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The Guardian - US
World
Alan Yuhas (now), Tom McCarthy and Matthew Weaver (earlier)

Donald Trump inauguration: parade and protesters take to streets of DC – as it happened

Trump takes oath of office and gives first speech as US president

Summary

With the inaugural balls well underway, we’re going to close our rolling coverage of the inauguration of the 45th president of the United States with a summary of the day’s events.

  • Donald Trump was sworn in by chief justice John Roberts as the 45th president of the United States, as Barack Obama handed over White House to the businessman, who has never held office or served in the military and who rose to prominence among conservatives by questioning the legitimacy of the 44th president.
  • In his inaugural address, Trump painted a bleak picture of “American carnage” across the country, speaking about inequality, abandoned factories “like tombstones” and “the crime and the gangs and the drugs.” He promised: “we will make America strong again, wealthy again, proud again, safe again and, yes, together we will make America great again.”
  • Trump pledged an “America first” policy in all things, using a phrase that has been denounced by the Anti-Defamation League for its roots with 1940s Nazi sympathizers. “We’ve defended other nations’ borders while refusing to defend our own,” Trump said. “But that is the past. And now we are looking only to the future.”
  • The speech at times veered away from reality in its tour through an America supposedly riven with “disrepair and decay”. He also urged unification, saying he hoped to “unlock the mysteries of space” and “heal our divisions”. “It’s time to remember that old wisdom our soldiers will never forget: that whether we are black or brown or white, we all bleed the same red blood of patriots.”
  • The new president signed an executive order to “ease the burden” of the repeal of the Affordable Care Act. Republicans have promised to quickly dismantle the law, possibly leaving more than 20 million Americans without healthcare and threatening to balloon deficits around the country. Trump’s order appears to anticipate those financial risks, yet urges “prompt repeal”.
  • Thousands of protesters filled the streets of Washington DC, in mostly peaceful demonstrations that contrasted sharply with the thin crowds watching the inaugural parade. More than 200 people were arrested after sporadic violence broke out, when some protesters threw bricks and bottles at police and officers fired pepper spray and stinging projectiles in return. There was also some vandalism, including a limousine set on fire.
  • Washington braced for far larger protests planned for Saturday, including a Women’s March that expects more than 200,000 people. Initial analysis of crowd size, meanwhile, suggested that far more people attended Obama’s 2009 inauguration than Trump’s 2017 inauguration.
  • Trump’s White House immediately put his priorities on the new site: policing and the military, manufacturing, trade and oil drilling, and “America first”. Immigrants around the US, with and without papers, braced for life under the new administration. Americans almost immediately petitioned Trump to release his taxes and divest from his businesses.
  • The Senate confirmed two retired generals to Trump’s cabinet, James Mattis and John Kelly, to head the Pentagon and Department of Homeland Security, respectively. Both men have broken with Trump on several key positions, including the US attitude toward Russian and building a wall along teh border with Mexico.

Updated

At one of the inaugural balls, there is riverdancing. Michael Flattery, the self-proclaimed “Lord of the Dance” is one of the inaugural performers, but the actual company called Riverdance is not.

Trump is supposed to attend three balls this evening. He is late to the first.

Feet
Feet Photograph: Screengrab

White House press secretary Sean Spicer quashes rumors that a bust of Martin Luther King Jr has been moved out of the Oval Office.

President Donald Trump has already redecorated the Oval Office, the White House pool reports.

A bust of Winston Churchill has returned to the room – it spent Barack Obama’s presidency in the Treaty Room, much to some conservative’s chagrin. A bust of Martin Luther King Jr placed in the Oval office by Obama remains in the president’s office. Trump has also changed the drapes from crimson to gold.

Trump has three inaugural balls to attend this evening; my colleague David Smith is at the Native Nations Inaugural Ball at the Smithsonian National Museum.

White House releases orders

The White House has released the text of two orders, one sent by chief of staff Reince Priebus and the second signed by president Donald Trump.

One directs federal agencies to “send no regulation” to the office of the federal register without approval; withdraw regulations that have been sent to the office but not published; postpone the implementation of rule, wherever possible, that have been published but have not yet taken effect, until further review. In short, a freeze on any new regulation wherever possible.

The second order acknowledges that repealing the Affordable Care Act without a replacement – and likely with one – will strain the budgets of states around the US.The order directs agencies to waiver, defer, and grant exemptions from the healthcare act wherever possible, so that it “minimizes the economic burden” of repeal.

Secretary of defense James Mattis has issued his first statement to the Pentagon:

“It’s good to be back and I’m grateful to serve alongside you as secretary of defense.

Together with the Intelligence Community we are the sentinels and guardians of our nation. We need only look to you, the uniformed and civilian members of the deparment and your families, to see the fundamental unity of our country. You represent an America committed to the common good; an America that is never complacent about defending its freedoms; and an America that remains a steady beacon of hope for all mankind.

Every action we take will be designed to ensure our military is ready to fight today and in the future. Recognizing that no nation is secure without friends, we will work with the State Department to strengtehn our alliances. Further we are devoted gaining full value from every taxpayer dollar spent on defense, thereby earning the trust of Congress and the American people.

I am confident you will do your part. I pledge to you I’ll do my best as your secretary.

Trump signs two executive orders

White House press secretary Sean Spicer has tweeted a photo of the president signing two executive orders in the Oval Office.

One is a freeze on all new regulation by federal agencies.. The second pertains to the Affordable Care Act, but Trump’s team has given no details of what it actually means except that it intends to “ease the burdens” of the healthcare law.

Updated

At an impromptu press conference, White House press secretary Sean Spicer has told reporters that the president will order a government-wide freeze on all new regulations, as well as a second, more vague order regarding healthcare.

There are still no details about how the order will “ease the burden” of Barack Obama’s healthcare reforms. Republicans in control of Congress have yet to propose a plan that would replace “Obamacare”; more than 20 million people stand to lose healthcare should they repeal it without one.

Richard Spencer, the so-called “alt-right” leader who celebrated Trump’s victory in November with Nazi salutes, was punched in the face earlier today. The incident was caught on camera.

The vast majority of protests around Washington on Friday were and remain peaceful, but some protesters clashed violently with police, throwing bricks and bottles, or committed acts of vandalism, setting vehicles and garbage on fire. Police said they had arrested 217 people, and that they suspected many of the people arrested were not DC-area residents.

The Trump White House has released a statement on the confirmations of his choices for secretaries of defense and homeland security, the retired generals James Mattis and John Kelly. In the statement, Donald Trump urges the Senate to hurry.

I am pleased by the confirmation votes of Generals Mattis and Kelly. These uniquely qualified leaders will immediately begin the important work of rebuilding our military, defending our nation and securing our borders. I am proud to have these two American heroes join my administration.

“I call on members of the Senate to fulfill their constitutional obligation and swiftly confirm the remainder of my highly qualified cabinet nominees, so that we can get to work on behalf of the American people without further delay.”

Trump reportedly also has a pair of executive actions to be announced imminently.

The Senate has ended its first session under the Trump administration with a move to confirm Mike Pompeo, a member of the House and Donald Trump’s choice to lead the Central Intelligence Agency, with a vote of 88 to eight.

Pompeo is not officially confirmed yet; the Senate will resume on Monday to finalize the vote.

In his confirmation hearings, Pompeo distanced himself from a few of Trump’s extreme positions, for instance rejecting the idea that the spy agency would return to its use of torture. During the campaign, Trump insisted “torture works” and that he wanted to use methods “a hell of lot worse than waterboarding”. His choice to lead the Pentagon, retired general James Mattis, has rejected the idea that torture works, as has the Senate veteran John McCain, a former prisoner of war.

Pompeo also strongly defended the US’s intelligence agencies during his hearing, which took place the same week that Trump was denigrating the CIA for its conclusion that Vladimir Putin hacked into Democratic servers to help the Republican win the election. Trump later accused the intelligence agencies of behaving like Nazi Germany, a comparison that the outgoing CIA chief, John Brennan called “outrageous”.

The lawmaker said that as CIA chief he would not shy from investigations involving Russia or any other country. “I will continue to pursue foreign intelligence with vigor no matter where the facts lead,” Pompeo said.

Mike Pompeo rules out use of torture under Trump presidency

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DC police say 217 arrested

A spokesperson for Washington DC’s police has said that 217 people were arrested on Friday in relation to protests around the city. Six officers were hurt with minor injuries, and police used pepper spray and stinging balls on protesters.

Riot police watch the crowd.
Riot police watch the crowd. Photograph: Jose Luis Magana/AP

Senate confirms Trump's DHS pick

Retired general John Kelly, Donald Trump’s pick to lead the Department of Homeland Security, has been confirmed by the Senate in a vote of 88 to 11. Senator Jeff Sessions, himself a Trump appointment, has again abstained.

Kelly
General John Kelly. Photograph: Molly Riley/AFP/Getty Images

Like Mattis, Kelly has broken with Trump on some of the president’s highest-profile promises. During his confirmation hearing, the former Marine Crops general said that a wall “in and of itself will not do the job” of border security, and said that he did not support a religious registry to account for Muslims, or anyone else, in America.

“I don’t think it’s ever appropriate to focus on something like religion as the only factor,” Kelly said.

He was urged by senator Claire McCaskill, a Democrat, to “speak truth to the commander-in-chief”.

Updated

Senate confirms Trump's Pentagon pick

Retired general James “Mad Dog” Mattis has been confirmed as Donald Trump’s secretary of defense by the Senate, 98 in favor and one against.

Senator Jeff Sessions, Trump’s pick for attorney general, abstained from the vote, and Democrat Kirsten Gillibrand voted against Mattis, based on her conviction that the military should be overseen by a civilian administrator.

Mattis.
Mattis. Photograph: Michael Reynolds/EPA

Mattis has broken with Trump on several key foreign policy issues. The former general has said strongly supported the Nato alliance, urged caution and possible preservation of the Iran nuclear deal, and said that that Vladimir Putin’s Russia raises “grave concerns on several fronts”.

Trump in contrast has declared Nato “obsolete”, promised to take apart the Iran deal, and persistently said he wants “to get along” with Russia.

“I’m all for engagement but we also have to recognize reality, and what Russia is up to,” Mattis said during his confirmation hearing. “There are a decreasing number of areas where we can engage cooperatively, and an incerasing number of areas where we will have to confront Russia.”

The Senate will next vote on another Trump appointment: retired general John Kelly, his pick to head the Department of Homeland Security. Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell is also moving for a quick vote on Mike Pompeo to head the CIA, though Democrats are objecting in request for more time to debate.

Updated

The Anti-Defamation League, among many others, has criticized Trump for using the phrase “America first” because of its origins with a movement that wanted to keep the US out of war with Nazi Germany and was led by a Nazi sympathizer.

The America First Committee’s founders said they set up the 1940 isolationist movement to stop American involvement in a foreign conflict. But there were accusations that its leadership were also motivated by anti-Semitism.

In 1941, as Nazi forces were attempting to annihilate Europe’s Jews, the aviator and spokesperson of the committee, Charles Lindbergh, told an audience in Iowa that the “British and the Jewish races” were attempting to drag the USA into the second world war “for reasons that are not American”. In a Reader’s Digest article published a few years earlier, Lindbergh wrote to readers that “racial strength is vital” and most be protected against “the infiltration of inferior blood.”

“For many Americans, the term ‘America First’ will always be associated with and tainted by this history,” Jonathan A Greenblatt, the ADL’s CEO, said earlier this year. “In a political season that already has prompted a national conversation about civility and tolerance, choosing a call to action historically associated with incivility and intolerance seems ill-advised.”

In her book 1940: FDR, Willkie, Lindbergh, Hitler, the historian Susan Dunn wrote that the usually popular Lindbergh was heavily booed during the speech at the America First Committee rally. Exactly three months later, on 11 December, Hitler declared war on the US, one day after the group had been dissolved in the wake of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.

Lindbergh later reappeared in fiction, in Philip Roth’s The Plot Against America, which portrays an alternate timeline in which the celebrity aviator wins the presidency in 1940, and encourages the spread of antisemitism in the US.

