Biden Bids Emotional Farewell To Delaware En Route To The Presidency

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One day before being inaugurated as the 46th president of the United States, President-elect Joe Biden delivers remarks at the Major Joseph R. «Beau» Biden III National Guard/Reserve Center in New Castle, Del., on Tuesday.

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Biden had hoped to travel to the capital by train, just as he did for decades as a U.S. senator, and like he and Barack Obama did before their 2009 inauguration. Security concerns nixed the train trip, though, so Biden is flying into Joint Base Andrews instead.

Still, Biden looked back on that 2009 trip, as he frequently did in speeches during his presidential campaign.

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«Twelve years ago, I was waiting at the station station in Wilmington for a Black man to pick me up on our way to Washington, where we were sworn in as president and vice president of the United States of America,» Biden said. «And here we are today, my family and I, about to return again to Washington, to meet a Black woman of South Asian descent, to be sworn in as president and vice president of the United States. … That’s America. That’s Delaware.»

Vice President-elect Kamala Harris will join Biden later Tuesday for a ceremony on the National Mall honoring the 400,000 people who have died from COVID-19.