Minnesota’s U.S. senator and 2020 presidential candidate Amy Klobuchar delivered opening remarks at Monday’s inauguration of President Donald Trump, with a focus on democracy, finding common ground and the power of the people.
As chair of the bipartisan inauguration committee, Sen. Klobuchar opened the inauguration with a five-minute speech, declaring the theme of the ceremony “enduring democracy.” Klobuchar was the only Democratic speaker at the inauguration.
“In a democracy, every citizen, regardless of interest in politics, holds office, every one of us is in a position of responsibility,” she said. “With that responsibility of citizenship comes an obligation not to seek out malice, as President Lincoln once reminded us, but to view others with a generosity of spirit despite our differences. With that responsibility of leadership, comes an obligation to stand our ground when we must and find common ground when we can.”
Klobuchar also paid tribute to a famous Minnesota singer-songwriter in her speech, quoting Bob Dylan’s song “Shelter from the Storm.”
“It is on all of us, to quote an incredible songwriter who just happened to be born in my state, to ensure that our nation’s democracy is our ‘Shelter from the Storm,’ ” she said.
Ahead of Monday’s inauguration, she spoke with Forum News Service about what it’s been like to oversee the committee after having supported the ticket of fellow Minnesotan Gov. Tim Walz and former Vice President Kamala Harris.
“Obviously, I supported the Harris-Walz ticket, and I would have liked to see them win, but this week, my mind is on what I have to do,” Klobuchar said. “It’s my obligation and duty, and I am committed to making sure this inauguration goes well for our country.”
Klobuchar called to attention to the committee’s bipartisan role.
“What’s most important is that this ceremony be a positive ceremony for not just (Trump’s) supporters, but for the country, because this is a moment where everyone steps back and sees that what unites us is bigger than what divides us,” Klobuchar said. “That is why you see President Biden, Vice President Harris, President Obama and the Clintons. I mean, there’s a lot of Republicans and Democratic leaders up on that stage, so our job was to do this no matter who won, and that’s how we plan this.”
Trump on Friday decided to move the inauguration inside, as temperatures were forecast to be chilly. Klobuchar said it was her job to honor the decision to move indoors, and that she was focused on making sure the inauguration went smoothly.
As chair of the Senate Rules Committee for the past four years, Klobuchar has also worked on several bipartisan measures to improve Capitol security, since Jan. 6, 2021, including around large events like the inauguration. She said that she and her colleagues have hired a new police chief, added more officers and “increased morale,” among other measures.
“You know, there are always people trying to do our country harm, and so you can’t anticipate every single way that will be done, but I can tell you that they’re more prepared than ever,” she said.
Klobuchar was joined by other members of Minnesota’s congressional delegation at Monday’s inauguration: U.S. Sen. Tina Smith; U.S. Reps. Brad Finstad, Angie Craig, Kelly Morrison, Tom Emmer, Michelle Fischbach and Pete Stauber. U.S. Reps. Betty McCollum and Ilhan Omar were not in attendance.
Stauber, R-Duluth, tweeted from the Capitol rotunda during Trump’s speech.
“We are so back,” Stauber said on X. “Drill baby drill!”
Klobuchar’s remarks
Here is the full text of Klobuchar’s remarks:
Today President-elect Trump and Vice President-elect Vance will take their oaths of office, and we will witness the peaceful transfer of power at the heart of our democracy.
For the past year, I’ve chaired the inaugural ceremony committee, which includes the leadership of Congress from both parties. We thank the committee and Capitol staff and law enforcement who worked so hard over the last year and especially the last three days. You’ve done a beautiful job and you have shown grace under pressure.
Our theme this year is “Our Enduring Democracy.”
The presence of so many presidents and vice presidents here today is truly a testament to that endurance.
We welcome President Biden and Dr. Biden. We welcome Vice President Harris and Doug Emhoff, President Obama, President Clinton and Secretary Clinton, President Bush and Laura Bush, Vice President Pence, Vice President Quayle and Marilyn Quayle. The Justices of the United States Supreme Court are with us, all nine of them… I counted. And, of course, the Trump and Vance families.
This ceremony marks what will soon be 250 years of our democracy.
It is the moment when leaders, elevated by the will of the people, promise to be faithful to our Constitution, to cherish and defend it. It is the moment when they become, as we all should be, the guardians of our country.
Through war and peace, through adversity and prosperity, we hold this inauguration every four years, and today it falls on Martin Luther King Day, a further reminder that we must strive to uphold the values enshrined in our Constitution — the freedoms, the liberties and, as is inscribed on the entrance of the United States Supreme Court, equal justice under law.
But what makes this moment more than a passing ceremony is all who are watching it across the country — the people of this nation, the ordinary people doing extraordinary things.
President Kennedy, who at one point worked as a senator in this building and would often walk through this very rotunda, once said:
“In a democracy every citizen, regardless of interest in politics, ‘holds office’ — every one of us is in a position of responsibility.”
With that responsibility of citizenship comes an obligation not to seek out malice, as President Lincoln once reminded us, but to view others with a generosity of spirit, despite our differences.
With that responsibility of leadership comes an obligation to stand our ground when we must and find common ground when we can.
With everything swirling around us — the hot mess of division — it is on all of us, to quote an incredible songwriter who just happened to be born in my state, to ensure that our nation’s democracy is our “shelter from the storm.”
There’s a reason this ceremony takes place at the Capitol. In other countries, it might be in a presidential palace or a gilded executive office building. Here, it is traditionally held at the Capitol — the People’s House.
It is a fitting reminder of the system of checks and balances that is the very foundation of our government. Three equal branches of government.
That is how, for nearly 250 years, our great American experiment, grounded in the rule of law, has endured.
So, as we inaugurate a new President and Vice President, let us remember that the power of those in this room comes from the people: the construction workers who build our country, the teachers and health care workers who nurture us, the troops defending our freedoms, and yes, the firefighters in Los Angeles putting themselves on the line for us. Our democracy’s strength and grit must match theirs.
May God bless our nation. Thank you.
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