To a few of us here today this is a solemn and most momentous occasion, and yet in the history of our nation it is a commonplace occurrence. The orderly transfer of authority as called for in the constitution routinely takes place, as it has for almost two centuries, and few of us stop to think how unique we really are. In the eyes of many in the world, this every4year ceremony we accept as normal is nothing less than a miracle. Mr. President , i want our fellow citizens to know how much you did to carry on this tradition. By your gracious cooperation in the transition process, you have shown a watching world that we are a United People pledged to maintaining a political system which guarantees individual liberty to a greater degree than any other, and i thank you and your people for all your help in maintaining the continuity which is the bulwark of our republic. The business of our nation goes forward. These United States are confronted with an economic affliction of great proportions. We suffer from the longest and one of the worst sustained inflations in our national history. It distorts our economic decisions, penalizes thrift, and crushes the struggling young and the fixedincome elderly alike. It threatens to shatter the lives of millions of our people. Idle industries have cast workers into unemployment, human misery, and personal indignity. Those who do work are denied a fair return for their labor by a tax system which penalizes successful achievement and keeps us from maintaining full productivity. But great as our tax burden is, it has not kept pace with public spending. For decades we have piled deficit upon deficit, mortgaging our future and our childrens future for the temporary convenience of the present. To continue this long trend is to guarantee tremendous social, cultural, political, and economic upheavals. You and i, as individuals, can, by borrowing, live beyond our means, but for only a limited period of time. Why, then, should we think that collectively, as a nation, were not bound by that same limitation . We must act today in order to preserve tomorrow. And let there be no misunderstanding we are going to begin to act, beginning today. The economic ills we suffer have come upon us over several decades. They will not go away in days, weeks, or months, but they will go away. They will go away because we as americans have the capacity now, as weve had in the past, to do whatever needs to be done to preserve this last and greatest bastion of freedom. In this present crisis, government is not the solution to our problem, government is the problem. From time to time weve been tempted to believe that society has become too complex to be managed by selfrule, that government by an elite group is superior to government for, by, and of the people. Well, if no one among us is capable of governing himself, then who among us has the capacity to govern someone else . All of us together, in and out of government, must bear the burden. The solutions we seek must be equitable, with no one group singled out to pay a higher price. We hear much of special Interest Groups. Well, our concern must be for a special Interest Group that has been too long neglected. It knows no sectional boundaries or ethnic and racial divisions, and it crosses Political Party lines. It is made up of men and women who raise our food, patrol our streets, man our mines and factories, teach our children, keep our homes, and heal us when were sick professionals, industrialists, shopkeepers, clerks, cabbies, and truckdrivers. They are, in short, we the people, this breed called americans. Well, this administrations objective will be a healthy, vigorous, growing economy that provides equal opportunities for all americans with no barriers born of bigotry or discrimination. Putting america back to work means putting all americans back to work. Ending inflation means freeing all americans from the terror of runaway living costs. All must share in the Productive Work of this new beginning, and all must share in the bounty of a revived economy. With the idealism and fair play which are the core of our system and our strength, we can have a strong and prosperous america, at peace with itself and the world. So, as we begin, let us take inventory. We are a nation that has a government not the other way around. And this makes us special among the nations of the earth. Our government has no power except that granted it by the people. It is time to check and reverse the growth of government, which shows signs of having grown beyond the consent of the governed. It is my intention to curb the size and influence of the federal establishment and to demand recognition of the distinction between the powers granted to the federal government and those reserved to the states or to the people. All of us need to be reminded that the federal government did not create the states, the states created the federal government. Now, so there will be no misunderstanding, its not my intention to do away with government. It is rather to make it work work with us, not over us, to stand by our side, not ride on our back. Government can and must provide opportunity, not smother it, foster productivity, not stifle it. If we look to the answer as to why for so many years we achieved so much, prospered as no other people on earth, it was because here in this land we unleashed the energy and individual genius of man to a greater extent than has ever been done before. Freedom and the dignity of the individual have been more available and assured here than in any other place on earth. The price for this freedom at times has been high, but we have never been unwilling to pay that price. It is no coincidence that our present troubles parallel and are proportionate to the intervention and intrusion in our lives that result from unnecessary and excessive growth of government. It is time for us to realize that were too great a nation to limit ourselves to small dreams. Were not, as some would have us believe, doomed to an inevitable decline. I do not believe in a fate that will fall on us no matter what we do. I do believe in a fate that will fall on us if we do nothing. So, with all the Creative Energy at our command, let