Washington, D.C. - Millions in the
U.S. are counting down with excitement to the swearing-in of Barack
Obama as the 44th President of the United States on Tuesday.
Up to three-million people are expected to make their way to
Washington, D.C. for the historic inauguration, as security reaches
unprecedented level of readiness.
Those who live in the Washington-area said they have never seen
anything like the security that is in place -- 10,000 members of the
National Guard will be spread out across the city, with over 7,000
military personal, 4,000 city police officers and 4,000 others from 96
different law enforcement agencies, as well as the Secret Service and
the FBI.
A security spokesperson told CNN that security is so tight because
the U.S. is engaged in two wars and on-guard against terrorism, and
because of the number of people expected on Capitol Hill.
Those who make it to the National Mall will have to pass through
airport-like screening, with just as many restrictions on what they can
carry.
Washington will be locked down by late Monday night. All bridges
into Washington will be closed by Tuesday morning and roads will be
closed for miles around Capitol Hill. So, the crowd will not be able to
line-up until 6 a.m. Tuesday.
Cell phone and Internet companies have installed portable towers in
anticipation of colossal calling coverage and cell phone picture
transmissions.
The actual ceremony will begin at 11:30 a.m. with the Marine Corp Band, the invocation and a performance by Aretha Franklin.
Vice President-elect Joe Biden will take his oath at 11:46 a.m., followed by Obama's oath at noon.
His address is expected to make the kind of history made by John F.
Kennedy, Abraham Lincoln and Franklin Roosevelt. In fact, Obama will
use the same velvet-covered Bible used by Lincoln in 1861. Obama is
expected to wear a tuxedo and a top hat during the swearing-in.
The parade will follow next, which will leave the Capitol along
Pennsylvania Avenue at 2:30 p.m. Obama and his wife will attend up to
15 inaugural balls before returning to their new home, the White House.
Click here for the Inauguration Day schedule and a list of other events.
1 comment:
Wanna hear something really messed? Some right-wing types are complaining that the Obama Inauguration will cost $150 million, almost 4x as much as Bush' or Clinton's Inauguration. Granted, they only had a mere 200-300,000 attendees at theirs. :/
Logic: not included in the US.
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