Roosevelt appears haggard while taking the oath of office for the fourth time. The wars in Europe and Japan and a fourth run for the presidency have weakened him, and heart ailments, high blood pressure, and bronchitis are also taking their toll.

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Added: Tue Jan 13 22:44:48 UTC 2009
Air date: Sat Jan 20 00:00:00 UTC 1945
Duration: 01:54
Rating: 4.0 / 5.0

In his first speech as president, Kennedy speaks to the hopes of "a new generation of Americans" and inspires many Americans to commit themselves to their country.

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Added: Tue Jan 13 22:44:00 UTC 2009
Air date: Fri Jan 20 00:00:00 UTC 1961
Duration: 04:32
Rating: 3.9 / 5.0

Only a few days after the assassination of John F. Kennedy, President Johnson addresses Congress and the nation about continuing the work of Kennedy and the need for national unity.

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Added: Tue Jan 13 22:44:51 UTC 2009
Air date: Wed Nov 27 00:00:00 UTC 1963
Duration: 13:22
Rating: 3.6 / 5.0

This grainy newsreel of William McKinley being sworn into office is the first motion picture ever made of a presidential inauguration. Within six months, McKinley would be killed by an assassin, and Teddy Roosevelt would become president.

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Added: Tue Jan 13 22:43:50 UTC 2009
Air date: Mon Mar 04 00:00:00 UTC 1901
Duration: 00:46
Rating: 4.0 / 5.0

Heavily criticized for his economic programs and federal deregulation, Reagan was vulnerable when he ran for reelection. But the Gipper won in a landslide, carrying every state except for Minnesota and the District of Columbia.

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Added: Tue Jan 13 22:44:02 UTC 2009
Air date: Mon Jan 21 00:00:00 UTC 1985
Duration: 13:43
Rating: 4.3 / 5.0

In his second inaugural speech, Nixon, a conservative Republican, rails against big government and its "condescending policies of paternalism." He demands that government "learn to take less from people so that people can do more for themselves."

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Added: Tue Jan 13 22:44:09 UTC 2009
Air date: Sat Jan 20 00:00:00 UTC 1973
Duration: 16:20

Thousands of spectators flock to hear Warren G. Harding take the oath of office. In the election of 1920, the Republican Harding won the greatest landslide to date; his victory is seen as a repudiation of the progressivism of the Wilson administration.

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Added: Tue Jan 13 22:43:47 UTC 2009
Air date: Mon Mar 14 00:00:00 UTC 1921
Duration: 02:14
Rating: 4.0 / 5.0

Johnson had defeated Republican Barry Goldwater by an overwhelming margin of the popular vote, in part by promising restraint in the war in Vietnam. But the escalation of the war during his second term would sink Johnson's popularity below 30 percent.

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Added: Tue Jan 13 22:44:52 UTC 2009
Air date: Wed Jan 20 00:00:00 UTC 1965
Duration: 22:07
Rating: 3.7 / 5.0

Bill Clinton adopted the conservative theme of personal responsibility from the Republicans. In his first inaugural, he tells the country, "We must do what America does best: offer more opportunity to all and demand more responsibility from all."

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Added: Tue Jan 13 22:43:51 UTC 2009
Air date: Wed Jan 20 00:00:00 UTC 1993
Duration: 14:12
Rating: 3.5 / 5.0

FDR takes office as America struggles with mass unemployment and a crippled economy. The stirring words of his inaugural -- and the "Hundred Days" of government activism that follow -- will help restore confidence to a nation stricken by hard times.

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Added: Tue Jan 13 22:44:47 UTC 2009
Air date: Sat Mar 04 00:00:00 UTC 1933
Duration: 03:39
Rating: 4.3 / 5.0

Nixon's words reflect the sharply divided nation that he inherits as president in 1969: "We find ourselves rich in goods, but ragged in spirit; reaching with magnificent precision for the moon, but falling into raucous discord on earth."

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Added: Tue Jan 13 22:44:03 UTC 2009
Air date: Mon Jan 20 00:00:00 UTC 1969
Duration: 17:29
Rating: 3.8 / 5.0

In his second inaugural, Bush affirms the bold central foreign policy goal of his presidency: "to seek and support the growth of democratic movements and institutions in every nation and culture, with the ultimate goal of ending tyranny in our world."

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Added: Tue Jan 13 22:44:53 UTC 2009
Air date: Thu Jan 20 00:00:00 UTC 2005
Duration: 21:11
Rating: 3.0 / 5.0

Carter was a complete newcomer on the national stage when he ran for president in 1976. But in the aftermath of the Watergate scandal, public dissatisfaction with the Republican Party helped propel him to victory.

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Added: Tue Jan 13 22:43:58 UTC 2009
Air date: Thu Jan 20 00:00:00 UTC 1977
Duration: 14:32
Rating: 3.7 / 5.0

Shortly after Richard M. Nixon delivers his resignation letter on the morning of August 9, 1974, Ford is sworn in. He calls his speech "not an inaugural address, not a fireside chat, not a campaign speech--just a little straight talk among friends."

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Added: Tue Jan 13 22:43:49 UTC 2009
Air date: Fri Aug 09 00:00:00 UTC 1974
Duration: 10:44
Rating: 4.4 / 5.0

Truman has already been president for almost four years when he makes his first inaugural address, and his popularity is at an all-time high. But during his second term, his approval ratings would plummet to the lowest in presidential history.

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Added: Tue Jan 13 22:43:54 UTC 2009
Air date: Thu Jan 20 00:00:00 UTC 1949
Duration: 02:00
Rating: 4.1 / 5.0

After a disputed presidential election, George W. Bush's opponent, Al Gore, finally conceded defeat on December 12th, 2000. Bush takes the oath of office under a cloud, with many questioning the legitimacy of his victory.

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Added: Tue Jan 13 22:44:05 UTC 2009
Air date: Sat Jan 20 00:00:00 UTC 2001
Duration: 14:28
Rating: 3.0 / 5.0

Wilson begins his second term as any hopes of American neutrality in World War I dwindle. He hints at future involvement in the war, stating, “There can be no turning back. Our own fortunes as a nation are involved whether we would have it so or not.”

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Added: Tue Jan 13 22:44:07 UTC 2009
Air date: Mon Mar 05 00:00:00 UTC 1917
Duration: 00:37
Rating: 3.8 / 5.0

After Coolidge's inauguration, a special train equipped as a film lab carries footage of the event from Washington to New York so theater-goers can watch it that same day. The inauguration is also the first presidential inauguration broadcast on radio.

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Added: Tue Jan 13 22:43:57 UTC 2009
Air date: Wed Mar 04 00:00:00 UTC 1925
Duration: 05:08
Rating: 4.1 / 5.0

When Dwight D. Eisenhower's name was first mentioned as a possible candidate for the presidency in 1948, the General had never even voted. But once Ike decided to run in 1952, he won in a landslide.

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Added: Tue Jan 13 22:44:49 UTC 2009
Air date: Tue Jan 20 00:00:00 UTC 1953
Duration: 21:33
Rating: 3.8 / 5.0

Clinton and the Democratic Party suffered a huge defeat during his first term, when Republicans gained control of both the House and the Senate. But Clinton came back for a second term, by handily defeating his Republican opponent, Bob Dole.

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Added: Tue Jan 13 22:44:54 UTC 2009
Air date: Mon Jan 20 00:00:00 UTC 1997
Duration: 21:57
Rating: 3.9 / 5.0