Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Today’s GOP: why go just far enough when too far is right there?

This year has been the longest three days of putin’s life.

The truth is, these are not very bright guys, and things got out of hand.

A lot of Dems talk about what the media tells them to talk about. Not helpful.

Accused of treason; bitches about the ratings. I am in awe.

Thanks to your bullshit, we are now under siege.

You cannot shame the shameless.

You can’t attract Republican voters. You can only out organize them.

Not all heroes wear capes.

🎶 Those boots were made for mockin’ 🎵

Never entrust democracy to any process that requires republicans to act in good faith.

“What are Republicans afraid of?” Everything.

“woke” is the new caravan.

The cruelty is the point; the law be damned.

Speaking of republicans, is there a way for a political party to declare intellectual bankruptcy?

Damn right I heard that as a threat.

Take hopelessness and turn it into resilience.

American History and Black History Cannot Be Separated

Let me eat cake. The rest of you could stand to lose some weight, frankly.

We are aware of all internet traditions.

We’ve had enough carrots to last a lifetime. break out the sticks.

Our job is not to persuade republicans but to defeat them.

Whoever he was, that guy was nuts.

Everybody saw this coming.

You are here: Home / Open Threads / Inauguration open thread

Reader Interactions

235Comments

  1. 1.

    Yutsano

    ROBERTS MESSED UP THE OATH AGAIN! NOT A REAL PREZNIT! WOLVERINES!!

    (never mind he was officially sworn in yesterday.)

  2. 2.

    Davis X. Machina

    Good words for internal improvements, railroads, land-grant colleges — the man’s a Whig!

  3. 3.

    Violet

    What are the big winger controversies so far?

    I’m just guessing, but so far:

    1. That Obama messed up “States” in “United States”. He doesn’t believe in States Rights.
    2. The flags have an “O” in them. Obama is taking over the country.

  5. 5.

    eric

    I think the conspiracy we are going to see is that if the GOP does not maintain control of the House, the President will get a law passed allowing him a third term.

    ETA. I mean that they will use this to GOTV for 2014.

  7. 7.

    Pete

    Give me Bruce over James Taylor anyday. Saw him at Wrigley Field this past summer and the place was rocking.

  8. 8.

    Mr Stagger Lee

    It looks to me that the crowd size is just as big as it was at the last Inaugural, and the diversity, that is Real America, freepers!

  11. 11.

    Mayur

    “Nation of takers” and climate change + science are my favorites so far.

    Climate science bitches. It works.

  12. 12.

    Violet

    Is this speech boring or is that just me? I’m finding it boring and unmemorable. I hope it improves as it goes along.

  16. 16.

    Violet

    I do like the “We The People” theme. I hope it means they got the message that they’re going to use the OFA power to get people to work for the change they want.

  17. 17.

    Mayur

    Oh yes. And sane foreign policy “not because we are naive.”

    Finally responding to the douchenozzles eh Barack?

  21. 21.

    Zifnab25

    @eric:

    I think the conspiracy we are going to see is that if the GOP does not maintain control of the House, the President will get a law passed allowing him a third term.

    Um… I’d be cool with that. Honestly, I think the majority of Americans would be cool with that. The person I think would object most strongly, at the end of the day, would likely be Obama himself.

    Poor FDR gave himself an aneurysm doing that job.

  26. 26.

    mouse tolliver

    What are the big winger controversies so far?

    Paul Ryan got booed. Which just goes to show how classless Demoncrats are.

  27. 27.

    Emma

    Guys, if he had gone all “we have to make our enemies our friends” kinds of statesmanship you would have been freaking about it.

  30. 30.

    ruemara

    Of course it’s a stump speech. This is what persuasive speech sounds like and he’s trying to motivate everyone to keep pressure on Congress and keep the base interested in politics for 2014 and beyond. His presidentin’ will only be for 4 years. If he wants a lasting legacy, his work has to start now and continue for now and longer.

  33. 33.

    Robin G.

    Serious speech.

    Am I the only one who flinches a little every time he stands up in front of a large crowd? I live in terror that one day we’ll hear a shot.

  34. 34.

    Persia

    Kelly Clarkson, bitches!

    Um, seriously, I liked the speech but I wasn’t really expecting anything earth-shaking which probably helped.

