Detailed Info
| Website: | |
| Gender: | Male |
| Relationship Status: | Married to
Michelle Obama |
| Birthday: | August 4, 1961 |
| Religious Views: | Christian |
| Interests: | Basketball, writing, spending time w/ kids |
| Favorite Music: | Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Bob Dylan, Stevie Wonder,
Johann Sebastian Bach (cello suites), and The Fugees |
| Favorite Movies: | Casablanca, Godfather I & II, Lawrence of Arabia and
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest |
| Favorite Books: | Song of Solomon (Toni Morrison), Moby Dick,
Shakespeare's Tragedies, Parting the Waters, Gilead (Robinson), Self-Reliance (Emerson), The Bible, Lincoln's Collected Writings |
| Favorite TV Shows: | Sportscenter |
| Favorite Quotations: | "The Arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends
towards justice." (MLK) |
Work Info- Employer:
-
- Employer:
- United States Senate
- Position:
- Senator
- Time Period:
- January 2005 - Present
|
Education Info- Grad School:
-
- Colleges:
-
|
Contact Info
The 2009 presidential inauguration of Barack Obama will take place on January 20, 2009, under the provisions of the Twentieth Amendment to the United States Constitution. The inauguration will mark the commencement of the four-year term of Barack Obama and Joe Biden as President and Vice President, respectively. The inauguration is expected to draw a record-setting crowd of over 2 million people.[1] The theme of the inauguration is "A New Birth of Freedom," commemorating the 200th anniversary of the birth of Abraham Lincoln.[2]
Official inauguration events commenced on January 17 with a train ride beginning in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and stopping in Wilmington, Delaware, and Baltimore, Maryland, before continuing on to Washington, D.C.[3] Events are scheduled in Washington from January 18 to January 21, 2009.[4]
Details
Train ride
The commencement of inauguration activities is a tribute to Abraham Lincoln, a former Illinois politician and the sixteenth president of the United States. Lincoln travelled by train from Philadelphia to Washington, D.C., in 1861.[5] Lincoln stopped in 70 places along the way to his inauguration, but his tour began in Springfield, Illinois, on February 11, 1861, before arriving in Philadelphia on February 21.[6]
Obama began by holding a town hall meeting in Philadelphia's 30th Street Station at 10 a.m. on January 17. At 11:30 a.m., Obama rode to Wilmington to pick up Vice President-elect Biden, riding in the Georgia 300, a railroad car used by past presidents.[7] Then he went to Baltimore and spoke to a crowd of around 40,000. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) prevented private planes, news helicopters, balloonists and others from getting anywhere near the airspace above the train.[5] Obama and family departed from 30th Street Station at 11 a.m. and arrived in Union Station at 7 p.m.[6]
Inauguration
The inaugural program will begin on January 20 at 10 a.m. EST (15:00 UTC) with the oath of office and inaugural address taking place at noon (17:00 UTC) at the west front of the United States Capitol.[8] The public observation area is the National Mall, although a section of the Mall between 3rd and 4th Streets NW is reserved for ticket-holders.[8]
The 2009 inauguration is expected to be attended by 2 million people, which would set a record.[1] Lyndon Johnson's 1965 inauguration holds the record with 1.2 million attendees, following John F. Kennedy's assassination. By comparison, both of George W. Bush's inaugurations drew about 300,000.[9]
Guests
The Tuskegee Airmen are among the invited guests for the inauguration.[10]
Fundraising
Unlike in political campaigns, there are no legal restrictions on the amount that one can contribute to an inaugural celebration. The 2005 inauguration saw numerous corporations contribute $250,000 to George W. Bush's second inauguration, which cost an estimated $42.3 million,[11] while Obama's inauguration is expected to cost $40 million from Obama's Presidential Inaugural Committee[12] and "near $50 million" from the city.[13] As the costs have soared to over $150 million for the District and neighboring states,[11] such as Maryland where the costs are over $11 million,[14] Barack Obama's inauguration committee (Penny Pritzker, John W. Rogers, Jr., Pat Ryan, William Daley and Julianna Smoot) set a $50,000 contribution limit to underscore their "commitment to change business as usual in Washington."[15] As of January 6, 2009, the committee had raised over $27 million and at least 378 people gave the maximum $50,000, including George Soros, Halle Berry, Jamie Foxx, Sharon Stone, Samuel L. Jackson, Jeffrey Katzenberg, Ron Howard, George Lucas, Steven Spielberg, Robert Zemeckis and Jim Henson's daughter Lisa Henson.[16] Although the committee is not accepting donations from PACs, federally registered lobbyists, or corporations,[17] they are accepting donations from individuals with active lobbying interest such as Google and Microsoft executives Eric Schmidt and Steve Ballmer, respectively.[16]
