At an inauguration event at the Canadian Embassy in Washington D.C., actor Michael J. Fox spoke with Reuters reporter John McCrank about his hopes for the Obama administration.

Fox, afflicted with Parkinson’s Disease, expects a very productive “four-to-eight years”, saying Obama “is a fan of science and intellectual curiosity” and is committed to moving forward with research.

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The inauguration celebrations are over and the clean up begins as Barack Obama prepares for his first full day of work. 

It’s a big job. The recession shows no signs of easing and Wall Street ushered in the new presidency with a record Inauguration Day slide. Obama’s choice for treasury secretary, Timothy Geithner, will likely be asked at his Senate nomination hearing about the state of the economy and the new administration’s plans to shore up banks sagging under the burden of bad investment decisions.

Obama’s first day in the Oval Office is expected to be busy. He begins with the National Prayer Service at the National Cathedral and plans an open house for the public at the White House in the afternoon. He will also meet with economic advisers to discuss his proposed economic stimulus plan and proposals for dealing with bad bank assets.

Obama will also meet with Defense Secretary Robert Gates and other military advisers.

Major newspapers and morning talk shows full of stories about the inauguration and the record crowd that braved the cold to witness history. A lot of discussion about Michelle Obama’s wardrobe as well.

Photo credit: Reuters\Jason Reed  (First Lady Michelle Obama pulls up the train of her dress dancing with her husband on inauguration night)

Barack Obama became the first black president of the United States on Tuesday. In his much-anticipated inaugural speech, he said the “economy is badly weakened, a consequence of greed and irresponsibility on the part of some, but also our collective failure to make hard choices and prepare the nation for a new age.”

But the new president also said the United States remained “the most prosperous, powerful nation on Earth,” and that “we must pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and begin again the work of remaking America.”

What did you think of the speech? Did it meet the hype? Were you moved, or dismayed?

WASHINGTON - Rev. Joseph Lowery was back on stage with a president, but on Tuesday the civil-rights pioneer used his wry rhymes to welcome the U.S. leader, not skewer him as he did three years ago. 

Lowery, who co-founded the Southern Christian Leadership Conference with Martin Luther King Jr., delivered the benediction at Barack Obama’s inauguration as first black U.S. president.

Lowery prayed for healing from a era of “greed and corruption,” and asked, in verse, for divine help toward a new beginning of racial harmony:

“We ask you to help us work for that day when black will not be asked to get in back, when brown can stick around, when yellow will be mellow, when the red man can get ahead, man; and when white will embrace what is right,” Lowery said to laughter from the vast audience.

In 2006, speaking before then-president George W. Bush and three former presidents at the funeral of King’s widow, Coretta Scott King, Lowery delivered a stern rebuke to Bush’s conduct of the Iraq war and domestic policy.

“We know now there were no weapons of mass destruction over there. But Coretta knew, and we know, that there are weapons of misdirection right down here. Millions without health insurance. Poverty abounds. For war billions more, but no more for the poor,” he said then.

Critics charged that the remarks were out of place at a funeral. Lowery defended them as relevant to Mrs. King’s life.

Also speaking at the inauguration was evangelical pastor Rick Warren, who said in his invocation that “Dr. King and a great cloud of witnesses are shouting in Heaven” over Obama’s historic presidency.

Gay-rights supporters had criticized Obama for awarding the inaugural showcase to Warren, an influential supporter of a successful ballot measure to ban gay marriage in California.

But Lowery got the last word, and a chorus of Amens.

Photo credit: REUTERS/Jason Reed (Lowery speaks at Obama inauguration, Jan. 20)

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Critics of outgoing President George W. Bush turned a stretch of Pennsylvania Avenue outside the White House into a  rowdy street theater on the eve of his handover of power to Barack Obama.

An activist coalition calling itself ShoeBush.org piled a motley collection of dozens of old shoes, including tan combat boots said to have been worn by U.S. troops in Iraq and children’s bright yellow flip-flops, at what amounted to Bush’s doorstep.

“We wanted to shoo and boo Bush on his last day in office,” said Ann Wilcox of Washington D.C., who marched with the group of about 500 peace activists.

The footwear was tossed between Inaugural parade reviewing stands under watchful eyes of uniformed Secret Service officers. It was a reminder of an Iraqi journalist, Muntazer al-Zaidi, who hurled his two shoes at Bush during a news conference marking the outgoing president’s farewell visit to Iraq.

