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It was a photograph that captured the youth, glamour and femininity of what would come to be called the new Elizabethan age. Britain’s 27-year-old Queen had been crowned in Westminster Abbey earlier that day, June 2, 1953, and now she poses for photographs in Buckingham Palace. She is wearing the Imperial State Crown and the exquisite Coronation gown designed by Sir Norman Hartnell. The 21ft ermine-trimmed velvet Purple Robe of Estate flows from her shoulders. She is flanked by her Maids of Honour: six of the country’s most blueblooded young women, all single, beautiful and, like the Queen, wearing gowns...

Once upon a time there was a president, wavering in popularity. He was deemed by some political pundits as “highly beatable.” He had just done his whole thing with health care, which left voters fuming, and two years before the presidential election, Republicans picked up a slew of seats in the House, taking control. But then, the Republican Party did the unthinkable: It gave the nomination to a guy because it was essentially “his turn,” and the candidate got shellacked by the incumbent Democratic president. That president was Bill Clinton; the “It’s His Turn” candidate was Bob Dole; the year,...

BY WILLIAM BRANIGIN Barack Obama took the oath of office today as the 44th president of the United States and pledged to "begin again the work of remaking America." Addressing a huge throng estimated at more than 2 million people on the capital's Mall and millions of others watching on television, Obama recognized the multiple crises now afflicting the nation at a time of war abroad and economic turmoil at home. But he sought to rally Americans to a "new era of responsibility" and the promise of a brighter future. He cited a profound "sapping of confidence across our land...

Michelle Obama was expected to wear either Maria Pinto, Thakoon, or Oscar de la Renta for the Inauguration ceremony, but the First Lady surprised us in a good way, when she chose a striking Isabel Toledo design. The champagne yellow ensemble consisted of a gold-embossed coat and a yellow brocade shift dress with diamanté neckline. The coat was made of wool lace in a silk net, with silk radzimir underneath and a layer of pashmina for warmth. Mrs Obama paired down her outfit with green patent Jimmy Choo ‘Glacier’ pumps and olive green gloves from J. Crew.

Secretary of State nominee Hillary Rodham Clinton gestures as she arrives at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, Jan. 20, 2009. In this photo released by Eli and Edythe Broad, Secretary of State designee Hillary Rodham Clinton speaks at a dinner hosted by philanthropists Eli and Edythe Broad to celebrate the inauguration of President Obama, Tuesday, Jan. 20, 2009, in Washington.

Elite Obama Donors Receive Early Gifts and Privileges from Obama While Under Senate Investigation and After Accepting Millions in Taxpayer Paid Bailout So many of the Elite Obama Donors arrived at Dulles International Airport in their personal private jets that an active runway at Dulles International Airport had to be shut down and then converted into a make-do parking lot. * * * * * Surprisingly no PETA, Global Warming, nor Code Pink protesters are seen as the Elite Obama Donors arrive in chauffeur driven stretch limousines dressed in their finest furs. * * * * * Their gilded...

Obama Chooses Gay Bishop for Big Inaugural Event And now the latest installment in “As Obama’s Faith World Turns” President-Elect Barack Obama has chosen a controversial gay bishop to give the invocation this Sunday at the big inaugural event at the Lincoln Memorial. Obama will be in attendance. More from the Politico below and then get my analysis. The Rt. Rev. V. Gene Robinson of New Hampshire, who became the Episcopal Church's first openly gay bishop in 2003 and last year entered into a civil union with his gay partner, will deliver the invocation for Sunday's kickoff inaugural event on...

NEW YORK -- President-elect Barack Obama is on his way to the big screen, thanks to a deal between MSNBC and Screenvision that will put the news channel's inaugural coverage in 27 theaters around the country. Free tickets are being handed out via MSNBC.com to see the inauguration and parade from 11 a.m.-3:30 p.m. ET at the 27 theaters run by 11 exhibitor partners in 21 markets. Midday Tuesday isn't necessarily a big movie time, so it helps to fill the theater -- and boost popcorn and soda sales -- at a time when it's not usually busy. That means...

