Thank you, Jane.

The long wait is almost over!!

We have a new vice president!
I’m happy already.

Hello, Jane. What a glorious day.

Can I start breathing again? Yes, I think I can!

wheeee

Wooohooo! …and Cheney went *poof!*

I wouldn’t want to try to play any instrument, especially strings, in that cold. More power to them.

Now here is some music!

COUNTDOWN:
0 days 0 hours 0 minutes 0 seconds

Land where my fathers died,
Land of the pilgrims’ pride,
From every mountainside,
Let freedom ring! *

BING BONG BONG BING BONG
peel the bells
BING BONG BONG BING BONG

God my lord I can smell the air is cleaner. Thank you all from the bottom of my heart. HIP HIP HOORAY!

one down, one to go.

Did Brennan just say “Thank you Mr. President” to Biden?

Oh seeing Biden, grinning like he does. Magnificent. And this piece is wonderful. Tribute to Copeland, ….

getting the tissues now.

what a joyous sound

i like this music very much, both for itself and the occasion.

Sasha’s restless. Malia’s the perfect lady.

i’d like to see his chair get a flat

The makeup of the performers is not lost on me. Beautiful

The suspense is killing me.

COUNTDOWN:
0 days 0 hours 0 minutes 0 seconds

The music notes are more crisp to my ear.
The sky and air is so clean and fresh.
The flower smell all the prettier.
The touch of my love sweeter.

The oath means nothing …. OBAMA is PRESIDENT RIGHT NOW!!

The musicians are having great fun — Simple Gifts, from Copeland.

I’m in love with Yo Yo Ma. Beautiful

Simple gifts always brings tears … so perfect and with YoYo Ma’s glorious grin

I likes me a little chain link with mah kultcha.

And YoYoMa’s a national treasure, he’s truly enjoying himself out there. It’s play for him.

My daughter is IMing me live stuff from London. She would not miss this; unfortunately, I have to work.

EPU’d dernit!

I don’t usually do liveblog threads, but I didn’t want to be alone for this. Hell, Yo Yo Ma made me tear up – he looks so happy!

The only time I’ve been dry eyed was when I muted that bastage Warren, and said my OWN (heathen, pagan, non-hetero) prayer.

On the CNN Ticker:

“Barack Obama has just become president; the constitution states his term begins at noon, even without oath.”

Swearing in a foulmouth blog such as this – color me surprised.

;>)

Heh. I wonder how well that wheelchair could take the steps?

Ahhhh- my favorite musicians and one of my favorite pieces. Lovely.
Good taste is back in the White House, too!

EPU’ed but we don’t have a President at the moment.

I saw him play a concert in Central Park. Thought I’d died and gone to heaven.

Take a deep breath. In a few minutes a new sun will be shining on the world.

Barack Hussein Obama is now our president. The torch is passed.

All the rest is ceremony…and the call to service.

lunch break

Yay..here it comes

Here it comes!!!

Here we go……. Chief Justice……

According to the constitution we are now 4 min into the term of President Barack Obama

Here we go…here we go!

zomg this is it

Nothing honourable about Roberts. Boo.

Barack Hussein Obama, our president

BOOM

OH SWEET JESUS!

WAPO LOST THE AUDIO!!

Woo Hoo!

Words escape me.

Huzzah!

Done Deal.

Congratulations, Mr. President.

WOW
FINALLY!!!!!

we won

Did Justice Roberts just muff the oath? It looks like Obama had it memorized (it’s 35 words) and was caught off guard by something.

Hail to Chief…

Jerks.

Mr Cool stumbled a bit. Not too nervous.

Not according to the 20th Amendment, according to Jim Lehrer. (I know, I know…)

WOOT!

“Let the word go forth, from this time and place …”

I FEEL safer already!

It’s DONE he is The PRESIDENT!!
We have a new POTUS it’s about time!!!

Ding dong, the ding dong is gone

Roberts managed to screw up the oath. Way to go.

NO MORE BUSH!!!

Roberts sounds a little deflated.

The F’n dental office calls right during the swearing in to remind me of my appointment tomorrow……

Now comes his speech!! I am breathless!!

The crowds … the crowds!

yaHOOOOOOO

Nope. Roberts screwed it up.

Now the opening words of his Inaugural Address. “Rethugs, you’re under arrest.”

after 8 long years, we have a president elected.

my heart pounds

Michelle will give him grief about this, I’m sure

DIGG is open.

Obama just now sworn in as 44th president of USA.

Congratulations to everybody here. Always remember this.

