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Battalion News Radio: 1:57 p.m. KAMU 90.9
It was a
^dQ e p
arty
Bush sworn in as 43rd president while father stands by
WASHINGTON
ived mJ(AP) —George Walk-
nanycria sr Bush, swearing the
we hope: same oath as his father
well." .Jbefore him, became
America’s 43rd presi-
hard Drident Saturday, pledg
ing to “build a single
nation of justice and
npportunity" after one
BUSH
echoed rfthe most turbulent elections in history.
Bush said he would lead with “civil-
ty, courage, compassion and character.”
J Seven members of his Cabinet won
wift Senate approval as the Republi
cans moved in after eight years of De-
_ ocratic rule. On a day blending inau-
gural pageantry and protests. Bush
on thattljsucceeded Bill Clinton with a promise to
ackage'ieal the nation’s divisions,
fee, Da\| "People say, ‘Well, gosh, the election
y for the sips so close, nothing will happen, ex-
rrtoAleiciept for linger pointing and name call-
|lig and bitterness,’ ” Bush said at a 1 un
is receii: heon with congressional leaders. “I’m
n studer: jere to tell the country that things will
ratorsco' U done, that we’re going to rise above
ce.spokt kpectations, that both Republicans and
man sas bemocrats will come together to do
t not kn: Uat’s right for America.”
she said
The inauguration, witnessed by a
fcowd stretching out from the West
ifont of the Capitol, marked the open-
^g of the first Republican-controlled
4)ite House and Congress since the
isenhower era. Spectators were bun-
fled in heavy coats and ponchos on a
)ld, raw day.
Police in riot gear stood five deep be-
f #/een Bush’s motorcade and protesters
Oi the inaugural parade route. An egg
■as thrown from a group of demonstra-
EVrtjl
c & Can#
xfcMexas Aggie Band,
oss Volunteers
t Jewel:*
represent A&M in
Inaugural parade
'By Mark Passwaters
[The Battalion
I WASH1NGTON — After an 1,800-
iraile trip and days of anxious waiting,
I tie Fightin’ Texas Aggie Band and the
.Ross Volunteers finally got to do what
Jey came to Washington, D.C., to do
march in the 54th presidential inau-
ral parade Saturday.
For the Aggie Band, the experience
|as especially sweet, considering that
any members of the band did not ex-
.1440 Bet an invitation.
— u W e had heard that they were only
Jviting the (University of Texas) band
d Texas Tech’s,” said Jason Fritzler,
•member of the band and a junior an-
iinal science major.
, i Fritzler said that, when the invita-
» Bm from the inaugural committee ar-
rl IJ Bed before the band left to play in
the Sanford Independence Bowl, the
■■■Eband was surprised.
I Constant rain, near-freezing tem-
Rratures and possible snow caused
■ncern among band members in the
Bys before the inaugural parade, be-
■use bad weather would have caused
He event to be canceled.
■ “Everyone was kind of disappoint-
H (when it looked like the parade
pght be canceled),” Fritzler said. "But
pen we figured that they had spent so
Huch time and money that there was
! D way they would cancel it.”
■ The parade, scheduled to begin at 2
i.iii., started almost two hours late.
B Greg Baird, a band member and a
iunior electrical engineering major,
said the band was scheduled to arrive
it 11:30 a.m., have lunch and pass
through security.
|f “Then they told us to get in line, and
we waited there for about an hour and
a half,” Baird said.
He said that once the parade began,
the band did not pay attention to the
protesters along the parade route. He
See Parade on Page 2.
i at
•arch,
es,
tors toward Bush’s limousine, startling
Secret Service agents. A few blocks lat
er an orange was tossed toward his car,
rolling past. Police pinned down two
protesters who jumped security barriers
and got within 30 feet of the limousine.
a
I’m here to tell the
country that things will
get done, that we’re go
ing to rise above expec
tations, that both Re
publicans and
Democrats will come
together to do what’s
rightfor America.”
— George W. Bush
President of the United States
The new president delighted onlook
ers when he got out of his car. Protected
by heavy security, he walked the last
block of the parade holding hands with
his wife.
Bush and his extended family
watched the inaugural parade with um
brellas overhead during an intermittent
hard rain. There were bands, floats, rid
ers on horseback, ix precision lawn
chair demonstration team — even a
group of Idaho women in red house
dresses and blue aprons who danced
with shopping carts.
It was a pomp-filled end to a cam
paign that saw Bush finish second in the
popular vote but a narrow winner in the
all-important electoral competition. De
parting Vice President A1 Gore, Bush's
defeated rival, watched the proceedings
stoically, a silent reminder of the five-
week post-election battle that was
stopped by the Supreme Court.
