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March 1, 2022: state of the union address, about this speech.

March 01, 2022

President Joe Biden delivers his first State of the Union address. As is typical for State of the Union addresses, his speech covers many topics. He begins with a pledge to defend the country of Ukraine from the Russian invasion and details the steps the United States has taken with its NATO allies to thwart President Vladimir Putin of Russia. He then talks about the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and the efforts that the US government has taken to help the American people. He also advocates for lower prescription drug prices, especially for insulin, and lays out his plan to help support American workers and businesses. 

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SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE NANCY PELOSI: Members of Congress, I have the high privilege and the distinct honor of presenting to you the President of the United States. 

THE PRESIDENT: Madam Speaker, Madam Vice President, our First Lady and Second Gentleman. Members of Congress and the Cabinet. Justices of the Supreme Court. My fellow Americans.  

Last year COVID-19 kept us apart. This year we are finally together again. 

Tonight, we meet as Democrats, Republicans, and Independents. But most importantly as Americans. 

With a duty to one another to the American people to the Constitution. 

And with an unwavering resolve that freedom will always triumph over tyranny. 

Six days ago, Russia’s Vladimir Putin sought to shake the foundations of the free world thinking he could make it bend to his menacing ways. But he badly miscalculated. 

He thought he could roll into Ukraine and the world would roll over. Instead he met a wall of strength he never imagined. 

He met the Ukrainian people. 

From President Zelenskyy to every Ukrainian, their fearlessness, their courage, their determination, inspires the world. 

Groups of citizens blocking tanks with their bodies. Everyone from students to retirees, teachers turned soldiers defending their homeland. 

In this struggle as President Zelenskyy said in his speech to the European Parliament “Light will win over darkness.” The Ukrainian Ambassador to the United States is here tonight. 

Let each of us here tonight in this Chamber send an unmistakable signal to Ukraine and to the world. 

Please rise if you are able and show that, Yes, we the United States of America stand with the Ukrainian people. 

Throughout our history, we’ve learned this lesson when dictators do not pay a price for their aggression, they cause more chaos.   

They keep moving.   

And the costs and the threats to America and the world keep rising.   

That’s why the NATO Alliance was created to secure peace and stability in Europe after World War 2. 

The United States is a member along with 29 other nations. 

It matters. American diplomacy matters. American resolve matters. 

Putin’s latest attack on Ukraine was premeditated and unprovoked. 

He rejected repeated efforts at diplomacy. 

He thought the West and NATO wouldn’t respond. 

And he thought he could divide us at home. Putin was wrong. We were ready. Here is what we did.   

We prepared extensively and carefully. 

We spent months building a coalition of other freedom-loving nations from Europe and the Americas to Asia and Africa to confront Putin. 

I spent countless hours unifying our European allies. We shared with the world in advance what we knew Putin was planning and precisely how he would try to falsely justify his aggression.  

We countered Russia’s lies with truth.   

And now that he has acted, the free world is holding him accountable. 

Along with twenty-seven members of the European Union including France, Germany, Italy, as well as countries like the United Kingdom, Canada, Japan, Korea, Australia, New Zealand, and many others, even Switzerland. 

We are inflicting pain on Russia and supporting the people of Ukraine. Putin is now isolated from the world more than ever. 

Together with our allies, we are right now enforcing powerful economic sanctions. 

We are cutting off Russia’s largest banks from the international financial system.  

Preventing Russia’s central bank from defending the Russian Ruble, making Putin’s $630 Billion “war fund” worthless.   

We are choking off Russia’s access to technology that will sap its economic strength and weaken its military for years to come.  

Tonight, I say to the Russian oligarchs and corrupt leaders who have bilked billions of dollars off this violent regime, no more. 

The US Department of Justice is assembling a dedicated task force to go after the crimes of Russian oligarchs.  

We are joining with our European allies to find and seize your yachts, your luxury apartments, your private jets. We are coming for your ill-begotten gains. 

And tonight, I am announcing that we will join our allies in closing off American air space to all Russian flights—further isolating Russia and adding an additional squeeze on their economy. The Ruble has lost 30 percent of its value. 

The Russian stock market has lost 40 percent of its value and trading remains suspended. Russia’s economy is reeling, and Putin alone is to blame. 

Together with our allies, we are providing support to the Ukrainians in their fight for freedom. Military assistance. Economic assistance. Humanitarian assistance. 

We are giving more than $1 Billion in direct assistance to Ukraine. 

And we will continue to aid the Ukrainian people as they defend their country and to help ease their suffering.  

Let me be clear, our forces are not engaged and will not engage in conflict with Russian forces in Ukraine.  

Our forces are not going to Europe to fight in Ukraine, but to defend our NATO Allies—in the event that Putin decides to keep moving west.  

For that purpose, we’ve mobilized American ground forces, air squadrons, and ship deployments to protect NATO countries including Poland, Romania, Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia. 

As I have made crystal clear, the United States and our Allies will defend every inch of territory of NATO countries with the full force of our collective power.  

And we remain clear-eyed. The Ukrainians are fighting back with pure courage. But the next few days weeks, months, will be hard on them.  

Putin has unleashed violence and chaos. But while he may make gains on the battlefield, he will pay a continuing high price over the long run. 

And a proud Ukrainian people, who have known 30 years of independence, have repeatedly shown that they will not tolerate anyone who tries to take their country backwards.  

To all Americans, I will be honest with you, as I’ve always promised. A Russian dictator, invading a foreign country, has costs around the world. 

And I’m taking robust action to make sure the pain of our sanctions is targeted at Russia’s economy. And I will use every tool at our disposal to protect American businesses and consumers. 

Tonight, I can announce that the United States has worked with 30 other countries to release 60 million barrels of oil from reserves around the world.  

America will lead that effort, releasing 30 million barrels from our own Strategic Petroleum Reserve.  And we stand ready to do more if necessary, unified with our allies.  

These steps will help blunt gas prices here at home. And I know the news about what’s happening can seem alarming. 

But I want you to know that we are going to be okay. 

When the history of this era is written, Putin’s war on Ukraine will have left Russia weaker and the rest of the world stronger. 

While it shouldn’t have taken something so terrible for people around the world to see what’s at stake, now everyone sees it clearly. 

We see the unity among leaders of nations and a more unified Europe, a more unified West. And we see unity among the people who are gathering in cities in large crowds around the world, even in Russia, to demonstrate their support for Ukraine.  

In the battle between democracy and autocracy, democracies are rising to the moment, and the world is clearly choosing the side of peace and security. 

This is a real test. It’s going to take time. So let us continue to draw inspiration from the iron will of the Ukrainian people. 

To our fellow Ukrainian Americans who forge a deep bond that connects our two nations, we stand with you. 

Putin may circle Kyiv with tanks, but he will never gain the hearts and souls of the Ukrainian people. 

He will never extinguish their love of freedom. He will never weaken the resolve of the free world. 

We meet tonight in an America that has lived through two of the hardest years this nation has ever faced. 

The pandemic has been punishing. 

And so many families are living paycheck to paycheck, struggling to keep up with the rising cost of food, gas, housing, and so much more. 

I understand. 

I remember when my dad had to leave our home in Scranton, Pennsylvania to find work. 

I grew up in a family where if the price of food went up, you felt it. 

That’s why one of the first things I did as President was fight to pass the American Rescue Plan.  

Because people were hurting. We needed to act, and we did. 

Few pieces of legislation have done more in a critical moment in our history to lift us out of crisis. 

It fueled our efforts to vaccinate the nation and combat COVID-19. It delivered immediate economic relief for tens of millions of Americans.  

Helped put food on their table, keep a roof over their heads, and cut the cost of health insurance. 

And as my dad used to say, it gave people a little breathing room. 

And unlike the $2-trillion tax cut passed in the previous administration that benefitted the top 1 percent of Americans, the American Rescue Plan helped working people—and left no one behind. 

And it worked. It created jobs. Lots of jobs. 

In fact—our economy created over 6.5 million new jobs just last year, more jobs created in one year than ever before in the history of America. 

Our economy grew at a rate of 5.7 percent last year, the strongest growth in nearly 40 years, the first step in bringing fundamental change to an economy that hasn’t worked for the working people of this nation for too long.  

For the past 40 years, we were told that if we gave tax breaks to those at the very top, the benefits would trickle down to everyone else. 

But that trickle-down theory led to weaker economic growth, lower wages, bigger deficits, and the widest gap between those at the top and everyone else in nearly a century. 

Vice President Harris and I ran for office with a new economic vision for America. 

Invest in America. Educate Americans. Grow the workforce. Build the economy from the bottom up and the middle out, not from the top down.  

Because we know that when the middle class grows, the poor have a ladder up and the wealthy do very well. 

America used to have the best roads, bridges, and airports on Earth. 

Now our infrastructure is ranked 13 th  in the world. 

We won’t be able to compete for the jobs of the 21 st  Century if we don’t fix that. 

That’s why it was so important to pass the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law—the most sweeping investment to rebuild America in history. 

This was a bipartisan effort, and I want to thank the members of both parties who worked to make it happen. 

We’re done talking about infrastructure weeks. 

We’re going to have an infrastructure decade. 

It is going to transform America and put us on a path to win the economic competition of the 21st Century that we face with the rest of the world—particularly with China.  

As I’ve told Xi Jinping, it is never a good bet to bet against the American people. 

We’ll create good jobs for millions of Americans, modernizing roads, airports, ports, and waterways all across America. 

And we’ll do it all to withstand the devastating effects of the climate crisis and promote environmental justice. 

We’ll build a national network of 500,000 electric vehicle charging stations, begin to replace poisonous lead pipes—so every child—and every American—has clean water to drink at home and at school, provide affordable high-speed internet for every American—urban, suburban, rural, and tribal communities. 

4,000 projects have already been announced. 

And tonight, I’m announcing that this year we will start fixing over 65,000 miles of highway and 1,500 bridges in disrepair. 

When we use taxpayer dollars to rebuild America—we are going to Buy American: buy American products to support American jobs. 

The federal government spends about $600 Billion a year to keep the country safe and secure. 

There’s been a law on the books for almost a century to make sure taxpayers’ dollars support American jobs and businesses. 

Every Administration says they’ll do it, but we are actually doing it. 

We will buy American to make sure everything from the deck of an aircraft carrier to the steel on highway guardrails are made in America. 

But to compete for the best jobs of the future, we also need to level the playing field with China and other competitors. 

That’s why it is so important to pass the Bipartisan Innovation Act sitting in Congress that will make record investments in emerging technologies and American manufacturing. 

Let me give you one example of why it’s so important to pass it. 

If you travel 20 miles east of Columbus, Ohio, you’ll find 1,000 empty acres of land. 

It won’t look like much, but if you stop and look closely, you’ll see a “Field of dreams,” the ground on which America’s future will be built. 

This is where Intel, the American company that helped build Silicon Valley, is going to build its $20 billion semiconductor “mega site.” 

Up to eight state-of-the-art factories in one place, 10,000 new good-paying jobs. 

Some of the most sophisticated manufacturing in the world to make computer chips the size of a fingertip that power the world and our everyday lives. 

Smartphones. The Internet. Technology we have yet to invent. 

But that’s just the beginning. 

Intel’s CEO, Pat Gelsinger, who is here tonight, told me they are ready to increase their investment from $20 billion to $100 billion. 

That would be one of the biggest investments in manufacturing in American history. 

And all they’re waiting for is for you to pass this bill. 

So let’s not wait any longer. Send it to my desk. I’ll sign it.  

And we will really take off. 

And Intel is not alone. 

There’s something happening in America. 

Just look around and you’ll see an amazing story. 

The rebirth of the pride that comes from stamping products “Made in America.” The revitalization of American manufacturing.   

Companies are choosing to build new factories here, when just a few years ago, they would have built them overseas. 

That’s what is happening. Ford is investing $11 billion to build electric vehicles, creating 11,000 jobs across the country. 

GM is making the largest investment in its history—$7 billion to build electric vehicles, creating 4,000 jobs in Michigan. 

All told, we created 369,000 new manufacturing jobs in America just last year. 

Powered by people I’ve met like JoJo Burgess, from generations of union steelworkers from Pittsburgh, who’s here with us tonight. 

As Ohio Senator Sherrod Brown says, “It’s time to bury the label “Rust Belt.” 

It’s time. 

But with all the bright spots in our economy, record job growth and higher wages, too many families are struggling to keep up with the bills.  

Inflation is robbing them of the gains they might otherwise feel. 

I get it. That’s why my top priority is getting prices under control. 

Look, our economy roared back faster than most predicted, but the pandemic meant that businesses had a hard time hiring enough workers to keep up production in their factories. 

The pandemic also disrupted global supply chains. 

When factories close, it takes longer to make goods and get them from the warehouse to the store, and prices go up. 

Look at cars. 

Last year, there weren’t enough semiconductors to make all the cars that people wanted to buy. 

And guess what, prices of automobiles went up. 

So—we have a choice. 

One way to fight inflation is to drive down wages and make Americans poorer.  

I have a better plan to fight inflation. 

Lower your costs, not your wages. 

Make more cars and semiconductors in America. 

More infrastructure and innovation in America. 

More goods moving faster and cheaper in America. 

More jobs where you can earn a good living in America. 

And instead of relying on foreign supply chains, let’s make it in America. 

Economists call it “increasing the productive capacity of our economy.” 

I call it building a better America. 

My plan to fight inflation will lower your costs and lower the deficit. 

Seventeen Nobel laureates in economics say my plan will ease long-term inflationary pressures. Top business leaders and most Americans support my plan. And here’s the plan: 

First—cut the cost of prescription drugs. Just look at insulin. One in ten Americans has diabetes. In Virginia, I met a 13-year-old boy named Joshua Davis.  

He and his dad both have Type 1 diabetes, which means they need insulin every day. Insulin costs about $10 a vial to make.  

But drug companies charge families like Joshua and his dad up to 30 times more. I spoke with Joshua’s mom. 

Imagine what it’s like to look at your child who needs insulin and have no idea how you’re going to pay for it.  

What it does to your dignity, your ability to look your child in the eye, to be the parent you expect to be. 

Joshua is here with us tonight. Yesterday was his birthday. Happy birthday, buddy.  

For Joshua, and for the 200,000 other young people with Type 1 diabetes, let’s cap the cost of insulin at $35 a month so everyone can afford it.  

Drug companies will still do very well. And while we’re at it let Medicare negotiate lower prices for prescription drugs, like the VA already does. 

Look, the American Rescue Plan is helping millions of families on Affordable Care Act plans save $2,400 a year on their health care premiums. Let’s close the coverage gap and make those savings permanent. 

Second—cut energy costs for families an average of $500 a year by combatting climate change.  

Let’s provide investments and tax credits to weatherize your homes and businesses to be energy efficient and you get a tax credit;  

Double America’s clean energy production in solar, wind, and so much more;  

Lower the price of electric vehicles, saving you another $80 a month because you’ll never have to pay at the gas pump again. 

Third—cut the cost of child care. Many families pay up to $14,000 a year for child care per child.  

Middle-class and working families shouldn’t have to pay more than 7 percent of their income for care of young children.  

My plan will cut the cost in half for most families and help parents, including millions of women, who left the workforce during the pandemic because they couldn’t afford child care, to be able to get back to work. 

My plan doesn’t stop there. It also includes home and long-term care. More affordable housing. And Pre-K for every 3- and 4-year-old.  

All of these will lower costs. 

And under my plan, nobody earning less than $400,000 a year will pay an additional penny in new taxes. Nobody.  

The one thing all Americans agree on is that the tax system is not fair. We have to fix it.  

I’m not looking to punish anyone. But let’s make sure corporations and the wealthiest Americans start paying their fair share. 

Just last year, 55 Fortune 500 corporations earned $40 billion in profits and paid zero dollars in federal income tax.  

That’s simply not fair. That’s why I’ve proposed a 15-percent minimum tax rate for corporations. 

We got more than 130 countries to agree on a global minimum tax rate so companies can’t get out of paying their taxes at home by shipping jobs and factories overseas. 

That’s why I’ve proposed closing loopholes so the very wealthy don’t pay a lower tax rate than a teacher or a firefighter.  

So that’s my plan. It will grow the economy and lower costs for families. 

So what are we waiting for? Let’s get this done. And while you’re at it, confirm my nominees to the Federal Reserve, which plays a critical role in fighting inflation.  

My plan will not only lower costs to give families a fair shot, it will lower the deficit. 

The previous Administration not only ballooned the deficit with tax cuts for the very wealthy and corporations, it undermined the watchdogs whose job was to keep pandemic relief funds from being wasted. 

But in my administration, the watchdogs have been welcomed back. 

We’re going after the criminals who stole billions in relief money meant for small businesses and millions of Americans.  

And tonight, I’m announcing that the Justice Department will name a chief prosecutor for pandemic fraud. 

By the end of this year, the deficit will be down to less than half what it was before I took office.  

The only president ever to cut the deficit by more than one trillion dollars in a single year. 

Lowering your costs also means demanding more competition. 

I’m a capitalist, but capitalism without competition isn’t capitalism. 

It’s exploitation—and it drives up prices. 

When corporations don’t have to compete, their profits go up, your prices go up, and small businesses and family farmers and ranchers go under. 

We see it happening with ocean carriers moving goods in and out of America. 

During the pandemic, these foreign-owned companies raised prices by as much as 1,000 percent and made record profits. 

Tonight, I’m announcing a crackdown on these companies overcharging American businesses and consumers. 

And as Wall Street firms take over more nursing homes, quality in those homes has gone down and costs have gone up.  

That ends on my watch. 

Medicare is going to set higher standards for nursing homes and make sure your loved ones get the care they deserve and expect. 

We’ll also cut costs and keep the economy going strong by giving workers a fair shot, provide more training and apprenticeships, hire them based on their skills not degrees. 

Let’s pass the Paycheck Fairness Act and paid leave.  

Raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour and extend the Child Tax Credit, so no one has to raise a family in poverty. 

Let’s increase Pell Grants and increase our historic support of HBCUs, and invest in what Jill—our First Lady who teaches full-time—calls America’s best-kept secret: community colleges. 

And let’s pass the PRO Act when a majority of workers want to form a union—they shouldn’t be stopped.  

When we invest in our workers, when we build the economy from the bottom up and the middle out together, we can do something we haven’t done in a long time: build a better America. 

For more than two years, COVID-19 has impacted every decision in our lives and the life of the nation. 

And I know you’re tired, frustrated, and exhausted. 

But I also know this. 

Because of the progress we’ve made, because of your resilience and the tools we have, tonight I can say we are moving forward safely, back to more normal routines.  

We’ve reached a new moment in the fight against COVID-19, with severe cases down to a level not seen since last July.  

Just a few days ago, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention—the CDC—issued new mask guidelines. 

Under these new guidelines, most Americans in most of the country can now be mask free.   

And based on the projections, more of the country will reach that point across the next couple of weeks. 

Thanks to the progress we have made this past year, COVID-19 need no longer control our lives.  

I know some are talking about “living with COVID-19.” Tonight I say that we will never just accept living with COVID-19. 

We will continue to combat the virus as we do other diseases. And because this is a virus that mutates and spreads, we will stay on guard. 

Here are four common sense steps as we move forward safely.  

First, stay protected with vaccines and treatments. We know how incredibly effective vaccines are. If you’re vaccinated and boosted, you have the highest degree of protection. 

We will never give up on vaccinating more Americans. Now, I know parents with kids under 5 are eager to see a vaccine authorized for their children. 

The scientists are working hard to get that done and we’ll be ready with plenty of vaccines when they do. 

We’re also ready with anti-viral treatments. If you get COVID-19, the Pfizer pill reduces your chances of ending up in the hospital by 90 percent.  

We’ve ordered more of these pills than anyone in the world. And Pfizer is working overtime to get us 1 million pills this month and more than double that next month.  

And we’re launching the “Test to Treat” initiative so people can get tested at a pharmacy, and if they’re positive, receive antiviral pills on the spot at no cost.  

If you’re immunocompromised or have some other vulnerability, we have treatments and free high-quality masks. 

We’re leaving no one behind or ignoring anyone’s needs as we move forward. 

And on testing, we have made hundreds of millions of tests available for you to order for free.   

Even if you already ordered free tests tonight, I am announcing that you can order more from covidtests.gov starting next week. 

Second—we must prepare for new variants. Over the past year, we’ve gotten much better at detecting new variants. 

If necessary, we’ll be able to deploy new vaccines within 100 days instead of many more months or years.  

And, if Congress provides the funds we need, we’ll have new stockpiles of tests, masks, and pills ready if needed. 

I cannot promise a new variant won’t come. But I can promise you we’ll do everything within our power to be ready if it does.  

Third—we can end the shutdown of schools and businesses. We have the tools we need. 

It’s time for Americans to get back to work and fill our great downtowns again. People working from home can feel safe to begin to return to the office.   

