Obama Officially Begins 2nd Term On Sunday
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President Barack Obama officially begins his second term today, a day
ahead of his public swearing in and all the pomp and ceremony of a U.S.
presidential inauguration.
Because the Constitution calls for the president to be sworn in on
January 20, Obama and Vice President Joe Biden will be sworn in for
their second terms in relatively quiet ceremonies before they take their
public oaths in front of the Capitol on Monday and before an audience
spread down the National Mall.
Obama's Monday address
will lay out the values and vision for his second term and acknowledge
the division in Washington but won't address policy, a source with
knowledge of the speech told CNN on the condition of anonymity. He'll
lay out policy in his February 12 State of the Union address, the source
said.
The nation's first
African-American president also will become only the 17th U.S. leader to
deliver a second inaugural address before joining the traditional
parade up Pennsylvania Avenue to the White House.
For his second
inauguration, less than half of the estimated 1.8 million onlookers who
crammed the Mall in 2009 are expected -- organizers expect 800,000
people to attend Monday's public ceremony.
The smaller crowd this
time around reflects the reality of second-term presidencies, when the
novelty and expectations of a new leader have been replaced with the
familiarity and experiences of the first four years.
Inauguration activities
kicked off on Saturday with Obama and first lady Michelle Obama and
Biden and his wife Dr. Jill Biden leading volunteers across the country
in National Day of Service Activities.
The Obamas joined in a
project at Burrville Elementary School in Washington, aiding volunteers
who were staining a bookcase. Cameras at the school caught the president
and first lady staining a bookcase.
The president told
volunteers that his family would do volunteer projects on holidays, "So I
was taught from a young age." Volunteering "is really what America is
all about," he said.
The Bidens helped to put
together care packages for service members deployed overseas at the
National Guard Armory in Washington. Biden's office said volunteers at
the armory would produce 100,000 packages.
"We still have 68,000
troops in harm's way in some of the most godforsaken territory in the
world," Biden said, adding that the military members can find comfort
"knowing that we back home just remember, we know what's going on."
Chelsea Clinton,
honorary chairwoman of the Day of Service, said at a kickoff event on
Mall that Saturday was the 19th anniversary of her father former
President Bill Clinton signing the bill that designated a National Day
of Service to coincide with Martin Luther King Jr. Day, the federal
holiday honoring the late civil rights leader.
"When he signed the
bill, he reminded us of what Dr. King called life's most persistent and
urgent question: What are you doing for others?" she said. "And in my
family, the only wrong answer to that question is 'nothing.' "
Later Saturday, singer
Katy Perry headlined a concert for children of service men and women and
Washington schoolchildren that was hosted by the first lady and Mrs.
Biden. Singer Usher and the cast of the TV show "Glee" were among others
who performed.
The Saturday event was
to recognize the sacrifices and "level of maturity that is required from
military kids," the first lady said.
"It means always
thinking about things that are so much bigger than yourself. It means
growing up just a little faster and working just a little harder than
other kids," she said. "And it means doing the greatest thing you can
ever do with your life at such a young age, and that is to serve our
country."
On Sunday, the vice
president will take his official oath shortly after 8 a.m. at the Naval
Observatory, his official residence, and the president will take his at
the White House shortly before noon.
Obama and Biden will travel to Arlington National Cemetery after Biden's swearing-in for a traditional wreath-laying ceremony.
In the evening, the
Obamas will watch Latino acts at "In Performance at the Kennedy Center,"
which is followed by the Let Freedom Ring concert. The Red, White and
Blue Inaugural Ball and Hip-Hop Inaugural Ball are also scheduled in the
capital.
The president will speak to donors at a Candlelight Celebration and the National Building Museum on Sunday night.
Monday's events will be a
bit down-sized from Obama's first inauguration. After events in front
of the Capitol, the Obamas and Bidens will lead the traditional parade
down Pennsylvania Avenue to the White House, there are only two
presidential balls this year, down from the 10 staged in 2009.
While the anticipated
crowd for Monday's events is expected to be about half of those who
gathered four years ago, the temperature will be a bit higher than in
2009 when the high hovered around the freezing mark. While the early
morning temperature will be in the 20s, the forecast calls for a high
temperature in the upper 30s or low 40s. Still, organizers cautioned
attendees to bundle up because of prolonged exposure to the cold as they
watch the events and make their way to and from them.
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