Anti-Trump protests around the world

Night has fallen on Washington DC, where there are still hundreds of protesters in pockets around the city.

My colleagues Lauren Gambino and David Smith are by the offices of the Washington Post and along the parade route, respectively, with very different crowds.

The Trumps have taken the presidential box to watch the inaugural parade.

The Trumps.
The Trumps. Photograph: Screengrab

A few blocks away, Congress has voted on the first of Trump’s nominees: retired general James “Mad Dog” Mattis, to head the Pentagon. It’s nearly unanimous.

Democratic Senator Kirsten Gillibrand voted against the general, who had received a special waiver to serve in the administration so soon after his retirement from active service.

Updated

On K Street, a few blocks from the White House, Andrew Shiman and his brother Jacob stood wearing masks of Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin. “Putin” was holding “Trump” by a thin chain.

Andrew (Trump) said he and his brother had travelled from Bethesda, Maryland, to protest against the new president because of his alleged ties to Russia.

“Neither of us are a fan of his relationship with Vladimir Putin,” he said, calling Trump “Putin’s mouthpiece”.

Walking past, Barry Kissin of Frederick, Maryland, stopped to give a different view of the US intelligence agencies and their assertion that Russia had tried to intervene in the US election to aid Trump.

“The CIA is a criminal organisation,” he said, listing a number of foreign “coups” he laid at the agency’s door.

“We’re supposed to take the word of somebody like Brennan?” he asked, referring to CIA director John Brennan, who had to apologise to the Senate intelligence committee after it was revealed that, contrary to his public statements, his agency violated an agreement with the committee and surreptitiously searched a firewalled network its staff were using as the committee was investigating the agency for its post-9/11 torture.

“I’m not a Trump fan but when he says we need to be able to get along with Russia, he’s absolutely correct,” he said.

Dozens of people have been arrested in Washington DC and around the US. In Manhattan, two city councilmen were among seven arrested for blocking traffic outside Trump Tower , the New York Daily News reports.

Brooklyn councilman Carlos Menchaca, New York councilman Jumaane Williams and Williams’ mother were protesting in front of the tower from about 11.30am local time, joined by several other anti-Trump protesters. The councilmen did not resist when police arrested them.

Back in Washington, partisans continue to square off in awkward and tense exchanges.

And the marching bands march no.

The protests aren’t in Washington alone. In San Francisco, protesters have taken over the pedestrian pathways of the iconic Golden Gate Bridge in an effort to form a “human chain”. The action, which has not blocked vehicle traffic, has attracted thousands of people, who are holding hands as part of a peaceful demonstration.

Many at the bridge are wearing purple in an effort to support the message of “unity and anti-bullying”. The protest, which organizers are hoping will be the first-ever chain of humans to take over the entire span of the 1.7-mile bridge, is much calmer than numerous intense demonstrations and police clashes that have ignited across the Bay Area.

At the San Francisco headquarters of Uber, activists shut down the office building, leading to roughly 16 arrests. The tech company’s CEO recently joined Trump’s Strategic and Policy Forum.

Protesters also took over the tracks of Caltrain, a commuter rail that connects San Francisco to Silicon Valley, leading to roughly a dozen arrests.

A group called the Anti Police-Terror Project has further coordinated targeted actions at Wells Fargo, a major financial center in San Francisco and the city’s Israeli Consulate.

“What we are seeing from the Trump administration is that corporate America and the government of the United States of America is becoming one and the same,” said Brihannala Morgan, a 35-year-old environmental campaigner who protested Uber. “The companies throwing support to Donald Trump are showing they don’t share the values of San Francisco or the United States.”

Trump’s final stretch to the White House, along with a smattering of boos and the dissipating crowds.

Donald Trump has now arrived at the White House, Melania and Barron at his sides. “Let’s hear it for the first family,” an announcer declares.

Earlier this month Trump fired the 89-year-old man who had announced every inaugural parade since 1957.

The Trumps
The Trumps Photograph: screengrab

Maybe eight blocks and a world away from the executive mansion, my colleague Lauren Gambino is at the scene of more clashes between protesters and police.

Police and firefighters have extinguished the fire that burnt out a black limousine at 13th and K, but protesters are hovering at the scene despite the orders to back away.

“We’ve heard a few interspersing explosions,” my colleague Lauren Gambino reports from the scene. “People are throwing bottles at the police.”

The parade rolls on DonaldTrump, his wife Melania and his 10-year-old son Barron walk and wave alongside their armored limousine.

Trump and family.
Trump and family. Photograph: Screengrab

An announcer is naming the leading members of Congress – House speaker Paul Ryan, Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell – and the eight justices of the supreme court. There’s plenty of open space along the barricades and stands, and protesters are nowhere in sight.

There’s only a smattering of protesters along the parade route. More are arguing with and ignoring Trump supporters and shouting abuse at the new president from afar. Near my colleague Lauren Gambino at 13th and K Street, an unarmored black limo burns.

Updated

Trump’s inaugural parade is meandering through downtown Washington DC, with nine sousaphones in the vanguard.

Sousaphones.
Sousaphones. Photograph: Screengrab

Not far away from the thousands of police and military officers guarding the parade (or playing in its marching bands), protesters continue to have sporadic clashes with police and Truump supporters.

Richard Spencer, a self-described leader of the “alt-right” who celebrated Trump’s victory with Nazi salutes, was reportedly punched in the face in one such altercation.

Protesters clash with police at Trump inauguration in DC

White House petitioned on taxes and conflicts

The White House’s website has already changed hands and dramatically changed, reflecting its new ownership under Donald J Trump.

You can still find Barack Obama’s White House statements and policies on an archive, ObamaWhiteHouse.gov, but Trump’s new White House site has nothing to say so far about civil rights, LGBT rights, healthcare or climate change. The Human Rights Campaign was quick to denounce Trump’s silence.

“If President Trump truly believes in uniting the country, now is the time to make clear whether he will be an ally to the LGBTQ community in our struggle for full equality,” said HRC President Chad Griffin. “We are prepared to do whatever it takes to protect our community and our progress”

The new White House dot gov only has six “issues” listed so far. A pledge to aggressively pursue natural gas and oil drilling; an “America first” foreign policy; a pledge to restore manufacturing jobs; a pledge to restore the military’s strength; a promise to renegotiate trade deals; and a section about “standing up for our law enforcement community” that speaks vaguely about how Trump does not want “to make life more comfortable for the rioter, the looter, or the violent disrupter”.

Concerned Americans (one might even call them disrupters) have already taken to the White House petition page with two requests to the president:

  1. Divest your financial interests or put them in a blind trust
  2. Show us your taxes and show compliance with the constitution’s emolument clause
The first White House petitions of the Trump administration.
The first White House petitions of the Trump administration. Photograph: Screengrab

Updated

Meanwhile, the inaugural parade has crawled to a start. Surrounded by his now permanent retinue of secret service agents, Donald Trump has entered a black SUV limousine in front of the steps of Congress.

The limo, known during Barack Obama’s presidency as the Beast, is getting in place amidst the security and fanfare of the parade vehicles.

Parade.
Parade. Photograph: Screengrab

Back out on the streets of Washington, protests appear to have heavily outnumbered Trump supporters, both in people and signage. My colleague David Smith reports that in one spat, two black women screamed “fuck Donald Trump” at four white men in Trump-themed attire. They shouted back an allusion to a billionaire liberal who often appears in online conspiracy theories, “Who’s paying you, George Soros?”

There are several running themes among the signs.

A lonely Trump supporter complains about the protests: “This is history. It’s not about the man, it’s about the pageantry.”

And my colleague Lauren Gambino, also out on the streets, sees a third display of Americana of a totally different tenor than the Trump supporters and the Trump protesters.

Updated

Trump kept his remarks at the luncheon short, joking that nobody wants to hear him talk anymore.

But he did reserve special praise for “my generals”, whom he noticed had been approved of even by Senate Democrats.

National security editor Spencer Ackerman wrote up profiles of both those generals, Pentagon chief James “Mad Dog” Mattis and Homeland Security pick John Kelly, shortly after their nominations. Mattis received a waiver from the Senate to serve in government so soon after he retired from active service.

Trump asks Clinton to stand up

President Trump has risen to speak at the Capitol luncheon.

“I was very very honored when I heard that Bill Clinton and secretary Hillary Clinton was coming today. I think it’s very important. And I’d like you to stand up. I’d like you to stand up,” he says.

The Clintons stand. Everybody stands. The crowd claps.

“And honestly, there’s nothing more I can say, because I have great respect for those two people,” Trump says.

“Our cabinet is lined up and ready. I know Chuck’s eventually going to approve them...

“We all want the same thing. It doesn’t matter whether we’re Democrat or Republican, we’re all going to get along.”

That’s it from Trump. The lunch is over.

Next up: a parade.

Hillary Clinton stands and is applauded after being lauded by Donald Trump during his speech at the inaugural luncheon.
Hillary Clinton stands and is applauded after being lauded by Donald Trump during his speech at the inaugural luncheon. Photograph: Manuel Balce Ceneta/AP

Updated

Calm protesters carrying the new Shepard Fairey posters, and banners saying “build bridges, not walls”, walk near the corner of 17th and I Streets near the White House.

More than 95 protest-related arrests

Washington, DC, police have confirmed to the Guardian that more than 95 people have been arrested today for protest-related activity. Two law enforcement officers were treated for injuries described as minor.

Truly amazing

Planes, trains and buses full of women are headed to Washington DC ahead of tomorrow’s Women’s March on Washington.

Friedman added: “shout to the lone dude in 26c.”

At least 1,200 buses have been issued parking permits for Saturday, while only 393 had been issued for Inauguration day, as of last Friday.

Updated

The chant in the street has become “who do you protect? who do you serve?” The protest crowd has visibly changed to include many non-black-clad protesters.

“You don’t understand the constitution!” one protester yells. “Look at yourselves!”

Another chant:

“Who do you protect? Who do you serve?”

'American carnage': Trump's vision casts shadow over day of pageantry

At the stroke of noon, as is the American way, power passed from one man to another man. And with that passing of the baton from Barack Obama to Donald Trump, made manifest in a 35-word oath, the country was changed beyond recognition as the new president offered a dark vision of his nation and the world.

The new 45th president of the United States coined the sinister phrase “American carnage” to vividly conjure an image of inner cities he said were afflicted by crime, a political elite that had forgotten ordinary people, and a landscape of rusted factories like tombstones.

And with Hillary Clinton watching only a few painful feet away, Trump left no one in any doubt that he intends to unleash what he called a new vision of “America first” on the world, delivering a brutal and unrepentant speech that made little attempt to soothe the world or begin the healing of an agitated and anxious nation.

Trump delivered a 16-minute inaugural speech that more closely resembled his thunderous addresses from the campaign trail than the oratorical heights of his predecessors, berating the Washington elites of both parties for ignoring the American people and allowing inner cities to fester in “crime and gangs and drugs”.

“The American carnage stops right here, right now,” he said. “From this day forward a new vision will govern our land. From this day forward it’s going to be only America first. America first.”

Read further:

Hillary Clinton stands stoic

If she was thinking it should have been her, she certainly didn’t show it.

Hillary Clinton stood stoic on Friday as the man she defeated by 2.9m votes took the oath of office. She was steadfast, just as she had been in the presidential debates where the soon-to-be victor, Donald J Trump, threatened repeatedly to jail her.

She was not rattled as chants of “lock her up” emanated from the crowd below the inauguration podium, and betrayed no emotion as Trump, who defeated her with an electoral college win, declared an end to the era of politicians who were “all talk and no action”.

The seating arrangements kept Clinton off camera through most of the ceremony, when the focus was instead on Trump, across the aisle, and Barack Obama, who sat one row ahead of her, to the right.

Read further:

“Stingball grenades”

“Not mayhem in the streets”:

but that one is happening:

Updated

There’s a pretty good fire going now in a pile of trash cans surrounded by protesters and a lot of cameras.

One flash-bang device after another now. The clash between protesters – it’s unclear how many protesters are sticking with this stage of the clashes – and police – there are hundreds of police – feels a bit hotter. Live stream here.

“Go back to East Germany!” one protester yells.

