“내가 아닌 민주주의의 승리”…취임사 전문

“백인우월주의 물리쳐야…정치 치워놓고 팬데믹에 맞서자

미국은 하나…나를 선택하지 않은 국민들도 포용하겠다”

조 바이든 46대 미국 대통령은 20일 취임식에서 분열된 미국 사회의 통합을 역설했다.

다음은 바이든 대통령의 취임사 주요 발언 요지다.

◇ 민주주의가 이겼다…백인우월주의 물리칠 것

오늘은 미국의 날이고, 민주주의의 날이다. 또 역사와 희망, 부활과 결의의 날이다. 오늘 우리는 한 후보의 승리가 아니라 민주주의라는 대의명분의 승리를 축하하고 있다.

바로 이 시간 민주주의가 승리했다. 불과 며칠 전 폭력이 의사당의 토대를 뒤흔들려고 했던 이 신성한 곳에서 우리는 하나의 나라로 뭉쳤다.

정치적 극단주의, 백인우월주의, 국내 테러리즘의 부상은 우리가 맞서 싸워서 물리쳐야 하는 것들이다.

정치가 모든 것을 파괴하는 맹렬한 불길이 돼서는 안 된다. 모든 의견 불일치가 전면적인 전쟁의 명분이 돼야 하는 것은 아니다. 우리는 팩트 그 자체가 조작되고 날조되기까지 하는 그런 문화를 거부해야 한다.

폭도들이 폭력을 사용하면 시민들의 의지를 침묵하게 만들고 민주주의 작업을 멈추게 하고 우리를 이 신성한 곳에서 몰아낼 수 있다고 생각했던 바로 그곳에 며칠 후 서 있다. 그런 일은 일어나지 않았고, 오늘도 내일도 앞으로도 영원히 일어나지 않을 것이다.

우리는 빨간색과 파란색을, 시골과 도시를, 보수와 진보를 싸움 붙이는 이 야만적인 전쟁을 반드시 끝내야 한다. 우리가 마음을 완고하게 먹는 대신 가슴을 열고, 다른 사람의 입장을 헤아릴 수 있다면 그렇게 할 수 있다.

이제 시험의 시간이다. 우리는 민주주의와 진실에 대한 공격, 바이러스, 불평등, 구조적인 인종차별, 기후 위기에 직면해 있다.

우리는 이러한 난국에 대처할 것이다. 그렇게 한다면 미국 역사의 위대한 다음 장을 쓰게 될 것이다. 우리 함께 공포가 아닌 희망, 분열이 아닌 통합, 어둠이 아닌 빛의 미국 이야기를 쓰자. 우리 시대에서 민주주의와 희망, 진실, 정의는 죽지 않고 번영할 것이다.

◇ 내 모든 정신이 이 안에 있다…미국을 하나로 묶자

여러 도전 과제를 극복하고 미국의 미래를 쟁취하려면 말보다 더 많은 것이 필요하다. 민주주의의 모든 것 중에 가장 달성하기 힘든 것, 바로 통합이 필요하다. 1863년 1월 에이브러햄 링컨 대통령은 노예해방선언에 서명하면서 “내 이름이 역사에 남는다면 그것은 이 조치 때문일 것이다. 내 모든 정신이 이 안에 있다”라고 말했다.

오늘 내 모든 정신은 이 안에 있다. 미국을 하나로 묶고, 우리 국민을 통합하고, 우리나라를 통합하는 것이다.

통합을 통해 우리는 위대하고 중요한 일들을 해낼 수 있다. 치명적인 바이러스를 극복하고, 중산층을 재건하고, 인종 정의를 쟁취하며, 미국을 다시 한번 국제사회의 영원한 주역으로 만들 수 있다.

통합 없이는 평화도 없다. 지금은 위기와 도전의 역사적 순간이다. 통합은 성공을 향해 앞으로 가는 길이다.

여러분께 맹세한다. 나는 모든 미국인을 위한 대통령이 되겠다. 나를 지지하지 않은 사람들을 위해서도 똑같이 싸울 것을 약속한다.

