Time to act, Obama declares, taking oath 2nd time
BY DAVID ESPO Associated Press
Tuesday, January 22, 2013
1/22/13 at 6:59 AM
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Original Print Headline: Call to action
WASHINGTON - Turning the page on years of war and recession, President Barack Obama summoned a divided nation Monday to act with "passion and dedication" to broaden equality and prosperity at home, nurture democracy around the world and combat global warming as he embarked on a second term before a vast and cheering crowd that spilled down the historic National Mall.
"America's possibilities are limitless, for we possess all the qualities that this world without boundaries demands," the 44th president declared in a second inaugural address that broke new ground by assigning gay rights a prominent place in the wider struggle for equality for all.
In a unity plea to politicians and the nation at large, he called for "collective action" to confront challenges and said, "Progress does not compel us to settle centuries-long debates about the role of government for all time - but it does require us to act in our time."
Elected four years ago as America's first black president, Obama spoke from specially constructed flag-bedecked stands outside the Capitol after reciting the oath of office that all presidents have uttered since the nation's founding.
The events highlighted a day replete with all the fanfare that a security-minded capital could muster - from white-gloved Marine trumpeters who heralded the arrival of dignitaries on the inaugural stands to the mid-winter orange flowers that graced the tables at a traditional lunch with lawmakers inside the Capitol.
The weather was in the mid-40s, and while the crowd was not as large as on Inauguration Day four years ago, it was estimated at up to 1 million.
Big enough that he turned around as he was leaving the inaugural stands to savor the view one final time.
"I'm not going to see this again," said the man whose political career has been meteoric - from the Illinois Legislature to the U.S. Senate and the White House before marking his 48th birthday.
On a day of renewal for democracy, everyone seemed to have an opinion, and many seemed eager to share it.
"I'm just thankful that we've got another four years of democracy that everyone can grow in," said Wilbur Cole, 52, a postman from suburban Memphis, Tenn., who spent part of the day visiting the civil rights museum there at the site where the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated in 1968.
The inauguration this year shared the day with King's birthday holiday, and the president used a Bible that had belonged to the civil rights leader for the swearing-in, along with a second one that had been Abraham Lincoln's. The president also paused inside the Capitol Rotunda to gaze at a dark bronze statue of King.
Others watching at a distance were less upbeat than Cole.
Frank Pinto, 62, an unemployed construction contractor, took in the inaugural events on television at a bar in Hartford, Conn. He said because of the president's policies, "My grandkids will be in debt and their kids will be in debt."
The tone was less overtly political in the nation's capital, where bipartisanship was on the menu in the speechmaking and at the congressional lunch.
"Congratulations and Godspeed," House Speaker John Boehner, a Republican, said to Obama and Vice President Joe Biden as he presented them with flags that had flown atop the Capitol.
Biden also took a ceremonial oath of office Monday from Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor, a day after he was formally sworn in during a private ceremony Sunday at his residence, the U.S. Naval Observatory.
Outside, the Inaugural Parade took shape, a reflection of American musicality and diversity that featured military units, bands and floats
As recent predecessors have, the president emerged from his car and walked several blocks on foot.
His wife, Michelle, was with him, and the two held hands while acknowledging the cheers from well-wishers during two separate strolls along the route.
A pair of nighttime inaugural balls completed the official proceedings, with a guest line of tens of thousands.
In his 18-minute speech, Obama did not dwell on the most pressing challenges of the past four years. He barely mentioned the struggle to reduce the federal deficit.
"A decade of war is now ending. An economic recovery has begun," said the president who presided over the end to the U.S. combat role in Iraq, set a timetable for doing the same in Afghanistan and took office when the worst recession in decades was still deepening.
"We will support democracy from Asia to Africa, from the Americas to the Middle East, because our interests and our conscience compel us to act on behalf of those who long for freedom," he said in a relatively brief reference to foreign policy.
The former community organizer made it clear he views government as an engine of progress. While that was far from surprising for a Democrat, his emphasis on the need to combat global climate change was unexpected, as was his firm new declaration of support for full gay rights.
In a jab at climate-change doubters, he said, "Some may still deny the overwhelming judgment of science, but none can avoid the devastating impact of raging fires and crippling drought and more powerful storms." He said America must lead in the transition to sustainable energy resources.
He likened the struggle for gay rights to earlier crusades for women's suffrage and racial equality.
"Our journey is not complete until our gay brothers and sisters are treated like anyone else under the law - for if we are truly created equal, then surely the love we commit to one another must be equal as well," said the president, who waited until his campaign for re-election last year to announce his support for gay marriage.
His speech hinted only barely at issues likely to spark opposition from Republicans who hold power in the House.
He defended Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security as programs that "do not make us a nation of takers; they free is to take the risks that made this country great."
He referred briefly to making "the hard choices to reduce the cost of health care and the size of our deficit," a rhetorical bow to a looming debate in which Republicans are seeking spending cuts in health care programs to slow the rise in a $16.4 trillion national debt.
He also cited a need for legislation to ease access to voting, an issue of particular concern to minority groups, and to immigration reform and gun-control legislation that he is expected to go into at length in his State of the Union speech on Feb. 12.
Some official business was conducted during the day.
Moments after being sworn in, the president signed nomination papers for four new appointees to his Cabinet - Sen. John Kerry for secretary of state, White House chief of staff Jacob Lew to be treasury secretary, former Nebraska Sen. Chuck Hagel for defense secretary and White House adviser John Brennan to head the CIA.
Associated Images:
President Barack Obama makes a plea for unity and reveals his expectations for his second term during his inaugural speech at the U.S. Capitol on Monday. PABLO MARTINEZ MONSIVAIS / Associated Press
President Barack Obama arrives at the ceremonial swearing-in at the U.S. Capitol during the 57th Presidential Inauguration in Washington on Monday. EVAN VUCCI, POOL / Associated Press
President Barack Obama kisses first lady Michelle Obama as their daughters, Sasha (left) and Malia, have some fun during the inaugural parade in Washington on Monday. Thousands marched before an estimated 1 million attendees after the ceremonial swearing-in of the 44th president. GERALD HERBERT / Associated Press
A crowd estimated at up to 1 million fills the National Mall to watch the ceremonial swearing-in of President Barack Obama at the U.S. Capitol on Monday. J. SCOTT APPLEWHITE / Associated Press
President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama walk down Pennsylvania Avenue during the 57th Presidential Inauguration parade Monday. CHARLES DHARAPAK / Associated Press
President Obama and Michele Obama (left) Army Maj. Gen. Michael Linnington (center) and Vice President Joe Biden and his wife, Jill Biden, review the troops following the swearing in. CLIFF OWEN / Associated Press
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