L05 ASSIGNMENT 2
L05 Assignment
The presidential inaugural address is a longstanding ritual which is significant of both an
end and a new beginning. Some U.S. presidents have been fortunate to have inherited the nation
during times of peace and prosperity while others were burdened with major challenges,
including war and economic crisis. The latter includes presidents Franklin D. Roosevelt, John F.
Kennedy, and Barack Obama who all faced extraordinarily difficult circumstances immediately
upon entering their positions in office. FDR was overwhelmingly elected in 1933 by a desperate
America struggling through the Great Depression sparked by the stock market crash of 1929.
Plagued by unemployment, homelessness, starvation, drought, and countless financial woes, it
was the worst economic downturn experienced by any industrialized nation. Kennedy entered
office in 1961 during the midst of the Cold War, which had many Americans uneasy about
increasing tensions with communist Russia and the possibility of nuclear war. Most recently,
Obama faced both the challenges of war in Iraq and Afghanistan and economic recession
entering into his presidency in 2009. With so many issues troubling the nation, Americans looked
to these three presidents to be a source of much needed confidence and reassurance, which each
of them delivered in their inaugural speeches.
Roosevelt represented a much-needed breath of fresh air for the American people who
were frustrated by the inaction of his predecessor, Herbert Hoover, in the face of the Great
Depression. While Herbert believed that the economy would eventually correct itself and refused
to intervene, FDR created a plan of action he labeled the New Deal to help alleviate the financial
hardships of American citizens and pave the road to recovery. FDR new that the previous
president and the country’s financial windfall had left them with a skepticism and distrust for the
government. Therefore, he utilized his inaugural speech as the initial step toward rebuilding their
faith and spoke with the purpose of creating a positive feeling amongst his audience