Night of dancing draws thousands Independent King among revelers

WASHINGTON — It was a spectacular moment for some Mainers when President George W. Bush and his wife, Laura, took to a ballroom stage and thanked them for their support and dedication.

“He was amazing,” said Dick Campbell, a former GOP legislator from Holden, Maine, giving the new president two thumbs up.

Bush made the ball at the Wardman Park Marriott in northwest Washington his last stop before going to bed. Representatives from 18 states, including Maine, cheered loudly when the new president danced the final inauguration dance of the evening with his wife.

About 4,000 people attended the ball, among them independent Gov. Angus King and his wife, Mary Herman. “This is great,” King said when Wayne Newton performed. “Now I don’t have to go to Las Vegas to see him.”

Attendees had to wait in long lines and pass through metal detectors to get into the ballroom. At times it was so crowded that the guests could not get in at all until someone else left. Once inside, they snacked on fruit and little pastries while trying to decipher what their friends were screaming into their ears. Most men were dressed in traditional black and white, while the women sported colorful but elegant long ball gowns.

A live band played everything from Ricky Martin songs to Marvin Gaye, while hundreds of people moved around the dance floor. “This is so exciting,” said Felicia Knight, spokeswoman for Sen. Susan Collins of Maine, on her way to dance with her husband.

All told, an estimated 500 Mainers attended inaugural festivities.

Because of the bad weather, quite a few Mainers skipped the inaugur-al parade. But most of them met up at the ball to finish celebrating an extraordinary day and to swap impressions.

“Bush gave a terrific speech,” King said. “In fact, he touched on a lot of points I will address in my State of the State address next week.” It was the first time that King had sat on the platform for a presidential inaugural address, and he said he was able to watch the crowd.

Sam Patten, Bush’s campaign coordinator in Maine and a Collins legislative assistant, called the day a “long overdue celebration after a roller-coaster ride.”