Barack Obama speech to joint session of Congress, February 2009 Barack Obama speech to joint session of Congress, February 2009 The 44th President of the United States, Barack Obama, gave his first public address before a joint session of the United States Congress on Tuesday, February 24, 2009. Similar to a State of the Union address, it was delivered before the 111th United States Congress in the Chamber of the United States House of Representatives in the United States Capitol. Presiding over this joint session was the House Speaker, Nancy Pelosi. Accompanying the Speaker of the House was the President of the United States Senate, Joe Biden, the Vice President
First inauguration of Barack Obama parade. President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama attended 10 official inaugural balls during the evening of January 20, 2009. Barack Obama wore a new tuxedo made by Hart Schaffner Marx, a Chicago-based menswear company. He also wore a white bow tie, instead of the conventional black. Traditionalists considered this a fashion faux pas, as a white tie is conventionally only worn with a white waistcoat and tails. Michelle Obama wore a white, one-shouldered, sleeveless gown designed by 26-year-old New York-based designer Jason Wu, breaking with the recent practice set by former first ladies Laura Bush and Hillary Clinton,