Here are a set of photos from President Obama’s Inauguration in D.C. a couple of weeks ago on January 20th 2009 in front of the Capitol building. Continue reading for an amazing set of historical photos. Download them and put them away for safe keeping. We can only celebrate having the first Black president in office once in a lifetime!

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Rev. Jesse Jackson, Sr. was asked by Essence to write an open letter to President Barack Obama. In the letter, he mainly talks about ways to improve the future of our country by investing in the education of our youth. Check it out below, and after the cut.

Dear Mr. President:

What a joy and relief it is to be able to salute you as President Obama. Congratulations on a magnificently run campaign. Your discipline, vision, strength and courage will take America and the world a long way. Now that we have made it through the courtship of the primary season, the engagement party in Grant Park on November 4th, and the wedding on January 20th, we’re entering into marriage—the final stage, one that is full of challenges.

It’s high noon in our politics, where hope abounds. But it is midnight in our economics. But we have hope that the darkness will lead to a new light that will shine even brighter. We are in a time of the worst economic crisis of the last half century, and amid expanding wars and conflicts in Iraq, the Middle East and Africa. The two great themes of ending poverty at home and unnecessary wars abroad must dominate our priorities.

We need an economic stimulus. We also need equal protection under the law, which we’ve never had. Those who have been dealt the most inequality deserve targeted stimulation. Our character is measured, as you mentioned in your Inauguration speech, by how we treat the least of these. The least of these are gripped in poverty, high infant mortality, less access to capital, first-class jails and second-class schools, the highest victims of home foreclosures. They need targeted job creation and job training to offset targeted discrimination and denial leading to structural inequality. They need to be able to restructure and modify their loans, real foreclosure relief to save their homes.

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President Barack Obama’s official presidential portrait was unveiled a few weeks ago. They say it’s the first presidential portrait ever to be taken with a digital camera. You can add that to the historical list of “firsts” we as a country have experienced in such a short amount of time.

President Obama began to take action regarding fuel efficiency & global warming with plans to reverse several Bush decisions concerning green issues. Obama directed his Environmental Protection Agency to review a California application to regulate greenhouse gases and told his Department of Transportation to begin implementing fuel efficiency standards passed in late 2007 but not implemented by the Bush administration.

As well all know the President has been pushing for the passage of the $825 billion stimulus package in the House and Senate to help revive the economy.  Included in this package the bills include money for investments in renewable energy, conservation, and a better electric grid.

“America will not be held hostage to dwindling resources, hostile regimes and a warming planet,” said Obama. “This is the boost that our economy needs and the new beginning that our future demands.”

Dear Malia and Sasha,

I know that you’ve both had a lot of fun these last two years on the campaign trail, going to picnics and parades and state fairs, eating all sorts of junk food your mother and I probably shouldn’t have let you have. But I also know that it hasn’t always been easy for you and Mom, and that as excited as you both are about that new puppy, it doesn’t make up for all the time we’ve been apart. I know how much I’ve missed these past two years, and today I want to tell you a little more about why I decided to take our family on this journey.

When I was a young man, I thought life was all about me-about how I’d make my way in the world, become successful, and get the things I want. But then the two of you came into my world with all your curiosity and mischief and those smiles that never fail to fill my heart and light up my day. And suddenly, all my big plans for myself didn’t seem so important anymore. I soon found that the greatest joy in my life was the joy I saw in yours. And I realized that my own life wouldn’t count for much unless I was able to ensure that you had every opportunity for happiness and fulfillment in yours. In the end, girls, that’s why I ran for President: because of what I want for you and for every child in this nation.

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President-elect Barack Obama plans to order the closing of the U.S. military prison at Guantanamo Bay as early as his first week in office.  The closing of the prison will show a break from the Bush administration’s approach to the war on terror. Officials say it would follow Obama’s campaign promise to shut down the prison through executive order.

Obama on ABC’s  “This Week”:

“It is more difficult than I think a lot of people realize and we are going to get it done, but part of the challenge that you have is that you have a bunch of folks that have been detained, many of whom who may be very dangerous who have not been put on trial or have not gone through some adjudication,”

The military prison at Guantanamo Bay is a major issue because it has become a symbol of mismanagement and overreach in the war on terror.

