NYT: It's Inauguration Time Again, and Access Still Has Its Price

By ELISABETH BUMILLER


WASHINGTON, Dec. 9 - Tickets to all official inaugural events, including an "elegant" candlelight dinner with a special appearance by President Bush: $100,000.

Tickets to all official inaugural events, two additional tickets to an "exclusive" lunch with Mr. Bush and Vice President Cheney, plus an all-access pass to any inaugural ball: $250,000.

Telling your friends, "As I explained to the president just the other day... .": priceless.

Mr. Bush's inaugural committee, seeking to raise more than $40 million, a record, sent out hundreds of solicitations to the president's biggest campaign contributors this week offering packages of party benefits and access to the president in exchange for hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Even at a time of war when more than 138,000 American troops are serving in Iraq, the organizers say that the inaugural celebration at the end of the January will not be marked by any noticeable restraint and will cost more than any other in history.

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http://nytimes.com/2004/12/10/politics/10inaugural.html?hp&ex=1102741200&en=6afdb238c4ca49db&ei=5094&partner=homepage

Not about homosexuality like so many right wingers want you to believe.

bush's inauguration is about greed, power and control, and yes, pilfering a nation's good will.

didn't Andrew Jackson open the White House to everyone for his inauguration? . . .

you'd think BushCo would have at least a few cheapie events for all those poor southerners and midwesterners who voted for him but don't have a pot to pee in . . . you know, something with hot dogs, burgers, and the recorded song stylings of the Oak Ridge Boys . . .

the party favors could be pots to pee in . . .

and likely plenty of depleted uranium for scrap to armor their vehicles. It's a fucking OUTRAGE!!!! While Iraq vets return to lousy care, if any at all, and are joining the ranks of the homeless, the emperor and his court party on. It's getting hard to stay in outraged mode 24/7 but the hits just keep on coming, don't they? May they all be damned.

from all the fat cats he has supported over the last four years with his tax cuts. I'll bet it really boosts his sorry ass little ego to hobnob around with all the monied vultures.

Maybe he could use the money to payoff his presidential yacht or buy the troops some scrap metal, but I am pretty sure it's going to Karl to jump start David Duke's candidacy for the Nobel Peace Prize or perhaps to fund Dick Cheney's olestra addiction.

ball?

the President that was 100,000 each. Pictures with the President were 10,000 each, with Hillary 7,500 each. I forget what the all-access ball pass cost but it was certainly over 200,000. Politics and money, we only talk about separating them.

TC

because I wasn't sure the Clinton's had those same prices. I can't imagine them charging that much, maybe a couple of them in the 100,000 range but have others much less...we are, after all, Democrats.

as we would like to think. That is why the groups like the Greens, ELF, and anarchists among others are against even our party at times.

TC

it amounts to about $59,000 or so when analyzed against real money. remember we are talking about bush dollars.

We spent around $48 million in today's dollars. Hey, Dems know how to party. :bounce:

No, didn't think so.

if you are being sarcastic or not. Could you come down to earth, or at least the near vacinity and enlighten me with your wisdom??

TC

Because I have my doubts. The newspapers would have been all over that like white on rice. The GOP would have whined about that much more than Clinton's <gasp> $100 haircut.

If you think about that for a minute, we had to raise the money somehow. We raised it like everyone else, with corporate and personal donors. In today's dollars Clinton's was still the party of all parties (47.3 million). Remember Fleetwood Mac played? It was cool.

TC

and there is NOTHING Bush has done to justify it except that he moves in the circles of the "have mores" and has invited them all to his crowning.


There is nothing to celebrate but death, chaos,joblessness, an investigation into vote fraud,cronyism, fascism and the decline of a once noble American spirit.


As if those appearing in the their furs and diamonds would care about that.

It's party time!! They don't need no friggin flak jackets to party!! Get down, Repos!!! Spend, borrow, spend, borrow, spend... Yippee!!! Happy days is here again!!! (As long as you're not driving a worn out tank on the streets of Baghdad.)

there is too much time, effort and money spent on campaigning especially when u are like shrub and only campaign to the choir. Candidates should get a certain amount of air time, should have multiple debates with questions asked by real people who can press until they get a real answer. Bush wouldn't have to hide his cheat microphone because he could have a team available to get him the stats on the questions. I don't expect them to remember every detail of all things, so I think it would be ok to have one or two helpers pulling up the stats for them. We just want the questions answered completely.
No money will be spent in the millions by towns forced to host the conventions and rallys, just live tv real questions, real answers.

