Transcript: Inaugural Address of Obama
20 January 2009
My fellow citizens: I stand here today humbled by the task before us, grateful for the trust you have bestowed, mindful of the sacrifices borne by our ancestors.
I thank President Bush for his service to our nation...
(APPLAUSE)
... as well as the generosity and cooperation he has shown throughout this transition.
Forty-four Americans have now taken the presidential oath.
OBAMA: The words have been spoken during rising tides of prosperity and the still waters of peace. Yet, 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 forbearers [sic], and true to our founding documents.
COMMENTARY
How are the people true to our founding documents? The Constitution and the Bill of Rights are protections of liberty for the people. It is up to elected officials to be faithful to the documents, which they have not always been.
OBAMA: So it has been. So it must be with this generation of Americans.
That we are in the midst of crisis is now well understood. Our nation is at war against a far-reaching network of violence and hatred. Our economy is badly weakened, a consequence of greed and irresponsibility on the part of some but also our collective failure to make hard choices and prepare the nation for a new age.
Homes have been lost, jobs shed, businesses shuttered. Our health care is too costly, our schools fail too many, and each day brings further evidence that the ways we use energy strengthen our adversaries and threaten our planet.
COMMENTARY
We may be in a crisis but at last count the inauguration cost $170 million. The message to cut back is not for the American people but the spendthrifts in government who are throwing away our opportunities. In addition, I believe the last phrase is key. Obama must want to sell his energy solution, as he will want Americans to rein in energy use, as a security measure. What he will not be advertising is how this means less opportunity for Americans, as the Federal government will stifle innovation and individual initiative. He must have as his goal the Socialist Carol Browner and how these international organizations are promoting a one-world government and the diminution of American energy use.
OBAMA: These are the indicators of crisis, subject to data and statistics. Less measurable, but no less profound, is a sapping of confidence across our land; a nagging fear that America's decline is inevitable, that the next generation must lower its sights.
COMMENTARY
American decline is not inevitable but he does not address the lessening of opportunity. If America is to get in line with the remainder of the world, and innovation is stifled, Americans, particularly younger Americans, will have lower achievements. I think it is interesting that he simply left this paragraph hang by itself.
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.
COMMENTARY
The paragraph he left hanging for the following paragraph is simply a recourse to a rhetorical flourish. It says nothing but it sounds good since it communicates stirring words like "challenges," "serious," and a vague we can do it America. This paragraph is fluff.
(APPLAUSE)
COMMENTARY
The fluff paragraph had its intended object: applause. He got it.
On this day, we gather because we have chosen hope over fear, unity of purpose over conflict and discord.
OBAMA: On this day, we come to proclaim an end to the petty grievances and false promises, the recriminations and worn-out dogmas that for far too long have strangled our politics.
We remain a young nation, but in the words of Scripture, the time has come to set aside childish things. The time has come to reaffirm our enduring spirit; to choose our better history; to carry forward that precious gift, that noble idea, passed on from generation to generation: the God-given promise that all are equal, all are free, and all deserve a chance to pursue their full measure of happiness.
(APPLAUSE)
COMMENTARY
These three paragraphs appear to be his obligatory nod to civil rights. He does not mention of course he was not in America during the civil rights movement; he benefited though from the work of others.
In reaffirming the greatness of our nation, we understand that greatness is never a given. It must be earned. Our journey has never been one of shortcuts or settling for less.
OBAMA: It has not been the path for the faint-hearted, for those who prefer leisure over work, or seek only the pleasures of riches and fame.
Rather, it has been the risk-takers, the doers, the makers of things -- some celebrated, but more often men and women obscure in their labor -- who have carried us up the long, rugged path towards prosperity and freedom.
For us, they packed up their few worldly possessions and traveled across oceans in search of a new life. For us, they toiled in sweatshops and settled the West, endured the lash of the whip and plowed the hard earth.
COMMENTARY
The next four paragraphs seem to be his summary of American history.
OBAMA: For us, they fought and died in places [sic] Concord and Gettysburg; Normandy and Khe Sahn.
COMMENTARY
Then, comes this strange sentence, which is about war, but he simply places war time sacrifices in the broader American themes of immigration, slavery, and settlement.
Time and again these men and women struggled and sacrificed and worked till their hands were raw so that we might live a better life. They saw America as bigger than the sum of our individual ambitions; greater than all the differences of birth or wealth or faction.
This is the journey we continue today. We remain the most prosperous, powerful nation on Earth. Our workers are no less productive than when this crisis began. Our minds are no less inventive, our goods and services no less needed than they were last week or last month or last year. Our capacity remains undiminished. But our time of standing pat, of protecting narrow interests and putting off unpleasant decisions -- that time has surely passed.
COMMENTARY
There is a poor transition from traditional American themes to the journey paragraph. He did not address how with all that hard work Americans find themselves in this crisis. If he did, his targets might hit too close to home so politically he does not mention any villains.
OBAMA: Starting today, we must pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and begin again the work of remaking America.
