Jack Kingston

Washington, Dec 1 -

Congressman Jack Kingston (R/GA-1) today urged First District residents not to wait on tickets from his office to make plans to attend President-Elect Barrack Obama’s inauguration.  The Congressman’s office has received more than 2,000 requests for tickets for an allotment of less than 200 with more requests coming in daily.

“If I could accommodate every request, I would,” Congressman Kingston said, “but too much emphasis has been put on these tickets.  The Inaugural ceremonies are free of charge – these tickets get folks just a few feet closer at most.  The Park Service is expecting 1.5 million people and there aren’t even tickets for a quarter of those people.”

Tickets are not required to attend any event associated with the Inauguration except for the inaugural balls which are hosted by charities and other organizations.  The small number of tickets that are issued for the Inauguration are for the stands behind the podium and a small portion of the Mall closest to the Capitol. 

In preparation for the event, the U.S. Park Service is setting up big screens all along the mall to allow for all who care to take part in the festivities.  With the exception of the viewing stand, all areas along the inaugural parade route are open to the public free of charge.

Some, however, have tried to take advantage of the situation and are offering to sell tickets online.  A quick search of EBay shows a tickets being so for thousands of dollars.

“Don’t be fooled – none of the government-sponsored events have an admission charge,” said Congressman Kingston.  “There are those who will take advantage of folks looking to take part in this event and we cannot let that happen.  Do not buy tickets to the Inauguration or the Inaugural Parade from anyone.”

The only events which may have an admission cost are the inaugural balls which have not yet been planned or approved by the Presidential Inaugural Committee.

While Congressman Kingston cannot accommodate all the ticket requests, he is inviting the public to warm up at a reception in his office.

“I hope that anyone who can make it will come to witness this historic event,” said Congressman Kingston.  “If someone does make it to D.C., my door is open and we’ll have plenty of coffee, hot chocolate, and snacks available to keep folks warm.   Those of us from South Georgia aren’t used to the cold weather in D.C. so we’ve all got to stick together.”

For more information on officially-sanctioned events surrounding the inauguration, visit the Joint Congressional Committee on Inauguration Ceremonies at http://inaugural.senate.gov or the Presidential Inaugural Committee at www.pic2009.org.

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