I didn’t much like the poem that closed out the inaugural ceremonies. But Mark Schmitt did, and he weaved its message into a beautiful meditation on the role words have played in Obama’s career, and the way yesterday’s speech fit into that broader context.

Ezra Klein is a former Prospect writer and current editor-in-chief at Vox. His work has appeared in the LA Times, The Guardian, The Washington Monthly, The New Republic, Slate, and The Columbia Journalism Review. He’s been a commentator on MSNBC, CNN, NPR, and more.