“You’re gonna feel great under Trump, boys,” yells another. “Fascists!”

What’s next for the Obamas? Follow the Obama foundation YouTube channel to find out. The first video is already up:

Amanda Salvage had some advice for the new president:

“Stimulate the economy. Create new jobs and stay off Twitter.”

Salvage, who wore a transparent poncho over a chic blue coat, said she was pleasantly surprised by how calm the event was. Given the tense atmosphere in the rest of the city, she expected more disruptions.

In the end, only a handful of protesters managed to enter the event and their impact was relatively small. Salvage is optimistic that Trump will be able to bring the divided nation together.

“I’m hopeful, I really am,” she said.

Here’s our coverage of the Washington, DC, street protests, with new files coming soon:

The first tweet from @potus during the Trump administration:

Protesters chant “deescalate, deescalate.” “No more grenades, please,” somebody says.

Protesters are chanting at police, who have now formed a line across a street blocks away from the parade route Trump is to take from the Capitol to the White House, shields drawn, to “get back, get back, get back, get back.”

Police set off a flash bang device. “What the fuck,” a protester yells. “What the fuck is wrong with you?” The police occasionally host their shields to block something thrown at them.

There’s another flash bang. They’re loud.

Clashes between protesters and police resume

Here’s the live stream of inauguration day action, which includes renewed action in the streets, where protesters are clashing with law enforcement.

A line of law enforcement is facing a line of protesters, separated by about 50 years of pavement downtown. The protesters have knocked over a line of newspaper machines which they’ve placed in the street as a kind of low barricade. The police are on the move.

speech comparison graphic

Updated

Voice in the crowd: 'it was so exciting'

Military veteran Sarah Lentz said she left the inauguration feeling inspired.

“I am really looking forward to a complete overhaul of the way things are,” said Lentz, who wore an American flag scarf around her neck.

Asked specifically what she wants to change, she said she would like Trump to repeal the president’s healthcare law and expand military spending.

Lentz came to DC from North Carolina. Though she had followed his campaign closely, this was the first time she saw Trump speak in person, she said.

“It was so exciting, it’s hard to describe,” she said.

As she spoke, a man walked by shouting “fascists!” at a crowd of supporters in red caps who had just filtered out of the inauguration.

“I understand that they’re angry. We would have been angry too, if Hillary had won,” she said. “But these protests, they’re not about peace and love and making things better. They’re about ruining people’s day.”

She cited the protests outside the DeploraBall on Thursday night, organized by a group, DJ20.

“This group - they’re not about change. They’re about ruining someone’s day. There’s no point,” she said.

The last energy secretary was a nuclear physicist and the one before that was a Nobel laureate in physics.

Lewandowski blocked from ceremony

Corey Lewandowski, the former Trump campaign manager who manhandled a reporter and then told her she was “totally delusional” for thinking he did that, couldn’t get onto the dais today, in spite of this rather desperate call he made:

Read all about it.

Hapless George.

Trump and Clinton shake on it

Video: Obama goodbye speech

Five big themes in Trump speech

Rebirth

Obama hung his head in apparent disbelief as his successor called for the “American carnage” to stop, claiming drug gangs were rampaging across a landscape scattered with the tombstones of rusty factories. Trump is no longer just painting this bleak picture to get elected, but to stoke fear and justify radical action: warning ominously of a “great national effort” and “hardships” to come as he rebuilds a supposedly ruined nation.

Isolationism

More than ever before, Trump made clear the era of US nation-building and economic leadership is over. Nato allies will shudder at his withering depiction of American military “subsidy”, while free-traders would recoil at the claim that its middle class wealth has been ripped away by the foreign theft of factories. “America First” was also the slogan of US isolationists in 1940.

Authoritarianism

Boasting that the military and police were behind him, Trump doubled down on his convention speech promise that “safety will be restored” today. Radical Islamic terrorism will not just be confronted, but “eradicated from the face of the earth”. There will also be little room for dissent in Trump’s united America, where “we all bleed the same red blood of patriots”.

Betrayal

Despite a divisive election, there was no room for building political bridges in Trump’s speech. Much of it was spent describing how politicians had enriched themselves at the expense of “the people”, who this billionaire property developer now claims as his own. Though there was no policy in his speech, Trump insists the “time for empty talk is over, now arrives the hour of action”.

Religion

More than any president in decades, Trump claimed to have religion on his side too. In a speech littered with biblical allusions, he assured Americans they “will be protected by God” and they were all “infused with the breath of life by the same almighty creator”. Before running for president, Trump rarely spoke of his faith but he has learned to stir religion and nationalism into an uncompromising and intimidating brew.

Obamas wave goodbye

The Obamas turn atop the stairs of their airplane and wave goodbye. Next stop California.

There’s a slapstick negotiation around the table of legislators about who gets which pen. Trump, as he signs each document making a nomination official, says something about the nominee. Then the legislators, with the dignity for which they are known, jockey over who gets the keep the pen that signed whose document.

“We have two Nikki Haleys,” Trump says. “Is she applying for two different positions?”

“Terry Branstad, the governor. Longest-serving governor. And China loves him, and he loves China. He’s a good man.”

Ivanka and Jared Trump and their youngest are standing behind Trump’s chair. Melania Trump is standing on Trump’s left. A bit rigidly.

Trump finishes the stack of paper and everyone applauds. Trump shakes hands.

Trump signing procedural grab-bag

The press secretary tells us what those documents do:

“You getting some more pens back there?” Trump says. “This is fun.”

Obama: 'I'll be right there with you'

This has been the privilege of my life, and I know I speak for Michelle as well... and I can’t wait to see what you do next, and I promise I’ll be right there with you. Yes we did. Yes we can.

“This isn’t a period, it’s a comma, in the continuing story that is America,” Obama says.

Applause line.

Trump signing documents at Capitol

As Obama speaks, Trump is seated at a table at the Capitol signing documents. It’s not clear what they are. Paul Ryan and Kevin McCarthy and Roy Blunt and Mitch McConnell are there. But so is Nancy Pelosi.

Updated

Obama:

Throughout this process, Michelle and I, we’ve just been your frontmen and women. We’ve just been your face and voice. But this has not been about us. It has always been about you. And all the amazing things that have happened in the last ten years have all just been about you.

Obama:

“Michelle and I we’ve really been milking this good-bye thing,” he begins. “So it behooves me to be very brief.”

He says that when they started, they did so “with an abiding faith in the American people.”

[...]

“All of you came together in small towns and big cities, a whole bunch of you really young, and you decided to believe. And you knocked on doors and made phone calls, and talked to your parents who didn’t know how to pronounce Barack Obama...

Obama delivers speech

An ongoing live stream of the inauguration proceedings is here:

Currently atop the blog are video highlights from the day thus far. [Update: we’ve gone back to the live stream up there for the moment but will re-elevate the highlights at the right time.]

The Obamas at Andrews Air Force Base, where the former president is to deliver a thank you speech to staff.

Updated

Video: Trump speech in full

The Guardian’s Tom Dart reports from Bellville, Texas:

Business was brisk in the Trump Cafe, a Donald-themed diner in the small Texas town of Bellville, an hour’s drive from Houston. Patrons cheered the president’s inauguration and clapped during moments in his speech when patriotism and promises united in rhetorical embrace.

Larry Reed sat at the entrance behind a table selling hats, flasks, wristbands and Trump badges with the slogan “Make America Great Again, President, Commander in Chief, Tweet Softly - But Carry A Big Stick.”

“I think that we’ve needed change in this country for a long, long time, and that’s why he got elected,” the 72-year-old said.

“Middle America, everything other than a couple of coastal areas has been crying out for change and neither party has given it. And it’s time. And so they took someone with a little populism and said ‘hey, you know what? He doesn’t have to be perfect. If he claims to do these things, and he does it, we’re going to be happy’.”

Reed does not think electing Trump is risky. “No president can bring this country down, okay? Every president has had flaws, deep flaws, every one of them. They’re just men. But if they will lead, if they will put the right people in place to implement things that we need to see, we’ll be fine. We always are, no matter who the president is, and that’s what everyone has to realise this year. We’re going to be just fine if everybody will just zip their lips and watch it happen.”

The old White House climate change page – https://www.whitehouse.gov/energy/climate-change – has disappeared like a species. The old url redirects to a generic Trump splash.

Read further.

Update: You can read the archived Obama White House web site here.

Updated

The Bidens are taking the Amtrak home to Delaware, of course. There’s footage now of them at Union Station.

Let’s check the planner for what’s next. Looks like steak:

Afternoon: The JCCIC has planned the traditional inaugural luncheon, to take place in National Statuary Hall at the Capitol. Four years ago Obama and guests dined on steamed lobster and hickory grilled bison. The menu for this year’s luncheon includes Maine lobster and Gulf shrimp, Seven Hills Angus beef, and chocolate soufflé and cherry vanilla ice cream for dessert.

3pm EST/8pm GMT: The inaugural parade. There has been some controversy over a few of the groups slated to perform, including the marching band from Talladega College, a historically black college in Alabama, and the Marist College Band, from Poughkeepsie, New York. Additional college and high school bands and other groups from around the country will participate, as well as national groups such as the Boy Scouts of America, Wounded Warrior Project, and representatives from each military branch, to name a few.

Evening: The Trumps and Pences will attend three official inaugural balls, according to the presidential inaugural committee. Two, titled “Liberty and Freedom: The Official Presidential Inaugural Balls”, will be held at the Walter E Washington Convention Centre, with Sam Moore, the Piano Guys and the Rockettes listed among the performers. The Salute To Our Armed Services Ball will take place at the National Building Museum.

Trump inauguration speech: as prepared for delivery

Here’s the text of Trump’s inauguration speech, as prepared for delivery:

Chief Justice Roberts, President Carter, President Clinton, President Bush, President Obama, fellow Americans, and people of the world: thank you.

We, the citizens of America, are now joined in a great national effort to rebuild our country and to restore its promise for all of our people.

Together, we will determine the course of America and the world for years to come.

We will face challenges. We will confront hardships. But we will get the job done.

Every four years, we gather on these steps to carry out the orderly and peaceful transfer of power, and we are grateful to President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama for their gracious aid throughout this transition. They have been magnificent.

Today’s ceremony, however, has very special meaning. Because today we are not merely transferring power from one Administration to another, or from one party to another – but we are transferring power from Washington, D.C. and giving it back to you, the American People.

For too long, a small group in our nation’s Capital has reaped the rewards of government while the people have borne the cost.

Washington flourished – but the people did not share in its wealth.

Politicians prospered – but the jobs left, and the factories closed.

The establishment protected itself, but not the citizens of our country.

Their victories have not been your victories; their triumphs have not been your triumphs; and while they celebrated in our nation’s Capital, there was little to celebrate for struggling families all across our land.

That all changes – starting right here, and right now, because this moment is your moment: it belongs to you.

It belongs to everyone gathered here today and everyone watching all across America.

This is your day. This is your celebration.

And this, the United States of America, is your country.

What truly matters is not which party controls our government, but whether our government is controlled by the people.

January 20th 2017, will be remembered as the day the people became the rulers of this nation again.

The forgotten men and women of our country will be forgotten no longer.

Everyone is listening to you now.

You came by the tens of millions to become part of a historic movement the likes of which the world has never seen before.

At the center of this movement is a crucial conviction: that a nation exists to serve its citizens.

Americans want great schools for their children, safe neighborhoods for their families, and good jobs for themselves.

These are the just and reasonable demands of a righteous public.

But for too many of our citizens, a different reality exists: Mothers and children trapped in poverty in our inner cities; rusted-out factories scattered like tombstones across the landscape of our nation; an education system, flush with cash, but which leaves our young and beautiful students deprived of knowledge; and the crime and gangs and drugs that have stolen too many lives and robbed our country of so much unrealized potential.

This American carnage stops right here and stops right now.

We are one nation – and their pain is our pain. Their dreams are our dreams; and their success will be our success. We share one heart, one home, and one glorious destiny.

The oath of office I take today is an oath of allegiance to all Americans.