What did you expect of the un-Christian clergyman? Bishop Robinson said he had been reading inaugural prayers through history and was "horrified" at how “specifically and aggressively Christian they were.�"I am very clear," he said, "that this will not be a Christian prayer, and I won't be quoting Scripture or anything like that. The texts that I hold as sacred are not sacred texts for all Americans, and I want all people to feel that this is their prayer."Bishop Robinson said he might address the prayer to "the God of our many understandings," language that he said he learned from...

<p>In what will be a Lincoln-themed inauguration from top to bottom, Obama won't only follow in the footsteps of the former president - he'll also eat like him, it was announced yesterday.</p> <p>Obama's jampacked Abe-apalooza moved into high gear with an announcement from the Congressional Inaugural Committee that it will hold a luncheon next Tuesday following the swearing-in ceremony that's modeled after foods Lincoln enjoyed.</p>

Designer Judd Will Be Showing Off a Coat of Many Colorful Obama Posters SANTA FE, N.M. -- In the world of trashy fashion, designer Nancy Judd has hit the big time. Nancy Judd Ms. Judd spends her days in a studio here crafting clothing from castoff plastic bags, electrical wire and old cassette tapes. Now, her Dumpster couture has caught the eye of environmental activists, who plan to showcase her work in Washington at Saturday's Green Inaugural Ball honoring President-elect Barack Obama. The star piece: A man's coat made from Mr. Obama's campaign fliers. She says it took her 200...

The selection of Robinson for the opening party on Sunday came after weeks of criticism over Mr Obama's choice of conservative pastor Rick Warren to deliver the religious invocation on Tuesday, January 20, the day Mr Obama is sworn in to office.Robinson, who is the first openly gay bishop in the Anglican Communion, will pray at the star-studded event to be broadcast on national television from the Lincoln Memorial on January 18, the inaugural committee said in a statement."Our intention is to root the event in history, celebrating the moments when our nation has united to face great challenges and...

My city, Washington, D.C., is going bonkers for Obama. So is yours no doubt. Shopping for party favors, I came across -- in addition to key chains and light-up necklaces -- T-shirts and coffee mugs emblazoned with the Anointed One's photograph. Jan. 12's Washington Post carries a story about Obama attorney Greg Craig. He took the job imagining he'd be confronting knotty separation of powers issues. And he may. But for now, he's "charged with stopping the commercial exploitation of his client's image -- the Obama can openers, Obama chocolate chip cookies, Obama chocolate bars and the like now on...

When Toronto bookstore owner Itah Sadu decided she was going to attend Barack Obama's inauguration in Washington, she asked her friends if they wanted to come. So many said yes she ended up chartering a bus. Their inauguration-bound vehicle seats 35, and will be full when it leaves Yorkdale Mall on Monday. Ms. Sadu, 47, hasn't planned any entertainment for the 10-hour trip, so as not to interrupt spontaneous expressions of inaugural glee. "A number of the people that I'm going with are such enthusiastic people that they'll just burst into song," she said.

Security officials will count the number of spectators arriving for the inaugural parade, and when the crowd reaches capacity, they will turn people away. Officials warned that could happen well before the parade begins between 2:30 and 3 p.m. "Once the sidewalks on the north and south side of Pennsylvania Avenue reach capacity, at that point we will close our checkpoints so no more folks can get onto the parade route," said Malcolm Wiley, a spokesman for the Secret Service. He declined to say how many people would have to arrive to reach capacity. But according to a security official...

CNN correspondent Zain Verjee, in a report posted on CNN.com on January 17, likened the expected large crowds for the inauguration of Barack Obama to the Hajj, the annual Muslim pilgrimage to Mecca: “The coming political pilgrimage to Washington is similar to another grand event in both size and preparation -- the Hajj, the most important religious pilgrimage in the Muslim world.” Verjee has personal experience of the Hajj, as she belongs to the Ismaili branch of Shiite Islam. She filed a web log for CNN of her experience on the pilgrimage in 2005. During her report, she emphasized how...

