Some partisans made much ado about last week's inauguration, criticizing everything from the price tag to the schedule. Newspapers have printed articles decrying the cost of galas, saying money could be spent on this program or that entitlement. Others opine that there is really no need for so many days of reverie.
O, how short the memories are of the entrenched Beltway media establishment! Bill Clinton campaigned with the theme that the sky was falling; that the economy would be in the doldrums indefinitely unless he was elected. Of course, this was hyped up; the economy had been rebounding for a few straight quarters. Nonetheless, 43 percent of Americans (not much of a mandate, I might add) bought into it, and the former president and his wife won the White House. Does anyone recall their inaugural festivities? In light of the apparently weak economy, did the Clintons spare the country the cost of balls, concerts and dinners, which totaled $25 million? No, they had the celebration they were entitled to as the victors.
It would surprise our cost-conscious Democratic friends that Franklin D. Roosevelt's first inauguration in 1933, at a time of 25 percent unemployment, was deemed "the most extravagant undoubtedly" of all inaugurations by Donald Kennan, the lead historian of the U.S. Capitol Historical Association. Included in the celebration was a $100,000 exact recreation of New York's Federal Hall, quite a sum 72 years ago. At a time of real economic dangers, not a word seems to have been uttered against Mr. Roosevelt. I guess it helps having the media on your side, eh?
The year's inaugural events will cost around $40 million. However, unlike what critics would have you believe, the government is not shelling out the dough. Private, and yes, corporate (gasp!) donations are being used to fund the Republican Jubilee all this week. And a dollar today is not the same as a dollar from the days most of us were learning cursive.
Some of the more ironic twists of rhetoric are the comments coming from the losing side of the aisle. Democrats, still refusing to swallow their prescribed chill pills after yet another resounding defeat at the polls, claim money should be spent on "jobs, health care and education." Need I remind them again that the government never really creates a job? Jobs are created when government gets out of the way. The familiar refrain of "jobs, health care and education" is just a ploy for more class warfare, more government intrusion in daily life and further division in the country.
These folks also cite that we are at war and money is tight. Members of Congress have no problem allotting $25,000 for some obscure mariachi lessons or $250,000 for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Speaking of rock and roll, I would ask Elton John to balance my checkbook before any of The Honorables on the Hill.
Another facet of Inauguration Day is the certified wackos who make their annual appearance in the District. I experienced this personally when I ran into some Lyndon LaRouche Kool-Aid drinkers the other day. I was just an innocent young man on my way to Best Buy to get batteries for my camera. How did they greet me? They started yelling, "Stop Bush from raping social security!" They even had a cute little poster with a drawing of a grandma. You gotta love that funding for the arts!
After I attended the Inauguration ceremony, a friend and I made our way to 7th Street to redeem our tickets for a bleacher seat. Unfortunately, some uncivil protesters prevented ticketed persons from entering the security tents, prompting law enforcement to temporarily close them. Many of the protesters were from the ever-whining International A.N.S.W.E.R. coalition. Of course, they have been lax in giving a viable "answer" to any one of their litany of complaints. To quote Alanis Morisette, isn't it ironic that the same people who claim that evil Republicans prevented voters from entering the polls are the very ones who inhibited my and thousands of others' free movement on Inauguration Day?
As the president's motorcade passed by, the huddled masses of the D.C. chapter of the Joseph Stalin Fan Club burst into a chorus of boos and a sad tapestry of upraised middle digits. As if that wasn't enough, they proceeded to climb trees and yell "Jump! Jump!" to their comrades in red. While I did not mind this display of free speech (it was actually funny in a sad way), the line was crossed when these ignorant people set fire to the American flag. You don't have to agree with or like every leader, but there is no justification for burning the U.S. standard. Why burn the very symbol of the freedom you claim to covet so dearly?
For as much as these disgruntled Americans have berated President Bush for being a dictator and for taking away their rights, I certainly saw and heard a lot of free speech on Thursday. This leads me to surmise that contrary to what they say, America is free, and our Bill of Rights is still alive and well. And these rights will continue to be secured by the steadfast leadership of George W. Bush and Dick Cheney as they were in the last four years.
