President Obama Sworn In for a Second Term, in a Private Ceremony

[onehandle]

Source: New York Times



President Obama was quietly sworn into office for a second term just before noon in a brief and intimate ceremony, ahead of Monday’s far showier public inaugural celebrations.

The ceremony, which lasted less than two minutes, satisfied the Constitutional requirement that the president’s swearing-in take place by noon on the Jan. 20 after an election.

The oath was administered by Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. in the White House Blue Room, an elegant, gilded space with a sweeping view of the South Lawn.

The chief justice administered the oath faithfully and Mr. Obama repeated it accurately, unlike the situation four years earlier, when Mr. Roberts inverted a few words during the public swearing-in, Mr. Obama echoed the errors, and the oath had to be repeated in private later. The chief justice, who had relied on his famously prodigious memory in 2009, this time took no chances: He read the oath from a printed text.

Read more: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/01/21/us/politics/president-obama-inauguration.html

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BREAKING NEWS 11:56 AM ET

[Historic NY]

1. It was fast..

started at 1155 & ended by 1156.

[RKP5637]

2. How come they do a private one and then a public one? n/t

[cstanleytech]

5. Maybe because of the risk of someone interfering with the public one in an attempt to

cause there to be a disruption in the chain of government and or the appearance of such.

[bluemarkers]

6. they didn't have to have two

but the Constitution is specific about the official swearing happening before noon on Jan 20th

Tomorrow 800,000 of the President's friends will be celebrating outside.

[Third Doctor]

7. I think the constitutiion states that he most be sworn on ln the 20th and that fell on today.

Tomorrow is mostllly just for show. Plus they didn't want to celebrate on Sunday.

[maryellen99]

16. if they did it today

The Obama haters would be complaining because it would be interfering with their precious football games.

I'll bet they'll be complaining tomorrow though due to soaps and talk shows being preempted.

[xxqqqzme]

50. Plus tomorrow is

a federal holiday - MLK Day!

[Historic NY]

8. Today was unusual...

being Sunday...law requires it to be done by noon on 1/20

[Igel]

21. Because of the need to pomp it up.

It's official. The public one is just for show.

Yes, it could be done with all the pomp and circumstance on Sunday, and annoy those who go to worship at the various Xian and NFL-denomoninated churches. Avoiding the annoyance is not a sufficient reason for moving it to a Monday. One could argue that it's a necessary reason.

However, one could just dispense with all the pomp and glorying. It's just not necessary. Without it, things would go on and millions of dollars could be used for something else.

[jberryhill]

23. To satisfy believers in voodoo

For example, two of the responses above claim that "the Constitution" somehow requires it at noon on the 20th.

The Constitution does not require that the president-elect do anything at noon on the 20th or at any other time on the 20th.

The 20th Amendment says:

"The terms of the President and Vice President shall end at noon on the 20th day of January"

Article II, Section 1 says:

"Before he enter on the Execution of his Office, he shall take the following Oath or Affirmation:--“I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my Ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.”

Note the absence of "...so help me, God", which is a traditional flourish.

There is no requirement that the president-elect take an oath on January 20th. He or she may do so at any time "Before" assuming the office. He could have done so yesterday, last week, or whenever.

Moreover, there is no reason that it need be done so orally. He or she could, and probably does, sign the same oath on paper.

The public ceremony, whether held on the 20th or, as has been done several times out of respect for Sunday on the 21st, is itself simply a tradition, and not any sort of requirement. It is a traditional civil ritual which reinforces the peaceful transition of power, to which certain elements reinforcing that peaceful transition have been added. It doesn't require, for example, the former president to shake hands with the incoming one and fly off on a helicopter either, as if it were the balloon scene in Wizard of Oz. But that part has an almost religious symbolism - the departing leader is lifted up and taken away into the heavens.

[RKP5637]

27. Thanks!!! n/t

[Moonwalk]

32. Take a 2nd look at 20th Amendment there: if the end of the term is Noon, January 20th...

...then technically Obama is NOT the president after 12pm, January 20th, until and unless he is sworn in again. And so can't wield any power.

So THAT is why he had that little private ceremony @ noon on January 20th--because if they waited till tomorrow he wouldn't be president for 24 hours. And if anything happened, he couldn't give orders and such as President of the U.S. He, essentially, has to be re-hired

[jberryhill]

33. Again....

Art II simply requires the oath be taken "before" entering office. He could have taken the oath last month, and that would be fine.

[Moonwalk]

37. But the magic wouldn't have worked if he'd done it earlier....

[jberryhill]

38. Correct

You know... if you like the "Turkey Pardon" thing, the first time he did it, he asked "is there some sort of official gesture?"

This last time around, the Freepers went bananas because he made some sort of left-handed "cross" gesture. Which may have had a lot to do with him being left-handed.

But this kind of stuff is always important to someone.

[Moonwalk]

43. Left-handed cross over the turkey? Cool! Did the turkey turn into...

Demon Turkey? Or zombie turkey? Did it levitate or something?

