WASHINGTON — Before a jubilant crowd of more than a million, Barack Hussein Obama claimed his place in history as America's first black president, summoning...
WASHINGTON — A schedule of some official and unofficial activities surrounding Barack Obama's inauguration on Jan. 20: ___ MONDAY, JAN. 19 _ National Day of...
Despite some very true and obvious comparisons between the two, I feel it's my duty to nip the coming onslaught of Washington/Obama comparisons in the bud.
In Amman, demonstrators took to the streets Tuesday to celebrate Bush's departure by tossing shoes at a banner with his picture on it. They did not, however, celebrate Obama's inauguration.
As President Obama takes the oath of office, we want to make sure that he does not forget his promises of support for our military families and veterans.
Ordinary Russians and thousands of expats are celebrating the inauguration their own way. For being former Cold War foes, Russians are surprisingly supportive of Barack Obama.
Until today, I had only known two kinds of presidents, those who I really didn't like and those who I tolerated. Obama is something different, a president who I actually believe in.
On this historic day, I thought it would be instructive to look back on just how wrong some of the pundits were when Barack Obama launched his bid for the presidency two years ago.
What can a good Republican say about the week that has unfolded? I'm not sure. But speaking as an American, all I can say is that I'm damn proud to be a part of this great republic.
When the flags are hoisted and that beautiful sea of hues gathers on the Mall and that biracial Black man from Hawai'i raises his hand to take an oath, I am sure I will cry.
Forty-five years ago, I stood on the west tip of the Mall and heard the first great speech of my life -- Dr. King's "I Have a Dream." Today I stood on the east end to hear Obama redeem that dream.
Live commentary and photos from HuffPosters on the ground at inauguration events across Washington. Come inside and join the liveblog, and send us your photos from DC.
Obama's inaugural address was a good speech, but not truly canonical. Nevertheless, the inaugural address contained many passages that will enter into the mystic chords of memory.
If nothing else, this week the city of Washington was Obamafied. People went not just to celebrate, but to bear witness, to be together, to physically join the concise ritual of swearing in the president.
Obama is a storyteller. His speeches lay out a vision of the country he sees and the country he would like to see. Storytellers are usually observers, not participants -- and Obama is both.
On this historic of historic days, for this watershed moment which has marked itself as both synchronistic and sacred by its proximity to others of similar caliber, I humbly congratulate Barack Obama.
I cannot help but think of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., who 47 years ago stood on steps of the Lincoln Memorial and spoke of his dream. Tuesday, that long-awaited, long-fought-for dream of equality was realized.
We've produced a lot of shows but never one that came together this quickly -- or where everyone involved is so caught up with the privilege of being part of an occasion.
Martin Luther King and the civil rights movement leaders defined their mission: "to save the soul of America." Obama's address can serve as a reminder of that incomplete mission.
Obama must fill leadership positions with a diverse and critical mass of women who can govern alongside men and bring the new solutions to the table that we so desperately need.
As boos sounded upon the introduction of the outgoing president, vice-president and the lower tier of supporting players in the neo-con Grand Guignol, the people, clearly, have found their voice.
We are all taught as children not to talk to strangers, but during those hours standing still or barely inching along during the Inauguration Day traffic, I violated that rule repeatedly.
There was something very powerful about watching this relatively young man, one of the youngest to ever hold the highest office in the land, telling the American people to grow up.
As great as it was to watch an African American man take the oath using Abraham Lincoln's bible, I was even more moved listening to Obama's inauguration address.
The celebrities who have descended on the town provide a sharp contrast to the old, stodgy (and let's face it, overly white) days of being overrun by the helmet heads of the GOP.
The day after the inauguration, I will be joining religious leaders at the National Prayer Service for our new president. I will pray that this new era can change the image of religion in our country.
Jesus, this is a tough crowd. What's with everyone dissing the hat? Why didn't anyone find it aesthetically logical? And in any case, who cares? Aretha's got gravitas, presence.
It turns out that a lot of people in my circle knew all about this Barack Obama long before I did. All I had to do was listen and be smart enough to remember.
There isn't a lot that can stop these pedicabs, something that was evident last night in Downtown DC. Traffic, traffic everywhere, and the pedicabs sailing right on through.
While watching the celebrations in the run up to this Tuesday's inauguration, I was struck by the realization that we are seeing an America George Bush and Dick Cheney did not want us to see.
