Hail to a new chief. Screen image of President Biden delivering his inauguration speech at the Capitol
By Irish Echo Staff
Joseph R. Biden is the 46th President of the United States after being sworn into office earlier today.
And Kamala Harris is the first woman vice president.
The inauguration went off without an apparent hitch at a Capitol that just two weeks ago was the scene of unprecedented violence aimed at overthrowing the election result and America's democracy.
Biden, who proudly proclaims his Irish ancestry, and frequently, is only the nation's second Catholic president.
And though he did not mention his favorite poet Seamus Heaney in his inaugural address, Biden did include in it Heaney's words and images focusing on hope and history.
On Tuesday, before leaving Wilmington, Delaware, and at a ceremony naming a National Guard facility after his late son Beau, Biden told his audience that he frequently quoted Irish poets not because he himself was Irish, but because those Irish poets were the best poets. He also quoted James Joyce.
Biden is expected to be active on issues of perennial Irish American concern, not the North peace and political process and immigration. A visit to Ireland during his presidency is expected, and anticipated
