Trump supporters gather at victory rally in Washington, D.C.
Supporters of the US President-elect gathered in a multi-kilometer queue in Washington for his victory rally at the Capital One Arena. Images from the venue appeared at the disposal of Izvestia.
"The queue of Trump supporters stretched without exaggeration for several kilometers. It loops through the streets, wraps around entire neighborhoods, there are clearly more than 20 thousand people, and that's how many people the stadium can hold," - said the correspondent of "Izvestia" Anton Zolotnitsky.
He specified that all the streets adjacent to the arena are blocked off, with additional police and military personnel on duty, who closed the roadways for cars with the help of army HMMWV SUVs.
Also, Tim Granny, one of the president-elect's supporters and a participant in the victory rally, said the new White House administration must "put the American people in their place." He said that starting Tuesday, Trump will begin a mass deportation of illegal immigrants from the country.
"He's going to do much better this time. Last time he was unprepared, he listened to a lot of Washington insiders in choosing his cabinet. This time he's picking people he knows, he can trust them with his plan," Granny said.
He added that people will see a lot more action from the president-elect, especially in the "first 100 days." According to the rally attendee, the new administration has already begun "rounding up sanctuary cities" for people who immigrated illegally.
Earlier, on January 17, Trump ordered the inauguration ceremony to be moved indoors, to the rotunda of the US Capitol. The reason for the president-elect's decision was bad weather. The politician also said that the celebratory parade will be held at the Capital One Arena complex in Washington, D.C., where Trump promised to arrive later in the day after taking the oath of office. The inauguration itself will also be broadcast there.
The next day, The Washington Post (WP) reported that thousands of Americans who have been preparing for months for the inauguration of the president-elect were caught off guard by the order to move the ceremony indoors. It is noted that Congress has received hundreds of calls about the matter. According to the publication, 220 thousand tickets were sold for the event, and Capital One Arena can only hold up to 20 thousand people.
ABC News TV channel with reference to the joint inaugural committee on January 18 reported that due to the transfer of the venue of Trump's inauguration indoors, most of those who bought tickets will not be able to attend it. It was specified that the Secret Service and Capitol Police are working to adapt security plans to the new conditions.
For his part, Federation Council Senator Alexei Pushkov noted that Trump moved the venue of the inauguration ceremony for security reasons. He also pointed to rumors that say that the ceremony will be moved to the White House altogether.
The US Congress on January 6 approved Trump's victory in the 60th presidential election held on November 5, 2024. The decision was announced by incumbent US Vice President Kamala Harris, who had competed with Trump as a candidate.
