Regardless of who's leaving and who's starting, whether new or continuing, I always make a point to watch the inauguration ceremonies, because it's an opportunity to be reminded of the important process in which our government operates. That's why I made it my business to watch both of Barack Obama's inaugural addresses, and every one of his State of the Union Addresses. The only campaign speech of his I ever saw was when he announced his candidacy at the Old Illinois State Capitol Building in Springfield, IL, 10 years ago this month.
In a similar line of thinking, I viewed his Farewell Address, which he gave 10 days before the end of his presidency. I wasn't able to watch it live because as it was happening, I was traveling through northern Indiana, onboard the Capitol Limited at the start of my Florida trip--and that was the only train I rode during that whole trip that had no Wifi. So I waited until I had about an hour's worth of time to devote to watching it.
I couldn't help but notice how much his list of accomplishments during his presidency was drowned out by his exhortations to be involved citizens, warning of the dangers posed to our democracy, and how to stand strong against them. For starters, I was expecting a speech less than 30 minutes long. I was also expecting him to spend more time reflecting on his accomplishments. But as I thought about it, I realized that his farewell address was very much in the spirit of George Washington's, who wrote at length to warn his fellow citizens to be on guard against that which would endanger their emerging republic.
Ten days later, Donald Trump became President of the United States. His inaugural address had some rather nationalistic tones. It also got into the dire state of affairs in the United States. It reminds me of how Bruce Rauner discussed the unfortunate situation in Illinois in his inaugural address back in January 2015, and one Republic legislator noted it was refreshing to hear someone acknowledge it.
And he took plenty of jabs at the political establishment in Washington, D.C., for preventing the people of the United States from experiencing economic prosperity--the economy was definitely a big focus in this speech. He called that day the one on which the people would truly take charge once again, ending the address with some stirring words about letting the people flourish again as one united people, no longer neglected by self-centered powerful interests, surging with a new sense of national pride. He clearly expressed forthrightly his kind of patriotism, wanting to improve the lives of the people of the United States, in talking points rather typical of politicians. He kept to the point in a 16-minute address, which I see is rather on the short side as far as inaugural addresses go.
President Trump has certainly not been short on forthright action during this first month of his presidency. I'll guess we'll keep watching to see further actions that occur, and what will result in the lives of the United States's people in all the months to come of these four years.
But no matter what, we all have reason to be grateful for the reality of our democracy, emphasized throughout the inauguration ceremony, that our country stands out among all the nations of the world for having had a peaceful transfer of power from one president to the next for over two centuries now. That's always reason for pomp, ceremony, and celebration--especially given how Washington, D.C., was all decked out days beforehand for the ceremony, which I got see while traveling to and from Florida (see the two pictures below).
On one final note, I have to say how pleased I was, as a big-time train buff, to see Amtrak get in the spotlight on January 20, 2017, as Joe Biden walked through Union Station to board an Amtrak Acela train back home to Delaware. That says a lot about the useful place of trains in the United States, especially considering the Northeast Corridor.
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