(Left – right: Michelle Obama, President Barack Obama, Former President George W. Bush and Laura Bush wave as former Vice President Dick Cheney departs on the East Front of the Capitol after Obama was sworn in as the 44th President of the United States in Washington Tuesday, Jan. 20, 2009. (AP Photo/Tannen Maury, Pool))
President Obama had to take the oath of office twice in 2008 because of Chief Justice Roberts’ fumbles. He will take the oath again Sunday in a private ceremony to observe the day the Constitution requires him to take it, and publicly on Monday. That will make President Obama the second president ever to take the oath of office four times, matching FDR.
The Cyclists took a look back at inaugurations past and picked out their favorite moments.
Steve Kornacki said that Abraham Lincoln’s second inaugural address was his favorite.
File: This photograph of a drawing shows President Abraham Lincoln deliver his address after being sworn in as the 16th president of the United States in front of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., on March 4, 1861. (Photo by AP Photo, File)
However, after further consideration Steve decided to go with a moment that may “encapsulate the failure of a presidency into one day–the inaugural.”
“Whatever you think of Jimmy Carter’s politics, whatever you think of Jimmy Carter ideology, it wasn’t a very successful presidency and the roots of it were sort of evident on the day of his inauguration,” Steve said. He cited Carter’s failure to invite the speaker of the house to any of the balls that evening as an early warning of his weaknesses.
S.E. went all the way back to the 1800’s to pick a moment which she says is “a cautionary tale.” In 1841 William Henry Harrison gave the longest inaugural address, 8,445 words; it last almost two hours and he didn’t wear a coat. William Henry Harrison died 30 days after he took office from pneumonia. Thus S.E’s words of wisdom to all future presidents: “Keep it brief, fellas, keep it brief.”
File: This print show the inauguration of William Henry Harrison on March 4, 1841. Harrison declined the offer of a closed carriage and rode on horseback to the Capitol, braving cold temperatures and a northeast wind on March 5, 1841. After speaking for more than an hour he returned to the White House, again on horseback, catching a chill that eventually turned to pneumonia. He died a month later. Mother Nature doesn’t always frown on presidential inaugurations, but occasional storms have been miserable, even fatal. (Print by AP Photo, files)
Krystal went back to Camelot. “Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country,” President John F. Kennedy said during his inauguration on January 20, 1961. “This was a groundbreaking, transformational leader and an iconic moment,” Krystal said.
File Photo: In this Jan. 20, 1961, black and white file photo,President John F. Kennedy gives his inaugural address at the Capitol in Washington after taking the oath of office. Listening in the front row, from left, are, incoming Vice President Lyndon Johnson, outgoing Vice president and Kennedy’s defeated presidential opponent Richard M Nixon, Sen John Sparkman, D- Ala., and former President Harry Truman. (Photo by AP Photo, File)
“Obama’s inauguration meant so much,” Toure said. “It was such an extraordinary moment for America, sort of closing this loop from slavery to then Obama becoming president and you just felt America had taken a step forward, had changed.” His favorite moment was President Obama’s 2009 inauguration, which can only be topped by Monday’s historic event.
File Photo: U.S President Barack Obama gives his inaugural address during his inauguration as the 44th President of the United States of America on the West Front of the Capitol January 20, 2009 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images, File)
We want to hear from you. What was your favorite inaugural moment? And will you be at Monday’s inauguration? If so don’t forget to tweet us your pictures using #msnbc or send them to us on our Facebook page.
