Swearing-In Ceremony for President George W. Bush
Fifty-Fourth Inaugural Ceremonies, January 20, 2001
Program
Prelude
The United States Marine Band; Colonel Timothy W. Foley, Director
Call to Order and Welcoming Remarks
- Mitch McConnell
Invocation
- The Reverend Billy Graham
Musical Selection
duPont Manual High School/Youth Performing Arts School Choir of Louisville, Kentucky; David Brown, Director
Vice Presidential Oath of Office
Administered to Dick Cheney by the Honorable William Rehnquist, Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court.
An American Medley
- Staff Sergeant Alec T. Maly
Presidential Oath of Office
Administered to George W. Bush by the Honorable William Rehnquist, Chief Justice of the United States.
Architect of the Capitol/Library of Congress
- Bible Used: Family Bible, closed
- Attire: Dark business suit
Benediction
- Pastor Kirbyjon H. Caldwell
The National Anthem
- Staff Sergeant Alec T. Maly
Location
West Front,
U.S. Capitol
Washington, DC
Weather
Cold and rainy, with temperature around 35°F.
Facts, Firsts & Precedents
George W. Bush had hoped to use the Masonic Bible that had been used both by George Washington in 1789, and by his father, George H. W. Bush, in 1989. This historic Bible had been transported, under guard, from New York to Washington D.C. for the Inauguration but, due to inclement weather, a family Bible was substitued instead.
Inaugural Committee
- Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY), Chair
- Sen. Trent Lott (R-MS)
- Sen. Christopher J. Dodd (D-CT)
- Rep. J. Dennis Hastert (R-IL)
- Rep. Richard K. Armey (R-TX)
- Rep. Richard A. Gephardt (D-MO)
Video
U.S. Senate Recording Studio
The first inauguration of the 21st century and the new millennium followed one of the most contested elections in U.S. history, which hinged on a few thousand disputed ballots in Florida. Vice President Albert Gore and Texas Governor George W. Bush took their case to the Supreme Court. More than a month after the election, Bush was declared the winner following the Supreme Court's decision that the state's different systems of recounting in different counties violated the Constitution's equal protection provision. Governor Bush, the son of former president George Bush, took the oath of office from Chief Justice William Rehnquist, who had also sworn in his father.