Seneca Falls, Selma, and Stonewall

As I wrote for years ago, there's nothing more stirring for an American than a presidential inauguration; the peaceful and orderly transition of power affirms our basic values. This time around the same man was re-inaugurated for another four years, and for people of my ilk it was a great occasion. There's about 48 percent of the population who don't agree.

Barack Obama took the oath for his second term on Sunday. Due to a precedent started way back under John Monroe, when inauguration day falls on a Sunday, the pomp is held the next day, but the Constitution requires a swearing-in. Therefore, Obama and VP Joe Biden were sworn in twice. As Stephen Colbert noted, it will now require congress to impeach Obama twice to get him out of office.

Obama took the oath from Chief Justice John Roberts, and this time Roberts got the lines right, but Obama swallowed the word "States." Still, it seems that the oath took, and Obama then gave his address. I didn't see it live--I had to work, even though it was Martin Luther King Day (a delicious coincidence)--but I did watch the replay on C-SPAN, blessedly without annoying comments, such as George Stephanopoulos hilariously mistaking Bill Russell for Morgan Freeman.

It was an interesting mix of entertainment. James Taylor strummed along to "American the Beautiful" sparking speculation that Obama may be the only black man who is a Taylor fan. Of course, he is half white. Kelly Clarkson, perky as a pixie, belted out "My Country Tis of Thee," and Beyonce sang the National Anthem, but there's a controversy that she lip-synched. I'm not sure that that matters, but it seems wrong somehow.

There were all sorts of things to annoy conservatives, especially with the poem by Richard Blanco, a gay Cuban-American. I thought the poem was lovely, and the crowd seemed to be actually listening to it. Toward the end, when he listed different ways of saying hello, and pointedly added "Buenas dias," it seemed to take a shot at those reactionaries who call for English to be the national language. Throw in the benediction by Rev. Luis Leon, who added a whole paragraph in Spanish, and Sheriff Joe Arpaio probably choked on his sandwich. But lets' fact it, he wasn't watching.

Obama's address had some interesting responses. Many liberals were heartened, as Obama, unfettered by facing another election, could bring out the liberal shibboleths, like global warming, Social Security, Medicaid, and Medicare. There was also talk of income inequity, and perhaps an oblique mention of gun control, by referring to the "streets of Newtown." I thought the most electrifying moment of the speech was his call for gay rights, specifically the phrase "Seneca Falls, Selma, and Stonewall," linking the touchstones of the women's movement, civil rights, and the beginning of the gay rights movement, a bar in Greenwich Village that was the site of a riot in 1969.

Fox News was aghast at Obama's speech, so I suppose that's a good thing. Because of the recalcitrant Republican congress, much of this may be so much rhetoric, but I think there are a lot of Democrats who hope that Obama takes the gloves off and forgets how reaching across the aisle. Although, he did frequently use the words "we" and "together." So who knows?

And I think Michelle Obama's bangs look lovely.