A hooded, black-clad man posing as the Grim Reaper stood nearby with a sign saying “Death thanks Bush and Cheney.” The reaper, in an interview, added: “They’ve been very good for business.” A giant Bush bobblehead in prisoner’s stripes paraded nearby, his hands in chains as if being led away under arrest.

Others handed out black and white postcard-sized signs urging “Arrest Bush” to the hundreds of onlookers, many who had come from afar to celebrate Obama’s swearing-in at the other end of Pennsylvania Avenue at noon on Tuesday.

“You voted for change now use your voice to demand justice,” the group’s handout urged. “Tell the new U.S. attorney general to appoint an independent special prosecutor to investigate the crimes of the Bush administration.”

Elsewhere on the street, about two dozens dancers from a group called DanceMetroDC staged an improvised dance fest. One of the dancers, pivoting to the four points of the compass, intoned “Change,  Change,  Change,  Change” as fellow dancers gyrated in turn.

Photo credit: REUTERS/Mike Segar (Bush bobblehead at Inaugural protest, Jan. 19)

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It’s been a brutal year for Wall Street, but the high rollers apparently still love a big, expensive party.

People who work in the finance industry have given at least $4.8 million to underwrite Barack Obama’s inauguration party, more than any other business sector, according to an analysis by the watchdog Center for Responsive Politics.

Obama’s team appears to have reached the $40 million goal it set to pay for the festivities. Roughly $6.8 million has come from those giving less than $200, according to the committee. But large donors have given at least $35 million.

While U.S. citizens can only give a maximum of $4,600 to help a candidate win office, there’s no legal limit to contributions for inaugural parties.

Obama’s Presidential Inaugural Committee has set a donor limit of $50,000, and has placed the names of large donors online in what the committee says is an unprecedented display of transparency.

Among those who gave the maximum: actresses Sharon Stone and Halle Barry (pictured); Microsoft Corp. founder Bill Gates and his wife Melinda; Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer and his wife; filmmakers Steven Spielberg and George Lucas; Motown founder Berry Gordy and music mogul Antonio “LA” Reid.

Financier George Soros, a prominent underwriter of liberal causes, and extended family contributed at least $250,000.

For some, $50,000 isn’t enough. At least 32 donors have “bundled” $300,000 from their friends and associates — the maximum allowed by the committee.

Among that select group is Citicorp executive Louis Susman, whose company has taken at least $45 billion in government bailout money.

“If history is any guide, these wealthy individuals, as well as the corporations and industries they represent, may more than recoup their investment in Obama through presidential appointments, favorable legislation and government contracts,” said Shelia Krumholz, executive director of the Center for Responsive Politics.

Inauguration committee spokeswoman Linda Douglass said large donors will not have undue influence in the Obama administration.

“He’s never given anyone a reason to believe that they will have any special consideration just because they’ve contributed,” Douglass said. Just as small donors and volunteers played a significant role in the campaign, regular Americans will continue to have input in the administration, she said.

The money raised by the committee, in chunks smaller than the $200,000 maximum set by President Bush’s inaugural committee, will enable the committee to provide free concerts and parties for the record crowds expected for the inauguration, Douglass said.

“What these donors are supporting is a very vigorous effort to make sure that all Americans feel connected to these events,” she said.

Photo credit: REUTERS/Chip East (Halle Berry in New York, Sept. 7)

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If the prospect of walking for miles in icy temperatures and heavy security is giving you second thoughts about attending the inauguration, Barack Obama has a suggestion.

Watch it on TV.

Or the Internet.

Or better yet, organize an inaugural ball in your neighborhood.

“You’ve probably heard the reports that unprecedented numbers of Americans are planning to join us in Washington,” Obama said Wednesday in a statement released by Presidential Inaugural Committee 2009.

“That will mean long lines, a tough time getting around, and most of all, a lot of walking on what could be a very cold winter day,” Obama warned.

“Fortunately, you don’t have to brave the crowds and commotion in order to participate in this celebration — because we’ve made this inauguration open and accessible to communities across our nation.”

Accessibility has a name: TV. Events begin Sunday afternoon with a celebration at the Lincoln Memorial.

“To allow Americans across the country to join us, HBO will broadcast the event for free that evening,” Obama said.

Then there will be an inaugural concert for kids Monday evening. Disney Channel will broadcast that one live — on radio and TV.

And on inauguration day, ABC will broadcast an inaugural ball — the Neighborhood Inaugural Ball — on TV and the Internet.

