In the News

U.S. Rep. Richard E. Neal said President Joe Biden did a wonderful job Wednesday addressing, as Neal called it, “the American family” and setting a tone for his new administration.

As Biden himself pointed out in a Tweet following his inauguration at the U.S. Capitol, now comes a lot of hard work. That includes Biden’s COVID-19 relief legislation, a lot of which will move into the House Ways and Means Committee where Neal is chairman.

“Well I was very pleased,” Neal said in a phone interview following the ceremony. “I thought the tone of national unity and purpose were essential.”

“I thought his defense of facts was right on target,” Neal said. “I was pleased with the whole tone of reassurance.”

U.S. Rep. James P. McGovern, D-Worcester, said Wednesday afternoon that he’ll sleep soundly for the first time in four years now that Republican Donald Trump is out of office.

“Joe Biden will bring some competency and decency back to the White House,” McGovern said. “I think the feeling was one of hope and relief. Here is a man not trying to divide the country ... but to bring the country together.”

Reassurance was needed because, just two weeks ago, an angry mob of Trump supporters broke into the Capitol just as the ceremonial counting of electoral votes began. Trump had claimed without evidence that voter fraud was to blame for his loss in the November election.

During the Jan. 6 riot, Neal and his staff barricaded themselves in an office. McGovern found himself presiding over the House as Speaker Nancy Pelosi was whisked away to safety.

On Wednesday, Neal said it is still a small part of the public that has taken up the kind of angry conspiracy-focused thought that led to the riot.

“I thought (Biden) addressed that too, when he spoke about the need to lower the temperature,” he said.

Neal said he appreciated Biden’s references to Abraham Lincoln and the 16th president’s thoughts during the most difficult period in American history.

“In another January, on New Year’s Day in 1863, Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation,” Biden said, according to a transcript provided by the Associated Press. “When he put pen to paper, the president said, and I quote, ‘If my name ever goes down into history, it will be for this act and my whole soul is in it.’”

McGovern noted a special moment when it came time Wednesday for Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor to administer the oath of office to Harris, making Harris not only the first woman vice president but also the first vice president of Black and South Asian descent.

“The clouds parted,” McGovern said. “The sun came out.”

McGovern also shared a personal observation.

“Joe Biden is a decent, good person who loves his family,” he said. “And you could see that. You could see it too with Vice President Harris.”

Neal said his thoughts turned Wednesday to other recent presidents. He watched in 1977 as Jimmy Carter departed from tradition and walked down Pennsylvania Avenue.

Although Trump was absent, Wednesday’s ceremony did include other past presidents. Neal described watching George W. Bush, Bill Clinton and Barack Obama interacting in friendship.

This despite the fact that Clinton defeated Bush’s father, only to see his administration give way to the younger Bush. In many ways, Neal said, Obama’s campaign for the presidency was running against Bush’s record.

“Then to see them all have casual greetings with six members of the Supreme Court,” Neal said, “I thought this is a marvelous day in history. It is a very civic moment.”

McGovern made a similar observation.

“It kind of reminds you that people can have differences and still be respectful and kind to one another,” McGovern said.

Later Wednesday, the former presidents joined Harris and Biden to lay a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington National Cemetery.

Because of the pandemic, there were no throngs of people Wednesday, only National Guard members and security details. Not having a crowd changes the way a speaker behaves at the podium. There is no applause, no cheers.

“It struck me that Biden caught the moment,” Neal said.

Both congressmen praised the musical performances from Jennifer Lopez, Lady Gaga and Garth Brooks. And they singled out Amanda Gorman, the youngest inaugural poet in history.

“I just thought she was one of the highlights,” McGovern said.

McGovern kept returning to the theme of turning a page away from the Trump presidency.

“I left this inauguration feeling better than I’ve felt in a long time,” he said.