We’re doing that here in the federal government. The vast majority of federal workers will once again work in person. 

Our schools are open. Let’s keep it that way. Our kids need to be in school. 

And with 75 percent of adult Americans fully vaccinated and hospitalizations down by 77 percent, most Americans can remove their masks, return to work, stay in the classroom, and move forward safely. 

We achieved this because we provided free vaccines, treatments, tests, and masks. 

Of course, continuing this costs money. 

I will soon send Congress a request. 

The vast majority of Americans have used these tools and may want to again, so I expect Congress to pass it quickly.   

Fourth, we will continue vaccinating the world.     

We’ve sent 475 million vaccine doses to 112 countries, more than any other nation. 

And we won’t stop. 

We have lost so much to COVID-19. Time with one another. And worst of all, so much loss of life. 

Let’s use this moment to reset. Let’s stop looking at COVID-19 as a partisan dividing line and see it for what it is: A God-awful disease.  

Let’s stop seeing each other as enemies, and start seeing each other for who we really are: Fellow Americans.  

We can’t change how divided we’ve been. But we can change how we move forward—on COVID-19 and other issues we must face together. 

I recently visited the New York City Police Department days after the funerals of Officer Wilbert Mora and his partner, Officer Jason Rivera. 

They were responding to a 9-1-1 call when a man shot and killed them with a stolen gun. 

Officer Mora was 27 years old. 

Officer Rivera was 22. 

Both Dominican Americans who’d grown up on the same streets they later chose to patrol as police officers. 

I spoke with their families and told them that we are forever in debt for their sacrifice, and we will carry on their mission to restore the trust and safety every community deserves. 

I’ve worked on these issues a long time. 

I know what works: Investing in crime prevention and community police officers who’ll walk the beat, who’ll know the neighborhood, and who can restore trust and safety. 

So let’s not abandon our streets. Or choose between safety and equal justice. 

Let’s come together to protect our communities, restore trust, and hold law enforcement accountable. 

That’s why the Justice Department required body cameras, banned chokeholds, and restricted no-knock warrants for its officers. 

That’s why the American Rescue Plan provided $350 billion that cities, states, and counties can use to hire more police and invest in proven strategies like community violence interruption—trusted messengers breaking the cycle of violence and trauma and giving young people hope.  

We should all agree: The answer is not to Defund the police. The answer is to FUND the police with the resources and training they need to protect our communities. 

I ask Democrats and Republicans alike: Pass my budget and keep our neighborhoods safe.  

And I will keep doing everything in my power to crack down on gun trafficking and ghost guns you can buy online and make at home—they have no serial numbers and can’t be traced. 

And I ask Congress to pass proven measures to reduce gun violence. Pass universal background checks. Why should anyone on a terrorist list be able to purchase a weapon? 

Ban assault weapons and high-capacity magazines. 

Repeal the liability shield that makes gun manufacturers the only industry in America that can’t be sued. 

These laws don’t infringe on the Second Amendment. They save lives. 

The most fundamental right in America is the right to vote—and to have it counted. And it’s under assault. 

In state after state, new laws have been passed, not only to suppress the vote, but to subvert entire elections. 

We cannot let this happen. 

Tonight. I call on the Senate to: Pass the Freedom to Vote Act. Pass the John Lewis Voting Rights Act. And while you’re at it, pass the Disclose Act so Americans can know who is funding our elections. 

Tonight, I’d like to honor someone who has dedicated his life to serve this country: Justice Stephen Breyer—an Army veteran, Constitutional scholar, and retiring Justice of the United States Supreme Court. Justice Breyer, thank you for your service. 

One of the most serious constitutional responsibilities a President has is nominating someone to serve on the United States Supreme Court. 

And I did that 4 days ago, when I nominated Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson. One of our nation’s top legal minds, who will continue Justice Breyer’s legacy of excellence. 

A former top litigator in private practice. A former federal public defender. And from a family of public-school educators and police officers. A consensus builder. Since she’s been nominated, she’s received a broad range of support—from the Fraternal Order of Police to former judges appointed by Democrats and Republicans. 

And if we are to advance liberty and justice, we need to secure the border and fix the immigration system. 

We can do both. At our border, we’ve installed new technology like cutting-edge scanners to better detect drug smuggling.  

We’ve set up joint patrols with Mexico and Guatemala to catch more human traffickers.  

We’re putting in place dedicated immigration judges so families fleeing persecution and violence can have their cases heard faster. 

We’re securing commitments and supporting partners in South and Central America to host more refugees and secure their own borders. 

We can do all this while keeping lit the torch of liberty that has led generations of immigrants to this land—my forefathers and so many of yours. 

Provide a pathway to citizenship for Dreamers, those on temporary status, farm workers, and essential workers. 

Revise our laws so businesses have the workers they need and families don’t wait decades to reunite. 

It’s not only the right thing to do—it’s the economically smart thing to do. 

That’s why immigration reform is supported by everyone from labor unions to religious leaders to the US Chamber of Commerce. 

Let’s get it done once and for all. 

Advancing liberty and justice also requires protecting the rights of women. 

The constitutional right affirmed in Roe v. Wade—standing precedent for half a century—is under attack as never before. 

If we want to go forward—not backward—we must protect access to health care. Preserve a woman’s right to choose. And let’s continue to advance maternal health care in America. 

And for our LGBTQ+ Americans, let’s finally get the bipartisan Equality Act to my desk. The onslaught of state laws targeting transgender Americans and their families is wrong. 

As I said last year, especially to our younger transgender Americans, I will always have your back as your President, so you can be yourself and reach your God-given potential. 

While it often appears that we never agree, that isn’t true. I signed 80 bipartisan bills into law last year. From preventing government shutdowns to protecting Asian-Americans from still-too-common hate crimes to reforming military justice. 

And soon, we’ll strengthen the Violence Against Women Act that I first wrote three decades ago. It is important for us to show the nation that we can come together and do big things. 

So tonight I’m offering a Unity Agenda for the Nation. Four big things we can do together.  

First, beat the opioid epidemic. 

There is so much we can do. Increase funding for prevention, treatment, harm reduction, and recovery.  

Get rid of outdated rules that stop doctors from prescribing treatments. And stop the flow of illicit drugs by working with state and local law enforcement to go after traffickers. 

If you’re suffering from addiction, know you are not alone. I believe in recovery, and I celebrate the 23 million Americans in recovery. 

Second, let’s take on mental health. Especially among our children, whose lives and education have been turned upside down.  

The American Rescue Plan gave schools money to hire teachers and help students make up for lost learning.  

I urge every parent to make sure your school does just that. And we can all play a part—sign up to be a tutor or a mentor. 

Children were also struggling before the pandemic. Bullying, violence, trauma, and the harms of social media. 

As Frances Haugen, who is here with us tonight, has shown, we must hold social media platforms accountable for the national experiment they’re conducting on our children for profit. 

It’s time to strengthen privacy protections, ban targeted advertising to children, demand tech companies stop collecting personal data on our children. 

And let’s get all Americans the mental health services they need. More people they can turn to for help, and full parity between physical and mental health care. 

Third, support our veterans. 

Veterans are the best of us. 

I’ve always believed that we have a sacred obligation to equip all those we send to war and care for them and their families when they come home. 

My administration is providing assistance with job training and housing, and now helping lower-income veterans get VA care debt-free.  

Our troops in Iraq and Afghanistan faced many dangers. 

One was stationed at bases and breathing in toxic smoke from “burn pits” that incinerated wastes of war—medical and hazard material, jet fuel, and more. 

When they came home, many of the world’s fittest and best trained warriors were never the same. 

Headaches. Numbness. Dizziness. 

A cancer that would put them in a flag-draped coffin. 

I know. 

One of those soldiers was my son Major Beau Biden. 

We don’t know for sure if a burn pit was the cause of his brain cancer, or the diseases of so many of our troops. 

But I’m committed to finding out everything we can. 

Committed to military families like Danielle Robinson from Ohio. 

The widow of Sergeant First Class Heath Robinson.  

He was born a soldier. Army National Guard. Combat medic in Kosovo and Iraq. 

Stationed near Baghdad, just yards from burn pits the size of football fields. 

Heath’s widow Danielle is here with us tonight. They loved going to Ohio State football games. He loved building Legos with their daughter. 

But cancer from prolonged exposure to burn pits ravaged Heath’s lungs and body. 

Danielle says Heath was a fighter to the very end. 

He didn’t know how to stop fighting, and neither did she. 

Through her pain she found purpose to demand we do better. 

Tonight, Danielle—we are. 

The VA is pioneering new ways of linking toxic exposures to diseases, already helping more veterans get benefits. 

And tonight, I’m announcing we’re expanding eligibility to veterans suffering from nine respiratory cancers. 

I’m also calling on Congress: pass a law to make sure veterans devastated by toxic exposures in Iraq and Afghanistan finally get the benefits and comprehensive health care they deserve. 

And fourth, let’s end cancer as we know it. 

This is personal to me and Jill, to Kamala, and to so many of you. 

Cancer is the #2 cause of death in America—second only to heart disease. 

Last month, I announced our plan to supercharge the Cancer Moonshot that President Obama asked me to lead six years ago. 

Our goal is to cut the cancer death rate by at least 50 percent over the next 25 years, turn more cancers from death sentences into treatable diseases.  

More support for patients and families. 

To get there, I call on Congress to fund ARPA-H, the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health. 

It’s based on DARPA—the Defense Department project that led to the Internet, GPS, and so much more.  

ARPA-H will have a singular purpose—to drive breakthroughs in cancer, Alzheimer’s, diabetes, and more. 

A unity agenda for the nation. 

We can do this. 

My fellow Americans—tonight, we have gathered in a sacred space—the citadel of our democracy. 

In this Capitol, generation after generation, Americans have debated great questions amid great strife, and have done great things. 

We have fought for freedom, expanded liberty, defeated totalitarianism and terror. 

And built the strongest, freest, and most prosperous nation the world has ever known. 

Now is the hour. Our moment of responsibility. Our test of resolve and conscience, of history itself. 

It is in this moment that our character is formed. Our purpose is found. Our future is forged. 

Well, I know this nation. We will meet the test. To protect freedom and liberty, to expand fairness and opportunity. 

We will save democracy. 

As hard as these times have been, I am more optimistic about America today than I have been my whole life. 

Because I see the future that is within our grasp. 

Because I know there is simply nothing beyond our capacity. 

We are the only nation on Earth that has always turned every crisis we have faced into an opportunity. 

The only nation that can be defined by a single word: possibilities. 

So on this night, in our 245 th  year as a nation, I have come to report on the State of the Union. 

And my report is this: the State of the Union is strong—because you, the American people, are strong. 

We are stronger today than we were a year ago. 

And we will be stronger a year from now than we are today. 

Now is our moment to meet and overcome the challenges of our time. 

And we will, as one people. 

One America. 

The United States of America. 

May God bless you all. May God protect our troops. 

More Joe Biden speeches

Biden's Inauguration Day speech, annotated

Biden mixed grandfatherly advice and a personal plea for unity with soaring quotations from President Abraham Lincoln as he sought to bring the country together, end what he called an “uncivil war,” and mobilize Americans against both the raging pandemic and the political divisions that have characterized the past few years. A relatively short speech with a theme of healing and new beginning, it brought to mind the greatest of all inaugural addresses, Lincoln’s second, as he tried to bring the US out of the Civil War.

Chief Justice Roberts, Vice President Harris, Speaker Pelosi, Leader Schumer, Leader McConnell, Vice President Pence, my distinguished guests, and my fellow Americans.

Note that now-ex-President Donald Trump didn’t attend. He is the first American president since 1869 to skip his successor’s inauguration. Back then it was Andrew Johnson, the first president to be impeached by Congress. Today it’s Trump, the first President to be impeached twice . Biden did welcome Mike Pence, the outgoing vice president, who did attend.

Also note here that Biden mentioned “Leader” Schumer. Chuck Schumer wasn’t yet Senate Majority Leader at the time of the speech. He acquires that title with the swearing-in of Georgia’s two new Democratic senators, Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff , on Wednesday afternoon. Mitch McConnell was majority leader at noon but becomes minority leader later Wednesday.

This is America’s day . This is democracy’s day. A day of history and hope. Of renewal and resolve. Through a crucible for the ages, America has been tested anew and America has risen to the challenge. Today we celebrate the triumph not of a candidate but of a cause, the cause of democracy. The will of the people has been heard and the will of people has been heeded.

“America’s day” is the way Biden put it, but a large portion of the country is smarting at his victory.

We have learned again that democracy is precious. Democracy is fragile. And at this hour, my friends, democracy has prevailed.

So now on this hallowed ground where just a few days ago violence sought to shake the Capitol’s very foundation , we come together as one nation, under God, indivisible, to carry out the peaceful transfer of power as we have for more than two centuries. We look ahead in our uniquely American way — restless, bold, optimistic — and set our sights on the nation we know we can be and we must be.

Biden did not shy away from bringing up the threat posed by Trump’s effort to undermine the election and the effort by Trump’s followers to stop the counting of electoral votes at the Capitol just two weeks ago. Here, the new President declared victory for democracy — but he clearly wants to move on. Unity is going to be the main theme of this speech.

I thank my predecessors of both parties for their presence here. I thank them from the bottom my heart. You know the resilience of our Constitution and the strength of our nation — as does President Carter, who I spoke with last night, who cannot be with us today , but whom we salute for his lifetime in service.

Former President Jimmy Carter is in his 90s, so he skipped the event. Former Vice President Dick Cheney was also unable to attend.

I have just taken a sacred oath that each of those patriots took — an oath first sworn by George Washington. But the American story depends not on any one of us, not on some of us, but on all of us. On ‘we, the people,’ who seek a more perfect Union . This is a great nation and we are a good people. And over the centuries through storm and strife, in peace and in war, we have come so far. But we still have far to go.

The oath is written in the Article II of Constitution , the nation’s founding document. Every President has to take it.

Biden sprinkled many references to US history and great speeches throughout his remarks. Here’s “We the People” and “a more perfect Union,” which comes from the preamble of the Constitution.

We will press forward with speed and urgency, for we have much to do in this winter of peril and possibility. Much to repair. Much to restore. Much to heal. Much to build. And much to gain .

Listing the difficulties we face during this time of division and pandemic was expected. But Biden suggested this is a time possibility and there’s much to gain. That speaks to the message of optimism he’s laced throughout his career.

Few periods in our nation’s history have been more challenging or difficult than the time we’re in now. A once-in-a-century virus silently stalks the country. It has taken as many lives in one year as America lost in all of World War II .

The death toll is hard to comprehend. More than 400,000 Americans have died in less than a year, on Trump’s watch.

Millions of jobs have been lost . Hundreds of thousands of businesses closed . A cry for racial justice some 400 years in the making moves us. The dream of justice for all will be deferred no longer. A cry for survival comes from the planet itself , a cry that can’t be any more desperate or any more clear. And now, a rise in political extremism, white supremacy and domestic terrorism that we must confront and we will defeat.

This is an incredible time, as Biden suggested. All of these threats, it should be noted, were to some degree denied or rejected by now-former President Trump.

To overcome these challenges — to restore the soul and secure the future of America — requires so much more than words. It requires the most elusive of all things in a democracy: unity. Unity.

Unity is the most important thing in this speech and it may be just as hard to convince Democrats angry at what Trump was able to do in his four years to get on board with coming together as it will be to convince Republicans angry that Trump lost.

In another January in Washington, on New Year’s Day in 1863, Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation. When he put pen to paper, the president said — and I quote — “If my name ever goes down into history, it will be for this act, and my whole soul is in it.”

My whole soul is in it. Today, on this January day, my whole soul is in this: Bringing America together, uniting our people and uniting our nation .

I ask every American to join me in this cause, uniting to fight the foes we face: anger, resentment and hatred, extremism, lawlessness, violence, disease, joblessness and hopelessness. With unity, we can do great things, important things. We can right wrongs and we can put people to work in good jobs. We can teach our children in safe schools. We can overcome the deadly virus. We can reward work and rebuild the middle class and make health care secure for all. We can deliver racial justice. We can make America, once again, the leading force for good in the world.

This call to Americans is important. Biden effectively told Americans he can’t do it on his own. This was the “ask what you can do for your country” element of this speech.

I know speaking of unity can sound to some like a foolish fantasy. I know the forces that divide us are deep and they are real but I also know they are not new. Our history has been a constant struggle between the American ideal that we are all created equal, and the harsh, ugly reality that racism, nativism, fear, demonization have long torn us apart .

The battle is perennial and victory is never assured. Through the Civil War, the Great Depression, World War, 9/11, through struggle, sacrifice and setbacks, our “better angels” have always prevailed. In each of these moments, enough of us came together to carry all of us forward and we can do that now. History, faith and reason show the way — the way of unity. We can see each other not as adversaries but as neighbors. We can treat each other with dignity and respect. We can join forces, stop the shouting and lower the temperature. For without unity there is no peace, only bitterness and fury; no progress, only exhausting outrage; no nation, only a state of chaos.

Biden acknowledged the complicated reality of the American ideal here, but argued the country ultimately gets things right, when enough Americans join the effort to move toward the “more perfect union.”

This is our historic moment of crisis and challenge, and unity is the path forward. And we must meet this moment as the United States of America. If we do that, I guarantee you, we will not fail. We have never, ever, ever, ever failed in America when we’ve acted together.

And so today, at this time and in this place, let’s start afresh, all of us . Let’s begin to listen to one another again, hear one another, see one another, show respect to one another. Politics doesn’t have to be a raging fire, destroying everything in its path. Every disagreement doesn’t have to be a cause for total war, and we must reject the culture in which facts themselves are manipulated, and even manufactured .

Biden here confronted a core challenge to his call for unity: that so much of the country has been led — in large part by Trump himself — to believe in falsehoods.

My fellow Americans, we have to be different than this. America has to be better than this, and I believe America is so much better than this. Just look around. Here we stand, in the shadow of the Capitol dome, as was mentioned earlier, completed amid the Civil War when the union itself was literally hanging in the balance . Yet, we endured. We prevailed.

The dome was under construction during the entire Civil War , being built as the country was being torn apart, and completed in 1866.

Here we stand, looking out on the great Mall where Dr. King spoke of his dream . Here we stand, where 108 years ago at another inaugural, thousands of protesters tried to block brave women marching for the right to vote, and today we mark the swearing in of the first woman in American history elected to national office, Vice President Kamala Harris. Don’t tell me things can’t change.

King’s speech was during the March on Washington in 1963.

The Women’s Suffrage Parade was in 1913, ahead of Woodrow Wilson’s inauguration. Each of those were protest movements long in the making and they included large gatherings of people.

The Mall Wednesday was largely cleared of people due to security concerns as well as the pandemic.

Here we stand, across the Potomac from Arlington National Cemetery, where heroes who gave the last full measure of devotion rest in eternal peace.

This phrase comes from the Gettysburg Address . Arlington Cemetery is located at the former plantation home of Robert E. Lee and is where many Americans who have died in combat are interred. Instead of the normal post-inaugural lunch with lawmakers after this speech, Biden traveled to Arlington after his speech to pay his respects.

And here we stand, just days after a riotous mob thought they could use violence to silence the will of the people , to stop the work of our democracy, to drive us from this sacred ground. It did not happen. It will never happen, not today, not tomorrow, not ever. Not ever.

Biden rejected the riotous mob, but he also placed the January 6 storming of the Capitol alongside key moments in US history. Their defeat is the country’s victory.

To all those who supported our campaign, I am humbled by the faith you placed in us. To all those who did not support us, let me say this: Hear me out as we move forward. Take a measure of me and my heart, and if you still disagree, so be it. That’s democracy. That’s America . The right to dissent peaceably within the guardrails of our republic is perhaps this nation’s greatest strength.

Yet, hear me clearly: Disagreement must not lead to disunion, and I pledge this to you: I will be a President for all Americans. All Americans. And I promise you, I will fight as hard for those who did not support me as for those who did.

Returning to his theme of unity, Biden personally asked his political opponents to give him a chance. They got more attention in this speech than his supporters.

Many centuries ago, St. Augustine, a saint of my church, wrote that a people was a multitude defined by the common objects of their love, defined by the common objects of their love .

Biden is a deeply religious man and just the second Catholic US President. Read more here a bout Saint Augustine .

What are the common objects we as Americans love, that define us as Americans? I think I know. Opportunity, security, liberty, dignity, respect, honor, and — yes — the truth. Recent weeks and months have taught us a painful lesson. There is truth and there are lies, lies told for power and for profit. And each of us has a duty and a responsibility, as citizens, as Americans, and especially as leaders, leaders who have pledged to honor our Constitution and protect our nation, to defend the truth and defeat the lies.

Biden promised to help all Americans. But he reminded his listeners, several times in this speech, that keeping this democracy together will demand an adherence to facts. That could be the biggest break from the Trump era.