If watching on television makes you feel a bit left out, you can sign up to host your own neighborhood ball at home. There’s even a website: pic2009.com.

“We want you to be right there with us — wherever your neighborhood is,” Obama said.

Looking for still more? The president-elect has another suggestion: On Martin Luther King Day, do some community service work.

Don’t know where or how? Yup, there’s a website: USAservice.org.

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Photo credit: Reuters/Kevin Lamarque (Obama at his office on Wednesday); Reuters/Jim Young (Fence around the U.S. Capitol as inaugural construction work continues)

It’s one of the world’s most highly visible vehicles, but paradoxically also one of the most secret — the U.S. president’s armored Cadillac limousine.

The Secret Service said on Wednesday a new presidential limousine would make its debut at President-elect Barack Obama’s inauguration on Jan. 20. The car will likely take the new president from the U.S. Capitol down Pennsylvania Avenue to the White House after the swearing-in ceremony.

“Although many of the vehicle’s security enhancements cannot be discussed, it is safe to say that this car’s security and coded communications systems make it the most technologically advanced protection vehicle in the world,” Nicholas Trotta, assistant director for the Office of Protective Operations, said in a statement.

Not surprisingly, a Secret Service spokeswoman would not be drawn on whether the vehicle was resistant to  bomb or chemical attacks. But it would be a safe guess to say it is.

Cadillac, a division of General Motors Corp., issued its own statement on the new vehicle, saying it had taken steps to ensure no details of its design leaked out during its manufacture.

It said the vehicle, which is completely different to the one now being used by President George W. Bush, had been subjected to “an extreme testing regimen,” for which read: a lot of prototypes were blown up.

“The rear passenger area includes an extensive executive compartment with ample seating space, outward visibility and useful mobile office features,” it added.

The tradition of U.S. presidents using Cadillac limousines dates back to Woodrow Wilson. Franklin D. Roosevelt, Harry S. Truman and Dwight D. Eisenhower used two convertibles dubbed the “Queen Mary” and “Queen Elizabeth.”

“Named after the great ocean liners of the time, the vehicles were 21.5 feet long, weighed 7,660 pounds and were equipped with a full ammunition arsenal, two-way radios and heavy-duty generators,” Cadillac’s statement said.

It will probably be some years before we learn the secrets of Obama’s new limousine.

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Photo credit: Reuters/Handout (Secret Service handout photo of new Cadillac armored presidential limousine)

WASHINGTON - It’s official. The inauguration is an emergency for the District of Columbia.

President George W. Bush declared the emergency Tuesday, a week before the Jan. 20 swearing-in of the 44th president, Barack Obama.

Millions of people are expected to swarm the streets of Washington on inauguration day. Streets will be closed, bridges open only to taxis and the like, and security will be tight.

“The president’s action makes federal funding available to the District of Colombia,” White House spokeswoman Dana Perino said.

The District will be eligible for federal funds for “emergency protective measures that are undertaken to save lives and protect public health and safety” during Jan. 17-21, she said.

It was a sign that inauguration-related costs for the district could be higher than the $15 million already appropriated by the federal government for emergency planning and security.

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Photo credit: Reuters/Jonathan Ernst (Inaugural parade rehearsals Sunday in front of the White House. U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Derrick Brooks and U.S. Navy Yeoman First Class LaSean McCray stand in for Obama and his wife, Michelle)

Colin Powell wants you to help out more.

The former Secretary of State and Joint Chiefs chairman urged Americans on Friday to help out their country by volunteering, and pointed to a Web site set up by Barack Obama’s inaugural committee where they can find opportunities in their communities.

Powell said ordinary Americans could help Obama dig the country out of its economic rut by helping out in nearby schools or nursing homes.

“I think there’s a fervor for the new administration coming in, and I think the new president can tap into this fervor through this program,” Powell said at a news conference.

Powell, 71, served as Secretary of State for Republican President George W. Bush but endorsed Obama, a Democrat, shortly before the Nov. 4 election.

He said he had no interest in taking on a formal role in the Obama administration.

“I have not been offered a job and I’ve kind of made it clear that I’m not looking for a position,” he said.

Obama and his vice-president elect, Joe Biden will along with their families spend the day before the inauguration on a volunteer service project, inaugural commmittee spokeswoman Linda Douglas said.

Photo credit: REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst (Powell announces a volunteer initiative in Washington on Jan. 9, 2009)