Inaugural Address of George W. Bush
January 20, 2001
President Clinton, distinguished guests and my fellow citizens:
The peaceful transfer of authority is rare in history, yet common in our country. With a simple oath, we affirm old traditions and make new beginnings.
As I begin, I thank President Clinton for his service to our nation; and I thank Vice President Gore for a contest conducted with spirit and ended with grace.
I am honored and humbled to stand here, where so many of America's leaders have come before me, and so many will follow.
We have a place, all of us, in a long story. A story we continue, but whose end we will not see. It is the story of a new world that became a friend and liberator of the old, a story of a slave-holding society that became a servant of freedom, the story of a power that went into the world to protect but not possess, to defend but not to conquer. It is the American story. A story of flawed and fallible people, united across the generations by grand and enduring ideals. The grandest of these ideals is an unfolding American promise that everyone belongs, that everyone deserves a chance, that no insignificant person was ever born. Americans are called upon to enact this promise in our lives and in our laws; and though our nation has sometimes halted, and sometimes delayed, we must follow no other course.
Through much of the last century, America's faith in freedom and democracy was a rock in a raging sea. Now it is a seed upon the wind, taking root in many nations. Our democratic faith is more than the creed of our country, it is the inborn hope of our humanity, an ideal we carry but do not own, a trust we bear and pass along; and even after nearly 225 years, we have a long way yet to travel.
While many of our citizens prosper, others doubt the promise, even the justice, of our own country. The ambitions of some Americans are limited by failing schools and hidden prejudice and
the circumstances of their birth; and sometimes our differences run so deep, it seems we share a continent, but not a country. We do not accept this, and we will not allow it. Our unity, our union, is the serious work of leaders and citizens in every generation; and this is my solemn pledge, "I will work to build a single nation of justice and opportunity." I know this is in our reach because we are guided by a power larger than ourselves who creates us equal in His image and we are confident in principles that unite and lead us onward.
America has never been united by blood or birth or soil. We are bound by ideals that move us beyond our backgrounds, lift us above our interests and teach us what it means to be citizens. Every child must be taught these principles. Every citizen must uphold them; and every immigrant, by embracing these ideals, makes our country more, not less, American.
Today, we affirm a new commitment to live out our nation's promise through civility, courage, compassion and character. America, at its best, matches a commitment to principle with a concern for civility. A civil society demands from each of us good will and respect, fair dealing and forgiveness. Some seem to believe that our politics can afford to be petty because, in a time of peace, the stakes of our debates appear small. But the stakes for America are never small. If our country does not lead the cause of freedom, it will not be led. If we do not turn the hearts of children toward knowledge and character, we will lose their gifts and undermine their idealism. If we permit our economy to drift and decline, the vulnerable will suffer most. We must live up to the calling we share. Civility is not a tactic or a sentiment. It is the determined choice of trust over cynicism, of community over chaos. This commitment, if we keep it, is a way to shared accomplishment.
America, at its best, is also courageous. Our national courage has been clear in times of depression and war, when defending common dangers defined our common good. Now we must choose if the example of our fathers and mothers will inspire us or condemn us. We must show courage in a time of blessing by confronting problems instead of passing them on to future generations.
Together, we will reclaim America's schools, before ignorance and apathy claim more young lives; we will reform Social Security and Medicare, sparing our children from struggles we have
the power to prevent; we will reduce taxes, to recover the momentum of our economy and reward the effort and enterprise of working Americans; we will build our defenses beyond challenge, lest weakness invite challenge; and we will confront weapons of mass destruction, so that a new century is spared new horrors.
The enemies of liberty and our country should make no mistake, America remains engaged in the world by history and by choice, shaping a balance of power that favors freedom. We will defend our allies and our interests; we will show purpose without arrogance; we will meet aggression and bad faith with resolve and strength; and to all nations, we will speak for the values that gave our nation birth.
America, at its best, is compassionate. In the quiet of American conscience, we know that deep, persistent poverty is unworthy of our nation's promise. Whatever our views of its cause, we can agree that children at risk are not at fault. Abandonment and abuse are not acts of God, they are failures of love. The proliferation of prisons, however necessary, is no substitute for hope and order in our souls. Where there is suffering, there is duty. Americans in need are not strangers, they are citizens, not problems, but priorities, and all of us are diminished when any are hopeless. Government has great responsibilities for public safety and public health, for civil rights and common schools. Yet compassion is the work of a nation, not just a government. Some needs and hurts are so deep they will only respond to a mentor's touch or a pastor's prayer. Church and charity, synagogue and mosque lend our communities their humanity, and they will have an honored place in our plans and in our laws. Many in our country do not know the pain of poverty, but we can listen to those who do. I can pledge our nation to a goal, "When we see that wounded traveler on the road to Jericho, we will not pass to the other side."
