by Benton

I promise I’m not taking over Britt’s blog. It’s just that living and working in the DC area has exposed me to a bunch of wild facts about the upcoming inauguration and I want to share them. I keep thinking, “Wow! I should tell Dad about that.” or “Burt would find this interesting.” I decided I would write a quick post to share with everyone.

All 1600 Capital Police Officers will be on duty that day, but they will relinquish control of the building to the Secret Service and its roughly 5500 agents.

DC has roughly 50 different law enforcement agencies. Pretty much every officer/agent will be active.

Extra military and law enforcement are being brought in from states throughout the country.

All residents within a few blocks of the capital or White House either have to find remote parking or not drive for 36 hours before the inauguration. The Secret Service will use that time to sweep every building in that area for any threats.

Every storm drain and man-hole cover in the same area will be welded shut.

All major roads into the city will be accessible only by vehicles with permits. Buses, taxis, and limos all had to apply in advance to get a permit. Civilian cars will not be permitted.

The current attendance record for a presidential inauguration was set in 1965 at Lyndon B. Johnson’s inauguration. There were 1.2 million people in attendance. We’ve talked to friends who attended George W. Bush’s inauguration. They said it was insanely crowed and getting around was super slow. Estimations for this inauguration are over 3 million!

All non-security type federal employees (like me) get a paid day off.

Needless to say, we are staying home. Just me, Britt, Hallie, netflix, and redbox if necessary. 🙂