WASHINGTON — Barack Hussein Obama claimed his place in history as America's first black president Tuesday, summoning a dispirited and divided nation to unite in hope against the "gathering clouds and raging storms" of unfinished war and grave economic woe. A jubilant crowd of more than a million waited for hours in frigid temperatures to witness the moment as a young black man with a foreign-sounding name took command of a nation founded by slaveholders. It was a scene watched in fascination by many millions — perhaps billions — around the world. "We gather because we have chosen hope over fear, unity of purpose over conflict and discord," the nation's 44th president said. The presidency passed to Democrat Obama from Republican George W. Bush at the stroke of noon, marking one of democracy's greatest gifts: the peaceful transfer of power. Buoyant and relaxed through the three days of pre-inaugural festivities, Obama seemed somber as he stood on the Capitol steps, placed his left hand on the Bible used by Abraham Lincoln and repeated the inaugural oath "to preserve, protect and defend" a Constitution that originally defined blacks as three-fifths of a person. A deafening cheer went up. "What is required of us now is a new era of responsibility — a recognition, on the part of every American, that we have duties to ourselves, our nation, and the world, duties that we do not grudgingly accept but rather seize gladly," Obama said. "This is the price and the promise of citizenship."
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