Free Republic

It is the curse of the journalist always to be present, but never really There. The job requires that we stand slightly apart, seeing but not believing; hearing without being seduced. We jot down the words, careful not to let them get under our skin. Like surgeons in the operating room, we can't afford to become emotionally involved lest we notice the blood and let the scalpel slip. Then comes the rare instance that penetrates the armor, when something causes you to put down the pad, turn off the camera in your head, and become part of the moment. The...

Well, isn’t this special? After overstaying her visa, ignoring a federal deportation order for years, escaping apprehension in Boston, and taking refuge in Cleveland, the destitute illegal alien aunt of Barack Obama somehow found her way to Washington, D.C., for her nephew’s inauguration. Federal immigration officials couldn’t find her, but she was spotted by several media outlets and partygoers around the Beltway. The Cleveland Plain Dealer reported: Ohio Democrats put aside the state’s financial troubles and cold weather Sunday night to celebrate its part in electing Barack Obama to the White House. Just a few blocks from Obama’s soon-to-be residence,...

This will end in tears. The Obama hysteria is not merely embarrassing to witness, it is itself contributory to the scale of the disaster that is coming. What we are experiencing, in the deepening days of a global depression, is the desperate suspension of disbelief by people of intelligence - la trahison des clercs - in a pathetic effort to hypnotise themselves into the delusion that it will be all right on the night. It will not be all right. We have been here before. In the spring of 1997, to be precise, when a charismatic, young prime minister entered...

WASHINGTON -- He called them "gathering clouds and raging storms," "icy currents" in a "winter of hardship." But as Barack Obama spoke to the country for the first time as president, the world beyond Washington was filling in details of the hardships that he alluded to in his inaugural address. Even as he finished the oath of office, the crisis in the financial services industry sent banking stocks plummeting, and the Dow Jones industrial average turned in its worst Inauguration Day performance in its century-plus history, losing 4 percent of its value.

Danger! Danger! Oh, wait, Bush isn't in office. All clear.Washington D.C.-area police are reporting that the nation's capital has been under siege by a large group of semi-autonomous beings. As of this morning, police report the influx of the devices has receded back beyond the capital's city limits."They were like Roombas," said Police Sargeant Denny Nantario. "No, that's not a good analogy, roombas are for cleaning, aren't they? They seemed like they had an aversion to cleanliness."Nantario and his fellow officers were out in force to monitor the mass gathering and while, from all accounts, the Robamabots were peaceful, they...

An Ohio school district may be violating the constitutional rights of its students. Mason, Ohio, school officials sent an email to parents in advance of the presidential inauguration saying, "Inappropriate comments that may make other students, staff or families feel unwelcome or uncomfortable in school or on the bus will not be tolerated." The story by DaytonDailyNews.com featured examples of negative comments and actions made about the Obama administration after he was elected. The school's superintendent Kevin Bright added that even in a competitive election process, "our nation's greatness is displayed when all sides come together for a united country."...

Reporting from Washington -- More than 1 million spectators convened on the National Mall to watch Barack Obama take the oath of office Tuesday, but it was unclear if the crowd surpassed the record thought to have been set at Lyndon B. Johnson's 1965 inauguration. Though early estimates ranged as high as 2 million people, satellite images of Obama's swearing-in suggested the crowd was probably about half that, said Clark McPhail, who has been analyzing crowds on the National Mall since the 1960s.

Elite Obama Donors Receive Early Gifts and Privileges from Obama While Under Senate Investigation and After Accepting Millions in Taxpayer Paid Bailout So many of the Elite Obama Donors arrived at Dulles International Airport in their personal private jets that an active runway at Dulles International Airport had to be shut down and then converted into a make-do parking lot. * * * * * Surprisingly no PETA, Global Warming, nor Code Pink protesters are seen as the Elite Obama Donors arrive in chauffeur driven stretch limousines dressed in their finest furs. * * * * * Their gilded...

Obama Chooses Gay Bishop for Big Inaugural Event And now the latest installment in “As Obama’s Faith World Turns” President-Elect Barack Obama has chosen a controversial gay bishop to give the invocation this Sunday at the big inaugural event at the Lincoln Memorial. Obama will be in attendance. More from the Politico below and then get my analysis. The Rt. Rev. V. Gene Robinson of New Hampshire, who became the Episcopal Church's first openly gay bishop in 2003 and last year entered into a civil union with his gay partner, will deliver the invocation for Sunday's kickoff inaugural event on...

President Obama's inauguration became a dream come true for the media, which often are all dressed up with nowhere to go. Not so on Tuesday. Journalists and news organizations went through their paces from dawn to dusk, some late into the night. The inauguration was dramatically framed as "The Moment" on CNN, "The Hour of Change" on Fox News. Only C-SPAN presented the historic event with unembellished live sound, free from the patter of pundits and anchors or the distraction of gaudy, on-screen graphics. Even the most complex packaging of "the moment" could not hide the imperfect oath of office,...

