Obama Sworn In as President
A Day of History as New Leader Urges Unity Amid ‘Raging Storms’ of War and Recession
Philadelphia Inquirer/Rapport Press
HANDOFF: Barack Obama was sworn in Tuesday as the nation’s 44th president. More than one million people gathered for the event.With Mr. Obama’s first day on the job scarcely begun, the financial uncertainty facing his presidency made itself felt. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 4%, its worst inauguration-day performance in history, amid fresh signs of trouble among the nation’s banks.
WASHINGTON — On a day rich in history, Barack Obama took office Tuesday as the 44th president of the U.S., urging Americans to stand together amid the “gathering clouds and raging storms” of war and recession.
The inauguration of the first African-American to lead the world’s most powerful country drew a crowd of well over one million to the National Mall here. In his 18-minute address, Mr. Obama called on Americans to return to the values of “hard work and honesty, courage and fair play, tolerance and curiosity” that have seen the country through past crises.
With Mr. Obama’s first day on the job scarcely begun, the financial uncertainty facing his presidency made itself felt. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 4%, its worst inauguration-day performance in history, amid fresh signs of trouble among the nation’s banks.
At exactly noon, by law, Mr. Obama became president. Placing his hand on a Bible once used by Abraham Lincoln, he took the oath using his full name, Barack Hussein Obama — a moment that stood in contrast to episodes on the long campaign trail in which detractors would occasionally stress his middle name in a derogatory way.
Obama Sworn In as President – WSJ.com.
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Tags: barack obama, History, inauguration, Politics, president, united states
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