Barack Obama's Speech: An Assessment

Even his diehard opponents will admit that Barack Obama, for months the presumptive and, as of last night, the actual Democratic nominee, rarely puts a foot wrong along the campaign trail. While some have criticized his rhetorical style as bloodless and vague, it is clearly a choice, the result of a calculated decision by a remarkably intelligent politician with masterful instincts

And so it was surprising, to say the least, to see Obama make not one but a dozen or more missteps during what was, by media acclamation, the most important speech of his life.

First of all, while it must have seemed like brilliant idea to have the hugely popular Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps carry Senator Obama onto the stage, even a cursory rehearsal should have revealed that the best way for Phelps to do so was piggy-back not in an over-the-shoulder fireman's carry. As it was, the first thing the audience saw of their candidate was his rear end. Even once Phelps began to walk toward the podium and Senator Obama began waving to the crowd, the entire procedure seemed ungainly and somehow undignified. That Obama slipped and almost fell when Phelps set him down didn't help, despite the two men's labored effort to laugh it off.

The Illinois Senator always looks sleek, fit, and clean-cut, as he did in Denver on Thursday night. But, in an apparent response to the flag-pin controversy from earlier this summer, his suit jacket was lined with a Stars-and-Stripes patterned satin, which he made a point of flashing on several occasions in a silly, showboat display. The leather sandals were a poor choice of a different sort, not flashy, but seemingly a reference to Mr. Obama's deep support among academics and intellectuals, a group he would be well-advised to distance himself from before the general election in November. It was an outfit befitting the mid-80s Elton John from the ankles up and a Bard professor on sabbatical in Morocco from the ankles down. Even a presidential contender who is campaigning on a platform of change, (one might say especially one who is campaigning on a platform of change) must know how to avoid distracting voters from his message with his wardrobe.

Perhaps Mr. Obama should get some fashion advice from his photogenic wife, Michelle, whose speech on Monday night was greeted with almost universal acclaim, and who looked elegant and cool -- "First Lady-like" for lack of a better term -- last night. However, surely the man behind her in the t-shirt with the faded image of the Zig-Zag Rolling Paper man could have been seated elsewhere rather than conspicuously over Mrs. Obama's shoulder. Or, if he could not have been moved, at least he could have been asked not to spend so much time fiddling with his BlackBerry and then dozing. The Obamas' two daughters looked poised and adorable, as always.

The corporate tie-ins are probably the aspect of last night's speech likely to draw the most fire from late night comedians looking for a cheap shot. The lengthy PowerPoint presentation from Dennis Dinsmore, the Vice President for Communications of Invesco, that preceded Obama's speech was little more than a sales pitch couched in manipulatively patriotic language. However, the stadium does belong to Invesco and, one supposes, a few trade-offs were necessary in order to secure the venue for the night. Mr. Obama's ostentatiously placed Coca-Cola cup from which he sipped repeatedly (despite never appearing to break a sweat) was intrusive and less justifiable. Viewers have become used to seeing this sort of product placement on "American Idol" or during NASCAR races, but this is the first time a nominee from a major party has plumbed the depths of corporate underwriting. (John Anderson, a third party candidate, did agree to allow his 1980 campaign to be sponsored by Chrysler -- a publicity stunt that ultimately backfired for both Anderson and the carmaker.)

On a contrarian note, this viewer found the signs with "CHANGE" written on one side in white block letters over a black background and "CHANEL" on the other, which were distributed to the crowd and seem destined to become big sellers on eBay, amusing and clever. The Obama people can seem deathly serious at times and the prestige fashion brand's participation was a welcome playful note, unlike the repeated mentions of the new NBC fall lineup that the candidate was obliged (for a reported $10 million) to work into the speech itself. These were invariably forced and ham-fisted.

Before Mr. Obama left the stadium, mash-ups of different awkward moments from last night had already made their way to YouTube. For some, the most embarrassing incident occurred when a member of Obama's Secret Service detail accidentally walked into a plant and fell off the stage just as the senator was describing the hardships of ordinary Americans; for others it was when singer Michael McDonald was heard using the toilet on an open microphone as Mr. Obama spoke about the challenges we face abroad. But surely the introduction of the past five losing Democratic candidates, starting with the extremely frail George McGovern, who then rose to the stage on small disc-shaped elevators, would make anyone's list of unintentionally amusing lowlights. There they were: McGovern, Walter Mondale, Michael Dukakis, Al Gore, and John Kerry, one more awkward and uncomfortable than the next, rising, giving a quick wave, and then being abruptly lowered again.

Any political speech has both text and an infinite number of layered subtexts. The dominant open question of the evening was how aggressively Senator Obama would attack his Republican opponent, Senator John McCain of Arizona. Although he has largely eschewed the call-and-response cadence of the black church, in this case Mr. Obama played a verbal game with the crowd by inviting them to shout "Don't ask and don't tell!" in response to a series of rhetorical questions. "How," Senator Obama wondered, "would John McCain cut taxes and lower the deficit?" "Don't ask and don't tell!" shouted the crowd. "How can John McCain cut our dependence on foreign oil without upsetting the oil companies who back him?" "Don't ask and don't tell!" And so on.

