and thanks for joining us on c span. american history tv beginning now. it's our special series on speeches that defined a presidency. well, harry truman took up fdr mantle when the nation's longest serving president died suddenly in april of 1945. truman was elected in his own right in 1948, and during his tenure, he oversaw the end of world war two. but now he presided over the beginning of the cold war. here's president truman at his

january 20th, 1949 inauguration, a time, he said, of grave uncertainty. inaugural day washington, 1949, the biggest inaugural in united states history is ready to begin. last line, pennsylvania avenue, soon to be the main artery of president following the triumphant parade. railroad yards of jammed is more than half a million visitors from every state in the union brought to washington on his birthday. the inauguration day. early morning spectators have been at their places along the parade route. walkers by their aware their opponents and buttons honoring harry truman elected president of the united states. this is from dr. or margaret elvin buckley's daughter, the vice president elect and the chief executive depart for the inaugural ceremony.

mr. truman, escorted by congressional representative, leads the protections of the capitol. the man from missouri goes to take his oath of office, not formally recording the greatest political upset in united states history. capital applause more than 100,000 people are on hand to witness the millions more see the event on television and hear it over world wide radio. among the distinguished guests are admiral nimitz, marine corps, general vandegrift and admiral hall, the united nations secretary general lee had the dignitaries from other countries, the black robe, supreme court justices ended up to the inaugural platform, closely followed by the official presidential body headed by the chief executive, the wife and daughter. of an array of motion picture and television cameras. the record of the arrival.

in berkeley of kentucky. a member of congress for 36 years, has taken the vice presidential oath of office. so help me god. then harriet is one of the nation's 32nd president by chief justice fred m vinson from the right hand. view of harry truman, who solemnly swear by harry truman, do solemnly, sir. you will faithfully execute the office of president of the united states, but i will faithfully execute the office of president of the united states and will, to the best of your ability, will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect and defend the constitution of the united states. preserve, protect and defend the

constitution of the united states. oh, help you, god. so help me god. heal the nation and the world. a solemn, resolute president declared mr. vice president, mr. chief justice. hello, senator. i accept. where it humility the honor which the american people have conferred upon me. i accept that with a resolve to do all that i can for the welfare of this nation and for the peace of the world. american people stand firm in the faith which has inspired this nation from the beginning. we believe that all men have a right to equal justice under the

law and equal opportunity to share in the common good. we believe that all men have a right to freedom of thought and expression. we believe that all men are created equal. the cause they are created in the image of god. from this place. we will not say move. the american people desire and are determined to work for a world in which all nations and all peoples are free to govern themselves as they see fit. and to achieve a decent and satisfying life above all else. our people, our and are determined to work for peace on earth, a just and lasting peace

based on genuine agreement. freely arrived at by equal and pursuit of these aims. the united states and other like minded nations find themselves directly opposed by our regime and a country. and now that puzzle a different concept of life that is not here through a false philosophy which supports the offer of freedom, security, and greater opportunities in a long time. misled by that philosophy, many people have sacrificed their liberties. all of the laws of our soul. that's the think and mockery, poverty and tyranny. are there reward? that's false philosophy is communism. communism suggests that

subjective individual rah are rah without life. a whole punishment without trial and forced labor as a chattel of the state. it's a grave infirmity and he shall receive what art he shall produce, what leaders he shall follow, and what thoughts he should think. democracy is based on the conviction. that man has a moral and intellectual capacity, as well as the engine of all rights that govern himself with reason and justice. that. democracy maintains that government is established for the benefit of the individual and is charged with the responsibility of protecting the rights of the individ ual and his freedom and the exercise of

those abilities of his. different. the differences between communism and democracy do not concern the united states alone. people everywhere are coming to realize that what is involved is the material well-being, human dignity, and the right to believe in and worship god. since the end of hostilities. the united states has invested its subcomponents and our days and our great constructive effort to restore peace, stability and freedom to the world. we have sought military authority. we have opposed. our will. un. we have asked from all privileges that we would not extend to other. we have made every effort to secure agreement on effective international control of our

most powerful weapon. and we have worked steadily for the limitation and control of all armament. we are moving along with other nations to build an even stronger structure of international order and justice. we shall have, as our partner countries which no longer is only concerned with the problem of national survival. our and our working to improve the standards of living of all our people. we are ready to undertake a new project to strengthen a free world. the coming year, our program for peace and freedom will emphasize four basic courses of action. first, we will continue to give unfaltering support to the united nations and related agencies. and we will continue to search for ways to strengthen their authority and increase their effectiveness.