America, at its best, is a place where personal responsibility is valued and expected. Encouraging responsibility is not a search for scapegoats, it is a call to conscience. Though it requires sacrifice, it brings a deeper fulfillment. We find the fullness of life not only in options, but in commitments. We find that children and community are the commitments that set us free. Our public interest depends on private character, on civic duty and family bonds and basic fairness, on uncounted, unhonored acts of decency which give direction to our freedom. Sometimes in life we are called to do great things. But as a saint of our times has said, every day we are called to do
small things with great love. The most important tasks of a democracy are done by everyone. I will live and lead by these principles, "to advance my convictions with civility, to pursue the public interest with courage, to speak for greater justice and compassion, to call for responsibility and try to live it as well." In all of these ways, I will bring the values of our history to the care of our times.
What you do is as important as anything government does. I ask you to seek a common good beyond your comfort; to defend needed reforms against easy attacks; to serve your nation, beginning with your neighbor. I ask you to be citizens. Citizens, not spectators; citizens, not subjects; responsible citizens, building communities of service and a nation of character.
Americans are generous and strong and decent, not because we believe in ourselves, but because we hold beliefs beyond ourselves. When this spirit of citizenship is missing, no government program can replace it. When this spirit is present, no wrong can stand against it.
After the Declaration of Independence was signed, Virginia statesman John Page wrote to Thomas Jefferson, "We know the race is not to the swift nor the battle to the strong. Do you not think an angel rides in the whirlwind and directs this storm?" Much time has passed since Jefferson arrived for his inauguration. The years and changes accumulate, but the themes of this day he would know, "our nation's grand story of courage and its simple dream of dignity."
We are not this story's author, who fills time and eternity with His purpose. Yet His purpose is achieved in our duty, and our duty is fulfilled in service to one another. Never tiring, never yielding, never finishing, we renew that purpose today; to make our country more just and generous; to affirm the dignity of our lives and every life.
This work continues. This story goes on. And an angel still rides in the whirlwind and directs this storm.
God bless you all, and God bless America.
2017小布什就职演讲稿【中英版】 presidentclinton,distinguishedguestsandmyfellowcitize ns: thepeacefultransferofauthorityisrareinhistory,yetcomm oninourcountry.withasimpleoath,weaffirmoldtraditionsa ndmakenewbeginnings. asibegin,ithankpresidentclintonforhisservicetoournati on;andithankvicepresidentgoreforacontestconductedwith spiritandendedwithgrace. iamhonoredandhumbledtostandhere,wheresomanyofamerica ’sleadershavecomebeforeme,andsomanywillfollow. wehaveaplace,allofus,inalongstory.astorywecontinue,bu twhoseendwewillnotsee.itisthestoryofanewworldthatbeca meafriendandliberatoroftheold,astoryofaslave-holdingsocietythatbecameaservantoffreedom,thestoryofa powerthatwentintotheworldtoprotectbutnotpossess,todef endbutnottoconquer.itistheamericanstory.astoryofflawe dandfalliblepeople,unitedacrossthegenerationsbygranda ndenduringideals.thegrandestoftheseidealsisanunfoldin gamericanpromisethateveryonebelongs,thateveryonedeser vesachance,thatnoinsignificantpersonwaseverborn.ameri cansarecalledupontoenactthispromiseinourlivesandinour laws;andthoughournationhassometimeshalted,andsometime sdelayed,wemustfollownoothercourse.
