![\"https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File%3AInauguration-01-20-2009.jpg;](\"https:\/\/wp-media.patheos.com\/blogs\/sites\/533\/2017\/01\/Inauguration-01-20-2009.jpg\")
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Point #1: \u00a0Obama\u2019s inaugural speech was written by a professional speechwriter, Jon Favreau<\/a>. \u00a0A very young professional speechwriter, to be sure, but one who became fully absorbed in the task of crafting inspirational speeches for Obama during his campaign. \u00a0Donald Trump, by all reports<\/a>, wrote his speech himself. \u00a0And it shows: \u00a0there is none of the careful crafting, the flowery use of language, the literary flourishes that we expect from these sort of grand speeches. \u00a0The speech is instead, pedestrian, as anything that you could imagine that Trump would write, would be.<\/p>\n So did Trump have an obligation to craft a more lofty speech? \u00a0Maybe. \u00a0It feels like there\u2019s an empty space in the \u201ccollection of lofty inaugural speeches.\u201d \u00a0Why didn\u2019t he? \u00a0Was it narcissism? \u00a0Did he think he could produce something just as literary as is predecessors\u2019 speechwriters? \u00a0Or did he intentionally decide that, to signal the change that he would bring, he would break with this tradition?<\/p>\n (Update: \u00a0since I started drafting this post, reports appeared<\/a> that Steve Bannon and Steven Miller wrote the speech. \u00a0Miller is credited as having written his prior speeches, but he\u2019s chiefly identified as \u201csenior advisor,\u201d not as a professional speechwriter. \u00a0So was it an intentional decision to avoid \u201cliterary\u201d language by declining to hire a professional speechwriter? \u00a0Did Trump and his team just not recognize the difference? \u00a0Or did he not have an prospective speechwriting candidates available to him?)<\/p>\n But let\u2019s look at the speeches themselves: \u00a0Obama\u2019s 2009 address<\/a> vs. Trump\u2019s speech<\/a> (it hardly seems to qualify as an \u201caddress\u201d).<\/p>\n Obama starts off very darkly, describing the situation a that of \u201cgathering clouds and raging storms.\u201d \u00a0Namely,<\/p>\n That we are in the midst of crisis is now well understood. Our nation is at war against a far-reaching network of violence and hatred. Our economy is badly weakened, a consequence of greed and irresponsibility on the part of some, but also our collective failure to make hard choices and prepare the nation for a new age. Homes have been lost, jobs shed, businesses shuttered. Our health care is too costly, our schools fail too many \u2014 and each day brings further evidence that the ways we use energy strengthen our adversaries and threaten our planet.<\/p>\n These are the indicators of crisis, subject to data and statistics. Less measurable, but no less profound, is a sapping of confidence across our land; a nagging fear that America\u2019s decline is inevitable, that the next generation must lower its sights.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Sure, you might say, Obama had good reason to start in this manner \u2014 we were facing down the Great Recession \u00a0But this is only one part of the problems he ticks off. \u00a0The \u201cfar-reaching network of violence and hatred\u201d? \u00a0Iraq was doing comparatively well when Obama took office \u2014 this was pre-ISIS, after all. \u00a0Too-costly healthcare was not a Great Recession-specific issue. \u00a0School failures? \u00a0\u201cThe ways we use energy\u201d? \u00a0\u201cSapping of confidence\u201d? \u00a0Sounds pretty dark.<\/p>\n He then says (and I\u2019m typing this and wondering about the oddness of crediting a speech to an individual because he was the one to deliver it, even though he didn\u2019t actually pen the words) that \u201cwe have chosen hope over fear, unity of purpose over conflict and discord,\u201d and says that in the same way as our risk-taking predecessors earned greatness, so we too will \u201cbegin again the work of remaking America.\u201d<\/p>\n And what is the agenda?<\/p>\n For everywhere we look, there is work to be done. The state of our economy calls for action, bold and swift. And we will act, not only to create new jobs, but to lay a new foundation for growth. We will build the roads and bridges, the electric grids and digital lines that feed our commerce and bind us together. We\u2019ll restore science to its rightful place, and wield technology\u2019s wonders to raise health care\u2019s quality and lower its cost. We will harness the sun and the winds and the soil to fuel our cars and run our factories. And we will transform our schools and colleges and universities to meet the demands of a new age. All this we can do. All this we will do.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n It\u2019s a list of (government spending) ambitions with a jab at the GOP (\u201crestore science to its rightful place\u201d) in the middle.