The Board's now in session as a committee of the whole to consider appointing an interim mayor. As we said earlier, this is supposed to be a done deal—we're supposed to come out of the process today with city Chief Administrative Officer Ed Lee as the interim mayor. But this is the San Francisco Board of Supervisors—it just got done listening to a warning from an Old Testament-style zealot that the end of the world is nigh—so stay tuned. (And to see the board's decision-making process in visual form, see the graphic put together by our colleague Lisa Pickoff-White: The SF Supes Quest for an Interim Mayor.)
5:20 p.m.: A final outsider's thought before we post the speech audio and get out of here for the night: Ed Lee says he's in the job for a year and that will be it. Don't depend on it. A year will be long enough for him to get a start, to build on the support he already has, and maybe realize he likes Room 200, the mayor's office (he says he'll have it open to the citizens every day, by the way). And if he decides to run for a full term after all, he'll be running as an incumbent.
5:15 p.m.: We had to take a break to deal with newscast duties. Listening to the speech he gave in the rotunda after the swearing in, there's lots of boilerplate. But the man is dead serious about his credentials and his ability to move beyond political divisions. Here's the piece of the talk we think you'll see everywhere:
"With all due respect to the young talent of many young leaders with whom I now share this responsibility, I was a progressive before "progressive" was a political faction in this town. [Applause.] Years ago, I fought the establishment to make the city function better, to make our communities more inclusive. I fought for justice.
"When I left Boalt Hall and joined the Asian Law Caucus, I fought to integrate the San Francisco Fire Department. I fought to protect the rights of blacks and Latinos and gays and lesbians and other marginalized groups. I fought for tenants, I fought for senior citizens, I fought to empower the powerless.
"When I joined the city I established the city's first whistleblower program. I made sure our domestic-partners and women-and-minority-owned business ordinances were successful. I helped establish our recycling program, now the nation's most successful. I ensured equal access to government services for all our citizens, including our immigrants, documented and undocumented.
"In other words, I am my own person."
4:12 p.m.: Lee takes the oath. He's mayor! Brown says, "Mr. Mayor!" and shakes his hand. Newsom gives him a hug. In the background, Rose Pak, the Chinese American political heavyweight, shouts, "We did it!"
4:09 p.m.: Board of Supes President David Chiu confirms the 11-0 vote, then he gets a chance to note further the historic nature of the occasion for Chinese Americans and Asian Americans. "This is about the American dream. The idea that anyone from any background ... can come here and someday be here at the top of the community is what it's about."