secondly, we will continue our program for world economic recovery. this means, first of all, that we must keep our full weight behind the european poverty program. third, we will strengthen freedom loving nations against the dangers of aggression. fourth, we must embark on a bold new program for making the benefits of our scientific advances and industrial progress available for the improvement and growth of underdeveloped areas. i believe that we should make available for peace loving people the benefits of our store of technical knowledge in order to help them realize their aspirations for a better life. i am happy to help for free peoples of the world through their own efforts to produce more food, more clothing, more materials for housing, and more electrical power to lighten

their burden. democracy alone can supply the vital housing for to spur the peoples of the world. enterprise. open access not only i guess, are here in africa, but also against the enemies hunger, misery. and the first in their time as our brothers, it becomes manifest as more and more nations come to know the benefits of democracy and property are paid and growing upon them. i believe that all countries which are opposed will not stand in their delusion and join with a free nations of the world in a just settlement of international differences. we will advance part aware of our man's freedom and secure to do that. and we will devote our strength,

our resources and our firmness of resolve with god's help, the future of mankind, and will be assured in a world of justice, harmony and peace. on this sparkling, chilly winter day, president truman leaves capitol hill to take his place in the parade to the white house, reviewing that with more than a million people lining the route, 17,000 marchers join in a seven mile long procession down pennsylvania avenue. and. heading the line of marchers, the army chief of staff, general omar bradley. the greatest parade in the long history of the national capital.

then come the president and vice president flanking the chief executive in his guard of honor, the men of battery d, 149 field artillery, with whom he served as captain in the first world war. cabinet members include the secretary of state, dean acheson, and the attorney general of the united states, tom clark. general dwight eisenhower arrives in the car of army secretary cannon. royal. behind him is the future general bismarck, bricklayer, battalion, a west point.

the the brigade of midshipmen of the united states naval academy at annapolis passes in review. next come the cadets of the united states coast guard academy. and men of the marine corps are marched down the broad avenue, which today is the parade ground for every branch of the armed services. the 82 of the flying boxcar i lead one of the greatest air armadas ever to fly over the capitol. more than 700 planes in all. the eye on b, 36 bombers pass overhead. the parade includes not only the

military, but is a panorama of american life. the residents home state of missouri has several displays, one of them a wagon drawn by missouri mule. other blows depict the product and scenery of the various dates. this is kentucky, the most president's home state. to date. in texas, floyd moved down the avenue. to the district of columbia. display features reproductions of the capitol and the washington monument at the mouth of the float honoring the early american settlers who landed on the shores of that state. the big hero of uncle sam striding down the avenue.

civic business, labor and fraternal organization representing millions of their members from all over the country, participated in the inaugural festivities, supplying the music of more than 40 bands and many drummond bugle corps. near the white house. the excitement mounts as the chief executive of approaching the president gets a rousing ovation as he prepares to leave his car and take his place on the reviewing day.

for nearly 3 hours, the president and vice president stand together and acknowledge in the bodies of their countrymen. a group of california cowboys salute president truman and. so does their pet dalmatian, much to the president. amusement. another group resents the chief executive with a special gift a brand new cowboy. rather, the president is cheered by the citizens of lamar, missouri, the town in which he was born. state by state room by group. people from each of the 48 states of the union honor harry truman. and then 40th inauguration. since george washington in the field of office is the nation's first president, nearly 160 years ago in.

