Politico on the lightning speed with which the permanent White House staff have to move in order to prepare for a new First Family:
The two First Families will meet at 10 a.m. – and as soon as the Bushes
and Obamas leave around 11 a.m. for the Inauguration ceremony, the
clock on the changeover from one administration to the next begins its
final countdown. The White House residence staff has about six hours
until the new occupants return from the parade about 5 p.m.
“At that point, the White House residence staff goes into what I call
organized chaos,” said Gary J. Walters, the chief White House usher
from 1986 to 2006.
Moving vans do pull into the driveway. Any remaining Bush items are
carried out, the Obamas’ belongings moved in. For the next six hours,
the staff will do “whatever the Obamas have directed the chief usher to
do to make the house their home,” Walters said.
It means placing the right stuffed animals on the daughters’ beds, and
stocking the refrigerator with their favorite breakfast foods. Even if
Obama forgoes a complete redecoration of the Oval Office, the staff
will switch out paintings, busts and photographs to give it a personal
touch.
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