A Guide to Who Is (and Isn’t) Attending Trump’s Inauguration
Donald Trump will be inaugurated as the 47th president of the United States on Monday. The event has become an easy way for the rich and powerful to curry favor with the incoming administration. Trump’s inaugural committee has raised around $200 million since he won the election, according to The New York Times, which adds that major donors are being placed on wait lists or being told they will not be able to land VIP tickets.
The ceremony will be especially exclusive considering Trump announced on Friday that it will be held indoors, in the U.S. Capitol Rotunda, as opposed to in front of the building the president-elect’s supporters violently attacked four years ago. Trump cited the weather forecast, which is calling for freezing-cold temperatures and a wind chill in the single digits.
The forecast won’t stop the movers, shakers, and grovelers from showing up in Washington, D.C., over the weekend and on Inauguration Day itself to demonstrate their allegiance to the president. Here’s a guide to who is planning to attend — and who’s planning to skip.
Big Tech honchos
Silicon Valley will be out in full force, which isn’t surprising considering Jeff Bezos, Mark Zuckerberg, Tim Cook, and other big-wigs donated $1 million to Trump’s inaugural fund. The Amazon, Meta, and Apple chiefs will all be there to witness Trump’s swearing-in, as will Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, and, of course, Elon Musk.
TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew will be on the dais, as well, a move further affirming Trump’s desire to save the Chinese-owned platform popular among young people.
“I don’t get it,” Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.) said of Trump extending an invitation to the TikTok CEO, per CNN, going on to cite the bipartisan legislation banning the app. “Eighty percent of the Congress — Democrats and Republicans — agreed that TikTok is a huge national security concern. I can’t think of a potentially more powerful propaganda tool.”
Chew is expected to attend at least three other celebrations around the inauguration, and TikTok is sponsoring an inauguration party on Sunday night.
Democrats
Dozens of Democratic lawmakers boycotted Trump’s first inauguration in 2017. The opposition won’t be as strong this year — or at least not as explicit about why they won’t be attending — but there are still some notable names who are skipping the event. (Alexandria Ocasio Cortez was plenty explicit about why she won’t be attending, however. “I don’t celebrate rapists,” she said in an Instagram post the night before the inauguration.)
Nancy Pelosi, the former House Speaker whom Trump regularly attacks, will not be there, her spokesperson confirmed on Thursday. Nor will former First Lady Michelle Obama. Her husband, who was seated next to Trump at Jimmy Carter’s funeral earlier this month, will be there, however. “Former President Barack Obama is confirmed to attend the 60th Inaugural Ceremonies,” the Office of Barack and Michelle Obama said in a statement. “Former First Lady Michelle Obama will not attend the upcoming inauguration.”
George W. Bush and Laura Bush will attend, as will Bill Clinton and Hillary Clinton.
New York Mayor Eric Adams will also be there. Adams, who was federally indicted last year, has been cozying up to Trump over the past several months. He traveled to Mar-a-Lago to meet with Trump on Friday, and insisted that his legal troubles weren’t discussed. “President Trump and I had a productive conversation about New York’s needs and what’s best for our city, and how the federal government can play a more helpful role in improving the lives of New Yorkers,” Adams said.
Musicians
The musician industry is largely opposed to Trump, but there are still plenty of high-profile artists who will be participating in the inauguration festivities. Carrie Underwood will perform “America the Beautiful” during the swearing-in ceremony, with opera singer Christopher Macchio singing the national anthem. Underwood’s LGBTQ fans are none too pleased that she has signed on to commemorate Trump’s second term. Underwood has rationalized that “we must all come together in the spirit of unity and looking to the future.”
Lee Greenwood, Trump’s Bible-hawking partner, will perform the Trump anthem “God Bless the U.S.A.”
Jason Aldean, Rascal Flatts, Billy Ray Cyrus, Gavin DeGraw, Parker McCollum, Nelly, and Kid Rock will also perform at events surrounding the ceremony. The Village People, whose anthem “Y.M.C.A.” has been co-opted by Trump, will perform at multiple events. Snoop Dogg will perform at the inaugural Crypto Ball, per The Wall Street Journal.
Celebrities
Trump-loving influencers Jake Paul and Logan Paul were both spotted in Emancipation Hall ahead of Trump’s inauguration, as was fighter Conor McGregor.
World leaders
Trump has invited several world leaders to attend his inauguration. One of them was Chinese President Xi Jinping, who spoke with Trump by phone on Friday. Xi will not attend, but Vice President Han Zheng will be there. Italy’s right-wing leader Giorgia Meloni was the only European Union head of state to receive an invite. It’s unclear if she will attend. British conservative Nigel Farage will be there, though, as will Argentina’s right-wing president Javier Milei. Former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro was also invited, but Brazil’s Supreme Court denied his request to temporarily reinstate his passport so he could travel to the United States to attend. Bolsonaro’s passport was seized last year amid several investigations, including one over an alleged attempt to remain in power after losing the 2022 election.
Viktor Orbán, the Hungarian authoritarian whom Trump frequently praises, will not attend.
Flags at full-staff
It’s a longstanding tradition for American flags to fly at half-staff for a month after a former president dies. Jimmy Carter died late last month, and the Biden administration has said that Trump’s inauguration isn’t going to get in the way of honoring that tradition. Trump was not happy, writing on Truth Social that “nobody wants to see this” and that “no American can be happy about it.”
House Speaker Mike Johnson, one of Trump’s favorite pets in Congress, responded by ordering flags at the Capitol to be flown at full staff while Trump is inaugurated. Several Republican governors — including Greg Abbott of Texas, Ron DeSantis of Florida, and Kay Ivey of Alabama — have also ordered flags to be flown at full staff on Trump’s special day.
California Governor Gavin Newsom, a Democrat whom Trump has attacked relentlessly, including as wildfires devastated Los Angeles, is joining his Republican counterparts and directing flags in Sacramento to be flown at full staff during Trump’s inauguration.
Jan. 6 rioters
Trump has long been praising his supporters who stormed the Capitol four years ago, describing them as “patriots” and “hostages” and teasing that he will pardon them. It’s understandable, then, that some of them may want to travel to Washington, D.C., to see their potential savior get sworn into office.
Last week, a judge granted William Pope permission to do just that. Pope was charged with multiple misdemeanors related to the attack on the Capitol, but a judge gave him the go-ahead to travel to D.C. from Jan. 19-21, noting in his decision that Pope “is not charged with assault or vandalism-related charges.”
Russell Taylor, who is currently on probation in California after pleading guilty to obstructing an official proceeding, wasn’t as lucky. Earlier this month, Judge Royce Lamberth denied Taylor’s request to leave California to attend the inauguration, noting that Taylor “brought a knife and plate carrier vest to the Capitol and “carried a backpack containing a hatchet and stun baton,” and that he pushed past police barricades, encouraged fellow rioters to push against a police line where officers were being visibly assaulted, joined the push himself, and repeatedly threatened the police.”
Taylor may not be able to attend the inauguration, but Trump may soon let him off the hook.
More from Rolling Stone
Best of Rolling Stone
Sign up for RollingStone's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.