Deseret News archives: FDR inaugurated on this day in 1936, the last president to do so. Blame it on lame ducks
A look back at local, national and world events through Deseret News archives.
On March 4, 1801, Thomas Jefferson became the first president to be inaugurated in Washington, D.C.
One hundred thirty-two years later, on March 4, 1933, Franklin D. Roosevelt was inaugurated for his first term as president; he was the last U.S. president to be inaugurated on this date. In his inaugural speech, Roosevelt stated, 'The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.'
So why the change?
According to historians, to minimize the transition period between Election Day and Inauguration Day, and curtail 'lame duck' Congresses in which members defeated in November served until March, legislators introduced the 20th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. Ratified in 1933, Roosevelt was sworn in on Jan. 20, 1937.
Per most historians, the 'lame duck' phrase was first used in its metaphorical sense in the 18th century; it was used at the London Stock Exchange to refer to a stockbroker who defaulted on his debts.
The first known use of the term to refer to politicians is in the Jan. 14, 1863, issue of the Congressional Globe (which was at the time the official record of the proceedings of the United States Congress): 'In no event ... could (the Court of Claims) be justly obnoxious to the charge of being a receptacle of 'lame ducks' or broken down politicians.'
Here are some interesting articles from Deseret News archives about presidential inaugurations:
'Scrapbook of the 20th century: Franklin Delano Roosevelt'
'Presidents try to make words go down in history'
'Change: An inaugural tradition'
''I do solemnly swear': Memorable moments from 230 years of presidential inaugurations'
'FDR didn't want a memorial, but history insisted'
'A look at FDR's short but very meaningful visit to Utah'
'Deseret News archives: Expanding the Supreme Court was a hot topic ... in 1937″
'Deseret News archives: FDR sets Social Security program in motion 89 years ago'
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Atlantic
2 hours ago
- Atlantic
Trump Means to Provoke, Not Pacify
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In the meantime, he's going to flex that muscle, and prove that the officers and service members who will do whatever he orders are the real military. The rest are suckers and losers. During the George Floyd protests in 2020, Trump was furious at what he saw as the fecklessness of military leaders determined to thwart his attempts to use deadly force against protesters. He's learned his lesson: This time, he has installed a hapless sycophant at the Pentagon who is itching to execute the boss's orders. Third, he may be hoping to radicalize the citizen-soldiers drawn from the community who serve in the National Guard. (Seizing the California Guard is also a convenient way to humiliate California Governor Gavin Newsom and L.A. Mayor Karen Bass, with Trump's often-used narrative that liberals can't control their own cities.) The president has the right to 'federalize' Guard forces, which is how they were deployed overseas in America's various conflicts. 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Thwarting his authoritarianism will require restraint on the part of the public, some steely nerves on the part of state and local authorities, and vigilant action from national elected representatives, who should be stepping in to raise the alarm and to demand explanations about the president's misuse of the military. As unsatisfying as it may be for some citizens to hear, the last thing anyone should do is take to the streets of Los Angeles and try to confront the military or any of California's law-enforcement authorities. ICE is on a rampage, but physically assaulting or obstructing its agents—and thus causing a confrontation with the cops who have to protect them, whether those police officers like it or not—will provide precisely the pretext that some of the people in Trump's White House are trying to create. The president and his coterie want people walking around taking selfies in gas clouds, waving Mexican flags, holding up traffic, and burning cars. 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USA Today
2 hours ago
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Bernie Sanders: Trump moving US 'into authoritarianism' after troops sent to LA
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The Hill
3 hours ago
- The Hill
Sen. Johnson says he believes deploying Marines in California ‘won't be necessary'
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