Most importantly, campaign contributions by large companies can no longer buy favors, bills and laws. In addition, all people involved in government must get off all those boards they sit on or forfeit any grants to those companies. I'm tired of our government being bought by corps and people with money.

Well, one president, many going to jail, I fear.

"In addition, organizers said there would be a new "commander in chief's" inaugural ball".
Now THAT would be the perfect time to show his dress uniform complete with medals and glitz for the first time, wouldn't it? He even has time to sprout that mustache till coronation day...

and these fat fucks stuff themselves, and play "high society" with the President, to the tune of $100,000.

This is not the people's democracy that the Founders intended.

If this isn't an example of blatant whoring for money, I don't know what is.

:-)

that goes on in this administration on a daily basis?

When FDR was inaugurated in the midst of WWII, he felt it would be best to hold a more low-key inauguration, in deference to the fact that the nation was at war.

No not this guy. He not only suckers people into fighting an immoral war, but then he is going to have lavish parties the likes of which no one's seen before in the midst of it.

Soldiers and innocent Iraqis being killed? Eh, who gives a shit? I'm going to Disneyland!

GRRRR.

people who are there dressed in sequins and furs, $2000 cowboy boots and dripping in diamonds swilling down $200 bottle champagne and eating food that costs hundreds of dollars dancing to a bad that cost out the wazoo, laughing loudly while some Iraqi family huddles in what is left of their home, cold and hungry and sick and hoping like crazy the electricity comes back on, the water comes back on, the baby's fever goes down and none of them die tonight. While some American soldier huddles cold in a tent, hoping tomorrow doesn't bring an unexpected roadside bomb or bullets coming his way, wondering why he's there and when he can go home.

Imagine it.

or a day of protest. You all decide.

I'm producing a show here in SF "Full Dinner Jacket" -- in honor of Smirk's military service. We're having our best political comedians coming out in droves. You come too, to quote Frost.

Don't sit back for it. Find an action in your community and throw a party after. It's a whole day in your life. Don't let them steal the life energy. (That sounds so Marin Country <g>) But I really mean it.

Do something you'll feel good about & do it with as many likeminded people as possible.

but I'm going to be in Washington DC, doing some of that old fashioned protesting.

I fully consider it a day that will put this administration on notice that we,the people are going to make them,the supposed elite, wish they had never decided to steal another election.

Well, I'm jealous, wish for once I could be in DC and with you all, Just know we're all out here, too, mad as hell and not going away. We may say it with marches or with comedy or with vigils, with letters or phone calls or in email. "We're still here, count our vote or deal with us."

to paraphrase an old saying from the Gays, We're here, we aren't going away, get used to it!

We can't allow the AP to call our vote. That doesn't even happen in little league softball. Yet, that has become our habit.

The whole "we" part of our elections has to get revitalized. Or, it's one guy in the camera lights getting dinged by mendacity as we all what in horror. "We" is not a bad idea.

Good luck in D.C. I'll build in a round of applause and gratitude out here on Island San Francisco.

....and here we thought the imperial presidency ended with Nixon.

haven't thought that for quite some time.

on Jan 20!!!!
well--symbolically, it will be there!!!

more cash, other than pure unfettered greed, these miserable bastards just can't get enough...:(

Who cares if the Rx for a kid costs $25 the parents don't have, and the child remains ill or worse...let's hear it for compassionate conservatism.

Who cares if people are cold this winter because they can't afford heating..it's their damn fault anyway, right?

Forget Social Security amd Medicare...damn people shouldn't get old if they can't afford it, the hell with them.

Get some more money bush and cheney...you certainly don't have enough.

I am just so sick of these bastards and the 'people' that support them I want to just puke. Naked greed...I kind of wish the OT God was still getting pissed at people like this, and just blew them away into some kind of horrid Biblical form of OT justice. But they don't believe in God anyway, for all of the talk, their altar is a Gold Bar, and their god is made of paper and ink in the form of cash.

I would feel sorry for them if they showed the slightest inkling of remorse, but instead, I feel nothing but revulsion and disgust.

to give $240,000 to have lunch with The Chimp and Dick Cheney!!!!:puke:

This is just one of the many things that are wrong with this country.