English: In January 2009, President of the United States of America, George W. Bush invited then President-Elect Barack Obama and former Presidents George H.W. Bush, Bill Clinton, and Jimmy Carter for a Meeting and Lunch at The White House. Photo taken in the Oval Office at The White House. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Barack Obama and Michelle Obama (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
English: Senator and future Vice President Joe Biden and then President Jimmy Carter. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
President Barack Obama and the First Lady Michelle Obama dancing at the "Obama Home States Inaugural Gala." The event took place at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Washington, D.C. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Cover of Martin Luther King, Jr.
The subdued celebration revealed Thursday is a big cut in reveling from the 10 balls Obama attended four years ago. Planners say the austerity in festivities is a reflection of tough economic times and an effort to minimize the burden on law enforcement, other security personnel and Washington residents.
Both balls are being planned at the Washington Convention Center on Monday, Jan. 21, the evening of Obama's public inauguration at the Capitol on the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday. Under the Constitution, the president's second term begins Jan. 20 at noon, but he'll be sworn in privately at the White House — with limited media coverage — sin
ce inaugural celebrations traditionally aren't held on Sundays.
One party will be the Commander In Chief's Ball, a tradition started by President George W. Bush for members of the Armed Forces. Tickets will be free for invited guests, including active duty and reserve service members, Medal of Honor recipients and wounded warriors, among others, with troops overseas participating via video. The other ball is simply being called the Inaugural Ball, and some tickets will be available to the public.
The Presidential Inaugural Committee, which is putting on the parties with donated funds, has yet to announce ticket information or details on talent that will perform at the celebrations. The president and first lady plan to attend both official balls, per tradition. Several other unofficial balls are being planned across Washington during inaugural weekend, giving Obama's supporters plenty of opportunity to celebrate albeit without their president in attendance.
The inaugural committee also is planning a children's concert on Sunday, Jan. 19, hosted by first lady Michelle Obama and Vice President Joe Biden's wife, Jill, as part of their ongoing effort to support military families. The concert, also being held at the convention center, will honor children and spouses of those serving in the Armed Forces and feature popular young artists to be
announced.
Inaugural organizers are expecting a drop in attendance for the whole inaugural affair this year compared with 2009, when a record 1.8 million packed the National Mall to see the first black president sworn into office .
But in recent times, presidents have tended to increase the celebration to kick off a second term. Bush went from eight balls in 2001 to nine in 2005, although he openly loathed the public display of dancing that is traditional for the first couple and sped through the parties in drop-by fashion.
President Bill Clinton went from 11 balls in 1993 to a record 14 in 1997.
The tradition has its roots with the country's first inauguration in 1789, when sponsors held a ball in George Washington's honor a week after he was sworn into office in New York City. The first official inaugural ball was 20 years later, when James Madison's wife, Dolley, hosted a $4-per-ticket hotel gala for 400 guests.
President Jimmy Carter attempted to strip the balls of their glitz and glamour post-Watergate in 1977, calling his seven "parties" and charging no more than $25 each. And there is earlier precedent for avoiding an elaborate celebration, with Presidents Woodrow Wilson, Franklin Pierce and Warren Harding requesting no balls at all.
President Harry Truman revived the official ball in 1949, and organizers for President Dwight Eisenhower's inauguration in 1953 added a second event due to great demand for tickets. Eisenhower doubled the celebration to four balls in 1957.
According to the Senate historian, no president since Eisenhower has had as few as two official inaugural parties.
Until now.
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