President-elect Donald Trump announced that his inauguration on Monday will be held indoors at the U.S. Capitol due to an Arctic blast sweeping across the country, making this the first time in 40 years that a U.S. presidential inauguration will be moved indoors.
“There is an Arctic blast sweeping the country. I don’t want to see people hurt or injured in any way,” Trump said on his Truth Social platform on Friday. “Therefore, I have ordered the Inauguration Address, in addition to prayers and other speeches, to be delivered in the United States Capitol Rotunda.”
The last time a presidential inauguration was moved indoors due to extreme cold was in 1985, during former Republican President Ronald Reagan’s second swearing-in. At the time, the wind chill in Washington dropped to between minus 10 and minus 20 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 23 to minus 29 degrees Celsius).
Trump said that supporters can still view the ceremony on screens inside the Capital One Arena, a sports venue located in downtown Washington that holds up to 20,000 people.
In addition, Trump confirmed that his presidential parade, which was originally planned to proceed down Pennsylvania Avenue past the White House, will now take place inside the Capital One Arena. The specifics of how the parade will be organized inside the venue were not immediately clear.
The weather forecast for Washington on Monday predicts a temperature of around 19°F (minus 7°C) at the time of Trump’s swearing-in, but the wind chill will make it feel even colder.
