President-elect Donald Trump was greeted with a standing ovation by Cobb Republicans watching his inaugural entrance Friday from the party’s Marietta headquarters.
About 100 people turned out to watch Trump and his vice president-elect Mike Pence, be sworn in.
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Retiree Jacqueline Smith of Decatur said she made the trip to Cobb after health issues prevented her from attending the inauguration in Washington D.C.
“It takes a businessman to get us out of what Obama put us in,” she said. “He speaks his mind and he tells it like it is, and that’s what I like.”
Smith, who is black, dismissed accusations of racism against the new president following his tangle with Georgia Congressman John Lewis.
“I think John Lewis should get over himself,” she said. “I think John Lewis owes (Trump) an apology.”
Walter Beamer, a Cobb resident and retired engineer, spent decades working for Lockheed Martin and the Department of Defense. He was not concerned that Trump’s criticism of Lockheed’s F-35 program would negatively affect Cobb jobs.
“I’m hoping they realize the whole acquisition approval process needs to be addressed and revised,” he said.
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Samantha O’Donnell, a 19-year-old nursing assistant, said she was “so excited and happy” that the candidate she supported in her first election won.
“I was very surprised,” she said. “I just think he’s a good leader and he has good morals.”
O’Donnell said she hoped the Republicans would replace the Affordable Care Act simultaneously as they repeal it.
“If you just take it away altogether that’s just going to cause a bigger mess.”
Jody Hayes of Snellville, wearing an American flag sweater, was moved to tears by Trump's speech.
"I wish I would have worn waterproof mascara!" she exclaimed.
Hayes, an exotic plant technician, said she hoped the speech would bring together a divided nation, but that ultimately, she will look to Trump to keep his promises.
“We will hold him accountable,” she said.
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