The individual who occupies the White House is almost always at the center of American political life, but Inauguration Day is about the presidency, not the president. So it was fitting that the noontime ceremony in Washington yesterday focused less on George W. Bush himself than the office he has been elected to occupy for another four years. The presence on the Capitol steps of Jimmy Carter, George H. W. Bush and Bill Clinton underscored that, as did the bipartisan phalanx of dignitaries. From the solemn oath-taking to the seemingly endless parade of marching bands from red states and blue,...