AMERICAblog: 4 milllion expected in DC for Obama's inauguration
Bush_Bites
· 1 year ago
Obama needs to keep doing big rallies even after he gets in office.
He needs to drive public support for his programs and leadership.
DrBenway
· 1 year ago
Out here in Silver Spring, the talk of the neighborhood is making some extra money renting out spare rooms to people visiting for the inauguration. If your planning on coming to the city, PLAN NOW. Places to stay are going become hard to come by.
I can not wait to take my kids down for the fun so they can also say "I was at Obama's first inauguration."
Ginger_FL
· 1 year ago
I want to go but my husband said we'll have a better view on the TeeVee here in the house plus we won't have to stand around for hours in the cold. I still want to go....
brb915
· 1 year ago
i'm there-----got my bff,my route, my transportation plan, and my cell,snacks and camcorder all ready. cannot wait
ShirleyGoodnessanMercy
· 1 year ago
Are you accustomed to bitter, killer cold? It can be very brutally cold in DC in Jan., and standing out in the cold for hours can be seriously dangerous.
Dianne_in_DC
· 1 year ago
Places to stay are all ready gone. A friend who works for Marriot tells me all rooms are sold out from Richmond to Baltimore. Some folks are renting rooms for $1000. I live nearby Penn Ave so if the weather is not too cold I may try to get down there. And BTW, Joe, we have a couple of cocker spaniels at the Washington Animal Rescue League.
Older_Wiser
· 1 year ago
Renting rooms for $1,000? Christalmighty, that puts most SS recipients and other "minor citizens" in this country out of the celebration anyway. Ticket brokers are already making a fortune on this. For a lot of people, it will mean long bus rides there, watching the proceedings, and then another long bus ride back to wherever they came from, no stayovers. I did that when young and attending demonstrations, but at my age, it would probably require a two week recuperation period...I guess making history these days requires a large bank account..
Indigo
· 1 year ago
What a blast! It's going to be rowdy the way Andrew Jackson's inauguration was rowdy and with that comes a Fresh Approach. Change! I imagine the French will be disappointed by the tame character of it all but honestly, dragging Bush's body through the streets and tossing it into the Potomac isn't in the script.
justadood
· 1 year ago
Pleasant to each other? Yes, certainly.....except maybe those neo-nazi skinheads over there who are intent on busting heads and disrupting the proceedings, the Mormons and Religious Righters over on the other side waving signs and chanting with bullhorns that Obama's the AntiChrist, or that he's killing babies, or that he's a Terrorist.
The point is--with 4million there, it's gonna be a zoo, and representatives of all walks will be there, not all for Obama or in a positive spirit of revelry. More's the pity, but there are elements of the Police and Secret Service who feel the same way as the nutjobs, and might get out of the way if there's an attack, rather than help the President...
brb915
· 1 year ago
maybe-----been on the mall for multiple July 4ths, Ford's procession, and when the White House has been evacked and if you are aware of your surroundings, the flow, and taking weather will probaby be miserable, I'm still there. cannot wait
Older_Wiser
· 1 year ago
Well, I'm not getting excited, I'm getting depressed, while I watch people I don't think should be on the "transition team" being named. I'm not so sure about this "bipartisan" stuff anyway, because it gives those people say in how an Obama govt is fashioned. Those people are the same ones who fucked up the last govt, Bush's ill-conceived Fourth Reich, and I'm sorry, but none of this seems right at all.
So, go ahead, but I'll observe from the sidelines and see if progressives hold Obama's feet to the fire. I just hope this doesn't turn out to be "what might have been."
HereinDC
· 1 year ago
Well, I'm not renting rooms. I'm not out to make bucks for this event. I'm sure come closer to the date....I'm sure the house will be full of guests for the celebration.
Yup, just rented my empty rental property in N. VA for $3,000, for 5 days!!!! Got the deposit cashiers check today!!! What a country!!!
eclare
· 1 year ago
I'm pretty sure I can get $2000 a night for my apartment. I just cannot turn down that kind of cash.
caphillprof
· 1 year ago
I'm sure it will be a larger than usual inauguration. However, I remember several decades ago when millions were predicted for John Paul II's mass on the mall, and the predictions scared away many locals and regional folk, and at the end of the day there was a pitiful gathering of about 50,000 in front of the Smithsonian castle.
Even with global warming, it can be quite cold and/or snowy for an inauguration in DC. You will want to wear wool socks and waterproof shoes/boots, you'll want layers of clothing, if security permits, you'll want a thermos of hot coffee/tea/chocolate or soup. If the day turns out to be warm, sunny and dry, then no worry. But if not, you should be prepared for the worse. Think the JFK blizzard, the Reagon subzero temperatures which cancelled the parade and moved the swearing in indoors, standing on a snow bank to see Jimmy Carter, standing in mud for Bill Clinton.
It's a good idea to have some food on your person to get you thru the day, particularly since vendors and cafe/delis will be swamped.
