Franklin D Roosevelt Inaugural Address Summary

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Franklin Delano Roosevelt was first inaugurated into presidency on March 4th, 1933. Roosevelt was elected president in the midst of the great depression. His inaugural address lasted 20 minutes and is know as one of the more famous speeches. During this speech, America saw a more solemn side of Roosevelt that before they had not seen. In the inaugural address, Roosevelt broadly outlined how he planned to govern and reminded America that, thankfully, their current issues concerned “only material things,” (801). Early in the speech, Roosevelt assured the American people that they must not be afraid of what will come in the future. “So, first of all, let me assert my firm belief that the only thing we have to fear is fear itself,” (801). This line has been quoted many different times since Roosevelt said it because so many people were able to relate to it. It certainly stuck…show more content…
He mentioned that taxes had risen and people could not pay the taxes, trade was down, industrial enterprise had fallen, farmers could not sell their produce, and the savings of thousands of families was gone. Although those were all serious concerns, he said, “more important, a host of unemployed citizens face the grim problem of existence” (801). The unemployment rate was at an all time high of 25% and Americans were facing a bleak future. Roosevelt was smart to point out all of these issues in the beginning of his presidency because it showed Americans what he wanted to focus his efforts on and how he wanted to improve the country. Franklin Delano Roosevelt was exactly what America needed. He gave the people hope when before they had only been faced with despair. Early on in his presidency, Roosevelt showed America how he was going to improve the country. Between declaring a national bank holiday, his fireside chats, and his inaugural address, Roosevelt gave America something in which they could
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