Boise News

Presidential Inauguration

You Are There: Idahoans in D.C.

By A.K. Minnick, Guest Writer, 1-18-09

Walt, Dixon, A.K. and Denali Minnick in House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's ceremonial office.

A.K. Minnick, wife of newly-elected Congressman from Idaho, Democrat Walt Minnick, is a former television reporter and anchor for KBCI, KIVI and KTVB in Boise.  (You knew her as A.K. Lienhart.) She’s sending missives to NewWest.Net while the family is in Washington for the inaguration.

We expected madness as early as Friday.  But we were fortunate, and travel into Washington went smoothly even if every seat on every flight was taken and every overhead luggage holder bulged with carry-ons.

On the taxi ride from the airport, our driver told us they are braced for the real madness to start on Sunday.  And, indeed, this entire weekend is like a song that has a sweet, almost meandering tune at the beginning, picking up in volume and intensity as it proceeds and will no doubt end in a crescendo of joyful notes.

We made a point of getting errands for our D.C. apartment done yesterday that would require riding on the Metro.  We noted that visitors are being reminded constantly NOT to try to rush the train doors to get on at the last second.  It causes all doors to re-open and delays the train, resulting in a lecture from the engineer.  This will happen on Tuesday when the system will be tested to its limit, and it will not be pretty.

We are seeing lots and lots of amazing and fun Obama souvenirs being sold both officially and unofficially.  Frankly, the unofficial stuff is the most creative.  There’s even a beanie with the Obama name done in a blingy kind of metal across the front.  I hope to get some photos of these vendors but it’s so cold we are just intent on getting to our destination.  I am casting envious eyes at the men on the streets wearing thick, industrial looking jumpsuits.

Grocery shopping, then finding a sale on blankets downtown (turns out I didn’t ship enough for this weather), and well, someone forgot to pack her black all-purpose shoes for wearing with dresses and trousers.  I ended up at Macy’s with a billionty-umpty-three women but most of them came to stalk and bag the perfect shoe for the ballgown.  I think they didn’t read the part about never getting to sit down and standing in very long lines to get into every ball and that the very best footwear might resemble clogs worn by surgeons who stand for too many hours.  But, bending somewhat toward being fashionable, the columnists recommend flats. (Personally, I had hoped to find satin cowboy boots or satin running shoes.) Still, it was great fun being asked for my opinion on shoes and, in turn, seeking opinions from the most fabulously dressed women in the place.

On the way home, we noticed more and more suit-case toting riders.  We dumped our stuff, gathered son Dixon and rushed back to meet Idaho State Senator Nicole LeFavour and Carol Grohoski at the Spy Museum.  There is a lot of information there - enough to make you come away feeling paranoid.  But it was fascinating and kind of fun.  I’m not sure the video clip showing kids how to be felons (ie how to pick a lock) is a good idea.  My kids were more intrigued by the James Bond car and the bugging devices. 

Back on the Metro, the crowds grew as did the numbers of suitcases spotted.  I watched two women struggling, each with TWO ginormous rolling cases, and I wondered how many balls for which they’d managed to snag tickets.  Made me glad I determined to wear the same thing pretty much everywhere and thus arrived with one small carry-on.  But the cold is making me wish I’d brought every layer of back country ski wear I own.  Does anyone remember moon boots?  They sound pretty good right about now.

Today we should see more of our Idaho friends at Walt’s office.  They’ve extended hours to make it easier for Idahoans to pick up their inaugural ceremony tickets.  The gates to the free rock concert at Lincoln Memorial this afternoon are now open, but I’m guessing only the most die-hard fans are staked out there in this chill.  I would love to go, but we’re thinking the best we can do is walk nearby to hear a bit of it from the outskirts.

Tomorrow there’s an all-Idaho (and friends and former Idahoans) photo planned on the Capitol Visitors Center plaza at 2:30 EST.  We’ve been invited to an Idaho reception later which will give us further opportunity to touch base with our home state.  Overall, the excitement builds in Washington and the festive beat gains momentum on the streets.

Sunday afternoon....
We are resting between our day at the Capitol and some receptions we’ll be attending before we head off to dinner with Idaho friends. We saw so many of our dear friends and the kids and I met some of Walt’s new friends from the campaign who live in the north part of our district.  It is quite touching to see people who have traveled so far to see this incredible moment in our history.  And even if Barack Obama had not been a man making history, it is still incredible to think of when you are here to witness the transition from one President to the next as it has been since George Washington left office.  That orderly transition of power spelled out in our Constitution is part of the great foundation of this country.

Here’s Dixon, 15, outside his dad’s office.

We joined one of Walt’s grad school classmates and his wife for a tour of the Capitol with Walt and his Chief Deputy Kate Haas.  Kate is a wellspring of information.  We spent quite a bit of time on the floor of the House going through the stories of the paintings and the traditions of the House.  We now know what will happen when Barack Obama gives his first State of the Union address.  As we left the House Chamber, we spotted the open door of the Speaker’s office and a staffer saw that it was a Freshman giving a tour and she kindly invited us in to look at the Speaker’s Ceremonial office.  This is where the Speaker holds news conferences and interviews and hosts visiting dignitaries.  It is also where the President of the United States waits for his entrance to the House Floor to give the State of the Union address.  It is a beautiful space.  Nice, but not too ostentatious.  But we were amused to see boxes of handwarmers stacked in a corner.  I am guessing the Speaker is expecting a very cold inaugural day and intends to help the House Members survive it.  The House Members will gather on the House Floor and be a part of the procession to the platform on Inauguration Day.  We are guessing that, as a Freshman, Walt will be one of the guys in back! 

This is the stairway the President-Elect will use to get to the ceremony.  It is lit with television lights today so that cameras can capture his progress toward the platform.

Later, on our way to view the Rotunda, we walked through Statuary Hall where the early House sessions were held.  It is now being set up for the President’s luncheon.  Leadership from both parties and some heavy hitters in our government will be the guests.  The tables are set and we got a look at the China that will be used as we walked past.  It was kind of fun to see where the new President will be dining.  As we stood in the nearby rotunda a few minutes later, we could hear the sound check as they played Hail To the Chief on the speakers.  It becomes even more real.

At lunch in the House cafeteria, we got to see our friend, Steve Scanlin, a lawyer, veteran and new state affiliate director of the National Association of Local Boards of Health.  Steve said he rode the train in to the city this morning and noted that families from all over the world have come to see this inauguration.

The foot traffic in our neighborhood and around the Capitol is picking up and people are just buzzing with excitement.  Tomorrow we expect it to get even wilder.  Watching people on the streets and hearing their comments as they walk past is endlessly fascinating.  And part of the most fun of this will be seeing a lot of our friends at 2:30 on the east side of the Capitol.  I think our group photo will be huge!

Disclosure: A.K. Minnick is a friend of NewWest.Net/Boise editor Jill Kuraitis.

Like this story? Get more! Sign up for our free newsletters.