  38. 38.

    Davis X. Machina

    @Maude: Kennedy, too, and not just the inaugural, but his less-well-known farewell to the Mass legislature (The “City on a Hill” speech…)

  41. 41.

    Brachiator

    What are the big winger controversies so far?

    The speech wasn’t “presidential enough” and only appealed to the moochers. And did everyone catch that coded message about confisating all the guns of law abiding wingnuts?

    @ruemara:

    Of course it’s a stump speech. This is what persuasive speech sounds like and he’s trying to motivate everyone to keep pressure on Congress and keep the base interested in politics for 2014 and beyond.

    More seriously, a second inaugural speech could have used a little less “stump” and used a little more vision.

  43. 43.

    Betty Cracker

    I liked the speech. He was very clear in support of women, gay rights and immigration reform. He emphasized the unfairness of wealth inequality and reaffirmed the social compact. Called out the extremists, albeit obliquely. Works for me

  44. 44.

    Violet

    Update. Isn’t Kelly Clarkson a Paultard?

    She had a tweet in support of him during the primary season. It was controversial and she sort of had to backtrack.

  49. 49.

    Brachiator

    Update. Isn’t Kelly Clarkson a Paultard?

    Don’t know her politics, and really don’t care.

  53. 53.

    Poopyman

    @ruemara: One of the memes after today is that he’s a lame duck president, so yeah, he needs to be pushing back against that idea.

  54. 54.

    Served

    @Violet: Yeah, it was one of those “He sounds so reasonable!” tweets during the debates. Then people pointed out the newsletters, and his anti-gayness and all of that, and she apologized/whatever and was kind of surprised that people took it as an endorsement.

  56. 56.

    Violet

    Who is the poet guy? I’m not wowed. Maya Angelou at Clinton’s inaugural is the gold standard for inauguration poetry.

  57. 57.

    Corner Stone

    @Olivia:

    Yesterday was the “Muslim” swearing in. Today is just a ruse.

    {whispering}
    Good God. Chief Sheik Thomar bin Salaam Roberts has been a plant this whole time!

  58. 58.

    ruemara

    @Brachiator: We’ll have to agree to disagree.

    @Robin G: No but I don’t think any GOP/reich winger really, truly wants to see what even an attempt or a wounding would do. Anything more than that-no, they are not ready.

  61. 61.

    The Dangerman

    @Robin G.:

    He only filled half the mall? Clearly lost his touch with the 53% of taxpayers.

    I live in terror that one day we’ll hear a shot.

    I’m rather shocked that the has never been a known attempt (I suppose any attempt would be known unless it was nipped in the bud, so I guess they’ve all been nipped).

  63. 63.

    jp7505a

    @VioletAdd The choice of My Country Tis of Thee, also know as the British national anthem must mean that Obama is planning on becoming our first king

  64. 64.

    Emma

    @raven: The point is that sometimes even when I am enjoying the hell out of his speeches or his walkabouts or whatever, I am terrified of the gun culture of this country and how they are gunning for him. Sorry if it rains on your parade.

  66. 66.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @Joel: If Mitt Romney had won the election, I would have gone with “Mack the Knife” myself.

    Performed by Pat Boone

  75. 75.

    Emma

    Then why the hell did you sound like I had peed on your cornflakes?

    (edit) this one was a reply to Raven and I linked to the wrong person

  79. 79.

    Steeplejack

    @ruemara:

    The content is great, but his tone sounded kind of fake-enthusiastic, which is strange, because Obama is a masterful public speaker. It didn’t sound like his usual delivery, even in campaign-speech mode.

    Having said that, why do inaugural poets always seem to give poetry a bad name?

  81. 81.

    Violet

    I missed the introduction of the guy giving the benediction. Who is he? He mentioned “gay and straight”–can’t be a winger.

  82. 82.

    JPL

    Apparently the minister doesn’t know that arrogance and hatred already invaded the hearts of twenty-seven percent of our nation.

  88. 88.

    ding dong

    I liked the poet guy. i m listening on radio. not impressed with obamas speech. problem with obama is that the 04 one was sooooo good he can`t beat it. I like clarkson . taylor was not the right choice.

  90. 90.

    eemom

    Somewhere in a La Jolla stable, horses are looking curiously upon a wailing Ann Romney.