Look, I understand that many of my fellow Americans view the future with fear and trepidation. I understand they worry about their jobs. I understand, like my dad, they lay in bed, staring — at night, staring at the ceiling, wondering, “Can I keep my health care? Can I pay my mortgage?” Thinking about their families, about what comes next. I promise you, I get it.

This was interestingly informal language for an inaugural address. This part was the FDR-esque Fireside Chat.

But the answer is not to turn inward, to retreat into competing factions, distrusting those who don’t look like you or worship the way you do, or don’t get their news from the same sources you do. We must end this uncivil war that pits red against blue, rural versus urban, rural versus urban, conservative versus liberal. We can do this if we open our souls instead of hardening our hearts. If we show a little tolerance and humility, and if we’re willing to stand in the other person’s shoes. As my mom would say, “Just for a moment, stand in their shoes.”

“End this uncivil war” should be the most-remembered line from this speech.

Because here’s the thing about life: There’s no accounting for what fate will deal you. Some days, you need a hand. There are other days when we’re called to lend a hand. That’s how it has to be. That’s what we do for one another. And if we are this way, our country will be stronger, more prosperous, more ready for the future. We can still disagree.

Biden’s belief in fate is an element of his faith. And his call to help others is rooted in that and will be evident in his efforts to expand health care coverage and help Americans hurt by the pandemic — including those who didn’t vote for him, another shift back to old norms and away from Trump’s habit of favoring states or voters who supported him.

My fellow Americans, in the work ahead of us, we’re going to need each other. We need all our strength to persevere through this dark winter. We’re entering what may be the toughest and deadliest period of the virus. We must set aside politics and finally face this pandemic as one nation. One nation. And I promise you this, as the Bible says, “Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.” We will get through this together. Together.

This is Psalm 30:5 : “For His anger endureth but a moment, and in His favor is life; weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.” Biden added a collectivist tinge to this verse.

Look, folks, all my colleagues I served with in the House and the Senate up here, we all understand the world is watching, watching all of us today. So here’s my message to those beyond our borders. America has been tested and we’ve come out stronger for it. We will repair our alliances and engage with the world once again, not to meet yesterday’s challenges but today’s and tomorrow’s challenges. And we’ll lead not merely by the example of our power but by the power of our example .

Given the importance of foreign policy to Biden’s senate and vice presidential career, it got relatively short attention in this speech. By talking about “rebuilding alliances,” he made clear he aims to undo Trump’s “America First” approach of removing the US from treaties and alliances and his bullying of other countries with threats.

We’ll be a strong and trusted partner for peace, progress and security. Look, you all know we’ve been through — through so much in this nation. In my first act as President, I’d ask you to join me in a moment of silent prayer to remember all of those who we lost in this past year due to the pandemic , those 400,000 fellow Americans — moms, dads, husbands, wives, sons, daughters, friends, neighbors and co-workers. We will honor them by becoming the people and the nation we know we can and should be. So I ask you, let’s say a silent prayer for those who’ve lost their lives and those left behind and for our country.

The simple act of acknowledging the dead is new. Biden and Harris held a national memorial ceremony on Tuesday night , on the eve of inauguration.

Folks, this is a time of testing. We face an attack on our democracy and on truth, a raging virus, growing inequity, the sting of systemic racism, a climate in crisis, America’s role in the world. Any one of these would be enough to challenge us in profound ways but the fact is we face them all at once, presenting this nation with one of the gravest responsibilities we’ve had.

All Presidents like to talk about how difficult their challenges will be. But Biden has a point here.

Now we’re going to be tested. Are we going to step up, all of us? It’s time for boldness, for there’s so much to do, and this is certain — I promise you we will be judged, you and I, by how we resolve these cascading crises of our era.

We will rise to the occasion. The question is, will we master this rare and difficult hour? Will we meet our obligations and pass along a new and better world to our children? I believe we must. I’m sure you do, as well. I believe we will. And when we do, we’ll write the next great chapter in the history of the United States of America, the American story, a story that might sound something like a song that means a lot to me. It’s called American Anthem.

And there’s one verse that stands out, at least for me, and it goes like this. “The work and prayers of century have brought us to this day, what shall be our legacy. What will our children say? Let me know in my heart when my days are through. America, America, I gave my best to you.”

If Trump’s inaugural was known for his phrase “American carnage,” Biden’s could be called “American Anthem.”

Here’s a version of the song , written by Gene Scheer and sung by Norah Jones.

Let’s add — let’s us add our own work and prayers to the unfolding story of our great nation. If we do this, then when our days are through, our children and our children’s children will save us. They gave their best, they did their duty, they healed a broken land.

My fellow Americans, I close today where I began, with a sacred oath. Before God and all of you, I give you my word, I will always level with you . I will defend the Constitution. I will defend our democracy. I will defend America. And I will give all, all of you, keep everything I do in your service, thinking not of power but of possibilities, not of personal interest but the public good.

This is a very Biden way to end the speech. Honesty is important to him.

And together, we shall write an American story of hope, not fear; of unity, not division; of light, not darkness. A story of decency and dignity. Love and healing. Greatness and goodness.

May this be the story that guides us, the story that inspires us, and the story that tells ages yet to come that we answered the call of history. We met the moment. Democracy and hope, truth and justice did not die on our watch, but thrived. That America secured liberty at home and stood once again as a beacon to the world.

That is what we owe our forebears, one another, and generations to follow.

At the start of the ceremony, Minnesota Democratic Sen. Amy Klobuchar noted that there were “a whole bunch of Bidens” in attendance.

So, with purpose and resolve, we turn to those tasks of our time, sustained by faith, driven by conviction, and devoted to one another and the country we love with all our hearts.

May God bless America, and may God protect our troops. Thank you, America.

Relatively succinct and appropriately broad, this was a very good speech.

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How to Write a Presidential Speech

Last Updated: May 19, 2023 Fact Checked

This article was co-authored by Patrick Muñoz . Patrick is an internationally recognized Voice & Speech Coach, focusing on public speaking, vocal power, accent and dialects, accent reduction, voiceover, acting and speech therapy. He has worked with clients such as Penelope Cruz, Eva Longoria, and Roselyn Sanchez. He was voted LA's Favorite Voice and Dialect Coach by BACKSTAGE, is the voice and speech coach for Disney and Turner Classic Movies, and is a member of Voice and Speech Trainers Association. This article has been fact-checked, ensuring the accuracy of any cited facts and confirming the authority of its sources. This article has been viewed 117,709 times.

Are you running for president? There are some tried and true ways to write an effective campaign speech. Maybe you're running for school president or another office. You want your speech to be memorable and persuasive!

Presidential Speech Template

Opening the Presidential Speech

• You should make this theme simple enough that you can express it in one sentence.
• Make sure that you repeat your theme several times throughout your speech, especially in the beginning, middle, and end.

• You could start the speech with an anecdote, a quip or a strong quote. Don’t be afraid to offer a little humor, but it immediately clears what you would bring to the table. [3] X Research source
• When ending a speech, you could say: “If I am elected school president, I will focus on lengthening lunch hours, adding more student clubs, and reducing student fees.”

• If you’re running for a student position, review sample student campaign speeches. There are many of these templates online.

• For example, if your audience is concerned about the economy, and you have training in economics, mention it--especially if your opponents do not.
• Tell the audience an anecdote relating to what sets you apart. It will make it more memorable.

Developing the Presidential Speech

• The middle of your speech should be the longest because that's where most of your content lies.
• Don't slack off on the beginning and end of your speech. Even though they are shorter, they can make your speech memorable--or forgettable.

• You could open by saying something like: "Here are the three things we need to change."
• Be specific. Use statistics and human anecdotes to highlight the problem. However, be brief. You want to focus on solutions more than problems.

• Boil the speech down to 2 to 3 key issues that you plan to change. Be very specific when you outline your solutions.
• Expand on each of your key promises by detailing the problem and how you plan to address it specifically.
• Don’t make the middle of the speech too dry. Constantly reinforce your personality and theme throughout the details of your promises.

• Go with the flow. If you notice your audience getting ants, liven up your speech or end it early.
• Stick by the event's rules. Some events may require that your speech is only 5 minutes, while others want it to be at least 30 minutes.

• If you are talking about the Vietnam war, you can make yourself more relatable to younger generations by mentioning the soldiers who were no older than themselves.
• If you are running for high school president, say that you will ensure the administration listens to student wishes for a longer lunch break.

• If you are running for school president, mention things you’ve done that helped the school to make you seem more qualified.
• If you come from a coal mining family, and you are giving your speech in a blue-collar area, mention it! This will make you more relatable.

• For example, if you want people to join your campaign, ask them to vote for you. Be sure to thank them for their consideration as well.

Delivering the Presidential Speech

• Some speeches play to people’s fears and anger, but the best ones remain positive and play toward people’s optimism. People want to know how you will improve things.

• This is why broadcast writing is less dense than print writing, generally. When writing a speech, keep the sentences concise.
• Try to use one direct point per sentence. People can understand complex topics better when they are reading.

• You don’t need to fixate on proper grammar, punctuation, and so forth in a speech that will be given verbally (and presidential speeches are designed to be spoken).
• It’s more important to capture the cadences and colloquialisms of regular speech, while staying true to yourself.

• Ancient philosophers who perfected the art of rhetoric called this “pathos.” An appeal to the emotions.
• The philosophers believed that the core of any persuasive speech should be logos (an appeal to reason). However, they believed that speeches without pathos failed to move.

• Have a clear idea of what you want to say. Keep the finest details confined to notes so that you can refer to them if you need to.
• Remember that giving a speech is theater. You need to be dramatic and show passion, but you don’t want to stumble over words or look down like you’re reading it.

• They say that when people get in trouble, it’s usually because they went negative.

• The best place to include a joke is in the opening of your speech. Create a rapport with the audience and use a joke that is specific to the location.
• Stay away from any offensive jokes and make sure a joke is appropriate to the occasion.

• Show, don't tell. Show your telling points with vivid human stories or a relatable anecdote.

Expert Q&A

• Remember to have good posture while you're giving your speech. Thanks Helpful 13 Not Helpful 1
• If you don't win the election, just remember to be a good sport to everybody. Your opportunities in the future are more likely to become greater. Thanks Helpful 11 Not Helpful 1
• Make eye contact. It's important not to spend the entire speech looking down! Thanks Helpful 10 Not Helpful 1

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• ↑ https://blog.prepscholar.com/good-persuasive-speech-topics
• ↑ Patrick Muñoz. Voice & Speech Coach. Expert Interview. 12 November 2019.
• ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h6sm47j-Am4
• ↑ http://presidentialrhetoric.com/campaign2012/index.html
• ↑ https://open.lib.umn.edu/publicspeaking/chapter/17-3-organizing-persuasive-speeches/
• ↑ http://grammar.yourdictionary.com/style-and-usage/writing-a-school-election-speech.html

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How To Write A Presidential Speech

Katie Clower

The Importance of a Presidential Speech

Presidential speeches have been a prevalent and important part of our country’s society and culture since Washington’s inauguration in April of 1789 in which the first inaugural address, and presidential speech in general, was delivered. Since then, we as a country have beared witness to countless presidential and political speeches. Some have been moving, some inspirational and motivating, some heartbreaking and tear-jerking. Others have made us cringe out of anger, fear, or disappointment. Some have simply fallen flat, having been described as boring or awkward or unsettling.

Many presidential speeches are remembered and regarded to this day, despite how many decades or centuries ago they were delivered. Often, we remember and reflect on those which were the most special and important. But, in some cases the horribly written or delivered ones stick out in our minds, too. This writing guide is designed, in part, for those presidential or politician candidates and hopefuls to use as a tool to ensure their own speeches will be remembered and reflected on for years to come, for their positive messages and audience responses, not the opposite.

If you are not or do not plan to be a politician or president, do not stop reading! This guide is also written with the average person, even one with little to no political ties or aspirations, in mind. Public speech is a large aspect and topic of discussion in our society, one that has become critical to the presidential process. As such, many of us may be fascinated by and curious about the process of constructing and delivering a successful presidential speech. This guide will convey all of this information via data and analyses of previous both renowned and failed presidential speeches, deductions of what it was that made them so great or so catastrophic, syntheses of expert research and findings on the topic, and more. It does so in a casual, easy-to-follow tone, further making it a read for all.

Another reason this guide is applicable to everyone is because the speech-making tips and techniques shared throughout the text are true for not just political speech, but any form. Everyone has to deliver pitches, speeches, or presentations at some point in their lives or careers. The conclusion section emphasizes how the information and advice shared in this guide can apply to and help with all other forms of speech writing and delivering. With all of this in mind, this guide is meant for truly anyone who wants to take the time to read and be informed.

Goals of the Speech

Presidential speeches have become increasingly important over time as a means to connect with and appeal to the people in order to articulate and drive forward presidential goals, deliver or reflect on tragic or positive news, and more. As Teten put it in his study, “speeches are the core of the modern presidency” (334). He finds that while “in the past, speechmaking, as well as public appeal in the content of speeches, was not only infrequent but discouraged due to precedent and technology,” today it is one of the most important and most frequently utilized presidential tools (Teten, 334). Allison Mcnearney states that “even in an age of Twitter, the formal, spoken word from the White House carries great weight and can move, anger or inspire at home and around the world.” These findings make perfecting this method of communication with the people even more crucial to master. One part of doing so requires keeping in mind what the main, general goals of these speeches are.

Connection to Audience

While presidents and politicians deliver many different types of speeches which often have contrasting tones and messages depending on the occasion, there is always an exigence for politicians to make efforts to connect with their audience. This in turn results in a more positive audience perception and reaction to both the president and his speech. Later in the guide, specific rhetorical and linguistic strategies and moves will be discussed which have proven effective in fostering a connection with audience members through speech.

This overall notion of establishing connection works to break down barriers and make the audience feel more comfortable with and trusting of the speech giver. McNearney points to FDR as a president who successfully connected with the people, largely, she claims, through his fireside chats. The fireside chats exemplified a president making use of the media for the first time “to present a very carefully crafted message that was unfiltered and unchallenged by the press” (McNearney). Today, we often see our presidents use Twitter as a media avenue to connect and present their “unfiltered” version of a policy or goal.

Lasting Message

Another central and overarching goal presidents and politicians should keep in mind when writing and delivering a speech is to make it lasting and memorable. It is challenging to predict what exactly will resonate with people in a way that makes a speech long remembered. Many of the various rhetorical and linguistic techniques outlined in section III have helped former presidents deliver speeches that have become known as some of “the greats.”

Sometimes it is a matter of taking risks with a speech. Martin Luther King and Barack Obama are among some of the most powerful speech-givers our country has seen. Both men took risks in many of their speeches. Mcnearney points to Obama’s “A More Perfect Union” speech as being “risky” in its focus and discussion on racial tensions in the country, an often avoided or untouched conversation. But, the speech was well-received and well-remembered, proving this risk was worth it.

What to Do: Rhetorical and Linguistic Moves

A conjunction of previous findings from various scholars and my own research make up this section to portray the effective rhetorical and linguistic strategies that have been employed in successful presidential speech.

Emotive Language

In section II one of the central goals discussed in a presidential speech is to appeal to one’s audience . An effective way to do so is through emotive language and general emotional appeal. In their study, Erisen et al. note the value of “strik[ing] an emotional chord with the public” as a means to gain public support, increase public awareness, and overall aid presidents in pursuing their political agendas (469). They work to prove the effectiveness of this strategy through an analysis of an Obama speech, delivered during a time of growing economic crisis in the country.

Erisen et al. identify Obama’s implementation of both emotional and optimistic tones as rhetorical moves to connect with and appeal to his audience of constituents. The success of his use of emotionally-related rhetorical strategies are evident findings that came out of a survey that “reported that 68% of speech-watchers had a ‘positive reaction’ and that 85% felt ‘more optimistic’ about the direction the country was heading” (Erisen et al., 470). Stewart et al. also find that “more emotionally evocative messages… lead to higher levels of affective response by viewers” (125). This clear data indicates the power connecting with an audience through emotion can have on their response and future outlook.

Optimistic Tone

Along with Obama’s “optimistic tone” described above, others have employed what has been described as both hopeful and reassuring tones as rhetorical moves to appeal to an audience. Two of the ten “most important modern presidential speeches,” as selected by the nonpartisan affiliated scholars of the University of Virginia’s Miller Center, are JFK’s address on the space effort and FDR’s first inaugural address (McNearney). JFK’s address was successful and well-received because of the hopeful tone he employs when discussing the goal to land a man on the moon. He gave the people an optimistic perspective on this lofty goal, making “Americans feel like there was nothing we couldn’t do” (McNearney). In his inaugural address, Roosevelt too pairs bold claims with optimism and reassurance to his audience.

Inclusive Language

Another found strategy utilized by presidents to appeal to their audience through speech is the use of inclusive language. In Teten’s study, he looks at the use of the words “we” and “our”, specifically, in presidential State of the Union Addressesses over time. His findings revealed a steady increase in these words within the speeches over time. The usage of these “public address and inclusion words” create an appeal with presidents’ audiences because they help presidents in creating “an imagined community in which the president and his listeners coexist on a level plane (Teten, 339-342). These findings illustrate the importance of not presenting oneself as an omnipotent power and leader, but rather a normal citizen of the country like all of those watching. Identifying oneself with the audience this way breaks down any barriers present.

Persuasive Language

Persuasion is another often-used rhetorical strategy, especially during presidential campaigns. In their study about “language intensity,” Clementson et al. look at the use of “persuasive language” as a strategy presidential candidates employ during their campaigns. They assert that “candidates seem to vary their language as they try to persuade audiences to perceive them favorably” (Clementson et al., 592). In referring to this persuasive rhetorical strategy, they utilize the term “problem-solution structure” as one which is often well-received by an audience. People appreciate hearing exactly how a president or presidential candidate plans to fix a problem at hand.

What Not to Do

  As stated earlier, while there are many speeches that are excellently written and delivered, there, too, are many speeches that flop. Alexander Meddings wrote an article which spotlights a number of political speeches which he deems some of the “worst” in modern history. In comparing what makes a good versus a bad speech he asserts that “a bad speech must, by definition, be flat, garbled and publicly damaging either for the speaker or for the cause they’re seeking to promote” (Meddings). In looking at some of the characteristics that make up some of the “worst” speeches, this section will highlight what not to do in the process of working to compose and deliver a successful speech.

The research demonstrates that length of speech actually proves very important. In Teten’s study, in addition to looking at inclusive language over time in presidential State of the Union Addresses, he also graphically measured the length, specifically number of words, of the addresses across time. His results proved interesting. There was a rise in length of these speeches from the first one delivered to those delivered in the early 1900s and then there was a sudden and far drop. There was a movement around the time of the drop to make speeches more concise, and it is clear, since they have remained much shorter as time has gone on, this choice was well-received.

Meddings alludes to this in his piece, describing both William Henry Harrison’s presidential inaugural address and Andrew Johnson’s vice-presidential inaugural address as some of the worst speeches, largely because of how dragged out they were. A very important aspect of speech-giving is capturing the audience’s attention, and this cannot be accomplished through a lengthy, uninteresting oration.

Lying And/or Contradiction

Though it should be fairly obvious that one should not lie in a speech, for the consequences will be great, there have been a number of presidents and politicians who have done so. Regan, Clinton, and Trump are all among the presidents and politicians who have made false statements or promises within speeches. Though it is understandable that a politician would want to speak towards what he or she knows will resonate and appeal to the audience, doing so in a false or manipulative way is not commendable and will lead to much greater backlash than just being honest.

Word Choice

Some politicians have been caught lying in speeches when trying to cover up a controversy or scandal. Though one should try to avoid any sort of controversy, a president or person in power has to expect to have to talk on some difficult or delicate topics. This is where careful word choice becomes vital. Often the way to ensure a speech is written eloquently, carefully, and inoffensively is through various rounds of editing from a number of different eyes.

Applications to All Forms of Speech-Giving

This guide should prove helpful for not only those looking to run for office, but for everyone. The various strategies and techniques given within this guide are, for the most part, broad enough that they can be applied to any form of speech-giving or presenting. We will all have to give a speech, a toast, a presentation, and countless other forms of written or oral works in our lives. Refer to this guide when doing so.

In terms of political or presidential speech specifically, though, in a sense there is not a clear formula for how to write and deliver them. In studies looking at various different successful presidential speeches, orators, and speechwriters, it is clear they all have their own unique style and form that works for them. But, the tips provided in this guide will certainly work to help to create a proficient and successful political speech writer and orator.

Works Cited

Clementson, David E., Paola Pascual-Ferr, and Michael J. Beatty. “When does a Presidential Candidate seem Presidential and Trustworthy? Campaign Messages through the Lens of Language Expectancy Theory.” Presidential Studies Quarterly 46.3 (2016): 592-617.  ProQuest. Web. 10 Dec. 2019.

