Every four or eight years, it is commonplace for a well-dressed man to place his hand on a Bible in Washington, D.C. and recite the following words: “I do solemnly swear that I will faithfully execute the office of President of the United States and that, to the best of my ability, I will preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States. So help me God." This tradition dates back to 1789, with George Washington, the first “leader of the free world.” However, what is not very common in these cases is that, after taking said oath, the man in question gives one of the best speeches that have been heard from the Capitol podium.
On January 20, 1981 , it was Ronald Reagan who arrived in DC hand in hand with his wife Nancy, wearing an elegant black suit that he chose to pair with a tie and a gray vest, to which he also added a white pocket handkerchief in his left pocket.
After easily defeating Jimmy Carter, he was ready to become the new president of the United States. After the applause and the classic presidential song, Reagan took the podium and addressed the citizens for the first time as president. Without knowing it, he would give one of the most memorable presidential speeches in history.
Everyone connects January 20 with Inauguration Day. Epitomized in recent decades by a huge event held every 4 years, President Reagan's 1981 inauguration was the first on the Capitol's west side, featuring the National Mall as a glorious backdrop. #WashingtonDC pic.twitter.com/RjRMGz4Ow2
— National Mall NPS (@NationalMallNPS) January 20, 2023
Of course, it began with formalities and giving thanks to individuals, among which former President Carter himself stood out, whom Reagan congratulated for his role in the transfer of command, a protocol that the new president defined as “a miracle.” Immediately afterwards, he identified and spoke about the root of all the current problems plaguing the country.
“In this present crisis, government is not the solution to our problem; government is the problem,” he exclaimed to general applause, in one of the most memorable snippets of the speech .
“So, as we begin, let us take inventory. We are a nation that has a government — not the other way around. And this makes us special among the nations of the Earth. Our government has no power except that granted it by the people. It is time to check and reverse the growth of government, which shows signs of having grown beyond the consent of the governed,” continued the 40th president, who months later would suffer an assassination attempt that almost ended his life.
The price of freedom and a warning to its rivals
Once the diagnosis was completed, Reagan dedicated several minutes to a word that he himself defined years later as “the right to say no”: freedom. Indeed, he attributed the historic success of the United States to this one word.
“If we look to the answer as to why for so many years we achieved so much, prospered as no other people on Earth, it was because here in this land we unleashed the energy and individual genius of men to a greater extent than has ever been done before. Freedom and the dignity of the individual have been more available and assured here than in any other place on Earth. The price for this freedom at times has been high, but we have never been unwilling to pay that price,” he said.
“As for the enemies of freedom, those who are potential adversaries, they will be reminded that peace is the highest aspiration of the American people. We will negotiate for it, sacrifice for it; we will not surrender for it, now or ever," he added in a clear message to his Soviet counterpart at the time, Leonidas Brezhnev
The true heroes of their time
Reagan was also not satisfied with this pessimistic vision that the Soviet Union was advancing in many ways over the United States in the Cold War. Therefore, he invited his fellow citizens to enter a stage of “national renewa," where faith and hope would be revitalized.
To exemplify his point, he mocked those who claimed that there were no heroes in their time, inviting them to look at the entrepreneurs, the factory workers, those who create jobs and opportunities. In short, he classified those who move the country forward as heroes.
“They’re individuals and families whose taxes support the government and whose voluntary gifts support church, charity, culture, art, and education. Their patriotism is quiet, but deep. Their values sustain our national life,” he added.
America's not-so-secret weapon
When comparing himself with his adversaries of the time, he highlighted, with almost surgeon-like precision, what differentiated the Americans from the Soviets. This tool was simply something they did not possess, not on the physical plane, but spiritually.
“Above all, we must realize that no arsenal or no weapon in the arsenals of the world is so formidable as the will and moral courage of free men and women. It is a weapon our adversaries in today’s world do not have. It is a weapon that we as Americans do have,” reflected the former governor of California.
Pledge of a soldier, the letter that moved Reagan live
This part of the speech is not without tears. Not even Reagan himself could contain his emotions. Radio professors say that nothing can be hidden in the voice and the new president broke down a couple of times when reading the intimate diary of Martin Treptow, a young soldier who died in the First World War .
“We’re told that on his body was found a diary. On the flyleaf under the heading, 'My Pledge', he had written these words: 'America must win this war. Therefore I will work, I will save, I will sacrifice, I will endure, I will fight cheerfully and do my utmost, as if the issue of the whole struggle depended on me alone,'” the president quoted, visibly moved.
To close with a flourish, the new president encouraged Americans to “believe in ourselves and to believe in our capacity to perform great deeds, to believe that together with God’s help we can and will resolve the problems which now confront us. And after all, why shouldn’t we believe that? We are Americans," he concluded.
