Obama Signals Need for a Sharp Break From the Past

By Dan Balz
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, January 21, 2009

Just by raising his hand and taking the oath of office, President Obama made history yesterday. But from his inaugural address to the throngs who crowded the streets of Washington to the diversity of the faces in his White House reviewing stand, he signaled that his presidency probably will bring even more widespread changes to a nation confronted by problems of historic significance.

Rarely has a president come into office with the public in such a seemingly conflicted mood. Battered by the worst recession since the Great Depression, Americans are deeply pessimistic about the nation's future and their own well-being. The war in Iraq has taxed public patience. The war in Afghanistan and conflict in the Middle East challenge the shrewdest of leaders.

Obama's somber address -- and his exhortation to the country to pull together -- fit the times in which they were delivered. "Today I say to you that the challenges we face are real," the president said. "They are serious, and they are many. They will not be met easily or in a short span of time. But know this, America: They will be met."

Yet at a time of doubt and despair, and on a day when the stock market plummeted again, Obama's inauguration showed another side to the nation's current mood -- hopefulness and a sense of confidence that has been invested in a young and relatively untested new president.

(More here.)