Erisen, Cengiz, and José D. Villalotbos. “Exploring the Invocation of Emotion in Presidential Speeches.” Contemporary Politics , vol. 20, no. 4, 2014, pp. 469–488., doi:10.1080/13569775.2014.968472.

McNearney, Allison. “10 Modern Presidential Speeches Every American Should Know.”

History.com , A&E Television Networks, 16 Feb. 2018, www.history.com/news/10-modern-presidential-speeches-every-american-should-know.

Meddings, Alexander. “The 8 Worst Speeches in Modern Political History.”

HistoryCollection.co , 9 Nov. 2018, historycollection.co/8-worst-speeches-modern-political-history/7/.

Stewart, Patrick A., Bridget M. Waller, and James N. Schubert. “Presidential Speechmaking

Style: Emotional Response to Micro-Expressions of Facial Affect.” Motivation and Emotion 33.2 (2009): 125-35. ProQuest. Web. 1 Oct. 2019.

Teten, Ryan. “Evolution of the Modern Rhetorical Presidency: Presidential Presentation and

Development of the State of the Union Address.” Presidential Studies Quarterly 33.2 (2003): 333-46. ProQuest. Web. 30 Sep. 2019.

Writing Guides for (Almost) Every Occasion Copyright © 2020 by Katie Clower is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

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Food & drink, relationships & family, how to write an introduction for a campaign speech for a president, more articles.

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First impressions are critically important, especially when you’re running for a presidential office and hoping to gain the votes of the people you want to represent. Whether you’re running for office, or you’re a speech writer on a campaign team, putting the right introductory words together is crucial. If you do it correctly, you could have an audience enthralled with every word that comes out of the candidate's mouth. If you do it incorrectly, you may see some people nodding off before the candidate ever gets to the meat of the speech.

Define your audience. Not every group is the same. Concerns will vary. Make a list of character traits that define the group you’ll be addressing and determine the things they will want to hear. For example, speaking to a group of public school teachers will be different than speaking to a group of stock market investors.

Create an introductory sentence based on the stage of the election, the campaign platform and the group of people you are addressing. Depending on where you are in the election process, your candidate may or may not have to introduce himself with his name and the fact that he’s running for president. You may also need to make sure he lists his qualifications for the position. In this sentence, make sure he thanks the audience for taking the time to come and listen to him.

Write a hook to get the attention of the audience. Do this by finding common ground with the people your candidate is speaking to. For example, if she is speaking to a group of manual laborers and she herself once held a job or two involving manual labor, she can sympathize with them if they feel they need more rights, better working conditions or higher wages.

Let the group know that this presidential candidate will make positive changes and list specifically what those changes are in the order that he will talk about them in the speech. When listing these items, find a way to appeal to the emotions of the audience members. Use your list of character traits to give you ideas on how to spark interest in your audience members.

Transition from the introduction into the first talking point of your speech. Exactly how you do this is up to you, but you can generally say something like, “These may seem like a lot of high promises that won’t be easy to keep, but I and my team have come up with a plan on how to use or change the current policies to fulfill these promises.” Then, you start with the first talking point of you speech and explain how something on your campaign platform will be fulfilled and how it will benefit the audience members.

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Chelsea Baldwin began writing professionally for local newspapers in 2008. She has published articles in “High Country Press” and “Kernersville News.” She also produced newsletters for a local chapter of AIESEC, a global nonprofit organization. She earned a Bachelor of Science degree in journalism from Appalachian State University.

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10 Modern Presidential Speeches Every American Should Know

By: Allison McNearney

Updated: October 18, 2023 | Original: February 16, 2018

Presidential speeches reveal the United States’ challenges, hopes, dreams and temperature of the nation, as much as they do the wisdom and perspective of the leader speaking them. Even in the age of Twitter, the formal, spoken word from the White House carries great weight and can move, anger or inspire at home and around the world.

Here are the 10 most important modern presidential speeches selected by scholars at the Miller Center —a nonpartisan affiliate of the University of Virginia that specializes in presidential scholarship—and professors from other universities, as well.

1. Franklin D. Roosevelt’s First Inaugural Address

When: 1933, during the Great Depression

What Roosevelt Said: “This is preeminently the time to speak the truth, the whole truth, frankly and boldly. Nor need we shrink from honestly facing conditions in our country today. This great Nation will endure as it has endured, will revive and will prosper. So, first of all, let me assert my firm belief that the only thing we have to fear is fear itself… Our greatest primary task is to put people to work. This is no unsolvable problem if we face it wisely and courageously. It can be accomplished in part by direct recruiting by the Government itself, treating the task as we would treat the emergency of a war.”

Why It Was Important: Roosevelt is embarking on something audacious, proposing that the national government has an obligation to provide an economic safety net for its citizens to protect them from the unpredictability of the market. In making a case for bold intervention in markets, he’s also making a case for a stronger executive at the top. But for all the disruptive talk in this speech, Roosevelt delivers reassurance. I think a hallmark of the speeches that we remember the most by presidents from both parties are ones that not only address the circumstances at hand, but also give people some hope.

— Margaret O’Mara, professor of history, University of Washington

2. Franklin D. Roosevelt’s First Fireside Chat 'On Banking'

When: March 1933

What Roosevelt Said: “My friends, I want to talk for a few minutes with the people of the United States about banking…confidence and courage are the essentials of success in carrying out our plan. You people must have faith. You must not be stampeded by rumors or guesses. Let us unite in banishing fear. We have provided the machinery to restore our financial system, and it is up to you to support and make it work. It is your problem, my friends. Your problem no less than it is mine. Together, we cannot fail.”

Why It Was Important: Beginning with the simple phrase, “My friends,” the stage was set for the personalization of the presidency that continued throughout FDR’s administration. Roosevelt received an outpouring of support from the public and used the power of media to connect with his constituents. Recognizing publicity as essential to policymaking, he crafted a very intricate public relations plan for all of his New Deal legislation. The media allowed him to present a very carefully crafted message that was unfiltered and unchallenged by the press. Many newspapers were critical of his New Deal programs, so turning to radio and motion pictures allowed him to present his version of a particular policy directly to the people. Today, we see parallels in the use of Twitter to bypass opponents and critics of the administration to appeal directly to the American people. And that all started with FDR and his first fireside chat.

— Kathryn Cramer Brownell, Assistant Professor of History, Purdue University

3. Dwight Eisenhower’s 'Atoms for Peace' Speech to the United Nations

What Eisenhower Said: “I feel impelled to speak today in a language that, in a sense, is new. One which I, who have spent so much of my life in the military profession, would have preferred never to use: That new language is the language of atomic warfare…Against the dark background of the atomic bomb, the United States does not wish merely to present strength, but also the desire and the hope for peace. To the makers of these fateful decisions, the United States pledges before you, and therefore before the world, its determination to help solve the fearful atomic dilemma. To devote its entire heart and mind to find the way by which the miraculous inventiveness of man shall not be dedicated to his death, but consecrated to his life.”

Why It Was Important: Eisenhower believed in the political power of nuclear weapons, but in this speech, he talks about their dangers. He speaks about the importance of preventing the spread of nuclear weapons and proposes that the U.S. and Soviet Union cooperate to reduce their nuclear stockpiles. Keep in mind that there were just 1,300 nuclear weapons in the world in 1953 compared with more than seven times that number today. But Eisenhower is also a realist. He understands the importance of nuclear deterrence and he reminds his audience that his proposal comes from a position of American strength, not weakness.

— Todd Sechser, Professor of Politics, University of Virginia and Senior Fellow, Miller Center

4. Dwight Eisenhower’s Farewell Address

What Eisenhower Said: “Until the latest of our world conflicts, the United States had no armaments industry. But we can no longer risk emergency improvisation of national defense. We have been compelled to create a permanent armaments industry of vast proportion…In the councils of government, we must guard against the acquisition of unwarranted influence, whether sought or unsought, by the military-industrial complex. The potential for the disastrous rise of misplaced power exists and will persist. We must never let the weight of this combination endanger our liberties or democratic process.”

Why It Was Important: That speech gave a name to our modern era. Eisenhower was telling us that we now live in a time when government, the military and the corporate world all have joined together into a powerful alliance that shapes the basic democratic functioning of the country. Eisenhower understood that Americans wanted both security and liberty, and it’s a fundamental paradox of the American experiment. In order to have security, we need to have a large defense establishment. But he asks, who is going to be the guardian of our freedoms in a world where we have to have a permanent arms industry? What he was saying in the speech is that we have to learn how to live with it, and control it, rather than having it control us.

— Will Hitchcock, Randolph P. Compton Professor at the Miller Center and professor of history, University of Virginia

5. Lyndon B. Johnson’s 'Great Society' Speech at the University of Michigan

When: May 22, 1964

What Johnson Said: “For a century, we labored to settle and to subdue a continent. For half a century, we called upon unbounded invention and untiring industry to create an order of plenty for all of our people. The challenge of the next half-century is whether we have the wisdom to use that wealth to enrich and elevate our national life, and to advance the quality of our American civilization. Your imagination and your initiative and your indignation will determine whether we build a society where progress is the servant of our needs, or a society where old values and new visions are buried under unbridled growth. For, in your time, we have the opportunity to move not only toward the rich society and the powerful society, but upward to the Great Society. “

Why It Was Important: LBJ called on all Americans to move upward to a Great Society in which wealth is used for more than personal enrichment and is instead used to improve communities, protect the natural world, and allow all Americans, regardless of race or class, to fully develop their innate talents and abilities. The message of Johnson’s speech resonates today because we have lost not only that self-confidence and that idealism but also the vision to recognize that prosperity can be used for something greater than the self.

— Guian McKee, Associate Professor of Presidential Studies, the Miller Center

6. John F. Kennedy’s Address on the Space Effort

When: September 1962

What Kennedy Said: “We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard…Those who came before us made certain that this country rode the first waves of the Industrial Revolution, the first waves of modern invention and the first wave of nuclear power. And this generation does not intend to founder in the backwash of the coming age of space, we mean to be a part of it, we mean to lead it.”

Why It Was Important: We were in a new age of technology and space exploration. President Kennedy made Americans feel that there was nothing that we couldn’t do, no challenge we couldn’t conquer. It was before Vietnam, before Watergate, before the deaths of our heroes like Jack and Bobby Kennedy and Martin Luther King —when we had a sense in this country that if we all joined together we could fulfill our loftiest goals.

— Barbara Perry, Director of Presidential Studies, the Miller Center

7. Ronald Reagan’s Speech Commemorating the 40th Anniversary of D-Day

When: June 6, 1984

What Reagan Said: “The rangers looked up and saw the enemy soldiers at the edge of the cliffs shooting down at them with machine guns and throwing grenades, and the American rangers began to climb. They shot rope ladders over the face of these cliffs and began to pull themselves up. When one ranger fell, another would take his place. When one rope was cut, a ranger would grab another and begin his climb again. They climbed, shot back, and held their footing. Soon, one by one, the rangers pulled themselves over the top, and in seizing the firm land at the top of these cliffs they began to seize back the continent of Europe… (to veterans) You all knew that some things are worth dying for. One’s country is worth dying for, and Democracy is worth dying for because it’s the most deeply honorable form of government ever devised by man.

Why It’s Important: That day in June of 1984, before  Band of Brothers  and  Saving Private Ryan  ever came to be, President Reagan paid tribute to the heroism of those we now call the Greatest Generation, the men and women who liberated Europe and ensured freedom for generations to come.  But for the first time, he also tied resistance to totalitarianism in World War II to opposition to the Soviet Union during the Cold War . President Reagan’s words at the end of that speech, again in the second person, to our Allies that “we were with you then, and we are with you now,” when he called upon the West to “renew our commitment to each other, to our freedom, and to the alliance that protects it” kept the coalition in place that later defeated the Soviet Union and ended the Cold War. The “boys of Pointe du Hoc” saved the world, and, in many ways, they did so more than once.

— Mary Kate Cary, Senior Fellow, the Miller Center

8. Ronald Reagan’s Address on the Space Shuttle Challenger Disaster

When: January 1986

What Reagan Said: “The future doesn’t belong to the faint-hearted but to the brave. The Challenger crew was pulling us into the future, and we’ll continue to follow them…The crew of the space shuttle Challenger honored us by the manner in which they lived their lives. We will never forget them nor the last time we saw them, this morning, as they prepared for their journey and waved goodbye, and slipped the surly bonds of Earth to touch the face of God.”

Why It Was Important: In our current era of political divisiveness, we tend to think of presidents as partisan leaders. But the president’s role as “comforter in chief” is one of the most important functions. The great presidents are distinguished by their ability to set aside partisanship in times of tragedy to speak words that comfort a nation and remind us that, despite our differences, we are all, in the end, Americans.

— Chris Lu, Senior Fellow, the Miller Center

9. George W. Bush’s 'Get On Board' Speech

When: After the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks

What Bush Said: “When they struck they wanted to create an atmosphere of fear, and one of the great goals of this war is…to tell the traveling public: Get on board. Do your business around the country. Fly and enjoy America’s great destination spots. Get down to Disney World in Florida. Take your families and enjoy life the way we want it to be enjoyed.”

Why It Was Important: In short, Bush was saying don’t let the terrorists deter you from spending—the economy needs you. More specifically, Bush’s remarks demonstrated the importance that consumption had come to play in the economy by the twenty-first century. He was carrying out what had become an essential responsibility of the 21st-century president. Even as Bush modeled what it meant to be a strong commander in chief, he juggled another role that had become almost as important: “consumer in chief.”

— Brian Balogh, Dorothy Compton Professor of History, the Miller Center

10. Barack Obama’s 'A More Perfect Union' Speech

What Obama Said: “Contrary to the claim of some of my critics, black and white, I have never been so naïve to think as to believe we can get beyond our racial divisions on a single election cycle or with a single candidate, particularly a candidacy as imperfect as my own. But I have asserted a firm conviction, a conviction rooted in my faith in God and my faith in the American people, that working together we can move beyond some of our old racial wounds, and that in fact we have no choice. We have no choice if we are to continue on the path of a more perfect union…What we know, what we have seen, is that America can change. That is the true genius of this nation. What we have already achieved gives us hope, the audacity to hope, for what we can and must achieve tomorrow.”

Why It Was Important: Conventional wisdom wouldn’t recommend a speech on race. But Obama ran to the challenge, not away from it. Uniquely positioned to do so, he welcomed listeners to places many have never experienced—a predominantly black church, a cringe-worthy conversation with a beloved relative of a different race, the kitchen tables of white Americans who feel resentful and left behind—and he recounted Americans often divergent perspectives. He asked us to be honest about our past while connecting it to the structural barriers faced by African Americans and other people of color today…Direct, honest, but nuanced, Obama believed that most Americans were ready to hear the truth and make a choice, to move beyond racial stalemate, face our challenges, and act accordingly.

 — Melody Barnes, a Senior Fellow, the Miller Center

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HeinOnline Blog

The 15 most inspiring presidential speeches in american history.

• By Tara Kibler
• February 15, 2021
• History , Political Science

Over the centuries, millions upon millions of words have been used by U.S. presidents to motivate, caution, reassure, and guide the American people. Whether written in the news, spoken at a podium, or shared on Twitter, all of these words have carried weight, each with the potential to impact the trajectory of our nation. Only a handful of times, however, has the particular arrangement and context of these words been considered truly inspiring.

This Presidents’ Day, join HeinOnline in rediscovering some of the greatest presidential speeches in American history using our   U.S. Presidential Library  and other sources.

1. Washington’s Farewell Address

Date:  September 17th, 1796

Context:  Toward the end of his second term as the first U.S. president, George Washington announced his retirement from office in a letter addressed to the American people. Though many feared for a United States without Washington, the address reassured the young nation that it no longer required his leadership. Washington also used the opportunity to offer advice for the prosperity of the country. After witnessing the growing division between the Federalist and Democratic-Republican parties, much of his advice was to warn against political parties, factions, and other animosities (domestic and foreign) that would eventually undermine the integrity and efficacy of the American government.

Notable Quote:  “This spirit [of party], unfortunately, is inseparable from our nature, having its root in the strongest passions of the human mind … [but] the disorders and miseries which result gradually incline the minds of men to seek security and repose in the absolute power of an individual; and sooner or later the chief of some prevailing faction, more able or more fortunate than his competitors, turns this disposition to the purposes of his own elevation, on the ruins of public liberty.

“Without looking forward to an extremity of this kind (which nevertheless ought not to be entirely out of sight), the common and continual mischiefs of the spirit of party are sufficient to make it the interest and duty of a wise people to discourage and restrain it. It serves always to distract the public councils and enfeeble the public administration. It agitates the community with ill-founded jealousies and false alarms, kindles the animosity of one part against another, foments occasionally riot and insurrection. It opens the door to foreign influence and corruption, which finds a facilitated access to the government itself through the channels of party passions … A fire not to be quenched, it demands a uniform vigilance to prevent its bursting into a flame, lest, instead of warming, it should consume.”

2. Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address

Date:  November 19, 1863

Context:  Four months after Union armies defeated Confederates at Gettysburg during the American Civil War, President Lincoln visited the site to dedicate the Soldiers’ National Cemetery. In what were intended to be brief, appropriate remarks for the situation, Lincoln used the moment to offer his take on the war and its meaning. The ten sentences he spoke would ultimately become one of the most famous speeches in American history, an inspiration for notable remarks centuries later, and even a foundation for the wording of other countries’ constitutions.

Notable Quote:  “… from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they heregave the last full measure of devotion; that we here highly resolve that the dead shall not have died in vain; that the Nation shall under God have a new birth of freedom, and that Governments of the people, by the people and for the people shall not perish from the earth.”

3. Franklin D. Roosevelt’s Inaugural Address

Date:  March 4, 1933

Context:  The inauguration of Franklin D. Roosevelt was held as the country was in the throes of the Great Depression, and as such, America anxiously awaited what he had to say. Roosevelt did not disappoint, offering 20 minutes of reassurance, hope, and promises for urgent action.

Notable Quote:  “So, first of all, let me assert my firm belief that the only thing we have to fear is … fear itself — nameless, unreasoning, unjustified terror which paralyzes needed efforts to convert retreat into advance. In every dark hour of our national life a leadership of frankness and of vigor has met with that understanding and support of the people themselves which is essential to victory. And I am convinced that you will again give that support to leadership in these critical days.”

4. Franklin D. Roosevelt’s First Fireside Chat

Date:  March 12, 1933

Context:  Just a few days after his inauguration, Roosevelt instituted what he called “fireside chats,” using the relatively new technology of radio to enter the living rooms of Americans and discuss current issues. In these moments, he could speak at length, unfiltered and uninterrupted by the press, while also offering a reassuring, optimistic tone that might otherwise have been lost in the written word. In this first fireside chat, he crafted a message to explain the American banking process (and its current difficulties) in a way that the average listener could understand.

Notable Quote:  “Confidence and courage are the essentials of success in carrying out our plan. You people must have faith. You must not be stampeded by rumors or guesses. Let us unite in banishing fear. We have provided the machinery to restore our financial system, and it is up to you to support and make it work. It is your problem, my friends. Your problem no less than it is mine. Together, we cannot fail.”

5. Franklin D. Roosevelt’s “Four Freedoms” Speech

Date:  January 6, 1941

Context:  By 1941, many affected by the Great Depression had experienced economic recovery, but another world-changing phenomenon had reared its head—Hitler and his Nazi regime. World War II was raging in Europe and the Pacific, but the United States had thus far remained largely neutral. In light of the atrocities occurring overseas, Roosevelt sought to change that. He crafted his State of the Union address that January to highlight four freedoms which are deserved by all humans everywhere. The “Four Freedoms” speech, as it was ultimately known, later became the basis for  America’s intervention in World War II  and significantly influenced American values, life, and politics moving forward.

Notable Quote:  “In the future days, which we seek to make secure, we look forward to a world founded upon four essential human freedoms. The first is freedom of speech and expression—everywhere in the world. The second is freedom of every person to worship God in his own way—everywhere in the world. The third is freedom from want—which, translated into world terms, means economic understandings which will secure to every nation a healthy peace of time life for its inhabitants—everywhere in the world. The fourth is freedom from fear—which, translated into world terms, means a world-wide reduction, armaments to such a point and in such a thorough fashion that no nation will be in a position to commit an act of physical aggression against any neighbor—anywhere in the world.”

6. Eisenhower’s “Atoms for Peace” Speech

Date:  December 8, 1953

Context:  During World War II, Roosevelt formally authorized the Manhattan Project, a top-secret U.S. effort to weaponize nuclear energy. By 1945,  America had successfully created the atomic bomb , and President Truman had authorized its detonation in Japan’s Hiroshima and Nagasaki, leveling the two cities and killing hundreds of thousands of people. Following the end of World War II, political and economic differences between the United States and Soviet Union drove the two countries to another war soon after, but this time, the Soviet Union had their own atomic bomb as well. The world was teetering on a frightening ledge built by access to nuclear power, causing President Eisenhower to launch an “emotion management” campaign with this speech to the United Nations about the very real risks but also peaceful uses of nuclear energy.