    (h/t whoever mentioned that yesterday. bwaaahaaahaaahaaaa)

  91. 91.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    The world’s corps of vice-principals lost one of its greatest when Chuck Schumer went into politics.

  92. 92.

    JPL

    Obama making a strong case for Bush doctrine — peace requires advance of liberty Marc Theissen tweet…

    hahahaaha

  98. 98.

    TOP123

    I kept getting distracted wondering if that pinched sour looking face behind him was Louie Gohmert.

  100. 100.

    Mr Stagger Lee

    @The Dangerman: No doubt there has been som serious attempts, but we will not know of them for years to come. To even to try to shoot the President is really an exercise of futility, and unless the assailant is willing to die, nearly impossible, the Secret Service have many precautions some that are classified. They take pride that will not lose their client on their watch. Great rendition of the National Anthem by Beyonce.

  103. 103.

    Machine-Gun Preacher (formerly Ben Franklin)

    Sorry. It was unremarkable. Al Sharpton does one of those everyday, on MSNBC.

  108. 108.

    eemom

    @Yutsano:

    I would personally be quite content if I never heard either of their names again.

    I can live with that, but I do reserve the right to the occasional quiet snicker.

  109. 109.

    ruemara

    Jesus Christ, some of y’all are insanely critical. I liked the speech. It was a call to action and a reminder. Fake enthusiastic? Jesus. Whatever, your take and you are welcome to it.

    Poet guy was a bit boring, but poetry is always hit or miss.

  111. 111.

    Sublime33

    Via Facebook, one winger lamented “Why does Obama need 5000 troops on hand?” He’s a vet, basically a decent guy and supports the same sports teams as me. So I resisted posting “do I need to write it out in crayon for you? A LOT of people want him dead. Especially those who like to have a lot of guns.”

  112. 112.

    La Caterina (Mrs. Johannes)

    @Violet: Priest at St. John’s Episcopal Church across the street from the White House. He’s from the LGBT-friendly wing. Yay, Progressive Episco-Bears!

  113. 113.

    Davis X. Machina

    @ruemara: Climate change and Stonewall, two things Obama was raked over the coals for four years for not doing enough, not talking about enough. Right there in the shop window.

    Surprised me.

  114. 114.

    Corner Stone

    Say whatever you want to about John Kerry, one thing that can’t be denied is he has a magnificent head of politician’s hair. That hair was born to be president.

  115. 115.

    Violet

    I’m listening to CBS and someone just said he used “‘We the People’ in almost a Howard Zinn kind of way” in the terms of ordinary people fighting for ordinary rights. Howard Zinn! Never thought I’d hear him mentioned on network news.

  116. 116.

    Hill Dweller

    @ding dong:

    not impressed with obamas speech. problem with obama is that the 04 one was sooooo good he can`t beat it.

    It has nothing to do with the ’04 comparison. He gave better speeches in ’08. And he could roll out of bed and give an amazing speech.

    The problem is the Obama team had polling showing people didn’t like the highfalutin rhetoric, and they took it to heart. Consequently, his speeches throughout the campaign, at the convention, and again today were much more workman-like.

    Personally, I think it’s a mistake to hamstring the President’s speech making, but they seem to think it makes him more relatable.

  117. 117.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @Davis X. Machina: Yup, climate change, gay rights, immigration, right down to voter reform. We govern in prose, and I was glad to hear those specifics.

    Who is the other guy in a big hat between Scalia and Ryan?

  118. 118.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @Violet: Wow, have to disagree. I think it’s one of his best.

    Loved the reference to “Seneca Falls, Selma, Stonewall.” Dude can rock some apt alliteration’s artful aid.

  120. 120.

    GregB

    @TOP123:

    I’m pretty sure Gohmert stayed home today and is making Obama sculptures from his own feces.

    Loved James Taylor, loved the Myrlie Evers speech and the Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir too.

    The sound you hear is the final nail being hammered into the coffin of the Old Confederacy.

  121. 121.

    MikeJ

    @NotMax:

    The horses are stabled in Moorpark, not La Jolla.

    That’s stupid. How are they supposed to take the pony out on the boat?

  122. 122.

    S. cerevisiae

    Thank you Mr. President for speaking up on climate change.

