
Remarks at a Document Signing Ceremony and an Exchange With Reporters at the United States Capitol
The President. It was a great event. We went to the helicopter. It was freezing. [Laughter] The sun is a little deceptive.
Speaker of the House of Representatives J. Michael Johnson. Yes, it is.
The President. So what would you like us to do?
Speaker Johnson. Sign your orders here——
Senator Amy J. Klobuchar. You can sign——
Speaker Johnson. ——would be great.
Sen. Klobuchar. ——official documents.
The President. Okay. I assume they're going to be happy with these documents?
Sen. Klobuchar. Yes, they're just—[laughter]. [Inaudible] It's a tradition.
White House Staff Secretary William O. Scharf. Sir, the first is 22 Cabinet and Cabinet-level appointments for your signature.
The President. Okay.
[At this point, the President signed an order on Cabinet and Cabinet-level nominations submitted to the Senate.]
The President. Okay.
Staff Secretary Scharf. The next one will be—excuse me. The next one will be 47 sub-Cabinet-level appointments, sir.
Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer. But you don't have to sign 47 times.
The President. I hope not. [Laughter]
[The President signed an order on sub-Cabinet-level nominations submitted to the Senate.]
The President. Okay.
Staff Secretary Scharf. Thank you, sir.
Now 31 acting designations and appointments to effectively take control of the Government.
House Majority Leader Stephen J. Scalise. Let's do that.
Vice President James D. "J.D." Vance. Yes, that's important. [Laughter]
The President. That is important, isn't it?
[The President signed an order on Acting Cabinet and Cabinet-level appointments.]
Speaker Johnson. Thank you.
Staff Secretary Scharf. Then we have 15 Commission Chairman and Acting Chairman appointments.
The President. Sign here?
Staff Secretary Scharf. Commission Chairman and Acting Chairman.
[The President signed an order on Federal Commission and Board Chairman and Acting Chairman designations.]
The President. He was number one at Harvard also. [Laughter] Did you know that? He's——
Speaker Johnson. Good counsel.
The President. They have something in common. [Laughter]
Staff Secretary Scharf. Thank you, sir.
Lastly, we have a proclamation ordering that on all future Inauguration Days, including this Inauguration Day, that flags shall be flown at full mast.
Speaker Johnson. Very important.
[The President signed a proclamation titled, "Flying the Flag of the United States at Full-Staff on Inauguration Day."]
The President. I thought it was a beautiful place to have an Inauguration today. The sound was so good. The temperature was 72 degrees. [Laughter] But the sound was so good. Maybe something to think about. I don't know.
Okay.
Staff Secretary Scharf. Thank you, sir.
Vice President Vance. Good acoustics.
Leader Scalise. Yes.
Sen. Klobuchar. All right. Now we——
The President. Is that it?
Vice President Vance. That's it?
Senator Debra Fischer. Thank you.
Sen. Klobuchar. We go to lunch.
The President. [Inaudible]
It's nice to meet you. Thank you very much. You'll—take that.
[The president gave a signing pen to House Minority Leader Hakeem S. Jeffries.]
Leader Jeffries. Thank you.
The President. Steve.
[The President distributed signing pens to other attendees.]
Leader Scalise. Thank you, Mr. President.
Speaker Johnson. Thank you, sir.
The President's Meeting With Former President Joseph R. Biden, Jr.
Q. Mr. President, did you have a good meeting with former President Biden?
The President. Very nice. Really nice. It's a beautiful custom.
Q. Mr. President, any reaction——
The President. It goes back as long as helicopters.
Vice President Vance. Thank you.
The President. Before that, it was a stagecoach. [Laughter] But it was a—I thought it was beautiful.
Thank you. Great job.
Sen. Fischer. Thank you.
The President. Great job.
Sen. Klobuchar. Yes. Thank you.
The President. Chuck.
Pardons and Commutations by Former President Joseph R. Biden, Jr.
Q. Mr. President, do you have any reaction to the pardons President Biden did at the last minute?
The President. Well, I'm not going to discuss it now. I thought—I think it was unfortunate that he did that. We won't discuss it now. There's plenty of time to discuss it.
[Several reporters spoke at once.]
The President. Okay? Thank you.
NOTE: The President spoke at 2:15 p.m. in the U.S. Capitol. A portion of these remarks could not be verified because the audio was incomplete. The transcript was released by the Office of the Press Secretary on January 21.
Donald J. Trump (2nd Term), Remarks at a Document Signing Ceremony and an Exchange With Reporters at the United States Capitol Online by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley, The American Presidency Project https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/node/375988