MARQUETTE -- UPDATE - 6:45 p.m., Tuesday
President Obama will only be in the U.P. for about three hours on Thursday. That's according to the itinerary released by the White House Thursday morning.
The president will be spending just the afternoon in Marquette County. He's coming to discuss N.M.U.'s WiMax network and how it's impacted the university, as well as the surrounding community.
In his State of the Union address just a few weeks ago, President Obama called for a 'National Wireless Initiative.'
"We'll make it possible for businesses to deploy the next generation of high-speed wireless coverage to 98 percent of all Americans," said President Obama in his speech.
And the WiMax network in Marquette is a model example of what the President is looking for in the future.
"We're a little campus with big ideas making it happen right here, and we're just so proud that President Obama has noticed," says Dr. Les Wong, N.M.U.'s president.
Air Force One will land at Sawyer International Airport at approximately 11:45 a.m. The arrival and departure of the President's plane will not be open to the public.
From Sawyer, the President will go to Marquette. It's still unclear whether or not he will travel by motorcade.
Upon arriving at the campus, Mr. Obama is scheduled to see a demonstration of how the network, which covers 30-square miles, has enabled distance learning for university and community students.
"We really think this 4G-type technology is just perfect for rural areas; it's really worked out well for us," Dr. Wong adds.
Tuesday, crews were setting up Vandament Arena. That's where the President will give his speech on the National Wireless Initiative to about a thousand people around 1:15 p.m.
Public attendance is by invitation only.
So why is President Obama coming to Marquette? What is the city and N.M.U. doing that caught the attention of our nation's leader? According to Gene Sperling, the assistant to the President for economic policy, Mr. Obama chose Marquette to lay out the details of his proposal.
"To [come to] a place like Marquette, Michigan, to bring it to life, and to be in northern Michigan with students, looking at a distance learning project is a great way to make something that might seem abstract for a lot of Americans, very tangible, very real, and he's very much looking forward to it," said Sperling, Tuesday, speaking on behalf of President Obama.
There's been a lot of questions about how someone could get an invite to President Obama's speech. President Wong said Tuesday afternoon that Mr. Obama requested that the gathering be mostly students.
Invitations were delivered Tuesday to the approximately 800-900 students selected to attend, based on their leadership or innovation at the university.
Air Force One is scheduled to depart from Sawyer around 3 p.m.
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UPDATE 11:30 a.m., Tuesday
Here's the latest information we've been able to learn about the President's visit on Thursday.
He'll be arriving on Air Force One at Sawyer International Airport at about 11:45 a.m. The arrival will be open only to the media, not to the public. TV6 is planning to broadcast the arrival live.
The President will then be driven to NMU where he'll get a demonstration of the university's WiMax network in an NMU classroom. This will be open only to pool coverage and, of course, to some members of the NMU community.
He'll then give a speech at Vandament Arena at NMU to an invited audience, along with media. The bulk of those invitations is expected to go to members of the NMU community. The precise distribution of those invitations is still being worked out.
WLUC-TV6 is planning to carry the speech live, at approximately 1:20 p.m.
Following the speech, the President is expected to return to Sawyer where his departure is scheduled for 3 p.m. TV6 is planning to cover the departure live.
We've asked about additional stops along the way. So far, officials have said nothing is planned. Lunch while he's in Marquette? Nothing planned at this point.
TV6, FOX UP and uppermichiganssource.com will be covering the entire visit with several reporters and camera crews. We'll be updating the Website, Facebook, and Twitter on a frequent basis, and we're expecting our Website visitors and Facebook and Twitter followers to help cover the visit, as well.
More updates later today as we get them.
7:45 a.m. Eastern
On Thursday, February 10, President Obama will travel to Marquette, where local businesses have been able to grow as a result of broadband access, with particular benefit in exporting goods to new markets around the world.
In his State of the Union Address, the President called for a National Wireless Initiative to help businesses extend the next generation of wireless coverage to 98 percent.
The next generation wireless network in Marquette is an effective demonstration of how the President’s proposal to open up airwaves will spark new innovation, put people back to work, grow the economy, and help America win the future.
The President will deliver remarks on the National Wireless Initiative at Northern Michigan University. Public attendance is by invitation only.
Prior to delivering remarks, the President will see a demonstration of how the University’s WiMAX network has enabled distance learning for university and community students and will meet local business owners who have used broadband access to grow their businesses.
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