Barack Obama, America's first black president, declared that he had "lived out the promise" envisioned by Lyndon B. Johnson, the president who championed the push for greater racial equality with sweeping civil rights legislation a half century ago.
Marking the 50th anniversary of the Civil Rights Act, which Johnson signed into law, Obama yesterday lauded his Democratic predecessor's ability to grasp like few others the power of government to bring about change and swing open the doors of opportunity for millions of Americans.
"They swung open for you and they swung open for me," he said. "That's why I'm standing here today."
Obama spoke at the end of a three-day summit commemorating the landmark law that ended racial discrimination in public places. The anniversary has spurred a renaissance of sorts for Johnson's domestic agenda, which included the creation of Medicare for the elderly, Medicaid for the poor, and the Voting Rights Act.
Johnson's ambitious domestic agenda, following the assassination of President John F. Kennedy in 1963, has been overshadowed for decades by the legacy of the war in Vietnam, where Johnson escalated American military involvement to over 500,000 US troops by 1968.
Against the backdrop of Obama's own troubled relationship with Congress, there have also been fresh bouts of nostalgia for Johnson's mastery of congressional deal-making.
"No one knew politics and no one loved legislating more than President Johnson," Obama said. "He was charming when he needed to be, ruthless when required."
Obama also offered rare personal insights into his views on the office he has held for more than five years, casting it as a humbling perch with powerful possibilities.
"Those of us who've had the singular privilege to hold the office of the presidency know well that progress in this country can be hard and it can be slow, frustrating. And sometimes you're stymied," he said.
