From the moment he delivered the keynote address at the Democratic convention in 2004, there was no doubt that Barack Obama was one of the great orators of the age. Since then, he has demonstrated again and again that instinctive grace, sterling purity of purpose, and unmatched ability to build a ladder of language that invited everyone to climb up. Two decades of that eloquence makes it difficult to single out any one speech by President Obama as “the best.”
But no speech he ever delivered was more passionate, more direct, or more consequential than the one he delivered on Wednesday night. Sixteen years after that first speech introduced Obama to the nation, he came back to save that nation. It wasn’t an extremely lengthy speech. It wasn’t a speech that was filled with metaphor or concepts. It was not saddled with baroque turns of phrase or elaborate metaphors. It was pure. It was honest. It was simple in the best possible way. It was a genuine “clarion call” to elect Joe Biden and push back the threat of Donald Trump. And on that single topic, it was twenty minutes of fire.
The speech began modestly, as great things do, with a brief civics lesson about the writing of the Constitution and the role that the presidency plays as the one office that is elected by all the people of the 50 states. But it was when Obama moved into how Donald Trump has filled that role that simplicity turned into a honest measure of the man now occupying the White House.
“I never expected that my successor would embrace my vision or continue my policies. I did hope, for the sake of our country, that Donald Trump might show some interest in taking the job seriously; that he might come to feel the weight of the office and discover some reverence for the democracy that had been placed in his care.
But he never did. For close to four years now, he's shown no interest in putting in the work; no interest in finding common ground; no interest in using the awesome power of his office to help anyone but himself and his friends; no interest in treating the presidency as anything but one more reality show that he can use to get the attention he craves.
Donald Trump hasn't grown into the job because he can't. And the consequences of that failure are severe. 170,000 Americans dead. Millions of jobs gone while those at the top take in more than ever. Our worst impulses unleashed, our proud reputation around the world badly diminished, and our democratic institutions threatened like never before.”
It’s difficult to even provide outtakes from the speech, because it is such a well-constructed speech. It builds on itself, driving that through line, making the impact of each paragraph not just lean on what was said before, but provide a step for what comes next.
When President Obama turned from Trump to Joe Biden, he was equally effective in making the case for his friend and colleague. And if the end of that segment drove home the idea that Biden is the Anti-Trump, that’s because he is.
“That empathy, that decency, the belief that everybody counts -- that's who Joe is.” ...
“For eight years, Joe was the last one in the room whenever I faced a big decision. He made me a better president—and he's got the character and the experience to make us a better country.”
This succinct summation of Biden was followed by a equally uncomplicated measure of Kamala Harris. From there, President Obama moved directly into talking about the practical steps that Biden and Harris would take to restore the nation, brush back Trump’s destructive efforts, and create a better future.
“Joe and Kamala will restore our standing in the world—and as we've learned from this pandemic, that matters. Joe knows the world, and the world knows him. He knows that our true strength comes from setting an example the world wants to follow. A nation that stands with democracy, not dictators. A nation that can inspire and mobilize others to overcome threats like climate change, terrorism, poverty, and disease.”
The intensity of the speech did not lag in its final third. Instead President Obama made clear the unmatched stakes of the election, and the need for everyone to be not just a spectator, but a participant in saving the nation.
“Democracy was never meant to be transactional—you give me your vote; I make everything better. It requires an active and informed citizenry. So I am also asking you to believe in your own ability—to embrace your own responsibility as citizens -- to make sure that the basic tenets of our democracy endure.
Because that's what at stake right now. Our democracy.”
For this final section of the speech, it wasn’t President’ Obama’s voice that thundered, so much as his words. He referenced John Lewis, noted the reasons that some have lost hope, or faith, with the nation, and returned again to the stakes of what will happen in just over two months.
“They know they can't win you over with their policies. So they're hoping to make it as hard as possible for you to vote, and to convince you that your vote doesn't matter. That's how they win.” … “That's how a democracy withers, until it's no democracy at all. We can't let that happen. Do not let them take away your power. Don't let them take away your democracy. Make a plan right now for how you're going to get involved and vote. Do it as early as you can and tell your family and friends how they can vote too.”
Commentators on Wednesday evening fanned themselves and pearl-clutched over the idea that President Obama had “attacked” his successor and used language that was “unprecedented.” Of course, to do so they ignored the fact that Donald Trump has attacked Barack Obama almost daily, leveling charges at him that are baseless, racist, and childish. That Trump has never delivered his false charges in the way that Obama did on in this speech is simple enough—Donald Trump hasn't because he can't.
He doesn’t have President Obama’s honesty, his skill, his intelligence, his pure gravitas. And just because the speech was focused on the danger of Donald Trump, doesn’t mean that President Obama did not offer us that ladder to climb up to a better nation.
“To the young people who led us this summer, telling us we need to be better—in so many ways, you are this country's dreams fulfilled. Earlier generations had to be persuaded that everyone has equal worth. For you, it's a given—a conviction. And what I want you to know is that for all its messiness and frustrations, your system of self-government can be harnessed to help you realize those convictions.
You can give our democracy new meaning. You can take it to a better place. You're the missing ingredient—the ones who will decide whether or not America becomes the country that fully lives up to its creed.”
It’ll be for historians to determine if the statements made from Philadelphia were President Barack Obama’s best speech. For everyone watching last night, and everyone reading today, the only certainty that we need to do is listen … and get to work.
