Obama's Inaugural Speech Gets a B+

This has been bugging me ever since I got back from Washington, but everyone's been on such a high since the Big Day that I felt like a killjoy muttering that our new president's speech failed to sufficiently move me. I blamed it on the cold, I blamed it on my lack of sleep (because once I got into the HuffPost ball it would take a SWAT team to pry me out of that place before dawn). However watching the speech later, 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.

Yes we're in a crisis, yes we need straight talk, but we've also never needed something else more. Something that had been our new president's trademark:

Hope.

I was there, in the cheap seats by the Washington Monument with my young children, crushing and re-crushing my handwarmers to squeeze out the last bits of heat. We were all a vast, happy, raucous party and when he began to speak, we the millions there held our collective breath.

Forty-four Americans have now taken the presidential oath. The words have been spoken during rising tides of prosperity and the still waters of peace.

It began so beautifully. The poetry of the, "Rising tide of prosperity, still waters of peace," was the perfect note. Reminding us of the depth of the crisis, the hard work ahead was wonderfully handled.

Starting today, we must pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and begin again the work of remaking America.

The allusion to the happy anthem, "Pick Yourself Up," made famous by Nat King Cole ("Pick yourself up, dust yourself off, start all over again...") I just loved.

For we know that our patchwork heritage is a strength, not a weakness. We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus -- and non-believers. We are shaped by every language and culture, drawn from every end of this Earth; and because we have tasted the bitter swill of civil war and segregation, and emerged from that dark chapter stronger and more united, we cannot help but believe that the old hatreds shall someday pass; that the lines of tribe shall soon dissolve; that as the world grows smaller, our common humanity shall reveal itself; and that America must play its role in ushering in a new era of peace.

As a Zen Buddhist/Taoist I would probably have to check the box "non-believer" and I was shocked that our new President mentioned us at all and will be eternally grateful (O.K., for that alone I'll raise his grade to an A-). This is perhaps my favorite passage and the speech's first real serving of hope for a brighter future after the crisis has passed.

To those who cling to power through corruption and deceit and the silencing of dissent, know that you are on the wrong side of history; but that we will extend a hand if you are willing to unclench your fist.

The most memorable passage and music to my ears. The magnanimity in the above passage is breathtaking.

However it is with the end of the speech that I have a problem. Not with the great Washington quote but with the final chunk:

America, in the face of our common dangers, in this winter of our hardship, let us remember these timeless words. With hope and virtue, let us brave once more the icy currents, and endure what storms may come. Let it be said by our children's children that when we were tested we refused to let this journey end, that we did not turn back nor did we falter; and with eyes fixed on the horizon and God's grace upon us, we carried forth that great gift of freedom and delivered it safely to future generations.

He returns here to the hard work theme that he's already hammered home. Worse yet, he tells us that the best we can hope for is to "endure what storms may come." What else are we supposed to do? Until they colonize Mars we're stuck here. You lose your job and your health insurance and you endure it. Getting your old job back is not an option.

Mr. President, this is your finale? The entire world is listening and this is how you close? I think you should have launched our imaginations past this storm, giving us a glimpse of the reward for all our hard work. I would have loved to have heard something like this at the close:

In the year of America's birth, in the coldest of months, a small band of patriots huddled by dying campfires on the shores of an icy river. The capital was abandoned. The enemy was advancing. The snow was stained with blood. At a moment when the outcome of our revolution was most in doubt, the father of our nation ordered these words be read to the people: "Let it be told to the future world ... that in the depth of winter, when nothing but hope and virtue could survive...that the city and the country, alarmed at one common danger, came forth to meet (it).

And meet it we shall. EVERY color, EVERY belief, from the most wealthy to the most low, together, all of us. We will not only weather this storm, but as one, on the other side, we will CELEBRATE our collective victory over fear and greed and we will proclaim to world: "We made it! Indivisibly! THIS is what HOPE and hard work can do."

Thank you. God bless you. And God bless the United States of America.

Comments

[MPeter]

Whoever graded it knows no squat. Obama is an A student. Considering the state of this country economically and how ideologically polarized we are, his address was bang-on. It is an A.

[Pyrum]

Obama's inaugural speech was not about change, but about more of the same, and the pretend news is more honest about that than the real news: http://msunderestimated.com/2009/01/21/daily-show-what-differences-between-bush-obama-video/

[eXcommunicate]

I think History will look kindly on this speech, actually, because of it's timeliness, not timelessness. It is a snapshot in our history.

[davism97]

Well nobody is perfect. I'm just glad he's our president.

[Melizzy]

You run for president, you win, you get to write the speech. I thought he hit just the right notes. The time for over-the-top oratory is gone - he won. Now is the time to get serious. And he did.