◇ 정치는 치워놓고 팬데믹에 맞서자…함께 극복할 것

한 세기에 한 번 있을까 말까 한 바이러스가 조용히 이 나라에 접근해 2차 세계대전 전체를 합친 것만큼 많은 생명을 1년 만에 앗아갔다. 수백만 명이 일자리를 잃었고, 수십만 개의 가게가 문을 닫았다.

많은 미국인이 두려움으로 미래를 바라보고 있다는 점을 잘 알고 있다. 일자리를 잃을까봐 두려워하고, 침대에 누워 천장을 바라보며 의료보험과 주택담보대출을 걱정한다는 사실을 잘 안다.

우리는 서로를 필요로 한다. 이 어두운 겨울을 인내하려면 모든 힘을 다해야 한다. 우리는 바이러스의 가장 어둡고 치명적인 시기로 들어서고 있다. 정치는 치워놓고 하나의 나라로서 이 팬데믹에 맞서야 한다. 우리는 함께 이것을 극복해낼 것이다.

◇ 동맹 복원하겠다…세계의 등불 될 것

미국은 시험에 들었지만 더 강하게 일어섰다. 우리는 동맹을 복구하고 다시 한번 전 세계와 관여하겠다. 어제의 도전 과제가 아니라 오늘과 내일의 도전 과제에 맞서겠다. 그리고 우리의 힘을 보여줌으로써가 아니라 우리가 모범이 됨으로써 리드해나갈 것이다.

미국은 세계의 등불로서 다시 한번 우뚝 설 것이다.

취임식에서 연설하는 조 바이든 대통령 [AFP=연합뉴스]

*다음은 바이든 대통령의 취임연설문 전문이다. (Credit=White House)

“Chief Justice Roberts, Vice President Harris, Speaker Pelosi, Leader Schumer, Leader McConnell, Vice President Pence, distinguished guests, and my fellow Americans.

This is America’s day.

This is democracy’s day.

A day of history and hope.

Of renewal and resolve.

Through a crucible for the ages America has been tested anew and America has risen to the challenge.

Today, we celebrate the triumph not of a candidate, but of a cause, the cause of democracy.

The will of the people has been heard and the will of the people has been heeded.

We have learned again that democracy is precious.

Democracy is fragile.

And at this hour, my friends, democracy has prevailed.

So now, on this hallowed ground where just days ago violence sought to shake this Capitol’s very foundation, we come together as one nation, under God, indivisible, to carry out the peaceful transfer of power as we have for more than two centuries.

We look ahead in our uniquely American way — restless, bold, optimistic — and set our sights on the nation we know we can be and we must be.

I thank my predecessors of both parties for their presence here.

I thank them from the bottom of my heart.

You know the resilience of our Constitution and the strength of our nation.

As does President Carter, who I spoke to last night but who cannot be with us today, but whom we salute for his lifetime of service.

I have just taken the sacred oath each of these patriots took — an oath first sworn by George Washington.

But the American story depends not on any one of us, not on some of us, but on all of us.

On “We the People” who seek a more perfect Union.

This is a great nation and we are a good people.

Over the centuries through storm and strife, in peace and in war, we have come so far. But we still have far to go.

We will press forward with speed and urgency, for we have much to do in this winter of peril and possibility.

Much to repair.

Much to restore.

Much to heal.

Much to build.

And much to gain.

Few periods in our nation’s history have been more challenging or difficult than the one we’re in now.

A once-in-a-century virus silently stalks the country.

It’s taken as many lives in one year as America lost in all of World War II.

Millions of jobs have been lost.

Hundreds of thousands of businesses closed.

A cry for racial justice some 400 years in the making moves us. The dream of justice for all will be deferred no longer.

A cry for survival comes from the planet itself. A cry that can’t be any more desperate or any more clear.

And now, a rise in political extremism, white supremacy, domestic terrorism that we must confront and we will defeat.

To overcome these challenges – to restore the soul and to secure the future of America – requires more than words.

It requires that most elusive of things in a democracy:

Unity.

Unity.