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PRESIDENT-ELECT OBAMA REVEALS ECONOMIC RECOVER PLAN IN D.C. » There’s no doubt that President-Elect Barack Obama has a lot on his agenda when he officially enters the office on Jan. 20th, but for now he is working hard with his administration on creating a plan to help bring America’s economy back on its feet. He began his campaign on Monday for a tremendous package of tax cuts and spending proposals to boost an economy that was officially confirmed as being in a recession last year.  A tax cut in the amount of  $300 billion dollars will be proposed for individuals and businesses. The President-elect has not put a price tag on the overall amount for his stimulus plan, however his advisers expect the amount to fall between $675 billon and $775 billion.  It is also known that 40%  of the amount would be in tax cuts. Several tax breaks are also being considered.

According to Barack Obama’s plan, he would offer a tax cut equal to $500 a year for individuals and $1,000 for couples.  The credit given would work as a payroll tax credit,  in other words the money would be distributed quickly because companies could reduce the tax withheld from employees’ paychecks.
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Someone please tell right wing and controversial political commenter Ann Coulter to stop drinking on that “hatorade” because it’s definitely not a good look for her. Apparently she’s been saying some not so nice things about President-elect Barack Obama’s wife Michelle Obama.  According to her latest book which is said to be published next week, titled “Guilty: Liberal ‘Victims’ and their Assault on America,” she accuses the liberal left of playing the victims when in fact of course they are the victimizers.

But wait … the fun doesn’t stop there.  She then goes on to bash Mrs. Obama about her choice of style in which she says she is an imitation of Jackie O’s personal style.  Jackie O was the first lady and wife of President John F. Kennedy.

Coulter wrote, “Her obvious imitation of Jackie O’s style - the flipped-under hair, the sleeveless A-line dresses, the short strands of fake pearls - would have been laughable if done by anyone other than a media-designated saint.”

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Beyonce and Jay-Z together, without a doubt, is the definition of “black love.” For our generation at least! They’ve been together for over 5 years, and have close to $170 million in the bank (combined), making them Hollywood’s richest couple! Much of their relationship is kept private, but their lives as celebrities, coupled with their fame and huge success as artists and entrepreneurs, makes it hard not to want to know more about them! We put them at the top of our list this time last year, but the only difference between then and now is that they are married. The two decided to tie the knot in a “private” ceremony in April 2008. And if you were around and living on planet earth, you definitely heard about it! After People.com announced that the two had taken out a marriage license in New York, the events that happened the weekend of April 4th 2008 were inevitable. After several black SUVs with heavily tinted windows were seen entering Jay-Z’s Manhattan apartment, in addition to the dozens of vans bringing in wedding decorations, we all knew what was going on.

Every paparazzo in the world set up shop outside of the apartment and snapped photos of Solange Knowles (Beyonce’s sister), Tina & Mathew Knowles (Beyonce’s parents), Michelle Williams, Kelly Rowland, Irv Gotti, and more entering the apartment building’s ground-level garage. The list went on and on, but after seeing all of these people entering one place, we knew Beyonce and Jay-Z were DEFINITELY getting married. People.com actually confirmed it the next morning, and shortly after, we spotted the two wearing their wedding bands. These two getting married was definitely the talk of the blogosphere for the months to follow. And even though “Jayonce” never really confirmed their wedding, in several interviews that followed (Oprah, The Tyra Banks show, Essence Magazine, etc.) they were referred to as husband and wife, and neither contested it. But these two are the same people who never confirmed their initial relationship, so we’re definitely used to it!

Who else made the cut as GOT’s hottest couples of 2008? Continue reading to see!

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COVER: EBONY MAGAZINE

President-Elect Barack Obama is EBONY’s “Person of the Year,” and he covers the January 2009 of the popular black magazine. This cover is apparently a collector’s edition, and we hear this is the first time they have honored someone as the “person of the year.” We here at Gossiponthis.com have the exclusive HQ version of the cover, so if you’d like to check it out, click the image above!