    Beyonce was amazing, so beautiful and what a voice!

  124. 124.

    Machine-Gun Preacher (formerly Ben Franklin)

    The Media are searching for nuggets of wisdom to flesh out their newscycle. It’s rare for them to help out.

  125. 125.

    peej

    Is it wrong of me to do a “Nelson Muntz” laugh every time I see a Romney bumper sticker on a car?

  126. 126.

    PsiFighter37

    Oh, and by the way, I liked the speech. Lots of subtle (and not-so-subtle) campaign themes popping up, and probably plenty of right-wing dog whistles that will make them whine and bitch and moan like they always do.

    Good.

  127. 127.

    Corner Stone

    The arrogance of this president! Not 5 minutes after the ceremony he has the nards to sign into law the Sharia Code!

  129. 129.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    anybody watching MSNBC? BOehner and Canotr sidling toward the door and not sure what to do

  130. 130.

    Yutsano

    @peej: I’m just waiting for the “Don’t blame me, I voted for the Mormon!” stickers to start drifting around.

  131. 131.

    Machine-Gun Preacher (formerly Ben Franklin)

    @PsiFighter37:

    Maybe he was reluctant to be more specific so he doesn’t spill his candy in the Lobby, before he gets into the tall weeds with Congress.

  132. 132.

    jp7505a

    Faux news is having a melt down. It seems that Obama had the nerve to say that he planned to govern for the next four years on the promises he made during the 2012 campaign. He gave a speech that the liberals and progressives would like and that is a slap in the face to the GOP.

    I’m not quite sure why these jokers thought that he would give Mitt Romney’s inaugural address, but apparently the bubble still hasn’t gotten used to the fact that they lost the electron.

  135. 135.

    Dave

    Blanco’s reading was another reminder of how dismal contemporary American poetry has been for going on 20 years now. When the Culture Wars finally end, I hope they take Culture Poetry with them.

  139. 139.

    Mr Stagger Lee

    Where is Turtleman? I see the Orange-man and Eric the Weasel, but where is Senator-soon-to-lose-to Ashley-Judd?(FSM willing)

  144. 144.

    Villago Delenda Est

    @Sublime33:

    Besides, this is, basically, a change of command ceremony but this time without the change of command. If he’s a vet, he knows what a big effing deal a change of command ceremony is. At battalion level or below, the entire battalion turns out for them. At higher levels, you’ve got contingents from nearly every subordinate unit in the brigade or division present, which means thousands of troops marching around. This ceremony is for the commander-in-chief of all the armed forces.

  146. 146.

    ? Martin

    @Corner Stone:

    That hair was born to be president.

    He’s got a good President chin, too. Nothing weak about that chin. You could stick that chin on a jackhammer and destroy the world.

  147. 147.

    Villago Delenda Est

    @Robin G.:

    Someone needs to drop him in a blender and make juice out of him.

    No need to add the vodka…instant screwdriver!

  149. 149.

    ? Martin

    Fuck, I wanna be invited to the inaugural luncheon. That’s good stuff. I’m likely going to have a turkey sandwich, and no wine.

  150. 150.

    Michael

    Great line: “History tells us that while these truths may be self-evident, they are not self-executing”

  152. 152.

    karen marie

    @GregB:

    the final nail being hammered into the coffin of the Old Confederacy.

    Don’t write it off yet – it’s still coughing up blood.

  154. 154.

    NotMax

    Coming up on 8 in the a.m. here.

    Bit early (even for me) for guzzling wine. Maybe a small sipping glass of sherry…

  155. 155.

    Robin G.

    Wow. CBS just said the speech was about pleading with Republicans to work with him. Point to the pleading in that speech. I dare you.

  161. 161.

    ? Martin

    @Villago Delenda Est:

    Besides, this is, basically, a change of command ceremony but this time without the change of command.

    Precisely.

    Furthermore, this is the global standard for peaceable changes of command. In very many countries, this day would have been accompanied by bursts of gunfire and the arrest of the former members of the government at the hand of the military. How we handle transfers of power is exceptional, and the relationship between the military and the civilian government is also exceptional, and it’s important every 4 years to showcase that – even when it’s become so routine as to be boring.

