As many historians have argued, the presidential inaugural address is a sort of national sermon. I think most would agree that early this afternoon Obama inspired the faithful. I will spend the next few blog posts this afternoon and evening offering some commentary.
The start of Obama’s speech echoed FDR’s first inaugural. Both addressed a nation in a time of economic crisis.
Here is FDR’s first inaugural address (1933):
In such a spirit on my part and on yours we face our common difficulties. They concern, thank God, only material things. Values have shrunk to fantastic levels; taxes have risen; our ability to pay has fallen; government of all kinds is faced by serious curtailment of income; the means of exchange are frozen in the currents of trade; the withered leaves of industrial enterprise lie on every side; farmers find no markets for their produce; and the savings of many years in thousands of families are gone. More important, a host of unemployed citizens face the grim problem of existence, and an equally great number toil with little return. Only a foolish optimist can deny the dark realities of the moment.
Here is Obama:
That we are in the midst of crisis is now well understood. Our nation is at war, against a far-reaching network of violence and hatred. Our economy is badly weakened, a consequence of greed and irresponsibility on the part of some, but also our collective failure to make hard choices and prepare the nation for a new age. Homes have been lost; jobs shed; businesses shuttered. Our health care is too costly; our schools fail too many; and each day brings further evidence that the ways we use energy strengthen our adversaries and threaten our planet.
It is well to remember that FDR’s “the only thing we have to fear is fear itself” was not part of the prepared speech. As near as I can tell, Obama did not depart from his prepared speech in such a profound manner, if at all.