More than 1,000 Washingtonians are scheduled to travel to the other side of the country this weekend to watch President-elect Donald Trump’s swearing-in ceremony, some of them invited by the office of freshman Congressman Michael Baumgartner. This includes over 200 people.
More than 220,000 tickets will be distributed at Monday’s inauguration ceremony, primarily by members of Congress, with each member receiving an allocation to send to voters. Different legislators had different systems for selecting who would receive the limited tickets, and Baumgartner was one of those who primarily used the lottery.
The swearing-in ceremony will begin at noon Eastern time (9 a.m. in Spokane) and will be held indoors in the Capitol Rotunda, an unusual move due to the frigid weather forecast at the time. Therefore, most guests with tickets will not be able to attend the ceremony in person, but they may be able to attend the presidential parade at Capital One Arena after the inauguration, ABC News reported Friday. .
Still, for many attendees, this is an opportunity to bear first-hand witness to the country’s history and a moment of patriotic pride.
Spokane County Republican Party Executive Committee member Natalie Paulson, who ran unsuccessfully for the state House of Representatives in 2022 and recently announced her candidacy for appointment as county treasurer, has always been fascinated by presidential history. , said he was honored to participate.
“I love this country and I love teaching about this country as a teacher,” Paulson said. “This is an opportunity to be a part of something that you only see in history books or on TV.”
Kelly Rizzi, state committee member of the Spokane County Republican Party, has never been to Washington, D.C., and hopes to visit some of the nation’s capital’s monuments and historical sites during her time there. But most of all, she said she felt honored to celebrate the inauguration of the man she voted for as the 47th president of the United States.
“Just to remind you, that’s the equivalent of Kennedy getting shot,” Rizzi said. “Everyone knows where they’ve been. At one point I looked at Natalie (Paulson) and said our grandchildren are going to talk about this. It’s just like that. It’s a historic moment.”
Rizzi said he has heard concerns about security for the inauguration in light of last year’s assassination attempt on President Trump.
“The way I feel, even though I’m almost 60 years old, I’m going to support whoever I voted for no matter what,” Rizzi said. “This is an outward declaration that I am not afraid.”
Amanda McFarland, a member of the Spokane City Board of Precincts and a member of the Spokane County Young Republicans, said she had planned to pay for her own tickets to the inauguration, but she turned to a consultant who put in a good word for her. He said he met. With Mr. Baumgartner.
She said President Trump has drastically changed the way she views the country and herself over the past eight years.
“I used to hate America and the American way of thinking, and I was always pointing out the negative things in society,” McFarland said. “I wasn’t a huge fan of his either. Eight to 10 years ago, I hated him. But now I respect him and his goals, and he’s a great guy that everyone loves. He’s not as bad as you say.”
McFarland had hoped to leave earlier than Rizzi and Paulson to tour the monuments and monuments in Washington, D.C., but joked that she would spend most of her time in long lines. I skipped it.
“[Trump]is holding a rally on the 19th and it looks like it’s going to be very crowded. We might have to stand there for 12 hours before we can get in,” she laughed.
