Amid Clichés, Speech Showed True Insight

(NEWSER) - Barack Obama’s first speech as president was not “a joyous audacious document, not a call to arms,” writes Peggy Noonan in the Wall Street Journal, “but a reasoned statement by a Young Sobersides.” That’s not a criticism: Moderate and moderated, Obama’s address said exactly what it needed to. It was not “especially moving or rousing,” but “it was worthy, had weight, and was adult.” More»

President alludes to slavery, points to diversity as a strength

(NEWSER) - Barack Obama made only subtle reference to his race in today’s inaugural address, but it came up again and again throughout the 18-minute address. He said that America owed its prosperity to “the makers of things,” who “endured the lash of the whip and plowed the hard earth,” and that the election of a black man was a sign of the country’s bedrock values. More»

Right/left praise speech

(NEWSER) - The early reviews are in from Barack Obama’s inauguration address, and the news is positive. Here’s what the critics are saying:

• At the National Review, Michael Knox Beran thought the speech was a “home run.” It predictably had “a few lines at which a conservative would cavil,” but impressed with its somber tone and deference to the founding fathers.
• Jacob Heilbrun of the Huffington Post saw something else in the references to Washington and company. “He promised a new American revolution,” with a fresh generation renewing America’s promise.

Rejects policies, advocates diplomacy, warns enemies

(NEWSER) - Barack Obama offered a clear rebuke of George Bush's policies and signaled a sharp break with his predecessor's strategy abroad in his inaugural address today. “We reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals,” the new president said, referring obviously to torture of detainees and violation of Americans' civil rights in the name of the war on terror. “Those ideals still light the world, and we will not give them up for expedience’s sake.” More»

Aide calls it 'sober dose of hope'

(NEWSER) - Barack Obama wowed crowds in Washington today with a moving inaugural address calling the US to a new sense of shared responsibility and service, CNN reports. “We must pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and begin again the work of remaking America,” Obama said. “Today I say to you that the challenges we face are real … they will not be met easily. But know this, America, they will be met.” More»