While the 80,000 people packed in to Invesco Stadium clearly enjoyed the audience participation, the implication seemed to be that, like so many politicians, Senator McCain has a secret homosexual past, a charge McCain appeared to take seriously enough to rebut by asking a 38-year-old Playboy Playmate from Alaska to be his running mate earlier today.

An appeal to pet owners complete with a lengthy description of what he would do, if elected, to improve the lives of America's dogs and cats was an equally audacious gambit. It was effective, no doubt, for those who believe that government has certain responsibilities to all Americans, not just humans, while others surely saw the expansion of, for instance, a federal program to guarantee student loans for dog grooming school as needless pandering. Other elements of the speech were unequivocal disasters, such as a joke about invading Uruguay that fell flat and then drew an angry response from the Uruguayan government.

Though Obama has lately taken to having a glass of beer and a shot of whiskey (a "beer and a bump," as campaign manager David Axelrod calls it) before every speech, as part of an effort to burnish his Everyman credentials, the senator seemed utterly unimpaired last night. Gone was the weaving, stumbling, maudlin Obama who had stopped his motorcade to give an impromptu 2 A.M. lecture to a road crew repairing a water main in Billings, Montana only three nights before. In his place was a man who had clearly learned how to hold his liquor.

Finally, it must be said that how you felt about the speech depended in part on how you experienced it. Those who watched on television were barraged with constant restless cutaways to young women in the crowd flashing their breasts along with the morbidly obese couples in cowboy hats who are an inexplicable staple of all political conventions, Republican and Democratic. One brief shot of the crowd did appear to capture a murder taking place, though no body was found. Denver police are investigating.

If, instead, you had the privilege of watching the speech in the stadium, it is likely that, despite the many miscues and errors, your eyes were filled with tears at the end. That politicians can still make us cry with joy, with sadness, with hope, with rage or with an overpowering need to urinate is one of the most reassuring constants of our cynical age.

Comments

[TommyMcCarthy]

Lighten up gang,

I spun up this post because I thought Sen. Obama did remarkably well in his acceptance speech.....and was curious as to what "mis-steps" Mr. Kimball might be alluding to.

It's satire......ya' know......for fun.......­...remembe­r fun??

I found the post pretty funny.........I'd venture to say Sen. O himself might also.

Great post!
tm

[leftoflate]

Billy,
Thank you. I kept thinking that your rendition was actually closer to the truth than those I read by D. Broder, D. Brooks, and D. Milbank. At least yours was humorous.

[littlepuffycloud]

OMG...you made me laugh..thanks I needed that.

[dct1999]

Nice try, but it just isn't that funny.

[jhNY]

The humorlessness of the disciples can be counted on always.

[Oldchef]

After the first hour of the first night of the convention, I switched to CSPAN. I wanted to hear the speeches, not bloviators on the cable channels telling me what they thought I should understand from the speeches. The same applies here.

[Texas4Obama]

I did the same thing.
The other channels didn't show the majority of the speeches like C-SPAN did. The other channels had too many talking heads that used the airtime to hear themselves talk!

[snarkyspice]

Well, you made me laugh. That was funny :)

Thanks!

[placeyourvote]

I didn't get what you are writing about.

But to stay energized. Barack's speech was the best speech of the convention, followed by Hillary's ,then, Ted Kennedy, Bill Clinton, John Kerry, Al gore, Wow, Barney Smith, just awesome democratics, awesome, give yourselves a hand, and not lets get to work.

Cherly Crow, Will I Am, the music after Obama's speech really put me in a great mood. I am excited.

[jhNY]

It's a joke, son.

[Mojane]

Irony, humor, wit, fun stuff. Get it now?

[nomobull]

true sarcasm

[Fenianheart]

I have NO idea what this is about. I guess that means that the speech was so powerful, the speaker so erudite that all of my attention was focused on his words.

[jhNY]

It's a joke, son.

[edwarvir]

Son I missed the joke. There wasn't a darn thing funny about his
speech, except one line about Methuselah!

[castlerider]

That was silly; but it still made me laugh, knowing it's easy to compare this to a report on his speech by a media pundit like David Brooks or those idiots on the AP news wire.
It really is hilarious what they deem so important, but overlook the real depth of what the man said that night. Me, I still get my goosbumps, and no way I'm losing 'em on those losers.

I like the part you mentioned previous candidates rising up accidently on the elevator, like Paul's uncle on Hard Day's Night... That cracked me up.

[MegWe]

Is this supposed to be humorous ???? Huh?

[PlantGod72]

Funny? Not.........

[jhNY]

Oh, but it was!

[We Mortals]

Humor is not a required course at Harvard, but never has it been more sorely missed.

[calihousewife]

This country needs CHANEL and CHANGE!

[army193]

Humor will always have its place in America that's why we love war....The joke has always been I want to have a beer with my President or because he was a POW and didn't have a chair or table...Hey it was only 58,000 dead that will never have the table and chair or 455,000 injured back, oh when was that? Hey it's only 4,150 dead soldiers in Iraq and just 314 in Afghanistan and hey just maybe over 100,000 injured but who is counting it just a joke.