Barack Obama's inauguration: And now to work

So much joy, such high expectations. Welcome to the White House, Mr Obama EVERY inauguration has its quirks. George Washington, in his first inaugural speech, said he was not up to the job but would do his best, adding that there was no need to pay him a salary. William Henry Harrison gave the longest speech of any American president, forcing his audience to endure an hour and 45 minutes of snow-chilled tedium. He died a month later. Abraham Lincoln was sworn in by the chief justice who wrote the worst Supreme Court decision of all time, which upheld slavery and deemed black people eternally inferior. Barack Obama’s inauguration was marked by global jubilation and stratospheric expectations. (It was also slightly marred by a bumbled oath-taking, which Mr Obama corrected—though he did not need to—in the White House the next day.) More people probably packed the Mall than at any previous event in Washington—nearly 2m, by one estimate. More people probably watched his speech ... (link)