In a departure from President Joe Biden’s order for flags to be flown at half-staff for 30 days following the death of former President Jimmy Carter, Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves has ordered flags to be raised back up in recognition of President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration on Monday.
Reeves alluded to the decision Wednesday, a move that follows a growing list of state governors who will hoist banners at their full height on Inauguration Day. House Speaker Mike Johnson led the charge in Washington D.C. for the same move, mandating flags at the U.S. Capitol to fly at full-staff when Trump takes the oath of office.
The topic was broached in the public sphere when Trump posted on Truth Social that he disliked the notion of lowered flags at his swearing-in ceremony.
“Because of the death of President Jimmy Carter, the Flag may, for the first time ever during an Inauguration of a future President, be at half-mast,” Trump wrote earlier this month. “Nobody wants to see this, and no American can be happy about it. Let’s see how it plays out.”
Reeves’ order mandates that all American and Mississippi flags will be flown at full-staff on “all buildings and grounds of the State of Mississippi and all areas under its jurisdiction beginning at sunrise and ending at sunset on Monday, January 20, 2025, in recognition of Donald J. Trump’s inauguration as the nation’s 47th president.”
“This is a historic day for America, and Mississippi looks forward to celebrating it,” Reeves said in a press release Thursday. “Our state is excited for Donald J. Trump to be sworn in as president, and we look forward to supporting his America First agenda. Mississippi is ready to help Make America Great Again!”
I’ve directed that flags be flown at full-staff in recognition of @realDonaldTrump’s inauguration.
Mississippi is ready to Make America Great Again! 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/uexR4KOttE
— Governor Tate Reeves (@tatereeves) January 16, 2025
Mississippi will return to adherence to Biden’s order and the mourning period for the late Carter on January 21, remaining so until the end of the window on January 28.
