INAUGURATION DAY is a special day and in hindsight has been especially significant by those Presidents who made their mark, giving much to the office, history and the betterment of mankind.

This January 20th, 2009….4 days from today, is already an extraordinary day, made so by Barack Hussein Obama, the first African American elected to be our 44^th President of the United States.

They say that history decides the value of each Presidents’ legacy and that it is only wiith hindsight that a clear and honest picture can be drawn of their time in office.

President George Walker Bush, having given his farewell address to the nation yesterday is desperately counting on history’s kindness as present evaluations rate him as one of our worst presidents with a less than 30% approval rating.

So, needless to say, Americans are craving for a change which makes this Tuesday’s transition of power, which has occurred every four years since 1797, a very, very special day.

Barack Obama has given American citizens a renewed and almost forgotten optimism which make his success that much more important. And since we have so much riding on this inauguration, we hope this it all goes well.

Since 1797, when George Washington handed over the presidency for the first time, transitions sometimes have gone smoothly, more often been bumpy, and sometimes nearly catastrophic.

Against that backdrop, the hand-off of power from President George W. Bush to Barack Obama looks like a winner. WHY?

Firstly, Bush is extremely ready to cooperate with his successor and get the hell “out of Dodge”……and back to Texas. And secondly is the near-record speed and precision with which Obama has named his team and outlined an agenda for dealing.

Here are some noteworthy moments in presidential transitions: 

Thomas Jefferson, 1800–01  

Jefferson’s ascension to the White House followed one of the most bitter presidential campaigns. The first transfer of power between political parties, it also represented a democratic turn from rule by the young nation’s aristocratic elite. John Adams turned the transition into a display of personal pique, refusing to accompany Jefferson to the Capitol for the inauguration. Jefferson, above, showed himself to be a master of practical politics and Adams’s once-dominant Federalist party vanished. 

Abraham Lincoln, 1860–61  

Arguably the most catastrophic transition in U.S. history, President James Buchanan, shown tipping his hat on the way to Lincoln’s inauguration, sat passively as seven states seceded from the union. Unlike fellow Illinoisan Obama who is to be sworn in Jan. 20, Lincoln took the oath of office March 4. By then, the stage was set for a war that would claim the lives of more than 600,000 Americans. 

Franklin Delano Roosevelt, 1932–33  

Roosevelt shook hands with President Herbert Hoover, left, before taking office, but he rebuffed what he saw as an effort by Hoover to bind the incoming administration to Hoover’s failed policies of the Great Depression. The country’s economic pain increased during the transition, and Roosevelt joined the democratic Congress to approve an array of programs aimed at setting America on the road to recovery. 

Ronald Reagan, 1980–81  

This was a successful transition if ever there was one. Reagan ran as an outsider determined to challenge the status quo, but he came into office with a White House team that was savvy in the ways of Washington. In short order, the Reagan team drove its agenda through Congress. Reagan may have benefited from the miscues of his predecessor, Jimmy Carter, pictured from left with his wife Rosalynn, Reagan’s wife Nancy and Reagan. 

Bill Clinton,1992–93 

Clinton was more focused on Cabinet appointments than selecting a White House staff and establishing a clear decision-making process. Chief of Staff Thomas McLarty wasn’t chosen until mid-December. From left, McLarty, Communications Director David Gergen, Deputy National Security Adviser Samuel Berger and senior adviser George Stephanopoulos watch a news conference. Some staffers were selected just before Inauguration Day.

Each of the above Presidents have made their mark on history. However, I would venture to say that none of them represented the principle of change and our evolving democracy, on the day of their inauguration as much as Barack Obama will this Tuesday, January 20th, 2009.

AROUND the BLOGOSPHERE:

Obama Inauguration Schedule – Obama Inauguration Schedule – The Huffington Post.

OpEdNews » An Astrological Look at Obama’s Inauguration – The astrology chart for Obama\’s inauguration echoes his call for a people\’s inauguration. If we can stop ourselves from projecting \’the savior\’ onto him, we might just learn how to save ourselves and our world.

Obama Inauguration Celebrities: Who, What And Where – Obama Inauguration Celebrities: Who, What And Where – The Huffington Post.

Obama’s Inauguration Countdown ~ people buzz – President-elect Barack Obama’s inauguration events kick off on Sunday, January 18th with a celebration at the Lincoln Memorial. Performers include Beyonce, Mary J. Blige, Bono, Garth Brooks, Sheryl Crow, Josh Groban, Herbie Hancock, …