Inside the security perimeter, Donald Trump's inauguration was a subdued affair

WASHINGTON — The inauguration of President Donald Trump wasn't a high-energy affair, but it was pervaded by a sense of impatience, vindication and frustration with the Obama years. 

Just as Trump's entrance carried a whiff of his reality-show style, his inaugural address at times had the air of one of his boisterous campaign rallies. 

The crowd gathered on the west lawn of the Capitol gave weak applause to Trump's predecessors and fell nearly dead silent when the outgoing commander-in-chief, President Barack Obama, emerged from the Capitol. 

Some people were clad in red "make America great again" hats. The crowd openly cheered at the sight of Hillary Clinton on the Jumbotron, as Trump's erstwhile Democratic rival for the White House clapped along to patriotic music. Not everyone was ready to forgive. "Lock her up!" one man shouted, Others merely chanted for their new president. "Trump, Trump, Trump!" they shouted, sometimes adding, "We love you, Donald!"

While many in the media were shocked by Trump's victory, supporters at the inauguration said they had been confident he would win the 2016 election. Patricia Mills, a school bus driver from Bean Station, Tennessee, said she knew Trump would become president from the moment she shook his hand a year ago in Knoxville and felt his ascension to the White House was the work of a higher power.

"This is all God," she said. 

Inauguration-goers seemed impatient to dispense with Democrats — from Obama to Chuck Schumer, who was booed. Attendees played with their phones or nudged each other as they waited for Trump to put his hand on the Bible. 

A few protesters in the front section began to recite the Constitution as Trump took the oath, but Trump's supporters quickly hushed them. 

The mood lifted a little as Trump delivered his fiercely populist pre-written remarks — the sort of remarks that built up his legion of fervent loyal fans. 

As the crowd broke up, visitors gleefully snapped photos of the Obamas departing by helicopter as they shouted goodbye — without tears.