Because he's not a dictator. Rather, the president's authority is limited to that which the Constitution specifically provides.

Much is expected of Obama. I don't remember a president taking office with greater expectations than Obama has. While reagan is revered today for his presidency, I don't recall as much excitement in 1981. Of course, the hostages were released on his innaugural, so that was exciting.

Hurry up and show the damn speech already!!

It's 3am over here in the East Coast of OZ.

Wonder what Obama will think of our Prime Minister? Guy is the biggest little dweeb.

Wait till he has to deal with Gordon Brown. I don't know if he is a dweeb but he is in the same ballpark

hahaha


How long till he does the speech. I got work for welfare tomorrow.

Half an hour or so i reckon!

Hahaha

Bush is getting "Booed"

I didn't hear many boos but i certainly didn't hear much clapping or cheering either!

I heard it only cause the Aussie commentators pointed it out etc.

Probably wasn't very loud.

Well, that was a good Inaugural Address. Maybe not the masterpiece that people expected, but some good lines:

"To the Muslim world, we seek a new way forward, based on mutual interest and mutual respect. To those leaders around the globe who seek to sow conflict, or blame their society’s ills on the West - know that your people will judge you on what you can build, not what you destroy. To those who cling to power through corruption and deceit and the silencing of dissent, know that you are on the wrong side of history; but that we will extend a hand if you are willing to unclench your fist.
"

"We reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals.

Our Founding Fathers, faced with perils we can scarcely imagine, drafted a charter to assure the rule of law and the rights of man, a charter expanded by the blood of generations. Those ideals still light the world, and we will not give them up for expedience's sake."

Because we live in a democracy here, not under a dictator. Any other stupid questions?

This is my first and probably only time viewing this thread but

I can't believe Bush is FINALLY out of office!

ABC News is reporting that Senator Kennedy has collapsed at the private luncheon going on. No other news as of now.

He had a seizure, and is on the way to the hospital...

Amen.

You guys know I didn't vote for him but I wish him Gods speed. He has a long row to hoe.

From Just Lou's post above with the picture of the presidential limo:



The driver's window opens so the driver can pay a toll??

Because some 230 years ago we told the King of England, George, to go fuck himself. Another George here (Washington) became our first president and our founding fathers, in their infinite wisdom, decided that our elected leader shouldn't have free reign and unlimited powers.

OMG! That is a scary thought.

You'd think The Prez would have a non-revenue EZPass account. ....I don't think the President stop at toll booths. Actually, I know it for a fact.

As I remember, loads of people were calling Bush a dictator.

And you can keep your , start a collection with it!

And you can go fuck yourself, trollboy. How do you like me now?

More, JL. I like you more.

I agree RR. Great speech, although not quite what people may have expected. Very sober and facing reality, rightfully so. I also agree with Kly that Obama does have a whole lot to do and many have high expectations. Change will not come immediately that's for sure. Yet, people, I think will cut him some slack. He's given us some hope and we'll give him time to dig us out.

Oh, and RR, this is one of my favorite quotes from his speech as well.


To those who cling to power through corruption and deceit and the silencing of dissent, know that you are on the wrong side of history; but that we will extend a hand if you are willing to unclench your fist.

Oh, and I12...I'm with you kid!!


TIS

400+ posts, and he hasn't contributed a single thing with any one of them. He comes looking for attention, so I gave him some.

...And I might as well apologize to JG in advance.

Thank you, thank you,

I'll take a bow and raise a glass to the little boy who called me a Troll.

shuddup shitdick

I watched it all on MSNBC, but I waited patiently through the goofball mindless pundits (Olberman, the Liberal O'Reilly) to hear the one person there who I really was interested to hear his accuate opinion: Pat Buchanan.

A social conservative, and at times had infamous incidents in public regarding Jews and Immigrants, but otherwise a keen conservative intellectual, of which the GOP has (stupidly) weeded out for the last 8 years, which they did to Buchanan after he opposed the Iraq War.

Anyway, he called Obama's DNC speech back in August the best Convention speech he had ever heard, and he quite liked Obama's Inaugural.

He talked good points of how this Obama wasn't the "teary-eyed nice guy" Obama from two years ago, but more an authoratative figure that raises goals and a vision over the hill, but warns it won't be easy to reach. Indeed his basic foreign policy outlined isn't the traditional "weak-kneed liberal," nor Dubya Hawkish, but more inbetween, like JFK sought: Hopeful and sought peace, but be strong when necessary.

He also brought something that I thought was odd at the time, which was when Obama mentioned Khe Sahn among the battles of which Americans greatly bled for the future, along with Gettysburg, Concord, and Normandy.

Now TIS, you probably remember Khe Sahn, one of the most brutal but forgotten fights during the Vietnam War, and I liked how Obama included it, in spite of occuring in a war we "lost." Buchanan speculated it was Obama's intention, as the first post-Baby Boomer President, to finally put Vietnam behind us, and accept the good out of it into our national mythology.

But the guy also was a speechwriter for Nixon and Reagan, so I sorta assume he knows what he's talking about.

Or as he compared Obama's address: "A great mix of obvious influences from JFK to Reagan."

I liked all of it. It was inspirational and just what it should be to inaugurate an administration.