As President George W. Bush prepares to give his inaugural address today, various student groups and State College residents are prepared to show either their support or discontent for the re-elected president.

College Democrats President Megan Green said the group was sponsoring a day trip to Washington, D.C., for anyone who wanted to participate.

"It's actually a lot of people who aren't in our group," she said. "[They] want to show their distaste for the president's administration."

Green said the College Democrats had been working with a group called A.N.S.W.E.R., or Act Now to Stop War and End Racism. She added that much of the focus of the 45-person trip would be on the war in Iraq.

"We stopped searching for weapons of mass destruction," Green said. "What's the point?"

Andy Banducci, College Republicans chairman, said he would not attend any of the inaugural festivities in Washington, D.C.

"I have class," he said. "And I can't get away in the middle of the week. I'll be watching it on TV."

He said an informal group of people from the College Republicans was planning on making their own trip without the official backing of the student group.

"We've had problems with rides," Banducci said. "Hopefully we'll get some people to go down."

Banducci said he expected to hear good things from Bush in his speech, and he was not surprised that a trip sponsored by the College Democrats was being organized.

"That's their right," he said. "If they want to go down and express their distaste that's fine, but it's kind of moot. The people have spoken."

Barbara Ballenger, a State College resident, decided to take matters into her own hands when her busy schedule prohibited her family from traveling to Washington, D.C., to protest the inauguration.

"We thought maybe wouldn't it be kind of fun to have a little counter-inaugural dance," she said. "The more we thought, we thought it was kind of a hoot."

To express their discontent, Ballenger and her husband decided to create the "State College Counter-Inaugural Ball," but she added that she would be "really impressed" if more than five people attended.

Ballenger said it was a last-minute decision to hold the faux ball in front of the Allen Street Gates at 7 tonight. "I'll be wearing a ball gown with a turtleneck," she said. She added that she and her husband wanted to wear masks of President Bush and Laura Bush.

Expensive events, however, have the tendency to distract people from important issues, Ballenger said.

"These inaugural balls are to the tune of $40 million," she said. "So many things are being undercut by this organization. It's easy to forget that so many people are opposed to the war and what's going on in our country."

Dan Saniski, Allies' social director, said there was nothing official planned by the group in conjunction with the inaugural events.

"We're supposed to be non-partisan," he said. "I wouldn't be surprised if there was something unofficial going on."

He added that a reason for the lack of formal involvement had to do with the principles Allies represents.

"We have a platform of creating safe space," he said. "We make things that are safe for everybody."