---

Presidential Inaugural Committee
January 17, 2017

Presidential Inaugural Committee Announces Details for the Swearing-in of President-elect Donald J. Trump

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the Presidential Inaugural Committee announced details surrounding the swearing-in of President-elect Donald J. Trump on January 20, 2017.

President-elect Donald J. Trump will be sworn-in on January 20, 2017 using his Bible, as well as the same Bible that President Lincoln used at his first inauguration. The oath of office will be administered by the Chief Justice of the United States John Roberts.

“In his first inaugural address, President Lincoln appealed to the ‘better angels of our nature,’” said PIC Chairman Tom Barrack. “As he takes the same oath of office 156 years later, President-elect Trump is humbled to place his hand on Bibles that hold special meaning both to his family and to our country.”

President-elect Trump’s Bible was presented to him by his mother upon his graduation of Sunday Church Primary School at First Presbyterian Church, Jamaica, New York, on Children’s Day, June 12, 1955. The Bible is a revised standard version published by Thomas Nelson and Sons in New York in 1953 and is embossed with his name on the lower portion of the front cover. The inside cover is signed by church officials and is inscribed with his name and the details of when it was presented.

The Lincoln Bible was purchased for the first inauguration of President Abraham Lincoln by William Thomas Carroll, Clerk of the Supreme Court. The Bible is bound in burgundy velvet with a gold-washed white metal rim along the edges of the covers. It is part of the collections of the Library of Congress and has been used at three inaugurals: 1861, 2009, and 2013.

---

Presidential Inaugural Committee
January 15, 2017

Justice Clarence Thomas to Deliver Oath of Office to Mike Pence

WASHINGTON, D.C. –Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States Clarence Thomas will administer the Oath of Office to Vice President-elect Michael R. Pence during the Inauguration Ceremony on January 20, 2017. The Vice President-elect also will become the first officeholder, since President Ronald Reagan, to take the oath using The Reagan Family Bible.

Justice Clarence Thomas to Administer Oath of Office to Vice President-elect Pence
“It will be my honor to take the Oath of Office to defend our Constitution from a man who has dedicated his life to the same noble pursuit,” said Vice President-elect Pence. “Justice Thomas was born into poverty in Pin Point, Georgia. From those humble beginnings, Justice Thomas went on to graduate from Holy Cross College and Yale Law School. He served in the Reagan Administration and was appointed to the federal bench in 1990 and the Supreme Court in 1991 by President George H.W. Bush. I have long admired Justice Clarence Thomas and deeply respect his judicial philosophy, dedication to the rule of law, and his historic service on the bench of our nation’s highest court.”

In October, 2016, Justice Thomas celebrated his 25th year on the Supreme Court, making him the longest serving African-American Justice in American history. On Friday, Justice Thomas will become the first African-American in history to administer the Oath of Office to the Vice President or President of the United States.

Vice President-elect Pence Becomes First, since Reagan, to Take Oath of Office with The Reagan Family Bible
“President Ronald Reagan placed his faith in a loving God and the goodness of our country. He set out to change a nation and in doing so, he changed the world. In the march of history, Ronald Reagan’s time in office was limited, but his legacy inspired a generation and will continue beyond,” said Vice President-elect Pence. “It will be humbling to enter office with President Donald Trump, standing next to my family, with my wife Karen holding the same Bible used by President Reagan when he took office.”

The Reagan Family Bible that Vice President-elect Pence will place his right hand upon was used by Ronald Reagan for his gubernatorial and presidential inaugurations. This marks the first time a person other than Reagan has used it at an inauguration. The Reagan Family Bible has never been out of the possession of the Reagan family or the Reagan Foundation, and is currently on permanent display at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum in Simi Valley, California. Because it is such a priceless artifact and requires special protection, Andrew Littlefair, one of President Reagan’s top White House aides, and who now serves on the Board of Trustees for the Reagan Foundation and Institute, will hand carry the Bible from Los Angeles to Washington, D.C., where it will be put under lock and key.

When Vice President-elect Pence takes the oath, The Reagan Family Bible will be open to the same passage used during President Reagan’s inaugurations, and Pence often referenced toward the end of his remarks during the 2016 campaign:

“If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.” (II Chronicles 7:14)

---

Presidential Inaugural Committee
December 28, 2016

Presidential Inaugural Committee Announces Additional Swearing-In Ceremony Participants

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the Presidential Inaugural Committee announced six faith leaders who will participate in the swearing-in ceremony of President-elect Donald Trump and Vice President-elect Michael Pence.

“Since the first inaugural ceremony, our leaders have paid tribute to the blessings of liberty that have been bestowed upon our country and its people,” said PIC Chairman Tom Barrack. “I am pleased to announce that a diverse set of faith leaders will offer readings and prayers at the swearing-in of President-elect Trump and honor the vital role religious faith plays in our multicultural, vibrant nation.”

Those offering readings and giving the invocation at the ceremony are His Eminence Timothy Michael Cardinal Dolan, the Archbishop of New York, Reverend Dr. Samuel Rodriguez of the National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference, and Pastor Paula White of New Destiny Christian Center.

Additionally, Rabbi Marvin Hier, Dean and Founder of the Simon Wiesenthal Center, Reverend Franklin Graham of Samaritan’s Purse and The Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, and Bishop Wayne T. Jackson of Great Faith Ministries International will offer readings and give the benediction.

On Saturday, January 21st, the National Prayer Service will be held at Washington National Cathedral and will include representatives of all religious faiths for a time of prayer and fellowship. Further details about this event will be released in the coming weeks.‎