Obama Inauguration Schedule
Here’s a list of most of the official and unofficial events surrounding Obama’s inauguration from today through the symbolic prayer service on Wednesday.
MONDAY, JAN. 19
_ National Day of Community Service event: To honor Dr. King’s legacy, Obama, Biden and their families, joined by Americans across the country, will participate in activities dedicated to serving others in communities across the Washington, D.C. area.
_ Black Tie & Boots Inaugural Ball, sponsored by the Texas State Society, at the Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center.
_ Green Inaugural Ball at the Donald W. Reynolds Center for American Art and Portraiture. Ball hosted by former Vice President Al Gore.
_ Huffington Post preinaugural ball at the Newseum.
_ Hip-Hop Inaugural Ball at the Harman Center for the Arts. Hosted by the Hip-Hop Summit Action Network, Russell Simmons, LL Cool J, among others.
_ A children’s evening concert at the Verizon Center honoring military families. Event hosted by Michelle Obama, who will attend. Miley Cyrus, the Jonas Brothers are among the entertainers.
_ Obama to attend three private dinners to honor former secretary of State Colin Powell, Biden and Sen. John McCain, the 2008 Republican presidential nominee, for their public service. Dinners at the Hilton Washington, National Building Museum and Union Station.
TUESDAY, JAN. 20 (INAUGURATION DAY)
Gates to the Inaugural Ceremony open at 8 a.m. 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.
_ 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.”
After Obama gives inaugural address, he will escort outgoing 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.
Later that day, the Presidential Inaugural Committee will host 10 official inaugural balls:
_ Neighborhood Inaugural Ball at the Washington Convention Center.
_ Obama Home States (Illinois and Hawaii) Inaugural Ball at the Washington Convention Center.
_ Biden Home States (Pennsylvania and Delaware) Inaugural Ball at the Washington Convention Center.
_ Midwest Inaugural Ball at the Washington Convention Center.
_ Mid-Atlantic Inaugural Ball at the Washington Convention Center.
_ Western Inaugural Ball at the Washington Convention Center.
_ Commander in Chief’s Ball at the National Building Museum.
_ Southern Inaugural Ball at the National Guard Armory.
_ Eastern Inaugural Ball at Union Station.
_ Youth Inaugural Ball at the Washington Hilton.
Unofficial balls include:
_ Congressional Black Caucus Inaugural Ball at the Capitol Hilton.
_ Creative Coalition Inaugural Ball at the Harman Center for the Arts.
_ Recording Industry Association of America’s ball for Feeding America.
_ BET’s Inaugural Ball at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel.
_ Africa on the Potomac inaugural celebration at Crystal Gateway Marriott in Arlington, Va.
_ American Music Inaugural Ball at the Marriott Wardman Park Hotel.
_ Inaugural Purple Ball at the Fairmont Hotel.
_ Human Rights Campaign’s Equality Ball at the Renaissance Mayflower Hotel.
_ Inaugural Peace Ball at the Smithsonian National Postal Museum.
_ Impact Film Fund ball.
WEDNESDAY, JAN. 21
_ The president, vice president and their families will participate in a prayer service at the Washington National Cathedral.
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In case one is not aware of which and how many television stations will be broadcasting tomorrow’s inauguration and the swearing in of the 4th POTUS (or recording the event for later viewing), there will be more than one broadcasting network, but it looks as though, according to the schedule below, CNN will have the earliest commencement, starting at 2 a.m. EST (schedule posted from the Los Angeles Times web site):
ABC: “Good Morning America” airs a special three-hour edition from the Library of Congress beginning at 4 a.m. Charles Gibson, Diane Sawyer and George Stephanopoulos anchor coverage from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m., followed by a news special at 7 p.m. From 8 to 10 p.m., the network will exclusively air “The Neighborhood Ball: An Inauguration Celebration,” the first gala of the night attended by the new president and first lady. That will be followed by a 10 p.m. news special with reports from the inaugural balls and an overview of the day’s events.
CBS: “The Early Show” broadcasts live from Washington beginning at 4 a.m. Katie Couric helms the coverage from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m., as well as an hourlong edition of “CBS Evening News” and a live webcast on CBSNews.com at 7 p.m. with extended analysis. At 9 p.m., the network will air “Change and Challenge,” a prime-time news special anchored by Couric that traces Obama’s journey to the White House.
