The first African-American becomes president of the Unites States Of America. Today, January 20, 2008. Barack Hussein Obama became the 44th president of the United States. It is a moment of profound significance, and called on Americans to confront together an economic crisis that he said was caused by “our collective failure to make hard choices."Mr. Obama spoke to a crowd of cheering people, appearing to number well over a million, who packed on the National Mall from the Capitol to the Washington Monument and beyond. He acknowledged the change his presidency represented, describing himself in his inaugural address as a “man whose father less than sixty years ago might not have been served at a local restaurant.”
Despite its implications, Mr. Obama did not dwell on race. He, instead, stated that he promised to take “bold and swift” action to restore the economy by creating jobs through public works projects, improving education, promoting alternative energy and relying on new technology.“ Starting today, we must pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and begin again the work of remaking America."
He spoke for about 20 minutes, after taking the oath of office on the same Bible used by Abraham Lincoln at his first inaugural in 1861, emphasizing his determination to unite Americans in confronting both the economic challenges facing him and the continuing fight against terrorism.
He takes office less than a month before the bicentennial of the birth of Abraham Lincoln, another Illinoisan who took the office at a time of national turmoil and a man whom Mr. Obama clearly looks to as an inspiration for his own presidency.
