In times of crisis due to the devastating effect of the COVID-19 pandemic, of fear for democracy after the assault on the Capitol that resulted in the installation of unprecedented police fences in the capital, with a inauguration ceremony where the public was largely virtual and amid strong military safeguards, a promise was made to the people of the United States: the next administration will seek and foster unity.
"American history does not depend only on some, but on all; on the people who seek that most perfect union," said Joe Biden, "today we celebrate the triumph not of a candidate, but of a cause: democracy.
" We have learned that democracy is precious, it is fragile.
However, once again democracy has prevailed,
"he added.
"My whole soul is focused on this: uniting the country, unifying all Americans" and "unifying to fight all the evils we face," he said, speaking of the pandemic, unemployment, extremism and racial inequality.
"It is a historical moment of crisis and challenges, and unity is the way to move forward," he said.
With those words and by
asking for a minute of silence for the victims of the coronavirus
, Biden - the boy who overcame stuttering, the man who lost his wife and daughter in a car accident and one of his children to cancer, the politician who took the daily train to work to push for climate change measures decades before it was considered an emergency, the vice president who promoted a new health care system - officially became the 46th president of the United States.
In his first speech, delivered after Lady Gaga sang the anthem and Jennifer López included words in Spanish when singing
America the Beautiful
, Biden outlined the high priorities of his Administration, which he promoted as “a new day” in which “ rebuild together ”.
"We must
attend this moment like the United
States
of America,
" he stressed, and put an end to "this non-civil war" as an idea of the attacks between Republicans against Democrats or between cities against rural areas.
Joe Biden being sworn in as President on January 20, 2021.AP /
"Disagreements should not be a cause of war," he asked, for which he promised to be "a president for everyone
,
who will fight with the same force for those who voted for me as for those who did not."
[These are the changes Joe Biden plans to make to combat the pandemic]
He indicated that the guiding principles of his Government include tackling the coronavirus pandemic, combating climate change and strengthening a migration system that is "just and humane."
He spoke that extremism and white nationalism must be confronted, and that thus "we will defeat them."
"They put the United States to the test, but we came out stronger," he said.
He addressed part of the message to the rest of the world:
"We will lead not by the example of our might, but by the might of our example."
And he launched these promises alongside Kamala Harris, who is now the first woman to become the vice presidency, the first black person to hold this office, and the first person of Asian descent and the daughter of immigrants to reach the second-highest job in the White House.
Harris's milestone shows that the bitterness and burdens of the past can be overcome, Biden said.
"Don't tell me that things can't change," he said.
[Diverse and with a Hispanic presence: this is Joe Biden's Government team]
The
new presidential team will issue a series of decrees
this Wednesday.
They include measures to protect
dreamers,
to reverse attempts to exclude undocumented people from the Census, and to cancel the construction of a new border wall with Mexico.
Vice President Kamala Harris, after taking her oath of office, celebrates with Joe Biden on January 20, 2021.AP /
Executive actions are also to rejoin the 2015 Paris Agreement that seeks to reduce global carbon dioxide emissions;
eliminate the so-called “veto” for Muslims or Muslim countries to travel to the United States, and require that a mask be worn inside federal buildings as an example of preventive measures against COVID-19.
Plans will also be issued by decree so that Americans can defer payments on their student loans;
also to postpone the expulsions of homes for non-payment of rent or mortgages.
"In
the work ahead we will need to work together
" and face the challenges "as one nation," Biden said.
[Trump tries to stop Biden's immigration reform with a dangerous last-minute political trip]
The new president indicated that in times of trial due to the pandemic and other issues, such as an attack on Congress and racial and ethnic inequality, "I believe that we will prevail and write a new chapter in the history of our country."
And he assured that those who try to divide based on lies or attack the heart of the Government "did not succeed, they will not succeed, not today or tomorrow or ever," he said.