Sputnik Moment

Tonight was one of my favorite political events of the year again--The State of the Union Address!

I thought President Obama's speech (well, at least the two-thirds of it) was very good. I like what he had to say about immigration. I like what he had to say about education. I like what he had to say about innovation (specifically in the area of clean energy). He addressed concerns about America being surpassed by other countries, and challenged us to be greater, all the while, elaborating on what makes the US great. His call to action was empowering by calling this our "Sputnik moment." He then addressed the pressing concern of the crappy economy and rising national deficit. However, reinforced his former ideas by saying, "Cutting the deficit by gutting our investments in innovation and education is like lightening an overloaded airplane by removing its engine. It may feel like you're flying high at first, but it won't take long before you'll feel the impact."

Fortunately (or unfortunately depending on how you look at it) the clapping/standing/sitting/frowning/cheering wars between parties wasn't as nearly as pronounced this year. Perhaps in the spirit of what Obama said himself:

And yet, as contentious and frustrating and messy as our democracy can sometimes be, I know there isn't a person here who would trade places with any other nation on Earth. We may have differences in policy, but we all believe in the rights enshrined in our Constitution. We may have different opinions, but we believe in the same promise that says this is a place where you can make it if you try. We may have different backgrounds, but we believe in the same dream that says this is a country where anything's possible. No matter who you are. No matter where you come from.

Amen! Sometimes that can be easy to forget in all the ugly bickering and partisanship in our political landscape.

P.S. Anyone catch the Survivor Reality TV show reference? "We need to out-innovate, out-educate, and out-build the rest of the world." Seriously Obama's speech writer? Did you really include that? Sounds suspiciously like Outplay, Outwit, Outlast...

I Have a Dream

Happy Martin Luther King Junior Day!

It seems MLK's "I Have Dream" speech is always ranked the best speech in modern American history. And as somebody who has spent the past two plus years studying rhetoric, I concur. Here we have a true orator who was able to use discourse and non violent civil disobedience to ignite a massive civil rights movement in the United States.



We have also come to this hallowed spot to remind America of the fierce urgency of Now. This is no time to engage in the luxury of cooling off or to take the tranquilizing drug of gradualism. Now is the time to make real the promises of democracy. Now is the time to rise from the dark and desolate valley of segregation to the sunlit path of racial justice. Now is the time to lift our nation from the quicksands of racial injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood. Now is the time to make justice a reality for all of God's children.
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And so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.

I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal."

A Way With Words

Today I had the unique opportunity to meet with two White House high-level speechwriters through one of the graduates of my program at UMD. It was so exciting to hear their take on what it is like to work for the both Bush administrations and the McCain-Palin campaign to name a few.


Scully and McConnell had very many intriguing and insightful things to say. They called their speech shop a little "word factory." I was suprised to hear that they collaborate in the writing process from the very begining and then the speech runs through many many hands before being finalized, sometime reaching up to draft number 30. They mentioned at the time they cleaned out their computers there were 10,800 speech drafts saved on the hard drive that are permanently resting in the presidential records.

Wow. That would be the job. Writing speeches for the president.

Operation State of the Union

Last night was the State of the Union Address. May I just say that I love the State of the Union Address?

I love watching the people. I love watching half of congress stand up and cheer and stolid glances on the other side. I love closeups of people trying to find the perfect balance between paying attention and falling asleep--that balance in appearing to enjoy yet hate the speech. I love begrudged standing for statements about liberty and American advancement, because let's face it, begruding or not, we all agree, no matter who is saying it. I love the commentary afterwards, complimenting the unity of the American political system, able to put party differences aside and applaud the same issues. It is a show, a formality, a tradition. And I love it.

Unfortunately, I missed the first half last night, because of my night class, but I'm sure the whole broadcast was great entertainment.