Joint Task Force-Armed Forces Inaugural Committee

The Armed Forces Inaugural Committee (AFIC) coordinates the United States Armed Forces participation in the ten-day period of U.S. Presidential Inauguration Day ceremonies. That traditionally includes musical military units, marching bands, color guards, ushers, firing details, and salute batteries. AFIC also provides a "very limited amount of approved logistical support."

The military has participated in inaugural day ceremonies since President Washington. Since the first inauguration of Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1953, that participation has been formalized into a committee, originally called the Armed Forces Inaugural Committee.

AFIC is a temporary joint military command established every four years at the direction of the Secretary of Defense. For what became the second inauguration of George W. Bush, the committee was established in February 2004. Between then and Inauguration Day itself, the organization grew to about 400 people by December and over 700 people in January 2005.

The ten-day period of the ceremonies marking the second inauguration of Richard Nixon in 1973 were marred by the passing of his predecessor, Lyndon Johnson, just two days into Nixon's second term. The remainder of the ceremonies were cancelled, as the military would have to deal with the state funeral for the nation's 36th president. Because of the inauguration, all the military men who participated in the inauguration participated in the state funeral.

External links

*Military District of Washington
* [http://www.jfhqncr.northcom.mil/afic/ Official military website]
* [http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/news/columnists.nsf/militarymatters/story/B8FC05E7F16A3A9186256F75005E79FB?OpenDocument ... protecting Bush on Inauguration Day] , a December 2004 article about the JTF-AFIC from the "St. Louis Post-Dispatch"