Notable Quote:  “… the whole book of history reveals mankind’s never-ending quest for peace and mankind’s God-given capacity to build. It is with the book of history, and not with isolated pages, that the United States will ever wish to be identified. My country wants to be constructive, not destructive. It wants agreements, not wars, among nations. It wants itself to live in freedom and in the confidence that the peoples of every other nation enjoy equally the right of choosing their own way of life. … The United States knows that if the fearful trend of atomic military build-up can be reversed, this greatest of destructive forces can be developed into a great boon, for the benefit of all mankind.”

7. Eisenhower’s Farewell Address

Date:  January 17, 1961

Context:  As he came to the end of his term, President Eisenhower found himself in a nation much stronger, much richer, and much more advanced than when he began. Prepared as early as two years in advance, his farewell address acknowledged the pride all should have in these achievements, but also served to ground the American people in sobering reality—that how the United States uses this power and standing will ultimately determine its fate. Like Washington, his address was one of caution against dangers such as massive spending, an overpowered military industry, and Federal domination of scientific progress (or vice versa, the scientific-technological domination of public policy). In all things, he stressed the need to maintain balance as the country moves forward, for the preservation of liberty.

Notable Quote:  “Down the long lane of the history yet to be written America knows that this world of ours, ever growing smaller, must avoid becoming a community of dreadful fear and hate, and be, instead, a proud confederation of mutual trust and respect. Such a confederation must be one of equals. The weakest must come to the conference table with the same confidence as do we, protected as we are by our moral, economic, and military strength. That table, though scarred by many past frustrations, cannot be abandoned for the certain agony of the battlefield.”

8. Kennedy’s Inaugural Address

Date:  January 20, 1961

Context:  A few days after Eisenhower’s farewell speech, he turned over his office to the youngest-ever elected president, John F. Kennedy. Kennedy now found himself faced with the monumental task of strengthening the United States while also quelling American anxieties about the Cold War and avoiding nuclear warfare. His speech thus focused on unity, togetherness, and collaboration both domestically and abroad.

Notable Quote:  “In the long history of the world, only a few generations have been granted the role of defending freedom in its hour of maximum danger. I do not shrink from this responsibility—I welcome it. I do not believe that any of us would exchange places with any other people or any other generation. The energy, the faith, the devotion which we bring to this endeavor will light our country and all who serve it—and the glow from that fire can truly light the world.

And so, my fellow Americans: ask not what your country can do for you—ask what you can do for your country. My fellow citizens of the world: ask not what America will do for you, but what together we can do for the freedom of man.”

9. Kennedy’s “We Choose to Go to the Moon” Speech

Date:  September 12, 1962

Context:  In the name of national security, the United States and USSR set their sights on spaceflight as a top priority during the Cold War. To the surprise (and fear) of people around the globe, the Soviet Union launched the first-ever artificial satellite in 1957, then sent the first human being into space in 1961, signaling to onlookers that its nation was a technological force to be reckoned with. Kennedy was determined to come up with a challenge in space technology that the United States actually stood a chance to win. In the early ’60s, he proposed that America focus on putting a man on the moon. In an uplifting speech at Rice University, Kennedy reminded his listeners of the country’s technological progress so far and of his administration’s determination to continue the pioneering spirit of early America into the new frontier of space.

Notable Quote:  “We choose to go to the moon. We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard, because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills, because that challenge is one that we are willing to accept, one we are unwilling to postpone, and one which we intend to win, and the others, too.”

Read about America’s successful moon landing in this blog post.

10. Lyndon B. Johnson’s “Great Society” Speech

Date:  May 22, 1964

Context:  Lyndon B. Johnson was sworn in as President in 1963, immediately following  Kennedy’s assassination . Johnson vowed to continue the former president’s work on poverty, civil rights, and other issues. Inspired in part by FDR’s New Deal, he devised a set of programs intended to completely eliminate poverty and racial injustice. In 1964, he formally proposed some specific goals in a speech to the University of Michigan, where he coined the lofty ideal of a “Great Society.”

Notable Quote:  “Your imagination, your initiative, and your indignation will determine whether we build a society where progress is the servant of our needs, or a society where old values and new visions are buried under unbridled growth. For in your time we have the opportunity to move not only toward the rich society and the powerful society, but upward to the Great Society.”

11. Lyndon B. Johnson’s “We Shall Overcome” Speech

Date:  March 15, 1965

Context:  By the 1960s, blacks in areas of the Deep South found themselves disenfranchised by state voting laws, such as those requiring a poll tax, literacy tests, or knowledge of the U.S. constitution. Furthermore, these laws were sometimes applied subjectively, leading to the prevention of even educated blacks from voting or registering to vote. Inspired (and sometimes joined) by Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr., protests were planned throughout the region. Eight days after racial violence erupted around one of these protests in Selma, Alabama, President Johnson addressed Congress to declare that “every American citizen must have an equal right to vote” and that discriminatory policies were denying African-Americans that right.

Notable Quote:  “What happened in Selma is part of a far larger movement which reaches into every section and State of America. It is the effort of American Negroes to secure for themselves the full blessings of American life. Their cause must be our cause too. Because it’s not just Negroes, but really it’s all of us, who must overcome the crippling legacy of bigotry and injustice. And we shall overcome …

“This great, rich, restless country can offer opportunity and education and hope to all, all black and white, all North and South, sharecropper and city dweller. These are the enemies: poverty, ignorance, disease. They’re our enemies, not our fellow man, not our neighbor. And these enemies too—poverty, disease, and ignorance: we shall overcome.”

12. Reagan’s D-Day Anniversary Address

Date:  June 6, 1984

Context:  During World War II, the Allied forces attacked German troops on the coast of Normandy, France on June 6, 1944. A turning point for the war, the day came to be known as D-Day, and its anniversary is forever acknowledged. On its 40th anniversary, President Ronald Reagan honored the heroes of that day in a speech that also invoked a comparison of World War II’s Axis dictators to the Soviet Union during the ongoing Cold War. This reminder to the Allies that they once fought together against totalitarianism and must continue the fight now helped contribute to the ultimate dissolution of the Soviet Union.

Notable Quote:  “We look for some sign from the Soviet Union that they are willing to move forward, that they share our desire and love for peace, and that they will give up the ways of conquest. There must be a changing there that will allow us to turn our hope into action. We will pray forever that some day that changing will come. But for now, particularly today, it is good and fitting to renew our commitment to each other, to our freedom, and to the alliance that protects it. We are bound today by what bound us 40 years ago, the same loyalties, traditions, and beliefs. We’re bound by reality. The strength of America’s allies is vital to the United States, and the American security guarantee is essential to the continued freedom of Europe’s democracies. We were with you then; we are with you now. Your hopes are our hopes, and your destiny is our destiny.”

13. Reagan’s Berlin Wall Speech

Date:  June 12, 1987

Context:  With the fall of Nazi Germany at the end of World War II, Western powers and the Soviet Union sought to establish systems of government in their respective occupied regions. West Germany developed into a Western capitalist country, with a democratic parliamentary government, while East Germany became a socialist workers’ state (though it was often referred to as communist in the English-speaking world). Many experiencing hunger, poverty, and repression in the Soviet-influenced East Germany attempted to move west, with the City of Berlin their main point of crossing. Ultimately, the Soviet Union advised East Germany to build a wall on the inner German border, restricting movement and emigration by threat of execution for attempted emigrants. Seen as a symbol of Communist tyranny by Western nations, the Berlin Wall persisted for nearly three decades. In 1987, President Ronald Reagan visited West Berlin and called upon Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev to take down the wall as a symbol of moving forward.

Notable Quote:  “We welcome change and openness; for we believe that freedom and security go together, that the advance of human liberty can only strengthen the cause of world peace. There is one sign the Soviets can make that would be unmistakable, that would advance dramatically the cause of freedom and peace. General Secretary Gorbachev, if you seek peace, if you seek prosperity for the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe, if you seek liberalization: Come here to this gate! Mr. Gorbachev, open this gate! Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!”

14. George W. Bush’s Post-9/11 Speech

Date:  September 11, 2001

Context:  On September 11, 2001, the United States experienced  the single worst terrorist attack in human history , where four American planes were hijacked and flown into American buildings, killing nearly 3,000 people. Viewers around the world watched the news as five stories of the Pentagon fell and the World Trade Center buildings collapsed entirely. Later that evening, President George W. Bush addressed the nation with a brief but powerful message that chose to focus not on fear, but on America’s strength in unity.

Notable Quote:

“These acts of mass murder were intended to frighten our nation into chaos and retreat. But they have failed. Our country is strong. A great people has been moved to defend a great nation. Terrorist attacks can shake the foundations of our biggest buildings, but they cannot touch the foundation of America. These acts shatter steel, but they cannot dent the steel of American resolve. America was targeted for attack because we’re the brightest beacon for freedom and opportunity in the world. And no one will keep that light from shining.”

15. Obama’s “More Perfect Union” Speech

Date:  March 18, 2008

Context:  While campaigning for the presidency in 2008, Barack Obama came under fire for his relationship with pastor Jeremiah Wright, who had been heard to denounce the United States and accuse the government of racial crimes. To officially address the relationship and condemn Wright’s inflammatory remarks, Obama crafted a speech that discussed the history of racial inequality in America as well as the dissonance between that history and America’s ideals of human liberty. Importantly, however, he also highlighted the necessity for a unified American people to effectively combat those issues, rather than more racial division.

Notable Quote:  “[T]he remarks that have caused this recent firestorm weren’t simply controversial. They weren’t simply a religious leader’s effort to speak out against perceived injustice. Instead, they expressed a profoundly distorted view of this country—a view that sees white racism as endemic, and that elevates what is wrong with America above all that we know is right with America ….

“[These] comments were not only wrong but divisive, divisive at a time when we need unity; racially charged at a time when we need to come together to solve a set of monumental problems—two wars, a terrorist threat, a falling economy, a chronic health care crisis and potentially devastating climate change; problems that are neither black or white or Latino or Asian, but rather problems that confront us all ….

“The fact is that the comments that have been made and the issues that have surfaced over the last few weeks reflect the complexities of race in this country that we’ve never really worked through—a part of our union that we have yet to perfect. And if we walk away now, if we simply retreat into our respective corners, we will never be able to come together and solve challenges like health care, or education, or the need to find good jobs for every American.”

Read about Barack Obama’s presidency in this blog post.

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How to Write a Presidential Speech?

Table of Contents

Running for student government election and looking for a strong presidential campaign speech example? Public speaking is quite challenging and requires a specific set of advanced skills.

President’s talks are direct communications between the president and the people of the country. They connect people across the nations and compel them to take actions which have vital consequences for the growth.

Those happen on specific occasions like president’s inaugurals, f.e. They can be responses to imperatives or represent initiatives, declaring the policy and setting people on a new course.

Compelling presentations combine strategic writing, comprehensive planning, and confident delivery. In this guide, you will find useful tips on how to convince your audience to support your cause or join your team.

How to write a presidential speech

Whether it is an election of the president or a school-associated election, the speech has to be persuasive and convey a clear relevant message across the public. Speakers have to convince everybody that they are the right candidates for the job and persuade people to vote for them.

How to write a presidential campaign speech?

Keep it simple. The most effective presentations are written in clear language and short sentences. Use these quick tips to present your main points convincingly and intelligently.

• Speak about major issues that matter to voters . Create an outline of talking points.
• Keep sentences short and related to your key message.
• Thank your audience for attending the event and make them feel you are chatting with each of them .
• Write like people talk and use the problem-solution format .
• Present your ability to make changes for the better happen. Show your passion.
• Avoid insults and focus on the bright side .
• Repeat key themes, using repetitive phrases at the beginning, in the middle, and at the end.
• When concluding, encourage people to take action and thank them for their time.
• Take inspiration from the best politicians and public speakers. Read powerful pieces, which stood the test of time.

How to start a presidential speech

It’s critical to start a public speaking piece correctly. Brainstorm several essential ideas before writing.

Outline what you would like to say in your introduction. In this part, you should include an appropriate greeting, acknowledge important people, and briefly explain the reasons for your public speaking.

… How to do it right?

• Include your greeting in the first couple of sentences.
• Acknowledge your audience and everyone of importance.
• Briefly speak about the objective of your presentation.
• Use some humor to break the ice, if appropriate.

Presidential speech examples

Now, as we have discussed the key ideas on how to write a presidential campaign speech, we’ll move on to a bit of practice.

If you have never written speeches before, you might be slightly unsure. There would be dozens of questions, like:

• Where to find exciting ideas worth including in your piece?
• How to organize them?
• How to communicate your great ideas to an audience?

Speechwriting is an art that requires a lot of work and dedication. If you face writing issues, the best thing for you is learning from others and looking for inspiration in a good presidential speech example.

Good examples can help candidates create exciting and motivating public speaking pieces.

Presidential campaign speech example

Are you willing to participate in school government elections? See this campaign presentation written by a student for additional inspiration.

Hello, my fellow Americans, my name is Kate Smith. I am running for school president. You might be saying to yourself: “Is Kate qualified to lead us as a student body president? She has been at our school for only one year.” I have several great reasons why you should vote for me. I have a sense of humor. I really enjoy being involved in school life. I am persistent, and I always put all my energy into everything I do no matter how long it takes. I always finish what I start doing. I am a compassionate leader and promise to listen to your opinions before making decisions. I come from a different school, and I have some new ideas for you. Vote for me if you are ready for a change. Should you elect me, I will never let you down. Thank you for listening.

Presidential acceptance speech example

Take a look at presidential acceptance speech example which can serve you as a template if you lack ideas on how to start.

Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. I especially welcome my family and friends who have traveled here to support me. I promise I won’t bore you with a long speech. I’m honored and privileged to have been elected as president of our club. I will do my best to meet the challenge. I would like to take this opportunity to acknowledge the great performance of our previous leader Richard White. He guided us in carrying out many projects for the benefits of our community. Congratulations to our new vice president Alice Brown, our new board members, and all our fellow club members who have shown their confidence in me. I am grateful for your tremendous support and look forward to serving with you in order to make people’s lives better.

Presidential election speech example

There are plenty of online resources, where students can find a memorable presidential election speech example.

Get a better understanding of how to make it all appealing to voters. Review a short passage created for an imaginary candidate.

Thank you all for being here, your warm welcome, and friendly support. I know you are here because our country has come to a crossroad. In fact, it’s the most critical election of our lifetime. You have to choose whether our society makes a U-turn or moves forward to a great future and prosperity. It’s up to us, whether we change the existing political landscape of our country or not. Loads of issues divide us into small confronting groups. But I would rather focus on the common grounds that we all share and need to cultivate. These are issues where we can make progress.

How to cite a presidential speech

There are specific rules on citing a presidential speech in every citation style – APA, MLA, Harvard or Chicago. In this article, we provide students with templates showing how to cite a presidential speech in Chicago style, and how to cite a presidential speech in APA style.

You need a documented source of presentation in video, text (an online transcript, a book) or recorded audio. To format your citations properly, you have to write down the following information:

• Speaker’s name and surname.
• Date when a piece was delivered.
• Name of the editor.

How to cite a presidential speech in Chicago style?

Use the following structure to cite a book :

Speaker’s Surname, Name. “Title.” Year of Delivery. In Title of Book, edited by Editor. City, State: Publisher, Year of Publication.

Citing online transcript:

Speaker’s Surname, Name. “Title.” Speech, Location, Date. “Webpage Title,” Site Title. Accessed Date. URL.

How to cite a presidential speech in APA style?

Use APA citation of a book :

Online transcript citation :

We hope that our easy tips on how to write a presidential speech and on how to cite a presidential speech will help you succeed in creating most stunning.

If you follow our guidelines, the only thing left to worry about would be: Where is the teleprompter for a presidential speech?

The teleprompter is a beneficial device that allows speakers to look natural and have no risk of forgetting or losing lines. We also recommend having a printed copy of your presentation for even more confidence.

Afraid your presidential speech won’t be high-end? Hand it to our writers, and get a top-notch text back! Psst, it’s done in a few clicks only…

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Opening Remarks by the President to the Business Roundtable

Introduction to Presidential Speech

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Biden Draws on Themes of Manhood and Faith at Morehouse Commencement

The president’s appearance at the historically Black college in Atlanta drew some respectful but noticeable protest over U.S. support for Israel’s war in Gaza.

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Biden Calls on Morehouse College Graduates to Defend Democracy

In a commencement speech at morehouse, the historically black men’s college in atlanta, president biden condemned white supremacy and “extremist forces aligned against the meaning and message of morehouse.”.

You started college just as George Floyd was murdered and there was a reckoning on race. It’s natural to wonder if democracy you hear about actually works for you. What is democracy if Black men are being killed in the street? What is democracy if the trail of broken promises still leave Black communities behind? What is democracy if you have to be 10 times better than anyone else to get a fair shot? Well that’s my commitment to you. To show you democracy, democracy, democracy, is still the way. That Black men are being killed in the streets, we bear witness. For me, that means to call out the poison of white supremacy. Graduates, this is what we’re up against: extremist forces aligned against the meaning and message of Morehouse. And they peddle a fiction, a caricature, of what being a man is about — tough talk, abusing power, bigotry. But that’s not you. It’s not us. You all know and demonstrate what it really means to be a man. Being a man is about strength of respect and dignity. It’s about showing up because it’s too late, if you have to ask. It’s about giving hate no safe harbor.

By Katie Rogers and Maya King

Katie Rogers and Maya King reported from the Morehouse College commencement ceremony in Atlanta.

• May 19, 2024

President Biden invoked scripture and lessons from his own tragic past on Sunday in a commencement address to hundreds of young Black men at Morehouse College, saying he believes there are “extremist forces aligned against the meaning and message” of the prestigious institution.

Mr. Biden’s speech, delivered at the historically Black men’s college in Atlanta, put him directly in front of hundreds who represent a slice of the electorate that is drifting away from him over the war in Gaza and growing apathy about their choices ahead of the election. Mr. Biden used the moment to say that manhood was not about “tough talk” and “bigotry” but about calling out hate.

“Their idea of being a man is toxic,” Mr. Biden told the graduates, a reference to adversaries he did not name — but, given that his other events this weekend were focused on attacking his Republican competitor, Donald J. Trump, it was little mystery who he was talking about. “That is not you. That is not us. Being a man is about strength and respect and dignity.”

Those who stormed the Capitol with Confederate flags “are called patriots by some,” he said — a clear reference to Mr. Trump. “Not in my house.”

Mr. Biden’s speech was his first significant appearance before college students since protests over the war in Gaza began roiling campuses. For a ceremony in which students are discouraged even from decorating their caps, the signs of protest were respectful but noticeable: A small group of graduates turned to sit with their backs to Mr. Biden as he spoke, and several graduates wore the kaffiyeh, a traditional scarf associated with the Palestinians, draped over their shoulders. Some parents urged their graduating sons not to protest.

Mr. Biden also called for an immediate cease-fire and said that his administration was working to secure one. He said that members of his family had been upset by the war, a group that includes Jill Biden, the first lady, who has urged her husband in private to bring a stop to it.

“What’s happening in Gaza, in Israel, is heartbreaking,” Mr. Biden said. “It’s a humanitarian crisis in Gaza.”

In a statement, Morehouse said that discussions between White House officials and students, faculty and alumni had helped shape Mr. Biden’s speech and his calls for a cease-fire in Gaza. The school also praised its graduates. “It is fitting that a moment of organized, peaceful activism would occur on our campus while the world is watching to continue a critical conversation,” the statement read.

During his 27-minute speech, Mr. Biden tried to stress to the graduates — none of whom stood for him as he took the lectern — that throughout his life he had respected and espoused the same ideas they care about.

He said he had worked throughout his life, as a public defender, senator and president, to correct inequalities. He outlined the work his administration has done that he and his advisers believe deserves more credit than it receives, including the forgiveness of large amounts of student loan debt and reducing the poverty rate for Black children.

“We know Black history is American history,” Mr. Biden said at one point, urging the crowd to “check my record,” which includes choosing the first Black female Supreme Court justice, Ketanji Brown Jackson, and the first Black woman to hold the vice presidency, Kamala Harris.

By focusing on matters of adversity and strength, Mr. Biden also sought to strike a contrast with Mr. Trump not on the grounds of politics or policy but through the lessons of keeping faith in moments of hopelessness. He spoke of the death of his first wife and daughter as well as his eldest son, Beau, from brain cancer.

He told the Morehouse graduates, a class that weathered the chaos of the pandemic and the tumult of widespread protests over the police killings of Black men, that it was natural for them to question whether there was a place for them in democracy at all.

“What is democracy when Black men are being killed in the streets?” he said. “What is democracy when a trail of broken promises still leave Black communities behind? What is democracy when you have to be 10 times better than anyone else to get a fair shot?”