    This is one of my favorite days. It’s far more important than election day in many ways. No matter how divided we like to think of ourselves, how fucking cordial and mundane could the mechanics of handing over control of the most powerful force on earth be? I love that the media focus is more on the balls and what everyone eats for lunch than it is on whether there will be some 11th hour coup, because that’s completely unthinkable – and it’s unthinkable because 5,000 troops assembled on the other side of the Capitol to witness the transfer of military power, and there was no doubt in anyone’s mind about how any of this would go from their viewpoint.

  162. 162.

    jp7505a

    While I remember the 1956 election, the first inauguration that I really remember was the one in 1960. A major snowstorm had shut down much of the east coast and we had the day off from school. As I watched today’s event it was hard not to note the changes from 1960. In1960 the dignitaries on the stage and the people in the crowd where as white as the surrounding snow. The only women were the wives. Today the faces really did reflect ‘WE the People’. Anyone who would have predicted today’s events would have been taken away by the men with the butterfly net.

  165. 165.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @Villago Delenda Est: I also liked the “history looking forward,” if you will … the reference (paraphrasing) to “those who are sworn in four years from now, or forty, or four hundred … ” Thought it was a nice rhetorical touch.

  166. 166.

    LanceThruster

    Beyonce sings beautifully…but I long for the day the National Anthem is sung traditionally and not tarted up so (it puts the focus too much on the performer IMHO).

    YMMV.

  167. 167.

    Jennifer

    Good effort, overall, though I question the use of Jethro Tull’s Aqualung as the music to play him off the stage. For one thing, it’s so retro, and I’m not at all sure about the message it conveys…

  168. 168.

    Death Panel Truck

    The speech sucked! The poem was insipid! Why, oh why was I subjected to such mediocrity?! Whaah! Whaah! Whaah!

    Fucking liberals. Born to bitch.

  169. 169.

    Chris

    @jp7505a:

    I really wish I’d been around in 1960. I’d have loved to see the first non WASP president as well as the first non white one and compared the two.

  170. 170.

    Xecky Gilchrist

    @Death Panel Truck: I was gonna say.

    I can’t believe nobody’s hauled out “meh” or “if you want me I’ll be in the living room discovering that my ennui is so great that nothing on cable sounds good.”

  171. 171.

    The Very Reverend Crimson Fire of Compassion

    To everyone who talked about being bored: we must have watched different speeches. The spousal unit & I watched together. Both of us wept. I have lived to see the day an American President spoke openly in support of gay love, science, and the children of immigrants. I have grave issues with many of the choices this President has made, but I love this man, and watching this inauguration gave me hope for my country.

  172. 172.

    Yutsano

    @LanceThruster: Some performers throw in the colour to hide the fact that they don’t actually do that part of the song well. I refuse to believe that is Beyonce’s issue but it turns into a habit. I sing it straight operatic style and I’ve gotten numerous compliments for not overdoing it. Although I will hit the high B-flat, just because I can.

  174. 174.

    jp7505a

    @Chris: Electing an Irish catholic might not have been quite the heavy lift that electing the first African_american was but millions expected the world to end on Jan. 20, 1961, just as surely as they expected it to end on Jan 20, 2009 and again today.

  175. 175.

    LAC

    @Corner Stone: Yep, a dirt one with a side of SHTFUP juice.

    I know that a day without know it all snark here is a day without sunshine, bit what fucking speech were you all watching? It was great and a call to greater citizenship. Otherwise known as stop sitting on your asses waiting for magic ponies to be issued. If you were bored, you need to wake up.

  180. 180.

    quannlace

    Thought it was a really good speech. A bit of a buffet as far as the inclusion of all the goals he wants to focus on. But if he hadn’t been specific, people would have complained that he was slinging ‘All that warm, fuzzy Hope & Change-y stuff.”

  183. 183.

    LanceThruster

    @Yutsano:

    Thank you for sharing your insight on this (and the inherent difficulties of the tune as well). I would really like the opportunity to hear your operatic version, or a perfermance of a similar style that fits that description – any YouTube versions you could recommend?

  184. 184.

    danielx

    @Yutsano:

    That’s the plot – he was supposedly sworn in yesterday, but did anybody actually see it? No! Therefore Obama is not really President, therefore WOLVERINES!

  186. 186.

