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National Anthem on American Flag

Lady Gaga Delivers Inspiring National Anthem Performance At Inauguration 

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Lady Gaga wowed America with her beautifully inspiring rendition of “The Star-Spangled Banner” back at Super Bowl 50, so fans were eager to see her performance of the national anthem at President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris’s inauguration ceremony that took place this Wednesday morning. 

Gaga’s rendition of the national anthem is already being regarded as one of the most “exuberant renditions of the national anthem in pop music history,” drawing comparisons to Whitney Houston’s iconic performance of the anthem at Super Bowl XXV. 

After her triumphant finish she remained at the podium for a moment, positively beaming as she let the significance of that moment sink in. She took to social media later to explain that she was truly feeling how special of a moment that was, to be performing the national anthem and marking the transition into a new era of unity in politics in America. 

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“Singing our National Anthem for the American People is my honor. I will sing during a ceremony, a transition, a moment of change — between POTUS 45 and 46. For me, this has great meaning,” she tweeted prior to her performance. 

Gaga was rocking a billowing scarlet red ball gown skirt and navy blue turtleneck that was embellished with a huge brooch shaped like a golden dove carrying an olive branch. Fashion blogs immediately took to social media to praise how radiant and distinguished Gaga looked as she sang the anthem for the next administration entering the White House. 

“My intention is to acknowledge our past, be healing for our present, and passionate for a future where we work together lovingly. I will sing to the hearts of all people who live on this land.”

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Gaga and Biden have been working together for quite some time now campaigning within the past year. The same year Gaga sang at the Super Bowl, Biden introduced her for her powerful performance of “Til It Happens To You,” her nominated theme from the campus sexual assault documentary The Hunting Ground.  

One year later at the Academy Awards, Biden and Gaga teamed up yet again for a PSA for It’s On Us, a sexual assault awareness campaing that was founded by Biden and former president Barack Obama. 

Most recently Gaga sang a selection of her greatest hits at Biden’s final presidential campaign rally in Pittsburgh on November 2nd. She changed the lyrics of her hit song “You and I” to “There’s something about Joe, you and I,” later on expressing at the event that Pennsylvania residents need to make their voices heard. 

“This is a big one, Pennsylvania. So if you’re here, you probably already believe in Joe Biden. I know I believe in Joe Biden. You probably already believe he’s the right choice over Donald Trump. You don’t need me to tell you why. Because, like me, you’ve experienced the last four years and have all the evidence you need to look at this choice and know in your heart, without any doubt, that Joe Biden is the right choice.”

The two finalized their year of collaboration with the beautifully cathartic rendition of the anthem from Lady Gaga, officially welcoming Joe Biden as 46th President of the United States.

Joe Biden To Be Inaugurated As 46th President Of The United States Of America

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Joe Biden will be sworn in as the 46th President on the West Front of the US Capitol, about two weeks after insurrectionists incited by Donald Trump stormed the building.

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How Trump Plans To Hand Off The ‘Nuclear Football’ To Biden 

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President Donald Trump will not be in attendance for President-Elect Joe Biden’s inauguration this Wednesday, which has many Americans wondering how certain transitional proceedings that traditionally occur on inauguration day will move forward; the handing off of the “nuclear football” being the most discussed proceeding that needs to occur. 

The “football” is obviously not a real ball, and contains the equipment that Trump would use to authenticate his orders to launch a nuclear strike. This “football” is carried by a military aide who accompanies the president at all times up until his term officially ends on January 20th. Traditionally, the aide would hand off the football to another military aide as the next president-elect takes his oath of office. 

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Trump is currently projected to head to Florida before inauguration day even begins, which means the nuclear football will likely travel with him, presenting some difficulty in transferring that authority smoothly. While that process may have to look a little different this year, there are a multitude of constitutional safeguards put in place to ensure a seamless transition of nuclear control from one president to the next, regardless of the circumstance; which includes the double-impeached president heading to Florida to play some golf. 

Stephen Schwartz, a senior fellow at the Bulletin of the Atomic scientists, recently discussed how regardless of where Trump is on inauguration day, the nuclear football will be passed off to Biden and Trump’s reign as president will come to an official close. 

“There are at least three to four identical ‘footballs’: one follows the president, one follows the vice president, and one traditionally is set aside for the designated survivor at events like inaugurations and State of the Union addresses.”

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“On January 20, the extra footballs will be out of town somewhere with their designees, leaving just Vice President Mike Pence’s briefcase unless the White House Military Office has prepared (or already has on hand) another backup for Biden,” he told the press, adding that the president is required to carry a plastic card on them at all times known as the “biscuit,” which contains codes used to positively identify the president. 

“Under the 20th Amendment — and absent any invocation of the 25th Amendment that would make Mike Pence the acting president — Donald Trump is president through 11:59:59 am on January 20. Up to that point in time, he has the sole, legal authority to authorize the use of any or all of the US nuclear arsenal,” Schwartz explained, adding that “if an aide with the football accompanies Trump on Air Force One to Florida, that aide will remove himself or herself from Trump’s presence at noon and return to Washington, DC, with the briefcase.”

After that point Trump will no longer have the authority to launch a nuclear strike and all nuclear codes that he carries will be deactivated permanently. Biden will automatically inherit the power to launch a nuclear strike at that same moment of deactivation; as in that moment his personal codes will be officially activated.