a colorful pageant moved on inauguration day in 1949. expresses the mood of the nation. the country is for a peaceful world, yet mindful of the military needs to make and keep that peace in harry truman's own words. it marks beginning not only of a new administration, but of a period that will be eventful, perhaps decisive, more of the united states and all the world. no. and you're watching the american history tv series speeches that defined the presidency. we now turn our attention to dwight eisenhower, who was president from 1953 to 1961.

and here's two of his speeches. well, it was in 1957 that americans listening on radio and tv heard ike confront segregation and mob blocking african-americans students from entering little rock central high. then we'll see him in 1961, three days before relinquishing his office to a younger john kennedy. he left his countrymen with a warning about the growing military industrial complex. from the president's office in the white house in washington, d.c., we present a special address by the president of the united states, dwight d eisenhower. mr. eisenhower discusses the integration problem at little rock, arkansas. ladies and gentlemen, the president of the united states. good evening, my fellow citizens. for a few minutes this evening, i should like to speak to you

about the serious situation that has arisen in little rock to make this talk, i have come to the president's office in the white house. i could have spoken from rhode island, where i have been staying, but i felt that in speaking from the house of lincoln. objection and a will, my words were better conveyed. both the sadness i feel and the action i was compelled today to make and the firmness with which i intend to pursue. this course until the orders of federal court at little rock can be executed without unlawful interference in that city. under the leadership of demagogic extremists, disorderly mobs have deliberately prevented the carrying out of proper orders from a federal court. local authorities have not

eliminated that violent opposite and under the law. i yesterday issued a proclamation calling upon the mob to disperse the this morning the mob again gathered in front of the central school of little rock. obviously for the purpose of again preventing that carrying out of the court's order relating to the admission of -- children, to that school, whenever normally is proved inadequate to the task and it becomes necessary for the executive branch of the federal government to use its powers and authority to uphold federal courts. the president's responsibility is inescapable. in accordance with that response. i have today issued an executive order directing the use of troops under federal authority to aid in the execution of

federal law at little rock, arkansas. this became necessary when my proclamation of yesterday was not observed. and the obstruction of justice still continues. it is important that the reasons for my action be understood by all our citizens. as you know, the supreme court of the united states has decided that separate, separate public educational facilities for the races are inherent and unequal and therefore compulsory schools segregation laws are unconstitutional. our personal opinions about the decision have no bearing on the matter of enforcement. the responsibility and the authority of the supreme court to interpret the constitution. our very clear local, federal courts were instructed by the

supreme court to issue such orders and decrees as might be necessary to achieve admission to public schools without regard to race. and with all deliberate speed, during the past several years, many communities in our southern states have instituted public school plans for gradual progress in enrollment and attendance of schoolchildren of all races in order to bring them into compliance with the law of the land. thus, they to the world that we are a nation in which law, not men, are supreme. i regret to say that this truth, the cornerstone of our liberties, was not observed in this instance. it was my hope that this localized situation would be brought under control by citizens state authorities.

if the use of local police powers had been sufficient, our method of leaving the problem in those hands would have been pursued. but when large gatherings of obstructionists made it impossible for the decrees of the court to be carried out, both the law and the national interest demanded that the president take action. here is a sequence of events in the development of the little rock school case in. may of 1955. the little rock school board approved a moderate plan for the gradual desegregation of the public schools in that city. it provided that a start toward integration would be made at the present term in the high school, and that the plan would be in full operation. by 1963. here i might say that in a number of communities in arkansas, integration in the

schools has already started. and without violence of any kind. now this little rock plan was challenged in the courts by some who believe that the period of time as proposed in the plan was too long. your united states court in little rock, which has supervisory responsibility under the law for the plan of desegregation in the public schools, dismissed the challenge, thus approving a gradual rather than an abrupt change from the existing system. the court found that the school board had acted in good faith in planning for a public school system free from racial discrimination. since that time, the court has, on three separate occasions issued orders directing that the plan carried out. all persons were instructed refrain from interfering with the efforts of the school board