For many decades, we’ve enriched foreign industry at the expense of American industry;

Subsidized the armies of other countries while allowing for the very sad depletion of our military;

We’ve defended other nation’s borders while refusing to defend our own;

And spent trillions of dollars overseas while America’s infrastructure has fallen into disrepair and decay.

We’ve made other countries rich while the wealth, strength, and confidence of our country has disappeared over the horizon.

One by one, the factories shuttered and left our shores, with not even a thought about the millions upon millions of American workers left behind.

The wealth of our middle class has been ripped from their homes and then redistributed across the entire world.

But that is the past. And now we are looking only to the future.

We assembled here today are issuing a new decree to be heard in every city, in every foreign capital, and in every hall of power.

From this day forward, a new vision will govern our land.

From this moment on, it’s going to be America First.

Every decision on trade, on taxes, on immigration, on foreign affairs, will be made to benefit American workers and American families.

We must protect our borders from the ravages of other countries making our products, stealing our companies, and destroying our jobs. Protection will lead to great prosperity and strength.

I will fight for you with every breath in my body – and I will never, ever let you down.

America will start winning again, winning like never before.

We will bring back our jobs. We will bring back our borders. We will bring back our wealth. And we will bring back our dreams.

We will build new roads, and highways, and bridges, and airports, and tunnels, and railways all across our wonderful nation.

We will get our people off of welfare and back to work – rebuilding our country with American hands and American labor.

We will follow two simple rules: Buy American and Hire American.

We will seek friendship and goodwill with the nations of the world – but we do so with the understanding that it is the right of all nations to put their own interests first.

We do not seek to impose our way of life on anyone, but rather to let it shine as an example for everyone to follow.

We will reinforce old alliances and form new ones – and unite the civilized world against Radical Islamic Terrorism, which we will eradicate completely from the face of the Earth.

At the bedrock of our politics will be a total allegiance to the United States of America, and through our loyalty to our country, we will rediscover our loyalty to each other.

When you open your heart to patriotism, there is no room for prejudice.

The Bible tells us, “how good and pleasant it is when God’s people live together in unity.”

We must speak our minds openly, debate our disagreements honestly, but always pursue solidarity.

When America is united, America is totally unstoppable.

There should be no fear – we are protected, and we will always be protected.

We will be protected by the great men and women of our military and law enforcement and, most importantly, we are protected by God.

Finally, we must think big and dream even bigger.

In America, we understand that a nation is only living as long as it is striving.

We will no longer accept politicians who are all talk and no action – constantly complaining but never doing anything about it.

The time for empty talk is over.

Now arrives the hour of action.

Do not let anyone tell you it cannot be done. No challenge can match the heart and fight and spirit of America.

We will not fail. Our country will thrive and prosper again.

We stand at the birth of a new millennium, ready to unlock the mysteries of space, to free the Earth from the miseries of disease, and to harness the energies, industries and technologies of tomorrow.

A new national pride will stir our souls, lift our sights, and heal our divisions.

It is time to remember that old wisdom our soldiers will never forget: that whether we are black or brown or white, we all bleed the same red blood of patriots, we all enjoy the same glorious freedoms, and we all salute the same great American Flag.

And whether a child is born in the urban sprawl of Detroit or the windswept plains of Nebraska, they look up at the same night sky, they fill their heart with the same dreams, and they are infused with the breath of life by the same almighty Creator.

So to all Americans, in every city near and far, small and large, from mountain to mountain, and from ocean to ocean, hear these words:

You will never be ignored again.

Your voice, your hopes, and your dreams, will define our American destiny. And your courage and goodness and love will forever guide us along the way.

Together, We Will Make America Strong Again.

We Will Make America Wealthy Again.

We Will Make America Proud Again.

We Will Make America Safe Again.

And, Yes, Together, We Will Make America Great Again. Thank you, God Bless You, And God Bless America.

Obama helicopter departs

The helicopter winds up. And leaves. They’re heading to the airport and thence to California, for family vacation.

A military helicopter carries former president Barack Obama and Michelle Obama from the U.S. Capitol
A military helicopter carries former president Barack Obama and Michelle Obama from the U.S. Capitol Photograph: Rob Carr/Getty Images

The Trumps and Pences stand on the steps, watching the helicopter go.

Updated

Obamas board helicopter

The Trumps and Obamas stand there. Then they walk down the steps in formation. The Obamas are hand-in-hand. Their walking towards the helicopter, which sounded like it was running but the blades aren’t moving. The group waits for the veep motorcade to pull out.

There go the Obamas. Hand in hand, walking to their ride. The Trumps follow them to the steps.

Trump shakes Obamas hand. He says something in his ear. It really does look like he says, “I’ll call you.” Trump seems to return, indecisively, the salute of a military escort holding a salute.

They finish their farewell. Michelle gets in. Barack gets in. He turns to wave from the door. And disappears inside.

The Trumps turn and walk back to the Capitol.

Next is lunch.

Hugs. The Obamas and Trumps now will have a photo op with “just presidents.” The veeps and spouses walk down to limos. Joe and Jill Biden are hopping in one. Jill hugs Karen Pence goodbye. Mike Pence says something important to Joe Biden.

Obama and Trump and Biden and Pence walk out of the Capitol.

There’s a photo opportunity on the steps. Trumps and Obamas and Bidens and Pences.

L-R First Lady Melania Trump, Karen Pence, US President Donald J. Trump, US Vice President Mike Pence, former US President Barack Obama, former US Vice President Joe Biden, Michelle Obama and Jill Biden
L-R First Lady Melania Trump, Karen Pence, US President Donald J. Trump, US Vice President Mike Pence, former US President Barack Obama, former US Vice President Joe Biden, Michelle Obama and Jill Biden Photograph: EPA

Updated

Obama to Trump: 'we'll be right around the corner'

There’s footage of Trump walking Obama through the Capitol rotunda.

We’re not making this up. The camera catches a snippet of their conversation. Obama is heard to say to Trump:

“Well as I said, we’ll be right around the corner.”

At the University of California, Berkeley campus, a group of immigrant student activists have gathered to prepare for a morning of “teach-ins” aimed at organizing against Trump and his “harmful” agenda.

Crowded inside a diversity office at the school of public health, the students, including some who are undocumented and have relied on the protections of Obama’s Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (Daca) policy, watched Trump’s swearing-in on a laptop.

“I feel nauseous. I can’t look at him,” said Miriam Avilez, a 27-year-old undocumented student, as Trump stepped up to the podium. She briefly hid her face in her hands as the president began to speak. “Today, reality really slapped me in the face. I woke up this morning and thought, ‘Crap, this wasn’t a nightmare. Should I pinch myself? Is this really happening?’”

“God help us all,” said Sofia Villagomez, 23, as Trump was sworn in. The public health student, part of a group called Borders and Bodies Collective, said it was a struggle to force herself to even watch the events. “I’m just feeling like I need to be informed about what’s going as much as what’s happening just pains me. We’re headed for a fight for sure.”

Gladis Chavez, a 26-year-old undocumented student, said the reports that Trump may immediately repeal Daca, which could put students like her at risk of deportation, were heavily weighing on her. “It really scares me. I don’t know what I’m going to do if I lose everything I’ve been working for. I’m trying to start my adult life.”

Hillary Clinton heads up the stairs, shaking hands. Oversight committee chair Jason Chaffetz, not known to be a huge Hillary Clinton fan, gives her a warm smile.

George W Bush leaves. He stops to shake Dole’s hand too.

People are streaming out now. There goes John Boehner. The camera moves to the interior and Hillary Clinton is hanging out with George W Bush. Nice shot of the Bushes and Clintons walking together.

Back outside, Dick and Liz Cheney stop to chat with the Doles.

Trump leaves the platform. He stops at the top of the stairs to say hi to the Doles. “Hi Bob, Hi Elizabeth.” Obama, behind Trump, stops too. Then Biden does. Everybody heading back inside now.

What did you make of the speech?

One last prayer, this time by a rabbi. Hang on, there’s one more, from a pastor who points out:

“In the bible, rain is the sign of a blessing. And it started to rain Mr President when you came to the platform.”

It’s true, the timing was uncanny.

Trump concludes speech with promise to make America great again

Trump closes with a variation on the conclusion with which he capped many stump speeches:

We will make America strong again

We will make America wealthy again

We will make America proud again

and yes, together, we will make America great again.

The crowd chants along to the “great again” line.

Trump finishes:

Thank you, god bless you, and god bless America.

Thank you. God bless America.

Trump:

“The time for empty talk is over. Now arrives the hour for action.”

We will not fail. Our country will thrive and prosper again. We stand at the birth of a lewl [sic] millennium, ready to unlock the mysteries of space...”

He had trouble with that phrase, little millennium. “Whether we are black or brown or white, we all bleed the same red blood of patriots,” he continues.

Trump waxes poetic:

“Whether a child is born in the urban sprawl of Detroit or the windswept plains of Nebraska, they look up at the same night sky... and they are infused with the same breath of life by the almighty creator.”

Trump: USA 'will be protected by god'

Trump says the United States won’t impose its lifestyle on anyone but “we will shine for everyone to follow.”

Then he says of “radical Islamic terrorism” that “we will eradicate completely from the face of the Earth.”

He says “we will rediscover our loyalty to each other. When you open your heart to patriotism, there is no room for prejudice. The bible tells us how good and pleasant it is when the people live together in unity...

When America is united, America is totally unstoppable.

There should be no fear. We are protected and we will always be protected [by law enforcement and military]... and most importantly, we will be protected by god.”

Trump: 'protection will lead to great prosperity'

Trump:

From this day forward, it’s going to be only America First, America First.

Applause line. Trump says “every decision” will be made to protect American workers and American families.

“Protection will lead to great prosperity and strength. I will fight for you with every breath in my body and I will never ever let you down. America will start winning again, winning like never before. We will bring back our jobs. We will bring back our borders. We will bring back our wealth. And we will bring back our dreams.”

Those are all applause lines.

Trump describes “two simple rules”: “buy American and hire American.”

Right on time, it’s raining. The umbrellas come out on the platform. Trump ignores it.

President Donald Trump delivers his inaugural address as the rain starts to fall
President Donald Trump delivers his inaugural address as the rain starts to fall Photograph: Alex Wong/Getty Images

Updated

Trump lapses into something akin to his stump speech, describing a nation coming apart:

The crime, and the gangs, and the drugs that have stolen so many lives... this American carnage stops right here and stops right now.

We are one nation, and their pain is our pain, their dreams are our dreams, and their success will now be our success.

Video: Trump takes oath of office

Trump: 'this moment is your moment'

Trump notes that the peaceful transfer of power happens every four years, which is encouraging. He thanks the Obamas for helping this time.

“They have been magnificent, thank you.” Cheers.

“Today we are not merely transferring power from one party to another... but we are transferring power from Washington DC and giving it back to you, the people.”
That’s an applause line.

Trump says that a small group in Washington has reaped the rewards while “the people have borne the loss.”

“The establishment protected itself but not the citizens of our country. Their victories have not been your victories. Their triumphs have not been your triumphs. While they celebrated in our nation’s capital,” struggling families could not.

“That all changes, right here, starting right now. Because this moment is your moment. It belongs to you... This is your day, this is your celebration, and this, the United States of America, is your country.

“January 20th, 2017, will be remembered as the day the people became the rulers once again. The forgotten men and women of our country will be forgotten no longer. Everyone is listening to you now.”

Trump addresses himself to “people of the world.”

Thank you, he says. “We the citizens of America are now joined in a great national effort to rebuild our country and restore its promise for all of our people. Together we will determine the course of America and all of the world for many many years to come.”

President Donald Trump delivers his inaugural address
President Donald Trump delivers his inaugural address Photograph: Joe Raedle/Getty Images

Updated

Trump begins speech

Trump begins his address.

Trump waves from the lectern and mouths “thank you” again.

People are cheering and chanting “Trump! Trump! Trump!”

President Trump

Trump takes the oath, repeating after Roberts. Melania Trump holds the Bible.

He finishes. “Congratulations Mr President,” Roberts says. Cheering. Trump turns and bear hugs his family, standing behind him. Gun salute. Done deal.

Applause for the second choir was bigger than the applause for the first choir.

