Washington Is Hard At Work Getting Ready For Obama's Big Inauguration Day
Fences have popped up all over Washington, D.C., blocking off construction sites and locking down the high security area for Inauguration Day.
Construction on the inaugural platform began back in September.
It didn't look like much at the beginning, but it has a great view of the Washington Monument.
The 10,000-square-foot platform is built from scratch every inauguration and made entirely from lumber.
Progress is slow, but quality is the priority. It needs to safely hold the President and about 1,600 other people.
Supreme Court Justices, the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and members of Congress will all get to sit on the platform. In the stands will be a choir and over 1,000 guests.
The other big construction project is the reviewing stand in front of the White House.
Here's what it looks like as it gets a few minor fixes before game day.
Workers are also putting fresh coats of paint on everything, like this flag pole near the reviewing stand.
An entrance post outside the White House gets a last minute touch up.
There was a full dress rehearsal of the day's events last Sunday.
Even the mock Inauguration drew a crowd. Here, spectators watch the dress rehearsal at the U.S. Capitol.
All eyes were on Air Force Staff Sergeant Serpico Elliott, who stood in for Obama during rehearsal.
He was joined on the platform by Michelle Obama's stand-in, Army Specialist Delandra Rollins.
Security is always a huge concern for the big day. Here, military and police use a model of the city to go over the preparations.
The security at the 2013 Presidential inauguration is going to be insanely tight.
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