    FlipYrWhig

    Liked the speech and liked the poem too. The poem was basically about e pluribus unum, working together, and public goods (schools, natural resources). I liked it much better than the 2008 inaugural poem.

  187. 187.

    The Very Reverend Crimson Fire of Compassion

    @Villago Delenda Est: I think it’s the same thing as “the arc of history is long, but it bends toward justice.” One of the great statements of faith in the history of man.

  188. 188.

    Bruce S

    Sort of like Wagner, Blanco’s poem is better than it sounds…

    http://www.latimes.com/news/politics/la-pn-inauguration-2013-richard-blanco-poem-20130121,0,5626688.story

    I thought the music – with the exception of the magnificent Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir – was uniformly mediocre and the choices of singers uninspired.

    But it was overall a great ceremony. Very good speech. I thought it affirmed a fundamentally social democratic vision of governance and touched on the issues that are critical and hopefully will become central to the second term agenda. Frankly, that seems the best use of this opportunity. Later today I’ll read it and probably like it even more. I was watching on MSNBC and felt constantly distracted by what appeared to be Cong. Jerry Nadler lapsing into a nap on the right side of my screen.

    Also, Merlie Evers’ invocation was inspired and she was a perfect choice.

    (Ed Shultz just noted that this was the first time the word “gay” was ever used in an inaugural speech.)

  189. 189.

    Bruce S

    @The Very Reverend Crimson Fire of Compassion:

    “I have grave issues with many of the choices this President has made, but I love this man, and watching this inauguration gave me hope for my country.”

    This. Best President in my lifetime – and out of respect for both him and myself, I reserve the right to be critical of a lot of the policy and personnel choices to date.

  190. 190.

    hoodie

    Good, solid speech, started a bit slow but got better. Pretty typical for his speeches, and damn good given how hard it is to give a good speech in that venue, the audience is too distant. The music was great, except for JT. Clarkson did a nice job, a little shaky at the start, but she can sing, which is more than you can say about a lot of country singers. Beyonce is a goddess. Did you catch her ripping out her earpiece and driving that sucker home? What a pro. It’s hard not to laugh at Jay-Z up there rubbing elbows with septuagenarian senators and supreme court justices. Guy knows how to dress, and you sure can’t quarrel with his choice of wives. Lucky bastard.

  192. 192.

    MikeJ

    @Bruce S:

    We dare not tempt them with weakness. For only when our arms are sufficient beyond doubt can we be certain beyond doubt that they will never be employed.

    Kos would be full of diaries denouncing warmongering if that line were included.

  194. 194.

    rob!

    I wonder what Kelly Clarkson would look and sound like without all the hair, make-up, and music help she gets from various professionals, many of whom I bet are gay. When she said she supported Ron Paul she kicked all those people in the teeth. Maybe she wizened up in the last year or two, but I’m betting she just saw this as a good gig to do.

  198. 198.

    Bruce S

    @MikeJ:

    Well, if you want to deal with reality, Kennedy ran to Nixon’s right on “the arms race”, conjuring a non-existent “missle gap.”

    One of those ironies of actual, complicated history like FDR running in ’32 on an idiotic “balanced budget” platform.

    Of course, if there are liberals out there who advocate an agenda that goes beyond that espoused by the President of the United States or take a critical stance toward the actually existing administration, they must be fucking insane and should be shunned.

    My comment was based on the fact that President Kennedy’s inaugural address is remembered as a high mark in the rhetoric of American liberalism by most actual liberals over the past half-century.

  199. 199.

    jp7505a

    Kos has a sampling of conserative tweets. The best is ‘Obama’s 2nd inauguration is also 2nd time it’s ‘fallen’ on the MLK Day The 1st was Clinton’s 2nd inauguration – Coincidence? #lmao #tcot’

    Who knew that the calendar had a liberal bias

  201. 201.

    Corner Stone

    @LAC: It’s got a time stamp right there by the comment. If you were too stupid to put it together that’s not my problem. Your tiny little panties got all bunched because you were outraged someone could possibly be talking about your personal best friend and long time snuggle buddy B. Barry Bamz.
    You happen to bore me, and your pathetic ankle biting is also quite boring. So I guess maybe you got something half right you sad halfwit.
    Now, since we’re taking requests, go fuck yourself.