The United States Secret Service, under the leadership of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and in cooperation with its local, state and federal security and public safety partners, has developed an overall security plan for the 56th Presidential Inaugural on Tuesday, January 20. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has designated the Inaugural as a National Special Security Event (NSSE). When an event is designated an NSSE, the Secret Service assumes its role as the lead federal agency for the design and implementation of the operational security plan. The Washington, D.C. Metropolitan Police Department (MPD), the U.S. Capitol...

No intro today...instead supplies for what we will need to get through this crap. Barf bags for everyone. ***Please note Jimmay Cartah is being introduced as I did this....so I have plenty of barf bags.

A STEEP temperature drop, a blizzard and a downpour could assail the millions expected to attend Barack Obama's presidential inauguration on January 20, officials said. "Just given a sunny pleasant 50-degree day, just having that many people around town will be a problem, so any sort of weather issue on top of that is only going to exacerbate that,'' warned Christopher Strong, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service. "No matter what happens, we'll be as well prepared as we can be given the enormous potential for crowds.'' Average late January temperatures in Washington fluctuate between minus six and plus...

Two hours before Springsteen sang 'The Rising' and Tom Hanks quoted Lincoln, the crowd attending the pre-inaugural 'We Are One' concert Sunday on the National Mall was showing clear signs of Obama-mania. A group of five African American twentysomethings strode down 17th Street toward one of the security checkpoints, singing "Obama my lord' to the tune of 'Kumbyah, my Lord.' Everyone was wrapped in Obama scarves and Obama toques, and screams went up when the giant JumboTrons showed images of Obama ahead of the concert. Not everyone was joyous. A woman wearing security credentials kept shouting "You are about to...

With Barack Obama's approval ratings in the 70s and his visage plastered on every shop window and Metro card in Washington, it's hard to remember that 58 million Americans voted for the other guy. Even President Bush — who presumably counts himself among that group — said last week that Obama's inauguration is "a moment of hope and pride." That's not exactly how Michelle Malkin describes it. "Jan. 20 has turned into a schlock inauguration, (where) every last moocher has come to cash in on Obama," says the conservative blogger and pundit. "There are some of us who want to...

Im sure im not the only one, but seeing thse CBS promos for their upcoming shows premier Barrack Obama's campaign colors and phrases "yes we can". Going as far as putting the stars of the comedy lineup in that communist inspired artwork effect. This is going to be a LOOOOOOONG 4 yrs...

Thousands were descending on the National Mall in Washington on Sunday afternoon, hours before a free inaugural concert boasting big stars. It is President-elect Barack Obama's first full day back in the nation's capital. He spent the morning visiting Arlington National Cemetery and will later attend the "We are One: Opening Inaugural Celebration" at the Lincoln Memorial featuring performances by Beyonce, Sheryl Crow, John Legend, Bruce Springsteen, James Taylor, U2, will.i.am and Stevie Wonder. Tears rolled down one woman's face as Obama spoke. "We love you, Obama!" someone yelled out. "I love you back," Obama answered calmly, eliciting a roar...

<p>Barack Obama's inauguration address will stress "responsibility" by calling on Americans in government and business to embrace a new era of proper behavior.</p> <p>"Getting our country back on track," is the core theme of the speech, said Obama Press Secretary Rob Gibbs, adding that the president-elect wrote the bulk of it as it is now.</p>

Papa Possum'sNew World Nursery RhymesPolitical Poetry for Traitorous Times Georgie SorgieA Coronation Day tributeto the masters of The New Regime. A Coronation Day Two-fer from Papa Possum. The 20th approaches,     listen to the fanfare play. We'll cast the straw-dog villain out,     on Coronation Day! Marvel at the minions marching,     their children heil in harmony. We'll not only change a President,     we'll gain a Monarchy. A figurehead will be the Pres     and he who pulled his strings and funded his ascension     will be our de facto King. The media will spin the truth,     up as down and south as north,...

