Kennedy was inaugurated as president on January 20, 1961. He devoted his entire inaugural address to international affairs, calling on his fellow citizens "to bear the burden of a long twilight struggle, year in and year out, ... against the common enemies of man: tyranny, poverty, disease, and war itself." His address was widely acclaimed as a classic political expression. His election was on of the closest ever record in American history, this caused him to proceed more cautiously, but in his first months in office he sent Congress a record number of messages proposing broad programs to promote more rapid economic growth, rehabilitate depressed areas, improve urban housing and development, reform tax legislation, revise the farm program, conserve and develop natural resources, aid education, and provide better medical care for the aged. In effect, he was establishing his long-range goals. |