That’s exactly what I thought…something added, jacked, whatever.

in more ways than one…

yes, my daughter just IM’d me that Roberts screwed up the oath, threw Obama off, and then screwed it up again.

Yep. My bad.

Uh-oh, Roberts botched the oath spiel!

Watch wingnuts whine that Obama’s not really President!

Free at last, free at last, thank God Almighty, we are free at last.

Democracy has been restored to the United States. The Bush coup is over.

tell them the eight year long root canal is finally over.

Unfamiliarity, dontcha know.

word

President Obama beginning his Inaugural Address. Thanks Bush for his service, a courtesy he does not deserve.

Anyone else having a holy shit moment here?

Yes, Roberts erred and BO was gracious

Woo Hoo … President Barack Hussein Obama

Watch Malkin and that ilk screech that the oath wasn’t legitimate… In 3, 2, 1…

who could EVER forget
and i will always remember the people i shared this moment with as well, Hmmm!

That smirk stays on Bush’s face, doesn’t it?

BTW, Obama wrote the speech himself

Tat cowboy hat in the background- can’t quite make out the face – but it must be Salazar.

Ack, why the heck did that quote Marion. Grrr.

don’t forget LIVES, LOST!
Bu$h’s was a MURDEROUS regime.

LOL !!!

Nope Constitution says he became President at exactly at noon Eastern time zone!

Ooh, this is NOT a Big Oil president.

our new president does not know how to be anything else BUT gracious, a skill the former president and vice president did not have.

Grab a glass o’ bubbly, y’all

A president that is honest…and can talk in complete phrases…I’m gobsmacked

duh

Well, the oath being screwed up was a bit of a “holy shit” moment too!

Freedom over tyranny!

the “it is now time to set aside childish things” was a very nice touch if it was meant, as i understood it to be, a comment on the bush era.

*clink!*

“makers of things”

wow! this is not a corporate raider president.

BTW, Obama wrote the speech himself

Well Bush would have written his but the crayons kept breaking.

Obama has already whacked the Bushies around pretty good. Go Barack !

DUGG!!!

Group Hug!!! ((((((firepups))))))

Welcome back, America. The 8 yr nightmare is over.

President Barack Hussein Obama–at long last. Let the good times roll.

Just saw shot of Tuskeegee Airmen.

lookat Bush “I’m melting!”

YEAH!!!
remaking america after the Bu$h crime family dismantled it!!!!!

amen

They have a prominent place in the parade.

teehee. I will forever associate that man with crayons

“Starting today, we must pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and begin the work of rebuilding America.”

Bush I sporting Daniel Boone hat

wow four years of this, i don’t know if i can take it. my face is gonna hurt from smiling that long. no matter what he does, it will at least be articulated instead of mumbled.

idea central.

wow.

cool

Teetotalers raise a glass of lemon selzer.

{{{FIREPUPS}}}
Now we must keep their feet to the fire so we CAN rebuild our country!!

Could not have said that better myself?

Somebody tell me what POTUS is saying, because I can’t get any coverage.

This is the most graceful verbal smackdown I have EVER heard.

Things feel different.

I can breathe!

My heartfelt appreciation to all of you.

We made it through …

And a new day is dawning.

Even I caught that, it’s not that difficult. Perhaps Roberts thought he had it memorized

Not just phrases but full grammatical sentences in paragraphs……

NO more power point speeches…… Yahoo

clink

Well, my American friends, it is done. Congratulations and the best of wishes.

Now…Buckle down, hold your elected representatives to their higher words, and let us step back together from the Abyss. Peace.

my mom’s friend is a widow of one. she is white, way ahead of her time. cool lady.

The presidents hair already appears to be graying.

Calistoga here in Cali … Lemon of course!

Ray Nagen

Time for a drinkee.

Amazing, isn’t it.

Yup! Big Hug to All of YOU! Happy Day!!!!!!

THe Sun is Shining Again!!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IkVw8G-iKEU

public dollars!

what a concept! I thought it was Cheney’s $$$

very cool. Love knows no color

ROGER THAT, Adelwolf!

We reject the choice between our safety and our ideals …

amen

“we reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals.”

darkblack – you are not “from here?” !

ok speech.

always tempers with D and R side of things.

‘…assure the rule of law and not of man…’

YES!!!!

he is kickin ol’ Codpiece’s arse!

” We are ready to lead once more”

The look on the Chimp’s face is priceless. It’s like.. you can see, all over his face, that all he hears is the Peanuts Teacher’s voice.

Bwah bwah bwah…

Damn, had to squeeze the last 2 ounces out of my single malt jug. Damn.

He’s a native of Alpha Theta 12 … don’tcha know ?

