WASHINGTON -- With the flag-draped West Front of the Capitol as a backdrop, George Herbert Walker Bush was inaugurated Friday as the 41st president of the United States of America.

Wearing a dark business suit and silver tie, Bush recited the oath of office administered by Supreme Court Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist. The new president was obviously excited, blurting out "I-" a second before he was to begin repeating the oath.

In his inaugural address, Bush emphasized the federal budget deficit as a critical issue and said a close, bipartisan relationship with Congress must be established to solve the economic problem.

Turning to the congressmen assembled behind him, Bush held out his hand and said, "Mr. Speaker, Mr. Majority Leader, a new breeze is blowing, and the old bipartisanship must be restored. To my friends -- and I do mean friends -- in the loyal opposition -- and yes I mean loyal -- I hold out my hand."

Bush also pledged a tough stand against drugs. In a new, self-assured manner, he said with force, "Take my word, this scourge will stop."

The speech, which lasted about 20 minutes, also called for new, tougher measures to combat "the rough crime of the streets." The president asked Congress to work with him to deal with the problems of the homeless and poverty.

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As Friday morning's Inaguration began, people were hanging in bushes and still scaling the walls bordering the 120-acre Capitol grounds, struggling for a glimpse of the podium where the ceremonies took place.

Scattered among the crowds of revelers were clusters of the city's homeless, wrapped in rags and dirty blankets and huddled around sewer grates.

At 11:45, the Rev. Billy Graham began the invocation as former President Ronald Reagan and his wife Nancy witnessed their last official function as first family.

Former Sen. James Danforth Quayle of Indiana preceded Bush in the oath-taking ceremonies, becoming the 48th Vice President of the United States just before noon. Associate Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, Quayle's personal choice for the ceremony, administered the oath.

With a hand upon his family Bible held by his wife Marilyn, Quayle repeated the vows in a serious tone, but broke into a wide smile as he repeated the final line "so help me God."

At 12:03, George Bush became the nation's new president.

Throughout the ceremony, Bush's wife Barbara sat smiling in a fashionable blue suit with the dignity that has earned her the nickname of "The Silver Fox." Bush's ailing 87-year-old mother Dorothy sat beside the new first lady, watching her son, a look of calm on her face.

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Reaction to Bush's address was supportive, with both Republicans and Democrats lauding it as an honest attempt at harmony and conciliation on the part of the new president.

Lois H. Hart, secretary for Sen. Alan Cranston, D-Calif., said, "It is generally accepted on the Hill that Bush wants to work with Congress, not blame it. As a speech, the address was remarkably conciliatory."

Sections of the address contained few surprises, such as Bush's tribute to Reagan, which received a standing ovation on the platform behind him and in the seating section directly in front.

But Bush made some unexpected statements further on, including one in which he linked the divisiveness between the executive and legislative branches in the past few years to the stigma of the Vietnam.

"It's been that way since Vietnam," he said. "The war cleaves us still. But friends, that war began in earnest a quarter-century ago; and surely the statute of limitations has been reached. This is a fact. The final lesson of Vietnam is that no great nation can long afford to be sundered by a memory."