Today I say to you that the challenges we face are real.
They are serious and they are many.
They will not be met easily or in a short span of time.
But know this, America — they will be met.
On this day, we gather because we have chosen hope over fear,
unity of purpose over conflict and discord.
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.
Barack Obama, Inaugural address 2009
