55TH INAUGURAL CEREMONIES
GEORGE W.
BUSH
January 20, 2005
DICK
CHENEY
A VISION OF AMERICA
Two centuries ago, in 1805, the Lewis and Clark expedition sighted the Pacific Ocean, reaching the end of its mission to explore the newly acquired Louisiana Territory. Two years earlier, the Senate had approved the treaty purchasing the territory from France, which doubled the size of the United States. President Thomas Jefferson then sent Meriwether Lewis and William Clark on a mission to explore the new territory, both as a scientific venture and to consider its commercial possibilities.
INAUGURAL COMMITTEE
Sen. Trent Lott (R-MS), Chairman
Sen. Bill Frist (R-TN)
Sen. Christopher J. Dodd (D-CT)
Rep. J. Dennis Hastert (R-IL)
Rep. Tom DeLay (R-TX)
Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA)
THE SWEARING-IN CEREMONIES
The Swearing-In Ceremony:
George W. Bush was sworn-in for his second term as the 43rd President of the United States, and Dick Cheney was sworn-in for his second term as the 46th Vice President of the United States.
Location:
West Front, U.S. Capitol
Weather:
Noon conditions: Temperature 40°F . Mostly cloudy with some sunny breaks. Northwest wind 14 mph. Around 1″ of snow lay on the ground.
Bible:
Family Bible, open to Isaiah 40:31
THE SWEARING-IN CEREMONIES
The Swearing-In Ceremony:
George W. Bush was sworn-in for his second term as the 43rd President of the United States, and Dick Cheney was sworn-in for his second term as the 46th Vice President of the United States.
Location:
West Front, U.S. Capitol
Weather:
Noon conditions: Temperature 40°F . Mostly cloudy with some sunny breaks. Northwest wind 14 mph. Around 1″ of snow lay on the ground.
Bible:
Family Bible, open to Isaiah 40:31
FACTS, FIRSTS, AND PRECEDENTS
Largest Inaugural platform to date; First time anti-counterfeiting security has been designed into the tickets; First live web cam of Inaugural Platform construction; First Inauguration with secure Inaugural credentials.
OPENING MUSICAL SELECTION
“The Presidents Own”
United States Marine Band
Alcorn State University, Mississippi
United States Naval Academy Men’s and Woman’s Glee Club
CALL TO ORDER AND WELCOMING REMARKS
The Honorable Trent Lott
INVOCATION
The Reverend Dr. Luis León
MUSICAL SELECTION
Susan Graham, Mezzo-soprano
VICE PRESIDENTIAL OATH OF OFFICE
Administered to Dick Cheney by the Honorable J. Dennis Hastert, Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives
PRESIDENTIAL OATH OF OFFICE
Administered to George W. Bush by the Honorable William Rehnquist, Chief Justice of the United States.
INAUGURAL ADDRESS
President George W. Bush
MUSICAL SELECTION
The United States Marine Band, The United States Herald Trumpets, and The United States Navy Sea Chanters
BENEDICTION
Pastor Kirbyjon H. Caldwell
THE NATIONAL ANTHEM
Sgt. Bradley Bennett, United States Air Force
THE SIGNING CEREMONY
Following the Swearing-In Ceremonies, the President gathers in the President’s Room just off of the Senate Chamber to sign nominations and sometimes memorandums, proclamations, or executive orders. President Bush, surrounded by the JCCIC Members and the Vice President, signs the first official actions of his second term.
THE INAUGURAL LUNCHEON
Members of the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies hosted a luncheon in honor of the newly sworn-in President and Vice President. Approximately 200 guests including the new President, Vice President, members of their families, the Supreme Court, Cabinet designees, and members of Congressional leadership attended the event in the Capitol’s National Statuary Hall.
INAUGURAL PAINTING
Wind River, Wyoming
Albert Bierstadt
Oil on canvas, c. 1870
Private Collection
The painting of Wind River, Wyoming, by Albert Bierstadt, was borrowed from the Philip Anschutz Collection, Denver, Colorado, as a testimonial to President Theodore Roosevelt’s 1905 Presidential Inauguration and the expedition of Lewis and Clark from 1803 to 1806.
Albert Bierstadt was one of the premier artists of the nineteenth century, famous for his large canvases depicting the grandeur of the American West. Born in Germany in 1830, his parents brought him to the United States at an early age. Bierstadt experienced his first trip into the unexplored western territories when he was chosen to be the artist for a United States government expedition in the spring of 1859. When the expedition reached South Pass at the southern end of the Wind River Range, Bierstadt and a companion left the party and spent several weeks sketching and taking photographs of the Wind River area. Wind River, Wyoming was probably painted from sketches he made during this visit to the Rocky Mountains.
Presidential and
Vice Presidential Gifts
The President and Vice President received a pair of hand-cut, crystal hurricane lamps engraved with a likeness of the nation’s mansion, made by Lenox, Inc.
WELCOME AND OPENING REMARKS
The Honorable Trent Lott
INVOCATION
Reverend Dr. Barry C. Black, Chaplain, United States Senate
LUNCHEON MENU
First Course: Scalloped Crab and Lobster
Second Course: Roasted Missouri Quail with Chestnuts and Brined Root Vegetables
Third Course: Steamed Lemon Pudding and Apple Wild Cherry Compote
ENTERTAINMENT
Smithsonian Chamber Players
Presentation and Toasts
The Honorable Trent Lott, Chairman; The Honorable Christopher J. Dodd; The Honorable J. Dennis Hastert, Speaker, United States House of Representatives
BENEDICTION
Reverend Daniel Coughlin, Chaplain,
United States House of Representatives
PASS IN REVIEW
President George W. Bush, First Lady Laura Bush, Vice President Dick Cheney, and Lynne Cheney, along with Maj. Gen. Bradley A. Becker, U.S. Army, is commander of the Joint Force Headquarters-National Capital Region (JFHQ-NCR), stand on the steps of the East Front to participate in the Pass in Review prior to departing the Capitol for the Inaugural Parade to the White House.