Sen. John Kerry, who had hoped to be center stage Thursday, watched somberly from a seat far across the platform as President Bush took the oath of office, but he sounded a note of defiance as he looked ahead to the next four years.

"Democracy means working together for the good of our country; it also means keeping faith with your ideals, never retreating from core convictions even as you work to find common ground," said Kerry, who narrowly lost his bid for the White House.

The senator and his wife, Teresa Heinz Kerry, chatted with others on the inaugural platform, and he later attended the congressional luncheon.

Rather than attend inaugural balls in the evening, Kerry gathered close family and friends at his Georgetown home for dinner.