NEW YORK -- President-elect Barack Obama is on his way to the big screen, thanks to a deal between MSNBC and Screenvision that will put the news channel's inaugural coverage in 27 theaters around the country. Free tickets are being handed out via MSNBC.com to see the inauguration and parade from 11 a.m.-3:30 p.m. ET at the 27 theaters run by 11 exhibitor partners in 21 markets. Midday Tuesday isn't necessarily a big movie time, so it helps to fill the theater -- and boost popcorn and soda sales -- at a time when it's not usually busy. That means...

What did you expect of the un-Christian clergyman? Bishop Robinson said he had been reading inaugural prayers through history and was "horrified" at how “specifically and aggressively Christian they were.”"I am very clear," he said, "that this will not be a Christian prayer, and I won't be quoting Scripture or anything like that. The texts that I hold as sacred are not sacred texts for all Americans, and I want all people to feel that this is their prayer."Bishop Robinson said he might address the prayer to "the God of our many understandings," language that he said he learned from...

Yesterday's inaugural ceremony benediction by the Reverend Dr. Joseph Lowery certainly has caused a bit of a stir - at least among those of us who pay attention. My short little harmless commentary on yesterday's closing prayer called "This Is A Benediction?" has received a host of responses on Free Republic.com and at Roman Around.Indeed, I do very much enjoy engaging in debate. When I receive opposing viewpoints that are not riddled with expletives and personal attacks, I like to take them on. Occassionally I'll even post them.This is just such an occassion.Someone called "Judi" took issue with my...

"If there is anyone out there who still doubts that America is a place where all things are possible; who still wonders if the dream of our founders is alive in our time; who still questions the power of our democracy, tonight is your answer." - Barack Obama, Victory Speech, November 4, 2008 Yesterday was Martin Luther King's birthday, which is America's only national holiday to honor an American citizen. The day before, which was Sunday, the incoming Obama administration staged an Inauguration Celebration at the Lincoln Memorial around the theme "We Are One," which was also the theme of...

Offering the most hyperbolic take of the night on the crowds who attended President Obama's inauguration, on World News ABC's Bill Weir delighted in wondering “can national pride make a freezing day feel warmer?” He decided it can indeed since “never have so many people shivered so long with such joy” while “from above, even the seagulls must have been awed by the blanket of humanity.” Weir was certainly awed. Meanwhile, over on the NBC Nightly News, anchor Brian Williams must have been as awed as those seagulls since he contended he could “feel” the masses watching from around the...

Kick-off Barack Obama’s historic journey to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue at an environmentally-friendly pre-Inaugural celebration. With millions of supporters expected to make their way to our Nation’s capital for the Inauguration, the impact of travel and the Inaugural celebrations on the environment is significant. You can reduce your impact on our environment by choosing to attend The Green Ball. This fantastic event, including live entertainment on the main stage, is guaranteed to be an unforgettable evening. CLICK HERE TO BUY YOUR INAUGURAL BALL TICKETS!

"Well, again, we're wondering here whether or not Barack Obama in fact is the president of the United States," Chris Wallace told Fox News viewers, well over an hour after Obama had taken the oath of office today. Fox News replayed the swearing-in moment when President Obama and Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. each bobbled the words to the constitutional oath. "They had a kind of garbled oath," Wallace said. "It's just conceivable that this will end up going to the courts," Wallace speculated.

Designer Judd Will Be Showing Off a Coat of Many Colorful Obama Posters SANTA FE, N.M. -- In the world of trashy fashion, designer Nancy Judd has hit the big time. Nancy Judd Ms. Judd spends her days in a studio here crafting clothing from castoff plastic bags, electrical wire and old cassette tapes. Now, her Dumpster couture has caught the eye of environmental activists, who plan to showcase her work in Washington at Saturday's Green Inaugural Ball honoring President-elect Barack Obama. The star piece: A man's coat made from Mr. Obama's campaign fliers. She says it took her 200...

The selection of Robinson for the opening party on Sunday came after weeks of criticism over Mr Obama's choice of conservative pastor Rick Warren to deliver the religious invocation on Tuesday, January 20, the day Mr Obama is sworn in to office.Robinson, who is the first openly gay bishop in the Anglican Communion, will pray at the star-studded event to be broadcast on national television from the Lincoln Memorial on January 18, the inaugural committee said in a statement."Our intention is to root the event in history, celebrating the moments when our nation has united to face great challenges and...

Obama's Disappointing Speech Posted at: 2009-01-20 14:57:00.0 Author: Michael Sean Winters President Barack Obama’s inaugural address was surprisingly leaden. It did not soar like his "Yes, We Can" speech after losing the New Hampshire primary, nor did it chart his plans for governance as did his convention speech in Denver. Most strangely, it did not seem to capture the history of the moment the way his election night speech did. Part of the problem is with the nature of such an address. This was the speech of a head of state, not a head of government, even though the President...