Obama Takes Oath Again, Flubs It (a Little)

President Obama has been publicly sworn in for his second term—though he actually took the oath yesterday. Today the oath, administered by Chief Justice John Roberts, went off a little more smoothly than it did during Obama's first inauguration, though the AtlanticWire points out it wasn't error-free. And the flub this time was Obama's. While reciting the phrase "The office of the president of the United States," he effectively choked on the last word, saying just "Sta—," and making a little face after doing so.

In other oath-taking tidbits, the president placed his hand on two Bibles: one Abraham Lincoln's and the other Martin Luther King's. (Prof. Cornel West wasn't thrilled about the latter choice, notes the National Review: West slammed the use of King's "prophetic fire as just a moment in presidential pageantry.") Joe Biden, meanwhile, again took the oath from Justice Sonia Sotomayor, the Wall Street Journal notes. Among other highlights of the ceremony thus far: The Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir performed "Battle Hymn of the Republic," James Taylor sang "America the Beautiful," and civil rights leader Myrlie Evers-Williams offered the invocation. (More President Obama stories.)