Speaker Johnson orders US Capitol flags raised to full height for Trump's inauguration

[January 15, 2025]  By MEG KINNARD

House Speaker Mike Johnson on Tuesday ordered that flags at the U.S. Capitol be raised to their full height on Inauguration Day, pausing a 30-day flag-lowering order following the death of former President Jimmy Carter.

The Republican leader's decision means that President-elect Donald Trump will not take the oath of office for his second term under a half-staff flag, a prospect that he had previously complained about.

It mirrors actions taken in recent days by some Republican governors who have announced that flags in their states would be raised on Inauguration Day to mark Trump's second term.

North Dakota Gov. Kelly Armstrong, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey, Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee and Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds did so on Tuesday, noting in announcements that U.S. flags across their states would be relowered on Jan. 21 in honor of Carter. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott issued a similar notice on Monday.

The 30-day flag-lowering period, set into motion with President Joe Biden's initial order, affects flags at federal government buildings and their grounds, as well as at U.S. embassies and other facilities abroad, including military installations and vessels. It runs through Jan. 28, which encompasses Trump's inauguration and first week in office. In line with Biden's order, governors throughout the country issued their own orders to govern flags in their respective states.

The incoming president has expressed consternation that flags would still be lowered when he takes the oath, and it's possible that he could order the overall reversal of Biden's decision once he's installed as president on Jan. 20.

Speaker of the House Mike Johnson of Louisiana, speaks during a ceremony as the flag-draped casket of former President Jimmy Carter lies in state, at the Capitol, Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2025, in Washington. Carter died Dec. 29 at the age of 100. (Kent Nishimura/The New York Times via AP, Pool)

“Democrats are all ‘giddy’” about the notion that flags will be lowered on Inauguration Day, Trump wrote Jan. 3 on social media.

“Nobody wants to see this,” Trump wrote. He added that “no American can be happy about it. Let’s see how it plays out. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!”

Trump has already taken action over the flags that he can control: at his home in Florida. In the days following Carter's burial, a large U.S. flag at Trump's private Mar-a-Lago club was observed already flying at its full height, despite an order from DeSantis that mirrors Biden's.

As of Tuesday, DeSantis had not made alterations to the flag order in his own state.

The U.S. flag code lays out parameters for lowering the U.S. flag to half-staff, including a 30-day period for current or former presidents to cover flags at federal government buildings and their grounds, as well as at U.S. embassies and other facilities abroad, including military installations and vessels.
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Associated Press writers Kimberly Chandler in Montgomery, Ala., Hannah Fingerhut in Des Moines, Iowa, John Hanna in Topeka, Kan., Kimberlee Kruesi in Nashville, Tenn., Stephany Matat in West Palm Beach, Fla., and Julie Carr Smyth in Columbus, Ohio, contributed reporting

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