In his poem, ELECTION DAY, NOVEMBER, 1884,
Walt Whitman wrote, “This seething hemisphere's
humanity, as now, I'd name—the still small voice vibrating
—America's choosing day, (The heart of it not in the chosen
—the act itself the main, the quadriennial choosing,)”.

THROUGH GRITTED TEETH is my response to our choosing,
a gesture of resistance in our troubled democracy.

Hail to the Chief we have chosen for the nation,
Hail to the Chief! We salute him, one and all.
Hail to the Chief, as we pledge cooperation
In proud fulfillment of a great, noble call.

Yours is the aim to make this grand country grander,
This you will do, that's our strong, firm belief.
Hail to the one we selected as commander,
Hail to the President! Hail to the Chief!

These Hail to the Chief lyrics by Albert Gamse, although rarely sung, were set to James Sanderson’s music after 1812 and adopted in 1954 by the Department of Defense as the official musical tribute
to the U.S. president.

-Alison Crocetta, January 2017