(The Richmond Times-Dispatch, 1/21/09, Editorial)
History and circumstance ensured yesterday’s drama. President Barack Obama’s presence and oratory met expectations. Every Inauguration celebrates the American experiment. In sentiment and tone, Obama delivered.

Hail to the chief.

Rituals convey majesty. They assert the traditions that nurture individual talent. Yesterday offered ruffles and flourishes, as well as manifest goodwill. Obama cited sacrifice and called for renewed responsibility. If his speech lacked phrases as arresting as John Kennedy’s “ask not,” then it captured its audience — which in this instance was not only the nation but the world.

Obama’s reliance on cadence reflected artistry. His voice would accelerate at precisely the right moment. His sentences grew into paragraphs. Paragraphs echoed as though they originated deep in the rich veins of liturgy. Style can indicate substance — and regarding presidential leadership often is substance; yesterday gave Americans a glimpse of what will be. Style cannot foretell judgment, however, and the quality of judgment is not known until it is required. Tests are inevitable.

Commentators parsed Obama’s speech for partisan implications with the scrutiny sullen scholars apply when analyzing the works of Herman Melville. Some discerned conservative generalities and liberal specifics; others detected centrism, post-partisanship, and 100 additional clichés. The blather was as futile as it was amusing. It is time, the new president reminded a young country built on ancient truths, to cast away childish things. From him, citizens heard mystic chords.

The first African-American president is also the 44th president. The ceremonies — solemn yet elated — suggested continuity. America has a lovely face; yesterday its countenance radiated joy. “Defend our liberties,” says a prayer for our country, “and fashion into one united people the multitudes brought hither out of many kindreds and tongues.” E pluribus unum. Let everyone sing the song.

The Inaugural Address offered hints of policy but few details. Those will come, as will disputation. The debate will grow bitter. It would be sweet indeed if every four years the United States could bottle the atmosphere of the quadrennial Jan. 20, yet humans probably should be grateful they heed their better natures as often as they do. Save us, believers pray, from violence, discord, and confusion, from pride and arrogance. The supplication would not be made if it were unnecessary.

When George Bush took the oath of office eight years ago, few, if any, predicted the event that would define his presidency. Obama arrives amid clear and present danger. The outlook has changed considerably since he opened his campaign. It could be his fate to serve during one of those periods history identifies as an era. Lincoln said, “The dogmas of the quiet past are inadequate to the stormy present. The occasion is piled high with difficulty, and we must rise with the occasion. As our case is new, so we must think anew and act anew.” Many are the gods that have failed.

Americans salute their president and wish him well (which does not signal automatic acquiescence with each and every proposal). They also remain ever mindful of Obama’s call to renewed recognition of personal and social responsibility. America proves itself when its people prove themselves. There were giants in the earth in those days; let there be again.