肯尼迪总统就职演说（1961年1月20日） Inaugural Address of John F. Kennedy January 20, 1961 Vice President Johnson, Mr. Speaker, Mr. Chief Justice, President Eisenhower, Vice President Nixon, President Truman, Reverend Clergy, fellow citizens: 约翰逊副总统、议长先生、首席大法官先生、艾森豪威尔总统、尼克松副总统、杜鲁门总统、尊敬的牧师、同胞们： We observe today not a victory of party but a celebration of freedom, symbolizing an end as well as a beginning, signifying renewal as well as change. For I have sworn before you and Almighty God the same solemn oath our forebears prescribed nearly a century and three-quarters ago. 我们今天所看到的，并非是某一党派的胜利，而是自由的庆典。它象征着结束，亦象征着开始；意味着更新，亦意味着变化。因为我已在你们及万能的上帝面前，依着我们先辈175年前写下的誓言宣誓。 The world is very different now. For man holds in his mortal hands the power to abolish all forms of human poverty and all forms of human life. And yet the same revolutionary beliefs for which our forebears fought are still at issue around the globe -- the belief that the rights of man come not from the generosity of the state but from the hand of God. 世界已然今非昔比，因为人类手中已经掌握了巨大的力量，既可以用来消除各种形式的贫困，亦可用以毁灭人类社会。然而，我们先辈曾为之战斗的那些革命性的信念还依然在世界上受人争议——那就是，每个人享有的各项权利决非来自国家政权的慷慨赐予，而是出自上帝之手。 We dare not forget today that we are the heirs of that first revolution. Let the word go forth from this time and place, to friend and foe alike, that the torch has been passed to a new generation of Americans -- born in this century, tempered by war, disciplined by a hard and bitter peace, proud of our ancient heritage -- and unwilling to witness or permit the slow undoing of those human rights to which this nation has always been committed, and to which we are committed today at home and around the world. 今天，我们不敢有忘，我们乃是那第一次革命的后裔。此时，让这个声音从这里同时向我们的朋友和敌人传达：火炬现已传递到新一代美国人手中——他们生于本世纪，既经受过战火的锤炼，又经历过艰难严峻的和平岁月的考验。他们深为我们古老的遗产所自豪——决不愿目睹或听任诸项人权受到无形的侵蚀，这些权利不仅为这个国家始终信守不渝，亦是我们正在国内和世界上誓死捍卫的东西。 Let every nation know, whether it wishes us well or ill, that we shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe to assure the survival and the success of liberty.
奥巴马就职演讲稿原文 [ 2008-11-05 14:37 ] If there is anyone out there who still doubts that America is a place where all things are possible; who still wonders if the dream of our founders is alive in our time; who still questions the power of our democracy, tonight is your answer. It’s the answer told by lines that stretched around schools and churches in numbers this nation has never seen; by people who waited three hours and four hours, many for the very first time in their lives, because they believed that this time must be different; that their voice could be that difference. It’s the answer spoken by young and old, rich and poor, Democrat and Republican, black, white, Latino, Asian, Native American, gay, straight, disabled and not disabled – Americans who sent a message to the world that we have never been a collection of Red States and Blue States: we are, and always will be, the United States of America. It’s the answer that led those who have been told for so long by so many to be cynical, and fearful, and
布什连任就职演讲全文 2005年1月20日 今天，按照宪法规定我们举行这个仪式。我们在此欢庆我国宪法常青的智慧，追寻我们团结全国的深切责任感。我感佩这个时刻带来的荣耀，意识到我们时代的期盼并期待着完成我的誓言，请你们做证。 这是我们第二次聚会，我们的责任并非由我的讲演来确定，它源于我们当前历史时期的要求。半个世纪以来，美国在遥远的边界上捍卫着我们的自由。共产主义破产后我们有相对平静、懒散的岁月，而后是火光四射的那一天。 我们已明了自身的弱点，我们也深知其根源。只要世界某些区域酝酿着不满、滋生着暴君，就会产生宣扬仇恨和为屠杀寻找借口的意识形态，就会聚集暴力和毁灭的能量，它们会越过严密把守的边界带来毁灭的威胁。这个世界只存在一种力量可以冲决仇恨、揭露暴君的虚伪、扶植容忍、培育尊严，那就是人类的自由。 我们受常识的指引和历史的教诲，得出如下结论：自由是否能在我们的土地上存在，正日益依赖于自由在别国的胜利。对和平的热切期望只能源于自由在世界上的扩展。 关系到美国生死存亡的利益和我们基本的信念合而为一。自立国始，我们就宣示：生于世间的每个男女都拥有他们的权力、尊严和无可比拟的价值，因为他们拥有创造天地之神的形象。每一世代，我们重申着民有政权的重要性，没有什么人应该是主人而另一些人应该做奴隶。实现这一理念的使命是我们的立国之本。我们的先父荣耀地完成了这一使命。进一步扩展这一理念是国家安全的要求，是我们的当务之急。 有鉴于此，美国的政策是寻求并支持世界各国和各种文化背景下成长的民主运动，寻求并支持民主的制度化。最终的目标是终结世间的任何极权制度。 这个目标最终不应由暴力达成，尽管在必要时，我们将以武力自卫，并保卫我们的朋友。自由的性质要求公民去自觉地选择它，捍卫它，并通过立法加以维护，同时保障劣势者。当一个国家的魂魄最终选择自由时，它的制度将反映着不同于我们的文化和传统。美国将不会强迫任何国家接受我们的国家体制。我们的目的，是帮助其他国家找到自己的声音，获得自身的自由，发现自己的自由之路。 终结专制统治的巨大使命是几代人努力的目标。其难度不是无所作为的借口。美国的影响有限，但值得庆幸的是，美国的影响也是有力的，我们将充满信
