$150 million is just an estimate when this is over it will cost about $200 million.

It cost Maryland alone $11 million for his trip here. State employees in Maryland have had furlough days without pay. State workers who make over a certain amount will have 5 unpaid furlough days.

The economy is in a recession, the stock market has not recovered, the housing market has hit an all time low, millions are unemployed and now the Governor of Maryland wants bars to stay open an extra hour so that they can raise cash. If a bar chooses to stay open past the 2 0'clock deadline then they must pay a $200 fee for a license to extend hours.

This is the most expensive inauguration in the history of our nation.

I'm glad I'm not the only one who thinks this is outragous and a big waste of hard earned tax dollars !!!

I thought we weren't allowed to start political threads???

Fox and other so-called news sources can "report" whatever they want. The AP also printed something about this, but they reported that a young woman was attacked by a large Black man who cut her face. They were wrong.

What they fail to mention is that much of it is being spent on security. So when they report that George Bush only spent $42 million, they're leaving the added cost for security out of the total. Very misleading. If you add in all the security, his inauguration in 2005 cost just as much, possibly more.   I can send links to articles to prove this. For example, in a January article of the NY Times, the cost for the inauguration, including security (7,000 troops) police officers, cleanup crews, etc., totaled $115 million. Another $40 million came from private donations.

Look...the man was elected by a huge majority vote. Why can't some people just accept this and let go of their anger?

I just want to add:
I've been on LP for over 3 years and many of George W. Bush's supporters (including Todd) have talked about the MSM and the negative picture it painted of the President. So, let's say I now agree that not everything we hear is entirely accurate. Why can't we give Obama the same consideration, that is, when we hear outrageous accusations, stop to consider that something might be wrong.

http://mediamatters.org/countyfair/200901190001
http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/archives/individual/2009_01/016501.php

This is not political, this is about economics, wasteful spending, and hypocrisy of astronomical scale, I thought we were in a recession! I live here and there was nothing like what is going on now. People are being herded like sheep, totalitarianism state of control, you can't even bring a stroller or a latte on the mall it is sick. The NY Times and Fox are hyper moronic. These numbers that everybody is throwing out are estimates and are highly suspect.   What I do know, is when Bush was inaugurated last time, there were jerkies throwing stuff and protesting. There is none of that now, none, I live here.   The outgoing party is going graciously and doing everything to accomodate, the incoming party is all about anger, power, and control. You are not being told the true story of the loss of freedom around D.C.. Now I know how the East Germans, North Koreans, and the Palestinians feel.

Remember all of of you who pay Fed., state taxes, next time you vote.................................Do as I say not as I do. All that leftover campaign money should be used to pay for this stuff. I knew the porta-potties would be expensive. There isn't that many people here yet, I've seen mostly NY plates! The concert yesterday didn't even come close to the smoke-ins back in the good old days, I don't think there was even 80,000 people at the Lincoln Memorial. Everybody was standing around with their hands in their pockets, no excitement, no energy, no party, just an idiot Bruce Springsteen ranking on GW, what an angry jerk, just let it go for KrisKristofersons sake. This land is your land, yeah right.

P.S. Obama trinkets will not bring back the economy here, it will in China though. The vendors are practicing free market economics, do you think they will be paying taxes?

Jarasan, the money for the inaugural festivities is not coming from taxpayers.

It doesn't matter who is paying. In this economy that's obscene.

It does matter, if it is not coming out of your pocket, what are you concern about. You sore losers keep complaining, why not just sit back and enjoy a piece of history being made.

justxploring- where is the money coming from?
chowchow- I am sick and tired of you Dems saying we are sore losers and to get over it. " We won, you lost so get over it" . You have no clue as to what "history" is being made. You probably didn't even read the article.

From the article:

"The total cost of the inauguration to the federal government is $49 million, according to Abigail Tanner, spokeswoman for the Office of Management and Budget.

That $49 million includes a $15 million appropriation which has already been appropriated to the District of Columbia to help pay for the inauguration expenses. It also includes money to pay for the Secret Service during the inauguration and the military personnel during the parade following the swearing-in ceremony.
Meanwhile, the governors of Virginia and Maryland, and the mayor of Washington sent a letter to the federal government estimating that the inauguration was going to cost them a combined $75 million - $47 million for the District alone - for transportation and law enforcement.
The District may be eligible for more federal money beyond the $15 million appropriated. President Bush announced Tuesday that the District was in a state of emergency, making more funding available for "emergency protective measures that are undertaken to save lives and protect public health and safety."

Agree with Emily, in this economy of impending soup kitchens for many it's repugnant. However that's never deterred global big money from celebrating their victory.