(APPLAUSE)
For everywhere we look, there is work to be done.
The state of our economy calls for action: bold and swift. And we will act not only to create new jobs but to lay a new foundation for growth.
COMMENTARY
This section is really flat. He talks of remaking without stating what needs to be remade. He simply is calling people to work. It is also phrased so vaguely that there is no program or idea that he is tied to. People have to sacrifice is all is saying.
We will build the roads and bridges, the electric grids and digital lines that feed our commerce and bind us together.
COMMENTARY
This is the harping he has been stating in his weekly radio addresses. With each week the number of jobs he is stating to save grows. This may be just an obligatory nod to FDR since nothing about the infrastructure will grow the U.S. economy. The infrastructure is a weakness of the U.S. since we have failed to invest in foundational areas. Other countries have invested and have surpassed our growth particularly in the digital age.
We will restore science to its rightful place and wield technology's wonders to raise health care's quality...
(APPLAUSE)
... and lower its costs.
COMMENTARY
He is taking a stab at Bush's science policy. Then, he alludes to expanding the wonders of technology, which can be extremely expensive, but then somehow, magically, technology will cost less. He does not explain how.
OBAMA: We will harness the sun and the winds and the soil to fuel our cars and run our factories. And we will transform our schools and colleges and universities to meet the demands of a new age.
COMMENTARY
Most likely the key here will be the reference to the "soil" technologies since Illinois and the businesses there stand to profit a great deal from ethanol use. He will most likely advocate ethanol as his energy and security solution which will be good for businesses that he is dependent on for support.
All this we can do. All this we will do.
Now, there are some who question the scale of our ambitions, who suggest that our system cannot tolerate too many big plans. Their memories are short, for they have forgotten what this country has already done, what free men and women can achieve when imagination is joined to common purpose and necessity to courage.
What the cynics fail to understand is that the ground has shifted beneath them, that the stale political arguments that have consumed us for so long, no longer apply.
COMMENTARY
He must have big energy plans, not detailed here, that he will outline at some point. The statements here allow him to refer back to this to say he told us already. Of course, there are no details here at all.
OBAMA: The question we ask today is not whether our government is too big or too small, but whether it works, whether it helps families find jobs at a decent wage, care they can afford, a retirement that is dignified.
Where the answer is yes, we intend to move forward. Where the answer is no, programs will end.
COMMENTARY
He will end programs he does not like; he will favor those he does.
And those of us who manage the public's knowledge will be held to account, to spend wisely, reform bad habits, and do our business in the light of day, because only then can we restore the vital trust between a people and their government.
COMMENTARY
He may be just taking a snipe at Bush here but there is a lack of trust between many people and Obama but he can not explicit refer to them.
Nor is the question before us whether the market is a force for good or ill. Its power to generate wealth and expand freedom is unmatched.
OBAMA: But this crisis has reminded us that without a watchful eye, the market can spin out of control. The nation cannot prosper long when it favors only the prosperous.
The success of our economy has always depended not just on the size of our gross domestic product, but on the reach of our prosperity; on the ability to extend opportunity to every willing heart -- not out of charity, but because it is the surest route to our common good.
(APPLAUSE)
COMMENTARY
No one should expect Obama to uphold free market principles; he is explicitly advocating a liberal, interventionist model of the federal government.
As for our common defense, we reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals.
Our founding fathers faced with perils that 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.
OBAMA: 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 we are ready to lead once more.
(APPLAUSE)
COMMENTARY
This section may be against Bush's security priorities, which of course he has not rolled back. All the questions that people leveled at Bush in regards to the Patriot Act or infringing on basic American liberties are not on the Obama radar screen. He can criticize Bush and still retain all the powers of the imperial presidency. He may be referring to waterboarding, extradition, and others practices that he plans to abandon which will make the enemies of the U.S. more contentious.
It is interesting that he made a reference to the "small village where my father was born." He does not reference where he was born. Of course, we do not know where he was born anyway. He may have been born in the same small village as a British citizen of Kenya, just like his father.
Recall that earlier generations faced down fascism and communism not just with missiles and tanks, but with the sturdy alliances and enduring convictions.
OBAMA: 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.
We are the keepers of this legacy, guided by these principles once more, we can meet those new threats that demand even greater effort, even greater cooperation and understanding between nations. We'll begin to responsibly leave Iraq to its people and forge a hard-earned peace in Afghanistan.
COMMENTARY
Pleasant words but sufficiently vague so as to say nothing. I understand that he has to criticize Bush but he has no plan or better idea to offer. You have to accept on faith that somehow he will forge peace in Afghanistan. He does not say how; he may not understand the area in any case. Also, it is interesting to see how he addresses Iraq: "We'll begin to responsibly leave Iraq to its people." He does not seem to grasp the security advances that have resulted from the surge and all of the accomplishments established by his election in November. In this way, during his watch, he can claim that he was the one who handled Iraq correctly. In fact, General Petraeus, the Awakening Councils in Iraq, and the blood and sacrifice of American service people have already achieved this standard. It would have been magnanimous of him to admit this but he has demonstrated no indication earlier that he intends to credit those who performed the hard work and selfless duty of sacrifice to this end. It is more important for him to play politics about Iraq and repeat the standard liberal dogma.
