Challenges will be met, vows Obama

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He said: "Every so often the oath is taken amidst gathering clouds and raging storms".

At such times America had to remain "faithful to the ideals of our forbearers, and true to our founding document", he said.

And he added: "Today I say to you that the challenges we face are real.

"They are serious and they are many. They will not be met easily or in a short span of time. But know this, America - they will be met."

Describing the challenges ahead, he said: "That we are in the midst of crisis is now well understood. Our nation is at war, against a far-reaching network of violence and hatred.

"Our economy is badly weakened, a consequence of greed and irresponsibility on the part of some, but also our collective failure to make hard choices and prepare the nation for a new age.

"Homes have been lost; jobs shed; businesses shuttered. Our health care is too costly; our schools fail too many; and each day brings further evidence that the ways we use energy strengthen our adversaries and threaten our planet."

But he said people had chosen "hope over fear, unity of purpose over conflict and discord".

President Obama said: "On this day we come to proclaim an end to the petty grievances and false promises, the worn out dogmas, that for far too long have strangled our politics."