President Obama will hold just two official inaugural balls â€" one for guests of his choosing, with some limited tickets for the public, and the other to honor military families â€" after he takes the oath of office to begin his second term, inaugural planners said Thursday.
Mr. Obama held 10 official inaugural balls â€" including a low-cost Youth Ball for people age 18 to 35 - in 2009, but the president wants a scaled-down celebration in 2013. The planners said that Mr. Obama and his wife, Michelle, would attend both official balls, which will take place Monday, Jan. 21, after his public swearing-in ceremony and the traditional inaugural parade.
The balls will fill every hall of the 2.3 million-square-foot Washin gton Convention Center, according to an official with Mr. Obama's inaugural planning committee, who spoke anonymously because the events have not yet been announced. The official said planners wanted to keep the dances Mr. Obama attends confined to one space, to minimize the need for security.
In holding a “Commander-in-Chief's Ball,'' Mr. Obama is continuing a practice begun by his predecessor, George W. Bush, at his second inaugural in 2005. (Mr. Obama also held a military ball for his first inauguration.)
Tickets will go to active-duty members of the military, reservists, Medal of Honor recipients, wounded veterans and their spouses. The Defense Department and the Joint Task Force for the National Capital Region, which oversees military support for the inaugural festivities, will select the guests.
While most of the inaugural parties are for adults, Mrs. Obama and Jill Biden, the wife of Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr., will also host a concert the Saturday before the inauguration for children whose parents are serving in the armed forces. An inaugural committee spokeswoman, Addie Whisenant, said the Obamas and Bidens want to “continue the tradition of honoring America's brave service members and their families.â€
In addition to the two official parties, members of Mr. Obama's national finance committee have been told that there will be a candlelight ball for them on Jan. 20 and that the Obamas would attend, according to a donor who has been briefed on the preparations.