Here’s supreme court chief justice John Roberts.

Here’s another choir, singing America the Beautiful. This choir is dressed in matching white turtlenecks and red-white-and-blue tartan scarves. It’s an uptempo rendition. They’re three verses deep or so. It’s not raining, we realize, as many forecasts predicted.

Pence hugs wife Karen and members of his family. Proud smiles all around. Pence waves and there is cheering.

Updated

More people arrive on the mall, Paul Lewis reports:

Pence takes oath

Schumer concludes, “I know, our best days are yet to come.” Hang on, in fact he has more words. There, now he’s done.

Clarence Thomas will administer the oath of office to Trump.

Thomas recites the oath, which Pence repeats. Thomas talking – that’s strange to hear. There it is, he pulls it off, Pence is vice president.

Updated

Blunt, the Missouri senator, said the choir that just sang lives by him, “so it was easy” to recruit them.

Chuck Schumer, the senate minority leader, is up. He says we live in “challenging” times. “In such times, faith in our government, our institutions, and even our country can erode.” But Schumer has not lost confidence, “for one reason: you, the American people.”

The camera cuts to Trump, who looks like he’s gasping for air. Trump and Schumer, New Yorkers both, go back a ways. Schumer is still speaking, about the rule of law, equality and freedom, “the things that make America America.”

Not in attendance today: former president George HW Bush and wife Barbara, who both are hospitalized, him with complications from pneumonia and her as a precaution.

A choir from Missouri State university is singing. School color is maroon, it looks like. Which reminds of Nancy Reagan at George HW Bush’s inauguration:

Donald Trump shakes hands with President Barack Obama
Donald Trump shakes hands with President Barack Obama Photograph: Patrick Semansky/AP

Even the Washington metro is getting in on pointing out how small today’s crowd is:

(h/t @zekejmiller)

Now a reading from the third chapter of the book of Matthew, the one about the humble inheriting the kingdom of earth, and peace workers being the children of god, and god blessing those who are mocked for their faith.

Here’s Cardinal Timothy Dolan with a prayer, from the book of Solomon. The passage asks for wisdom from the lord. The camera cuts to Obama, who has his eyes closed, prayerfully. Amen.

Donald Trump arrives on the West Front
Donald Trump arrives on the West Front Photograph: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Blunt is droning on about inauguration history. His talk is a tribute to the tradition of the peaceful transfer of power.

Glancing back at the protest –wrong day to park your limo downtown:

Missouri senator Roy Blunt, as chairman of the congressional inauguration committee, has remarks.

He welcomes the crowd, which cheers again.

Ladies and gentlemen, the president-elect of the Unites States, Donald John Trump.

Trump pauses atop the stairs and gives a little first pump. He smiles. Walks down the stairs and shakes hands again with Obama and Biden. Crosses back over to his family’s side. Ignores Melania Trump. Mouths “thank you” several times.

Trump waves to the crowd and cheers go up. “Thank you,” he mouths.

Updated

Here come all the congressional leaders. They’re applauded. On the platform at least. You can’t hear whether anyone in the crowd is applauding because of the trumpets.

Drum roll. Here comes Trump.

Updated

Mike Pence is announced and walks out to cheers. He stops to wave atop the platform stairs and then heads for the lectern level. He says hi to Quayle, who wants a hug, to which Pence reluctantly accedes. Pence goes to shake a hand past Hillary Clinton and she looks at him with a faraway smile. Pence takes his place next to Melania Trump.

“Trump, Trump, Trump,” the crowd chants.

And there he is, walking the interior hallway, looking deadly serious. Red tie. Solemn look. He’s preceded by Paul Ryan and Kevin McCarthy.

Obama, Biden, Schumer and Pelosi are announced. There’s applause and cheering on the platform. More handshaking and smiles. Obama crosses the stage to shake hands with the Trumps, who all smile very big. They seem to like him. Obama heads back over stage left. He makes Biden move. George W Bush cracks a joke, inaudible. He always seems to have a lot of fun at these things. Dan Quayle looks lost. Obama shakes hands with Clarence Thomas, the supreme court justice.

It’s a pro-Sanders crowd, pockets of it.

Former US president George W. Bush and Laura Bush arrive at the swearing in ceremony
Former US president George W. Bush and Laura Bush arrive at the swearing in ceremony Photograph: Doug Mills/AFP/Getty Images

Here are Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer leading Joe Biden and Barack Obama. Tough year for team D. Obama is talking to Biden who can be heard to say, “yeah.” Obama’s projecting casual. Biden looks like he has to burp. Obama flashes a big smile.

Here now come the spouses of the congressional leadership, announced in a group.

Melania Trump follows them down the stairs to the lectern level. She is smiling without quite looking happy.

Here comes Melania Trump, on the arm of a military escort, down some interior stairs and headed for the platform. She keeps looking down at her feet, the steps are steep.

The Guardian’s Sabrina Siddiqui is at the protest site:

Updated

In the wake of Donald Trump’s win – a tremendous political and cultural loss for women – I’ll keep you up to date on the worst news, the best news, and everything in between to help you cope with the next four years. Sign up for a weekly email to hear my thoughts about the week in patriarchy. Check out the inaugural newsletter here.

Here come Michelle Obama and Dr Jill Biden. Michelle Obama says something to the Trumps as she hits the lectern level, cracking a joke it looks like. Then she heads stage left, where the former presidents – Carter, Clinton, Bush – and families are.

That includes, of course, Hillary Clinton, who will be about six feet away from Trump as he takes the oath.

Video: Hillary Clinton prepares to attend Trump’s inauguration.

Members of the public filling the Mall and the West Front of the US Capitol.
Members of the public filling the Mall and the West Front of the US Capitol. Photograph: Mark Ralston/AFP/Getty Images

The crowd at the inauguration – nobody on the platform, surely? – is chanting USA! USA! USA!

The crowd appears to fill maybe half the Mall. The use of white ground covering throws into stark relief how many people aren’t there.

On the National Mall.
On the National Mall. Photograph: Anadolu Agency/Getty Images

Updated

Video: protesters clash with police

Here’s some video from earlier. Law enforcement currently appears to have cornered a group of protesters downtown – we’re en route to the scene.

Here now are Trump’s five children: Ivanka Trump, Don Jr, Eric, Tiffany and Barron. They join the in-laws (Jared, Vanessa, Lara and others) beside the lectern, stage right.

In his way.

Trump arrives at Capitol

Trump and Obama arrive at the Capitol. Everyone is shaking hands. Paul Ryan is walking right behind them. Obama pats Trump on the back. Also in the entourage are Mitch McConnell and Nancy Pelosi.

Clinton: 'I'm here to honor our democracy'

The Guardian’s Lauren Gambino is in the crowd:

Updated

Clinton arrives on platform

Hillary and Bill Clinton have just been announced and proceeded in. Clinton will be closely watched during the ceremony, as an opponent who garnered 2.9m fewer votes than she did takes the oath of office.

Footage of Clinton entering the US Capitol before the ceremony evoked memories of her campaign as she dressed in a white suit much like the ones she wore at key moments in the campaign, including when she accepted the Democratic nomination and at the third presidential debate.

Her outfit choice is notable because it carries historical connotations.

Clinton was the first woman to win a major party nomination for president nearly 100 years after the US allowed women to vote.

Those who fought for that right, the suffragettes, were encouraged to wear white at marches in the early 1900s. On election day in 2016, some women cast their ballots dressed in white in solidarity with Clinton and the women who came before her.

Clinton’s husband, former president Bill Clinton, wore a dark suit.

Updated

Here’s Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter. Lots of applause for them. He looks great! After his 2015 cancer diagnosis.

Here’s a good Twitter follow for protest action:

Planning to protest? Let us know

While Saturday’s Women’s March on Washington is the main demonstration after Trump’s inauguration, readers from around the world have been sharing their plans to protest. Are you planning to attend the Women’s March on Washington, or protest elsewhere? Tell us about it, via GuardianWitness.

I'll be marching in DTLA as an antidote to the constant feeling of sickness I have felt since the election. Joining friends coming up from Orange County (which used to be the reddest of red areas). We will join an expected 100,000 women. Less than 5,000 were anticipated when the march permit was originally filed. I asked eloquent friends in the UK for sign slogans. This one stood out (thanks to Gill's daughter Lauren): " I can't believe I still have to protest this shit." That sums it up, sadly.

I'm in Paris, planning to attend a protest near the US Embassy today, a wake for Obama (and American values) this evening and the march tomorrow. Not sure if I could do more but I'm trying!

I'll be marching in NYC. Why? Because I'm a woman who cares about what happens to me, all other humans, and the planet. I want Mr. Trump to know that Americans will stand up for the constitution, for freedom, and for each other.

Updated

Trump and Obama emerge from White House

Donald Trump and Barack Obama emerge from the White House. They look serious. Faces set in concrete. Obama is gesturing and talking. Takes Trump by the elbow and they both get in an armored limo.

A protester is dragged away from a public access point to the National Mall
A protester is dragged away from a public access point to the National Mall Photograph: Patrick Smith/Getty Images

We’re going to turn away from the protests for a moment.

Live video: protesters clash with police

Here’s a feed of the protests. There’s a separate feed of the ongoing inauguration ceremony atop the blog. The physical clashes at the protest continue. Protesters are throwing traffic cones. A police officer guns his motorcycle down the sidewalk, but no one appears to be hit.

It’s a melee in the streets of the capital. Many of the protesters are at a full run now. But fewer are on the street, most are on the sidewalk. Police officers on bikes and motorcycles are trying to reclaim the streets. The protesters are reasserting themselves.

“Take a little pepper spray break,” says the journalist with the camera on this live feed. “Cleans out the nostrils.”

The protesters chant “Fuck Donald Trump” and “Whose streets? Our streets.” Lots of audible sirens. Protesters topple trash cans and there are sounds of shattering glass. Multiple protesters bash a window of a McDonalds. The protesters are running, and one is using a long stick to swipe at a police officer, who sprays from a canister at the protester, who runs away.

Protesters clash with police

Now we have some protest footage from near a checkpoint. A large group of protesters, many dressed all in black, some with faces covered, some carrying umbrellas, are crossing a boulevard and taking over a street, led by a large banner reading “Make Racists Afraid Again.” Police with batons and face shields have just appeared to confront them. Police on motorcycles are trying to corral them.

Senator Bernie Sanders arrives.

That White House tea party must be over because Paul Ryan and Kevin McCarthy, the two top Republicans in the House, just walked into the Capitol.

The ongoing tea reception at the White House includes, according to a list released by the White House:
1. The President
2. The First Lady
3. The Vice President
4. Dr. Biden
5. President-Elect Trump
6. Mrs. Trump
7. Vice President-Elect Pence
8. Mrs. Pence
9. Hon. Roy Blunt, Chairman of Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies (R-MO)
10. Mrs. Abbie Blunt, Spouse of Senator Blunt
11. Hon. Mitch McConnell, Senate Majority Leader (R-KY)
12. Mrs. Elaine Chao, Spouse of Senator McConnell
13. Hon. Charles E. Schumer, Senate Democrat Leader (D-NY)
14. Ms. Iris Weinshall Schumer, Spouse of Senator Schumer
15. Hon. Paul D. Ryan, Speaker of the House (R-WI)
16. Mrs. Jana Ryan, Spouse of Speaker Ryan
17. Hon. Kevin McCarthy, House Majority Leader (R-CA)
18. Mrs. Judy McCarthy, Spouse of Rep. McCarthy
19. Hon. Nancy Pelosi, House Democrat Leader (D-CA)
20. Mr. Paul Pelosi, Spouse of Rep. Pelosi

Clintons arrive at inauguration

Hillary Clinton and husband Bill arrive at the Capitol.
Hillary Clinton and husband Bill arrive at the Capitol. Photograph: Rob Carr/Getty Images

White House arrival.
White House arrival. Photograph: KEVIN DIETSCH / POOL/EPA
Protesters at a checkpoint in DC.
Protesters at a checkpoint in DC. Photograph: Jose Luis Magana/AP
Steve Bannon.
Steve Bannon. Photograph: Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images
George and Laura Bush.
George and Laura Bush. Photograph: John Angelillo/AFP/Getty Images

Former Republican vice presidents Dick Cheney and Dan Quayle arrive to the ceremony. Cheney’s wearing a cowboy hat to keep off the rain, which isn’t falling at the moment. He appears to be getting around well, after undergoing a heart transplant in 2012.