In another January in Washington, on New Year’s Day 1863, Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation.

When he put pen to paper, the President said, “If my name ever goes down into history it will be for this act and my whole soul is in it.”

My whole soul is in it.

Today, on this January day, my whole soul is in this:

Bringing America together.

Uniting our people.

And uniting our nation.

I ask every American to join me in this cause.

Uniting to fight the common foes we face:

Anger, resentment, hatred.

Extremism, lawlessness, violence.

Disease, joblessness, hopelessness.

With unity we can do great things. Important things.

We can right wrongs.

We can put people to work in good jobs.

We can teach our children in safe schools.

We can overcome this deadly virus.

We can reward work, rebuild the middle class, and make health care
secure for all.

We can deliver racial justice.

We can make America, once again, the leading force for good in the world.

I know speaking of unity can sound to some like a foolish fantasy.

I know the forces that divide us are deep and they are real.

But I also know they are not new.

Our history has been a constant struggle between the American ideal that we are all created equal and the harsh, ugly reality that racism, nativism, fear, and demonization have long torn us apart.

The battle is perennial.

Victory is never assured.

Through the Civil War, the Great Depression, World War, 9/11, through struggle, sacrifice, and setbacks, our “better angels” have always prevailed.

In each of these moments, enough of us came together to carry all of us forward.

And, we can do so now.

History, faith, and reason show the way, the way of unity.

We can see each other not as adversaries but as neighbors.

We can treat each other with dignity and respect.

We can join forces, stop the shouting, and lower the temperature.

For without unity, there is no peace, only bitterness and fury.

No progress, only exhausting outrage.

No nation, only a state of chaos.

This is our historic moment of crisis and challenge, and unity is the path forward.

And, we must meet this moment as the United States of America.

If we do that, I guarantee you, we will not fail.

We have never, ever, ever failed in America when we have acted together.

And so today, at this time and in this place, let us start afresh.

All of us.

Let us listen to one another.

Hear one another. See one another.

Show respect to one another.

Politics need not be a raging fire destroying everything in its path.

Every disagreement doesn’t have to be a cause for total war.

And, we must reject a culture in which facts themselves are manipulated and even manufactured.

My fellow Americans, we have to be different than this.

America has to be better than this.

And, I believe America is better than this.

Just look around.

Here we stand, in the shadow of a Capitol dome that was completed amid the Civil War, when the Union itself hung in the balance.

Yet we endured and we prevailed.

Here we stand looking out to the great Mall where Dr. King spoke of his dream.

Here we stand, where 108 years ago at another inaugural, thousands of protestors tried to block brave women from marching for the right to vote.

Today, we mark the swearing-in of the first woman in American history elected to national office – Vice President Kamala Harris.

Don’t tell me things can’t change.

Here we stand across the Potomac from Arlington National Cemetery, where heroes who gave the last full measure of devotion rest in eternal peace.

And here we stand, just days after a riotous mob thought they could use violence to silence the will of the people, to stop the work of our democracy, and to drive us from this sacred ground.

That did not happen.

It will never happen.

Not today.

Not tomorrow.

Not ever.

To all those who supported our campaign I am humbled by the faith you have placed in us.

To all those who did not support us, let me say this: Hear me out as we move forward. Take a measure of me and my heart.

And if you still disagree, so be it.

That’s democracy. That’s America. The right to dissent peaceably, within the guardrails of our Republic, is perhaps our nation’s greatest strength.

Yet hear me clearly: Disagreement must not lead to disunion.

And I pledge this to you: I will be a President for all Americans.

I will fight as hard for those who did not support me as for those who did.

Many centuries ago, Saint Augustine, a saint of my church, wrote that a people was a multitude defined by the common objects of their love.

What are the common objects we love that define us as Americans?

I think I know.

Opportunity.

Security.

Liberty.

Dignity.

Respect.

Honor.

And, yes, the truth.

Recent weeks and months have taught us a painful lesson.

There is truth and there are lies.

Lies told for power and for profit.

And each of us has a duty and responsibility, as citizens, as Americans, and especially as leaders – leaders who have pledged to honor our Constitution and protect our nation — to defend the truth and to defeat the lies.

