One of the things President-elect Obama did the day before his inauguration was help paint the walls of a homeless shelter, sending a message of service to the nation.
One day later, when he takes office at noon today, January 20th, with the U.S. in its worst economic crisis since the Depression, with unemployment rates of 7.2 percent nationally and as high as 9.6 percent in Michigan, with the national debt at more than $10.6 trillion and a budget deficit of $1.2 trillion for 2009, and with the US at war on two fronts, President Obama is expected to call on the country to embrace a new culture of responsibility. Obama will do this while taxpayers are billed an estimated $125 million for his inaugural party, sending a message of profligacy as usual in Washington, D.C.
According to an ABC news story on the cost of Obama's inauguration activities from January 17-20:
"The federal government estimates that it will spend roughly $49 million on the inaugural weekend. Washington, D.C., Virginia and Maryland have requested another $75 million from the federal government to help pay for their share of police, fire and medical services."
Inauguration day is also a paid holiday for thousands of federal workers, presumably so they can go to the party. Did you get today off? No? Good thing, because you're helping pay for the festivities.
In the same ABC news story, Massie Ritsch, communications director for the Center for Responsive Politics described how the $45 million in private funds of the estimated total $170 million for the inauguration celebration were raised:
"These are people giving mostly $50,000 apiece. They tend to be corporate executives, celebrities, the elite of the elite."
Why would wealthy individuals, corporations, labor, lobbyists, and other special interests give up millions of dollars for inaugural balls? They wouldn't be vying for special favors would they?
Obamaphiles rationalize that George W. Bush spent almost as much on his inauguration.
So where's the change?
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