Vessol
01-22-2009, 05:08 AM
In a rare do-over, President Obama took the oath of office for a second time Wednesday after Chief Justice John Roberts and the new president had stumbled slightly over the oath's language on Inauguration Day.
Some constitutional scholars had suggested that Obama re-take the oath just to be on the safe side. Obama did not substantively change any language on Tuesday, but after Roberts flubbed some of the wording the new president used language different from that prescribed in the Constitution.
The chief justice and the president handled the matter privately in the Map Room on Wednesday night. It took 25 seconds, and when Obama repeated the oath Roberts told him, "Congratulations, again."
The oath as written is: "I do solemnly swear that I will faithfully execute the office of President of the United States...."
But on Tuesday Roberts said, "I will execute the office of President to the United States faithfully." When Obama stumbled in repeating the line, it may have been because he knew the way it was supposed to be said.
White House counsel Greg Craig said Obama took the oath again merely out of caution.
"We believe that the oath of office was administered effectively and that the president was sworn in appropriately yesterday. But the oath appears in the Constitution itself," he said in a written statement. "And out of an abundance of caution, because there was one word out of sequence, Chief Justice Roberts administered the oath a second time."
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/first100days/2009/01/21/obama-takes-oath-office/
Some constitutional scholars had suggested that Obama re-take the oath just to be on the safe side. Obama did not substantively change any language on Tuesday, but after Roberts flubbed some of the wording the new president used language different from that prescribed in the Constitution.
The chief justice and the president handled the matter privately in the Map Room on Wednesday night. It took 25 seconds, and when Obama repeated the oath Roberts told him, "Congratulations, again."
The oath as written is: "I do solemnly swear that I will faithfully execute the office of President of the United States...."
But on Tuesday Roberts said, "I will execute the office of President to the United States faithfully." When Obama stumbled in repeating the line, it may have been because he knew the way it was supposed to be said.
White House counsel Greg Craig said Obama took the oath again merely out of caution.
"We believe that the oath of office was administered effectively and that the president was sworn in appropriately yesterday. But the oath appears in the Constitution itself," he said in a written statement. "And out of an abundance of caution, because there was one word out of sequence, Chief Justice Roberts administered the oath a second time."
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/first100days/2009/01/21/obama-takes-oath-office/