Richard Cheney was sworn in as vice
president at 11:57 a.m.
Bush followed at 12:02 p.m., then
reached for his father’s right hand and
hugged him, putting his left hand around
his dad's head. The senior Bush wiped
away a tear and the new president's eyes
welled up, too. It was the second time in
American history a son had followed his
father to the White House. John Quincy
Adams traced his father’s steps 176
years ago. I
A traditional 21-gun salute marked
the change of command as Bush fought
back tears again — and snapped a salute
to the crowd — after the national anthem
was played.
In one of his first acts. Bush formal
ly submitted his Cabinet nominations to
the Senate. Among those quickly con
firmed and sworn into office were Col
in Powell as secretary of state, Donald
Rumsfeld as defense secretary, Paul
O'Neill as treasury secretary and
Spencer Abraham as energy secretary.
Bush signed an executive order es
tablishing ethical standards for his new
administration and moved to halt Clin
ton’s blizzard of executive orders and
rules. Among the targets were new
Medicare guidelines and environmental
protections.
The president also ordered a tempo
rary federal hiring freeze until his new
See Bush on Page 2.
TOP LEFT: STUART VILLANUEVA; TOP RIGHT, BOTTOM: PATRIC SCHNEIDER/Tiu Battalion
Texans kick up their heels
at Black Tie & Boots Ball
By mark Passwaters
The Battalion
PATRIC SCHNIEDER/The Battalion
Above left: Bo Wilson, mascot corporal, carries Reveille
up the escalator to the Black Tie & Boots Ball on Friday.
More than 7,000 people attended the ball. Some atten
dees paid up to $3,600 for tickets. Above right: Tara Wat
son, Miss Texas 2000, poses for pictures with members of
the Ross Volunteers. Others in attendance included Troy
Aikman, Chuck Norris, Bo Derek, ZZ Top, Tanya Tuck
er, the Beach Boys and Clint Black. Below: Protesters
gathered along the inaugural parade route. There was
brief tension between police and demonstrators.
WASHINGTON — For every presidential inauguration,
one social event always stands head and shoulders above the
rest. In the case of President George W. Bush, the hot ticket
was the Black Tie & Boots Ball hosted by the Texas State So
ciety and the Marriott Wardman Park in Washington’s posh
Adams-Morgan neighborhood.
Some of the ball’s more than 7,000 guests paid $3,600 for
their tickets. Friday’s ball was billed as having the best of all
things Texan.
One of the most photographed ladies at the ball was Texas
A&M’s mascot. Reveille VI. For more than five hours,
Reveille and her handlers from Corps of Cadets Company E-
2 posed for pictures. One of those who wanted to pose with
Reveille was Texas Gov. Rick Perry, Class of ’72.
“It’s crazy, but it’s a lot of fun,” said Bo Wilson, a sopho
more business major.
Looking out over the crowd assembled in the hotel, Even
Epstein, a freshman political science major, said the reaction
to Reveille was “pretty overwhelming.”
Jake McCarroll, a sophomore computer science major,
said the ball was “one the best parties I’ve ever been to.”
Celebrities attending the ball included movie stars Chuck
Norris and Bo Derek, Dallas Cowboys quarterbacks Troy Aik
man and Roger Staubach, and golfer Ben Crenshaw. Musical
See Ball on Page 2.
m m m
Protesters clash with police at parade
CODY WAGES/The Battalion
WASHINGTON (AP) — George W.
Bush’s motorcade lurched through the
largest inaugural protests since Richard
Nixon on Saturday, enduring thousands
of protesters who hurled insults, bottles,
tomatoes and an egg.
Protesters clashed briefly with police
clad in riot gear at a few flash points
while Bush remained inside his armored
stretch car for most of the parade up a
soggy, cold Pennsylvania Avenue.
Police ordered the motorcade to slow
in anticipation of some protests —* at
one point stopping it for five minutes —
and then sped it through others.
A couple of protesters threw bottles
and tomatoes before the presidential
limousine arrived, and one hurled an
egg that landed near the motorcade, thfe
Secret Service said.
But the protesters managed little else
to interrupt the festivities in the face of
a massive show of 7,000 police officers:
As the day grew darker and colder, au
thorities had arrested only six people
and activists began to disperse, said Ter
rance W. Gainer, executive assistant
chief of police. One of them was
charged with assault with a deadly
weapon after slashing tires and trying to
assault an officer. Gainer said.
“Hail to the Thief,” read one sigjji
along the parade route questioning thgj
legitimacy of Bush’s election win lirt
See Protest on Page 2.,