[jmowreader]

46. It keeps Orly from fucking up the real ceremony, and they didn't want to make people work Sunday

The Constitution requires they swear the President in before noon on January 20, but there's no real reason they had to do the big public gala today.

Besides, can you imagine all the fucking birthers exercising their First Amendment right to ruin the president's day? Tomorrow it's all for show and there won't be any point to screaming about how he invented the time machine so he could go back to Hawaii in 1961 and put fake birth announcements in Honolulu's papers.

[RKP5637]

48. Yep, sadly, quite true. n/t

[Third Doctor]

3. Wait did you hear!!!?

A few million freepers heads just exploded.

[freshwest]

11. Another mess we'll have to clean up. I'd like to say it'll be the last, but no such luck.

[Kennah]

39. Shit is biodegradeable. Just send over a few million dung beetles. It's all good.

[freshwest]

40. Nah, it's a job for crime scene professionals. Besides, they have cooties and germz!

[Kennah]

41. I'm betting that insects will outlive the GOP. Hell, aluminum siding will outlive the GOP.

[freshwest]

42. So will the Kochroaches. They were around before the recent manifestations of gopiggery.

[jmowreader]

47. Dung beetles refuse to eat freeper brains

It's the same reason sharks don't eat Republican politicians: professional courtesy.

For freeper brains you need chemical-warfare decontamination products like supertropical bleach.

[Kennah]

49. Dung beetles are small, but not small enough to find freeper brains

[jmowreader]

51. Freeper brains weigh the same as regular brains

In the freeper, they consist of 82 percent cornmeal mush, two percent bacon grease and 14 percent used cat litter. Which adds up to 98 percent, but freepers aren't all there.

[UrbScotty]

14. He should've taken the oath on a Koran just to mess with them!

[Autumn]

4. I watched it, with such a sense of relief.

God I hate republicans. I don't agree with a lot of Obamas policies but at least things will remain on a even keel for 4 years and I am grateful for that.

[bluemarkers]

9. me too! can you imagine the havoc rmoney

would be creating right now had he succeeded in buying the election?!

[RKP5637]

10. Ohhhhhh, could one imagine if it were Romney. Same here ...

"God I hate republicans."

[awoke_in_2003]

19. I shudder at the thought...

of the swearing in of Lurch Rmoney.

[AllyCat]

12. Yay!

[BumRushDaShow]

13. Watched it live on CSPAN

Congratulations President Barack Obama!

Time to some elephant butt!

[UrbScotty]

15. Which is good news for John McCain! (nt)

[Deep13]

17. ...in case Roberts fucks it up again. nt

[awoke_in_2003]

18. Damn, those girls...

are growing fast. I love Michelle's new hairdo.

[UnrepentantLiberal]

20. That must have been an amazing thing for his daughters to watch

now that they've lived in the White House and fully understand the enormity of what was taking place.

[Gregorian]

22. Sworn in by a fascist.

Weird.

[JackN415]

24. Haven't you heard? the Republicans are celebrating...

they call this is the beginning of the end of Obama.

[Beacool]

25. Wow, Malia has gotten so tall.

She's almost as tall as Michelle.

[jberryhill]

28. Check the heels

From other public appearances, it seems the Obamas do not prefer that teenagers wear heels. Malia typically wears flats, while Michelle is wearing pumps with a modest heel. It's hard to tell from this video, but if you are looking at them standing next to each other, you have to subtract about an inch from Michelle. And if you look at their waistlines, Malia seems to have gotten her father's long legs, as her waistline is markedly higher than her mother's.

[In_The_Wind]

26. Congratulations President Obama.

[ellisonz]

29. woot

[OldRedneck]

30. I'm confused.

I understand the point about today being the Consititutionally-set inauguration day and tomorrow is merely ceremonial. However, I'm still confused: Does this mean that TODAY is Day One of the Romney Presidency, or, will that be TOMORROW????

[Milliesmom]

31. LOL

I read on a blog today that the Right Wingers heads were exploding and to go outside and listen as it sounds like bubble wrap!! LOL

[Cha]

34. Done. Kinda sweet..

Just them in our White House they've lived in for the last four years and tomorrow is the big celebration for everyone who is so very happy we have Obama-Biden for another Four Years!

Thank you, onehandle!

[blaze]

35. Am I the only one who got a little weepy watching that?

It was short and sweet.... and Roberts had his crib notes...

but still....

I am SO glad that we have this man as our President again!

[PoliticAverse]

36. If you could watch it live on C-Span I'd call it a 'public ceremony'. n/t

[Rhiannon12866]

44. I guess it really was private! And Yikes! The little girls have sure grown up fast!

[Ineeda]

45. Interesting factoid...

Tomorrow, President Obama will only be the second president in U.S. history to be sworn in four times. The other one? FDR.

[bitchkitty]

53. Love Michelle Obama's new hairstyle!

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