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Listening to the media after President Barack Obama -- it's so good to say that, no more president-elect-anyway -- gave his inaugural speech there was disappointment because there was no one easy catchphrase, no one easy quote to take away.
There was no, "Ask Not What Your Country Can Do For You," or no "The only thing we have to fear is fear itself" or no "better angels of our nature." No, there was no easy sound bite because there is no easy answer to the challenges our nation faces.
Perhaps, the era of sound bite politics-snippets like "Mission Accomplished" or "I'm the decider" or "You're doing a heck of a job Brownie." Yes, perhaps the era of sound bite politics is over.
As I watched the reviews of the day by my favorite trio of pundits, MSNBC's Chris Matthews, Keith Olbermann and Rachel Maddow they couldn't just show a two to three second snippet from Obama's speech because there was too much substance, to much seriousness of purpose to gloss over in just a moment.
Obama is a serious president for serious times. He's smart and politically savvy-able to denounce the Bush administration's last eight years without demeaning the man. He's redefining political discourse and how politics are done.
The 83 percent approval rating President Obama had when he took the oath gives him the support, perhaps even the mandate, he needs to change the way things get done in D.C. I am hopeful that we will see change. The Republican members of Congress who will try to stand in his way won't be plowed down by an Obama steamroller. No, they will be put in their place by their own constituents-people who need jobs, people who need to keep a roof over their heads, people who need health care.
The folks who need help-more and more of them are no different than you or I-they don't care about the minutiae of the stimulus package. They care about getting back to work. They care about bringing their kids to the doctor and getting them a good education. They care about keeping their homes. They care about the things Obama cares about, they care about the things the majority of the people in this country care about. The Republicans in Congress who try to stop the change that's needed won't be seen as the champions of the people. No, they'll be seen as the obstructionists that they are.
Change was the order of the day on the day of Obama's Inauguration. By one minute after 12 noon yesterday, right after he was officially President but before he took the oath, the White House's website changed dramatically.
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With the header, "Change has come to America" and a graduated soft blue that is continuing Obama's branded colors, the web site lays out his agenda-from economic revitalization to civil rights to health care to the war in Iraq.
Of course, I was curious to see what was under civil rights and there, plain as day for all to see, was a sub-head-"Support for the LGBT Community."
This is the first time any sitting president has detailed our agenda as his. Despite the flap over Rick Warren, when it comes to policy-the stuff that really counts-Obama has been with us, is with us now and will continue to be with us throughout his presidency.
The first two bullets were issues we all expect-hate crimes and non-discrimination. But the third bullet-it was entitled "Support Full Civil Unions and Federal Rights for LGBT Couples." No it's not marriage but Obama's message is clear-he support full civil unions that give same-sex couples legal rights and privileges equal to those of married couples. He wants to repeal the Defense of Marriage Act and enact legislation that would ensure that the 1,100 plus federal legal rights and benefits currently provided to married straight couples are extended to same-sex couples in civil unions and "other legally-recognized unions."
In the middle of his speech Obama said, "We must pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and begin the work of remaking America." I'm there because his vision for America is my vision-one that thinks, works, tackles the hard stuff and values all of us regardless of who we wake up with in the morning.
That's change we can believe in and it's more than just a sound-bite.