1996 Republican presidential nominee Bob Dole arrives in a wheelchair. Dole was about the only senior Republican figure to attend the national convention this year. House minority whip Steny Hoyer stops to chat with him. And here come a parade of Democratic members of Congress. Despite the boycotts, that’s no small number of arrivals.

Kellyanne Conway, Trump’s last campaign manager and an incoming senior advisor, is wearing a continental army look today. Those are cat head buttons.

Kellyanne Conway departs for a church service before the inauguration
Kellyanne Conway departs for a church service before the inauguration Photograph: Joshua Roberts/Reuters

Updated

There now is Sheldon Adelson, the casino magnate and generous Republican donor, and wife Miriam. They stand talking to the Gingriches.

Former House speaker John Boehner has arrived at the Capitol. He’s got a very red sweater on. And there are Newt and Callista Gingrich. Newt has a blue tie.

There’s incoming chief strategist Stephen Bannon.

Paul Lewis, our West Coast bureau chief, captures a scene on the mall:

Among the dozens of Democratic members of Congress boycotting the inauguration is Filemon Vela, a third-term representative from the Texas border city of Brownsville.

On Thursday he wrote on Twitter that “two days before the Inauguration, two things occurred that leave me no choice but to boycott the event. While in DC, 40 migrant students from [his district] were subjected to comments of ‘beaners’, ‘burritos’, and ‘wetbacks’ from Inauguration attendees.”

Then, he added, the appointment of former Georgia governor Sonny Perdue as agriculture secretary to fill the last vacancy in Trump’s cabinet means the new government will have “no Hispanic representation in the cabinet for the 1st time in 36 years.”

According to the Dallas Morning News, the cabinet will be the first without any Hispanic officials since 1988.

Updated

Since you’re here, we have a small favor to ask. More people are reading the Guardian than ever – but far fewer are paying for it, and advertising revenues are falling fast. So you can see why we need to ask for your help. The Guardian’s journalism takes a lot of time, money and hard work to produce. But we do it because we believe that independent reporting and plurality of voices matter. If everyone who reads our reporting helps to pay for it, our future would be much more a monthly payment or a one-off contribution. - Guardian HQ

Video: Trumps arrive at White House

Barack Obama can be heard to hail Trump. “Mr President elect! How are you? Congratulations.”

Handing off the nuclear football

By now, if the past is any guide, Donald Trump will have been given a briefing at the White House about the fearsome responsibility he is about to take on. He will be shown the nuclear “football”, a satchel containing a set of booklets which constitute a how-to guide on fighting a nuclear war. One black book lists a menu of strike options; another lists the bunkers around the country where the nation’s leaders could shelter from a nuclear strike and there are instructions for using the emergency broadcast system.

All of these are carried in a case made of an aluminum frame covered in soft black leather. It is officially known as the “president’s emergency satchel” that is carried by a military aide, whose job it is to stay close to the president at all times. After Trump takes the oath of office, the military aide will cease to stick close to Barack Obama and follow him instead. The military aide will have been present at Trump’s nuclear briefing, which would almost certainly have been given by the outgoing national security advisor, Susan Rice. Her replacement, Michael Flynn would also have been present.

There is one part of the nuclear launch protocols that will only be transferred at noon exactly, the nuclear launch codes. These codes, which Trump would have to provide to prove his identity to the generals at the the National Military Command Centre, are printed on a card, known as the nuclear “biscuit”. This can either be carried on the president’s person or be slipped into the football, depending on Trump’s preference. (Bill Clinton lost his biscuit and never told anyone about it, according to a former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Hugh Shelton.)

The biscuit could be handed over to Trump immediately after the oath, or it could already have been handed to him. A former missile launch officer, Bruce Blair, said the codes on the biscuit will only become active at noon, just as Obama’s become inactive.

“The codes are standard challenge and reply formats used throughout the military and are keyed to date/time; i.e. if POTUS has to use them, he refers to the codes (e.g. Delta Zulu) found under the specific day in which the Pentaon challenges him or his successor during an emergency,” Blair, now a research scholar at Princeton University, said.

Once those codes are activated, Trump has full authority to launch nuclear missiles. He will be commander-in-chief, with control over 4,000 nuclear weapons, of which about 900 can be launched on short notice. The defense secretary would not be able to prevent him giving the order to the generals in the war room.

If Trump is incapacitated, the duty would fall to Mike Pence, but if all the top leadership was wiped out in a catastrophic attack, the decisions on whether to launch nuclear retaliation would have to be taken by a “designated survivor” in the chain of command. Only two of Trump’s cabinet picks are due to be confirmed on Friday, secretary of defencs James Mattis and homeland security service, General John Kelly. If they are both at the inauguration ceremony, another official - possibly acting secretary of state, Thomas Shannon - would have to be a secure location some distance from Washington.

Read further:

Updated

Members of the Trump family have arrived at the Capitol. We’ve spotted Donald Trump Jr, wife Vanessa, Tiffany Trump and Barron Trump. No Ivanka & Jared or Eric yet.

First lady Michelle Obama, flanked by President Barack Obama and President-elect Donald Trump, greets Melania Trump who is holding a gift box
First lady Michelle Obama, flanked by President Barack Obama and President-elect Donald Trump, greets Melania Trump who is holding a gift box Photograph: Evan Vucci/AP

George W Bush sighting outside the Capitol. He looks happy to be there. He’s walking around shaking hands with members of the Capitol police force and literally slapping them on the back. Laura Bush is walking next to him. You can’t hear what he’s saying in the video feed, but Bush is calling out to everyone he sees, hailing them, like he just left yesterday.

Trumps arrive at White House

There’s Trump. Walks up the stairs. Kisses Michelle Obama on both cheeks. Barack Obama gives a hand to Melania Trump as she mounts the stairs. The Trumps – Melania it appears – hand the Obamas a gift, something in a Tiffany blue box. They juggle the box uncomfortably for a moment. Turn and pose for a picture, the Obamas flanking the Trumps. (Somebody took the box.) Everybody’s smiling.

Updated

The Obamas are standing outside the North Portico, awaiting the Trumps, who are just now pulling up.

The red carpet sits rolled and waiting for President-elect Donald Trump inside the North Portico of the White House.
The red carpet sits rolled and waiting for President-elect Donald Trump inside the North Portico of the White House. Photograph: Pool/Getty Images

A White House press pool report notes one more moment from Obama’s procession just then down the colonnade:

Obama asked reporters “how’s it going?” Reporters asked Obama if he felt nostalgic. “Of course,” he replied.

There’s some of that in the air today.

US President Barack Obama departs the Oval Office for the last time as president
US President Barack Obama departs the Oval Office for the last time as president Photograph: Jim Watson/AFP/Getty Images

‘Not my president’

The Trumps have just left church and hopped in a car. Next stop: White House.

Barack Obama has just left the Oval Office for the last time as president, presumably having left a letter for Trump inside on the Resolute desk. Reporters called out as Obama walked down the West Wing colonnade.

Shepard Fairey, the artist who created the original Obama “Hope” poster, has done a new series titled We the People – check it out at Mic.com. The Washington Post has printed one entry on the back of today’s A section – for use at the inauguration?

(h/t @rayajalabi)

Updated

We now have a roving live video stream of the Inauguration proceedings atop the blog. Soon we should be seeing the Trumps leaving church to head to the White House. Meanwhile there’s footage of the crowd on the National Mall.

Obama: 'I'm still asking you to believe'

President (still for about the time it takes to watch a feature-length film) Obama is tweeting some farewell notes.

@potus is about to change.

I won’t stop; I’ll be right there with you as a citizen, inspired by your voices of truth and justice, good humor, and love.

Someone in New York City has unfurled a banner on the 59th St Bridge reading “Bridges not walls”:

Dan Scavino, Trump’s social media director, is in church with him. Tweeting in church!

After church, the Trumps will head to the White House, where the president – Obama, that is – and first lady will host a tea and coffee reception with the Trumps in the Blue Room.

Afterward, the Obamas will depart – depart – the White House with the Trumps for the Capitol building.

Updated

On a day when the size of Donald Trump’s inauguration crowds relative to Barack Obama’s is under scrutiny, an embarrassing reminder has emerged of the astroturf origins of the Trump campaign. The Federal Election Commission (FEC) has released a report by its general counsel on the campaign’s hiring of actors to enthuse at Trump’s candidacy announcement at Trump Tower in New York on 16 June 2015, revealing that the ersatz supporters had to wait four months to get paid for their cheering. The campaign committee only coughed up the $12,000 it owed to the casting company that hired the actors a month after a complaint was made to the FEC.

In its ruling, spotted by the watchdog group the Center for Public Integrity, the FEC notes: “It is not uncommon for campaigns to hire companies or casting agencies ... to generate a crowd at an event.” The report said the sum involved was relatively modest and that the committee eventually paid up, so that the casting company’s effective “contribution” to the campaign, the interest on the unpaid amount, was too small to bother with. It also notes that the campaign violated the rules by waiting seven months before reporting the transaction to the FEC, but again decides that the amount is too small “to warrant the additional use of Commission resources”.

The main takeaway seems to be a cautionary one. If you are you going to act as a Trump supporter, make sure you get paid up front.

Spectators begin to fill the National Mall
Spectators begin to fill the National Mall Photograph: Scott Olson/Getty Images

Updated

Here is a clip of the Trumps arriving at St John’s Church:

The Trumps have arrived at St John’s Church, along with other members of their family. Donald and Melania Trump were greeted by the pastor at the door.

President-elect Donald Trump and his wife Melania arrives for a church service at St. John’s Episcopal Church across from the White House
President-elect Donald Trump and his wife Melania arrives for a church service at St. John’s Episcopal Church across from the White House Photograph: Alex Brandon/AP

Updated

People have been tweeting pictures of the Trumps leaving the building. They are now on their way to the church in a large convoy of black cars.

Donald and Melania Trump, who was wearing a light blue outfit that TV anchors compared to the style of Jackie Kennedy, are leaving Blair House in Washington and getting into a large black car. Trump was wearing a long black coat and red tie.

Updated

Vice-president-elect Mike Pence has arrived at St John’s Church for the service that the Trumps will also attend, MSNBC reports.

Rev. Luis Leon greets Vice President-elect Mike Pence and his wife Karen
Rev. Luis Leon greets Vice President-elect Mike Pence and his wife Karen Photograph: Alex Brandon/AP

Updated

About 28,000 security personnel, kilometres of fencing, roadblocks, street barricades and dump trucks laden with sand are part of the security cordon about eight square kilometres of central Washington, AP reports.

Before the inauguration ceremony, Trump and his wife Melania are due to leave Blair House, the president’s guest house, to attend a service at St John’s Episcopal Church, which is located across Lafayette Park from the White House.

They are also due to meet Barack and Michelle Obama at the White House for tea or coffee, before the two couples travel together in the presidential limousine for the short trip to the Capitol for the swearing-in ceremony.

Here’s a reminder of today’s schedule (all times ET):

Inauguration map

Updated

Waxworks of soon-to-be President Trump are being unveiled at museums across the world, AFP reports.

Protesters chanting “no Trump, no KKK, no racists, fascists, go away” have disrupted preparations for the inauguration.

Updated

In Washington Trump protesters appear to have made it through security.

Updated

Trump: 'it all begins today'

Trump has fired off the first tweet on the day he’ll be sworn in president. “It all begins today,” he said.

He also went into caps lock mode to say: “THE MOVEMENT CONTINUES - THE WORK BEGINS”.

Expect more

And Donald Trump’s tie is made in China.

Melania Trump
Melania Trump Photograph: UPI / Barcroft Images

Breaking fashion news ...

Melania Trump will reportedly be dressed in outfits by Karl Lagerfeld and Ralph Lauren for her husband’s inaugural celebrations, marking a departure from the traditional rule of the First Lady wearing only US brands for such an occasion, according to PA.

