WASHINGTON, D.C. - Sen. Amy Klobuchar took the stage Monday to usher in the “peaceful transfer of power” to President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance.
Klobuchar speaks at Trump’s inauguration, said leaders become ‘guardians of our country’
While the Minnesota Democrat didn’t vote for Trump, she called his inauguration to order as chair of the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies.
The Minnesota Star Tribune
January 20, 2025 at 9:21PM
The Minnesota Democrat didn’t support Trump and could have turned down the opportunity to speak, but as chair of the bipartisan Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies, she followed through on her speaking and planning responsibilities for the event.
“This ceremony marks what will soon be 250 years of our democracy,” Klobuchar said. “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.”
During her 2021 address at the inauguration of President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, Klobuchar spoke warmly of the two fellow Democrats and celebrated their victories. But the senior senator spoke in a more defiant tone Monday, highlighting the importance of the “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,’” she said, referencing a song by Bob Dylan.
Klobuchar was the only Democrat who spoke but not the only Minnesotan who had a front-row seat to Trump’s inauguration. Though he did not speak, House Majority Whip Tom Emmer sat on the opposite end of the stage.
“House Republicans are fully committed to making his America First vision a reality and are ready to hit the ground running on day one,” Emmer said in a statement after the ceremony.
Also in attendance were Minnesota’s other three Republican members of Congress, who backed Trump for president.
Most Minnesota Democrats were there as well. Initially on the fence, Sen. Tina Smith attended, along with Rep. Angie Craig and the delegation’s newest member, Rep. Kelly Morrison.
“We watched the peaceful transfer of power which is an absolutely critical part of our democracy,” Morrison said in the Capitol Rotunda as the ceremony ended. She applauded Klobuchar’s speech and said she hoped Trump listened “carefully to her words.”
Democratic Reps. Ilhan Omar and Betty McCollum stayed in Minnesota to attend events tied to Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
“Some people have asked me the question of ‘Why did I attend?’” Craig said after the ceremony. “We can’t show up in America only when our candidate wins. So I wanted to make sure that I attended the inauguration today, to both respect the peaceful transfer of power in our country and also to respect the hundreds of thousands of voters in my district who exercised that right, many of whom supported President Trump.”
“I’m going to treat President Trump just the way I did President Biden, which is I’ll be supporting the policies that are right for the Second District of Minnesota, and of course, I’ll be standing up to him when they aren’t right for Minnesota’s Second Congressional District,” Craig continued.
During his speech, Trump homed in on immigration, vowing to to declare a national emergency at the southern border and declaring cartels as terrorist organizations.
He also pledged to make the United States energy independent by ending policies such as the Green New Deal and the electric vehicle mandate.
“It’s the same speech and ideas that he told the American people,” GOP Rep. Pete Stauber of Duluth said of Trump’s remarks after the ceremony. “Energy independence, critical mineral mining, securing our border and lethality in our armed forces. The foreign policy that puts America and our allies first.”
Trump was joined on stage by Tesla CEO Elon Musk, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos and Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg. Smith said those guests sent the wrong message.
“To see all of those tech billionaires up on the platform, literally with better seats than the next Secretary of State and the next Treasury Secretary, most likely, was just so concerning to me,” Smith said.
With extreme cold temperatures in the nation’s capital Monday, Trump decided to move most of the ceremony indoors, leaving thousands of ticketholders scrambling to figure out a Plan B.
As many as 200 Minnesotans joined Republicans from several other states at a D.C. bar to watch the ceremony. Many leaders of the state Republican Party flew to D.C. for the inauguration, including new Chairman Alex Plechash, Deputy Chair Donna Bergstrom, RNC National Committeeman AK Kamara and National Committeewoman Emily Novotny Chance.
“People from around the country are looking forward to the positive vision of the next administration — getting to work, building for the future,” Minnesota Republican Party Executive Director Jennifer DeJournett said. “No matter what part of the country you are from, no matter your background — we want you and your family to succeed. President Trump and VP Vance underscored that message today and welcomed everyone to join them in making that happen in big ways and small.”
Six Americans who had been detained in Venezuela in recent months were freed by the government of President Nicolás Maduro after he met Friday with a Trump administration official tasked with urging the authoritarian leader to take back deported migrants who have committed crimes in the United States.
