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President Obama is expected to use executive orders and the bully pulpit in his first days in office to mark a symbolic break from the policies of the past eight years.

In taking the oath of office Tuesday, the 44th president of the United States, the first African-American to lead the country, used that pulpit to rally the citizenry to stand with him, calling for a 鈥渘ew era of responsibility鈥� in the 鈥渕idst of the crisis.鈥� Noting the US is at war and the economy badly weakened, Mr. Obama called on Americans to 鈥渟eize gladly鈥� the duties before the nation during 鈥渢his winter of our hardship.鈥�

鈥淥ur challenges may be new. The instruments with which we meet them may be new,鈥� he said, as the sun shone and a chilly wind blew across the millions of people packing the Mall before him. 鈥淏ut those values upon which our success depends 鈥� hard work and honesty, courage and fair play, tolerance and curiosity, loyalty and patriotism 鈥� these things are old. These things are true. They have been the quiet force of progress throughout our history. What is demanded then is a return to these truths.鈥�

Obama will begin his term with aggressive measures to shore up America鈥檚 stumbling economy, urging Congress to act quickly on what he calls 鈥渁 bold, aggressive investment and recovery package,鈥� his aides say. At the same time, he鈥檒l call on banks that took federal bailout money to be more accountable and to start lending money more freely.

The new president will also move on the international front, ordering military leaders to prepare for a speedy withdrawal from Iraq and begin shutting down the detention center holding terror suspects at Guant谩namo Bay in Cuba. Aides say he will also make clear that working for peace in the Middle East will be a top priority.

鈥淭he symbolism of first acts is very important, and President Obama is fully aware of that,鈥� says Gordon Smith of the Walker Institute for International and Area Studies at the University of South Carolina in Columbia. 鈥淗e鈥檚 signaling he鈥檚 very much concerned about his foreign-policy agenda as well as the financial crisis that鈥檚 confronting the United States. And in fact, he鈥檚 made it clear that addressing the financial crisis is also going to be an international endeavor that鈥檚 going to require cooperation from the world.鈥�

Obama enjoys good will abroad, but by moving fast to close Guant谩namo, analysts say, he can solidify that and instill confidence in his foreign-policy credentials.

鈥淕uant谩namo ... has become such a symbol of the failed policies of the Bush administration, and it undercuts and undermines our own efforts at stopping terrorism,鈥� says Dr. Smith. 鈥淚t will be important for him to demonstrate to skeptics at home and abroad that he鈥檚 capable of ... taking bold moves when necessary.鈥�

In his inaugural address, Obama affirmed that traditional values are vital to his foreign policy. US military power was founded as much on 鈥渟turdy alliances and enduring convictions鈥� as on 鈥渕issiles and tanks鈥� 鈥� and that earlier generations understood as much when they faced down fascism and communism, he said.

鈥淭hey understood that our power alone cannot protect us, nor does it entitle us to do as we please,鈥� he said. 鈥淚nstead, they knew that our power grows through its prudent use; our security emanates from the justness of our cause, the force of our example, the tempering qualities of humility and restraint.鈥�

On the domestic front, Obama called for a shift away from politics as usual, saying 鈥渢he ground has shifted.鈥� 鈥淪tale political arguments that have consumed us for so long no longer apply,鈥� he said. 鈥淭he question we ask today is not whether our government is too big or too small but whether it works 鈥� whether it helps families find jobs at a decent wage, care they can afford, a retirement that is dignified.鈥�

In moving quickly on his agenda, Obama is taking lessons from past administrations in a bid to prevent early missteps, say presidential scholars. President Bill Clinton, who made reforming the healthcare system the cornerstone of his election campaign, took almost a year to present a plan to Congress.

During that time, the public lost interest and he lost political capital with his controversial move to allow gays to serve in the military under a 鈥渄on鈥檛 ask, don鈥檛 tell鈥� policy.

Obama is expected to make early use of executive orders to lift the ban on federal funds for embryonic stem-cell research and for family planning agencies abroad. He鈥檚鈥檚 also expected to tighten ethics rules for people entering and exiting government.

鈥淎ll this implies that Obama has been influenced by Clinton鈥檚 fate,鈥� says Bruce Buchanan, a presidential scholar at the University of Texas at Austin. 鈥淗e鈥檚 been lining up support as much as possible before the inauguration.... The public鈥檚 already well-briefed on the economic package.鈥�

Obama appears to be modeling his first days after those of President Franklin Roosevelt, who also had an economic crisis to focus his agenda. Like Roosevelt, Obama is exuding confidence even as he prepares the public for the likelihood that the economy could get worse before it gets better.

鈥淚t鈥檚 clear Obama is going to work fast to get credit loosened, some oversight of the banks, and help for people in foreclosure,鈥� says political scientist Bert Rockman at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Ind. 鈥淭he question is how fast he鈥檒l be able to get a bill through Congress.鈥�

Obama, unlike Roosevelt, has the luxury of a bit more time. FDR was inaugurated March 4, 1933, amid a financial panic. On his first day in office he closed all banks indefinitely, declaring it a 鈥渉oliday鈥� to give his administration time to quell the panic. With that move, he gained the confidence of Congress, which within 100 days enacted landmark legislation that formed the bedrock of the New Deal.

鈥淭he perception now is also that we鈥檙e in such crisis that we have to move rapidly,鈥� says Dr. Buchanan. 鈥淥bama is similarly pragmatic, but FDR was more of an experimentalist. He didn鈥檛 have the kind of overarching theory that Obama does.鈥�

Obama will have a less compliant Congress than Roosevelt did. Democratic leaders in both houses have already signaled disagreement with parts of Obama鈥檚 stimulus proposal, the tax cuts in particular. But they and others say they hope to get a bill passed within six weeks.

鈥淭he initial program is so potentially wise in that it鈥檚 a down payment on all the things we should care about 鈥� education, energy, environment, and healthcare 鈥� that he鈥檚 folded into that stimulus package by broadening the definition of infrastructure,鈥� says Stephen Hess, a presidential scholar at the Brookings Institution. Moving from legislative action to economic recovery is a process he likens to building a house. 鈥淭he framework is going to go up very quickly, but the plumbing and the heating and everything else that it takes to build a house take forever. People are going to have to be patient.鈥�

The new administration also needs to consider how much of Obama鈥檚 larger agenda, like healthcare reform, to include in the new president鈥檚 first proposals. Problems can arise from overreaching, says Mr. Hess. 鈥淭he more things you try to weave into a solution, the more politically complicated it gets and the more issues it raises,鈥� he says.