Obama officially began 2nd term on Sunday
President Barack Obama officially began his second term on Sunday, a day ahead of his public swearing in and all the pomp and ceremony of a U.S. presidential inauguration, CNN reports.Because the Constitution calls for the president to be sworn in on January 20, Obama and Vice President Joe Biden will be sworn in for their second terms in relatively quiet ceremonies before they take their public oaths in front of the Capitol on Monday and before an audience spread down the National Mall.Obama’s Monday address will lay out the values and vision for his second term and acknowledge the division in Washington but won’t address policy, a source with knowledge of the speech told CNN on the condition of anonymity. He’ll lay out policy in his February 12 State of the Union address, the source said. Obama was still working on his speech on Saturday, the source said. The nation’s first African-American president also will become only the 17th U.S. leader to deliver a second inaugural address before joining the traditional parade up Pennsylvania Avenue to the White House. For his second inauguration, less than half of the estimated 1.8 million onlookers who crammed the Mall in 2009 are expected – organizers expect 800,000 people to attend Monday’s public ceremony.The smaller crowd this time around reflects the reality of second-term presidencies, when the novelty and expectations of a new leader have been replaced with the familiarity and experiences of the first four years. Inauguration activities kicked off on Saturday with Obama and first lady Michelle Obama and Biden and his wife Dr. Jill Biden leading volunteers across the country in National Day of Service Activities.The Obamas joined in a project at Burrville Elementary School in Washington, aiding volunteers who were staining a bookcase. Cameras at the school caught the president and first lady staining a bookcase.The president told volunteers that his family would do volunteer projects on holidays, “So I was taught from a young age.” Volunteering “is really what America is all about,” he said.The Bidens helped to put together care packages for service members deployed overseas at the National Guard Armory in Washington. Biden’s office said volunteers at the armory would produce 100,000 packages.

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