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An aerial view of Donald Trump's inauguration on Jan. 20, 2017 in Washington, DC.
National Park Service
The National Park Service on Monday released dozens of official aerial and ground photographs of President Donald Trump’s inauguration in January as well as photos from former President Barack Obama’s inaugurations in 2009 and 2013.
The photographs, released in response to a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request filed by BuzzFeed News and other media, clearly show that the number of people who attended Obama’s inaugurations far outstripped the number of people who attended Trump’s swearing in.
BuzzFeed News’s FOIA request was sparked by statements and tweets by Trump, which falsely claimed that more 1.5 million people attended his inauguration. Trump and White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer had accused the media of manipulating photographs and depicting them at different angles in order to show that the size of the crowd at Trump’s inauguration was much smaller than Obama’s.
At a speech at CIA headquarters three days after he was sworn into office, Trump talked about the attendance at his inauguration.
“I turn on one of the networks, and they show an empty field,” Trump said. “I'm like, wait a minute. I made a speech. I looked out, the field was, it looked like a million, million and a half people.”
Spicer said Trump’s inauguration was the most viewed in history and challenged the media to prove him wrong. The photographs released by the park service would appear to do just that.
The photographs include official pictures taken at the National Mall and by the U.S. Park Police. They include pictures of National Park Police officers monitoring protesters and the inauguration attendees. In total, the National Park Service released 43 aerial photos of Trump’s inauguration and 93 photos taken on the ground taken from a wide range of angles. The park service said it expects to release additional photographs of Trump’s inauguration soon.
An aerial view of Donald Trump's inauguration on Jan. 20, 2017 in Washington, DC.
National Park Service
An aerial view of Donald Trump's inauguration on Jan. 20, 2017 in Washington, DC.
National Park Service
An aerial view of Donald Trump's inauguration on Jan. 20, 2017 in Washington, DC.
National Park Service
An aerial view of Donald Trump's inauguration on Jan. 20, 2017 in Washington, DC.
National Park Service
By comparison, the National Park Service also released photos Monday showing a much larger crowd gathered for President Barack Obama’s inauguration in 2009.
An aerial view of President Barack Obama's inauguration on Jan. 20, 2009 in Washington, DC.
National Park Service
An aerial view of President Barack Obama's inauguration on Jan. 20, 2009 in Washington, DC.
National Park Service
An aerial view of President Barack Obama's inauguration on Jan. 20, 2009 in Washington, DC.
National Park Service
An aerial view of President Barack Obama's inauguration on Jan. 20, 2009 in Washington, DC.
National Park Service
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