Celebrations
HBO is presenting the inaugural kick-off concert, entitled "We Are One," at the Lincoln Memorial on January 18 at 2:30, which features performances from Beyonce, Mary J. Blige, Jon Bon Jovi, Garth Brooks, Sheryl Crow, Renee Fleming, Caleb Green, Josh Groban, Herbie Hancock, Heather Headley, Bettye Lavette, John Legend, Jennifer Nettles, John Mellencamp, Pete Seeger, Shakira, Bruce Springsteen, James Taylor, U2, Usher, Will.I.Am, and Stevie Wonder. The concert is free and HBO will broadcast it on an open feed, meaning anyone with cable television can watch it.[18][19] Jack Black, Steve Carell, Rosario Dawson, Jamie Foxx, Tom Hanks, Ashley Judd, Martin Luther King III, Queen Latifah, Laura Linney, George Lopez, Kal Penn, Marisa Tomei, Denzel Washington, Forest Whitaker, Tiger Woods and more will read historical passages.[18][20] The evangelical pastor Rick Warren will give the invocation.[20]
On January 19, Michelle Obama and Jill Biden will host a "Kids' Inaugural: We Are the Future" event at the Verizon Center. Miley Cyrus and Jonas Brothers will honor military families in concert.[21] The show will be broadcast live on Disney Channel and on Radio Disney.[20]
Obama has purchased his first new tuxedo in 15 years for the inauguration.[22] The tuxedo was made by Hart Schaffner Marx, a Chicago-based menswear firm that uses union labor.[22]
The number of official inaugural balls during inauguration week has not been confirmed,[22] but the Obamas will attend ten official inaugural balls on January 20.[23] The Obamas will begin Inauguration Day night at the Washington Convention Center as hosts of the "Neighborhood Inaugural Ball", which will commence the evening of celebrations.[24] The Neighborhood Ball is scheduled to be the premier event of the evening.[25] Numerous celebrities will participate in it.[26] Obama will also host the "Commander-in-Chief's Ball" at the National Building Museum for Purple Heart recipients, families of fallen heroes, and spouses of deployed military.[27][28] Musical acts for the various balls include Sting, Elvis Costello, Young Jeezy, Ashley Judd, Mary J. Blige, T.I., Chaka Khan, Melissa Etheridge and LL Cool J.[29]
During the four nights of the inauguration celebration, District of Columbia bars will be permitted to remain open until 4:00 a.m., later than usual.[22] Additionally, restaurants will be allowed to stay open twenty-four hours a day for the entire four day period.[30] Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies Chairperson, Senator Dianne Feinstein and committee member Senator Robert Foster Bennett felt that the original 5am liquor curfew and 24 hour food service would be a strain on law enforcement resources. The Council of the District of Columbia passed the extended curfews as emergency legislation proposed by the Restaurant Association of Metropolitan Washington.[30]
Security
The District of Columbia police force is expected to double to 8,000 with the police officers from around the United States being added to the force for additional security.[30][9] Five thousand troops will participate in the Inaugural Parade in a ceremonial capacity. 1,300 unarmed National Guard troops will aid Park Police in crowd control on the National Mall. The remainder will perform other security functions. The FAA will have airspace restrictions on the city from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on the 20th.[5]
Program
The program by the Congressional leaders includes music by vocalist Aretha Franklin, cellist Yo-Yo Ma, violinist Itzhak Perlman, pianist Gabriela Montero and clarinetist Anthony McGill.[31] Some of the musical selections are by composer John Williams.[32] Poet Elizabeth Alexander will speak.[31] Other inauguration participants include the "The President's Own" (the United States Marine Band) and the United States Navy Band.[31] The San Francisco Boys Chorus and the San Francisco Girls Chorus will also perform.[33] Evangelical pastor Rick Warren is scheduled to deliver the invocation,[34][35] while civil rights activist Joseph Lowery of the United Methodist Church is scheduled to deliver the benediction for the inaugural ceremony.[36]
Vice President-elect Biden will take his oath first from Associate Justice John Paul Stevens,[31] then Obama will take his oath of office from Chief Justice John Roberts. Obama is to be sworn on the Bible used by Abraham Lincoln at his first inauguration in 1861, and will use the phrase "so help me God" at the end of the oath.[37][38] The swearing in will be followed by the very first 21-gun salute to the new President from the members of the armed forces, as well as the first playing of four ruffles and flourishes and "Hail to the Chief." Obama will deliver his inaugural address as the President of the United States following his swearing in ceremony.
