Four years ago, Washington was buzzing in anticipation of Barack Obama’s presidential election. The second time around — not so much.
Second inaugurals are historically about one-third of the first so the expected 800,000 for the Jan. 21 event is actually ahead of the trend. The National Park Service said the first inaugural was a record 1.8 million so if 800,000 return that’s one-third bigger than traditionally expected and still one of the largest ever.
Funny how you just don’t hear much about the coming inaugural. There will only be two balls that evening. There are still hotel rooms available where last time the ones in my town about 20 miles from the city were overflowing.
The reason seconds are so much smaller is people learn inaugurations are really not much fun for the general public. They’re too far away to really see anything and Washington isn’t exactly tropical in mid-January. Indeed, it’s about the coldest time of year. The projected 42 degrees for Jan. 21 is actually pleasant for that date.
