Obama rebukes Bush’s policies in much-anticipated Inaugural address

President Obama’s message of change resonated throughout his Inaugural speech — and he made it clear that the first changes will be to American foreign policy, undoing the practices of former President Bush.

Obama, in his much-anticipated address, also talked about domestic matters, including the nation’s economy.

{mosads}But it was on matters of foreign policy, which the new president hesitated to discuss before taking the oath of office, that he adopted his toughest stance.

Four years ago, Bush, who had a front-row seat for Obama’s speech, promised to “advance the cause of freedom,” but his successor dismissed that idea, saying the American people rejected “the false choice between our safety and our ideals.”

Even though the Bushes and the Obamas exchanged hugs as the former first family boarded a Marine helicopter and headed to Texas, Obama’s rebuke of the last eight years echoed around Washington and the world.

And while Obama began by thanking Bush “for his service to our nation, as well as the generosity and cooperation he has shown throughout this transition,” he quickly moved to a tone of stinging indictment, charging that in the wake of the 43rd president “there is a sapping of confidence across our land — a nagging fear that America’s decline is inevitable, and that the next generation must lower its sights.”

In references throughout his address, Obama made it clear he disagreed with Bush’s policies in several areas — the Iraq war, prisoner interrogation and other controversial foreign policy decisions — the same areas Obama and other Democrats have railed against over the last four years.

“Our Founding Fathers, faced with perils we can scarcely imagine, drafted a charter to assure the rule of law and the rights of man, a charter expanded by the blood of generations. Those ideals still light the world, and we will not give them up for expedience’s sake,” Obama said. “And so, to all other peoples and governments who are watching today, from the grandest capitals to the small village where my father was born: Know that America is a friend of each nation and every man, woman and child who seeks a future of peace and dignity, and that we are ready to lead once more.”

While Bush spoke of the “day of fire” that was Sept. 11, 2001, Obama, in his signature rhetorical style, told the millions of people on the National Mall that “on this day, we gather because we have chosen hope over fear, unity of purpose over conflict and discord.”

{mospagebreak}Bush talked repeatedly of snuffing out “tyranny” in the world by spreading freedom to all its corners, declaring in his Inaugural speech that “it is the policy of the United States to seek and support the growth of democratic movements and institutions in every nation and culture, with the ultimate goal of ending tyranny in our world.”

And while Obama acknowledged a “far-reaching network of hatred and violence,” he offered an olive branch, particularly to those in the Muslim world.

{mosads}“To those leaders around the globe who seek to sow conflict, or blame their society’s ills on the West — know that your people will judge you on what you can build, not what you destroy,” Obama said. “To those who cling to power through corruption and deceit and the silencing of dissent, know that you are on the wrong side of history; but that we will extend a hand if you are willing to unclench your fist.”

Domestically, Obama sought to repair the divisions of the last eight years.

“On this day, we come to proclaim an end to the petty grievances and false promises, the recriminations and worn-out dogmas, that for far too long have strangled our politics,” Obama said.

The new president also defended his more than $800 billion economic stimulus package and seemed to warn those who challenged the scope of his plan that big ideas are possible.

“Now, there are some who question the scale of our ambitions — who suggest that our system cannot tolerate too many big plans. Their memories are short,” Obama said. “For they have forgotten what this country has already done; what free men and women can achieve when imagination is joined to common purpose, and necessity to courage.

“What the cynics fail to understand is that the ground has shifted beneath them — that the stale political arguments that have consumed us for so long no longer apply. The question we ask today is not whether our government is too big or too small, but whether it works — whether it helps families find jobs at a decent wage, care they can afford, a retirement that is dignified.”

Shortly after Obama was sworn in, the White House’s new website came to life, featuring a picture of Obama and the words: “Change has come to America.”

While it remains to be seen how much change is coming, Obama certainly signaled that he is aiming to change most of what Bush did in the last four years.