  203. 203.

    WaterGirl

    @Valdivia: I thought this speech was excellent.

    Very inspiring. We are citizens and it’s up to us to make this the nation we want.

    It’s hard to believe that I watched the same speech as most of you. I kept thinking that this was the most populist speech I’ve seen from Obama since the one where he announced he was running for president. If I recall correctly, that’s the one where he talks about the lobbyists having access, “and you get to write a letter”.

    I am so grateful that this man is our president.

  204. 204.

    LanceThruster

    Was tickled to hear that Mitt “Sour Grapes” Rmoney let it be known he would not be watching any of the Inauguration ceremonies.

    Wah-waaah!

  206. 206.

    Nemo_N

    Sullivan thinks Obama was bullshitting when he said “We reject the belief that America must choose between caring for the generation that built this country and investing in the generation that will build its future”.

    In Andrew Sullivan’s world, some must die so others can live. There is no other choice.

  207. 207.

    hitchhiker

    Heavens, what a picky bunch of grapes we are today. A year ago at this time I was worrying about what the Supremes were going to do to Obamacare, and thinking that the Citizens United money was going to fuck us sideways.

    Today was excellent. I liked JT. I loved that poem read by that poet in this environment. The speech was just a sweet, sweet combination of reminding the Rs that they lost a lot of arguments and inviting them to get real, all packaged into reasonable, reverent paragraphs. We built this, holy shit. Proud day.

  208. 208.

    Bruce S

    Great commentary by (former Presidential speechwriter) James Fallows:

    http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2013/01/obamas-startling-second-inaugural/267365/

    I was expecting an anodyne tone-poem about healing national wounds, surmounting partisanship, and so on. As has often been the case, Obama confounded expectations — mine, at least… it’s almost as if he has won re-election and knows he will never have to run again and hears the clock ticking on his last chance to use the power of the presidency on the causes he cares about. If anyone were wondering whether Obama wanted to lower expectations for his second term … no, he apparently does not… this speech made news and alters politics in a way I had not anticipated.

  209. 209.

    gene108

    he will never have to run again

    Mr. Fallows is WRONG!

    President Obama will choose to no longer seek elective office.

    He can go back to the Senate, if he wants. He can hold any other elective office in this country other than President. He could run for local dog catcher, if he wanted to or school board or mayor, etc.

    I personally hope a Democrat wins in 2016 and picks President Obama to be on the Supreme Court, so he can torment right-wingers for another generation or President Obama runs for mayor of Chicago, so we can all see Rahm’s head explode for realz.

  210. 210.

    Bruce S

    @gene108:

    Fallows didn’t say “he can’t ever choose to run for any public office again.” He said, “He will never have to run again”, which is obviously a comment on the near-inevitable expectation of a sitting first-term President to run for re-election.

  211. 211.

    James E. Powell

    The speech is more impressive if you read it and think about what points & issues the president hit on. Compare with the previous six inaugural addresses.

    Small personal thing. One of my former students is serving at Marine Barracks 8th & I, and gets to be part of this moment in history. He’s been stoked about it for weeks.

  212. 212.

    Brachiator

    @gene108:

    I personally hope a Democrat wins in 2016 and picks President Obama to be on the Supreme Court, so he can torment right-wingers for another generation or President Obama runs for mayor of Chicago, so we can all see Rahm’s head explode for realz.

    The cool thing to do would be to appoint Obama as Chief Justice, as happened with William Howard Taft.

  213. 213.

    Mr Stagger Lee

    @James E. Powell: Now that is cool, my brother was on the maintenance crew for Marine One.
    Has a nice picture of him and his wife with the President. Watching the President and Mrs Obama,walking down Pennsylvania Ave.

  214. 214.

    Punchy

    I personally hope a Democrat wins in 2016 and picks President Obama to be on the Supreme Court,

    The awesome-sauce of this happening just blew up my Awesome Sauce Meter.

  215. 215.

    PurpleGirl

    @jp7505a: I wonder which days were left out in order to make the ceremonies land they did? At least I didn’t realize I’ve lost any days.

  216. 216.

    General Stuck

    Ho hum. Dint watch the inauguration and all the speechafying with pomp and circumstance. Now it’s time to dismantle the GOP if at all possible, before they kill us all.

