Inaugural ceremonies mark the peaceful transfer of power.  Inaugurals are a time of hope, of reflection on where our country stands, and of celebration.  Shortly before noon on January 20, 2013 either President Barack Obama or a president-elect to be determined will swear the oath of office, seek to inspire the nation with a carefully crafted speech, and start a four-year term as President of the United States.

Organizing the Inaugural Activities

Every four years three committees form to organize the inaugural activities.  The Armed Forces Inaugural Committee (AFIC), a joint task force of the five Armed Forces branches, is "charged with coordinating all military ceremonial participation and support" for the presidential inauguration.   For the 2009 Inaugural the first personnel started with AFIC at the end of 2007 and the organization launched in June 2008.  By Inauguration Day the number of personnel rose to about 700 including full-time (PCS/permanent change of station) and personnel on temporary duty.

The Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies (JCCIC) is responsible for all events held at the Capitol.  The JCCIC is a committee consisting of six leaders of the House and Senate established by a congressional resolution.  For the 2009 inaugural, Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) chaired the JCCIC, which had a budget of $1,240,000 (Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2008, signed into law by President Bush on Dec. 26, 2007).  JCCIC selected the theme of "A New Birth of Freedom" for the 2009 inaugural, honoring the 200th anniversary of the birth of Abraham Lincoln.

The final piece is the Presidential Inaugural Committee (PIC), charged with organizing events for the Inaugural.  A PIC is formed every four years after the general election and must accomplish most of its work in a period of just two months.  The 2009 PIC ultimately employed over 430 people to work on the 56th Inaugural.  As with the Obama campaign, the PIC announced limitations on fundraising; it did not accept contributions from "corporations, political action committees, current federally-registered lobbyists, non-U.S. citizens and registered foreign agents...[and] will not accept individual contributions in excess of $50,000."  The PIC reported net donations totaling $53.2 million.  The PIC also sells a range of merchandise.

Recent inaugural themes include "Renewing America's Promise" (2008), "Celebrating Freedom-Honoring Service" (2004), and "Celebrating America's Spirit Together" (2000).  Typically there is an opening event, several dinners, a youth event, the inaugural ceremony and swearing in itself, followed by a luncheon in Statuary Hall, the inaugural parade, inaugural balls, and the next morning a national prayer service at National Cathedral.

In addition to the PIC, JCCIC and AFIC, numerous agencies coordinate on security for the events of inaugural week.  Because the Department of Homeland Security designates the presidential inaugurals as a National Special Security Events (NSSEs), the Secret Service is the lead agency.  Fifty eight agencies coordinated planning for the Inaugural starting in June 2008; they were organized into 23 subcommitees covering such areas as transportation, air space, water way, venues, and health and human services.  The estimated cost to District of Columbia, Maryland and Virginia governments for law enforcement, fire and EMS and transportation was in the area of $75 million.

A major concern for the 2009 Inaugural was the number of people that would attend.  Demand for the approximately 240,000 tickets to the Inaugural ceremony was extremely heavy, and congressional offices were swamped with requests.  The PIC announced in early December that it had arranged to open up the whole length of the National Mall to the public, something which has not been done before.  The D.C. government made plans to park as many as 10,000 charter buses.  Early on there were suggestions in the media that as many as 4 to 5 million people could attend, but later estimates put the number at around 2 million, and the most commonly cited final attendance number was 1.8 million. (LBJ's inauguration in 1965 had been the biggest to date, attracting 1.2 million).