第18讲肯尼迪总统就职演说 ——Inaugural Address of John F. Kennedy 主讲人廖赐仰 Now the trumpet summons us again- not as a call to bear arms, though arms we need- not as a call to battle, though embattled we are-but a call to bear the burden of a long twilight struggle, year in and year out, rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation- a struggle against the common enemies of man: tyranny, poverty, disease, and war itself. Can we forge against these enemies a grand and global alliance, North and South, East and West that can assure a more fruitful life for all mankind? Will you join in that historic effort? In the long history of the world, only a few generations have been granted the role of defending freedom in its hour of maximum danger. I do not shrink from this responsibility- I welcome it. I do not believe that any of us would exchange places with any other people or any other generation. The energy, the faith, the devotion which we bring to this endeavor will light our country and all who serve it-and the glow from that fire can truly light the world. And so, my fellow Americans: ask not what your country can do for you-ask what you can do for your country. My fellow citizens of the world: ask not what America will do for you, but what together we can do for the freedom of man. Finally, whether you are citizens of America or citizens of the world , ask of us here the same high standards of strength and sacrifice which
特朗普就职演讲稿中文 导语：XX年11月9日，美国大选终于尘埃落定，一开始一直不被看好的唐纳德?特朗普击败民主党候选人希拉里?克林顿，当选美国第45任总统。他获选后的这篇演讲，不管是从内容还是风格形式上都非常有特色。以下是品才网小编整理的特朗普就职演讲稿中文，欢迎阅读参考。 特朗普就职演讲稿中文首席大法官罗伯茨先生，卡特前总统，克林顿前总统，布什前总统，奥巴马前总统，各位美国同胞，世界人民，感谢你们。 各位美国公民们，我们正参与到一项伟大的全国性事业当中：重建我们的国家，重塑对全体人民的承诺。我们将一起决定未来很多年内美国乃至全世界的道路。 我们将遭遇挑战。我们会遇到困难。但是我们能将这项事业完成。每过四年，我们都相聚在这里进行有序和平的权力交接。 我们应该感谢总统奥巴马和第一夫人米歇尔·奥巴马，他们在权力交接中，慷慨地给予我以帮助。他们真的很棒。谢谢你们。 今天的就职典礼有着特殊的意义。因为，今天我们不只是将权力由一任总统交接到下一任总统，由一个政党交接给另一政党。
今天，我们是将权力由华盛顿交接到了人民的手中，即你们的手中。 长久以来，华盛顿的一小群人攫取了利益果实，代价却要由人民来承受。华盛顿欣欣向荣，人民却没有分享到财富。政客们塞满了腰包，工作机会却越来越少，无数工厂关门。 建制派保护的是他们自己，而不是我们国家的公民。他们的成功和胜利不属于你们。当他们在我们的首都欢呼庆祝时，这片土地上无数在挣扎奋斗的家庭却没有什么可以庆祝的。但这些都会改变，在此地改变，在此时改变。因为你们的时刻来临了，这一刻属于你们。 这次胜利，属于今天聚集在这里的所有人，以及全国正在观看这次典礼的所有美国人。这是属于你们的一天。这是你们的庆祝日。我们所在的美利坚合众国，是你们的国家。 真正重要的，并不是政府由哪个政党来掌控，而是政府能不能被人民掌控。XX年1月20日，这一天将会被铭记，美国人民重新成为了国家的主宰者。 曾经被忽视的美国人不会继续被忽视。 现在，所有人都在倾听你们。你们数以千万计地投入到这场历史运动中，这样的事情世界上从来没有过。 这一就职典礼的核心是一种信念——我们坚信国家是为服务人民而存在的。我们国家想要为孩子们提供优良的学校教育，为家庭提供安全的生活环境，为每个人提供好的就
Hello, Chicago. If there is anyone out there who still doubts that America is aplace where all things ar e possible, who still wonders if the dreamof our founders is alive in our time, who still questions the power of our democracy, tonight is youranswer. 美国是一个一切皆有可能的地方，如果还有人对这一点心存怀疑，如果还有人怀疑美国奠基者的梦想在我们时代是否还有活力，还有人怀疑我们民主制度的力量，那么，你们今晚正是对那些疑问作出了回答。 It’s the answer told by lines that stretched around schools and churches in numbers thi s nation hasnever seen, by people who waited three hours and four hours, many for th e first time in their lives,because they believed that this time must be different, that th eir voices could be that difference. 在学校和教堂周围所出现的前所未有的长队是答案，这个国家从未见过这么多的人前来投票，人们排三个、四个小时的队来进行有生以来的第一次投票，因为他们相信这一次将会不同，他们发出的声音可能就是那个差别。 It’s the answer spoken by young and old, rich and poor, Democrat and Republican, bl ack, white,Hispanic, Asian, Native American, gay, straight, disabled and not disabled. Americans who sent amessage to the world that we have never been just a collection of individuals or a collection of redstates and blue states. 