[Mycall]

I'm overjoyed, and for different reasons than you (Trey) might think.
You see, merely a couple of weeks ago the US was saddled with a President who's contributing motivation to the masses came in the form of Late Night television skits and top tens on David Letterman.
In a week we've turned a corner. Obama's raised the bar so high that someone even the likes of Trey (who is clearly far more accomplished than Obama, and has earned the right to criticize) has come to expect more in a leader.
In spite of my cynicism, that's a good thing. We should expect more.
I suppose what leaves me puzzled though is, well, what was the purpose of this article...

[jobecky20]

Look folks, we are in for a terribly rough ride and our President knows it. We will have to endure for a while. Why give anyone false hope? The incompetent Republicans and do-nothing Democrats have created a monstrous mess and who knows how long it will take to set ourselves right again?

[ToonMoene]

Apparently, it is inevitable that everyone picks up something different from the inaugural speech (I think that points to its greatness).

To me it was this:

"Today I say to you that the challenges we face are real. They are serious and they are many. They will not be met easily or in a short span of time. But know this America: They will be met. (Applause.­)"

and not just because of the words, but because of their effect. It was not "applause" - there was a roar of approval.

Finally, I felt that the people had regained control of the US - and let me tell you from the other side of the Atlantic: There is nothing scarier than a nuclear superpower not under control.

[audiodramatist]

So Trey, here it is, i thought you were the cultural guy at the H_Post.
So i have to disagree with you about the Poet. Mainly because there are bushels of poets from at least Newark, Philly, DC all the way down to Florida and across through Atlanta to LA to San Fran to Detroit to various areas through out New England who will look at the poet as throughly uninspiring; and that's what you want such a poetry moment as an inaugural address.
I mean the real poet up there was the old Black guy at the end. Now he was inspiring.

[Joyful Woman]

Why should Obama reinterate what he already said a hundred time before HOPE. You were supposed to have it from the previous speeches and carry it through. I still have it today. Why don't you. He is not your personal guru. He's your President. Folks had hope, that's why they attended his swearing in. He didn't need to tell you what he already told you before. It is up to you to hold onto the message and not him to give you a pep talk every 4 weeks.

[momof3inGA]

Well said!

[bjammin]

I disagree, Trey.

It was right on the money, and told folks exactly what has happened, and told them exactly what they need to hear. Soaring rhetoric is just sugar. Right now, folks need to eat their greens.

Truth is, Western societies have been fiscally irresponsible over the last 8 years, egged on by Bush and his cronies. Time to grow up and put aside childish things. Obama is acknowledging we are in the s**it RIGHT NOW. That took great courage and compassion than simple bromides.

[MariosResponse]

Unfortunately, I'm with Trey on this one. Obama's speech hit all the right notes, but the music wasn't top 10. Well constructed and got to where it was going, but it did not soar. I assume the enormous he realized that as the leader of the most powerful nation in the world every word he uttered would be dissected for ulterior meaning. He played it safe knowing that, a wrong word, even if poetic, could launch a war and get people killed. Either that or he was just simply exhausted and has run out of words after more than a solid year of hard campaigning. Even the best speechwriters lose their touch after a while.

[OkayWhatNow]

If this speech is only worth a B+, I'm curious, what would have been an A+? I'm not entirely sure of the basis of your grading. Would it have been better if he'd left out the fact that we have hard times ahead? We are in a tough time, and it would have been more than a little ridiculous for him to paint us a pretty picture about what lays ahead of us.

I see plenty of hope in this speech. We don't need stories about how things will be great when the hard times have passed, we need the truth of our situation now. Haven't we been clamoring for a straightforward leader we feel we can trust? If our new leader had only slightly touched on issues and hardships ahead of us in his first speech, it would have set a terrible tone for the following years to me. "It'll be over soon, don't worry"?

You said that you expected more. More of what exactly? More of a pat on the back for the work we haven't done yet? We don't give a child an allowance before they do their chores because they're going to be hard chores this week. I thought the speech was completely relevant to our current situation and very nicely done.

[FloridaEvans]

Oh, Trey - it was his first one! He'll do better in 2013. :)

[bill76]

I give the speech a B-. Obama's delivery wasn't as crisp as usual. And I didn't like the Bush-bashing. It just seemed a little petty, especially with him in attendance. I didn't mind the tone (somber) but you're right, it could have been a little more upbeat. I din't really like the shouting. I know that Obama's trademark, but I never really liked being shouted at. Finally, I think he should have used Kennedy's New England accent and said the word "endeavor" a lot. Ok, that last sentence was a joke.

[Melizzy]

I loved the Bush bashing. Well deserved! And yet, I am convinced Bush didn't even realize any of that was directed at him. Over his head. Sad.