While Ralph Lauren is widely regarded as a quintessential American label, German designer Lagerfeld, who is based in Paris and designs under three brands - Chanel, Fendi and his own eponymous fashion line - would be a notable choice for the former model.

Michelle Obama opted for a yellow suit by Cuban-American designer Isabel Toledo for Barack Obama’s 2009 inauguration ceremony, and a one-shouldered white silk chiffon gown to the evening inaugural balls, designed by New York-based Jason Wu.

In 2013 she chose a belted blue-checked coat by Thom Browne for the daytime ceremony and a red halterneck gown for the evening, again by Jason Wu.

Melania Trump has scaled back her flashier wardrobe choices since she became the First Lady-to-be and has already displayed her affinity for Lauren’s clothes, sporting his black jumpsuit for the third presidential debate, and wearing his white jumpsuit on election night.

Lauren is also no stranger to dressing First Ladies and has already designed for Mrs Obama, Nancy Reagan and Betty Ford.

If Mrs Trump chose a Lagerfeld design for Chanel it would echo the most famous Chanel outfit ever worn by a First Lady - the pink suit Jackie Kennedy wore when President Kennedy was shot.

On Thursday Mrs Trump opted for a custom-made black coat by New York designer Norisol Ferrari for a wreath laying ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery, teamed with Gucci sunglasses, and later donned a sleek gold gown by Reem Acra, a Lebanese-born, New York-based designer.

Updated

Several right wing politicians in Europe, including Ukip’s former leader Nigel Farage and France’s Front National presidential candidate Marine Le Pen are looking forward to a “new era” under Trump.

The usual diplomatic niceties about welcoming in new presidents are being widely abandoned.

The international affairs thinktank Chatham House, not known as particularly outspoken organisation, said a “shadow has been cast over America”.

Leslie Vinjamuri, Associate Fellow of the US and Americas Programme at Chatham House, added:

“Today’s inauguration will take place in an America marked by the greatest divisions that we have seen, perhaps, since Vietnam. People and leaders across the globe lack confidence that America will be a reliable partner in the years ahead. The sense of deep uncertainty that surrounds today’s ceremony is palpable.”

British MPs have been expressing dismay at the prospect of a Trump presidency.

Liberal Democrat leader Tim Farron said:

“Trump’s journey to the White House was the most divisive, vulgar and illiberal presidential campaign in memory, and judging by his actions since, these traits are sure to continue during his Presidency.

“Of course the UK must continue to engage with the US on matters of mutual concern, but Theresa May must not to damage our national integrity and values by bowing down to a bully.

“Liberal internationalism has never been more at threat, and Trump’s inauguration today should serve as a chilling reminder to those who believe in an open, tolerant and united Britain that these values must be fought for, now more than ever, both at home and worldwide.”

Others tweeted their defiance.

Theresa May has received a letter from Donald Trump, her spokesman has told the regular parliamentary media briefing, writes Peter Walker.

It seems to have arrived at some point this week.

It was a reply to May’s letter to the president-elect, news of which appeared when Trump showed it to Michael Gove when the Tory MP was interviewing him for the Times.

That letter contained a gift – a copy of Winston Churchill’s speech following the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbour.

Asked if Trump sent a gift in return, May’s spokesman said: “I’m not aware that he did, but as we said, the prime minister didn’t send a gift in the hope she would receive one.”

Otherwise there was no information about what was in the letter, or even whether is was printed or handwritten.

At his pre-inauguration speech last night Trump spoke about the “forgotten man”. He said:

On the campaign I called it “the forgotten man” and “the forgotten woman.” Well, you’re not forgotten anymore. That I can tell you. Not forgotten anymore.

His words were an unintended reminder of a painting by Jon McNaughton entitled the “Forgotten Man”, which according Steve Rose is the defining image of Trump’s presidential moment.

The White House took on a ghostly quality as most of President Obama’s staff moved out, writes David Nakamura in the Washington Post.

Desks were emptied. Iconic photographs of Obama came off the walls. Handwritten notes were left for the Obama aides’ successors.

Secret Service agents allowed reporters to take some photos of the hallways, where empty frames hung on the walls. “There’s nothing in them,” one said with a shrug ...

A skeleton staff was scheduled to be on hand Friday morning as Obama welcomed Trump for the traditional tea service before leaving for the inauguration and his swearing-in at noon. But most had already left the place behind.

A man moves boxes during U.S. President Barack Obama’s last full day at the White House
A man moves boxes during U.S. President Barack Obama’s last full day at the White House Photograph: Yuri Gripas/Reuters

Updated

In the months leading up to his presidency Trump has made numerous pledges about what he will do on his first day in office. From repealing Obamacare to building a wall to withdrawing from the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal, here’s a video of some of the promises Trump has made.

Donald Trump’s promises for day one of his presidency – video

Trump’s inauguration is due to start at 11.30EST/4.30pm GMT, but security screening is already underway, according to the schedule.

Before the inauguration ceremony, Trump and his family are due to attend a private service at St John’s church in Washington, at which controversial pastor Robert Jeffress is expected to preach, writes Harriet Sherwood.

Jeffress is the Southern Baptist leader of a 12,000-member megachurch in Dallas, a regular Fox News contributor and a strong supporter of Trump during the election campaign.

He has described Islam as an “evil religion” that “promotes paedophilia” and has said the Roman Catholic church is a “counterfeit religion” which represents the “genius of Satan”.

He has accused Obama of paving the way of the Antichrist by his support for same sex marriage, and that gay people lead a “miserable lifestyle” that is predisposed to “depression, or suicide, or alcoholism.”

Jeffress tweeted on Thursday that he was “Honored to deliver sermon ‘When God Chooses a Leader’ for Trump/Pence private family service at St. John’s Church before‪#Inauguration.”

On Fox News, he said his sermon would focus on Nehemiah, a biblical figure who helped rebuild Jerusalem in the 5th century BC, in part by mounting a defensive wall around the city. About 300 people are expected to attend the service.

Accordingto the New York Times, six faith leaders will take part in today’s inauguration ceremony, more than for any previous president.

They are Catholic cardinal Timothy Dolan, Hispanic Christian leader Samuel Rodriguez, televangelist Paula White, rabbi Marvin Hier, African-American bishop Wayne Jackson of Great Faith Ministries International, and Franklin Graham, the son of evangelical Billy Graham.

Wolfgang Schaeuble
Wolfgang Schaeuble Photograph: Ruben Sprich/Reuters

Germany finance minister, Wolfgang Schaeuble, has urged Trump to stick to international agreements.

Speaking to Der Spiegel Schaeuble said: “I don’t think a big trade war will break out tomorrow, but we will naturally insist that agreements are upheld.”

Trump criticised German car makers this week for failing to produce more cars in the US and warned that he would impose a tax of 35% on vehicle imports.

Schaeuble said he wished Trump luck if he wanted to tell Americans which cars to buy. “That’s not my vision of America and I don’t think it’s his either,” he said.

He also recommended not taking Trump’s practice of tweeting policy changes too seriously.

“One shouldn’t confuse Trump’s form of communication with statements of government policy. We will not participate in that,” he said.

Madonna has joined the list of celebrities speaking out against Trump, AP reports.

Speaking at New York’s Brooklyn Museum on Thursday night, she said: “He’s actually doing us a great service, because we have gone as low as we can go.

“We can only go up from here, so what are we going to do? We have two choices, destruction and creation. I chose creation.”

Madonna spoke alongside artist Marilyn Minter about art in a time of protest. Both vowed to lead protests against Trump, including attending Saturday’s Women’s March in Washington.

“This is the most frightened I’ve ever been,” Minter said. “The most qualified candidate who ever ran was defeated by the most unqualified candidate who ever ran, and it’s all because of misogyny.”

Madonna said that while she was “horrified” Trump won the election over Hillary Clinton, she now believes it was necessary.

“I do believe that Trump was elected for a reason, to show us how lazy and un-unified and lackadaisical and taking for granted we’ve become of our freedom and the rights that we have as Americans,” Madonna said. “I feel like people forgot what was written in the Constitution.”


She added: “They always say it’s darkest before the dawn and I feel this had to happen to bring people together, so let’s get this party started.”

Updated

Here’s video of protesters clashing with police outside the pro–Trump “DeploraBall” event on Thursday night.

Protesters clash with police outside pro–Trump ‘DeploraBall’ event

There’s more on the protests here:

Russians have been flocking to the US since Trump’s election, according to figures from the travel website Opodo.co.uk. It recorded a 168% spike in year on year bookings from Russians going to the US.

The second biggest peak comes from Nordic countries Sweden (96%) and Denmark (81%), followed by Germany with a growth of 50%.

The UK recorded a modest 6% rise in visitor numbers showing that Brits are continuing to visit as usual.

Alec Baldwin and a host of celebrities took to the stage outside of Trump International Hotel and Tower for an anti-Donald Trump rally in New York on Thursday.

Baldwin’s impressions of Trump on Saturday Night Live have riled the president-elect. Other speakers included Robert De Niro, Sally Field, Mark Ruffalo and Michael Moore.

Alec Baldwin leads cast of celebrities at anti-Trump rally

Since you’re here, we have a small favour to ask. More people are reading the Guardian than ever – but far fewer are paying for it, and advertising revenues are falling fast. So you can see why we need to ask for your help. The Guardian’s journalism takes a lot of time, money and hard work to produce. But we do it because we believe that independent reporting and plurality of voices matter. If everyone who reads our reporting helps to pay for it, our future would be much more a monthly payment or a one-off contribution. - Guardian HQ

New York’s tabloids go with the same pun on their front pages.

Bridge protests

A banner reading “Build bridges not walls” has been draped across London’s Tower Bridge as part of a series of events across the world aimed to protest against Trump’s presidency.

Protesters were joined by Green Party joint leader Jonathan Bartley.

Reuters reports:

Protesters on the iconic bridge held up pink letters reading “Act now!” soon after sunrise while others unfurled the banner over the railings and a speedboat with a black flag reading “build bridges not walls” raced down the River Thames.

Beside the British parliament, protesters draped banners saying “Migrants welcome here” and “Migration is older than anguage” over Westminster bridge. Other protests are planned in London and other British cities on Friday.

Trump also faces protests in Washington during his inauguration, and in cities from Toronto to Sydney, Addis Ababa and Dublin over his politics which critics say are divisive and dangerous.

The protest in London was organised by the campaign group also called “Bridges not Walls”, in reference to Trump’s pledge to build a wall on the Mexican border.

“We won’t let the politics of hate peddled by the likes of Donald Trump take hold,” Nona Hurkmans of Bridges not Walls said in a statement.

Updated

Our panel describe what they’re doing to protest against the inauguration; from the UK Women’s March to talking about sexual assault in Washington.

What books might might help the Donald get through his term? Danuta Kean has this reading list:

  • Third Empire: The Russia That Should by Mikhail Yuriev. A favourite novel of Trump’s new BFF, Vladimir Putin. It’s easy to see why as there are close parallels between the Russian leader and the hero this 2006 sci-fi novel – the shadowy but heroic leader “Vladimir the Restorer”, who, aided by the Ukrainian people, makes Russia a great Empire again.
  • One Billion Customers by James McGregor. The man who built up the Dow Jones’s operation in China can offer the former star of The Apprentice useful tips on how to deal with the world’s biggest markets. No dry textbook, McGregor’s book provides insights into China that are witty, informed and might just prevent the new leader sparking a catastrophic trade war.
  • When the Facts Change by Tony Judt. Historian Judt knew what it was to change his mind – particularly to move from the extremes of Marxist Zionism in his youth to a commitment to social democracy. Not only will Judt’s essays help the new president to better understand Israel and Palestine, they may help him realise that it is possible to change your mind gracefully.
  • Language, Truth and Logic by AJ Ayer. With all those speeches he will have to make, this 1936 classic on thought and communication is a must-read for the Donald. Offering advice on fuzzy logic and muddled speaking, it is a useful primer for the “fake news” age. It even has tests, with which the president-elect can evaluate his tweets for statements of unverifiable “fact”.
  • No Means No! by Jayneen Sanders. It may be too late for the pussygrabber-in-chief, but this picture book for three-to-nine-year-olds might help him begin to appreciate personal boundaries. The publisher’s blurb for Sanders’s book should bring comfort to all: “A world where ‘No!’ does actually mean ‘No!’ can be a world with far less violence and increased respect for humankind.”

