Politico:
  • n early meetings with the inaugural committee, officials privately indicated to reporters that the Jan. 20 event could be closed to reporters and cameras, with an official photograph supplied to press by White House photographer Pete Souza, sources familiar with the meeting told POLITICO.

    Fears of such a scenario were reignited this week when the Presidential Inauguration Committee sent out a press release, referring to a “private” inauguration.

    Both the White House and the committee note that “private” simply means the event is not open to the public and that press arrangements have not been formalized.

    The White House press corps acknowledges that nothing is set in stone. But even the possibility of a closed-press inauguration has stirred up immense frustration among the White House press corps, who note that past Sunday inaugurations were open to press.

    “Call me shell-shocked. I’m stunned that this is even an issue; it boggles the mind,” NBC News White House correspondent Chuck Todd told POLITICO. “This is not their oath, this is the constitutional oath. It’s not for them. It’s for the public, the citizens of the United Sates. It just boggles the mind. How is this even a debate?”

    Minutes from this week’s WHCA meeting noted “strong sentiment that the entire press pool must witness the moment.”

    “We are urging the White House to reconsider any preliminary plans they have at the moment to keep this as a closed event,” C-SPAN political Editor Steve Scully told POLITICO. “This is a historic event and it should be chronicled by news organizations. At a minimum, it should be a pooled event.”


I'm sure that the possibility of closing the ceremony has nothing to do with Obama wanting to take the Oath of Office on the Koran...






....or the Necronomicon.


;\)