The journey begins

Washington : Donald Trump’s inaugural address will be a personal and philosophical one that lays out how he sees America, rather than push his agenda as president, his spokesman said yesterday.

“It’s going to be a very personal and sincere statement about his vision for the country,” Sean Spicer said a day before Trump is due to be sworn in as the 45th president of the United States.

“He will discuss what it means to be an American, the challenges that we face, as members of the middle class, that they face,” Spicer said of the billionaire real estate developer.

“I think it’s going to be less of an agenda and more of a philosophical document, a vision of where he sees the country, the proper role of government, the role of citizens,” the spokesman added.

He arrived in Washington on yesterday, determined to transform American politics.

“The journey begins and I will be working and fighting very hard to make it a great journey for the American people,” Trump tweeted before leaving Trump Tower, his Manhattan home.

The 70-year-old president-elect travelled aboard an official government jet to a military base near Washington with his wife Melania. The pair exited the plane and headed into the nation’s capital for a day of pre-inaugural festivities.

“It is a momentous day before a historic day,” said Vice President-elect Mike Pence, as Washington put its finishing touches on the downtown area where hundreds of thousands of Americans will congregate for Trump’s inauguration.

As per tradition, after taking the oath of office Trump will deliver his speech outdoors from a stage at the foot of the west side of the Capitol building to a large crowd spilling out over the National Mall. Tens of thousands of Trump supporters  and anti-Trump protesters  have converged on the capital for the democratic ritual. Numerous dignitaries, including his unsuccessful Democratic rival for the presidency Hillary Clinton, and three former presidents will be in attendance. -