{"version":"1.0","provider_name":"The News Journal","provider_url":"https:\/\/qa.thenewsjournal.net","title":"Lily man is witness to history of Trump inauguration &ndash; The News Journal","type":"rich","width":600,"height":338,"html":"<blockquote class=\"wp-embedded-content\" data-secret=\"vZRiRaXJ5s\"><a href=\"https:\/\/qa.thenewsjournal.net\/lily-man-witness-history-trump-inauguration\/\">Lily man is witness to history of Trump inauguration<\/a><\/blockquote><iframe sandbox=\"allow-scripts\" security=\"restricted\" src=\"https:\/\/qa.thenewsjournal.net\/lily-man-witness-history-trump-inauguration\/embed\/#?secret=vZRiRaXJ5s\" width=\"600\" height=\"338\" title=\"&#8220;Lily man is witness to history of Trump inauguration&#8221; &#8212; The News Journal\" data-secret=\"vZRiRaXJ5s\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" class=\"wp-embedded-content\"><\/iframe><script type=\"text\/javascript\">\n\/* <![CDATA[ *\/\n\/*! This file is auto-generated *\/\n!function(d,l){\"use strict\";l.querySelector&&d.addEventListener&&\"undefined\"!=typeof URL&&(d.wp=d.wp||{},d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage||(d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage=function(e){var t=e.data;if((t||t.secret||t.message||t.value)&&!\/[^a-zA-Z0-9]\/.test(t.secret)){for(var s,r,n,a=l.querySelectorAll('iframe[data-secret=\"'+t.secret+'\"]'),o=l.querySelectorAll('blockquote[data-secret=\"'+t.secret+'\"]'),c=new RegExp(\"^https?:$\",\"i\"),i=0;i<o.length;i++)o[i].style.display=\"none\";for(i=0;i<a.length;i++)s=a[i],e.source===s.contentWindow&&(s.removeAttribute(\"style\"),\"height\"===t.message?(1e3<(r=parseInt(t.value,10))?r=1e3:~~r<200&&(r=200),s.height=r):\"link\"===t.message&&(r=new URL(s.getAttribute(\"src\")),n=new URL(t.value),c.test(n.protocol))&&n.host===r.host&&l.activeElement===s&&(d.top.location.href=t.value))}},d.addEventListener(\"message\",d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage,!1),l.addEventListener(\"DOMContentLoaded\",function(){for(var e,t,s=l.querySelectorAll(\"iframe.wp-embedded-content\"),r=0;r<s.length;r++)(t=(e=s[r]).getAttribute(\"data-secret\"))||(t=Math.random().toString(36).substring(2,12),e.src+=\"#?secret=\"+t,e.setAttribute(\"data-secret\",t)),e.contentWindow.postMessage({message:\"ready\",secret:t},\"*\")},!1)))}(window,document);\n\/* ]]> *\/\n<\/script>\n","thumbnail_url":"https:\/\/qa.thenewsjournal.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/01\/McQueen-for-web.jpg","thumbnail_width":360,"thumbnail_height":480,"description":"Though reports on the attendance at President Donald Trump\u2019s inauguration ceremony last Friday vary, a Lily man and his friend were among the crowd, standing on the grounds of the U.S. Capitol for the event. \u201cIt was a once in a lifetime experience,\u201d said Chris McQueen, who attended the event with his friend Keegan Bray. The duo\u2019s quest to attend the inauguration began back in June during a vacation trip to Washington, D.C. Though admission to the museums and government buildings are free, some things do require passes such as the White House tour, and access to the Senate or House of Representatives visitor\u2019s gallery. McQueen said they stopped by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell\u2019s, R-Ky., office. McConnell\u2019s staff was very helpful in providing passes. \u201cIt was a very historical trip,\u201d McQueen said. \u201cAs we were coming home, I said ;No matter who wins in November, let\u2019s go to the inauguration.\u2019\u201d McQueen added. With that in mind, McQueen said he contacted McConnell\u2019s office and inquired about getting tickets. A staff member emailed McQueen back and said the duo had been put into the lottery system to win tickets. In mid-December McQueen received another email from McConnell\u2019s office to inform him that he had been selected to attend and asking whether he still planned to attend. \u201cThat is when we started planning the trip,\u201d McQueen said. One of the biggest hurdles was finding a place to stay. \u201cThe hotel we stayed in when were there in June cost $79 per night. McQueen said. That same hotel was already sold out even though it was charging $972 and change. I already knew we were in trouble.\u201d Even searching hotels within 100 miles of Washington, D.C. the duo was unable to find a room. That is when McQueen, a super fan of the classic television show \u201cThe Dukes of Hazzard,\u201d turned to one of his connections. Ben Jones, who played mechanic \u201cCooter\u201d on the show, and who later served as a Congressman, now lives in Virginia about 45 minutes from the capital. McQueen, who has full-size working replicas of the Dukes\u2019 General Lee Dodge Charger and Hazzard County Sheriff\u2019s car, had come to know Jones and his wife, Alma, through his love of the show. Jones is one of the cast members who has autographed his General Lee car. McQueen put in a call to Jones to ask if there were any hotels that may not appear on the websites that they may have a room. \u201cAlma said, \u2018Why don\u2019t you stay with us?\u2019\u201d The duo eagerly accepted the invitation and drove to the Jones log cabin home, part of which was built in the late 1700\u2019s. \u201cIt was another plus about the trip,\u201d McQueen said. \u201cWe got to stay with \u2018Cooter\u2019 at his house.\u201d McQueen said the trip continued to get better as they were leaving the \u201cMake America Great Again Celebration\u201d Thursday night outside the Lincoln Memorial. As the duo made their way to the DC Metro station after the event, they took a detour down a side street. As they approached the end of the street, McQueen said there were police at the end who had set up barricades to stop vehicle traffic at the end. A few minutes later, several officers riding motorcycles came down the street where the duo now stood on the sidewalk. As a veteran of the Kentucky State Police Division of Commercial Vehicle Enforcement, McQueen said he quickly recognized that the motorcycles were the beginnings of a motorcade. \u201cHere comes Donald Trump in the motorcade and he waves at us,\u201d McQueen said adding the windows of the Chevrolet Suburban were not tinted so you could look right in and see it was Trump. \u201cHe looked right over there and just waved,\u201d McQueen said adding from the sidewalk it was about approximately 15 to 20 feet to the vehicle. The duo got into Washington, D.C. at about 5 a.m. to make the journey to the Capitol in order to be in place for the ceremony scheduled for noon. Despite how the media portrayed it, McQueen said demonstrators were few and far between. \u201cYou would have a very small group of two to three people,\u201d McQueen said. \u201cThe media would automatically run over to them and film them.\u201d McQueen said those in attendance went through numerous checkpoints noting the whole National Mall area was fenced off and tickets were required. \u201cFurther on back you didn\u2019t need a ticket,\u201d McQueen explained. McQueen said he didn\u2019t worry about violence or some type of terrorist attack occurring. \u201cIt was a very secure area,\u201d McQueen said. \u201cWe were probably in the safest place on Earth that day.\u201d As to what he could actually see, McQueen said Trump and U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Robert appeared small from where the duo was standing, but he described the view as \u201cperfect.\u201d \u201cIt was a historical event,\u201d McQueen said. \u201cIt is something that I will remember for the rest of my life.\u201d &nbsp;"}