Power in Words

June 15, 2010

In his foreword, Sorenson, JFK's special counsel, suggests that President Obama's campaign speeches rank him with the oratorical greats, "the first indication that he would rank Jefferson, Lincoln, Franklin Roosevelt and Kennedy."

While some readers may believe such fulsome praise to be exaggerated, this is an impressive collection of 18 memorable speeches that mark milestones in Obama's rise to political power. Berry (History/Univ. of Pennsylvania; And Justice for All: The United States Commission on Civil Rights and the Continuing Struggle for Freedom in America) and former Clinton speechwriter Gottheimer (editor: Ripples of Hope: Great American Civil Rights Speeches, 2003) begin with Obama's speech at a Chicago antiwar rally in 2002, when he voiced his opposition to going to war with Iraq. The book ends with his election-night speech, in which he mentioned Ann Nixon Cooper, a 106-year-old African-American civil-rights fighter who voted for him: "She was there for the buses in Montgomery, the hoses in Birmingham, a bridge in Selma, and a preacher from Atlanta who told a people that 'We Shall Overcome'...she knows how America can change. Yes, we can." While the authors acknowledge the cooperation of "Obama's clan of speech writers"—a team pulled together beginning with the president's senatorial campaign and still with him in the White House—for an inside view of how the speeches were assembled, with Obama intimately involved in the process from the first draft to the final product, Berry and Gottheimer bring their own depth of insight to an analysis of each of the speeches and the vision they embody. "Few other contemporary politicians," they write, "have possessed his gift for writing and delivery."

A book to savor and return to for subsequent readings.

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October 1, 2010
Whatever his policies and actions, President Obama is widely regarded as a powerful speaker. Berry and Gottheimer offer a collection of 18 of Obamas most important speeches, illustrating his ascent as a politician and subtle changes in style and consistency of messageone of unity, responsibility, and change. The editors include historical context for changes in style, delivery, use of speechwriters, and media for presidential speeches since George Washington and how Obama fits into the tradition. The collection begins with Obamas speech against the war in Iraq in 2002 when he was still a state senator; it also includes his keynote address at the 2004 Democratic National Convention that launched him into the national spotlight; his presidential campaign announcement in Springfield, Illinois, in 2007; his speech on race in Philadelphia; and concludes with his election night speech in Grant Park in Chicago. The editors precede each speech with commentary from speechwriters, journalists, and political analysts on the behind-the-scenes context for the speech and how it illustrates Obamas development as a candidate. A revealing look at the power of words.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2010, American Library Association.)