Top 9 Inaugural Address Quotes From Presidents

Franklin D. Roosevelt, 1933:

"This great Nation will endure as it has endured, will revive and will prosper. So, first of all, let me assert my firm belief that the only thing we have to fear is fear itself—nameless, unreasoning, unjustified terror which paralyzes needed efforts to convert retreat into advance. In every dark hour of our national life a leadership of frankness and vigor has met with that understanding and support of the people themselves which is essential to victory."

Much of Roosevelt's first Inaugural Address implored the nation to realize that its values did not rest, at their core, in material wealth and wants. He said the nation's "common difficulties" revolved around material issues. He said, "Happiness lies not in the mere possession of money; it lies in the joy of achievement, in the thrill of creative effort. The joy and moral stimulation of work no longer must be forgotten in the mad chase of evanescent profits. These dark days will be worth all they cost us if they teach us that our true destiny is not to be ministered unto but to minister to ourselves and to our fellow men."

Recall that FDR first took office in the height of the Great Depression.