Yes he can

John and I are headed to Washington DC early Monday morning to join the 2 million other people with the same intention. I'm going for work; John's going because he just wanted to tag along.
An inauguration in January was a dumb idea. Clearly, the Founding Fathers were not in their right minds when they decided DC in January was a fine time to swear in the commander in chief. At least members of Congress get to be sworn in indoors. But the steps of the Capitol building? Weather's a little brisk, my friends.
We've tried to prepare for every contingency: rain ponchos, thermals, bottled water, chemical handwarmers. I feel like we're arming ourselves against a siege. Security is so tight we can't even bring umbrellas onto the National Mall. Obviously we won't be completely comfortable standing outdoors in 20-degree weather for several hours, but hopefully we'll have done what we can.
The trip is a 14-hour bus ride from Tuscaloosa. There's a local travel agency that books inauguration bus tours every four years so I pitched the idea of riding along to Doug, my editor. The entire three-day trip was suprisingly cheap: $375 for two nights in a hotel, the round-trip on the bus and transportation into DC for inauguration day. The paper will reimburse my portion of the trip; I tried to talk John into get the university to comp his portion but he wouldn't do it because then some other poor student wouldn't be able to go. Such scruples.
Witnessing history isn't my only reason for going, obviously. Mainly I just want to be there when Barack Obama is sworn in, just to experience the giant roar from the crowd when he takes the oath. I truly believe, that after eight years of a president who managed to get us into two wars, a recession and the most extensive erosion of civil liberties in decades, Obama will be not only a much needed change but a president of whom Americans can actually be proud and who will restore our moral standing in the world. I'm tired of a president who makes his contempt for the media, the working class and anyone who dissents from his Manichean world view crystal clear. Let's celebrate a president who values intellectual curiosity, who believes in the power of community, who has a sense of social responsibility and knows that hope can bring people together for a higher purpose.