I understand that many Americans view the future with some fear and trepidation.

I understand they worry about their jobs, about taking care of their families, about what comes next.

I get it.

But the answer is not to turn inward, to retreat into competing factions, distrusting those who don’t look like you do, or worship the way you do, or don’t get their news from the same sources you do.

We must end this uncivil war that pits red against blue, rural versus urban, conservative versus liberal.

We can do this if we open our souls instead of hardening our hearts.

If we show a little tolerance and humility.

If we’re willing to stand in the other person’s shoes just for a moment.
Because here is the thing about life: There is no accounting for what fate will deal you.

There are some days when we need a hand.

There are other days when we’re called on to lend one.

That is how we must be with one another.

And, if we are this way, our country will be stronger, more prosperous, more ready for the future.

My fellow Americans, in the work ahead of us, we will need each other.

We will need all our strength to persevere through this dark winter.

We are entering what may well be the toughest and deadliest period of the virus.

We must set aside the politics and finally face this pandemic as one nation.

I promise you this: as the Bible says weeping may endure for a night but joy cometh in the morning.

We will get through this, together

The world is watching today.

So here is my message to those beyond our borders: America has been tested and we have come out stronger for it.

We will repair our alliances and engage with the world once again.

Not to meet yesterday’s challenges, but today’s and tomorrow’s.

We will lead not merely by the example of our power but by the power of our example.

We will be a strong and trusted partner for peace, progress, and security.

We have been through so much in this nation.

And, in my first act as President, I would like to ask you to join me in a moment of silent prayer to remember all those we lost this past year to the pandemic.

To those 400,000 fellow Americans – mothers and fathers, husbands and wives, sons and daughters, friends, neighbors, and co-workers.

We will honor them by becoming the people and nation we know we can and should be.

Let us say a silent prayer for those who lost their lives, for those they left behind, and for our country.

Amen.

This is a time of testing.

We face an attack on democracy and on truth.

A raging virus.

Growing inequity.

The sting of systemic racism.

A climate in crisis.

America’s role in the world.

Any one of these would be enough to challenge us in profound ways.

But the fact is we face them all at once, presenting this nation with the gravest of responsibilities.

Now we must step up.

All of us.

It is a time for boldness, for there is so much to do.

And, this is certain.

We will be judged, you and I, for how we resolve the cascading crises of our era.

Will we rise to the occasion?

Will we master this rare and difficult hour?

Will we meet our obligations and pass along a new and better world for our children?

I believe we must and I believe we will.

And when we do, we will write the next chapter in the American story.

It’s a story that might sound something like a song that means a lot to me.

It’s called “American Anthem” and there is one verse stands out for me:

“The work and prayers
of centuries have brought us to this day
What shall be our legacy?
What will our children say?…
Let me know in my heart
When my days are through
America
America
I gave my best to you.”

Let us add our own work and prayers to the unfolding story of our nation.

If we do this then when our days are through our children and our children’s children will say of us they gave their best.

They did their duty.

They healed a broken land.
My fellow Americans, I close today where I began, with a sacred oath.

Before God and all of you I give you my word.

I will always level with you.

I will defend the Constitution.

I will defend our democracy.

I will defend America.

I will give my all in your service thinking not of power, but of possibilities.

Not of personal interest, but of the public good.

And together, we shall write an American story of hope, not fear.

Of unity, not division.

Of light, not darkness.

An American story of decency and dignity.

Of love and of healing.

Of greatness and of goodness.

May this be the story that guides us.

The story that inspires us.

The story that tells ages yet to come that we answered the call of history.

We met the moment.

That democracy and hope, truth and justice, did not die on our watch but thrived.

That our America secured liberty at home and stood once again as a beacon to the world.

That is what we owe our forebearers, one another, and generations to follow.

So, with purpose and resolve we turn to the tasks of our time.

Sustained by faith.

Driven by conviction.

And, devoted to one another and to this country we love with all our hearts.

May God bless America and may God protect our troops.

Thank you, America.”