National Mall Will Be Closed To Public On Inauguration Day

WASHINGTON, D.C., Aug. 31, 2020 -- People ride bicycles on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., the United States, Aug. 30, 2020. The number of COVID-19 cases in the United States reached 5,994,855 as of 9:28 p.m. EDT on Sunday, according to the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University. (Photo by Ting Shen/Xinhua via Getty)
WASHINGTON, D.C., Aug. 31, 2020 -- People ride bicycles on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., the United States, Aug. 30, 2020. The number of COVID-19 cases in the United States reached 5,994,855 as of 9:28 p.m. ... WASHINGTON, D.C., Aug. 31, 2020 -- People ride bicycles on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., the United States, Aug. 30, 2020. The number of COVID-19 cases in the United States reached 5,994,855 as of 9:28 p.m. EDT on Sunday, according to the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University. (Photo by Ting Shen/Xinhua via Getty) (Xinhua/Ting Shen via Getty Images) MORE LESS
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As law enforcement officials brace for potential violent unrest around the inauguration of Joe Biden, the National Mall will reportedly be closed off entirely on Jan. 20.

The National Mall will only be accessible to security officials and journalists covering the inauguration, the Washington Post reported Thursday, citing two sources familiar with the planning. NBC News confirmed the reporting.

The inauguration was already set to be a largely virtual affair amid the coronavirus pandemic that continues to rage across the country. But as the Post and other have pointed out, the National Mall is the main venue for the public to observe the inauguration. Now that option is off the table.

Notable Replies

  1. Avatar for rptwiz rptwiz says:

    And Trump will declare: “See! I can create a way bigger inauguration crowd than Biden!”

  2. Delusion is why we can’t have nice things.

  3. Trump will tweet next Wednesday his crowd was bigger than Joe Biden’s…

    His second tweet will be- How did 81 million vote for Biden if no one showed up for his inauguration?

    Oh wait he can’t…

  4. Slightly OT, but this reminds me of Election Night 2008 in Grant Park, Chicago, when hours before the celebration I inadvertently ambled into the Secret Service command & control zone (on the hill where the Field Museum is) & sat on a bench overlooking the rally site & went undiscovered until 9pm by two Chicago PD on bikes.

    I’ll tell you all the deets over a beer sometime. You’re buying, right?

  5. “The National Mall will only be accessible to security officials and journalists covering the inauguration”

    Sort of like how access to the Capitol building was restricted on the 6th I suppose.

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