Biden/Harris as Henry Aaron
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It was - to steal the words of the great Vermont/NY Times writer Dwight Garner - "like a sleeping limb was tingling back into action."
Joe Biden took the presidential oath and called for unity of purpose to fight the virus, repair the country's economy and confront our racist culture and past.
Then the ascension of the first woman of color to the vice presidency, her Jewish first husband, and her blended family.
A new president calling out white supremacy and domestic terrorism two weeks after an attempted coup.
All serenaded by a young poet who fearlessly laid out America's stains and possibilities in a few gutsy minutes.
"…her performance made you vaguely feel that you'd had a blood transfusion," Garner wrote this week of Amanda Gorman's poem.
A good day for the country. The list is dizzying. Rejoining the Paris Climate Accord, empowering Dr. Anthony Fauci to do his job, rejoining the World Health Organization, extending a nuclear arms agreement and a promise to restore competence and science to the government.
But beyond what we saw on the news, even more reason for hope; signs that the country is moving in the right direction even though we falter for long periods. It is not the stuff you see on TV or Twitter, but it shows where the country is headed.
A Black man is now the secretary of defense.
A First Lady who teaches community college students.
Journalist Yolanda Lopez is the new head of the Voice of America.
Jen Psaki, the new press secretary, has held a news briefing every day.
Throughout the government, from the EPA to the Pentagon, climate change is now a major priority, and not a moment too soon. Keep your eyes on the Department of Energy, which will be driving the monumental switch from an oil and coal economy to a clean one.
Biden's cancellation of the Keystone Pipeline project sent a big message on climate.
The woman running the entire intelligence network - Avril Haines - is a physicist who ran a bookstore in Baltimore.
And my favorite. Testifying before the Senate Commerce Committee on his nomination to be transportation secretary, Pete Buttigeig did all the usual niceties. He pledged to work with senators. He thanked his home state senator, Todd Young, a Republican, for introducing him. And then he turned and introduced his husband Chasten to the committee, thanking him for his support - what a moment.
These are just some of the big changes going on beneath the surface of the government. All these people bring others with them. The secretary of defense will bring people of color to run the military. The White House press office will be staffed by young, idealistic men and women who will go on to populate the government for years. Mayor Pete, at his best, will inspire the career staff to do good work. Get ready for him to talk a lot about climate change and car emissions.
Is all this panacea? No. I have qualms about a military man running the Pentagon in contravention of the Constitution. Avril Haines was at the CIA when we killed people with drone strikes under Obama's orders. Sometimes she personally approved them. But overall, if you want a government that cares deeply about making it work for people, these developments are game-changers.
This will get a lot harder. In the wake of Trump's departure, Fox News purged its remaining journalists, including the team that called the election for Biden. The network now doubles down on conspiracy theories and faux-populist talking heads like Tucker Carlson.
Look no further than David Leonhardt's piece in the NY Times this week about having to drive his mother across the country for a vaccination shot. Along the way, he encounters people barging into stores refusing to wear masks.
It remains to be seen whether Americans hopped up on the sugar high of Trump tax cuts and a booming stock market are willing to live on a war footing to depress the virus.
And the jockeying for the election of 2024 has begun. Will Biden run again? If not, is Harris the candidate? Will 80 million Americans, including lots of white voters, support her?
But right now, it's the dull work of running a country, requiring people who work hard every day at very tough jobs. People like the great Henry Aaron, the home run king from Mobile, Ala, died last week. Aaron braved racism all his life, even when he did something great, like breaking Babe Ruth's home run record. All his life, Aaron conducted himself with quiet dignity while delivering results every day.
That's what Joe Biden and his staff need to do - deliver results that make people's lives better every day in ways we can understand. If they can behave with an ounce of Henry Aaron's dignity, we will all be better off.
