George Wenschhof Bio
What an incredible moment! It was forty years ago, when Martin Luther King gave his famous speech which has become known as "I have A Dream".. While many Americans could identify with and agree with a line in that speech which I will paraphrase " there will be a day when a man is judged by the content of his character and not the color of his skin", many of us did not believe we would live to see that day.
Yet, that day has come and the hope and the ideals of the American constitution have been further validated and strengthened with the Inauguration of the first African-American; Barack Obama as the 44th President of the United States.
The incredible excitement of this moment is shared by all Americans and the belief that "Yes We Can!" has spread across every corner of the country. While listening to Aretha Franklin sing "My Country Tis of Thee" prior to Joe Biden being sworn in as Vice President, I could not help hear in the back of my mind the words of her song "RESPECT".
When Chief Justice John Roberts finished swearing in Barack Obama as President, the cheer that went up from the huge crowd gathered around the Capitol was incredible. I am sure the goosebumps that were appearing on my skin and my increased heartbeat were emotions shared by many watching this historic moment.
President Obama's speech focused on the strength of America and Democracy. He spoke of the troubling economy and the problems it presents. This is something all Americans must share in and he said "Starting today, we must pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and begin again the work of remaking America." It was time to have government be accountable and stop the argument of whether government is too small or too large and instead focus on does it work? On foreign policy, he said America is prepared to lead and promised America will defeat terrorist enemies. He spoke of the time has come to place hope over fear and unity over discord.
The Page.Time.com has the full text of his speech here.
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Tuesday, January 20, 2009
The Dream Comes True
Monday, January 19, 2009
Democratic Chatter 1-19-2009
George Wenschhof Bio
Yesterday, the excitement continued to build toward the inauguration of Barack Obama as the 44th President with huge crowds and a concert at the Lincoln Memorial - The President elect talked about hope and how the American dream lives on. He also warned the economic problems we face as a nation will not be fixed overnight. TheHill.com has more here. One more day until Inauguration Day.
One of our Columnists, Ann-Marie Luciano will be at the Inauguration managing some volunteers and she also attended the Maryland Inaugural Ball Sunday night. She will speak of her experiences in her column this Friday.
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Today, celebrations for Martin Luther King and a Call to Service abound - People across the country will join in the national call to service day. Time.com has more here. The President and Vice President-elects with their families are expected to also join in with other volunteers today. Martin Luther king III has a good article in The Washington Post you can read here.
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Obama invites Pilot and crew of plane that landed safely in the NY Hudson River to Inauguration - Captain Chesley Sullenberger and his family along with the other members of the crew have been invited. MSNBC.com has more here.
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House Speaker Nancy Pelosi wants tax cuts for the wealthy repealed now and investigations into some of the actions of the Bush administration - this rhetoric comes even with the President-elect saying he doesn't anticipate investigations into the Bush administration. CNN.com has more here.
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Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) may receive competition - Many Democrats have often complained about the tactics employed by Senator Reid as Majority Leader. The recent fiasco surrounding the seating of Roland Burris is another more recent example. Dan Rather told Chris Matthews on his morning show yesterday that Senator Chris Dodd (D-Conn.) may mount a challenge for the Senate Majority Leader position as early as this summer.
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