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Obama team outlines 4-day inauguration schedule

(Agencies)
Updated: 2008-12-11 00:21

CHICAGO – President-elect Barack Obama's inauguration will be a four-day event, featuring the traditional balls plus a national day of service to honor Martin Luther King's holiday.

Workers construct the inaugural platform at the west front of the Capitol in Washington, December 4, 2008, in preparation for Barack Obama's inauguration on Janury 20, 2009. [Agencies]

The theme is "Renewing America's Promise."

Obama's aides on Wednesday released a preliminary schedule for the events that are expected to draw millions of visitors to Washington to witness the swearing in of the country's first black president. The schedule also includes a national prayer service the day after Obama and Vice President-elect Joe Biden take office on Jan. 20.

Obama says in a statement that the events are designed to renew Americans' faith in their country. He says he hopes the events unify the country amid its economic struggles.