GALVANIZED FOR ACTION?
Will it do all that was hoped?
Maybe some.
Here's a test: name three to five critical points about the bill. Can you?
Don't laugh. Remember how far Bush got with his "an Iraq that can govern itself and sustain itself and defend itself"? 12 words. (!) Don't forget, also, that the target audience is people who think Medicare existed since the time of George Washington.
Did he raise the bar on the competition?
He did well enough, getting impassioned, without getting self-righteous (even as much as FDR). He could have said that those not batting down the mis-information are actually supporting false-witness. Now, that might have raised the bar more than 'call them out'. Afterall, this is not a miscellaneous product ad campaign, but the lives of citizens in the rub.
Otherwise, galvanizing is a good word, for much of it.
Given that listeners will likely feel the galvanizing parts, based on how many already favor some type of reform or even universal care, I'm not sure people will understand why exactly there is nothing enacted yet and what they need to do. Reagan used to ask people to help him, to go over the heads of the Washington establishment to get his agenda through.
Obama could have done more to establish his credibility. He's a young President. Afterall, he belongs to the party that brought Medicare and Social Security and much else besides, and he could tap into that and say, in effect, 'trust me' and do not listen to the crazy notions that you will lose your coverage, your doctor, or your options.
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
Speech Qua Speech