<\/p>\n He promises:<\/p>\n The question we ask today is not whether our government is too big or too small, but whether it works \u2014 whether it helps families find jobs at a decent wage, care they can afford, a retirement that is dignified. Where the answer is yes, we intend to move forward. Where the answer is no, programs will end. And those of us who manage the public\u2019s dollars will be held to account, to spend wisely, reform bad habits, and do our business in the light of day, because only then can we restore the vital trust between a people and their government.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Which, of course, 8 years and Solyndra later seems like a pleasant fantasy.<\/p>\n As to foreign policy, he tells us that<\/p>\n earlier generations faced down fascism and communism not just with missiles and tanks, but with the sturdy alliances and enduring convictions,<\/p><\/blockquote>\n and announces that he will go about the business of exerting power through setting a good example, as well as leaving Iraq and \u201cforg[ing] a hard-earned peace in Afghanistan\u201d \u2014 again, strange words to read 8 years after the fact.<\/p>\n As always, he needs to announce that \u201cour patchwork heritage is a strength, not a weakness.\u201d \u00a0You know what I think of that<\/a> \u2014 it is a liability, something that at best we can hope to overcome, but, all other things being equal, weakens our society compared to a monocultural society \u2014 and Obama seems to acknowledge that when he says that we hope that \u201cthe lines of tribe shall soon dissolve.\u201d<\/p>\n He repeats (begins?) several themes: \u00a0to Muslims he says that \u201cwe seek a new way forward,\u201d to dictators he says that \u201cyou are on the wrong side of history\u201d, to \u201cthe people of poor nations, we pledge to work alongside you to make your farms flourish and let clean waters flow; to nourish starved bodies and feed hungry minds.\u201d \u00a0(Odd that he thinks of poor countries as entirely agrarian, or having an agrarian future.)<\/p>\n He then calls up the image of the sacrificing American soldier \u201cbecause they embody the spirit of service \u2014 a willingness to find meaning in something greater than themselves\u201d \u2014 and says that this \u201cspirit of service\u201d and a \u201cnew era of responsibility\u201d is needed for our future prosperity to unfold.<\/p>\n How does this compare to Trump\u2019s words?<\/p>\n Trump\u2019s speech starts of very \u201cHunger Games-ian\u201d \u2014 the capitol has flourished while the people have suffered, and<\/p>\n we are transferring power from Washington, D.C. and giving it back to you, the American People.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n What does this mean? \u00a0Is Trump planning on devolving federal power to the state or local level? \u00a0No, not really. \u00a0Is he planning on shedding federal power? \u00a0That\u2019s not a specific promise of his.<\/p>\n For too long, a small group in our nation\u2019s Capital has reaped the rewards of government while the people have borne the cost. Washington flourished \u2014 but the people did not share in its wealth. Politicians prospered \u2014 but the jobs left, and the factories closed.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n True enough that D.C., and its lobbyists and government officials and all organizations who locate their mean that the metro area is the wealthiest in the nation.<\/p>\n And Trump repeats his campaign theme: \u00a0\u201cThe forgotten men and women of our country will be forgotten no longer.\u201d \u00a0(The term \u201cforgotten man\u201d has a long history<\/a>; was Trump intentionally drawing on it?)<\/p>\n You came by the tens of millions to become part of a historic movement the likes of which the world has never seen before. At the center of this movement is a crucial conviction: that a nation exists to serve its citizens.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Is this a \u201chistoric movement\u201d? \u00a0Well, it depends on definitions; certainly there hasn\u2019t been a prior case of Americans electing a man to the presidency with no elective office experience, so sure, I guess it\u2019s \u201chistoric\u201d in a broad sense. \u00a0But what does it mean for \u201ca nation [to] exist to serve its citizens\u201d? \u00a0Presumably what he means is that the government should be aimed at helping the citizenry rather than enriching those in power.<\/p>\n Then he moves to the section which earns him so much criticism: \u00a0his list of failures we need to remedy:<\/p>\n But for too many of our citizens, a different reality exists: Mothers and children trapped in poverty in our inner cities; rusted-out factories scattered like tombstones across the landscape of our nation; an education system flush with cash, but which leaves our young and beautiful students deprived of knowledge; and the crime and gangs and drugs that have stolen too many lives and robbed our country of so much unrealized potential. . . .