OBAMA: With old friends and former foes, we'll work tirelessly to lessen the nuclear threat and roll back the specter of a warming planet.
COMMENTARY
Energy and security keeps coming back in the speech. He intends to rein in America in its energy use. It is the top priority in the speech.
We will not apologize for our way of life nor will we waver in its defense.
And for those who seek to advance their aims by inducing terror and slaughtering innocents, we say to you now that, "Our spirit is stronger and cannot be broken. You cannot outlast us, and we will defeat you."
(APPLAUSE)
COMMENTARY
He is addressing the terrorist threat, briefly, and I would conclude that he thinks if we use less we will be less of a target. He is wrong; Islamists are on their way regardless.
For we know that our patchwork heritage is a strength, not a weakness.
COMMENTARY
"Patchwork" is an odd metaphor to use. It implies weakness, the standard cliche is melting pot or tossed salad. It is the incorrect word to use. It works against his rhetoric.
We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus, and nonbelievers. 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.
COMMENTARY
If America becomes blander we will have peace. I think that is a debatable point but I believe it is fair to state that is what he intends. We had peace when we were distinctive and lived in a unipolar world. Obama intends a multipolar world, restraining American ambitions.
OBAMA: To the Muslim world, we seek a new way forward, based on mutual interest and mutual respect.
COMMENTARY
He can dream on; this will not happen.
To those leaders around the globe who seek to sow conflict or blame their society's ills on the West, know that your people will judge you on what you can build, not what you destroy.
COMMENTARY
Interesting in that his next paragraph, after the conciliatory paragraph about Muslims, seems to follow Samuel Huntington's Clash of Civilizations thesis. There is a tension here unless he is trying to appeal to all sides of the political debate, the internationalists, and the realists. It is unclear what he is referring to, perhaps as he is so unfamiliar with foreign policy, he simply does not know how to proceed. In this way, he can be reactive, depending on how much the U.S. is attacked, he can always take the ploy that he has a clear policy as it is a response to whatever the remainder of the world does against U.S. interests.
To those...
(APPLAUSE)
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.
(APPLAUSE)
OBAMA: To the people of poor nations, we pledge to work alongside you to make your farms flourish and let clean waters flow; to nourish starved bodies and feed hungry minds.
COMMENTARY
He plans to provide more foreign aid.
And to those nations like ours that enjoy relative plenty, we say we can no longer afford indifference to the suffering outside our borders, nor can we consume the world's resources without regard to effect. For the world has changed, and we must change with it.
COMMENTARY
This is another reference to how much we consume. We are at fault for using the world's energy. We will have to cut back in favor of the remainder of the world.
As we consider the road that unfolds before us, we remember with humble gratitude those brave Americans who, at this very hour, patrol far-off deserts and distant mountains. They have something to tell us, just as the fallen heroes who lie in Arlington whisper through the ages.
We honor them not only because they are guardians of our liberty, but because they embody the spirit of service: a willingness to find meaning in something greater than themselves.
COMMENTARY
Our military makes great sacrifices.
OBAMA: And yet, at this moment, a moment that will define a generation, it is precisely this spirit that must inhabit us all.
For as much as government can do and must do, it is ultimately the faith and determination of the American people upon which this nation relies.
It is the kindness to take in a stranger when the levees break; the selflessness of workers who would rather cut their hours than see a friend lose their job which sees us through our darkest hours.
It is the firefighter's courage to storm a stairway filled with smoke, but also a parent's willingness to nurture a child, that finally decides our fate.
Our challenges may be new, the instruments with which we meet them may be new, but those values upon which our success depends, honesty and hard work, courage and fair play, tolerance and curiosity, loyalty and patriotism -- these things are old.
OBAMA: These things are true. They have been the quiet force of progress throughout our history.
COMMENTARY
Americans will need to be like soldiers. We must sacrifice.
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.
OBAMA: This is the source of our confidence: the knowledge that God calls on us to shape an uncertain destiny.
COMMENTARY
We have our duty, and we have a responsibility to ourselves, but we have a duty to sacrifice for the world.
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.
(APPLAUSE)
COMMENTARY
We are sacrificing but we can still celebrate. He makes another reference to his father, a man he barely knew and did not raise him, in addition, he would not be served at a restaurant, not because of his race, but because he was not an American. It is a odd reference to make. I do not think Barack recognizes that there are those who question his background. He wants to make disagreements about race instead. He is wrong.
So let us mark this day in 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 nine campfires on the shores of an icy river.
COMMENTARY
He does not reference how there are nine campfires at Valley Forge.
OBAMA: 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.
Thank you. God bless you.
(APPLAUSE)
And God bless the United States of America.
(APPLAUSE)
COMMENTARY
He invokes Washington. He wants us to sacrifice bravely as Americans. He must intend to significantly lower the American way of living.
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