us begin an era of national renewal. Let us renew our determination, our courage, and our strength. And let us renew our faith and our hope. We have every right to dream heroic dreams. Those who say that were in a time when there are not heroes, they just dont know where to look. You can see heroes every day going in and out of factory gates. Others, a handful in number, produce enough food to feed all of us and then the world beyond. You meet heroes across a counter, and theyre on both sides of that counter. There are entrepreneurs with faith in themselves and faith in an idea who create new jobs, new wealth and opportunity. Theyre individuals and families whose taxes support the government and whose voluntary gifts support church, charity, culture, art, and education. Their patriotism is quiet, but deep. Their values sustain our national life. Now, i have used the words they and their in speaking of these heroes. I could say you and your, because im addressing the heroes of whom i speak you, the citizens of this blessed land. Your dreams, your hopes, your goals are going to be the dreams, the hopes, and the goals of this administration, so help me god. We shall reflect the compassion that is so much a part of your makeup. How can we love our country and not love our countrymen, and loving them, reach out a hand when they fall, heal them when theyre sick, and provide opportunity to make them self sufficient so they will be equal in fact and not just in theory . Can we solve the problems confronting us . Well, the answer is an unequivocal and emphatic yes. to paraphrase winston churchill, i did not take the oath ive just taken with the intention of presiding over the dissolution of the worlds strongest economy. In the days ahead i will propose removing the roadblocks that have slowed our economy and reduced productivity. Steps will be taken aimed at restoring the balance between the various levels of government. Progress may be slow, measured in inches and feet, not miles, but we will progress. It is time to reawaken this industrial giant, to get Government Back within its means, and to lighten our punitive tax burden. And these will be our first priorities, and on these principles there will be no compromise. On the eve of our struggle for independence a man who might have been one of the greatest among the founding fathers, dr. Joseph warren, president of the massachusetts congress, said to his fellow americans, our country is in danger, but not to be despaired of. On you depend the fortunes of america. You are to decide the important questions upon which rests the happiness and the liberty of millions yet unborn. Act worthy of yourselves. Well, i believe we, the americans of today, are ready to act worthy of ourselves, ready to do what must be done to ensure happiness and liberty for ourselves, our children, and our childrens children. And as we renew ourselves here in our own land, we will be seen as having greater strength throughout the world. We will again be the exemplar of freedom and a beacon of hope for those who do not now have freedom. To those neighbors and allies who share our freedom, we will strengthen our historic ties and assure them of our support and firm commitment. We will match loyalty with loyalty. We will strive for mutually beneficial relations. We will not use our friendship to impose on their sovereignty, for our own sovereignty is not for sale. As for the enemies of freedom, those who are potential adversaries, they will be reminded that peace is the highest aspiration of the american people. We will negotiate for it, sacrifice for it, we will not surrender for it, now or ever. Our forbearance should never be misunderstood. Our reluctance for conflict should not be misjudged as a failure of will. When action is required to preserve our national security, we will act. We will maintain sufficient strength to prevail if need be, knowing that if we do so we have the best chance of never having to use that strength. Above all, we must realize that no arsenal or no weapon in the arsenals of the world is so formidable as the will and moral courage of free men and women. It is a weapon our adversaries in todays world do not have. It is a weapon that we as americans do have. Let that be understood by those who practice terrorism and prey upon their neighbors. Im told that tens of thousands of prayer meetings are being held on this day, and for that im deeply grateful. We are a nation under god, and i believe god intended for us to be free. It would be fitting and good, i think, if on each inaugural day in future years it should be declared a day of prayer. This is the first time in our history that this ceremony has been held, as youve been told, on this west front of the capitol. Standing here, one faces a magnificent vista, opening up on this citys special beauty and history. At the end of this open mall are those shrines to the giants on whose shoulders we stand. Directly in front of me, the monument to a monumental man, george washington, father of our country. A man of humility who came to greatness reluctantly. He led america out of revolutionary victory into infant nationhood. Off to one side, the stately memorial to thomas jefferson. The declaration of independence flames with his eloquence. And then, beyond the reflecting pool, the dignified columns of the lincoln memorial. Whoever would understand in his heart the meaning of america will find it in the life of abraham lincoln. Beyond those monuments to heroism is the potomac river, and on the far shore the sloping hills of Arlington National cemetery, with its row upon row of simple white markers bearing crosses or stars of david. They add up to only a tiny fraction of the price that has been paid for our freedom. Each one of those markers is a monument to the kind of hero i spoke of earlier. Their lives ended in places called belleau wood, the argonne, omaha beach, salerno, and halfway around the world on guadalcanal, tarawa, pork chop hill, the chosin reservoir, and in a hundred rice paddies and jungles of a place called vietnam. Under one such marker lies a young man, Martin Treptow, who left his job in a small town barbershop in 1917 to go to france with the famed