Over 2 million people are expected to be in Washington D.C. to watch in person as the 44th President of the United States is sworn in on Tuesday, January 20, 2009. If the bone chilling weather doesn't keep the crowds down, it will be the most people ever to attend a presidential inauguration. That, of course, will not be the only first for this historic day. Barack Obama will be sworn in as the first African-American President of the United States on the Bible used by Abraham Lincoln at his swearing in on March 4, 1861. He will be the first president to use the Lincoln Bible for the swearing-in. Obama arrived in Washington D.C. last week by train from Philadelphia, recreating part of the 12-day journey to the city taken by Abraham Lincoln to the White House in 1823. There will be unprecedented security measures taken for this inauguration, as 58 agencies coordinate the efforts to get 240,000 inauguration ticket holders to pass through security checkpoints to view the ceremony on the West Front of the Capitol. Hundreds of thousands more will pack the Mall and nearby areas to watch the ceremony on 22 jumbotrons. The swearing-in ceremony begins at 11:30 a.m., with Joe Bidden being sworn in as Vice President, followed ten minutes later by Barack Obama as President. The opening prayer of the ceremony will be given by Pastor Rick Warren, an outspoken conservative known for his bestselling Purpose Driven books. Obama was criticized by gay rights advocates for inviting Warren to do the inaugural invocation. A friend of Martin Luther King, Jr. and founder of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference in 1957, Pastor Joseph Lowery, 87, will give the closing prayer. After being sworn in, the new President and Vice President will attend a luncheon in the Capitol with friends and family, followed by the Inaugural Parade at 2:30. The procession down Pennsylvania Avenue will be led by the Obamas and the Biddens, who will then watch the procession from a special viewing stand. The parade is open to the public. Inauguration Day will culminate with 10 balls attended by President and Mrs. Obama, beginning with the first ever Neighborhood Inaugural Ball. The Obamas will be serenaded at the Neighborhood Ball by Beyonce Knowles singing the Etta James classic "At Last." The Presidential Inaugural Committee will be blogging live from the ballroom, also a first. With 79 percent of Americans saying they have positive feelings about the soon-to-be-president, it is likely to be the most-watched Inauguration in history. Record crowds are expected to pack Times Square in New York City and parks throughout Chicago to watch the inauguration. Many networks, both cable and standard, will be broadcasting the day's events. From a gala at the Four Seasons Hotel to a watch party at Schloz Beir Garten, Inauguration Day parties abound around the Austin area. Whether they watch from their living rooms or a Luau at the Crowne Plaza, people are not likely to forget where they were on this historical Inauguration Day.
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