Repeatedly, Mr. Biden reached for religious inspiration, recalling that Jesus was buried on Friday and resurrected on Sunday, leaving Saturday as a day of hopelessness. He suggested that 2020 — the year he was elected, with its twin traumas of the Covid-19 pandemic and the police killing of George Floyd — had been one such Saturday.

At one point, Mr. Biden said, “I’ve learned there was no easy optimism but by faith, by faith you can find redemption.”

Mr. Biden, who has a bust of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in the Oval Office — and who is old enough to have shared his memories of Dr. King’s assassination in his speech — walked into commencement on Sunday unsure of how the crowd would receive him.

Morehouse, which was established in Atlanta in 1867, is a school whose culture is steeped in tradition. Students spend their years working toward becoming the embodiment of the Morehouse man: well traveled, well read and civically engaged. As the alma mater of Dr. King, there is also a proud history of protesting for social justice.

Mr. Biden’s visit to Morehouse drew the objections of some faculty members, alumni and students, who have voiced anger over the war in Gaza and the American government’s support for Israel. The tension drew so much attention that the school’s president, David A. Thomas, publicly warned that he would stop the commencement if graduates shouted at the president or disrupted the event.

The men of Morehouse found ways to work their opposition to the war into the ceremony. DeAngelo Jeremiah Fletcher, the class valedictorian, took the stage with the Palestinian flag pinned on his stole and on his cap.

“It is my stance as a Morehouse man, nay, as a human being, to call for an immediate and permanent cease-fire, in the Gaza Strip,” Mr. Fletcher said. Mr. Biden joined the crowd in standing up and clapping when Mr. Fletcher finished, and he shook the graduate’s hand.

But by the end of Mr. Biden’s speech, signs of support were visible, too. As Mr. Biden received an honorary doctorate of law, Mr. Thomas praised the president for listening to the concerns of the graduating class. And some people chanted “four more years” as Mr. Biden left the stage.

After addressing Morehouse, Mr. Biden was set to travel to Detroit to speak at a dinner hosted by the N.A.A.C.P.

Hitting two battleground states in eight hours was the clearest sign yet that Mr. Biden is serious about reintroducing himself to voters who carried him to the White House in 2020 and whose support he will need to win to stay in office for a second term.

In 2020 , 95 percent of Black women and 87 percent of Black men voted for Mr. Biden, according to the Pew Research Center. But in April, only 55 percent of Black voters told Pew that they approved of his job performance. A recent poll by Ipsos and The Washington Post showed that 62 percent of Black Americans planned to vote in 2024, down from 74 percent in 2020.

In recent days, both Mr. Biden and Ms. Harris have traveled outside of Washington to host events geared toward bringing those voters back into the fold.

Mr. Biden’s trip to Detroit comes as the latest New York Times/Siena College poll shows him winning support from less than half of Black voters in Michigan in a five-way race. In 2020, he won more than 90 percent of Black voters in the state, exit polls show.

The war in Gaza and concerns about the economy are driving factors behind what analysts say is an increase in apathy. In Michigan, nearly nine in 10 Black voters rated the economy as being in “fair” or “poor” condition, a higher rate than white voters, the Times/Siena poll found.

Alexis Wiley, the founder of a strategic communications firm in Detroit and a former member of the Democratic National Committee, said the Biden administration had to do more to communicate its victories.

“I think that they’re finally catching up to the fact that people aren’t feeling great,” Ms. Wiley said, “and now there’s this mad dash to try to correct it.”

Reporting was contributed by Nicholas Nehamas in Washington and Chevaz Clarke-Williams , Alan Blinder and Sean Keenan in Atlanta.

Katie Rogers is a White House correspondent. For much of the past decade, she has focused on features about the presidency, the first family, and life in Washington, in addition to covering a range of domestic and foreign policy issues. She is the author of a book on first ladies. More about Katie Rogers

Maya King is a politics reporter covering the Southeast, based in Atlanta. She covers campaigns, elections and movements in the American South, as well as national trends relating to Black voters and young people. More about Maya King

Our Coverage of the 2024 Election

Presidential Race: News and Analysis

President Biden railed against “extremist forces” and drew contrasts with Donald Trump in a commencement address  to hundreds of young Black men at Morehouse College.

Biden’s narrow win in Georgia in 2020 was seen as a sign of the state’s emergence as a battleground. But in 2024, he faces a changed landscape there .

Senator Marco Rubio of Florida, who has been floated as a possible running mate for Donald Trump, refused to commit to accepting the results of the 2024 election .

Political Violence:  Public officials from Congress to City Hall are now regularly subjected to threats of violence. It’s changing how they do their jobs .

Trump’s Running Mate:  Trump’s V.P. search is still in its early stages, but he is said to be leaning toward more experienced options  who can help the ticket without seizing his precious spotlight.

Biden-Trump Debates:  How might the candidates try to win their two planned debates? Veteran Republican and Democratic strategists offered their advice .

Burning Cash:  It is a time-honored tradition in U.S. politics: wealthy people burning through their fortunes to ultimately lose an election. Here are some of the biggest money-pit campaigns .

15 Powerful Speech Opening Lines (And How to Create Your Own)

Hrideep barot.

• Public Speaking , Speech Writing

Powerful speech opening lines set the tone and mood of your speech. It’s what grips the audience to want to know more about the rest of your talk.

The first few seconds are critical. It’s when you have maximum attention of the audience. And you must capitalize on that!

Instead of starting off with something plain and obvious such as a ‘Thank you’ or ‘Good Morning’, there’s so much more you can do for a powerful speech opening (here’s a great article we wrote a while ago on how you should NOT start your speech ).

To help you with this, I’ve compiled some of my favourite openings from various speakers. These speakers have gone on to deliver TED talks , win international Toastmaster competitions or are just noteworthy people who have mastered the art of communication.

After each speaker’s opening line, I have added how you can include their style of opening into your own speech. Understanding how these great speakers do it will certainly give you an idea to create your own speech opening line which will grip the audience from the outset!

Alright! Let’s dive into the 15 powerful speech openings…

Note: Want to take your communications skills to the next level? Book a complimentary consultation with one of our expert communication coaches. We’ll look under the hood of your hurdles and pick two to three growth opportunities so you can speak with impact!

1. Ric Elias

Opening: “Imagine a big explosion as you climb through 3,000 ft. Imagine a plane full of smoke. Imagine an engine going clack, clack, clack. It sounds scary. Well I had a unique seat that day. I was sitting in 1D.”

How to use the power of imagination to open your speech?

Putting your audience in a state of imagination can work extremely well to captivate them for the remainder of your talk.

It really helps to bring your audience in a certain mood that preps them for what’s about to come next. Speakers have used this with high effectiveness by transporting their audience into an imaginary land to help prove their point.

When Ric Elias opened his speech, the detail he used (3000 ft, sound of the engine going clack-clack-clack) made me feel that I too was in the plane. He was trying to make the audience experience what he was feeling – and, at least in my opinion, he did.

When using the imagination opening for speeches, the key is – detail. While we want the audience to wander into imagination, we want them to wander off to the image that we want to create for them. So, detail out your scenario if you’re going to use this technique.

Make your audience feel like they too are in the same circumstance as you were when you were in that particular situation.

2. Barack Obama

Opening: “You can’t say it, but you know it’s true.”

3. Seth MacFarlane

Opening: “There’s nowhere I would rather be on a day like this than around all this electoral equipment.” (It was raining)

How to use humour to open your speech?

When you use humour in a manner that suits your personality, it can set you up for a great speech. Why? Because getting a laugh in the first 30 seconds or so is a great way to quickly get the audience to like you.

And when they like you, they are much more likely to listen to and believe in your ideas.

Obama effortlessly uses his opening line to entice laughter among the audience. He brilliantly used the setting (the context of Trump becoming President) and said a line that completely matched his style of speaking.

Saying a joke without really saying a joke and getting people to laugh requires you to be completely comfortable in your own skin. And that’s not easy for many people (me being one of them).

If the joke doesn’t land as expected, it could lead to a rocky start.

Keep in mind the following when attempting to deliver a funny introduction:

• Know your audience: Make sure your audience gets the context of the joke (if it’s an inside joke among the members you’re speaking to, that’s even better!). You can read this article we wrote where we give you tips on how you can actually get to know your audience better to ensure maximum impact with your speech openings
• The joke should suit your natural personality. Don’t make it look forced or it won’t elicit the desired response
• Test the opening out on a few people who match your real audience. Analyze their response and tweak the joke accordingly if necessary
• Starting your speech with humour means your setting the tone of your speech. It would make sense to have a few more jokes sprinkled around the rest of the speech as well as the audience might be expecting the same from you

4. Mohammed Qahtani

Opening: Puts a cigarette on his lips, lights a lighter, stops just before lighting the cigarette. Looks at audience, “What?”

5. Darren Tay

Opening: Puts a white pair of briefs over his pants.

How to use props to begin your speech?

The reason props work so well in a talk is because in most cases the audience is not expecting anything more than just talking. So when a speaker pulls out an object that is unusual, everyone’s attention goes right to it.

It makes you wonder why that prop is being used in this particular speech.

The key word here is unusual . To grip the audience’s attention at the beginning of the speech, the prop being used should be something that the audience would never expect. Otherwise, it just becomes something that is common. And common = boring!

What Mohammed Qahtani and Darren Tay did superbly well in their talks was that they used props that nobody expected them to.

By pulling out a cigarette and lighter or a white pair of underwear, the audience can’t help but be gripped by what the speaker is about to do next. And that makes for a powerful speech opening.

6. Simon Sinek

Opening: “How do you explain when things don’t go as we assume? Or better, how do you explain when others are able to achieve things that seem to defy all of the assumptions?”

7. Julian Treasure

Opening: “The human voice. It’s the instrument we all play. It’s the most powerful sound in the world. Probably the only one that can start a war or say “I love you.” And yet many people have the experience that when they speak people don’t listen to them. Why is that? How can we speak powerfully to make change in the world?”

How to use questions to open a speech?

I use this method often. Starting off with a question is the simplest way to start your speech in a manner that immediately engages the audience.

But we should keep our questions compelling as opposed to something that is fairly obvious.

I’ve heard many speakers start their speeches with questions like “How many of us want to be successful?”

No one is going to say ‘no’ to that and frankly, I just feel silly raising my hand at such questions.

Simon Sinek and Jullian Treasure used questions in a manner that really made the audience think and make them curious to find out what the answer to that question is.

What Jullian Treasure did even better was the use of a few statements which built up to his question. This made the question even more compelling and set the theme for what the rest of his talk would be about.

So think of what question you can ask in your speech that will:

• Set the theme for the remainder of your speech
• Not be something that is fairly obvious
• Be compelling enough so that the audience will actually want to know what the answer to that question will be

8. Aaron Beverley

Opening: Long pause (after an absurdly long introduction of a 57-word speech title). “Be honest. You enjoyed that, didn’t you?”

How to use silence for speech openings?

The reason this speech opening stands out is because of the fact that the title itself is 57 words long. The audience was already hilariously intrigued by what was going to come next.

But what’s so gripping here is the way Aaron holds the crowd’s suspense by…doing nothing. For about 10 to 12 seconds he did nothing but stand and look at the audience. Everyone quietened down. He then broke this silence by a humorous remark that brought the audience laughing down again.

When going on to open your speech, besides focusing on building a killer opening sentence, how about just being silent?

It’s important to keep in mind that the point of having a strong opening is so that the audience’s attention is all on you and are intrigued enough to want to listen to the rest of your speech.

Silence is a great way to do that. When you get on the stage, just pause for a few seconds (about 3 to 5 seconds) and just look at the crowd. Let the audience and yourself settle in to the fact that the spotlight is now on you.

I can’t put my finger on it, but there is something about starting the speech off with a pure pause that just makes the beginning so much more powerful. It adds credibility to you as a speaker as well, making you look more comfortable and confident on stage. 

If you want to know more about the power of pausing in public speaking , check out this post we wrote. It will give you a deeper insight into the importance of pausing and how you can harness it for your own speeches. You can also check out this video to know more about Pausing for Public Speaking:

9. Dan Pink

Opening: “I need to make a confession at the outset here. Little over 20 years ago, I did something that I regret. Something that I’m not particularly proud of. Something that in many ways I wish no one would ever know but that here I feel kind of obliged to reveal.”

10. Kelly McGonigal

Opening: “I have a confession to make. But first I want you to make a little confession to me.”

How to use a build-up to open your speech?

When there are so many amazing ways to start a speech and grip an audience from the outset, why would you ever choose to begin your speech with a ‘Good morning?’.

That’s what I love about build-ups. They set the mood for something awesome that’s about to come in that the audience will feel like they just have to know about.

Instead of starting a speech as it is, see if you can add some build-up to your beginning itself. For instance, in Kelly McGonigal’s speech, she could have started off with the question of stress itself (which she eventually moves on to in her speech). It’s not a bad way to start the speech.

But by adding the statement of “I have a confession to make” and then not revealing the confession for a little bit, the audience is gripped to know what she’s about to do next and find out what indeed is her confession.

11. Tim Urban

Opening: “So in college, I was a government major. Which means that I had to write a lot of papers. Now when a normal student writes a paper, they might spread the work out a little like this.”

12. Scott Dinsmore

Opening: “8 years ago, I got the worst career advice of my life.”

How to use storytelling as a speech opening?

“The most powerful person in the world is the storyteller.” Steve Jobs

Storytelling is the foundation of good speeches. Starting your speech with a story is a great way to grip the audience’s attention. It makes them yearn to want to know how the rest of the story is going to pan out.

Tim Urban starts off his speech with a story dating back to his college days. His use of slides is masterful and something we all can learn from. But while his story sounds simple, it does the job of intriguing the audience to want to know more.

As soon as I heard the opening lines, I thought to myself “If normal students write their paper in a certain manner, how does Tim write his papers?”

Combine such a simple yet intriguing opening with comedic slides, and you’ve got yourself a pretty gripping speech.

Scott Dismore’s statement has a similar impact. However, just a side note, Scott Dismore actually started his speech with “Wow, what an honour.”

I would advise to not start your talk with something such as that. It’s way too common and does not do the job an opening must, which is to grip your audience and set the tone for what’s coming.

13. Larry Smith

Opening: “I want to discuss with you this afternoon why you’re going to fail to have a great career.”

14. Jane McGonigal

Opening: “You will live 7.5 minutes longer than you would have otherwise, just because you watched this talk.”

How to use provocative statements to start your speech?

Making a provocative statement creates a keen desire among the audience to want to know more about what you have to say. It immediately brings everyone into attention.

Larry Smith did just that by making his opening statement surprising, lightly humorous, and above all – fearful. These elements lead to an opening statement which creates so much curiosity among the audience that they need to know how your speech pans out.

This one time, I remember seeing a speaker start a speech with, “Last week, my best friend committed suicide.” The entire crowd was gripped. Everyone could feel the tension in the room.

They were just waiting for the speaker to continue to know where this speech will go.

That’s what a hard-hitting statement does, it intrigues your audience so much that they can’t wait to hear more! Just a tip, if you do start off with a provocative, hard-hitting statement, make sure you pause for a moment after saying it.

Silence after an impactful statement will allow your message to really sink in with the audience.

Related article: 5 Ways to Grab Your Audience’s Attention When You’re Losing it!

15. Ramona J Smith

Opening: In a boxing stance, “Life would sometimes feel like a fight. The punches, jabs and hooks will come in the form of challenges, obstacles and failures. Yet if you stay in the ring and learn from those past fights, at the end of each round, you’ll be still standing.”

How to use your full body to grip the audience at the beginning of your speech?

In a talk, the audience is expecting you to do just that – talk. But when you enter the stage and start putting your full body into use in a way that the audience does not expect, it grabs their attention.

Body language is critical when it comes to public speaking. Hand gestures, stage movement, facial expressions are all things that need to be paid attention to while you’re speaking on stage. But that’s not I’m talking about here.

Here, I’m referring to a unique use of the body that grips the audience, like how Ramona did. By using her body to get into a boxing stance, imitating punches, jabs and hooks with her arms while talking – that’s what got the audience’s attention.

The reason I say this is so powerful is because if you take Ramona’s speech and remove the body usage from her opening, the entire magic of the opening falls flat.

While the content is definitely strong, without those movements, she would not have captured the audience’s attention as beautifully as she did with the use of her body.

So if you have a speech opening that seems slightly dull, see if you can add some body movement to it.

If your speech starts with a story of someone running, actually act out the running. If your speech starts with a story of someone reading, actually act out the reading.

It will make your speech opening that much more impactful.

Related article: 5 Body Language Tips to Command the Stage

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Final Words

So there it is! 15 speech openings from some of my favourite speeches. Hopefully, these will act as a guide for you to create your own opening which is super impactful and sets you off on the path to becoming a powerful public speaker!

But remember, while a speech opening is super important, it’s just part of an overall structure.

If you’re serious about not just creating a great speech opening but to improve your public speaking at an overall level, I would highly recommend you to check out this course: Acumen Presents: Chris Anderson on Public Speaking on Udemy. Not only does it have specific lectures on starting and ending a speech, but it also offers an in-depth guide into all the nuances of public speaking. 

Being the founder of TED Talks, Chris Anderson provides numerous examples of the best TED speakers to give us a very practical way of overcoming stage fear and delivering a speech that people will remember. His course has helped me personally and I would definitely recommend it to anyone looking to learn public speaking. 

No one is ever “done” learning public speaking. It’s a continuous process and you can always get better. Keep learning, keep conquering and keep being awesome!

Lastly, if you want to know how you should NOT open your speech, we’ve got a video for you:

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Introduction Speech

Discover the art of crafting compelling introduction speeches through our comprehensive guide. Whether you’re a beginner or a seasoned speaker, our step-by-step approach simplifies the process. Explore a rich collection of speech examples , tailored to inspire and improve your public speaking skills. Master the nuances of delivering impactful introductions that captivate your audience, using our expertly curated speech examples as your roadmap to success.

Download Introduction Speech Buncle

A speech can be of any form and used for various functions. It can be a thank-you speech to show one’s gratitude or even an introduction speech to introduce a person (even oneself), product, company, or the like. In these examples, let’s look at different speech examples that seek to introduce.

Introduction Speech Example

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Introduction Speech for Students

Introduction Speech for School

Self-Introduction Sample

Size: 143 KB

Short Introduction Speech

Size: 110 KB

Introduction Speech for Employee

Size: 47 KB

What to Include in an Introduction Speech

An introduction speech may also work as a welcome speech . You introduce yourself to an audience and provide the audience with the gist of a meeting or program. This would include providing recognition to significant individuals or even starting a brief discussion on a topic.

But of course, this would solely depend on what you’re trying to introduce. You can also use various speech templates for you to know what other information may be included in your speech.

How to Write a Introduction Speech?

In writing an introduction speech, it’s wise to familiarize the flow of a program.

Think about what your goal is and how you could attain it. You need to be able to capture the attention and interest of your listeners. If you’re giving a speech to introduce the president of your company, be sure to make it grand. Share significant details that are sure to receive a wow factor from the audience as an introduction speech can also be an informative speech . Keep in mind that it’s always best to start with an outline or draft so it will be easier for you to edit.

Introduction Speech for Chairman

Size: 281 KB

waalc.org.au

Size: 13 KB

Formal Introduction Sample

Size: 223 KB

Tips on Writing an Introduction Speech

1. Keep it short. When you try to self introduction speech   to a person you just met, you don’t tell them paragraphs of information that aren’t even relevant. You would want to entice an audience, not bore them out. You don’t need to make it lengthy for it to be good. A few wise words and a touch of class will be enough for your listeners.

2. Make an outline. Introductions are meant to give an audience a quick run through of what they must know. Create a speech outline that will state the purpose of your speech and provide a preview of main ideas that are to be discussed. This is sure to give your audience a reason to listen.

3. Create an icebreaker. Speeches can be quite awkward, especially since they’re usually made formal. Craft a speech that will leave a good impact. Allow others to feel comfortable with the environment they are in and allow them to feel valued. You may also see orientation speech examples & samples

4. Read it out loud. The thing is, some things sound better in our heads than being said aloud. It’s possible that your speech in pdf may contain words that don’t sound good together or that it might give a different interpretation on a matter.

How to Conclude an Introduction Speech

Just as an essay can be conclude speech in different ways, an introduction speech may end in various ways.

You can close it in a challenging, congratulatory, suggestive or even inviting matter. It’s best to keep it as brief as possible to let your listeners know that you’re ending your speech in word . All you need to make sure of is that you don’t abruptly end your speech, leaving your audience hanging.