to comply with the law proper and sensible observance of the law then demanded the respectful obedience which the nation has a right to expect from all its people. this, unfortunately, has not been the case at little rock. certain misguided persons, many of them imported into little rock by agitators and have insisted upon defying the law and have sought to bring it into disrepute. the orders of the court have thus been frustrated. the very basis of our individual rights and freedoms rests upon the certainty that the president and the executive branch of government will support and ensure the carrying out of the decisions of the federal courts, even when necessary. with all the means at the president's command. unless the president did so,

anarchy would result. there would be no security for any except that which each one of us could provide for himself. the interest of the nation and the proper fulfill of the laws requirements cannot yield to opposition and demonstrations by some two persons. mob rule can not be allowed to override the decision of our courts. now let me make it very clear that federal troops are not being used to relieve local and state authorities of their prima duty to preserve the peace and order of the community. nor are the troops there for the purpose of taking over the responsibility of the school board and other responsible local officials in running central high school. the running of our school system and the maintenance of peace and order in each our states are

strictly local affairs and the federal government does not interfere except in very special cases. and when requested by one of the several states in the present case that troops are there for soon to law solely by the purpose of preventing interference with the orders of the court. the proper use of the powers of the executive branch to enforce the orders of the federal court is limited to extraordinary and compelling circumstances. manifestly such an extreme situation has been created in little rock. this challenge must be and with such measures as will preserve to the people as a whole, they are lawfully protected rights in a climate permitting their free and fair exercise. the overwhelm being majority of our people in every section of the country are united in their respect for the observance of the law, even in those cases

where they may with that law, they deplore the call of extremists to violence. the decision of the supreme court concerning school integration, of course, affects the south more seriously than it does other sections of the country. in that region, i have many warm friends. some of them in the city of little rock. i have deemed it a great personal privilege to spend in our south glen tours of duty while in the military service and enjoyable recreation periods. since that time, so from intimate personal knowledge, i know that the overwhelming majority of the people in the south, including those of arkansas and of little rock art, of goodwill, are united in their efforts to preserve and respect the law, even when they disagree with it. they do not sympathize with mob

rule. they like the rest of our nation, have proved in two great wars. they are readiness to sacrifice for america and the founding of the american way of life is our national respect for law in the south, as elsewhere. citizens are keenly aware of the tremendous disservice that has been done to the people of arkansas in the eyes of the nation. and that has been done to the nation, in the eyes of the world. at a time when we face grave situations abroad because of the hatred that communism bears toward the system of government, based on human rights, it would be difficult to exaggerate the harm that is being done to the prestige and influence and indeed to the safety of our nation and the world. our enemies are gloating over this incident and using it

everywhere to misrepresent our whole nation. we are portrayed as a violent are those standards of conduct which the peoples of the world united to proclaim in the charter of the united nations. they are. they are firm faith in fundamental human rights and in the dignity and worth of the human person. and they did so without distinction as to race, sex, language or religion. and so with deep competence, i upon the citizens of the state of arkansas to assist in bringing to an immediate end all interference with the law and its processes. if resistance to the federal court order ceases at once, the further presence of federal troops will be unnecessary, and the city of little rock will return to its norman normal habits of peace and order and upon the fair name and high

honor of our nation in the world will be removed. thus will be restored. the image of america and all its parts as one nation in with liberty and justice for all. good night and thank you very much. for this has been a special address by the president of the united states dwight eisenhower. the special program has come to you from the president's office in the white house in washington, d.c.. three days from now, after half a century in the service of my country, i shall lay down the responsibilities of office, as in traditional and solemn ceremony, the authority of the presidency is vested in my successor. this evening, i come to you with

a message of leave taking and farewell and to share a few final thoughts with you, my countrymen. like every others, i like every other citizen. i wish the new president and all who are laboring with him. godspeed. i pray that the coming years will be blessed with peace and prosperity for all our people. expect their president and the congress to find a central agreement on issues of great moment, the wise resolution of which will better shape the future of the nation. my own relations with the congress, which began on a remote and tenuous basis, land long ago. a member of the senate appointed me to west point have since ranged a during the war an immediate postwar period and finally to the mutually

