Presidential Inauguration Coverage

President Barack Obama Takes Oath of Office for Second Term in Front of Huge Crowd

Levi Rickert, editor-in-chief in Native Briefs. Discussion »

WASHINGTON – With a crowd estimated at close to 800,000 people sprawling down the National Mall away from the US Capitol, President Barack Hussein Obama took the oath of office for his second term as the 44th president of the United States today with the majestic dome of the Capitol overhead.

A View of the Crowd from the Washington Monument

First Lady Michelle Obama held a bible that once belonged to slain civil rights leader, the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. on this Martin Luther King Day.

Former Presidents Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton were in attendance for the 57th Presidential Inauguration in the history of the United States.

The president paused as the crowd roared. "Four more years was heard in the background coming from the crowd."

“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness, ”

quoted President Obama as he began his second inaugural speech.

Today's ceremony was actually the public swearing in. The US Constitution mandates a president is sworn in on January 20. There was a private swearing in the Blue Room of the White House yesterday. US Supreme Court Chief John G. Roberts, Jr. administered the oath that officially began President Obama's second term. He will serve as president for the next four years.

Today's crowd was smaller than four years ago when President Obama made history when he became the first African American president of the United States. Another factor to the smallness of the crowd in Washington is today is Martin Luther King Day, a national holiday that gives the vast majority of federal employees a three day weekend.

Thousands of American Indians and Alaska Natives were in Washington to witness the swearing of the president.

Tonight the National Museum of the American Indian, in celebrating the inauguration of the President of the United States, will host an Inaugural Ball. Situated only blocks from the United States Capitol building, the Museum is the perfect location to mark this historic event and to highlight the self-determination of Native nations.

The Inaugural Ball will feature music, dancing and Native cuisine. Funds raised will support the educational programs of the National Museum of the American Indian.

1 | Read the full remarks of the President's Inaugural Address »

updated 1:40 am est; posted January 21, 2013 1:10 pm est