rainbow division. There, on the western front, he was killed trying to carry a message between battalions under heavy artillery fire. Were told that on his body was found a diary. On the flyleaf under the heading, my pledge, he had written these words america must win this war. Therefore i will work, i will save, i will sacrifice, i will endure, i will fight cheerfully and do my utmost, as if the issue of the whole struggle depended on me alone. the crisis we are facing today does not require of us the kind of sacrifice that Martin Treptow and so many thousands of others were called upon to make. It does require, however, our best effort and our willingness to believe in ourselves and to believe in our capacity to perform great deeds, to believe that together with gods help we can and will resolve the problems which now confront us. And after all, why shouldnt we believe that . We are americans. God bless you, and thank you. [applause] president Lyndon Johnson was inaugurated in 1965 for his first and only fouryear term as the nations 36 president. At the ceremony, lady bird started the tradition of first ladies holding the bible during the swearingin. This is about 15 minutes. You do solemnly swear i do solemnly swear that you will faithfully execute that i will faithfully execute the office of the president of the United States, and will preserve, protect, and defend the constitution of the United States so help you god. The office of the president of the United States and will preserve, protect, and defend the constitution of the United States so help me god. [applause] my fellow countrymen, on this occasion the oath i have taken before you and before god is not mine alone, but ours together. We are one nation and one people. Our fate as a nation and our future as a people rest not upon one citizen but upon all citizens. That is the majesty and the meaning of this moment. For every generation there is a destiny. For some, history decides. For this generation the choice must be our own. Even now, a rocket moves toward mars. It reminds us that the world will not be the same for our children, or even for ourselves in a short span of years. The next man to stand here will look out on a scene that is different from our own. Ours is a time of change rapid and fantastic change bearing the secrets of nature, multiplying the nations, placing in uncertain hands new weapons for mastery and destruction, shaking old values and uprooting old ways. Our destiny in the midst of change will rest on the unchanged character of our people and on their faith. They came here the exile and the stranger, brave but frightened to find a place where a man could be his own man. They made a covenant with this land. Conceived in justice, written in liberty, bound in union, it was meant one day to inspire the hopes of all mankind. And it binds us still. If we keep its terms we shall flourish. First, justice was the promise that all who made the journey would share in the fruits of the land. In a land of great wealth, families must not live in hopeless poverty. In a land rich in harvest, children just must not go hungry. In a land of healing miracles, neighbors must not suffer and die untended. In a great land of learning and scholars, young people must be taught to read and write. For more than 30 years that i have served this nation i have believed that this injustice to our people, this waste of our resources, was our real enemy. For 30 years or more, with the resources i have had, i have vigilantly fought against it. It is the excitement of becoming always becoming, trying, probing, falling, resting, and trying again but always trying and always gaining. In each generation, with toil and tears, we have had to earn our heritage again. If we fail now then we will have forgotten in abundance what we learned in hardship that democracy rests on faith, that freedom asks more than it gives, and the judgment of god is harshest on those who are most favored. If we succeed it will not be because of what we have, but it will be because of what we are, not because of what we own, but rather because of what we believe. For we are a nation of believers. Underneath the clamor of building and the rush of our days pursuits, we are believers in justice and liberty and in our own union. We believe that every man must some day be free. And we believe in ourselves. And that is the mistake that our enemies have always made. In my lifetime, in depression and in war they have awaited our defeat. Each time, from the secret places of the american heart, came forth the faith that they could not see or that they could not even imagine. And it brought us victory. And it will again. For this is what america is all about. It is the uncrossed desert and the unclimbed ridge. It is the star that is not reached and the harvest that is sleeping in the unplowed ground. Is our world gone . We say farewell. Is a new world coming . We welcome it, and we will bend it to the hopes of man. And to these trusted Public Servants and to my family, and those Close Friends of mine who have followed me down a long winding road, and to all the people of this union and the world, i will repeat today what i said on that sorrowful day in november last year i will lead and i will do the best i can. But you, you must look within your own hearts to the old promises and to the old dreams. They will lead you best of all. For myself, i ask only in the words of an ancient leader give me now wisdom and knowledge, that i may go out and come in before this people for who can judge this thy people, that is so great . [applause] now a portion of a universal newsreel covering the second not euro for Dwight Eisenhower in 1957. He defeated former illinois governor Adlai Stevenson in the 1956 campaign. The official inaugural date of january 20 was a sunday in 1957. President eisenhower was officially sworn in in private. A public ceremony, on the capitals west front, with the next day. This is 10 minutes. You, the white d eisenhower, do solemnly swear that you will face fully faithfully execute the office of president of the you knighted states United States and well, to the best of your ability, preserve, protect, and defend the constitution of the