Every word in this speech is a rebuke of the last eight years.

Happy days are here again,
the skies above are clear again,
so let’s sing a song of cheer again!
Happy days are here again!

Oh how I wish his mother, grandmother and grandfather were sitting there. I know they are there in spirit.

“… guided by these principles ONCE MORE …” WHAP!!

yep, and respect.

“not to do as we please”

the anti-Bush antidote!!!!

I’m swooning…

Amen.

Arrrgh! I am not seeing that I want the front pagers please to get a link of that!

Who’s gonna translate this speech for Dubya ?

What channel are you watching? I haven’t seen Chimpy on my screen since they entered. Hah.

i have kahlua here in my coffee SD
want some?

CNN. They pan every now and again, and they’ve shown Chimpy’s face a couple times.

Artfully done !

What ya drinking?

Laura. she’s got flash cards ready

Channeling MLK.

John Lewis…our conscience and hero

Speech is getting better.

ouuuuuuuu
thru corruption and deceipt
now let’s seeeee
WHO COULD THAT BE MEANT FOR??????

LOL!

With Pictures

I was thinking the same thing. He has NO idea that the new prez just bitch slapped him.

It’s not on the test and the class is over. He doesn’t care.

Nay, Tejana, though a large portion of my heart lies with the United States.

This is the President that the World needs, to lead.

he sure did!

On to corner the market on Brush Farmin’ ?

Bush’s face at that exact moment please say someone has a film of that!

Obama talks about the need to help developing countries and for us to live within our means.

Now there was a proud sailor.

Isn’t this beautiful?

Katrina….wow.

“The kindness of taking in strangers when the levees break…”

when the levee breaks… W smackdown, wow.

Barack is also setting the stage for Foreign Policy with this speech … incredible that he can convey so much with so few words.

Soon’s I finish this glass of scotch, thanks. Tis a day to celebrate.

Well, you are certainly an honored citizen of FDL.

senioritis to the max. party on dood. good luck mucking out my stalls.

i’m only seeing Obi.
i hope to God someone has footage of the disaster monkey.

the price and promise of citizenship

The new boss is Not the same as the old boss.

wow what a line.

celebration with tears of joy

He’s doing what he always does at any climax … think of Baseball !

*raising my coffee mug* (saving the champagne for tonight so hubby can celebrate with me)

Congratulations, everyone – the page has turned.

It’s truly “the end of an error”

Mr. Obama is teaching us, everyone, what it really means to be American. It’s not putting a boot on someone’s ass. It’s helping each other.

disaster monkey.

LOL

President Obama! Loving it!!!

Which one ? They have all been memorable.

You’ll have to forgive him – He was a little late getting up.

;>)

It’s been a long journey to get here. Thank you all for sharing it with me.

Can Bush leave now?

God Bless America!!!!!!!

Obama exudes class while the ex-prez………

Short and power packed. A new dawn.

Did everyone hear President Obama mention us NON-BELIEVERS? Loved it when he included us! We Atheists rock and deserve some recognition too. ;-)

Wow. Just wow.

Gee even has been is clapping, didn’t think he knew how. /s

which line was that?

I am at work and could not watch this in entirety, I rely on you guys for the highlights

he probably needs a bathroom pretty badly about now.

sure would like to see him cuffed and hauled off at this moment

Can we do a group terrorist fist jab?

That is an amazing thing!

We have had a new President for 25 minutes…… the whole world seems so much better….

((( TJ )))

LOLOL

It’s truly “the end of an error”

and end of the horror, time now to revisit, reclaim and rebuild

It feels so good to have George & Dick out of office. *wiping tears*

poet Elizabeth Alexander

Disaster monkey looked puckered in the lips.

Looks like Ms. Alexander had a little trouble being able to speak. Understandable.

The first amendment says, “Yes, we can!”

Oh, alright.

;>)

Right back atcha, TJ.

That’s about the only thing missing.

{{FISTBUMP!}}

standing next to NY Rep. Maurice Hinchey – not my guy but a treasure, nonetheless.

The line about how 60 years ago his father would not have been served in a restaurant but here he is taking the oath for the most powerful office (paraphrasing)

GROSS! But oh so appropriate! Thanks DB you always say it so well with pictures!!

I’ll join your bump, gf.

Well, BO is nothing if not inclusive…that was a poke in the eye with a sharp stick to the far Christian right if ever there was one.

Why is Bush still there?
I want him gone

Yes! Bet Bush never seen crowds like that! This is what a popular President getting elected looks like! I hope the GOP remembers the size of this crowd when they vote!
Has there ever been Parties in cities before when we got a new President?
Parties advertised in Papers?