In the realm of public speaking, the introduction speech serves as a crucial gateway, opening the door to deeper engagement and understanding. Whether it’s for a corporate event, educational purpose, or a personal introduction, the essence of a good introduction speech lies in its ability to connect the speaker with the audience on a meaningful level. To further enhance your skills in crafting and delivering effective introduction speeches, exploring resources from esteemed institutions can be immensely beneficial. Websites like Harvard’s Public Speaking Resources offer a treasure trove of tips, techniques, and examples that can inspire and guide speakers to refine their approach.

Introduction Speech Generator

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Presidential Announcement Speech Introduction - June 16, 2015

Ladies and gentlemen please welcome Ivanka Trump. Welcome everybody. Today I have the honor of introducing a man who needs no introduction. His legend has been built and his accomplishments are too many to name. That man is my father. Most people strive their entire lives to achieve great success in a single field; my father has succeeded in many at the highest level and on a global scale. He's enjoyed success in a vast diversity of industries because the common denominator is him, his vision, his brilliance, his passion, his work ethic, and his refusal to take no for an answer. I've enjoyed the good fortune of working alongside my father for 10 years now and I've seen these principles in action daily. I remember him telling me when I was a little girl, “Ivanka if you're gonna be thinking anyway, you might as well be thinking big,” and that's how he approaches any task that he undertakes: he thinks big.

My father has employed tens of thousands of people throughout his career, and he has inspired them to do extraordinary things. He has a strength to make hard decisions and motivate those around him to achieve the impossible. He is an optimist who chases big dreams and sees potential where others do not. He leads by example and will outwork anyone in any room. My father is the opposite of politically correct. He says what he means and he means what he says. He is also the best negotiator I have ever met. Countless times I've stood by his side and watched him make deals that seemed impossible to get done. He has the discernment to understand what the other party needs and then to get exactly what he wants.

My father knows how to be a fierce opponent, but also how to be a very loyal friend. When it comes to building bridges he can do so figuratively, but also has the rare ability to do so literally, on time and under budget. Throughout his career, my father has been repeatedly called upon by local and federal government to step in and save long-stalled, grossly over budget public projects. Whether it's building a skating rink in the heart of Central Park, meticulously restoring the exterior facade of Grand Central Terminal, enabling the development of New York City's Jacob Javits Convention Center, creating a championship public golf course for the city of New York, or redeveloping the iconic, but totally underutilized, old post office building on Pennsylvania Avenue in the heart of Washington DC.

My father succeeds time and time again where government has failed before him. I consider myself fortunate to have learned from the best, both as an entrepreneur and as a parent. My father is a man who is deeply grounded in tradition. He raised my siblings and me to work hard and to strive for excellence in all that we do. He taught us that we have a responsibility to make a positive contribution to society. Here today, my father is again leading me by example.

My generation finds itself at a crossroads. Our leadership has been mired in bureaucracy of its own creation. If we don't adapt politically and economically, our country will be left behind. To address the many challenges we face, we don't need talk, we need action, we need execution, we need someone who is bold and independent with a proven track record of successfully creating and building large and complex and complicated organizations, and in the process and labeling many, many Americans to better their lives.

I can tell you that there is no better person than my father to have in your corner when you're facing tough opponents or making hard decisions. He is battle tested. He is a dreamer, but perhaps more importantly, he is a doer. Ladies and gentlemen, it is my pleasure to introduce to you today a man who I have loved and respected my entire life, my father, Donald J Trump.

Neither the Catt Center nor Iowa State University is affiliated with any individual in the Archives or any political party. Inclusion in the Archives is not an endorsement by the center or the university.

Written Samples

10 student council speech samples.

Running for a position on the Student Council is a commendable endeavor that requires courage, planning, and a clear vision. Student Council serves as the voice of the student body, advocating for changes, planning events, and representing student interests.

A strong, compelling speech can significantly impact your campaign, resonating with peers and motivating them to vote for you. This article provides 10 distinct student council speech samples tailored for various roles and personalities.

Student Council Speech Samples

Whether you’re running for president, vice president, treasurer, secretary, or a specific committee, these speeches are designed to inspire and guide you in crafting your unique message.

Speech 1: The Visionary Leader

“building a brighter future together”.

Fellow students, today marks a significant moment in our journey together. I stand before you, not as an individual, but as a representative of the collective dreams and aspirations we all share for our school. As a candidate for your Student Council President, I am committed to making those dreams a reality.

Our school is more than just a building; it’s a vibrant community where each of us has the opportunity to grow, learn, and succeed. However, like any community, we face our share of challenges. Whether it’s improving school lunches, increasing club funding, or ensuring that every student’s voice is heard, there is always work to be done.

My vision is to create a more inclusive, supportive, and dynamic school environment. This means establishing open forums where every student can voice their concerns, working closely with administration to implement sustainable changes, and building a culture of mutual respect and collaboration.

I bring to this position my experience as class representative, my passion for student involvement, and my unwavering commitment to our school’s welfare. Together, we can build a brighter future for all students. Let’s make it happen!

Speech 2: The Approachable Vice President

“uniting for a stronger community”.

Hello, fellow students! I am thrilled to stand before you as a candidate for Vice President of the Student Council. My goal is clear: to work alongside the president in creating a united, empowered student body ready to tackle the challenges and embrace the opportunities that come our way.

As Vice President, I will focus on enhancing communication between the council and you, the students. I plan to set up a suggestions box, hold regular meet-ups, and ensure your ideas and concerns don’t just stay heard but acted upon. I understand the importance of teamwork, and I promise to be an accessible, friendly face you can always turn to.

My dedication to our school community stems from my own experiences as an active member of several clubs and organizations. These experiences have taught me the value of listening, the importance of action, and the transformative power of community spirit. Let’s work together to make our school not just a place of learning, but a home of lasting memories and achievements!

Speech 3: The Meticulous Treasurer

“investing in our future”.

Good day, students! As a candidate for the position of Treasurer, I want to talk about an essential aspect of our student council: fiscal responsibility. The role of Treasurer is more than just handling funds; it’s about ensuring that every dollar you entrust to the council is spent wisely and benefits as many students as possible.

I come to you with a strong background in mathematics and a keen eye for detail, qualities that are crucial for managing our budget effectively. I plan to introduce transparent budget reports, seek your input on spending priorities, and negotiate for better deals on our events and supplies.

Investing in our future means more than just saving money; it means funding initiatives that build our skills, enhance our school spirit, and create lasting memories. With your trust, I promise to be a responsible steward of our resources, always seeking ways to improve our collective experience while maintaining fiscal prudence.

Speech 4: The Organized Secretary

“keeping us connected”.

Hello, everyone! As your prospective Student Council Secretary, I understand the significance of organization and clear communication in making our council effective. My mission is to keep us connected and informed, ensuring that every meeting, every event, and every decision is recorded and communicated to you promptly and clearly.

My approach involves not just meticulous note-taking and organizing but also harnessing technology to streamline our communication. This means regular updates through our school’s website and social media, creating a digital archive of minutes and decisions, and ensuring you’re always in the loop.

By keeping our council’s work transparent and accessible, I aim to build trust and encourage greater participation from all of you. Let’s work together to create a well-informed student body capable of making a difference!

Speech 5: The Dedicated Committee Member

“every voice matters”.

Hi, everyone! Running for a specific committee might seem like a small role, but it’s roles like these that make our student council function effectively. As a candidate for the [Insert Committee Name] committee, I am passionate about [Insert Committee Focus, e.g., environmental issues, school spirit, academic improvement].

My commitment is to bring fresh ideas, boundless energy, and a listening ear to this position. I want to ensure that every student who shares a passion for [Committee Focus] has a platform to express their ideas and see them come to life. Whether it’s organizing events, leading campaigns, or working on improvements, I am ready to dedicate my time and effort to make a real impact.

Your vote means not just support for me but an investment in the area we’re passionate about. Let’s join hands and make [Insert School Name] a beacon of [Committee Focus] excellence!

Speech 6: The Inspirational President

“leading with heart and vision”.

Dear students, as I stand before you, aspiring to be your next Student Council President, I am filled with a sense of purpose and determination. This school is not just an institution but a vibrant community where each of us has the potential to thrive and contribute. As your president, I aim to lead not just with decisions, but with vision, empathy, and unwavering dedication.

My vision for us is a school where every student feels valued and empowered. A place where we tackle challenges head-on, celebrate our diversity, and work collectively towards innovative solutions. I plan to initiate regular student-led forums, champion inclusive policies, and ensure that our activities and decisions reflect the rich tapestry of our student body.

My commitment to you is rooted in a deep belief in teamwork, respect, and perseverance. I have learned through various leadership roles that the key to effective leadership is listening, adapting, and inspiring. Together, we can elevate our school to new heights, create a nurturing environment, and build a legacy of positivity and progress.

Speech 7: The Dynamic Vice President

“collaboration and action”.

Greetings, fellow students! As candidates for Vice President of the Student Council, I am excited about the prospect of working closely with the president to amplify your voices and bring your ideas to fruition. I understand that this role is pivotal in facilitating smooth operations and fostering a spirit of unity and collaboration among us.

My focus will be on bridging the gap between students and the council, ensuring that we are not just a body making decisions but a dynamic team working in sync with the student community. I plan to introduce innovative collaboration tools and platforms where every suggestion is considered, and every voice is heard.

With my experience in organizing school events and managing teams, I bring a set of skills that are crucial for the effective execution of our shared goals. I promise to be proactive, resourceful, and most importantly, accessible to each one of you. Let’s work together to make our school a hub of vibrant student activity and shared success.

Speech 8: The Strategic Treasurer

“fiscal responsibility, our collective commitment”.

Hello to all! As your candidate for Treasurer, I am aware of the significant responsibility that comes with managing our student council’s finances. It’s not just about keeping books; it’s about strategic planning, transparency, and making every penny count towards improving our school life.

I bring to this position my experience with budgeting and finance, coupled with a deep commitment to serve each one of you. My plan includes introducing a participatory budgeting process where you get to have a say in our financial priorities, regular financial updates to keep everyone informed, and innovative fundraising ideas to boost our resources.

Investing in our collective future means making smart, ethical, and impactful financial decisions. With a keen eye on our goals and a strict adherence to transparency, I will ensure that our council’s financial health is robust and that our resources are aligned with our shared vision.

Speech 9: The Efficient Secretary

“the backbone of our council”.

Dear students, as a hopeful Secretary for our Student Council, I recognize the immense responsibility of being the link between you and the council’s activities. This role is more than just taking minutes; it’s about ensuring that every decision, every event, and every initiative is documented, communicated, and archived effectively.

My vision is to make our council’s workings as transparent and accessible as possible. This means not only meticulous record-keeping but also innovative communication strategies to keep everyone informed and engaged. I plan to utilize digital platforms to disseminate information, organize feedback sessions, and ensure that our council is always accountable to you.

With a commitment to organization and a passion for communication, I am ready to be the reliable backbone of our council, ensuring that as we move forward, every step is recorded, every voice is heard, and every achievement is shared.

Speech 10: The Passionate Committee Leader

“spearheading change, one initiative at a time”.

Greetings, peers! As a candidate for the [Insert Committee Name, e.g., Environmental Committee] leader, I am here not just to lead a committee but to ignite a movement. Whether it’s enhancing our school’s green initiatives, boosting academic resources, or strengthening our sports programs, each committee plays a crucial role in our student council’s mission.

I am passionate about [Committee Focus] and have spent my time at school actively involved in related projects and initiatives. As a leader, I plan to bring this passion to the forefront, driving innovative programs, rallying student support, and ensuring that our activities have a lasting impact.

Your support means empowering a dedicated leader focused on making tangible changes in our school. Together, we can champion causes close to our hearts, bring about meaningful change, and leave a legacy that future students will be proud of.

In crafting your speech, remember the importance of authenticity, clarity, and enthusiasm. Your fellow students are looking for leaders who not only promise but also inspire and enact real change. Use these samples as inspiration, but ensure your personal story and vision shine through. Good luck!

Biden’s upcoming graduation speech roils Morehouse College, a center of Black politics and culture

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When he gives the commencement address at Morehouse College , President Biden will have his most direct engagement with college students since the start of the Israel-Hamas war at a center of Black politics and culture.

Morehouse is in Atlanta, the largest city in the swing state of Georgia, which Biden flipped from former President Trump four years ago. Biden’s speech Sunday will come as he tries to make inroads with a key and symbolic constituency — young Black men — and repair the diverse coalition that elected him to the White House.

The announcement of the speech last month triggered peaceful protests and calls for the university administration to cancel over Biden’s handling of the war between Israel and Hamas. Some students at Morehouse and other historically Black campuses in Atlanta say they vociferously oppose Biden and the decision to have him speak, mirroring the tension Biden faces in many communities of color and with young voters nationally.

Morehouse President David Thomas said in an interview that the emotions around the speech made it all the more important that Biden speak.

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April 24, 2024

“In many ways, these are the moments Morehouse was born for,” he said. “We need someplace in this country that can hold the tensions that threaten to divide us. If Morehouse can’t hold those tensions, then no place can.”

The speech comes at a critical moment for Biden in his general election rematch against Trump. Biden is lagging in support among Black voters and people under 30, groups that were key to his narrow 2020 victories in several battleground states, including Georgia.

Fifty-five percent of Black adults approved of the way Biden is handling his job as president, according to an AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll in March, a figure far below earlier in his presidency. Overall, 32% of 18- to 29-year-olds approved in the same poll.

“This is a global catastrophe in Gaza, and Joe Biden coming to pander for our votes is political blackface,” said Morehouse sophomore Anwar Karim, who urged Thomas and school trustees to rescind Biden’s invitation.

Recent scenes on American campuses reflect objections among many young voters about Israel’s assaults in Gaza. Biden has backed Israel since Hamas militants killed more than 1,200 Israelis and took hundreds of hostages on Oct. 7. That includes weapons shipments to the longstanding U.S. ally, even as Biden advocates for a cease-fire, criticizes Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s tactics and the civilian death toll in Gaza surpasses 35,000 people, many of them women and children.

Biden says ‘order must prevail’ during campus protests over Gaza

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May 2, 2024

Many younger Black people have identified with the Palestinian cause and have at times drawn parallels between Israeli rule of the Palestinian territories and South Africa’s now-defunct apartheid system and abolished Jim Crow laws in the U.S. Israel rejects claims that its system of laws for Palestinians constitutes apartheid.

“I think that the president will do himself good if he does not duck that, especially when you think about the audience that he will be speaking to directly and to the nation,” Thomas said.

Sunday’s speech will culminate a four-day span during which Biden will concentrate on reaching Black communities. On Thursday, the White House is hosting plaintiffs from the Brown vs. Board of Education case that barred legal segregation of America’s public schools. The following day, Biden will address an NAACP gathering commemorating the 70th anniversary of the landmark decision.

Former U.S. Rep. Cedric Richmond, a longtime Biden ally who helped broker his speech at Morehouse, said he understood students’ concerns but emphasized that Biden has pressured Netanyahu and supports a two-state solution for the Israelis and Palestinians. Trump, meanwhile, has effectively abandoned that long-held U.S. position and said Israel should “finish the problem” in Gaza.

“That’s nowhere in the conversation,” Richmond said.

The debate over Biden’s speech at Morehouse reflected a fundamental tension of historically Black colleges and universities, which are dedicated to social justice and Black advancement and run by administrators who are committed to keeping order.

As protests roil college campuses, young voters’ support for Biden hangs in the balance

Polls show that college-educated youth voters are focused on the war in Gaza, which poses possible electoral problems for the president.

May 4, 2024

“We look like a very conservative institution” sometimes, Thomas said. “On one hand, the institution has to be the stable object where we are today in the world.”

But, he added, the university’s long-term purpose is to “support our students in going out to create a better world.”

Blowback started even before Thomas publicly announced Biden was coming. Faculty sent executives a letter of concern, prompting an online town hall. Alumni gathered several hundred signatures to urge that Thomas rescind Biden’s invitation. The petition called the invitation antithetical to the pacifism the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., a Morehouse alumnus, expressed when opposing the Vietnam War.

Some students note that leaders of Morehouse and other HBCUs did not always support King and other civil rights activists who are venerated today. Morehouse, for instance, expelled the actor Samuel L. Jackson in 1969 after he and other students held Morehouse trustees, including King’s father, in a campus building as part of demanding curriculum changes and the appointment of more Black trustees.

Students organized two recent protests across the Atlanta University Center (AUC), a consortium of historically Black institutions in Atlanta that includes Morehouse. Chants included “Joe Biden, f— off!” and “Biden, Biden, you can’t hide. We charge you with genocide,” along with expletives directed at Thomas.

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At many universities across the country, graduation for the Class of 2024 will feel more like making it through airport security than a procession through a free-flowing campus green or a cheering stadium crowd.

May 5, 2024

“Our institution is supporting genocide, and we turn a blind eye,” said Nyla Broddie, a student at Spelman College, which is part of the AUC. Brodie argued Biden’s Israel policy should be viewed in the broader context of U.S. foreign policy and domestic police violence against Black Americans.

Thomas said he “feels very positive about graduation” and that “not one” Morehouse senior — there are about 500 at the all-male private school — has opted out of participating. “That’s not to say that the sentiments about what’s going on in Gaza don’t resonate with people in our community,” Thomas said.

Thomas met privately with students as did several trustees. The Morehouse alumni association hosted a student town hall, featuring at least one veteran of the Atlanta Student Movement, a civil rights-era organization.

But there was a consistent message: Uninviting the president of the United States was not an option. When students raised questions about endowment investments in Israel and U.S. defense contractors, they said they were told the relevant amounts are negligible, a few hundred thousand dollars in mutual funds.

“I think folks are excited” about Biden coming, said Democratic Georgia Sen. Raphael Warnock, the senior pastor at King’s Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta. Warnock said Biden is in “a great position” to talk about student debt relief, increased federal support for HBCUs and other achievements.

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School administrators say the ruling opens a door for HBCUs to fill a gap for students seeking an educational experience in which Black identity and culture are celebrated.

Sept. 22, 2023

HBCUs have not seen crackdowns from law enforcement like those at Columbia University in New York City and UCLA. However, Morehouse and the AUC have seen peaceful demonstrations, petitions and private meetings among campus stakeholders. Xavier University, a historically Black university in Louisiana, withdrew its commencement invitation for U.N. Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield, citing a desire among students “to enjoy a commencement ceremony free of disruptions.”

Whether Morehouse graduates or other students protest Biden or disrupt the ceremony remains to be seen. Student protest leaders say they are unaware of any plans to demonstrate inside during the commencement.

Thomas, Morehouse’s president, promised that forms of protest at commencement that “do not disrupt ceremonies” will not result in sanctions for any students.

But he also vowed to end the program early if disruptions grow.

“We will not — on Morehouse’s campus — create a national media moment,” he said, “where our inability to manage these tensions leads to people being taken out of a Morehouse ceremony in zip ties by law enforcement.”

Barrow and Brown write for the Associated Press.

More to Read

Biden tells Morehouse graduates he hears their voices of protest over the war in Gaza

May 19, 2024

Biden says 1954 high court ruling on school desegregation was about more than education

May 17, 2024

Editorial: House antisemitism bill would stymie free speech and wouldn’t make students safer

May 14, 2024

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Biden’s upcoming graduation speech roils Morehouse College, a center of Black politics and culture

FILE - President Joe Biden speaks in support of changing the Senate filibuster rules that have stalled voting rights legislation, at Atlanta University Center Consortium, on the grounds of Morehouse College and Clark Atlanta University, Jan. 11, 2022, in Atlanta. Biden will have his most direct engagement with college students since the start of the Israel-Hamas war when he speaks at Morehouse College’s commencement. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, File)

President Joe Biden speaks at a memorial service to honor law enforcement officers who’ve lost their lives in the past year, during National Police Week ceremonies at the Capitol in Washington, Wednesday, May 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

A large group of faith leaders organized by the Atlanta Multifaith Coalition for Palestine address the media during a press conference at Emory on Tuesday, April 30, 2024. They’re demanding Biden not to speak at Morehouse commencement unless he calls for an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza. (Miguel Martinez/Atlanta Journal-Constitution via AP)

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ATLANTA (AP) — When he gives the commencement address at Morehouse College, President Joe Biden will have his most direct engagement with college students since the start of the Israel-Hamas war at a center of Black politics and culture.

Morehouse is located in Atlanta, the largest city in the swing state of Georgia, which Biden flipped from then-President Donald Trump four years ago. Biden’s speech Sunday will come as the Democrat tries to make inroads with a key and symbolic constituency — young Black men — and repair the diverse coalition that elected him to the White House.

The announcement of the speech last month triggered peaceful protests and calls for the university administration to cancel over Biden’s handling of the war between Israel and Hamas. Some students at Morehouse and other historically Black campuses in Atlanta say they vociferously oppose Biden and the decision to have him speak, mirroring the tension Biden faces in many communities of color and with young voters nationally .

Morehouse President David Thomas said in an interview that the emotions around the speech made it all the more important that Biden speak.

