend the inauguration, while CBS first reported that he had been invited.
Politico states, however, that both Milei and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni are likely to be present.
These looks are one of a kind. According to records kept by the State Department, no foreign heads of state have ever attended an American inauguration, as reported earlier by the AP.
The inauguration will also feature musical performances by Lee Greenwood, the Village People, and Carrie Underwood. A representative for Trump’s transition team confirmed to HeadlinesForever Digital that Underwood will sing “America the Beautiful” at the swearing-in event alongside President-elect JD Vance.
In 2021, Trump and Melania Trump did not attend Joe Biden’s inauguration. It is not the first time that a president has skipped the inauguration of their successor. The White House Historical Association records that six further presidents, beginning with John Adams, did not attend the inauguration of the next president.