这是一个年轻人和年老人、富人和穷人、民主党人和共和党人、黑人、白人、西班牙裔人、亚裔、印第安人、同性恋和异性恋、残障人士和健全人士所作出的回答。美国人向世界发出一个信息：我们从不只是一些个人的累加或者“红色州”和“蓝色州”的累加。 We are, and always will be, the United States of America. 我们是，并且永远是美利坚合众国。 It’s the answer that led those who’ve been told for so long by so many to be cynical a nd fearful anddoubtful about what we can achieve to put their hands on the arc of hist ory and bend it once moretoward the hope of a better day. 这是一个引导人们的答案，太多的人在很长的时间内给他们说这个答案，以至于他们对此持愤世疾俗的态度，对我们是否可以再一次把握历史的希望感到担心和怀疑。 It’s been a long time coming, but tonight, because of what we did on this date in this e lection at thisdefining moment change has come to America. 已经过去了很长时间，但是今晚，由于我们今天在这场选举所采取的行动，在这个决定性的时候，变革来到了美国。 A little bit earlier this evening, I received an extraordinarily gracious call from Sen. M cCain. 今晚早些时候，我接到来自参议员麦凯恩的一个极具风度的电话。
Inaugural Address of George W. Bush January 20, 2001 President Clinton, distinguished guests and my fellow citizens: The peaceful transfer of authority is rare in history, yet common in our country. With a simple oath, we affirm old traditions and make new beginnings. As I begin, I thank President Clinton for his service to our nation; and I thank Vice President Gore for a contest conducted with spirit and ended with grace. I am honored and humbled to stand here, where so many of America's leaders have come before me, and so many will follow. We have a place, all of us, in a long story. A story we continue, but whose end we will not see. It is the story of a new world that became a friend and liberator of the old, a story of a slave-holding society that became a servant of freedom, the story of a power that went into the world to protect but not possess, to defend but not to conquer. It is the American story. A story of flawed and fallible people, united across the generations by grand and enduring ideals. The grandest of these ideals is an unfolding American promise that everyone belongs, that everyone deserves a chance, that no insignificant person was ever born. Americans are called upon to enact this promise in our lives and in our laws; and though our nation has sometimes halted, and sometimes delayed, we must follow no other course. Through much of the last century, America's faith in freedom and democracy was a rock in a raging sea. Now it is a seed upon the wind, taking root in many nations. Our democratic faith is more than the creed of our country, it is the inborn hope of our humanity, an ideal we carry but do not own, a trust we bear and pass along; and even after nearly 225 years, we have a long way yet to travel. While many of our citizens prosper, others doubt the promise, even the justice, of our own country. The ambitions of some Americans are limited by failing schools and hidden prejudice and the circumstances of their birth; and sometimes our differences run so deep, it seems we share a continent, but not a country. We do not accept this, and we will not allow it. Our unity, our union, is the serious work of leaders and citizens in
美国东部时间1月20日中午12时左右，美国第44任总统贝拉克-奥巴马发表就职演说，全文如下：各位同胞： 今天我站在这里，为眼前的重责大任感到谦卑，对各位的信任心怀感激，对先贤的牺牲铭记在心。我要谢谢布什总统为这个国家的服务，也感谢他在政权转移期间的宽厚和配合。 四十四位美国人发表过总统就职誓言，这些誓词或是在繁荣富强及和平宁静之际发表，或是在乌云密布，时局动荡之时。在艰困的时候，美国能箕裘相继，不仅因为居高位者有能力或愿景，也因为人民持续对先人的抱负有信心，也忠於创建我国的法统。 因此，美国才能承继下来。因此，这一代美国人也必须承继下去。 现在大家都知道我们正置身危机核心，我国正在与四处蔓延的暴力和憎恨作战。我们的经济元气大伤——这既是某些人贪婪且不负责任的後果，也是大众未能做出艰难的选择，对国家进入新时代做准备不足所致。许多人失去房子，丢了工作，生意萧条。我们的医疗太昂贵，学校教育让人失望。每天都有更多证据显示，我们利用能源的方式壮大我们的对敌，威胁我们的星球。 这些都是得自资料和统计数据的危机指标。比较无法测量但同样深沉的，是举国信心尽失——持续担心美国将无可避免地衰退，也害怕下一代一定会眼界变低。 今天我要告诉各位，我们面临的挑战是真的，挑战非常严重，且不在少数。它们不是可以轻易，或在短时间内解决。但是，美国要了解，这些挑战会被解决。 在这一天，我们聚在一起，因为我们选择希望而非恐惧，有意义的团结而非纷争和不合。
