By James Oliphant
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Donald Trump will be sworn in as president of the United States on Monday, ushering in his second term in office and capping one of the most astounding political comebacks in American history.
Inauguration Day is, by tradition, largely dedicated to pomp and circumstance. One president leaves the White House, and another moves in. But Trump, a Republican, also has pledged to sign a flurry of executive orders on subjects ranging from border security to oil and gas production on his first day in office.
Here is what we know about Inauguration Day so far:
WHEN IS THE INAUGURATION?
Trump will take the oath of office, likely administered by U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts, at 12 p.m. EST (1700 GMT) in front of the U.S. Capitol.
Trump will then deliver his inaugural address. In interviews, he has said he intends it to be uplifting and unifying. That would mark a departure from his first speech in 2017, which detailed a broken country he described as “American Carnage”.
The outgoing president, Democrat Joe Biden, has said he plans to attend the ceremony and witness the transfer of power, a courtesy Trump did not afford him four years earlier.
The joint congressional committee that administers the swearing-in ceremony on the Capitol grounds says it will be releasing more than 220,000 tickets for the event.
The National Park Service, which oversees the National Mall where unticketed members of the public gather to watch the ceremony, has issued a permit to Trump’s inauguration committee for an estimated crowd of 250,000 people.
Country music star Carrie Underwood is expected to perform at Trump’s swearing-in ceremony.
WHO IS INVITED?
Trump has broken with precedent and invited several foreign leaders to the ceremony. Historically, they have not attended the inaugural due to security concerns and have sent diplomats in their stead.
Argentina's president, Javier Milei, a strong supporter of Trump's, has said he will attend, according to reports.
Another Trump backer, Hungary's Viktor Orban, has said he is considering coming as has Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni. Chinese President Xi Jinping is not attending, despite an invitation, but is sending an envoy.
Trump adviser Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) and SpaceX, Jeff Bezos, executive chairman of Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) and Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META), are expected to have prominent seats at the ceremony.
PARADE TO THE WHITE HOUSE
After a lunch with congressional leaders at the U.S. Capitol, Trump will proceed down Pennsylvania Avenue in a motorcade to the White House, accompanied by a procession of military regiments, school marching bands, floats and citizens’ groups. The new president and his guests will then observe the rest of the parade from a reviewing stand.
GETTING TO WORK
Two sources familiar with the planning said Trump is preparing a flood of executive orders and directives that could total more than a 100 for Day One and beyond.
He is expected to sign orders that give immigration officers more latitude to arrest migrants with no criminal records, send more troops to the U.S.-Mexico border and restart construction of the border wall.
The orders will include a drive to increase energy production and follow through on Trump's oft-stated campaign vow to "drill, baby, drill.”
Trump also is likely to issue the first wave of pardons for defendants convicted by the federal government for their participation in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol.
PARTIES AND A RALLY
There will be at least 18 inaugural galas held throughout Washington over the weekend and Monday, three of which are considered official and which Trump is expected to attend.
On Sunday, on the eve of the inauguration, Trump is set as well to hold a campaign-style "Make America Great Again Victory Rally" at an arena in downtown Washington.
Such an event likely will help spur thousands of Trump's supporters to pack the city for the inaugural festivities. It would be Trump's first rally in the District of Columbia since the Jan. 6, 2021, incident.
On Monday, Meta's Zuckerberg will co-host a reception for billionaire Republican donors along with casino magnate Miriam Adelson and Houston Rockets owner Tilman Fertitta, Trump's pick for ambassador to Italy.
Oil and gas tycoon Harold Hamm, a top Trump donor, will host an inauguration watch party on Monday on the roof of the historic Hay-Adams hotel near the White House.
WHO COVERS THE COSTS?
The official events are financed by Trump’s inauguration committee, which is chaired by longtime Trump allies Steve Witkoff, a real estate developer who is Trump's pick to be his Middle East envoy, and Kelly Loeffler, a former U.S. senator and Trump's pick to head the Small Business Administration.
The committee will be responsible for covering the costs of everything but the swearing-in ceremony at the Capitol, which is borne by taxpayers.
Bezos and Zuckerberg pledged to donate $1 million each to the committee, as have Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) CEO Tim Cook and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman. Uber (NYSE:UBER) and its CEO, Dara Khosrowshahi, have each donated $1 million to the fund.
Trump raised a record $106.7 million for his 2017 inauguration festivities. His committee has raised more than $170 million this time, according to media reports.