On January 20, we all witnessed a truly historic event with the inauguration of Barack Obama as the 44th President of the United States. I considered myself extremely fortunate to be able to watch the ceremony from the steps of the U.S. Capitol.
Members of Congress and Senators were seated on risers behind the area where President Obama and Vice President Biden took the oath of office. From this vantage point I was able to look out on a sight that I will surely never forget; a virtual sea of hope stretched from the western front of the Capitol almost to the Lincoln Memorial – a distance of nearly two miles.
The estimated 1.8 million people who were present on the mall included residents from the Fifth District who traveled to Washington to be a part of history. I hosted constituents in my office as they came by to pick up their tickets the day before the inauguration. Everyone I spoke with expressed a tremendous sense of excitement, pride, and hope.
The enthusiasm that American’s feel about President Obama and their belief in his ability to bring real change to Washington was clearly evident. The record breaking numbers of people who braved cold temperatures and long lines did so to hear the President’s plans to unite our country at this time of uncertainty. They cheered his call for a new era of service to our fellow countrymen and commitment to building a more prosperous nation for all.
The ceremony was a monumental moment in our nation’s history. The inauguration of our nation’s first African American President occurred within sight of the Lincoln Memorial where 45 years ago Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. whose memory we also observed last week, called upon our nation to bestow the blessings of liberty and equality on all our citizens. During Dr. King’s historic address, he so movingly laid before us the inherent contradiction of a Constitution which proclaims one set of ideals and a society that practiced another. But he also placed his trust in our ability to create a more equal and just nation based on the common dreams, sense of purpose, and hopes that we all share – regardless of race.
In the years that followed Dr. King’s speech, we have traveled a great distance. Tuesday’s inauguration was all but unthinkable a generation ago. Because of the progress that we have made as a country, President Obama will be judged on his abilities, successes, and failures.
The challenges that the Obama administration and the nation are facing are profound. Our economic circumstances are the most difficult since World War II. Health care reform, energy independence, and climate change solutions are all urgently needed. We are engaged in two wars and must work to restore our international standing.
I look forward to working with our new President, the new Congress and with you as we work to solve these and other challenges.
Please stay in touch!
kate says
On a more social note, you looked awesome at the ball!
niki-tsongas says
eb3-fka-ernie-boch-iii says
<
p>We haven’t heard from you since your election two years ago. Now you want to reconnect? Great.
<
p>Let’s start by hearing about the bail-out bill and where the money is going. Or perhaps a little info on the two wars we are in. How many kids from your district have been killed in it?
<
p>What’s that? You think it will be better to reconnect to us by describing your experience at the Inauguration? Great.
<
p>Mrs. Tsongas, your post seems more like a piece by a congressman’s wife on the Inauguration of John F. Kennedy in Ladies Home Journal in 1961.
<
p>
sabutai says
…but it’s classic EBIII. I agree with much of the substance, and that too, is typical for EBIII.
christopher says
Do you live in the 5th CD? She has been very present with her Congress On Your Corner and I have signed up for her Congress In Your Inbox emails which come fairly regularly. This may be her first BMG post, but she is quite connected to her own constituents from my experience.
<
p>(Memo to Congresswoman Tsongas: Don’t take his comments personally. His record here is one of treating just about every elected official this way.)
eb3-fka-ernie-boch-iii says
My problem with Rep Tsongas is the frauds who backed her for no other reason than who her husband was. Attorney Ellen Donahue was a much better candidate. She won 70% of Lowell. Marty Meehan’s wife was with Niki and Niki kicked ass in Concord and Lincoln.
<
p>To me Niki’s election is a step backward’s for women while a Donahue victory would have been a step forward.
<
p>BTW Christopher this is not her first BMG post.
She posted regularly during her campaign and one or twice immediately after her election.
<
p>Then she went up-town. But she was able to check in today to tell us peasants about the coronation.
