The second inauguration of George W. Bush as the 43rd

president of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States ...

took place on Thursday, January 20, 2005, at the West Front of the

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This was the 55th inauguration and marked the beginning of the second and final term of George W. Bush as president and Dick Cheney as

vice president A vice president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vice president is on ...

. The ailing Chief Justice

William Rehnquist William Hubbs Rehnquist ( ; October 1, 1924 – September 3, 2005) was an American attorney and jurist who served on the U.S. Supreme Court for 33 years, first as an associate justice from 1972 to 1986 and then as the 16th chief justice from ...

administered the presidential oath of office for the last time before his death on September 3 that year. Attendance at the inauguration has been reported as being around 100,000, 300,000, or 400,000.

Speech

Bush's inaugural address, delivered in 21 minutes, centered on and expanded upon previous foreign policy remarks concerning the promotion of democracy around the world, as well as making

human rights Human rights are moral principles or normsJames Nickel, with assistance from Thomas Pogge, M.B.E. Smith, and Leif Wenar, 13 December 2013, Stanford Encyclopedia of PhilosophyHuman Rights Retrieved 14 August 2014 for certain standards of hu ...

the guiding principle of US foreign policy. According to

William Safire William Lewis Safire (; Safir; December 17, 1929 – September 27, 2009Safire, William (1986). ''Take My Word for It: More on Language.'' Times Books. . p. 185.) was an American author, columnist, journalist, and presidential speechwriter. He w ...

, Bush had told his chief speechwriter,

Michael Gerson Michael John Gerson (May 15, 1964 – November 17, 2022) was an American journalist and speechwriter. He was a neoconservative op-ed columnist for ''The Washington Post'', a Policy Fellow with One Campaign, a visiting fellow with the Center for ...

, "I want this to be the freedom speech." And later: Combined, the speech used the words "free," "freedom," and "liberty" 49 times.

Inaugural parade

During the parade there were some protests along the route, but these followed the speech and supporters far outnumbered the protesters. President Bush and the First Lady, Laura Bush, left their bullet-proof limousine and walked some of the route. Besides the usual parade formations from the

United States Armed Forces The United States Armed Forces are the military forces of the United States. The armed forces consists of six service branches: the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Space Force, and Coast Guard. The president of the United States is ...

, the parade also featured bands such as the

Fightin' Texas Aggie Band The Fightin' Texas Aggie Band (also known as the Noble Men of Kyle or just the Aggie Band) is the official marching band of Texas A&M University. Composed of over 400 men and women from the school's Corps of Cadets, it is the largest military ...

and units such as the Governor's Guards.

Security

As the first presidential inauguration after the

September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commer ...

, security was tighter than previous ceremonies. The inaugural parade route as well as other related sites were guarded by 13,000 police and soldiers, in addition to aerial patrols by helicopter and fighter aircraft and rooftop sharpshooters. In downtown Washington, a 100 square block area was closed to traffic. The Handshake Man was also intercepted for the first time and was arrested on an outstanding warrant related to his prior presidential photo stunts.

Protests

Many protested at the ceremonies and five people were arrested during the inauguration ceremony."Bush: Expand freedom 'in all the world'"
CNN, January 21, 2005. Last accessed January 22, 2009. Protestors worked to block access to the actual swearing in ceremony. Tickets were given out only by state senators and representatives, and a few RNC officials. Ticketholders, who were from all over the country, were advised not to bring backpacks or bags, and were told such items wouldn't be allowed through security. Protestors obtained tickets, and then brought large bags to the event, clogging security checkpoints. Rather than directing all bag holders to one security screening line, security officials allowed the lines to be clogged, preventing many people from entering the secured area to view/hear President Bush and Vice-President Cheney.

References

External links