Describing himself as “a proud son of the state of Delaware,” U.S. President-elect Joe Biden bid a heartfelt goodbye on Tuesday to the state where he served as U.S. senator for 36 years and made his way to Washington, D.C., where he led a memorial service to remember the American lives lost to COVID, on the eve of his inauguration.
Gavino Garay reports.
Joe Biden
Delaware
Washington, D.C.
COVID-19PRESIDENT-ELECT JOE BIDEN: "Well, excuse the emotion, but when I die Delaware will be written on my heart." On the eve of his inauguration, President-elect Joe Biden bid an emotional farewell to his home state of Delaware on Tuesday, where he served as U.S. senator for 36 years, before becoming Barack Obama's VP.
On Wednesday, Biden will be sworn in as the 46th U.S. president.
"I'm truly honored to be your next president and commander in chief, and I'll always be a proud son of the state of Delaware." Biden then flew to Washington, after his plans to take Amtrak were scrapped over security concerns, where he attended a remembrance ceremony for the 400,000 Americans who died from COVID-19.
The event was the first such memorial ceremony from the federal government acknowledging the staggering death toll from the pandemic.
Biden led the lighting ceremony and moment of silence featuring a light display surrounding the Reflecting Pool on the National Mall.
"To heal, we must remember, and it's hard sometimes to remember.
But that's how we heal.
It's important to do that as a nation.
That's why we're here today.
Between sundown and dusk, let us shine the lights in the darkness, along the sacred pool of reflection, and remember all who we've lost." Following the moment of silence, 400 bells tolled at the National Cathedral to symbolically honor the 400,000 Americans who have perished to COVID-19.