<\/p>\n For many decades, we\u2019ve enriched foreign industry at the expense of American industry; subsidized the armies of other countries while allowing for the very sad depletion of our military; we\u2019ve defended other nation\u2019s borders while refusing to defend our own; and spent trillions of dollars overseas while America\u2019s infrastructure has fallen into disrepair and decay.<\/p>\n We\u2019ve made other countries rich while the wealth, strength, and confidence of our country has disappeared over the horizon.<\/p>\n One by one, the factories shuttered and left our shores, with not even a thought about the millions upon millions of American workers left behind.<\/p>\n The wealth of our middle class has been ripped from their homes and then redistributed across the entire world.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Is Trump right or wrong? \u00a0Various news sites (e.g., the USA Today<\/a>) purported to \u201cfact check\u201d the address with statements like \u201cpoverty rates aren\u2019t really so bad\u201d or \u201cactually, schools need more money\u201d or \u201ccrime rates were lower\u00a0in 2015 than at their peak\u201d which are all missing the point that these are ongoing issues. \u00a0Poverty hasn\u2019t been \u201cfixed\u201d and in any other context Democrats would be decrying poverty rates. \u00a0Factories have closed and former factory workers are struggling. \u00a0We have massively ramped up education spending, decade after decade, and spend more than virtually any other country, but without seeing the desired results. \u00a0Father Pfleger could tell you that crime is a serious problem in his part of Chicago. \u00a0We have historically provided a \u201cnuclear umbrella\u201d for many countries, at great cost, and we have spent far greater than 2% of GDP on our military, while most NATO nations refuse to meet this alliance-wide target. \u00a0We have indeed refused to enforce our immigration laws, with year after year of words like \u201cthey\u2019re just doing jobs Americans won\u2019t do.\u201d \u00a0Globalization has brought wealth to, perhaps not the country of China as a whole, but many individual Chinese, in some cases to a staggering degree, through their massive growth in manufacturing, and outsourcing of white-collar jobs to places like India has happened on just as stunning a scale (I can remember back to a promise by my company\u2019s former CEO, that no jobs would be lost, which was soon forgotten, as our U.S. offices have shrunk in size considerably) while American wages have stagnated. \u00a0 It may be true that our unemployment rate is down at the moment, it may be true that Trump is sloppy in his statements, but there are real, on-going, long-term problems that Trump claims he will fix.<\/p>\n But what\u2019s the remedy? \u00a0Does Trump have the answers? \u00a0He claims the solution is \u201cAmerica First.\u201d<\/p>\n America First will drive every trade decision, every foreign policy decision, every immigration decision. \u00a0America First will mean that we will stop \u201cother countries [from] making our products, stealing our companies, and destroying our jobs.\u201d<\/p>\n And what about our divisions?<\/p>\n At the bedrock of our politics will be a total allegiance to the United States of America, and through our loyalty to our country, we will rediscover our loyalty to each other.<\/p>\n When you open your heart to patriotism, there is no room for prejudice. The Bible tells us, \u201cHow good and pleasant it is when God\u2019s people live together in unity.\u201d<\/p>\n We must speak our minds openly, debate our disagreements honestly, but always pursue solidarity.<\/p>\n When America is united, America is totally unstoppable. . .<\/p>\n A new national pride will stir our souls, lift our sights, and heal our divisions.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n And then?<\/p>\n Do not let anyone tell you it cannot be done. No challenge can match the heart and fight and spirit of America.<\/p>\n We will not fail. Our country will thrive and prosper again.<\/p>\n We stand at the birth of a new millennium, ready to unlock the mysteries of space, to free the Earth from the miseries of disease, and to harness the energies, industries and technologies of tomorrow.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Obama promised that the government, paired with hard-working, others-serving Americans, would fix everything. \u00a0He didn\u2019t have any single one grand principle, but called for spending on alternative energy, \u201cbeing nice\u201d in foreign policy, and a combination of new spending (schools, roads) but also called for a \u201cnew era of responsibility\u201d \u2014 which seemed to be a term that he wanted to coin and carry forward, and was also the title of a speech a month later<\/a>, not about Americans generally, but about responsible government spending. \u00a0It was a grab bag\u00a0of actions, some of which played out in the stimulus bill, the new education spending, the solar subsidies, and some of which never really went any further \u2014 health care\u2019s cost has not been reduced by technology, nor have universities been transformed (except for the online universities which developed independently).