PRESS
RELEASE
from
JCCIC
For Immediate Release
November 29, 2012
SCHUMER, CHAIRMAN OF JOINT CONGRESSIONAL
COMMITTEE ON INAUGURAL CEREMONIES, ANNOUNCES “FAITH IN AMERICA’S
FUTURE” AS THE 2013
PRESIDENTIAL INAUGURAL THEME
Washington,
DC – U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer, Chairman of the Joint
Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies (JCCIC), has announced
on behalf of the joint committee the selection
of the 2013 Inaugural theme. “Faith in America’s Future” commemorates
the United States’ perseverance and unity and marks the
sesquicentennial year of the placement of the Statue of Freedom atop
the new Capitol Dome in 1863. When the Civil War threatened to
bring construction of the Dome to a halt, workers pressed onward, even
without pay, until Congress approved additional funding to complete the
Dome that would become a symbol of unity and democracy to the entire
world. The official Inaugural Program, Luncheon,
and other activities will reflect the theme.
“Our
nation has faced countless challenges throughout its history, and each
time we have come together as Americans and moved forward with renewed
strength,” said Senator Schumer, Chairman
of the JCCIC. “During the 57th Presidential Inauguration, Americans
from across the country will gather beneath the Capitol Dome to
celebrate our history, take measure of how far we have come, and look
towards our future with hope and determination.”
On
March 4, 1861, when Abraham Lincoln took the oath of office, the
half-built dome epitomized a nation being torn in two. Slowly and
steadily, work continued on the massive dome during
the tumultuous years of the Civil War. Skilled and unskilled workers,
including African Americans who began the project enslaved and
continued as free labor following the D.C. Emancipation Act of 1862,
performed arduous tasks such as operating machinery at
dangerous heights to hoist the heavy cast iron pieces into place.
The
year 1863 was one of the most fateful in our nation’s history. It
began
with the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1st, and ended with a
celebration of the new Capitol Dome crowned
by the Statue of Freedom in December. It also was the year of the
first
homestead claim, the start of the first transcontinental railroad, the
opening of the first land grant college, and President Lincoln’s
historic and visionary Gettysburg Address. President
Lincoln himself saw the importance of pushing ahead with the Dome
despite staggering obstacles. “If people see the Capitol going on,” he
proclaimed, “it is a sign we intend the Union shall go on.”
The JCCIC is
responsible for the oversight and planning of the Inaugural ceremonies
on the U.S. Capitol grounds.
The
Joint Committee was authorized by S. Con. Res. 35, which passed the
Senate on March 1, 2012, and the House on March 5th. Members of JCCIC
are appointed by the Vice President and the
Speaker of the House. In accordance with tradition, the Senate
representatives are Majority Leader Harry Reid, Rules Committee
Chairman Charles E. Schumer, and Rules Committee Ranking Member Lamar
Alexander. The House members are Speaker John A. Boehner, Majority
Leader Eric Cantor, and Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi.
S.
Con. Res. 35 established the date of the 2013 Inauguration as Monday,
January 21, 2013, since January 20, 2013 falls on a Sunday. This
is
the seventh time in U.S. history that the
constitutionally mandated Inauguration date has fallen on a
Sunday. The
last time was President Ronald Reagan’s second Inauguration in
1985. When this occurs, the public ceremonies traditionally are
held on
Monday.
In
addition, January 21, 2013 is Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. It will be
the second time that this federal holiday has coincided with a
Presidential Inauguration. The first was President
William J. Clinton’s second Inauguration in 1997.
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