NBC: A special edition of “Today” from Washington kicks off coverage at 4 a.m. (KNBC-TV Channel 4 will carry local coverage until 7 a.m.) Brian Williams, Tom Brokaw and Lester Holt lead a special report from 7:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Williams will anchor an hourlong edition of “NBC Nightly News,” along with a live prime-time special at 10 p.m. with reports from the balls and special guests.
PBS: Jim Lehrer anchors coverage beginning at 8 a.m., joined by columnists Mark Shields and David Brooks. At 9 p.m., a special ” Frontline” chronicles the new president in “Dreams of Obama.”
Telemundo: Pedro Sevcec and Maria Celeste helm a two-hour special at 8 a.m.
Univision: Coverage begins at 4 a.m. with “Despierta America.” Jorge Ramos and Maria Elena Salinas take over at 8 a.m., followed by live coverage of the parade and a special edition of the prime-time news magazine “Aqui y Ahora.”
BBC America: Huw Edwards and Matt Frei lead live coverage beginning at 8 a.m., with reports from Kenya and London.
BET: Actor Hill Harper and Rene Syler lead the coverage beginning at 8 a.m., joined by Jeff Johnson. At 8 p.m., the network will air “Yes We Will! BET Inauguration Celebration.”
CNBC: Carl Quintanilla and John Harwood anchor “Squawk Box” from Washington at 3 a.m., followed by reports throughout the day about the incoming administration.
CNN: Coverage begins at 2 a.m. with a special edition of “American Morning.” Wolf Blitzer and Anderson Cooper anchor reporting of the swearing-in and parade beginning at 7 a.m. Cooper and Campbell Brown host extended editions of their nightly shows from 4 to 9 p.m., followed by a special edition of “Larry King Live.”
C-SPAN: Live coverage of all inaugural events from 3 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Fox Business Network: Alexis Glick kicks off coverage at 4 a.m. Neil Cavuto will provide analysis throughout the day and host a special “Cavuto” at 3 p.m. from the parade route.
Fox News Channel: Nonstop coverage from 3 a.m. to 10 p.m. beginning with “Fox & Friends.” Bret Baier, Shepard Smith and Chris Wallace take over at 5:30 a.m., followed by coverage of the swearing-in and parade, anchored by Wallace from 7:30 a.m. to noon. Megyn Kelly and Bill Hemmer will report from the balls beginning at 6 p.m.
MSNBC: Twenty-one hours of coverage kick off at 3 a.m. with “Morning Joe,” from a Capitol Hill restaurant. Keith Olbermann, Chris Matthews, Rachel Maddow and Eugene Robinson take over at 7 a.m. Live reporting continues until midnight.
MTV: At 7 p.m., the network will televise “Be the Change: Live From the Inaugural,” a special focusing on volunteer service anchored from the Youth Inaugural Ball, where Obama is scheduled to speak.
TV5MONDE USA: The French-language network covers its first American presidential inauguration with a two-hour special that begins at 8 a.m., followed by commentary from Paris.
TV One: Continuous inauguration-related programming for 24 hours, beginning at 4 a.m. with “The Gospel of Music With Jeff Majors.” Live coverage starts at 7 a.m. anchored by Art Fennell and Joe Madison. Roland Martin hosts a three-hour special at 3 p.m., followed by live coverage of the balls from 7 to 9 p.m.
On the policy front, Bank of America WANTS more TAXPAYER bailout funds so they can acquire the rest of Merrill Lynch (already acquiring Countrywide last year). State of California increased its unemployment benefits in conjunction with Federal support to 20 weeks but state coffers will be out of cash by the first week in February and tax refunds will be issued as IOUs until the budget stalemate is resolved. President-elect Obama numbers are in the high 70s but will adjust to a more realistic and accurate numbers by this summer, when his policies start effecting for the better or worse…
Miscellaneous celebrity sightings and such…it was reported this morning that everyone’s favorite pastor, “Goddamn America” Rev Wright was seen at Howard University but will not be attending tomorrow’s swearing of his former parishioner, the President-elect. Also to tap down the criticism from the Gay community, there will be an all-Gay band marching in the parade after the swearing in. There was also a group of disabled citizens (including some homeless from around the country) invited to the events tomorrow and are staying at a Washington hotel near the Capital that is ironically, a regular place for D.C.’s homeless.