Bush's understatement of the year "D.C. is in a state of emergency Tues." he forgot to add, "and the next four years................................" And let us not forget D.C. has been in a continous state of emergency, has been, for about fifty years now.

I want to know what a life is worth if an ambulance can't get to a patient in the pomp and circumstance of the moment.

Hopefully, the transition of power as always, will peaceful and uneventful. God bless America.

Watching the local news, everybody seems to be very excited for tommorrow, and the vendors are cleaning up! It is really nice to see the happiness, the eve of Obamas presidency! The speech he wrote will be 17 minutes, so don't miss it!

10am Diane Feinstein Speaks call to order!
Invocation by the Rev. Rick Warren.
_ Musical selection of Aretha Franklin.
_ Biden will be sworn into office by Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens.
_ Musical selection of John Williams, composer/arranger with Itzhak Perlman, (violin), Yo-Yo Ma (cello), Gabriela Montero (piano) and Anthony McGill (clarinet).
_ Obama will take the Oath of Office, using President Lincoln's Inaugural Bible, administered by Chief Justice John Roberts. Scheduled around noon.
_ Obama gives the inaugural address.
_ Poem by Elizabeth Alexander.
_ Benediction by Rev. Joseph E. Lowery.
_ The National Anthem by The United States Navy Band "Sea Chanters."

Actually it was the HBO special tonight that was the bomb.

Well. . .when you are coronating a king it gets expensive!

YOU GOT THAT RIGHT !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! GOD THE FATHER, THE SON, THE HOLY GHOST AND OBAMA

ChowChow, I'm guessing TigerAngel was being sarcastic. However, I can't believe that people are complaining that DC beefed up the security when the largest crowd in history is in Washington for the inauguration. Here's the cost of Iraq.
http://zfacts.com/p/447.html
Hotels are booked, restaurants are packed, streets are jammed. About a million people were trying to squeeze into the Nat'l Mall last night. Is anyone watching this on TV? In the freezing temperatures, people lined up for hours on the train tracks. Look at the faces. Americans are cheering. They've got hope for the future. There are Whites, Blacks, Asians, young & old, even people who flew here from other countries to be part of this historical event.

Reddog asks what's historical about it. Why even answer such a ridiculous question. Every presidential inauguration is part of our history. In this case, after 43 presidents, all White males, all Protestant (except for Kennedy) the Obamas are moving into the White House. It doesn't matter if you voted for Obama. He is our elected leader. No, he's not a god, a saint or even close. But he has broken through a barrier that separated this country. Look at Michelle and her 2 children. I remember when they wouldn't be allowed to eat in the same area as a White family or use the same bathroom. Now they are the First Family. That isn't historical enough for you???

And the most memorable lines came from the rev. Lowery: These alone were worth $150,000,000.00

When black don't have to give it back,
when brown don't have to leave town,
when yellow gets mellow,
when the red man can get ahead man,
and when the white can get it right.............

We just inaugurated the first black man, coulda easily been a woman, and this is what AMERICANS are left with? Thanks! The Obama era of responsibilty has begun, the stock market is down over two hundred points, and the white man ain't got it right yet!

Oh yeah, the wonderful crowd was chanting sha na na hey hey goodbye when Ex president GWBush walked out, what creative change!

As far as President Obamas speech went, the speech that Bill Pullman made before they destroyed the alien mother ship in Independence Day was much better and inspiring. Obama said too much and nothing at all, simultaneously, the sheeple didn't even know when to clap.   I clapped when he said we are going to get electricity, roads, and infrastructure we don't have any of that.

The poetry afterward was prose and interesting, and is what a lot of people are talking about.

I was driving around the north side of D.C. 30 minutes before the swearing in and it was a ghost town, things will be back to normal soon.

A record number of private jets landed in the D.C. area over 600! Now that is what I call the greening up of America, 300 or so for Bushs' 2004 inauguration.   They had to close a runway at Dulles this time around.

God bless America.

I quoted from memory: I think this is correct:

"when brown can stay in town

and when white can embrace what is right."

Doesn't change the meaning much..............

justxploring- there are millions of people out of work at the present. There are homeless people who will probably pass away tonight from this "Global Warming" deep freeze the Northeast is experiencing right now . Do you think those homeless and jobless people give a rat's butt about any so called historical event today? No, they are more worried about where they are going to sleep tonight away from the cold and the jobless are worried about will they be homeless also. All I am saying is that $150,000,000 could have been put to better use than to a two or three day event. I guess my priorities are in a different place.
And by the way, Obama has someone write his speaches for him. That way he doesn't forget to mention God.