Joe Biden takes the oath to become U.S. President

Joe Biden swears the oath of office on Wednesday to become the 46

th

president of the United States, aiming to repair a deeply divided nation.

"This is America's day. This is democracy's day," Mr. Biden said. "Today we celebrate the triumph not of a candidate, but of a cause. The cause of democracy. The people, the will of the people, has been heard, and the will of the people has been heeded."

Vice President Kamala Harris was also sworn in, making history as the first woman and person of color to take that position.

The inauguration ceremony on the Capitol just two weeks after it was stormed by violent protesters.

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Outgoing president Donald Trump didn't attend Biden's inauguration ceremony. But three other former presidents including Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and Barack Obama gathered to watch the ceremonial transfer of power.

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Before the inauguration ceremony, President Joe Biden and his wife, Dr. Jill Biden, attended mass at St. Matthews Church in Washington D.C.Vice-President-elect Kamala Harris and her husband, Doug Emhoff also attended the church service. Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), her husband Paul Pelosi, U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (D-NY), his wife and former Secretary of Transportation Elaine Chao, Senator Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and his wife were also present at the mass.

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Donald Trump departed the White House for the final time on Marine One early Wednesday morning. "It's been a great honor, the honor of a lifetime. The greatest people in the world, the greatest home in the world,” Trump told reporters on the South Lawn before heading to Joint Base Andrews with his wife, Melania. Trump gave an unscripted speech to a group of supporters, including his family, at Joint Base Andrews before departing to his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida on Air Force One. "We will back in some form," Trump said during his farewell ceremony that featured a 21-gun salute and a military band. Trump is the first president in more than 150 years to skip the inauguration of his successor.

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