There was a MAGA takeover in Washington, DC last weekend, as hundreds of thousands of Trump supporters descended upon the city to celebrate the Inauguration of the 47th President of the United States. The streets were teeming with men, women, and children from across the country wearing iconic red MAGA hats as well as red, white, and blue Inauguration stocking caps. It must have been quite the scene for the far-left citizenry of the Nation’s Capital, who voted for Kamala Harris by 90% in 2024.
Nebraska was also in the spotlight during the Inauguration. The University of Nebraska-Lincoln student choir sang at the prelude of the Inauguration proceedings. Then US Senator Deb Fischer, the ranking member of the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies, spoke at the swearing-in ceremony and sat next to First Lady Melania Trump as they ate Nebraska Beef for the ceremonial luncheon afterward. Fischer’s office was also responsible for providing tickets to an outsized number of Nebraskans. One guest reported that a staffer told him, “there are so many tickets for the Nebraska groups it’s unreal.”
Backup Plans
Of course, the coveted Inaugural tickets became merely “commemorative” on Friday, as the entire Inauguration ceremony was brought inside the US Capitol. This was allegedly due to the weather, though many guests suspected there were security issues at play. Hundreds of thousands of people who had traveled to DC at great personal expense were now unable to see the event they’d come for. The air was thick with disappointment on Friday, with some guests in tears at the baggage claim after learning the news.
Daana Seevers of the NEGOP assembled a watch party on Inauguration Day at 2500 Penn, a hotel tucked between Foggy Bottom and Georgetown. Jack Posobiec of Human Events Daily planned his own watch party, packing a room at the Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center, with such guests as the “Lectern Guy” in attendance.
Most other ticketed guests, however, wanted to see Donald Trump in person, and that meant competing for seats at the Capital One Arena, which was hosting both a Trump Victory Rally on Sunday and then an Inauguration Day event on Monday.
Rain & Snow on Sunday
The pre-inauguration event on Saturday promised to be an entertainment spectacle, with musical performances by Kid Rock and the Village People as well as bombastic speakers like Dana White and Hulk Hogan. The doors officially opened at 1 PM, but by 10 AM, the line stretched for nearly a mile. The Capital One Arena and dozens of adjacent blocks had been barricaded like a fortress with cement barriers and giant fencing. Guests lined up and waited for hours in the rain and snow hoping to get inside, keeping warm with hot chocolate and coffee from Tatte up the street on Massachusetts Ave.
Journalists such as Ezra Levant of Rebel News conducted man-on-the-street interviews along the way. Levant spoke to a young man wearing a “Canadians for Trump” t-shirt and asked him about whether Canada should become the 51st state. “Just don’t let us vote,” he said. “Give us your currency, your Constitution, just don’t let us vote.”
Guests’ spirits remained high at first, but tempers grew short as the lines to get inside became chaotic. Around 4th and G, one line moving west inexplicably began to merge with a second one going east, leading guests to ask angrily which line had been waiting longer. As the line snaked north and then east along H Street, some left-wing hecklers jeered at the guests from behind the fenced partitions.
Then as the guests approached the arena around 10th and H, the line completely fell apart. The fenced partitions were gone, barricades disappeared, and guests suddenly went from walking to running toward large clusters of people squeezing through two separate barricaded partitions just outside the arena. One had apparently been for ADA guests while the other was for general admittance, though there were no longer any signs indicating which was which, and no security to direct traffic.
Guests became angry as some members began jumping barricades and cutting in line. One guest came the opposite way, tears in her eyes and pressing through just to escape, telling everyone the arena was full. Another woman climbed over a barrier to get away. A wide space that had been reserved for the media suddenly filled with another mob of people, all rushing to get close to the entrance, with no indication where they were supposed to go or where the end of the line was supposed to be.
By 4 PM, guests could see the show had already begun, with Kid Rock performing on a large screen on the west side of the arena. Some guests were also turned away while others somehow got inside even an hour later at 5 PM.
The Morning After
Despite the chaos on Sunday, many of the guests who couldn’t get in were willing to try it all again on Inauguration Day. The first trains into town came at 5 AM, which were already filled to standing room only with Trump supporters. The line outside the arena stretched around the block at 6 AM, with thousands waiting to get in. Many guests had been there hours earlier, in spite of the 20°F cold, bringing with them chairs, snacks, tables, and even entire bottles of Jameson Irish Whiskey and Citron Vodka. All of these had to be abandoned at the front of the line, along with piles and piles of backpacks, purses, and even Louis Vuitton handbags.
The venue was filled to capacity within a few hours, and by the time Donald Trump was sworn in at noon, nearly all the seats were filled. The crowd watched the Inaugural proceedings on giant screens inside the arena, booing as Democrats like Hillary Clinton and Chuck Schumer came on screen and cheering when Donald Trump and JD Vance appeared.
When Carrie Underwood stepped up to sing “God Bless America” after the swearing-in, one woman in the arena stood up to scream “Free Palestine!” and gave the venue two middle fingers. She covered her face with a neck gaiter, but not before one person recorded her. She was then escorted out by security as the crowd jeered, “Throw her out!” The disruption did nothing to interrupt Carrie Underwood’s performance, as there seemed to be audio issues at the Capitol. Underwood then sang a cappella, with the audiences both in the rotunda and the Capital One Arena joining in.
Throughout the afternoon, guests like Charlie Kirk, Kash Patel, and Elon Musk spoke to the crowd as President Trump signed executive orders in the White House signing room and performed the ceremonial inspection of the troops. The new President and Vice-President then traveled to the arena along with their families, who sat in a set of 48 white chairs on stage.
The U.S. Army Band performed a medley of songs, including “Brass And Glory,” a special song written specifically for President Donald Trump. The Inaugural Parade was also brought indoors. The participants marched around the arena floor in front of the seated Trump and Vance families, and they included the marching band and cheerleaders from Vance’s hometown of Middletown, Ohio and the Butler County First Responders, who carried the uniform of Corey Comperatore with them.
Several family members of Israeli hostages joined Trump on stage while wearing yellow scarves and were greeted and recognized. Trump then finished the evening by signing a series of executive orders at a small desk on the corner of the stage, tossing the signing pens into the audience before departing.
The indoor Inauguration of 2025 will certainly be a weekend to remember, particularly for the MAGA faithful, who weathered rain and snow and bitter cold for the chance to be a part of it. And despite the logistical challenges of pulling off an indoor event with back-to-back rallies, Trump and the Inauguration committee still managed to put on an unforgettable show.
