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Michael Smerconish: Stars glittered Sunday night

I'LL LET everyone else dissect the new president's inaugural address for clues about how he'll govern over the next four years. Everything I needed to know I learned by watching the pre-inaugural concert at the Lincoln Memorial on Sunday.

Sheryl Crow and will.i.am were among the headliners at a star-studded pre-inauguration concert last Sunday afternoon at the Lincoln Memorial. (Alex Brandon/AP)
Sheryl Crow and will.i.am were among the headliners at a star-studded pre-inauguration concert last Sunday afternoon at the Lincoln Memorial. (Alex Brandon/AP)Read more

I'LL LET everyone else dissect the new president's inaugural address for clues about how he'll govern over the next four years. Everything I needed to know I learned by watching the pre-inaugural concert at the Lincoln Memorial on Sunday.

First, kids rule. The Obama girls snapped their own pictures of the stars entertaining the first family and the nation, providing a Rockwellian image for the new millennium. Sasha and Malia will provide significant insulation and political cover for whatever rocky times might come to their father's administration.

Second, it's a time for sharing. The biggest entertainers in the world performed other people's songs. Bettye LaVette and Jon Bon Jovi covered Sam Cooke.  Mary J. Blige did Bill Withers' "Lean on Me." Garth Brooks' medley included a song Don McLean has sung relentlessly for almost 40 years - and no doubt could've sung once more. Brooks followed that with a version of "Shout" that briefly left the Lincoln Memorial looking more like Delta House. (But where were Otis Day and the Knights?)

No wonder that President Obama said of his proposed economic-recovery package last week: "I don't have pride of authorship here."

Third, change has come to Washington. During Bob Marley's "One Love," the Black Eyed Peas' will.i.am changed the lyrics to his band's "Where Is the Love?" to dismiss a line that likened the CIA to a terrorist organization.

Fourth, everything old is new again. If we didn't know it from all the Clinton personnel who've joined the Obama administration, we certainly figured it out when only Stevie Wonder could get the president and his family to their feet to dance - and Stevie couldn't even see them.

And there was Pete Seeger, all 89 years of him, playing the role of the token '60s activist.

Fifth, a two-state solution will be pursued in the Middle East. How else to explain Bono's reference to Israel and, after a pregnant pause, Palestine?

Did U2's lead singer hesitate purposefully before reflecting about "a Palestinian dream," or was he deciding whether to mention it at all?

Sixth, "don't ask, don't tell" might not be dead after all. The presidential inaugural committee took responsibility on Monday for apparently inadvertently omitting the invocation of Bishop Gene Robinson, the Episcopal Church's first openly gay bishop, from the nationally televised broadcast.

HBO said replays would include his address.

Seventh, Johnny was on the spot - for more than one reason. Weeks after reports indicated that there wouldn't be enough portable toilets to accommodate the inauguration crowds, a New York Times scribe reported that some onlookers at the concert sat on the roofs of the potties to get a better view. That's killing two birds with one throne.

Eighth, the pre-inaugural concert was a precursor to the inauguration theme of restraint.

Witness Kal Penn, whose character set himself on fire during a sexual encounter in "National Lampoon's Van Wilder," buttoned up as he recited a quote from President Dwight Eisenhower.

Jack Black, a couple of years removed from punting a dog off a bridge in "Anchorman," donned an earthy green tie and delivered remarks about Teddy Roosevelt's legacy of conservation.

And, finally, I took note of the celebrities taking BlackBerry photos of the president when they weren't performing.

Indeed, everyone from Beyonce to Bono and Garth Brooks to Mary J. Blige checked their egos in exchange for a backstage pass.

The irony?

The new president was the biggest act in the house. *

Listen to Michael Smerconish weekdays 5-9 a.m. on the Big Talker, 1210/AM. Contact him via the Web at www.mastalk.com.