在这一天，我们来此宣示，那些无用的抱怨和虚伪的承诺已终结，那些扭曲我们政治已久的相互指控和陈旧教条已终结。 我们仍是个年轻的国家，但借用圣经的话，摆脱幼稚事物的时刻到来了，重申我们坚忍精神的时刻到来了，选择我们更好的历史，实践那种代代传承的珍贵权利，那种高贵的理念：就是上帝的应许，我们每个人都是平等的，每个人都是自由的，每个人都应该有机会追求全然的幸福。 再次肯定我们国家的伟大，我们了解伟大绝非赐予而来，必须努力达成。我们的旅程从来就不是抄捷径或很容易就满足。这条路一直都不是给不勇敢的人走的，那些偏好逸乐胜过工作，或者只想追求名利就满足的人。恰恰相反，走这条路的始终是勇於冒险的人，做事的人，成事的人，其中有些人很出名，但更常见的是在各自岗位上的男男女女无名英雄，在这条漫长崎岖的道路上支撑我们，迈向繁荣与自由。 为了我们，他们携带很少的家当，远渡重洋，追寻新生活。 为了我们，他们胼手胝足，在西部安顿下来；忍受风吹雨打，筚路蓝缕。 为了我们，他们奋斗不懈，在康科特和盖茨堡，诺曼地和溪山等地葬身。 前人不断的奋斗与牺牲，直到双手皮开肉绽，我们才能享有比较好的生活。他们将美国视为大於所有个人企图心总和的整体，超越出身、财富或小圈圈的差异。 这是我们今天继续前进的旅程。我们仍旧是全球最繁荣强盛的国家。这场危机爆发时，我们的劳工生产力并未减弱。我们的心智一样创新，我们的产品和劳务和上周或上个月或去年相比，一样是必需品。我们的能力并未减损。但是我们墨守成规、维护狭小利益、推迟引人不悦的决定，这段时期肯定已经过去。从今天起，我们必须重新出发、再次展开再造美国的工程。
英文版 MR. OBAMA: Vice President Biden, Mr. Chief Justice, Members of the United States Congress, distinguished guests, and fellow citizens: Each time we gather to inaugurate a president, we bear witness to the enduring strength of our Constitution. We affirm the promise of our democracy. We recall that what binds this nation together is not the colors of our skin or the tenets of our faith or the origins of our names. What makes us exceptional – what makes us American – is our allegiance to an idea, articulated in a declaration made more than two centuries ago: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of H appiness.” Today we continue a never-ending journey, to bridge the meaning of those words with the realities of our time. For history tells us that while these truths may be self-evident, they have never been self-executing; that while freedom is a gift from God, it must be secured by His people here on Earth. The patriots of 1776 did not fight to replace the tyranny of a king with the privileges of a few or the rule of a mob. They gave to us a Republic, a government of,
Bush's Inaugural Address I thank you all. Chief Justicer Renquist, President Carter, President Bush, President Clinton, distinguished guests and my fellow citizens, the peaceful transfer of authority is rare in history, yet common in our country. With a simple oath, we affirm old traditions and make new beginnings. As I begin, I thank President Clinton for his service to our nation. And I thank Vice President Gore for a contest conducted with spirit and ended with grace. I am honored and humbled to stand here, where so many of America's leaders have come before me, and so many will follow. We have a place, all of us, in a long story--a story we continue, but whose end we will not see. It is the story of a new world that became a friend and liberator of the old, a story of a slave-holding society that became a servant of freedom, the story of a power that went into the world to protect but not possess, to defend but not to conquer. It is the American story--a story of flawed and fallible people, united across the generations by grand and enduring ideals. The grandest of these ideals is an unfolding American promise that everyone belongs, that everyone deserves a chance, that no insignificant person was ever born. Americans are called to enact this promise in our lives and in our laws. And though our nation has sometimes halted, and sometimes delayed, we must follow no other course. Through much of the last century, America's faith in freedom and democracy was a rock in a raging sea. Now it is a seed upon the wind, taking root in many nations. Our democratic faith is more than the creed of our country, it is the inborn hope of our humanity, an ideal we carry but do not own, a trust we bear and