Remember a happier time when at 12:00 noon on Inauguration Day 2009 (Tuesday, January 20, 2009 — the date and time are defined by the Twentieth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution), Barack Obama became the 44th President of the United States. The Inauguration Day 2009 Schedule lists all the major events leading up this this important day.
Inauguration Schedule
8:00 AM
✓ Gates open for ticketed attendees — if you have tickets, it will be wise to arrive very early as crowds will be huge and security heavy.
10:00 AM
✓ Preliminary festivities begin, including music by The United States Marine Band, The San Francisco Boys Chorus, and the San Francisco Girls Chorus.
11:00 AM
✓ Live internet broadcast of the inauguration begins at the Presidential Inaugural Committee web site. See the where to watch page for more information.
11:30 AM
✓ Call to Order and Welcoming Remarks: Senator Dianne Feinstein
✓ Invocation: Dr. Rick Warren
✓ Aretha Franklin will sing
✓ Vice President-elect Joe Biden will be sworn into office
✓ Music composed by John Williams and performed by Itzhak Perlman, Yo-Yo Ma, Gabriela Montero, and Anthony McGill.
12:00 Noon
✓ The oath of office:
I do solemnly swear that I will faithfully execute the office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.
12:05 PM
✓ President Barack Obama will give his inaugural address, speaking to the nation for the first time as President of the United States.
Inauguration Speeches
✓ Poem: Elizabeth Alexander
✓ Benediction: The Reverend Dr. Joseph E. Lowery
✓ The National Anthem: The United States Navy Band “Sea Chanters”
1:00 PM
✓ Inaugural Luncheon. For details on the menu and invited guests, see the news release.
2:30 PM
✓ Parade down Pennsylvania Avenue from the Capitol to the White House. If you have tickets, you need to be in your seats by 1:00 PM. There is open seating along Pennsylvania Avenue. For information on how to get to the parade route, for people with and without tickets, see the Inaugural Committee’s parade information page.
Get some Obama t-shirts to remember this wonderful day.