Every so often, the oath is taken amidst gathering clouds and raging storms. At these moments, America has carried on not simply because of the skill or vision of those in high office, but because We the People have remained faithful to the ideals of our forebearers, and true to our founding documents.
So it has been. So it must be with this generation of Americans.
-President Barack Obama
President Barack Obama. That sounds right. What an amazing day today. I am not ashamed to say that I was brought to tears by the momentous occasion that occurred today. The first black President of this country when such a short time ago such a thing would have been considered impossible.
It is an amazing achievement that our country, our voters, have made possible.
We as Americans should be very proud of ourselves.
But what else this new Presidency stands for is also very important. In the last eight years our country has gone from being respected and loved world wide to ridiculed and untrusted around the world. Events that have taken place at the behest of our government in the last administration seemed to me, not that long ago, to be impossible to overcome. With the election of Barack Obama (and by such an overwhelming electoral vote), we showed the rest of the world that the way our government had acted and the actions they took were not actions that we agreed with or that we felt America stood for. We are returning to a country with a government Of The People, and For The People. Barack Obama used his inaugural speech to remind us and the world what this country stands for, what this country was based on, and that we would not lower our standards or lessen our ideals for any reason no matter what we faced.
As for our common defense, we reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals. Our Founding Fathers, faced with perils we can scarcely imagine, drafted a charter to assure the rule of law and the rights of man, a charter expanded by the blood of generations. Those ideals still light the world, and we will not give them up for expedience's sake. And so to all other peoples and governments who are watching today, from the grandest capitals to the small village where my father was born: Know that America is a friend of each nation and every man, woman and child who seeks a future of peace and dignity, and that we are ready to lead once more.
Recall that earlier generations faced down fascism and communism not just with missiles and tanks, but with sturdy alliances and enduring convictions. They understood that our power alone cannot protect us, nor does it entitle us to do as we please. Instead, they knew that our power grows through its prudent use; our security emanates from the justness of our cause, the force of our example, the tempering qualities of humility and restraint.
-President Barack Obama
Much has been made during this run to the presidency about the civil rights movement. Yesterday we celebrated Martin Luther King Jr's Day, today we celebrate the inauguration of President Barack Obama, and so it is fitting that we remember the steps that Dr. King took to help make such a thing as today possible. We remember the ideals of non-violent resistance. We remember a woman refusing to be pushed to the back of the bus simply because she was black. We remember people coming together to march on Washington DC, people of all races, marching because segregation was wrong, because separate does not mean equal, marching because it was the right thing to do, marching because it was the American thing to do.
Today we are called to action again. Called to help show the world the right way once more. Called to do our part as our new president hopes to do his. Our President reminded us in his speech that the times are difficult, but that in our history we have faced tough times before, and that as we have in the past We Will Overcome.
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.
-President Barack Obama
Our challenges may be new. The instruments with which we meet them may be new. But those values upon which our success depends -- hard work and honesty, courage and fair play, tolerance and curiosity, loyalty and patriotism -- these things are old. These things are true. They have been the quiet force of progress throughout our history. What is demanded then is a return to these truths. What is required of us now is a new era of responsibility -- a recognition, on the part of every American, that we have duties to ourselves, our nation and the world; duties that we do not grudgingly accept but rather seize gladly, firm in the knowledge that there is nothing so satisfying to the spirit, so defining of our character, than giving our all to a difficult task.
This is the price and the promise of citizenship.
This is the source of our confidence -- the knowledge that God calls on us to shape an uncertain destiny.
This is the meaning of our liberty and our creed -- why men and women and children of every race and every faith can join in celebration across this magnificent Mall, and why a man whose father less than 60 years ago might not have been served at a local restaurant can now stand before you to take a most sacred oath.
So let us mark this day with remembrance, of who we are and how far we have traveled. 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]."
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.
-President Barack Obama
Today we have made history. Today we have embarked on a journey that will place this country back on the path of truth and justice and freedom on which it was founded. Today we look forward so that one day we can look back, look back and remember today. The day that everything changed. The day we became that which we always hoped we could become. The day we began once again to believe.
Yes We Can. Yes We Will. Yes We Did.
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