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lanua^ 23.2013
A Day to Remember
c o n t i n u e d f r o m front
nation must "respond to the threat
of climate change" and tackle the
comprehensive immigration reform
that has eluded Washington for
years.
"Our journey is not complete until
we find a better way to welcome the
striving, hopeful immigrants who
still see America as a land of oppor
tunity," he said.
Obama urged the nation to set an
unwavering course toward prosper
ity and freedom for all its citizens
and protect the social safety net
that has sheltered the poor, elderly
and needy.
In an era of looming budget cuts,
he said the nation has a commitment
to costly programs such as Medi
care, Medicaid and Social Security.
"These things do not sap our initia
tive, they strengthen us," he said.
"Our country cannot succeed
when a shrinking few do very well
and a growing many barely make it,"
Obama said in his relatively brief,
18-minute address. "We believe that
rising
middle class," he added, echoing
his calls from the presidential cam
paign that catapulted him to re-elec
tion.
M o m e n ts e a r l i e r , O b a m a
p laced his hand on tw o B ibles -
one used by the R ev. M artin
L u th er K ing Jr. and the o th er
used by A braham L incoln - and
rec ite d the b rie f oath o f o ffice.
M ichelle O bam a held the B ibles,
one on top o f the other, as daugh-
ters M alia and S asha looked on.
VicePresidentJoeBidenwasalso
sworn in for his second term as the
nation's second in command.
Monday's oaths were purely cer-
emonial. The Constitution stipulates
that presidents begin their new term
at noon on Jan. 20, and in keeping
with that requirement, Obama was
sworn in Sunday in a small cer-
emony at the White House.
The inaugural fanfare spread
across the capital Monday, with a
joyful parade down Pennsylvania
Avenue and two glitzy inaugural
balls in the evening. The president
also lunched with lawmakers in the
S llh s c r ih p l
O U U d C Illje j
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U.S. Capitol building on the National Mall for the 57th Presidential
Inauguration on Monday in Washington.
Looking ahead to those chal
lenges, Obama implored Congress
to find common ground over the
next four years. And seeking to build
on the public support that cata
pulted him to the White House twice,
the president said the public has
"the obligation to shape the de
bates of our time."
"Not only with the votes we cast,
but with the voices we lift in defense
of our most ancient values and en
during ideals," Obama said.
Because inaugural celebrations
are historically not held on Sun
days, organizers pushed the public
events to Monday, the same day
the nation marked the late civil rights
USPS 959-680
Cari Hachmann
leader King's birthday.
Obama soaked in the history on
a day full of traditions as old as the
Republic. Gazing over the crowd
before retreating into the Capitol, he
said, "I want to take a look, one more
time. I'm not going to see this again. "
A fter a stu n n in g sunrise, the
w eath er fo r the sw earin g -in and
p arad e was c h illy — upper 30s
risin g into the lo w er 40s — and
o v e rc a st.
O nce the c eleb ra tio n s su b
side, O bam a w ill be co n fro n ted
w ith an array o f p ressin g p rio ri
ties: an econom y still stru g g lin g
to fully a recover, the fiscal fights
w ith a d iv id ed C o n g ress, and
new threats o f terrorism in N orth
A frica. T he p resid en t has also
p led g ed to tack le im m ig ratio n
refo rm and stric te r gun law s in
th e w a k e o f th e s c h o o l
sh o o tin g s in N ew tow n, C onn., -
- sw eeping dom estic reform s that
w ill req u ire help from relu ctan t
law m akers.
The president did not offer any
specific prescriptions for address
ing the challenges ahead, though
he is expected to offer more detail in
his Feb. 12 State of the Union ad
dress.
Asserting "America's possibili
ties are limitless," he declared at the
Capitol: "My fellow Americans, we
are made for this moment, and we
will seize it, so long as we seize it
together."
O b a m a's se c o n d in a u g u ra l
lacked the electric enthusiasm of
his first, when 1.8 m illion people
cram m ed onto the N ational Mall
to witness the sw earing-in o f the
nation's first black president. Far
few er people attended this year's
inauguration — officials estim ated
up to 800,000 people — but the
crowd still stretched from the Capi
tol to the W ashington M onum ent.
And shortly before the president
sp o k e , U .S . P a rk P o lic e a n
nounced that the public viewing
areas on the M all were full.
David Richardson of Atlanta and
his two young children were among
the early-goers who headed to the
Mall before sunrise.
"We wanted to see history, I think,
and also for the children to witness
that anything is possible through
hard work," Richardson said.
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Capitol following his address.
Sandwiched between the bruis-
ing presidential campaign and re-
lentless fiscal fights, Monday's in-
augural celebrations marked a brief
respite from the partisan gridlock
that has consumed the past two
years. Perhaps seeking a fresh start,
Obama invited several lawmakers to
the White House for coffee before
his speech, including the Republi-
can leaders with whom he has fre-
quently been at odds.
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