The Inauguration Liveblog

10:30: Can you believe this crowd? It’s impossible to comprehend standing out in the frigid cold for as long as nine hours. The area between the Capitol and the Washington Monument is full, accounting for 1.5 million people. This may well end up being the largest gathering of Americans in history — a record currently held, of course, by the 2004 parade through the streets of Boston celebrating a Red Sox title (3.2 million). On a “percent of a country” basis, though, I doubt that anything will ever top Pope John Paul II’s Mass at Phoenix Park in Dublin, when one-third of Ireland showed up. Yes, really.

10:35: All in all, this ought to be a hell of a speech, at least stylistically. You get the sense that this is the moment Barack Obama has spent his entire life building toward, his entire set of skills coming together in a single 17-minute explosion of oratory.

10:45: Well, I’m glad that Ted Kennedy could make it. Meanwhile, Chris Matthews compares the outgoing president’s family to the Romanoffs and the stock market is sliding significantly. How many minutes after noon will it be before a right-winger blames it on Obama? The presidents are getting into their limo to the Capitol as I type.

10:55: Gov. Paterson spins like a madman as Andrea Mitchell grills him over Caroline Kennedy. I mean, c’mon, someone needs to inject some politics into this. As the motorcade proceeds, there are apparently tens of thousands of people more spread out along Pennsylvania Avenue. Apparently, when you’re the president, you get the #1 license plate. Makes sense, I suppose, but don’t they usually have all sorts of decoy vehicles for security reasons?

11:00: One hour left. The principals are filing on into a “holding room” in the Capitol while all sorts of dignitaries take their places on the podium. I don’t think I’ve ever seen this many formal hats in anything that’s not a movie set in the ’50s, but I guess you can’t just show up to an inauguration in a knit cap.

11:10: Okay, the national colors apparently come with an oompah band. Who knew? And who did they get to be the announcer?

11:20: The procession of former presidents is underway. They cut away to the crowd again … two million people waving miniature flags
is quite a sight. Madness. And …

11:30: That was my father. Not too much political ranting, thankfully.
It is, however, snowing quite a bit in Myrtle Beach.

11:35: Cheney gets wheeled onto a not-very-handicapped-accessible podium as Bush strolls out to the strains of ‘Hail to the Chief.’ There was a very slight bit of applause from … someone. We’re running a bit late here — are we going to have fifteen minutes of anarchy? Wooo!

11:40: What the hell are they playing for Biden? I guess the VP-elect doesn’t has a designated anthem … he only gets a little quiet interlude before they break out the big guns for Obama.

11:42: Well, those people accompanying the man of the hour are never going to have their names read aloud to that many people
ever again.

11:44: Here we go. Middle initial only here. He steps out there and exercises one of the most ubiquitous responsibilities of any president: Shaking the hands of people he doesn’t even know. The crowd chants his name. Will we get a wave? I’m thinking no.

11:45: “Please take your seats,” hm? You realize that only about 0.1% of these people have seats, right?

11:46: Dianne Feinstein takes the podium. In the mean time, here’s coverage from state media in Britain, France, Russia, Kenya, and China on the inauguration.

11:48: Rick Warren delivers the invocation in mind-blowingly grandstanding fashion. Take a sedative, man.

11:50: Okay, this is finally resembling a prayer. That’s encouraging.

11:52: You put way too much emphasis on the Obama daughters’ names there. We’re kinda on the clock here …

11:55: Um, Ms. Franklin? I’m not sure this is the time to go all crazy freestyle with “My Country, ‘Tis of Thee.”

11:57: Okay, here we go. Biden’s up first. You don’t have to scream.

11:58: Alrighty. Kinda what you expect from an oath. No sparklers.

12:00: They brought out the heavy hitters of classical music for this.

12:05: Excellent performance there. A cheer goes up from the crowd … Chief Justice Roberts comes out to administer the oath. And let’s hope that the lack of deftness displayed in that exchange isn’t a bad omen.

12:06: There you go. President Barack Obama. (Finally! Fireworks!)

12:07: On with the speech. Alright, here’s the boilerplate sort of stuff.

12:08: Well if we’re going to be picky, Grover Cleveland was both the 22nd and 24th President, so … you overshot it by one. Anyway.

12:09:  BHO isn’t exactly hitting the high notes of inspiration early on.

12:10: But Barack (and the rest of us) is going to work on it, I guess. Kinda what we hired you for, after all.

12:12: America is, um, hard? Man, you are setting a very high bar for yourself here … You can do all that?

12:14: Who knew that anyone could make renewable energy policy sound so poetic?

12:15: Are we really going to end every ineffective government program? … Really?

12:17: And with that, the rest of the world will actually start listening to us again. Wonder how that’ll go.

12:19: Well that was pretty damn forceful. We are coming after you terrorist bitches.

12:21: Okay, honestly, I’m gonna need to read this later. It’s a bit hard to break down.

12:23: Who left their cell phone ringer on?! Sounds like this thing is wrapping itself up.

12:25: Did some Obama staffer do a Google search on “hope AND ‘george washington’”?

12:26: Well there you go. Empty rhetoric or carve-it-in-stone material? We shall see.

12:28: Really, is a poem necessary? Wasn’t the speech itself a poem? This comes across as something of a pale imitation. But, hey, how many chances do you get to advance national exposure to poetry?

12:32: Well that ended … abruptly. And another prayer, and such … Doesn’t it seem especially strange after Obama’s speech specifically noted non-believers as, y’know, existing? And from now on, no more use of the phrase “fiscal climate” in benedictions. I’m laying down the law on this.

12:37: This is getting … racist? Then again, this is town whose football team is still called the Redskins, right? Alright, enough of that.

12:38: Wooo, the Sea Chanters! Interesting choice to do the national anthem at the end. I guess we’re starting one long, four-year event.

12:40: And that’s your ballgame. The Obama Administration is on.

12:55: And off he goes, the former Presidents Bush onto the chopper and away.

12:56: Never to be heard from again. Or not. Still a crowded Mall there.

1:00: Well, I’m not gonna deliver a play-by-play of the parade. I’m out.