Many keen observers noticed that when Donald Trump was taking the oath of office on Inauguration Day, he didn’t place his hand on either of the two Bibles held by his wife, Melania Trump. One of those Bibles was Trump’s personal Bible, given to him by his mother; the other was the Lincoln Bible that was used when Abraham Lincoln took the presidential oath in 1861.
As Chief Justice John Roberts led President Trump through the swearing-in recitation, he held his right hand up instead of placing it on the Bibles.
Some were very upset by this. After all, in 2017 during his first inauguration, President Trump did place his hand on the Bibles held by his wife. Further, Vice President JD Vance, who was sworn in just before Trump, placed his hand on the Bible held by his wife, Usha Vance.
What gives? Should we read into this?
Allie Beth Stuckey dives into the controversy.
“People were saying, ‘Oh, this must mean something; this is bad,’ but in reality, it is not required for you to put your hand on the Bible,” says Allie, adding, “I don't think he's signifying anything.”
“Actually, if you watch the video of this happening, it was a little rushed. You could tell Melania was trying to get up by him and Chief Justice Roberts started reading the oath before Melania was right there, and so I think it was just a rushed situation,” she speculates.
Of course, there’s always the possibility that Trump intentionally didn’t place his hand on the Bibles, but given how many times he explicitly mentioned God in his speech — “I was saved by God to make America great again,” “we will not forget our God,” and “one family and one glorious nation under God” — it’s unlikely that his hand placement had some symbolic meaning.
Further, “The fact that they provided their own family Bible means that they did care about that, that it was important to them, even if it was just symbolic,” adds Allie. “If they didn't care at all, they wouldn't have provided a family Bible.”
To hear more of her analysis on the inauguration, watch the episode above.
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