Roberts to preside at Obama inauguration

Chief Justice John Roberts will deliver the oath of office to President Obama at both his private swearing-in Jan. 20 at the White House and again at his public inauguration Jan. 21 on the steps of the U.S. Capitol, his inaugural planning committee will announce Friday.

“I will be honored to again stand on the inaugural platform and take part in this important American tradition,’’ Obama said in a statement obtained by The New York Times. “I look forward to having Chief Justice John Roberts administer my oath of office as we gather to celebrate not just a president or a vice president, but the strength and determination of the American people.”

Roberts's selection hardly comes as a surprise — chief justices have customarily preformed the role, dating back to Oliver Ellsworth's swearing-in of President John Adams in 1797 — although it is not constitutionally mandated, and presidents are allowed to select who administers the oath. President Lyndon Johnson, for instance, took the oath from federal judge and family friend Sarah Hughes following President Kennedy's assassination in Dallas.

The swearing-in will provide something of a second chance for Roberts, who memorably flubbed the 35-word oath of office during the president's first inauguration. The chief justice, who said the word "faithfully" out of sequence, later went to the White House to again swear the president in.

During that ceremony, Roberts asked the president if he was ready to be sworn in for a second time, earning a snappy quip from Obama.

"I am, and we're going to do it very slowly," Obama said.

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