pass along. And even after nearly 225 years, we have a long way yet to travel. While many of our citizens prosper, others doubt the promise, even the justice, of our own country. The ambitions of some Americans are limited by failing schools and hidden prejudice and the circumstances of their birth. And sometimes our differences run so deep, it seems we share a continent, but not a country. We do not accept this, and we will not allow it. Our unity, our union, is the serious work of leaders and citizens in every generation. And this is my solemn pledge: I will work to build a single nation of justice and opportunity. I know this is in our reach because we are guided by a power larger than ourselves who creates us equal in His image. And we are confident in principles that unite and lead us onward. America has never been united by blood or birth or soil. We are bound by ideals that move us beyond our backgrounds, lift us above our interests and teach us what it
FRIDAY, JANUARY 20, 1961 Vice President Johnson, Mr. Speaker, Mr. Chief Justice, President Eisenhower, Vice President Nixon, President Truman, reverend clergy, fellow citizens, we observe today not a victory of party, but a celebration of freedom——symbolizing an end, as well as a beginning——signifying renewal, as well as change. For I have sworn before you and Almighty God the same solemn oath our forebears l prescribed nearly a century and three quarters ago. The world is very different now. For man holds in his mortal hands the power to abolish all forms of human poverty and all forms of human life. And yet the same revolutionary beliefs for which our forebears fought are still at issue around the globe——the belief that the rights of man come not from the generosity of the state, but from the hand of God. We dare not forget today that we are the heirs of that first revolution. Let the word go forth from this time and place, to friend and foe alike, that the torch has been passed to a new generation of Americans——born in this century, tempered by war, disciplined by a hard and bitter peace, proud of our ancient heritage——and unwilling to witness or permit the slow undoing of those human rights to which this Nation has always been committed, and to which we are committed today at home and around the world. Let every nation know, whether it wishes us well or ill, that we shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe, in order to assure the survival and the success of liberty. This much we pledge——and more. To those old allies whose cultural and spiritual origins we share, we pledge the loyalty of faithful friends. United, there is little we cannot do in a host of cooperative ventures. Divided, there is little we can do——for we dare not meet a powerful challenge at odds and split asunder. To those new States whom we welcome to the ranks of the free, we pledge our word that one form of colonial control shall not have passed away merely to be replaced by a far more iron tyranny. We shall not always expect to find them supporting our view. But we shall always hope to find them strongly supporting their own freedom——and to remember that, in the past, those who foolishly sought power by riding the back of the tiger ended up inside. To those peoples in the huts and villages across the globe struggling to break the bonds of mass misery, we pledge our best efforts to help them help themselves, for whatever period is required——not because the Communists may be doing it, not because we seek their votes, but because it is right. If a free society cannot help the many who are poor, it cannot save the few who are rich.