The President and Vice President will be sworn in on January 20, 2009. Parking will be severely limited on Inauguration Day, but visitors may take public transportation (the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority has set up a special Inauguration page with information on transportation during Inauguration Day).

Tickets are needed to enter specific viewing areas, the closer ones, but the viewing area for the swearing-in ceremony is quite large, and will stretch from the Capitol along the National Mall. Not all sections of the viewing area require tickets; the more distant parts of the viewing area will probably be served by large video screens.

Arrive early for required security screening and anticipate large crowds. Gates to the Inaugural Ceremony open at 9 a.m. and the musical prelude begins at 10 a.m. Be prepared to pass through several security screenings before reaching the section indicated on your ticket. There will be no check room for prohibited items.

All ticket holders are required to pass through security screening, including handbag inspection. Prohibited items include, but are not limited to:

• Firearms and ammunition (either real or simulated)
• Explosives of any kind (including fireworks)
• Knives, blades, or sharp objects (of any length)

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• Mace and/or pepper spray
• Sticks or poles
• Pockets or hand tools, such as “Leatherman”
• Packages
• Backpacks
• Large bags
• Duffel bags
• Suitcases
• Thermoses
• Coolers
• Strollers
• Umbrellas
• Laser pointers
• Signs
• Posters
• Animals (other than service animals)
• Alcoholic beverages
• Other items that may pose a threat to the security of the event as determined by and at the discretion of the security screeners

The Swearing-In Ceremony will be held outdoors on the west front steps of the Capitol, and will begin at 11:30 a.m. on January 20. The vast majority of tickets are for standing room. All attending are expected to be in their places well ahead of 11:30 a.m. Once underway, the ceremony will last about an hour.

Be advised that January is historically cold and wet. Prepare for temperatures below freezing. Crowds will be large and you will likely be outside for several hours. Also, public tours of the Capitol Building are suspended from 5:00 p.m. on Friday, January 16 through Wednesday, January 21, 2009.

Inaugural Ceremony Program

The Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies has announced the following Inaugural line-up the 2009 Inaugural Ceremonies:

Musical Selections
The United States Marine Band

Musical Selections
The San Francisco Boys Chorus and the San Francisco Girls Chorus

Call to Order and Welcoming Remarks
The Honorable Dianne Feinstein 

Invocation
Dr. Rick Warren, Saddleback Church, Lake Forest, CA

Musical Selection
Aretha Franklin

Oath of Office Administered to Vice President-elect Joseph R. Biden, Jr.
By Associate Justice of the Supreme Court 
The Honorable John Paul Stevens

Musical Selection, John Williams, composer/arranger
Itzhak Perlman, Violin
Yo-Yo Ma, Cello
Gabriela Montero, Piano
Anthony McGill, Clarinet

Oath of Office Administered to President-elect Barack H. Obama
By the Chief Justice of the United States
The Honorable John G. Roberts, Jr. 

Inaugural Address
The President of the United States, The Honorable Barack H. Obama

Poem
Elizabeth Alexander

Benediction
The Reverend Dr. Joseph E. Lowery

The National Anthem
The United States Navy Band "Sea Chanters"

Sources