President Barack Obama officially began his second term of office with a swearing-in ceremony at the White House at noon on Sunday, January 20, 2013.
Michelle Obama, sporting a new hairdo featuring bangs, and first daughters Sasha and Malia stood next to the man of the hour in the ornate Blue Room, as the commander in chief had the oath administered to him by Chief Justice John Roberts.
Obama’s hand rested on a Bible that belongs to the First Lady’s family as he vowed “to support and defend the Constitution of the United States.”
After the brief private ceremony, the President kissed his wife and hugged his children before whispering to his youngest daughter, “I did it.” Out of view of the cameras were the president’s sister, Maya Soetoro-Ng and her family, Mrs. Obama’s mother Marian Robinson, and her brother Craig Robinson and his family.
The president will repeat the swearing-in ritual on Monday in front of the Capitol before an estimated crowd of 800,000 people. He was mandated by the Constitution to be sworn in when his second term officially commenced at noon on Jan. 20, though the rest of the festivities will roll out on Monday, including an inaugural parade and a large number of gala balls that will go on into the wee hours of Tuesday morning.
During Obama’s first swearing-in ceremony four years ago, Chief Justice Roberts flubbed the oath — making it necessary to do it all over again the following day after it was determined that it must be correctly stated or it isn’t valid.
That said, when Obama told his daughter “I did it,” we have no doubt that John Roberts was probably silently congratulating himself for getting it right this time.
Check out the official swearing in ceremony that lasted a mere 30 seconds followed by the first error-filled attempt four years ago below:
Photo: Twitter-White House