<
p>
marcus-graly says
niki-tsongas says
Thanks Christopher, admittedly, we spent the last year getting our organization up and running following the Special Election and I look forward to posting more frequently on Blue Mass Group. You are right, I have continued my Congress On Your Corner Program along with several Tele Town Halls and our regular Congress in Your Inbox eNewsletter. You can sign up at my website.
niki-tsongas says
Hi Ernie, I wanted to let you know that I’ve posted statements on my website detailing the positions I’ve taken on both the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act or “stimulus” and the financial rescue package along with information about what I’ve been doing since I was elected to Congress. Bringing our troops home from Iraq is of course of paramount importance. That is why the first piece of legislation that I filed was a bill to bring our troops home from Iraq within 180 days.
<
p>Feel free to visit my website for more information about other specific issues, or if there is something more detailed that you’d like to know about, I’d be happy to follow up with you.
laurel says
Welcome Rep. Tsongas,
<
p>I was disappointed that you didn’t count equality for all as part of Dr. King’s legacy. Race was of course the pressing issue when he made the Lincoln Memorial speech, but he knew that civil rights weren’t just a matter of black and white. His philosophy and words are as meaningful now in our current struggles for civil rights as they were 45 years go.
<
p>I am doubly disappointed that you didn’t include in your list of challenges ahead protecting the civil rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Americans. I hope you will take a second look at Dr. King’s legacy and realize that his work is not finished. You and President Obama are going to be part of the next chapter of civil rights history. I hope you will choose to be proactive movers and shakers, not simply remembered as disappointing politicians always gazing fondly at some golden past.
christopher says
She does say, “The inauguration of our nation’s first African American President occurred within sight of the Lincoln Memorial where 45 years ago Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. whose memory we also observed last week, called upon our nation to bestow the blessings of liberty and equality on ALL (emphasis added) our citizens.”
<
p>Of course, Dr. King’s focus was race and while he may have indirectly laid the groundwork for other struggles, given the attitudes of some black churches, I wouldn’t want to guarantee he favored the type of equality you’re thinking of.
laurel says
saying “all” in a blog post without expanding on it in the “to-do” list at the bottom of the essay just isn’t going to cut it.
<
p>If protecting the civil rights of LGBT Americans is important to you, Rep. Tsongas, please let us hear it.
christopher says
However, I’m pretty sure she attended and even addressed the anti-Prop. 8 rally in Boston.
<
p>Not everybody spends their every waking moment living and breathing your top issue. She called the issues challenges, and I would submit that the ones she cited actually are in a lot of ways more challenging. That is, the issues are complex whereas at least in my mind, LGBT issues are in the category of do it and get it over with.
laurel says
You never fail to reply to my comments with “it’s not important enough, so wait”. Dr King was all about civil rights. While Rep Tsongas was glowing over the King-Obama parallel, it is COMPLETELY fitting to remind people that civil rights are not a done deal with this “promise fulfilled” inauguration of Obama.
<
p>You told me in another diary that I lack “the bigger picture” perspective. I think the truth may be just the opposite. Why is it soooo bad for me to bring up civil rights in this diary, huh? Sooo bad that you feel you have to come to Rep. Tsongas’s aid and defense, unasked. Think about it.
christopher says
By all means ask her position on these issues; I did my best with an admittedly incomplete answer. I have never advocated deliberately waiting, just acknowledged reality. In fact I commented above that we should just “do it and get it over with” regarding LGBT rather than wringing our hands. Nobody said civil rights were a done deal, even racially!
niki-tsongas says
Hi Christopher, I did attend that rally and I was encouraged by the sea of support. We are lucky to live in a state that recognizes that constitutional amendments should not limit rights but expand them.
niki-tsongas says
Hi Laurel. Dr. King’s legacy will long impact our nation as we fight for the civil rights of all people. Since I was elected, I have been a strong advocate for fairness, equality and civil rights, as I have been throughout my life. I’ve been an equally fierce opponent of discrimination based on race, gender, religion, disability or sexual orientation. My husband, Paul Tsongas, was the first U.S. Senator to introduce legislation to ban job discrimination based on sexual orientation. That was 30 years ago in 1979. I agreed with him then and feel just as strongly about championing similar measures today. Almost directly after I was elected, I strongly supported the Employment Non-Discrimination Act spearheaded by Congressman Barney Frank. I also supported the Baldwin Amendment which would have added protections for gender identity. I was one of only seven Democrats to oppose the George Miller Amendment which exempted religious institutions. I’ve strongly supported repealing Don’t Ask Don’t Tell as a member of the House Armed Services Committee, and I am one of the founding members of the Congressional Equity Caucus for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Americans. Please feel free to visit my website for more information about what I’ve done to advocate for civil rights for all.
