2024年的竞选几乎没有比这更激烈、更私人的了。
乔·拜登将唐纳德·特朗普描绘成民主的威胁。特朗普嘲笑拜登软弱，是有史以来最糟糕的总统。
现在，仅仅几个月后，拜登将把政治放在一边，站在他的继任者旁边，按照宪法的规定进行总统宣誓。
这一姿态是美国民主的传统，但特别值得注意的是，特朗普四年前拒绝承认后跳过了拜登的就职典礼。
拜登证实，他将尊重这一传统——就像以前的许多总统一样——在他卸任后不久在白宫接待特朗普在11月获胜后，特朗普未能在2020年给予拜登的另一个礼遇。
“要知道，拜登是卓越的制度主义者，”美国大学总统历史学家兼教授艾伦·李奇曼(Allan Lichtman)说。
李奇曼说:“这些仪式对于重申权力的和平过渡极其重要。”。“拜登正在尽最大努力，不要心胸狭窄，不要报复，而是试图重建我们民主的基本规范和象征。”
这一切都发生在拜登和特朗普之间的动荡关系在总统竞选中得到充分展示之后。
拜登长期以来一直声称特朗普是对美国基本原则和自由的存在性威胁，而特朗普一再歪曲拜登的年龄，并质疑他的精神敏锐度，因为他更广泛地批评民主党人是“来自内部的敌人”。
这些动态在他们6月份的唯一一场辩论中得到了展示，这场辩论改变了竞选的进程，因为摊牌后民主党的恐慌导致拜登退出竞选。
“我真不知道他最后那句话说了什么。我认为他也不知道自己说了些什么，”特朗普在拜登努力寻找合适的词并恍恍惚惚之后说。
拜登在抨击特朗普的选举否认主义时，称他为“这样的抱怨者”。“这家伙没有美国民主意识，”拜登说。
11月中旬，拜登和特朗普在椭圆形办公室会面，并发誓平稳过渡，这种不屑被搁置一旁。白宫称此次会谈是亲切的，特朗普表示这是一次“非常好的会议”。
但在最后阶段，对立情绪再次浮现，尽管即将离任和即将上任的政府共同努力确保以色列和哈马斯达成停火协议。
特朗普已经已发行随着拜登在办公室的最后行动，如他禁止近海石油钻探，声称他们是为了阻止他实施他的议程。
“我们从即将离任的政府那里继承了一个困难的局面，他们正在尽一切努力让它变得更加困难，”特朗普本月早些时候在Mar-a-Lago的新闻发布会上抱怨道，声称拜登帮助过渡的承诺是“空谈”。
反过来，拜登在他的告别演说中向美国人发出了尖锐的警告，要求他们警惕未来的权力滥用。
虽然他没有提到特朗普的名字，但两者的相似之处显而易见，他谴责了特朗普寻求的扩大高管影响力，并指出了他所说的特朗普亲密公司中的超级富裕精英所带来的危险。
“今天，一个寡头政治正在美国形成，它拥有极大的财富、权力和影响力，威胁着我们的整个民主、我们的基本权利和自由，以及每个人取得进步的公平机会，”他说。
当拜登呼吁修改宪法以“明确没有一位总统——没有一位总统——能够免于在任期间所犯罪行”时，他指的是谁是毫无疑问的，这是对去年最高法院轰动性裁决的反驳。
“总统的权力不是无限的。这不是绝对的，也不应该是绝对的，”拜登说。
周一中午，特朗普将尊重传统，庄严宣誓他将“维护、保护和捍卫美国宪法”。
拜登寻求的权力和平交接将会完成。
Biden sees to peaceful transition of power with Trump after bitter campaign: ANALYSIS
The 2024 campaign could hardly have been more bitter, more personal.
Joe Biden painted Donald Trump a threat to democracy. Trump mocked Biden as feeble and the worst president ever.
Now, just months later, Biden will put politics aside and stand near his successor as he takes the presidential oath spelled out in the Constitution.
The gesture is a tradition of American democracy, but especially notable given that Trump skipped Biden's inauguration four years ago after refusing to concede.
Biden confirmed he would honor that tradition -- as so many presidents have before -- shortly after hehosted Trump at the White Housefollowing his November victory, another courtesy Trump failed to extend to Biden in 2020.
"Understand that Biden is the preeminent institutionalist," said Allan Lichtman, a presidential historian and professor at American University.
"These rituals are extremely important for reaffirming the peaceful transition of power," Lichtman said. "Biden is striving as best he can not to be petty, not to be vengeful, but to try to reestablish the basic norms and symbols of our democracy."
It all comes after the tumultuous relationship between Biden and Trump was on full display in the presidential race.
Biden long asserted Trump was an existential threat to the nation's bedrock principles and freedoms, while Trump repeatedly skewered Biden's age and questioned his mental acuity as he more broadly criticized Democrats as the "enemy from within."
Those dynamics were exhibited in their only debate in June, which altered the course of the campaign as Democratic panic after the showdown led to Biden withdrawing from the race.
“I really don’t know what he said at the end of that sentence. I don’t think he knows what he said, either,” Trump said at one point, after Biden struggled to find the words and drifted off.
Biden called Trump "such a whiner" as he slammed his election denialism. "This guy has no sense of American democracy," Biden said.
Such disdain was put aside as Biden and Trump met in the Oval Office in mid-November and vowed a smooth transition. The White House described the sit-down as cordial, and Trump said it was a "really good meeting."
But the antagonism has resurfaced in the final stretch, even as the outgoing and incoming administration worked together to secure the Israel-Hamas ceasefire deal.
Trump hastaken issuewith Biden's final actions in office, such as his ban on offshore oil drilling, claiming they are intended to block him from implementing his agenda.
"We are inheriting a difficult situation from the outgoing administration, and they're trying everything they can to make it more difficult," Trump complained at a news conference at Mar-a-Lago earlier this month, claiming Biden's promise of aiding a transition was "all talk."
Biden, in turn, in his farewell address, issued a pointed warning to Americans to be vigilant against abuses of power ahead.
While he didn't mention Trump by name, the parallels were obvious as he condemned the expanded executive reach Trump has sought and cited the danger he said was posed by the ultra-wealthy elites now in Trump's close company.
"Today, an oligarchy is taking shape in America of extreme wealth, power and influence that literally threatens our entire democracy, our basic rights and freedoms, and a fair shot for everyone to get ahead," he said.
And there was no mistaking who Biden was referring to when he called for a constitutional amendment to "make clear that no president -- no president -- is immune from crimes that he or she commits while in office" -- as a counter to last year's blockbuster Supreme Court ruling.
"The president's power is not unlimited. It's not absolute, and it shouldn't be," Biden said.
On Monday at noon, Trump will respect tradition and solemnly swear he will "preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States."
The peaceful transition of power Biden sought will be complete.
