Reader Report: Newport couple attend inauguration and meet with Chief Justice Roberts

For those of us fortunate enough to attend President Donald Trump’s inauguration, it was all good, except for the bad parts.

First, the good.

Most importantly, we had a (mostly) peaceful transition of power, from Barack Obama to Trump. At the inauguration ceremony, our three separate branches of government came together.

With past presidents attending, we witnessed Chief Justice John Roberts administer the oath of office to the 45th president on the steps of the Capitol. It was thrilling to be there in person for this historic event.

In his opening remarks, the chairman of the inaugural committee, Sen. Roy Blunt (R-Mo.), reminded us of famous lines from inaugural addresses from past presidents. Quoting Ronald Reagan, Blunt said, “In the eyes of many in the world, this every-four-year ceremony we accept as normal is nothing less than a miracle.”

The weather was relatively good. Temperatures were warmer than average, in the high ‘40s and low ‘50s, with only a light occasional drizzle. It could have been much worse, like it was for Reagan’s second inauguration, where the high temperature that day was just 7 degrees with a wind chill factor of minus 25.

Thankfully, there were no terrorist attacks, foreign or domestic. This was a huge relief for the entire nation, but especially for those of us in attendance. As you can imagine, the security was extraordinarily tight, with a well-coordinated effort from the local and Capitol police, Secret Service, Homeland Security and Virginia and Maryland state troopers.

We were met with some of the Bikers For Trump, who offered their services along the parade route, but that extra layer of security was politely declined.

The streets were not just closed with the usual barricades, but physically blocked off with sand-filled dump trucks and police cruisers, parked end-to-end, or other extreme measures, for three to four blocks around the entire area, from the Capitol to the White House. At least we felt safe.

On the day before the inauguration, at Arlington National Cemetery, we saw Trump and soon-to-be Vice President Mike Pence wave to the crowd as they arrived in their mile-long motorcade for a wreath-laying ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.

After their visit to Arlington, Trump and Pence crossed back over the Potomac to attend the Inaugural Concert in front of the Lincoln Memorial. There were several acts, including a stirring rendition of “America the Beautiful” by Sam Moore, the ever-popular “God Bless the USA” by Lee Greenwood and a country-music set by the legendary Toby Keith, followed by a spectacular fireworks show.

After the inauguration, of course, came the inaugural balls — three official (meaning Trump attended) and several more unofficial balls. We chose to attend one of the unofficial balls, hosted by our own congressman, Dana Rohrabacher (R-Costa Mesa), held at the gorgeous Great Hall of the Library of Congress. We saw some of our friends from Newport Beach at the ball, including Tim and Valerie Fernandez, Bob McCaffery, Paul and Pamela Jenson, and David Stone and Aileen Karstofsky.

This ball turned out to be much better than one of the official balls. We had a grand venue, gourmet sit-down dinner with delicious wines and an open bar, a fabulous 12-piece orchestra and a spacious dance floor — truly an elegant night.

Now for the bad parts.

In contrast to our ball, the official balls, we were told, were quite disappointing. They had long lines and delays to get through security, with offensive protestors shouting profanities. And then once inside the unglamorous convention center, there was no place to sit, nothing to eat, and it was so over-crowded it was uncomfortable.

I’m not complaining, but let’s just say if you don’t like huge crowds and long lines, you are much better off watching the inauguration, the parade and the ball at home on TV.

Umbrellas were among the many forbidden items at the inauguration, so everyone had to stand on soggy grass for hours, in a light drizzle, wearing just a rain coat or a poncho. We left our hotel at 7 a.m. for the ceremony, which started at 11:30. Others who arrived for the ceremony any time after 10 a.m. were unable to get through security, even with an admission ticket, because it was just too crowded.

The protestors were everywhere. At first they were well-behaved and a bit of a curiosity. But that changed later in the day when several of them rioted, threw rocks at the police, smashed windows, vandalized a bank building and lit a limousine on fire.

But the highlight of our week in D.C. was our visit to the U.S. Supreme Court, where we had a private, 15-minute meeting with Chief Justice John Roberts in his chambers. After our visit, we were escorted to his private box seats, on the right side of the courtroom next to the bench, for oral arguments on two cases. We then had lunch in the Supreme Court cafeteria and an hour-long private tour of the courthouse. No photos are allowed, but I did get his autograph. The chief justice graciously signed my book, “The Nine” (about the Supreme Court), “To Michael and Barbara, with every good wish, John G. Roberts, Jr.”

Roberts was warm and charming. The meeting came about because I wrote to him two weeks earlier to say we would be in D.C. for the inauguration and were hoping to meet him. In my letter I said, “Thirty-six years ago we both interviewed with Justice Rehnquist to be his law clerk. You got the job, and I came in second place (I was told.) I was, at the time, the finance director for Reagan’s inaugural ball committee. I then worked as an assistant U.S. attorney in the Solicitor General’s Office before moving back to California to start my own law practice. In 2007, I took three years off from my practice and circumnavigated on my own 47-foot sailboat, visiting 61 countries around the world.”

I was hoping to catch his attention, and I did.

During our meeting, I wondered aloud to the chief, what if he were sick that day and had to miss the interview with Rehnquist, and what if I got that clerkship instead of him, and what might that have led to for each of us? He replied, with a smile, “You mean you might have had this job, and I could have sailed around the world?”

At the inauguration ceremony, there were many street vendors selling T-shirts and hats. I bought a forward-thinking campaign button that said, “Re-elect Trump in 2020.”

We had so much fun in DC for the Inaugural that we are already planning for that trip.

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Attorney MICHAEL LAWLER lives in Newport Beach.