Obama, the first African American to serve as president, spoke to a sea of cheering people, hundreds of thousands of Americans packed on the National Mall from the Capitol to beyond the Washington monument. The multitude was filled with black Americans and Obama's triumph was a special and emotional moment for them.
With his wife, Michelle, holding the Bible, Obama, the 47-year-old son of a white mother from Kansas and a black father from Africa, was sworn in just after noon, a little later than planned, and spoke immediately thereafter..
In his speech, Obama promised to take "bold and swift" action to restore the economy by creating jobs through public works projects, improving education, promoting alternative energy and relying on new technology.
"Starting today, we must pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and begin again the work of remaking America," Obama said in a prepared copy of his remarks.
The new president also noted the ongoing wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and the "far-reaching network of violence and hatred" that seeks to harm the country. He used strong language in pledging to confront terrorism, nuclear proliferation and other threats from abroad, saying to the nation's enemies, "you cannot outlast us, and we will defeat you."
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