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CMU Making Final Preparations For Presidential Visit

PITTSBURGH (KDKA) – President Barack Obama jumped aboard a bus today to begin his two-day tour of Ohio and Pennsylvania.

The vehicle is a heavily armored black tour bus that was purchased last year by the Secret Service.

Pittsburgh will be the final stop on the president's tour and he'll speak at CMU's Center for the Arts lawn.

The campus is buzzing in anticipation as they prepare for the visit.

Around 2 p.m. Friday, President Obama will address a lawn full of people. Today, people were picking up the last remaining tickets to attend.

As crews prepared the lawn on the CMU campus, one by one, people trickled in to the President Obama Campaign Office for a ticket.

"It's not every day you get to meet the president or see the President of the United States in person," Hunter Stokes said.

"It's history. I mean, anytime we can be in his presence, it was something that I needed to do," Lynn Scott said.

Tickets were available starting Tuesday where lines went down the street.

The president's stop in Pittsburgh is the last of a two-day bus tour where he's expected to speak about his past three years in office and his efforts over that time.

"I've never seen him before. I've seen him on TV and I think that's pretty cool so in person, it'll be great," Marianna Scott said.

Heat could be a problem tomorrow though. Without many trees, people will be left vulnerable to the sun and are asked to get to the campus over three hours before the event.

At the Campaign Office, people picking up tickets were told that chairs and umbrellas were not allowed and while water will be provided tomorrow, you cannot bring your own bottle past security.

But, some say they'll battle it out in the heat wave just to get a glimpse of the president.

Carnegie Mellon University officials are advising people coming tomorrow to take public transportation as parking will be limited and will go very quickly.

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