    We got a smooth commandante with no more voters to face, now with a touch of mischief in his eye for the task at hand. Tally the fuck Ho!!

  217. 217.

    jp7505a

    @Bruce S: Like John Quincy Adams he can run for a seat in the House in 2018.

    Just to cause GOP heads to explode he could succeed Nancy Pelosi after her second term as speaker. There would not be a republican heat left intact. Oh dream on:-) :-)

  218. 218.

    WaterGirl

    I watched MSNBC and when they showed the opening speech from the luncheon, memories surfaced of Ted Kennedy collapsing at the lunch and how uncertain things were very for a time.

    So sorry you can’t be with us, Teddy.

  219. 219.

    thalarctos

    @MikeJ: I see what you did there.

    Unlike a certain group of Americans in a sports pub in Cambridge in 2010, when my British co-workers took me there to watch the England-US World Cup game with them.

    When they played “God Save The Queen”, those Americans began singing “My Country, ‘Tis of Thee”. /facepalm

  220. 220.

    gene108

    @Brachiator:

    The cool thing to do would be to appoint Obama as Chief Justice, as happened with William Howard Taft.

    I don’t think Roberts will be stepping down anytime soon, so Chief Justice doesn’t seem likely for another 20-30 years.

  221. 221.

    eemom

    @General Stuck:

    Ho hum. Dint watch the inauguration and all the speechafying with pomp and circumstance.

    Thank you General. I’ve been skulking here all day, cuz it never even occurred to me to want to watch it…..and all this scrutinizerating going on made me feel like I’ve missed something. Or missed not missing something. Or something.

  222. 222.

    NotMax

    @jp7505a

    Like John Quincy Adams he can run for a seat in the House in 2018.

    Breaking news? John Quincy Adams will be running again in ’18?

    Rested and ready.

    :)

  223. 223.

    Brachiator

    @gene108:

    RE:
    The cool thing to do would be to appoint Obama as Chief Justice, as happened with William Howard Taft.

    I don’t think Roberts will be stepping down anytime soon, so Chief Justice doesn’t seem likely for another 20-30 years.

    Gives plenty of time to work on the Roberts impeachment. )

  224. 224.

    mir13

    @eemom: You did. It were awesome. All of it. Can’t ya tell from all the mewling and puking going on here about this an’ that? Oooh girl…

  225. 225.

    barbequebob

    @Joel: If Romney had won, it would also have been the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, not the Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir. Gotta think that was part of the point of the BTC being chosen.

  226. 226.

    barbequebob

    @Joel: If Romney had won, it would also have been the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, not the Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir. Gotta think that was part of the point of the BTC being chosen.

  227. 227.

    Keith G

    I am surprised at the catty comments above. I guess, considering some of the commentariat I shouldn’t be.

    It was a beautiful ceremony – no waste, all the parts aiming to a specific point.

    Obama’s address was the best I have heard in a long time. It was historic. This is a seasoned political leader at the height of his powers.

  228. 228.

    sneezy

    Could have lived without James Taylor…

    James has his place in the history of American music and did a fine job. Kelly Clarkson was also good, and Beyoncé killed it.

  230. 230.

    Original Lee

    @Steeplejack: Dude, it’s all video nowadays. A select group of kids read the announcements, weather, etc. on camera, and that is live-streamed to the homerooms.

  231. 231.

    Rarely Posts

    I loved the speech, but it’s pretty telling that the President made a very progressive speech (recognized as such by progressives) without mentioning organized labor or unions at all. We seem to have abandoned the hope that workers can act together collectively to protect their own rights and interests. Instead, the progressive vision now appears to be that the government will protect those rights or that workers will protect themselves through individual action.

    At the same time, his discussion of civil rights was inspired, and I love that he made a shout out to Stonewall (in the same sentence as Selma and Seneca Falls!). Moreover, his defense of the welfare state and providing equal opportunity was great, as was his call for environmental action and an end to perpetual war. Overall, a great progressive speech.

  233. 233.

    Corner Stone

    @LAC:Oh, troll. I’m sorry to hear you’re too stupid to figure out how TV programs work.
    And you humping on AxelTrolly in the other thread make you look really excellent and smart.
    Dumb bitch ass troll. Go fuck yourself.

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