Schedule
- Gates to the Inaugural Ceremony open at 8 a.m.[33]
- The inaugural festivities are scheduled to start at 10 a.m. on the West Front of the U.S. Capitol. They will include:
- Musical selections of The United States Marine Band, followed by the San Francisco Boys Chorus and the San Francisco Girls Chorus.
- Sen. Dianne Feinstein provides call to order and welcoming remarks.
- Invocation by the Rev. Rick Warren.
- Musical selection of Aretha Franklin.
- Biden will be sworn into office by Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens.
- Musical selection of John Williams, composer/arranger with Itzhak Perlman, (violin), Yo-Yo Ma (cello), Gabriela Montero (piano) and Anthony McGill (clarinet).
- Obama will take the Oath of Office, using President Lincoln's Inaugural Bible, administered by Chief Justice John Roberts. Scheduled around noon ET.
- Obama gives the inaugural address.
- Poem by Elizabeth Alexander.
- Benediction by Rev. Joseph E. Lowery.
- The National Anthem by The United States Navy Band "Sea Chanters."
- President Obama escorts former President George W. Bush to a departure ceremony before attending a luncheon in the Capitol's Statuary Hall.
- The 56th Inaugural Parade will then make its way down Pennsylvania Avenue from the Capitol to the White House.
Parade
The inaugural parade will travel down Pennsylvania Avenue, in front of the White House. Because of the threat that the President-elect may face on January 20, it is more than likely that Obama will be traveling down Pennsylvania Avenue by motorcade; it was tradition for the new President to walk instead of being driven. It is scheduled to extend for over two hours in the afternoon following the inauguration. It will include 15,000 people, 240 horses, dozens of marching bands, two drum and bugle corps, and one mariachi band from Espanola, New Mexico.[9] He has invited the nine-time Drum Corps International (DCI) World Champion The Cadets Drum and Bugle Corps, the eight-time finalist Colts Drum and Bugle Corps from Dubuque, Iowa, and the VMI corps of cadets, as well as the high school marching band from Punahou School, his high school in Hawaii to perform in the inaugural parade.[22] During part of the parade, Obama will ride in a new armored limousine.[39]
Online broadcasting
A number of news organizations and online video broadcasting companies will stream the Inauguration live online.[40] It is expected that over 200 million viewers worldwide will watch Inauguration videos and live streams over the Internet.[41] The event will also be available live to select iPhone users.[42]
Use of “Hussein”
“I think the tradition is that they use all three names, and I will follow the tradition, not trying to make a statement one way or the other.”
—Barack Obama[43] |
Obama has decided to follow tradition and use his full name, including his
middle name Hussein,
[43] regardless of its past and present use by detractors as an effort to slant his image.
[32] This seems to have caught the
Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies off guard. According to their announced program, the schedule states, "Oath of Office Administered to President-elect Barack H. Obama." The program also states that the inaugural address will be given by "the President of the United States, The Honorable Barack H. Obama."
[32] The decision to use his middle name is part of an effort to "reboot America's image around the world," according to Obama.
[44]