<\/p>\n Trump promises a specific chain of events: \u00a0the government will start looking out for the American people, this will fill Americans with pride in being American, which will overcome divisions of race, region, religion, and bring about an optimism which will, in turn bring about\/extend prosperity.<\/p>\n But it\u2019s absurd. \u00a0You cannot make \u201cAmerica First\u201d the entire organizing principle of your administration. \u00a0There are too many decisions which are purely matters of internal policy (healthcare, education, criminal justice, social policy in general, taxes, etc.), and decisions related to foreign policy and globalization have to be made with an awareness that actions that seem to be protective of our citizens can have unwanted consequences. \u00a0Isolationism, whether the 1930s version of letting Europe handle Hitler, or the recent\u00a0version of withdrawing from Iraq and Afghanistan, letting Iran and Russia gain power in the Middle East, and letting everything fall to pieces, might seem like a way to \u201cput America First\u201d by cutting our military spending and the losses of the lives of our soldiers, but there will be profound consequences for years to come.<\/p>\n And I\u2019m not going to support or reject the\u00a0long-held conventional wisdom that tariffs will only damage the country that imposes them, but just say that you can\u2019t make \u201cAmerica First\u201d a blanket policy. \u00a0Yes, the \u201cperfect storm\u201d of globalization, automation, and immigration have had massive impacts on our economy, to the benefit of the wealthy and educated but with harms for others. \u00a0Yes, the poor benefit from being able to buy cheap products imported from China, and it\u2019s difficult to somehow try to construct the alternate scenario in which we made these in the U.S. \u00a0Yes, it is in our long-term national interest that other nations are prosperous, because poor countries are unstable countries, though, to be sure, the threat from China is growing as its prosperity increases and its ambitions on the world stage increase. \u00a0At the same time, every country, even in a free trade environment, has various protectionist measures, and I\u2019m sure that neither you nor I know exactly what protectionist measures already exist here or elsewhere, but it\u2019s my understanding that these are plentiful. \u00a0(Here\u2019s an undated document<\/a> put out by the Democrats on Japan\u2019s trade barriers.) \u00a0Even my old Jane Tax Plan has a tariff-like component<\/a> \u2014 that is, I would eliminate the corporate income tax as we know it today, and instead tax corporate money when it flows out of the company (dividends, compensation, etc.) or when it leaves the country (foreign companies sending revenues back, or American companies using their cash to build overseas). \u00a0But these are complex, with a lot of moving pieces, and only a small part of the overall puzzle.<\/p>\n And while it\u2019s true that a group that\u2019s united in a common cause tends to see its internal divisions diminish (and I just tried to hunt around in the ol\u2019 blog for a piece I wrote about that, with respect to the military, and its ability to succeed in integration because of its common purpose), I don\u2019t see how Trump will succeed in motivating Americans to \u201copen [their] heart[s] to patriotism.\u201d \u00a0It\u2019s a nice thought, but how does he imagine we\u2019d get there?<\/p>\n So I leave you with that: \u00a0how, specifically, would you create more unity among Americans? \u00a0How would you create this world in which Americans sacrifice for each other, not just for their own \u201ctribe\u201d and in which there is \u201cno room for prejudice\u201d?<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Image: \u00a0https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File%3AInauguration-01-20-2009.jpg; By whitehouse.gov [CC BY 3.0 (http:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons. \u00a0This is the Obama inauguration because the Trump inauguration wasn\u2019t available on Wikimedia Commons.<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Point #1: \u00a0Obama\u2019s inaugural speech was written by a professional speechwriter, Jon Favreau. \u00a0A very young professional speechwriter, to be sure, but one who became fully absorbed in the task of crafting inspirational speeches for Obama during his campaign. \u00a0Donald Trump, by all reports, wrote his speech himself. \u00a0And it shows: \u00a0there is none of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2209,"featured_media":5885,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[532,325],"class_list":["post-5881","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-inaugural-speech","tag-trump"],"yoast_head":"\n