DCist’s Amanda Mattos reports from the “orange” ticketholders entrance at the Swearing-In Ceremony, which is near C street at the entrance to the Rayburn HOB. She says she was shuffled into a long, winding line that was supposedly leading to the security entrance, but when she actually reached the gate, there was nobody monitoring the entrance to the security tent, and it seemed like people could have cut to the front of the line without anyone stopping them — except, as it turned out, the angry mob. A family did try to cut in line, and Amanda says the crowd responded by calling them “Bush”! Apparently shouting “Bush!” is the official insult of Inauguration Day.
Once Amanda reached the security line, things started moving quickly, and she says it appeared as though everyone had planned ahead regarding restricted items, no one she saw ran into any problems passing through security. She has since reached her seats, only to be confronted with the crushing reality that being a ticket holder doesn’t mean she has a good view: her seats are directly behind huge erected stands that will block her view of the ceremony.
