At noon on Thursday, January 20, at the Capitol, George W. Bush will raise his right hand, place the other on a Bible and be sworn in as President.

The Chief Justice will prompt, and George W. Bush will repeat, 

"I do solemnly swear that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion: and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter. So help me, God."

It's a new term of office, and taking the oath seems reasonable... in addition to be required in the Constitution. That it should be a public ceremony also seems reasonable, so that we can all be assured that the oath was actually sworn to. What happens, however, in addition to that public ceremony, is pure pomp and politics.

Let's consider the inauguration in context. First, Bush has been in office for four years already... it's not like starting a second term is a major event. Why should it involve more than just taking the oath and getting back to work? It's not like there is little else to do. We have military troops all over the globe, fighting and being killed and injured on a daily basis. As I write, 1,357 Americans have died and over 10,000 wounded in a war that was begun by and is the responsibility of Bush.

Is it appropriate to be holding a pompous celebration including a parade, dinners, and dances? Just what is being celebrated?

Of course, we all know that it is a celebration of election victory, and that the swearing in is merely an excuse and occasion to be taken advantage of. Hell, no, it's not new... it's gone on for many, many years, but it illustrates how alien political life is from the lives of the rest of us. While for the rest of us... the people, that is... the citizenry, in whose name this nation was created, will go about our normal business, earning a living, solving personal problems, and worrying about the next year, political folks will be having a gay, festive coronation. I'm glad I wasn't invited... I don't feel at all like celebrating, especially knowing that I'm helping to pay for those festivities:

The public is contributing at least $2.8 million. Costs run much higher; in 2001, planners raised more than $40 million in private donations to help pay for the festivities. President Bush's team hopes to raise $40 million to $50 million for this inaugural, with a special "underwriter" package for $250,000 and a "sponsor" package of $100,000. Donors who dig deep gets tickets to Bush's swearing-in ceremony, good seats for the inaugural parade and either entry to a lunch or candlelight dinner in which the president, vice president and their spouses will attend.

The "public" is contributing? I don't recall receiving any request for a contribution to the inauguration. I do recall, in the past, receiving such requests from the Republican Party, with donations to be rewarded with a wide variety of treats, and even, for a large enough contribution, an invitation to one or more of the inaugural festivities. Never, though, have I agreed to contribute to a "public" fund for an inaugural.

I would be quite satisfied to watch a videotape of Bush swearing to the oath for the public record. That could be done from his desk in his office, with no additional security or festivities needed. Shouldn't cost more than a couple hundred dollars, which Bush could pay himself. He could then get back to earning his salary and benefits.

The spectacle of big-party politics is obscene, especially when it is done in Washington, as a quasi-government activity. Perhaps the most obscene part of it is that Bush will swear to an oath he has no intention of keeping, as has been true of other Presidents.

The guts of the oath is "I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States". The absolute, unquestionable intent of our Constitution was to RESTRAIN our federal government from taking actions not specifically permitted to it as part of that document. Do Presidents take that oath seriously? Do they even consider whether their actions are constitutional? I can remember each President since Franklin Roosevelt, and I don't recall hearing any one of them decline to take some action because the Constitution didn't permit it. One need look no further than the repeated warring without bothering with a declaration of war by Congress.

The simple fact is that our Presidents, and most of our Congressional representatives, do not feel bound by the oath they take. They simply ignore it, do what they want, and challenge anyone to stop them.

The Presidential inauguration is one giant, ugly farce.