interdependent. during the past eight years in this final relationship. the congress and the administration have won most vital issues, cooperated well to serve the nation. the nation good rather than mere partizanship and so have assured that the business of the nation should go forward. so my official relationship with the congress ends in a feeling on my part of gratitude that we have been able to do so much to get we now stand ten years past the midpoint of a century that has witnessed four major wars among great nations. three of these involved our own country. despite these holocaust, america is today the strongest. the most influential and most productive nation in the world. understandably proud of this preeminence. we yet realize that america's

leadership impressed deeds depend not merely upon our unmatched material progress, riches and military strength, but on how we use our power in the interest of world peace and human, better. throughout america's adventure in bringing government, our basic purposes have been to keep the peace, to foster progress in human achievement, and to enhance liberty, dignity and integrity among peoples that among nations to strive for less would be unworthy of a free and religious people. any failure traceable to arrogance or our lack of comprehension or readiness to sacrifice would inflict upon us grievous hurt, both at home and abroad. progress toward these noble goals persistently threatened by the conflict now engulfing the world it commands our whole

attention absorbs are very beings we face a hostile ideology, global in scope, atheistic in character, ruthless in purpose and insidious in unhappily the danger it poses promises to be indefinite duration to meet it successfully. there is call for not so the emotional and transitory sacrifices of crisis, but rather those which enable us to carry forward steadily, surely, and without complaint, the burdens of a prolonged, long and complex struggle with liberty. the state only the shall we remain despite every provocation on our charted course toward permanent peace and human betterment crises that will continue to be in meeting them, whether foreign or domestic,

great or small. there is a recurring temptation to feel of some spectacular and costly action could become the miraculous solution to all current difficulties. a huge increase in newer elements of our defenses, development of unrealistic programs to cure every ill agriculture. a dramatic expansion in basic and applied research. these and many other possibilities each possibly promising itself, may be suggested as the only way to the road we wish to travel. but each proposal must weighed in the light of a broader consideration of the need to maintain balance in and among national programs. a balance between the private and the public economy, balance between the cost and hoped for advantages. balanced between the clearly necessary and the comfortable,

desirable balance between our essential requirements as a nation and the duties imposed by the nation upon the individual balance between actions of the moment and the national welfare of the future. good judgment seeks balance in progress, lack of it events finds imbalance and frustration. the record of many decades stands as proof that our people and their government have in the main understood these truths and have responded to them well in the face of threat and stress. but threats, new and kind or degree, constant, they arise of these. i mentioned to one, a vital element in keeping the peace is our military establishment. our arms must be mighty ready for instant action so that no potential aggressor may be

tempted to his own destruction. our military organization today bears little relation to that known of any of my predecessors in peacetime, or indeed by the fighting men of world war two or korea. until the leaders of our world conflicts. the united states had no armaments industry. american makers of plowshares could with time and as required, make swords as well. but we can no longer risk an emergency improvization of national defense. we have been compelled to create a permanent armaments industry of bad proportions. and to do this, three and a half million men and women are directly engaged in the defense establishment. we annually spend on military security alone more than the net income all united states

corporations. corporations. now this conjuncture of an immense military establishment and a large arms industry is new in the american experience. the total influence economic, political, even spiritual, is felt in every city, every statehouse, every office of the federal government. we recognize the imperative of need for this development. yet we must not fail to comprehend the grave implications. our toil, resources and livelihood are all involved. so is the very structure of our society in the councils of government. we must ga guard against the acquisition of unwarranted influence, whether sought by the military industrial complex, the potential for the disastrous rise of misplaced power exists and will persist. we must never let the weight of