laurel says
Thank you for all you’ve done and all you’ll do this session. I hope you will consider making more lgbt-related civil rights statements beyond the confines of lgbt-specific debates and events. Incorporating them into any discussion on civil rights is needed and appropriate.
<
p>I appreciate your getting back to us. I was one of the people critical of your mostly one-way blog communications during your campaign. So, I’m delighted to see you come back and engage in some conversation!
kirth says
Ms Tsongas’ views on prosecuting war criminals.
<
p>The inauguration? Not so interested.
niki-tsongas says
Hi kirth. I wasn’t exactly sure what you were referring to when you asked about my views on prosecuting war criminals, but I thought you might be interested in this Letter to the Editor that was published in the Lowell Sun today. I wrote it in response to this Sun editorial criticizing President Obama for closing the prison at Guantanamo Bay.
kirth says
was applying the same standards we used when prosecuting Nazis and Japanese POW camp officers after WW2 to some people in our own government – the people who authorized exactly the same activities that we condemned fifty years ago as “war crimes.” Were we more moral then than we are now? Is there a good reason NOT to prosecute people who violated the War Crimes Act?
sue-kennedy says
Congresswoman Niki Tsongas has been wonderful to reconnect with BMG after 1 year & 3 months.
The “Congress on Your Corner” keeps Niki in touch with real people in our District who are not bloggers, lobbyists, wealthy donors or politically connected. That connection gives her insight to the needs of her district, not just BMG.
Go to her website: http://tsongas.house.gov before questioning her commitment to the issues. Responsible citizenship requires some duty to at least a few mouse clicks:
Niki Tsongas’ 1st Bill
2/26/08 Tsongas Introduces Legislation to Establish Timetable for Redeployment of U.S. Forces In Iraq
Under Tsongas’ bill, redeployment would begin within 90 days of the date of enactment, and all troops would be completely redeployed within 180 days from the start of the redeployment…
6/4/08 Tsongas joins Congressional Equity Caucus for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Americans…
7/23/08 Tsongas Calls for Reversal of Don’t Ask Don’t Tell Policy at Congressional Hearing this Afternoon
Hey, I did not support Niki. Same type of fears of electing a show piece… wife of a former politician. But I was wrong, her record has been impressive!! Except for the bank bailout…
nathanielb says
but I do not think the items you mention make Tsongas an exceptional representation for the district. These policies all represent mainstream, moderate Democratic views.
<
p>1. The Iraq timetable: a majority of Democrats, Independents, Greens, Libertarians, and moderate Republicans within the country (maybe not neccessarily within Congress) supported the idea of a timetable to withdraw forces from Iraq in Feb. ’08 and NOW.
<
p>2. I think it’s admirable that Tsongas joined the LGBT caucus. BUT – why doesn’t she support equal marriage if she believes in equality?
<
p>3. Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell: that policy is a joke. Don’t all Masschusetts Democrats support ending that?
<
p>My point is this is not a stellar record. Not horrible, but nothing for residents of the 5th District to be overly proud of. I think she’s vulnerable to a decent challenger in a Democratic primary or a general election.
sue-kennedy says
Dismiss it if you will, but Niki has been the most accessible Representative most of us can ever remember in the 5th. She works hard and we appreciate it!!
<
p>1. Niki did not support an Iraq timetable, she introduced the legislation!
<
p>2. Niki does believe in equality and she supports equal marriage. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v…
<
p>3. No.
nathanielb says
Sue, I stand corrected! Tsongas does support gay marriage. I am actually really glad to be wrong about that. Thank you for pointing out my idiocy in a respectful way. Cheers!