Inaugural Address of Franklin Delano Roosevelt / Given in Washington, D.C. March 4th, 1933

The speech addresses the nation’s severe economic crisis and calls for candid leadership, urging immediate, decisive action to restore confidence and put people to work. It diagnoses failures in finance and calls for banking supervision, relief, public works, agricultural support, foreclosure prevention, reduced government costs, and unified relief efforts. It advocates national planning for utilities and transportation, sound currency, and cooperation with the states. It frames recovery as a disciplined, collective effort grounded in moral values over profit and promotes a good-neighbor international policy while asserting constitutional flexibility to meet emergency needs.