Papa Possum'sNew World Nursery RhymesPolitical Poetry for Traitorous Times George Bush's FaultWhat we can learn from the presidencyof the much maligned George W. Bush. A Coronation Day Two-fer from Papa Possum. Polar bears now all are drowning,     hurricanes and storms assault, bees are dying in their hives,     and it's all George Bush's fault. Fire now is melting steel,     those airplanes he didn't halt, 9-11 was an inside job,     and it's all George Bush's fault. There's no Universal Healthcare,     there's no distributive vault, there's no Socialist Utopia,     and it's all George Bush's fault. Each traitor co-opting crisis,     each loons' conspiracy...

The day is surely drawing near! Obamassiah has mounted the Democrat donkey and is approaching the Holy City for his triumphal entry! The countdown continues! Will the ball descend in Times Square? I don't know. TV hosts are breathless. They're fawning over Obambi, the Young Prince. It's quite sickening, actually. But Inauguration Fever is on the rise in DUmmieland, even as the temperatures in DC are going down! Maybe we can catch some of the festivities on TV. Do you think any of the networks will cover it? YA THINK? It's ALL OBAMA, ALL THE TIME! "Wall-to-wall" coverage? More...

President Barack Obama's inauguration next week is set to be the most expensive ever, predicted to reach over $150m (£102m). This dwarfs the $42.3m spent on George Bush's inauguration in 2005 and the $33m spent on Bill Clinton's in 1993. Part of the spending includes emergency funding announced by the White House on Tuesday to help with the soaring costs. Most of this new federal funding will be to deal with the huge influx of people, estimated 1.5 million to 2 million. A White House statement said that President Bush "declared an emergency exists in the District of Columbia". If...

Unprecedented inaugural celebrations for President-elect Barack Obama by gay activist groups, social organizations and ordinary citizens suggests many view Obama's election as a signal of a forthcoming sea change for the gay rights movement in America. The Rev. Gene Robinson, a gay Episcopal bishop, will say a prayer at an inaugural event at the Lincoln Monument on Sunday; a gay and lesbian marching band will take its place in the official presidential parade; and a slew of gay parties and inaugural balls will be held in the nation's capital before and after Obama takes the oath of office. But the...

So, January 20 will usher in a new era: * Out with George Bush and his obsessive, overindulgent workouts; in with Barack Obama and his workouts that give him a “chance to reflect” and leave him “revved up.” * Say goodbye to the status quo; say hello to much of Bill Clinton’s old guard. * It’s unseemly to have a lavish inauguration during wartime, but okay to eat cake to celebrate during a recession. * Did you miss the presence of Hollywood’s glitterati in Washington during the last eight years? Relax: the stars will once again be shining in our...

Apparently, it pays to complain to President-elect Barack Obama. Despite his protestations to the contrary, Obama clearly felt a bit burned by the outcry over his selection of Pastor Rick Warren, an evangelical preacher with a nasty track record when it comes to respecting the rights of lesbians and gays, to deliver the invocation at his inaugural. So Obama has tapped the Right Rev. V. Gene Robinson, the only openly gay bishop in the Episcopal Church, to deliver the invocation at the inaugural concert to be held at the Lincoln Memorial on Sunday, Jan. 18. The New Hampshire bishop had...

SEOUL, Jan. 12 (Kyodo)—The United States has rejected a North Korean offer that a senior foreign ministry official attend the inauguration ceremony of President-elect Barack Obama later this month, Yonhap News Agency reported Monday. North Korea offered to send Vice Foreign Minister Kim Kye Gwan, chief delegate to the six-party talks on ending Pyongyang's nuclear weapons program, to the Jan. 20 ceremony, Yonhap quoted a diplomatic source as saying.

The TV, internet, news papers...will be inundated with the likeness of Dear Leader. I won't watch or listen to one of the worst moments in our nations history since 9/11. I may go to the Zoo...what about you?

WASHINGTON – The upcoming inauguration of Barack Obama is an attractive target for international and domestic terrorists, but U.S. intelligence officials have no information about specific threats to the Jan. 20 event. An internal intelligence assessment, obtained by The Associated Press on Wednesday, says the high visibility of the event, the presence of dignitaries and the significance of swearing in the country's first black president make the inauguration vulnerable to attacks.