Thanks, Folks.

We now rejoin the 21st Century, already in progress.

Ooooh! Nice.

Agree

WOW, You Guys did it. The WHOLE WORLD just took a collective breath.
Thank-you from a little round Englishwoman..Thank-you :)

Text of Obama’s Inaugural Address:

http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITI…..index.html

wobbs ]]TFJ[[dosido

yay!

Fist Jab!

I think you just crashed her site.

Thank you for saying that – I can’t recall anything like this before. This man is OUR president…WE elected him…WE fought for the right to vote and not get our votes thrown away…despite the best the GOP threw to trash everything…WE elected him. So, WE have the right to celebrate..all over, everywhere.

Does 41 keep falling asleep?

Cool perspective. We’ve rejoined humanity.

lovin’ this poem “words” “love”

“love with no need to preempt grievance”

gets smile from Michelle

Phone keeps ringing…family from Brasil and UK, friends from Germany all in tears.

Here’s the text of the Inaugural Address, for those stuck at work or away from the TV.

so true, so true

“love with no need to preempt grievance”

Sigh. Poetry as truth.

President Obama! Music to my ears!

I owe you a beverage!

go Dr. Lowery

“We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, of Jews and Hindus, of non-believers.”

The sentiment was good, but that’s a rather nonsensical way to refer to atheists and non-Abrahamic religions (except for Hinduism, explicitly named). There are 1.4 million Hindus and 1 to 4 million buddhists, so it was odd to include Hindus, especially when using “non-believers” to refer to everything else.

Interesting, according to the US Census, “no religion” is the third-greatest religion in this country.

Gad, I’m an old fuddyduddy. That poetry didn’t rhyme and it didn’t have a meter.

Your Welcome Toby:) I wonder has there ever been a bigger crowd in America?

You know what? You people look different to me now. *wink* LOL What a feeling to have a new president after 8 years of living hell!

Why is Bush still there?

Have you ever been in a room where someone has passed gas and it just kind of hangs there? It’s a little like that.

Look at all those people.

Thank you, Howard Dean. From all of us.

Just bookmarked it thanks:)

Jane’s upstairs again

You’re welcome – and boy, are we glad to rejoin you, and to be able to lift our heads again.
NYT reported Americans around the world are being congratulated – they’ve stopped pretending to be Canadian. *g*

What a relief for all of us.

I’m not going to analyze it, because I am a non-believer and Barack can refer to me that way, even if I prefer….Atheist (notice how I capitalize it! LOL!).

LOL.
Free verse has its own unique beauty. You get to focus on individual words and their meaning as well as the collective text. I love it

I don’t think his thought was about statistics.

Dr. Lowery – outshines the Rickster

I’ll forgive him that, because if he tried to be truly, thoroughly inclusive, we’d be here for a few hours while he listed out all the truly unique faith systems.

The fact that he mentioned the “non-believers” (not the most eloquent way to put it, but better than, oh, “faithless”) at all, in what is probably the most watched event in television history is a small but cherished victory.

Good benediction, though.

yesterday, i was reminded of Woodstock

Well, if he was going to work his way through every known religion we’d be listening to the speech until Thursday. Although I agree he could have found some way to acknowledge other religions, maybe referring to the community of believers and non-believers or something along those lines. He’s not perfect — who knew? (bit of snark there…)

From Salon’s War Room:

When outgoing President George W. Bush’s name was announced just before emerging from the Capitol building, the assembled masses broke into a cheer of “Na na na na, na na na na, hey hey goodbye!”

The MSNBC anchoring crew tut-tutted, but there was no disguising the delight on the faces of the singing crowd.

Amazing and wonderful. The world slaps George W Bush and Company square up side the head.

I just think it was a somewhat clumsy line.

Tolerance, not intolerance.

Thank you, Reverend, thanks for closing on a positive note like that.

I kinda prefer meter and at least some assonance – but loved the images her words evoked, and that’s good poetry, too. ; )

Even this heathen will say Amen to the end of that benediction!

Thing is, when I write prose, I wind up writing with meter, and then I have to go back and smudge out the signs (though people usually don’t even realize it’s there) — so, if someone says to me, “This IS poetry”, I like to hear the rhyme and meter I try to obscure. Just me.

he he heeheehee

Congratulations everyone..the world rejoices with you!

Yep … this a Worldwide celebration !

…and he’s gone, gone, gone…

The country survived the worst ruler it has ever endured.

Thanks for your companionship, pups. You all helped to help me make it through.

Thank you, Marion in Savannah, for the text to Obama’s inaugural address. I’ve saved it for later study and preservation.