Barack Obama A new president takes over

Today Barack Obama becomes president. The celebration has been going on for a while already, but it reaches a climax today with the swearing in, the inaugural parade and an array of inaugural balls. We, like so many people, are excited at this historic moment, as Obama becomes the first son of a black man to become president of the United States, breaking one the greatest barriers of all in this nation's civil rights struggle.

Coming one day after the celebration of the Martin Luther King Holiday, the inauguration caps a long holiday weekend of whistle-stops, speeches, tributes, concerts and rejoicing.

It all happened very quickly, as national political change goes.

Obama not only amazed the United States but the world by coming from the relative obscurity of being a first-term senator from Illinois to an underdog contender in the Democratic primaries, then to taking on the front-runner and presumptive nominee Hillary Clinton and knocking her out, and finally defeating Republican John McCain in the November election.

Obama used the standard refrains of "hope" and "change" and bipartisanship in a way that made it all sound like fresh ideas. He invigorated a bloc of new voters and millions of small contributors who built the nation's largest political war chest ever, and he wowed the nation with his commanding oratory and cool "rock star" image. While the notion of a cool image may sound silly, as much as anything Obama projected confidence, intelligence and a command of the issues, domestic and foreign.

Warnings from both his adversary Clinton and the Republicans that Obama didn't have the experience to be president and the ability to succeed on the national and international stages did not work. Too many voters had seen more experienced politicians, and they didn't want more of the same.

Obama prevailed politically with a smart, savvy campaign, organized by a brain trust that continues with him as he assumes the presidency today. He has shown he has what it takes, but in today's difficult times, let's all wish him the best.