Bring toilet paper and hand warmers Tips for the millions of people traveling to Obama's inauguration By Harriet Baskas Travel writer If you’re among millions of people planning to be in Washington, D.C., when Barack Obama is sworn in as the 44th President of the United States, you should be finalizing your plans right about now. We’ve got some last-minute tips to help you make the most of this historic occasion.

Obama's Inauguration Sold to Highest Bidder, TV Not This Excited Since Clinton in '93 By Warner Todd Huston Created 2009-01-07 11:21 Reuters has a January 7 Hollywood Reporter story informing the world that "HBO lands rights to inaugural ceremony, [1]" but this raises the question; why are parts of the inauguration being auctioned to the highest bidder for exclusive coverage? Shouldn't all of the inauguration be something for every American and not relegated just for the TV station that has the most cash? Why is this vaunted man of the people allowing exclusive coverage of his big day to go...

BARACK Obama and his family have been forced to move into a hotel because John Howard is staying at their place. The former prime minister and his wife Janette are booked to stay at Washington’s Blair House on January 12 as he will receive the US Medal of Freedom from outgoing President George W. Bush the following day. Blair House, a 119-room mansion, is the official state guest house of the US president and traditionally where incoming US presidents stay before their inauguration. The Obamas will take up residence there on January 15 but had asked to move in on...

Despite the economic hard times, money keeps pouring in for President-elect Barack Obama's inaugural festivities. The inaugural committee has raised at least $27 million, donor information on its Web site Tuesday showed. Most of that has come in over the past three weeks. If fundraising continues at that pace, Obama's inaugural committee will have no problem reaching or exceeding the roughly $40 million raised for each of President George W. Bush's two inaugural celebrations. More than 2,000 donors are helping to finance Obama's Jan. 20 swearing-in festivities. At least 378 gave the maximum $50,000. Top donors include financier and major...

Sarah Obama, 86, will fly from her native Kenya to attend the inaugural festivities, the Kenyan government announced on Tuesday. Sarah Hussein Onyango Obama isn't actually related to the next president by blood - she was the third wife of Barack Obama's paternal grandfather. The two must speak through an interpreter as she knows only a few words of English. But they formed a close bond when he first visited Kenya in 1988. Sarah Obama will attend a pan-African celebration the night of the inauguration. It's not the first time she's been to Washington: she came in 2004 to celebrate...

Atheists, humanists and others seeking to keep God and religion out of President-elect Barack Obama’s inauguration ceremony will get their day in court. A D.C. District Court judge announced late Monday afternoon that he will hold a hearing in a lawsuit that seeks to strip all religious elements from the Jan. 20 inaugural festivities. Last week, Michael Newdow, a California lawyer, physician and well-known atheist, led 29 other plaintiffs and 11 organizations in filing a lawsuit to remove the phrase “so help me God” from the presidential oath of office and eliminate the opening and closing prayers from the inaugural...

Cynthia Russell from Newberry, Florida, and her guest (her "life partner") will attend the welcome ceremony, Barack's swearing-in, the Inaugural Parade, and our Neighborhood Inaugural Ball. Cynthia is a builder and has been feeling the impact of the recent economic crunch. She wrote: "I'm a single woman who has been building homes for over 18 years. I've supported myself and have been able to help out my mother from time to time. Now I find myself wondering how much longer I can hold on and be able to pay my bills and keep the doors open for business. Barack gives...

Thanks to you, President-elect Obama and Vice President-elect Biden will take their oaths of office in just 17 days. You helped shape history, and now you can be a part of it. Ten supporters and their guests will be selected to come to Washington, D.C. for several days of inaugural events. You could be chosen to fly to Washington, attend the welcome ceremony, the Inaugural parade, the swearing-in, and an official Inaugural ball. Donate $5 or more now. You could be part of the historic events you made possible. This inauguration will be open to hundreds of thousands of...

