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As had been advertised, Donald Trump’s second inauguration as United States president was held on Monday, the same day as the CFP championship game. After being sworn in during the morning, the 47th president gave a message during the game between the Ohio State Buckeyes and Notre Dame Fighting Irish.
During halftime of the championship game, ESPN cut away from their coverage to show a political statement from Donald Trump. The address lasted for around 1:30 minutes and only briefly mentioned the game.
Trump began his message by hailing this "historic and exciting day" for the country and laid out what to expect from his second term.
"In recent years, our people have suffered greatly, but starting now, we're going to bring America back and make it safer, richer and prouder than ever before. We will have a nation filled with compassion, strength and exceptionalism.
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"Through our power and might, we will stop wars and we will lead the world to peace. We will be respected again and we will be admired again, admired like we haven't been in many, many years. We'll put America first, and by doing so, we're going to make America great again.
Trump also sent a message to the two teams in the national title game.
"To all of the players and fans watching tonight, I know it's been a long and difficult journey. It's been a long season, but you have two tremendous teams, and get to the game and go out and fight hard and fight fair and let the better team win, and I'm going to enjoy watching it. Thank you, and good night," Donald Trump said.
The president was not present at Mercedes-Benz Stadium and the message was prerecorded.
Donald Trump attended 2018 CFP Championship Game during first term
While not known as an avid football fan, Trump has attended college football games before. Most notably, he’s been seen at Army-Navy games in the past, including in this season’s edition of the game. He also made an appearance in the Alabama-Georgia game in September.
Trump also attended an Alabama-Georgia game during his first term as president, and it happened to be that season's national championship game.
The Crimson Tide went on to win the national championship with a thrilling 26-23 victory in overtime.
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