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The White House has refused to reconsider the decision to keep flags lowered in honor of the late President Jimmy Carter
US President-elect Donald Trump has expressed his disapproval over the decision to keep American flags at half-mast during his inauguration on January 20. The lowering of the flags was ordered by President Joe Biden in honor of former President Jimmy Carter, who passed away on December 29 at the age of 100.
According to US flag code, flags should remain at half-mast for 30 days following the death of a current or former president – in this case, until January 28.
In a statement released on Friday, Trump accused Democrats of being pleased that the flags will remain at half-mast during his inauguration, suggesting it reflects a lack of patriotism.
“The Democrats are all ‘giddy’ about our magnificent American Flag potentially being at ‘half mast’ during my Inauguration,” he said. “They think it’s so great, and are so happy about it because, in actuality, they don’t love our Country, they only think about themselves.”
Trump claimed it would be “the first time ever” that US flags are flown at half-mast during a presidential inauguration, insisting that “nobody wants to see this, and no American can be happy about it.”
However, the flags were flown at half-mast when former President Richard Nixon was sworn in for his second term in January 1973, after he ordered them lowered following the death of former President Harry S. Truman.
Historically, there have also been instances where the 30-day half-mast period was temporarily adjusted at the discretion of the sitting president. In 1973, following the death of former President Lyndon B. Johnson, Nixon ordered flags raised to full-mast for one day to honor returning American prisoners of war from Vietnam before lowering them again to continue the mourning period.
Trump has previously expressed dissatisfaction with the practice of lowering flags. In 2018, following the death of Senator John McCain, flags were briefly returned to full-mast before being lowered again after public outcry.
White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre responded to Trump’s remarks, stating that the Biden administration does not intend to reconsider the decision to keep flags at half-mast during the inauguration.