Authorities are organizing what appears to be the largest security operation ever for an inauguration, bringing in thousands of extra police, agents and troops to handle crowds as President-elect Barack Obama is sworn in. Security officials are bracing not just for the ceremony and parade Jan. 20 but also for at least 70 concerts, balls and other events surrounding the inauguration. Those include the welcome celebration featuring Obama on Jan. 18 at the Lincoln Memorial, which could draw 500,000 people, according to the D.C. mayor's office. "You've gone from a one-day event to a four-day event," said Joseph Persichini Jr.,...

Scott Andrews / AP Message to you out-of-towners heading to Washington, D.C. for your first presidential inauguration: You will be miserable.January 20 is shaping up to be the inauguration celebration of our lifetimes. Which is fitting, because there’s a dirty little secret about Washington, D.C., and the inaugural balls: if you’ve ever been to one, you’ll never go back. Inaugurals are a miserable experience. This will come as sad news to the Obamaphiles who forked over checks for $50,000 to be granted the title of “finance chair” for the Presidential Inaugural Committee (PIC). It will probably be even sadder...

Vice President Biden, Madame Speaker, Mr. Chief Justice, President Bush, Vice President Cheney, President Clinton, President Carter, reverend clergy, fellow citizens, we observe today not a victory of party, but a celebration of freedom—symbolizing an end, as well as a beginning—signifying renewal, as well as change. For I have sworn before you and Almighty God the same solemn oath our forebears prescribed nearly a century and three quarters ago. The world is very different now. For man holds in his mortal hands the power to abolish all forms of human poverty and all forms of human life. And yet the...

CLEVELAND - Though the recession is crimping the spending of most Americans, Ohio Democrats plan to live large in the New Year -- at least during this month's four-day inaugural celebration. From elected officials to former office holders to proud volunteers, Ohio Democrats have purchased all of the state party's 150 allotted rooms at the Renaissance Mayflower Hotel, a historic luxury hotel not far from the White House. Only a handful of Ohio rooms are being held for last-minute VIPs. The price tag for celebrating the election of Democrat Barack Obama rivals the extravagance of the bygone housing boom: A...

HONOLULU | President-elect Barack Obama will have a Commander in Chief's Ball during his inauguration with military personnel, their spouses and those wounded fighting in the ongoing wars in Iraq and Afghanistan as guests. In the announcement Thursday, officials said that tickets for the Jan. 20 military-only ball will be free to guests. The formal event will be at the National Building Museum in Washington. "It is a privilege to honor our men and women in uniform during our inaugural festivities by continuing the tradition of the Commander in Chief's Ball. Our troops represent the best America has to offer,...

email this posting to a friend best of craigslist > washington, DC > Room for Rent -- Inauguration Day/ObamaCon 2009 Originally Posted: Tue, 11 Nov 11:45 EST Room for Rent -- Inauguration Day/ObamaCon 2009 Date: 2008-11-11, 11:45AM EST In a search of a room in DC so that you can spend Jan. 20 standing in the bitter winter cold with thousands of like-minded souls watching the historic transfer of power from one Harvard grad to another? Look no further. Me: Heartless, greedy right-wing oppressive type looking to make a buck. You: Obama's election was Christmas/your first kiss/May Day all wrapped...

President-elect Barack Obama will have a Commander in Chief's Ball during his inauguration with military personnel, their spouses and those wounded fighting in the ongoing wars in Iraq and Afghanistan as guests. In announcing this Thursday, officials said that tickets for the Jan. 20 military-only ball will be free to guests. The formal event will be at the National Building Museum in Washington. "It is a privilege to honor our men and women in uniform during our inaugural festivities by continuing the tradition of the Commander in Chief's Ball. Our troops represent the best America has to offer, and without...

Soon we will have the inauguration of our 44th President. They are preparing a celebration as if our savior had arrived, although most likely it will only be a matter of time before those celebrating will want to nail him on a cross. Our nation’s planned ridiculous inauguration exuberance is in reality nothing more than a New Orleans style funeral procession celebrating the death of our wealth.