Updated

Sir Nigel Sheinwald
Sir Nigel Sheinwald Photograph: Paul Morigi/Getty Images for Range Rover

Sir Nigel Sheinwald former UK ambassador to the US has reflected a nervousness about Trump within the diplomatic community.

Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s Today programme he questioned Trump’s ability to unify the US and stand up to Russia.

Sheinwald said: “There is a real question about whether Trump can unify his country. On the campaign trail he was a populist on the campaign trail he appealed mainly to division and prejudice. He has got to get over that and work out whether he can genuinely unify.

“I’m sure the tweets won’t end, but he’s got to find a way of getting a across a reliable sense of consistency in policy and leadership. And he’s got to listen. He has got a cabinet he doesn’t know very well. He hasn’t worked with these people. He’s barely spoken to most of them.”

Sheinwald added:

“The really big test is over Russia and Nato. That’s the first big test, because it is an area, as with trade, where Congress, the heart of the Republican party, is not with him.

“Over the next few months, you are going to have to see whether a harder edge comes into his approach to Russia, and whether he is prepared to validate a sense of commitment to Nato and to Europe. He can’t continue to say that he thinks Nato is obsolete.

The question is whether he can redefine his view of what’s important and valuable in terms of longer term American interests. I think you will see that wrecking the Iran deal, setting up a trade war, all those things which are possible repercussions of his policies are not actually in America’s interests.

New Yorker cartoonist Paul Noth provides two imagined previews of the ceremony.

Trump may not be giving up tweeting, but he has abandoned the android phone where most of his notorious tweets were fired from, according to the New York Times.

Trump’s tweeting weapon of choice was a Samsung Galaxy.

The NYT reports:

This week, he was forced to abandon his cherished “Trump” 757 for an Air Force jet, and, according to people close to the transition, he has traded in his Android phone for a secure, encrypted device approved by the Secret Service with a new number that few people possess.

The official rationale was security. But some of Mr. Trump’s new aides, who have often been blindsided when a reporter, outside adviser or officeseeker dialed the president-elect directly, expressed relief. Several of them, however, expect the new president to satisfy his compulsion for continuous communication by calling outsiders and by tramping from office to office in search of gossip and sounding boards.

Here’s what Trump tweeted before going to bed on the eve of his inauguration.

Farage hails 'global revolution' started by Brexit

Ukip’s former leader, Nigel Farage, claims that Trump’s victory is part of a “global revolution” started by the UK’s vote to leave the European Union.

Sky News played a clip of Farage speaking at an pre-inauguration party he said:

“Throughout most of my life, what happens in America in terms of social trends, developments, we follow four or five years later. America is the leader.

“Now, I would like to think in my own little way that what we did with Brexit was the beginning of what is going to turn out to be a global revolution and that Trump’s victory is a part of that.”

Farage told the Press Association: “I get a sense of the history, and that this particular inauguration is a very significant one because in so many areas it marks a significant change in direction. I’m very excited about it.

“In terms of America’s place in the world and its direction, what is happening ... is very significant indeed.
“I’m very, very pleased that post-Brexit we got involved in this.”

Farage attended a lavish party at the five-star Hay-Adams Hotel on Thursday evening to celebrate Trump’s inauguration.

“It’s to celebrate the fact that in 2016 we saw this dramatic change in politics,” he said.

“I suppose the party is the international dimension in all this.
“We’ve had Brexit and perhaps that contributed just a little bit to things changing in the USA and who’s to say that bandwagon won’t continue to roll in 2017 across much of Europe.”

Updated

Trump is "going to ..."

President-Elect Donald Trump and his family at the Lincoln Memorial
President-Elect Donald Trump and his family at the Lincoln Memorial
 Photograph: UPI / Barcroft Images

In his 751 word pre-inauguration address at the Lincoln Memorial Trump used the phrase “going to” 22 times.

He promised he was “going to”: “unify our country ... do a special job ... get our jobs back ... not let other countries take our jobs ... build our great military ... strengthen our borders ... work together ... and make America great again.”

Here’s the full text:

Thank you very much. Thank you very much everybody, and thank you Tom. I’d like to congratulate our incredible entertainers tonight. Toby, and Lee Greenwood and all of the great talent. It was really very special. I also have to thank our incredible military right here. Thank you. Stand up, please. You guys were really great. Thank you. So this journey began 18 months ago. I had something to do with it, but you had much more to do with it than I did. I’m the messenger. I’m just the messenger. And we were tired. And I love you. Believe me, I love you. We all got tired of seeing what was happening. And we wanted change, but we wanted real change. And I look so forward to tomorrow. We’re going to see something that is going to be so amazing. So many people have poured into Washington, D.C.

This started out tonight being a small little concert, and then we had the idea maybe we’ll do it in front of the Lincoln Memorial. I don’t know if it’s ever been done before. But if it has, very seldom. And the people came by the thousands and thousands, and here we are tonight, all the way back. All the way back. So it’s a movement that began, it’s a movement that started, and it’s a movement like we’ve never seen anywhere in the world, they say. There’s never been a movement like this and it’s something very, very special. And we’re going to unify our country, and our phrase – you all know it, half of you are wearing the hat – “Make America Great Again.” But we’re going to make America great for all of our people, everybody. Everybody throughout our country. That includes the inner cities, that includes everybody.

And we’re going to do a special job, and I can only tell you that 18 months ago, we never knew, a lot of people didn’t know, some people had a feeling. A lot of people didn’t give us much of a chance, but we understood what was happening. And that last month of the campaign, when I traveled around to every place that you can imagine. State after state after state, speech after speech. And we had ten thousand, twenty thousand, thirty thousand people. There was never an empty seat, just like tonight. We didn’t know if anybody would even come tonight. This hasn’t been done before. And you look. It was the same way. And we all knew that last month of the campaign. I think a lot of us knew the first week of the campaign, but that last month of the campaign we knew that something special was happening.

And I can only tell you this: The polls started going up, up, up, but they didn’t want to give us credit. Because they forgot about a lot of us. On the campaign I called it “the forgotten man” and “the forgotten woman.” Well, you’re not forgotten anymore. That I can tell you. Not forgotten anymore.

So I want to thank my great family, my incredible wife Melania. They’ve been so supportive, and it wasn’t easy for them. But they have been so supportive. I want to thank you, most importantly. And I promise you that I will work so hard. We’re going to get it turned around. We’re going to get our jobs back. We’re not going to let other countries take our jobs any longer. We’re going to build up our great military. We’re going to build it up. We’re going to strengthen our borders. We’re going to do things that haven’t been done for our country for many, many decades. It’s going to change. I promise you it’s going to change.

So I’ll see you tomorrow. And I don’t care frankly if it’s going to be beautiful or if it’s going to rain like crazy. Makes no difference to me. I have a feeling it’s going to be beautiful. But I will see you tomorrow, and I’m going to be cheering you on. You’re going to cheer me on, but I’m going to be cheering you on. Because what we’ve done is so special. All over the world they’re talking about it. All over the world. And I love you folks, and we’re going to work together. And we are going to – make America great again. And I’ll add: Greater than ever before! Thank you very much and enjoy the fireworks. Thank you everybody. Thank you.

Here’s the speech as a Wordle image.

Wordle of Trump’s pre-inauguration address
Wordle of Trump’s pre-inauguration address Photograph: Wordle

Worst approval ratings for a president-elect

Trump’s pre-inauguration approval ratings are worse than any of his recent predecessors on every front, writes Pamela Duncan.

Gallup polls have captured pre-inauguration approval rates since 1992, allowing for comparison of four presidents-elect (Bill Clinton, George W Bush, Barack Obama and Trump).

Trump’s 40% favourability rating mean his is the lowest of the past four presidents-elect (Obama was on 78% prior to taking office in 2009) while more people viewed him unfavourably than favourably.

Approval ratings for presidents elect

The gap between Trump’s approval ratings among Democrats and Republicans is the widest of any recent president-elect. The Gallup poll of 1,032 adults taken between January 4 and 8 2017, showed that just 8% of Democrats approve of the new president while his approval rating among Republicans stood at 82%.

Trump’s approval ratings among Democrats and Republicans

In 2001 George W Bush enjoyed a 97% approval rate among Republicans while both Obama and Clinton had ratings of 95% and 92% respectively among Democrats in the run up to their inaugurations.

In a response to the poll Trump tweeted that the ratings were rigged.

Be a part of our experimental group to try out new mobile live blog features and notifications for the inauguration.

The Guardian Mobile Innovation Lab will be testing four features on three platforms (iOS, Chrome on Android, and the web). These experimental formats will supplement the Guardian’s overall inauguration coverage.

Here’s what you can try:

Get a live video stream inside a notification

iOS users can watch the ceremony and other key moments as they happen. We will send a notification to your lock screen containing a live video stream of the ceremony and key moments from the day. Just press the notification to expand and you’ll be able to watch right there. So far as we know, this is the first time anyone has used notifications this way, and we’re excited to try it.

To get this feature: Download the Guardian Mobile Innovation Lab app on iOS and turn on the notifications on the first screen to participate.

Stay up to date with a rolling live blog through notification

Keep a rolling summary of the day’s events on your lockscreen. The notification will update automatically with the highlights of what happened most recently as well as information about what’s to come.

To get this feature: Download the Guardian Mobile Innovation Lab iOS app and turn on notifications to receive these if you are an iOS user, or sign up on Android for Chrome web notifications.

Read updates and watch live video simultaneously.

You can try this feature now if a live video is available. If so, press play when the video appears at the top of the blog. As it plays, scroll down the blog to keep it rolling as you read the latest updates and analysis.

See the day’s events through different lenses

There will be plenty of action on the podium outside the Capitol – and plenty happening off it. Our new feature, which we are calling “Shifting Lenses”, allows you to swipe left and right between two views to get the latest on what’s happening in the official ceremony and also around the streets of Washington.. Shifting Lenses will be available through the experimental mobile lab iOS app. Since it is our first time testing out this format, we will be running it on the afternoon of 20 January, after some of the day’s events have finished.

To get this feature: Download the Guardian Mobile Innovation Lab app on iOS and turn on notifications to participate.

These are experimental features, and while we hope they behave, some aspects may not be exactly as described. We’ll send around a survey to our experimental group afterwards and would love your thoughts on the experience.

Hello and welcome to our live blog coverage of the presidential inauguration of Donald J Trump. The forecast calls for rain.

Trump and his wife Melania spent the night in Washington DC, where they arrived on Thursday and headed to his new hotel, which is just down Pennsylvania Avenue from the White House.

At a pre-inaugural speech at the Lincoln Memorial he promised to make America “greater than ever” and urged his supporters to “enjoy the fireworks.”

President-elect Trump is scheduled to take the oath of office on a specialty riser outside the US Capitol building at noon ET, at that point becoming President Trump. He will be surrounded by a sea of officials, dignitaries, family members, friends and other invited guests, including Barack Obama and his family.

US supreme court justice John Roberts will administer the oath, which is:

I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.

Then President Trump will deliver an inaugural address, to be followed by the departure by helicopter of the Obamas, who are going on holiday.

The Trumps and dignitaries and invitees will lunch at the Capitol. Then Trump and his wife, and newly minted vice-president Mike Pence and his wife, Karen, and perhaps family members, will parade to the White House. The day ends with the Inaugural Ball and sideline parties including, this year, a “DeploraBall” held by rightwingers attempting to reclaim the term used as an insult by Hillary Clinton during the election campaign.

Read Nicole Puglise’s guide to events here:

inauguration map

Protests

As Trump prepares to begin his presidency, protesters are mobilizing to demonstrate against it. The biggest protest of the inauguration will take place on Saturday, with at least 200,000 people expected to attend the Women’s March on Washington. Read our guide to protest activity:

Meet the leaders of the Trump resistance:

Readers bid Obama farewell

Thank you for reading, and please join us in the comments.

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