this combination endanger our liberties or democratic processes. we should take nothing for granted. only an alert and knowledgeable citizenry can compel the proper meshing of the huge industrial and military machinery of defense with our peaceful methods and goals. so that security and liberty may prosper together. a can do and largely responsible for the sweeping changes in our industrial military posture, has the technological revolution during recent decades. in this revolution, recent research has become central. it also becomes more formalized and complex and costly. a steadily increasing share is conducted forward by or at the direction of the federal government. today, the solitary inventor tinkering in his shop has been overshadowed by task forces and

scientists in laboratories and testing fields in the same nation. the free university versity historically the fountainhead of free ideas and scientific discovery has experienced a revolution in the conduct of research, partly because of huge cost involved. a government contract becomes virtually a substitute for intellectual curiosity. for every old blackboard, there are now hundreds of new electronic computers. the prospect of domination of the nation scholars by federal employment project allocations and the power of money is ever present and is gravely to be regarded. yet in holding scientific research and discovery in respect as we should, we must also be alert to the equal and opposite danger that public

policy could itself become. the captive of a scientific, technological elite. is a task of statesmanship to move, to balance and to integrate these and other forces, new and old, within the principles of our democratic system. ever aiming toward the supreme goals of our free society. another factor in maintaining balance involves the element of time as we peer into society's future. we under i and our government, must avoid the impulse to live only for today, wondering for our own ease and convenience. the precious resources of tomorrow. we cannot warden the material assets of our grandchildren without risking the loss. also of their political and spiritual heritage. we want democracy to survive for

all generations to come, not to become the insolvent. phantom of tomorrow during long lean of the history. yet to be written. america knows that this world of ours ever growing smaller must avoid becoming a community of dread, fear and hate, and be instead a proud confederate. mutual trust and respect. such a confederation must be one of equals. the weakest must come to the conference table with the same competence as duly protected as we are by our moral economic and military strength. that table, those scarred by many past, frustrated past frustrations, cannot be abandoned for the certainty, agony of the drama of the battlefield disarmament with mutual honor and confidence, is a continuing imperative.

together, we must learn how to compose differences, not with arms, but with intellect and decent purpose. because this need is so sharp and apparent. i confess that i laid down my official responsibilities in this field with a definite of disappointment. as one who has witnessed the horror and the lingering sadness of war, as one who knows that another war could utterly this civilization which has been so slowly and painful, built over thousands of years. i wish i could say tonight that a lasting peace is in sight. happily, i can say that war has been avoided. steady progress toward our ultimate goal has been made. but so much remains to be done. as a private citizen, i shall never cease to do what little i can to help the world advance along that road.

so in this, my last good night to you as your president, i thank you for the many opportunities you have given me for public service in war and in peace. i trust in that in that in that service, you find something worthy. as for the rest of it, i know you will find ways to improve performance in the future. you and i, my fellow citizens, need to be strong in our faith that all nations under god will reach the goal of peace with justice. may we be ever unswerving in devotion to principle, confident, but humble with power, diligent in pursuit of the nation's great goals to all the peoples of the world. i once more give expression to america's prayer and continuing aspiration. we pray that people of all faiths, all races, all nations

may have their great human satisfied that those now denied opportunity shall come to enjoy it, to the point that all who yearn for freedom may experience its spiritual blessings. those who have freedom will understand also its heavy responsibility. that all who are insensitive to the needs of others will learn charity, and that the source of scourges of poverty, disease and ignorance will be made, disappear from the earth. and that in the goodness of time all peoples will come to live together in a peace guarantee by the binding force of mutual respect and love. now, on friday noon, i am to become a private citizen. i am proud to do so. i look forward to it. thank you.

and good night from the white house. we have presented the farewell address by the president of the united states, dwight eisenhower, who spoke this evening from his office in the white house. and thanks for joining on c-span's american history tv's special series speeches that define the presidency. next week, we'll hear from john kennedy. we'll hear his 1961 inaugural address and speeches on the race to the moon and the cold war. a reminder that all of the speeches that we have played in this are available to watch online at c-span dot org slash

ladies and gem