Most people need to pick an event and stick with it. Few can do the swearing in, and also the parade. Also be prepared for 3 to 4 hours between swearing in and parade. After the swearing in, the new president signs umpteen papers and then the Congress has a formal meal with lots of boring speeches.
ShirleyGoodnessanMercy
· 1 year ago
Most inauguration days in DC are bitter cold, and brutal days to have to stand outside for hours in. Imagine the lines waiting to go thru security, which will have to be strong. I plan to just stay home and watch it on the telly, nice and warm... rather than freezing in a 2-hour line for a port-o-potty.
Milli
· 1 year ago
So how much for someone's spare couch? Or a spot on a carpeted floor?
brb915
· 1 year ago
take a SUV, there are rest stops on 95, 68, 81, and on the parkways-----you can at least get a 1/2 hour nap til you get to open road out
EmGD
· 1 year ago
I know this is a historic moment and everything, but at what point does standing at the end of a mass of people in Fredricksburg to strain to hear a speech on the mall constitute a better option then watching it on TV? I guess everyone assumes they'll be at the front of the throng.
As a frequent traveller to DC, and someone who regulary pays high prices for hotels there, I was a bit surprised to get an email from the hotel that I stay at saying that the minimum rate during the inauguaration would be $799 per room, minimum stay of 4 nights and it must be payed up front with no refunds!! That's crazy! In contrast I was in DC during the last Bush/Cheney inauguration and the rooms were being pre-booked for $399 but eventually went for the regular rate. As I recall it was a miserable day and only a very small crowd showed up (1500?).
ron
· 1 year ago
Would someone explain to me why we need this kind of celebration for a new President. This country is hurting economically and we're spending tens of millions of dollars for this nonsense. Put the money to better use and help the people in this country who are hurting.
Rick
· 1 year ago
Ron: You read my mind. Wouldn't it be a breath of fresh air for our new President to say " We just can't afford a huge party and I WILL NOT accept corporate or lobbyist donations to fund this overblown frat party" I didn't vote for him this time but if he said that and followed through with it I'd for for him the next time!!!
Boycottutah
· 1 year ago
While I fully support our choice for Obama, I nonetheless will be spending my time and money working to gain marriage equality and full civil rights for the LGBT community. Obama said in his recent MTV interview that he is personally against marriage equality "because God is in the mix". It saddens me that DJ Obama remixed my civil rights. Yes, he is so much better than McCain, but he still feels that LBGT people do not deserve all the civil rights afforded to heterosexual people. His view sees LGBT people as 3/4 citizens. Separate but equal is NOT equal (Brown v Board of Education). How such basic Constitutional Law principles have been lost on a Harvard Law educated Consitutional Law scholar is beyond me.
So have your Obamagasms all you want. But he still threw my civil rights under the bus citing "God" as his authority.
Andy
· 1 year ago
This is not a party. It's a spontaneous celebration and a show of support. United We Stand -and on Jan 20th 2009 the whole world will see.
All Comments
He needs to drive public support for his programs and leadership.
I can not wait to take my kids down for the fun so they can also say "I was at Obama's first inauguration."
I still want to go....
The point is--with 4million there, it's gonna be a zoo, and representatives of all walks will be there, not all for Obama or in a positive spirit of revelry. More's the pity, but there are elements of the Police and Secret Service who feel the same way as the nutjobs, and might get out of the way if there's an attack, rather than help the President...
So, go ahead, but I'll observe from the sidelines and see if progressives hold Obama's feet to the fire. I just hope this doesn't turn out to be "what might have been."
I'm sure come closer to the date....I'm sure the house will be full of guests for the celebration.
http://washingtondc.craigslist.org/doc/vac/
Even with global warming, it can be quite cold and/or snowy for an inauguration in DC. You will want to wear wool socks and waterproof shoes/boots, you'll want layers of clothing, if security permits, you'll want a thermos of hot coffee/tea/chocolate or soup. If the day turns out to be warm, sunny and dry, then no worry. But if not, you should be prepared for the worse. Think the JFK blizzard, the Reagon subzero temperatures which cancelled the parade and moved the swearing in indoors, standing on a snow bank to see Jimmy Carter, standing in mud for Bill Clinton.
It's a good idea to have some food on your person to get you thru the day, particularly since vendors and cafe/delis will be swamped.
Most people need to pick an event and stick with it. Few can do the swearing in, and also the parade. Also be prepared for 3 to 4 hours between swearing in and parade. After the swearing in, the new president signs umpteen papers and then the Congress has a formal meal with lots of boring speeches.
http://thesebastards.blogspot.com/
In contrast I was in DC during the last Bush/Cheney inauguration and the rooms were being pre-booked for $399 but eventually went for the regular rate. As I recall it was a miserable day and only a very small crowd showed up (1500?).
I didn't vote for him this time but if he said that and followed through with it I'd for for him the next time!!!
So have your Obamagasms all you want. But he still threw my civil rights under the bus citing "God" as his authority.