Dr. King's dream isn't ending with President Obama's inauguration. Instead, President Obama now has the opportunity to take that dream to the next level.
Obama may yet prove a disappointment. The task asked of him may be too great. But for the moment that is of no account. American democracy has delivered, and done so spectacularly.
Each of us is called to "pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off and begin again the work of remaking America." It is a challenge that we can not afford to ignore.
When Obama climbed from his limo to greet crowds assembled outside the National Archives and Navy Memorial, he followed the suggestion of the Memorial's designer William Conklin.
Miss Manners says you cannot permit a bravo for an operatic performance without also permitting a boo. Can we extrapolate to politicians on state occasions?
We can't talk about what happened today without conceding that there's at least something to Great Man Theory. But I'm not talking about Obama -- I'm talking about Bush.
The anger and feeling of betrayal that was so evident on that warm, sunny fall day in 1967 were nowhere to be seen on this bitterly cold, intermittently sunny winter day in 2009.
The omission of the prayer delivered by openly-gay Episcopal Bishop Gene Robinson from the HBO broadcast of the pre-inaugural concert is creating a new controversy surrounding the inauguration.
I was one of the 2 million folks who braved the elements to attend the Inauguration. I expected cold and confusion and craziness and I got it in spades. I did it anyway.
Watching the speech again after the Inauguration, and watching the world watch it, realizing that there was not a corner of the globe that wasn't listening, I think it is fair to have expected more.
Tehran will likely interpret Obama's declared interest in finding a new way forward based on mutual respect as a clear -- and very positive -- signal to the Middle East in general, and to Iran in particular.
A hearty congratulations to America. After a dark stretch of wandering into the dark heart of GOP error, we have a leader worthy of our highest post. Now for the hard part.
As a CBS News correspondent, I was walking alongside Dr. King, covering that historic 54-mile march. I am reminded of those steps vividly every year on the occasion of King's birthday.
I just returned from D.C. feeling like David Blaine returning from his 58-hour entombment in a block of ice: I'm cold, I lost some friends, and I gained an impressive case of PTSD.
Monday was special -- the convergence of Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday and Barack Obama's inauguration. I made my contribution of service by sharing my experiences with students.
In 1964, my father, Irving Wallace, wrote a novel, The Man, about the first black president. For this, my father received both accolades and death threats.
Obama's evocation of Washington made it clear that he regards the perils that face the country as almost no less daunting than those that it confronted in battling for its independence.
No matter whom we met, on the National Mall, in museum or Metro lines, every one was flying above the clouds because of our new president and the new promise and possibility for our country.
An unmanaged crowd of thousands pressed toward the gate from all sides. Nobody knew what was going on; there were no signs, announcements, or crowd control.
"I'm thinking right now that if America can change, so can I. I can change my behavior, my attitude. I can make so many improvements. Like Barack, I am going to be somebody. I, too, will help America."
The bone of Bush's legacy will be gnawed over by the dogs of history and eventually there'll be a judgment. Until then, the new adminstration should just let the contrails of the plane ride to Texas dissipate.
President Obama has made it clear that America is no longer in the business of selling out the legacy of our Founders and the mandates of the Constitution for the sake of a little bit of extra security.
On Tuesday, a lot of people in Washington, and I suspect everywhere else in the world, drank way too much. But for once our drunkenness wasn't to blot out reality, but to revel in it.
It's political rhetoric to speak of finding unity and strength in our diversity, but how often in the past ten years have we used these differences in a tribal way to divide and conquer, electorally and socially?
It was a nothing speech. Clichéd, abstract, predictable -- every sentence worked at and struggled with. The encomiums are coming in now, testifying to the ritual pieties of the press.
Now, finally, we have a President unafraid to declare that skepticism and rationalism have just as legitimate a claim on the public sphere as any other approach to the mysteries of the cosmos.
Obama made a call intended to inspire both Americans and Muslims to jointly examine what divides our worlds, the policies that sow discord, but also that which binds us together.
Do not be surprised if Obama thanks Bush for his service to the nation at the start of his inaugural address. But if one looks at history, one finds that this courtesy is more the exception than the rule.
Tomorrow, the celebration will not be limited to the mall in Washington, or the inaugural events all over our country. Tomorrow will be a day to celebrate being an American citizen of a new World.
On this Inauguration Day of hope and inspiration, let's inaugurate not only a new president but something more profound: a new way of living on this earth.