“In many ways, these are the moments Morehouse was born for,” he said. “We need someplace in this country that can hold the tensions that threaten to divide us. If Morehouse can’t hold those tensions, then no place can.”

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The speech comes at a critical moment for Biden in his general election rematch against Trump, a Republican. Biden is lagging in support among both Black voters and people under 30, groups that were key to his narrow 2020 victories in several battleground states, including Georgia.

Fifty-five percent of Black adults approved of the way Biden is handling his job as president, according to an AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll in March, a figure far below earlier in his presidency. Overall, 32% of 18- to 29-year-olds approved in the same poll.

“This is a global catastrophe in Gaza, and Joe Biden coming to pander for our votes is political blackface,” said Morehouse sophomore Anwar Karim, who urged Thomas and school trustees to rescind Biden’s invitation.

Recent scenes on American campuses reflect objections among many young voters about Israel’s assaults in Gaza. Biden has backed Israel since Hamas militants killed more than 1,200 Israelis and took hundreds of hostages on Oct. 7. That includes weapons shipments to the longstanding U.S. ally, even as Biden advocates for a cease-fire, criticizes Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s tactics and the death toll in Gaza surpasses 35,000 people, many of them women and children.

Many younger Black people have identified with the Palestinian cause and have at times drawn parallels between Israeli rule of the Palestinian territories and South Africa’s now-defunct apartheid system and abolished Jim Crow laws in the U.S. Israel rejects claims that its system of laws for Palestinians constitutes apartheid.

“I think that the president will do himself good if he does not duck that, especially when you think about the audience that he will be speaking to directly and to the nation,” Thomas said.

Sunday’s speech will culminate a four-day span during which Biden will concentrate on reaching Black communities. On Thursday, Biden met privately with plaintiffs from the Brown v. Board of Education case that barred legal segregation of America’s public schools. The following day, Biden will address an NAACP gathering commemorating the 70th anniversary of the landmark decision.

Former U.S. Rep. Cedric Richmond, a longtime Biden ally who helped broker his speech at Morehouse, said he understood students’ concerns but emphasized that Biden has pressured Netanyahu and supports a two-state solution for the Israelis and Palestinians. Trump, meanwhile, has effectively abandoned that long-held U.S. position and said Israel should “finish the problem” in Gaza.

“That’s nowhere in the conversation,” Richmond said.

The debate over Biden’s speech at Morehouse reflected a fundamental tension of historically Black colleges and universities, which are both dedicated to social justice and Black advancement and run by administrators who are committed to keeping order.

“We look like a very conservative institution” sometimes, Thomas said. “On one hand, the institution has to be the stable object where we are today in the world.”

But, he added, the university’s long-term purpose is to “support our students in going out to create a better world.”

Blowback started even before Thomas publicly announced Biden was coming. Faculty sent executives a letter of concern, prompting an online town hall. Alumni gathered several hundred signatures to urge that Thomas rescind Biden’s invitation. The petition called the invitation antithetical to the pacifism Martin Luther King Jr., a Morehouse alumnus, expressed when opposing the Vietnam War.

Some students note that leaders of Morehouse and other HBCUs did not always support King and other Civil Rights activists who are venerated today. Morehouse, for instance, expelled the actor Samuel L. Jackson in 1969 after he and other students held Morehouse trustees, including King’s father, in a campus building as part of demanding curriculum changes and the appointment of more Black trustees.

Students organized two recent protests across the Atlanta University Center (AUC), a consortium of historically Black institutions in Atlanta that includes Morehouse. Chants included “Joe Biden, f— off!” and “Biden, Biden, you can’t hide. We charge you with genocide,” along with expletives directed at Thomas.

“Our institution is supporting genocide, and we turn a blind eye,” said Nyla Broddie, a student at Spelman College, which is part of the AUC. Brodie argued Biden’s Israel policy should be viewed in the broader context of U.S. foreign policy and domestic police violence against Black Americans.

Thomas said he “feels very positive about graduation” and that “not one” Morehouse senior — there are about 500 at the all-male private school — has opted out of participating. “That’s not to say that the sentiments about what’s going on in Gaza don’t resonate with people in our community,” Thomas said.

Thomas met privately with students as did several trustees. The Morehouse alumni association hosted a student town hall, featuring at least one veteran of the Atlanta Student Movement, a Civil Rights-era organization.

But there was a consistent message: Uninviting the president of the United States was not an option. When students raised questions about endowment investments in Israel and U.S. defense contractors, they said they were told the relevant amounts are negligible, a few hundred thousand dollars in mutual funds.

“I think folks are excited” about Biden coming, said Democratic Georgia Sen. Raphael Warnock, the senior pastor at King’s Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta. Warnock said Biden is in “a great position” to talk about student debt relief , increased federal support for HBCUs and other achievements.

HBCUs have not seen crackdowns from law enforcement like those at Columbia University in New York City and the University of California, Los Angeles. However, Morehouse and the AUC have seen peaceful demonstrations, petitions and private meetings among campus stakeholders. Xavier University, a historically Black university in Louisiana, withdrew its commencement invitation for U.N. Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield , citing a desire among students “to enjoy a commencement ceremony free of disruptions.”

Whether Morehouse graduates or other students protest Biden or disrupt the ceremony remains to be seen. Student protest leaders say they are unaware of any plans to demonstrate inside during the commencement.

Thomas, Morehouse’s president, promised that forms of protest at commencement that “do not disrupt ceremonies” will not result in sanctions for any students.

But he also vowed to end the program early if disruptions grow.

“We will not — on Morehouse’s campus — create a national media moment,” he said, “where our inability to manage these tensions leads to people being taken out of a Morehouse ceremony in zip ties by law enforcement.”

Biden's Upcoming Graduation Speech Roils Morehouse College, a Center of Black Politics and Culture

President Joe Biden will have his most direct engagement with college students since the start of the Israel-Hamas war when he speaks at Morehouse College's commencement

Biden's Upcoming Graduation Speech Roils Morehouse College, a Center of Black Politics and Culture

Patrick Semansky

FILE - President Joe Biden speaks in support of changing the Senate filibuster rules that have stalled voting rights legislation, at Atlanta University Center Consortium, on the grounds of Morehouse College and Clark Atlanta University, Jan. 11, 2022, in Atlanta. Biden will have his most direct engagement with college students since the start of the Israel-Hamas war when he speaks at Morehouse College's commencement. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, File)

ATLANTA (AP) — When he gives the commencement address at Morehouse College, President Joe Biden will have his most direct engagement with college students since the start of the Israel-Hamas war at a center of Black politics and culture.

Morehouse is located in Atlanta, the largest city in the swing state of Georgia , which Biden flipped from then-President Donald Trump four years ago. Biden's speech Sunday will come as the Democrat tries to make inroads with a key and symbolic constituency — young Black men — and repair the diverse coalition that elected him to the White House.

The announcement of the speech last month triggered peaceful protests and calls for the university administration to cancel over Biden’s handling of the war between Israel and Hamas. Some students at Morehouse and other historically Black campuses in Atlanta say they vociferously oppose Biden and the decision to have him speak, mirroring the tension Biden faces in many communities of color and with young voters nationally .

Morehouse President David Thomas said in an interview that the emotions around the speech made it all the more important that Biden speak.

“In many ways, these are the moments Morehouse was born for,” he said. “We need someplace in this country that can hold the tensions that threaten to divide us. If Morehouse can’t hold those tensions, then no place can.”

The speech comes at a critical moment for Biden in his general election rematch against Trump, a Republican. Biden is lagging in support among both Black voters and people under 30, groups that were key to his narrow 2020 victories in several battleground states, including Georgia.

Fifty-five percent of Black adults approved of the way Biden is handling his job as president, according to an AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll in March, a figure far below earlier in his presidency. Overall, 32% of 18- to 29-year-olds approved in the same poll.

“This is a global catastrophe in Gaza, and Joe Biden coming to pander for our votes is political blackface,” said Morehouse sophomore Anwar Karim, who urged Thomas and school trustees to rescind Biden’s invitation.

Recent scenes on American campuses reflect objections among many young voters about Israel’s assaults in Gaza. Biden has backed Israel since Hamas militants killed more than 1,200 Israelis and took hundreds of hostages on Oct. 7. That includes weapons shipments to the longstanding U.S. ally, even as Biden advocates for a cease-fire, criticizes Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s tactics and the death toll in Gaza surpasses 35,000 people, many of them women and children.

Many younger Black people have identified with the Palestinian cause and have at times drawn parallels between Israeli rule of the Palestinian territories and South Africa’s now-defunct apartheid system and abolished Jim Crow laws in the U.S. Israel rejects claims that its system of laws for Palestinians constitutes apartheid.

“I think that the president will do himself good if he does not duck that, especially when you think about the audience that he will be speaking to directly and to the nation,” Thomas said.

Sunday's speech will culminate a four-day span during which Biden will concentrate on reaching Black communities. On Thursday, Biden met privately with plaintiffs from the Brown v. Board of Education case that barred legal segregation of America’s public schools. The following day, Biden will address an NAACP gathering commemorating the 70th anniversary of the landmark decision.

Former U.S. Rep. Cedric Richmond, a longtime Biden ally who helped broker his speech at Morehouse, said he understood students’ concerns but emphasized that Biden has pressured Netanyahu and supports a two-state solution for the Israelis and Palestinians. Trump, meanwhile, has effectively abandoned that long-held U.S. position and said Israel should “finish the problem” in Gaza.

“That’s nowhere in the conversation,” Richmond said.

The debate over Biden's speech at Morehouse reflected a fundamental tension of historically Black colleges and universities, which are both dedicated to social justice and Black advancement and run by administrators who are committed to keeping order.

“We look like a very conservative institution” sometimes, Thomas said. “On one hand, the institution has to be the stable object where we are today in the world.”

But, he added, the university's long-term purpose is to “support our students in going out to create a better world.”

Blowback started even before Thomas publicly announced Biden was coming. Faculty sent executives a letter of concern, prompting an online town hall. Alumni gathered several hundred signatures to urge that Thomas rescind Biden’s invitation. The petition called the invitation antithetical to the pacifism Martin Luther King Jr., a Morehouse alumnus, expressed when opposing the Vietnam War.

Some students note that leaders of Morehouse and other HBCUs did not always support King and other Civil Rights activists who are venerated today. Morehouse, for instance, expelled the actor Samuel L. Jackson in 1969 after he and other students held Morehouse trustees, including King’s father, in a campus building as part of demanding curriculum changes and the appointment of more Black trustees.

Students organized two recent protests across the Atlanta University Center (AUC), a consortium of historically Black institutions in Atlanta that includes Morehouse. Chants included “Joe Biden, f— off!” and “Biden, Biden, you can’t hide. We charge you with genocide,” along with expletives directed at Thomas.

“Our institution is supporting genocide, and we turn a blind eye,” said Nyla Broddie, a student at Spelman College, which is part of the AUC. Brodie argued Biden’s Israel policy should be viewed in the broader context of U.S. foreign policy and domestic police violence against Black Americans.

Thomas said he “feels very positive about graduation” and that “not one” Morehouse senior — there are about 500 at the all-male private school — has opted out of participating. “That’s not to say that the sentiments about what’s going on in Gaza don’t resonate with people in our community,” Thomas said.

Thomas met privately with students as did several trustees. The Morehouse alumni association hosted a student town hall, featuring at least one veteran of the Atlanta Student Movement, a Civil Rights-era organization.

But there was a consistent message: Uninviting the president of the United States was not an option. When students raised questions about endowment investments in Israel and U.S. defense contractors, they said they were told the relevant amounts are negligible, a few hundred thousand dollars in mutual funds.

“I think folks are excited” about Biden coming, said Democratic Georgia Sen. Raphael Warnock, the senior pastor at King’s Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta. Warnock said Biden is in “a great position” to talk about student debt relief , increased federal support for HBCUs and other achievements.

HBCUs have not seen crackdowns from law enforcement like those at Columbia University in New York City and the University of California, Los Angeles. However, Morehouse and the AUC have seen peaceful demonstrations, petitions and private meetings among campus stakeholders. Xavier University, a historically Black university in Louisiana , withdrew its commencement invitation for U.N. Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield , citing a desire among students “to enjoy a commencement ceremony free of disruptions.”

Whether Morehouse graduates or other students protest Biden or disrupt the ceremony remains to be seen. Student protest leaders say they are unaware of any plans to demonstrate inside during the commencement.

Thomas, Morehouse's president, promised that forms of protest at commencement that “do not disrupt ceremonies” will not result in sanctions for any students.

But he also vowed to end the program early if disruptions grow.

“We will not — on Morehouse’s campus — create a national media moment,” he said, “where our inability to manage these tensions leads to people being taken out of a Morehouse ceremony in zip ties by law enforcement.”

Copyright 2024 The  Associated Press . All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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At Morehouse, Biden says dissent should be heard because democracy is 'still the way'

Stephen Fowler

Jeongyoon Han

President Biden speaks to graduating students at the Morehouse College commencement Sunday in Atlanta. Alex Brandon/AP hide caption

President Biden speaks to graduating students at the Morehouse College commencement Sunday in Atlanta.

President Biden told Morehouse College's graduating class of 2024 that he's committed to serving Black voters while defending freedom and democracy in the face of "extremist forces" that he says threaten the soul of the nation.

With just six months until the general election, the speech, which was filled with religious themes of struggle and resilience, also served as a continuation of Biden's warning to his supporters of what he thinks the country would look like if Donald Trump is elected again.

"They don't see you in the future of America, but they're wrong," he said. "To me, we make history, not erase it. We know Black history is American history."

The president's commencement address at Morehouse, a historically Black school in Atlanta, also comes as polling shows potentially lower support for his reelection efforts among Black voters and young voters, and as campus protests over conflict in Gaza have disrupted graduations around the country.

Biden said he understood angst over the direction of the country, acknowledged "dissent about America's role in the world" and said that those who have different views should have their voices heard in the name of democracy.

"That's my commitment to you," he said. "To show you: democracy, democracy democracy — it's still the way."

Graduating students at the Morehouse College commencement bow their heads Sunday in Atlanta. President Biden addressed the graduating class of 2024 and warned about "extremist forces" he says threaten the soul of the nation. Alex Brandon/AP hide caption

Graduating students at the Morehouse College commencement bow their heads Sunday in Atlanta. President Biden addressed the graduating class of 2024 and warned about "extremist forces" he says threaten the soul of the nation.

His speech is also one of many events on his recent trip aimed at speaking to Black voters, following events with plaintiffs in the historic Brown v. Board Supreme Court case, meetings with Black Greek Letter Organizations, often known as the Divine Nine, and before he headlines an NAACP dinner in Detroit.

For weeks, several college and university campuses around the country have been roiled with student protests and encampments expressing opposition against Biden and U.S. policies and involvement around conflict in Gaza.

Biden will cap off a week of outreach to Black Americans with Morehouse commencement

Biden is set for the Morehouse graduation. Students are divided

Morehouse has seen student demonstrations, but not occupation of campus spaces or clashes with law enforcement. Outside of the ceremony, a small number of protesters gathered while the commencement itself did not see any major disruptions.

Last week, Morehouse College President David Thomas said he would rather halt proceedings than have students escorted away for protesting.

"If my choice is 20 people being arrested on national TV on the Morehouse campus, taken away in zip ties during our commencement, before we would reach that point, I would conclude the ceremony," he said on NPR's Weekend Edition .

An attendee stands in protest with their back to President Biden as Biden speaks to graduating students at the Morehouse College commencement Sunday in Atlanta. John Bazemore/AP hide caption

An attendee stands in protest with their back to President Biden as Biden speaks to graduating students at the Morehouse College commencement Sunday in Atlanta.

Those concerns did not come to pass. Apart from the heightened security and increased media presence, Biden's speech was met with a similar response to a typical college graduation ceremony.

More than 400 graduating students walked across the stage Sunday, and during Biden's speech a handful of students, some wearing keffiyehs , turned their chairs around to face away from the president.

After the ceremony, Morehouse issued a statement praising the graduating class and their intentionally muted response to Biden.

"It is fitting that a moment of organized, peaceful activism would occur on our campus while the world is watching to continue a critical conversation," the statement reads. "We are proud of the resilient class of 2024's unity in silent protest, showing their intentionality in strategy, communication, and coordination as a 414-person unit."

DeAngelo Fletcher, Morehouse College's valedictorian, closed his address to his classmates by addressing global conflict, particularly the Israel-Hamas war.

"For the first time in our lives, we've heard the global community sing one harmonious song that transcends language and culture," he said. "It is my sense as a Morehouse Man, nay — as a human being — to call for an immediate and a permanent ceasefire in the Gaza Strip."

Biden's speech at Morehouse comes with intense scrutiny as many presidential horse race polls show the president lagging with young voters, Black voters and other nonwhite groups that helped propel him to a narrow victory against Trump in 2020.

Those polls — for now — signal a drop in support for Biden but not necessarily an equal shift toward Trump. There are also signs that some of the displeasure with Biden is more pronounced among people who aren't as likely to vote in November.

While facing a nominal challenge in the Democratic presidential primary, Biden's best-performing areas have often come in places with a large share of Black voters. For example, in Georgia's primary contest 95% of Black voters pulled a Democratic ballot, and Biden won 95% of the overall vote.

While some students, faculty and alumni expressed opposition to Biden's selection as the commencement speaker, reaction on campus during the graduation ceremony was largely positive.

Dr. Tiffany Johnson, a 50-year-old who came to the campus green at 4:30 a.m. to see her son graduate, was also excited to see Biden.

"He is the leader of the free world, the most important job in the world, and for him to come to speak to [Morehouse] graduates, to inspire them, is phenomenal," Johnson said.

Johnson said Black voters who might not support Biden are part of a "bandwagon" that do not understand what he has done for the community, and said his speech would be an ideal opportunity to share his accomplishments.

In the speech, Biden touted a track record that he says makes key investments in Black communities, including a record $16 billion funding package toward historically Black colleges and universities, protecting voting rights, and creating economic policies that strengthens Black businesses.

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The White House 1600 Pennsylvania Ave NW Washington, DC 20500

Remarks by President   Biden at the National Peace Officers Memorial   Service

U.S. Capitol Washington, D.C.

12:21 P.M. EDT

THE PRESIDENT:  President Yoes, Auxiliary President Hennie, Auxiliary President Lehmann, Executive Director and good friend Jimmy Pasco, thank you for your service to our nation and for inviting me to join you once again today. I’d also like to thank the Attorney General and Deputy Attorney General Monaco and — as well the deputy of — the Homeland Security Secretary Mayorkas; and the Director of the FBI; Secret Service; Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms; the U.S. Marshals Service; and the U.S. Capitol Police for their leadership. We’re also joined by my good friend, Wade Carpenter, president of the Chiefs of Police, and Ed Kelly, president of the firefighters’ union.  And thank you, members of the Congress who are here today. Two weeks ago, I was in Charlotte, North Carolina, to spend some time with the families of the eight brave police officers who were shot in the line of duty.  Tragically, four of them were killed.  They were husbands, fathers, heroes. And all of you who serve and for your families left behind, you live a cho- — a simple truth: Every time you put on that shield and walk out of the house, your family wonders if that call will come or if they’ll get that terrible call somewhere during the day or night.  We owe you as a nation. This year, we honor ov- — over 200 heroic women and men from all across the law enforcement community who made the ultimate sacrifice. For all the families of our fallen officers, I know hearing the name of your husband, wife, father, mother, son or daughter, brother or sister brings it all back as if you got that news just 10 minutes ago.  That black hole in the middle of your chest — you feel like you’re being sucked into.  It’s like losing part of your soul. I know.  When my son Beau spent a year in Iraq, he came home with stage four glioblastoma and was going to die, and he did.  I know what it’s like.  I get a feeling that you all know, as well, who have lost in the past.  You know, I found out there is only one thing — at least for me, when my — got the call that my wife and daughter were dead; when I got the call my son was about to die — I know the only one thing that helped: family.  If you have family, hold them tight.  Hold on to each other, because the day will come — it’s hard to believe — when the thought of your husband or your wife or your son or your daughter will bring a smile to your lips before it brings a tear to your eye.  It takes a long time, but it will come.  My wish for you: It’ll come sooner than later. There is a line from the English poet John Milton.  He said, “They also serve who only stand and wait.”  Every family of an officer stands and waits so their loved one can serve the rest of us. I admire your courage in being here.  And I hope you take comfort in the knowledge that their sacrifice will never be forgotten and then, in this extended family of women and men assembled here today, who will always be there for you — other police officers, they’ll always be there for you. Throughout my career, I’ve unfortunately spoken at too many funerals of too many police officers — extraordinary, brave, heroic public servants who kept us safe.  Being a police officer is not just what you do; it’s who you are. You’re just like all the women and men in law enforcement I grew up with in Scranton and Claymont, Delaware.  You always run toward danger as others run away from it.  Most of you, even when you were kids, you did it, long before you became an officer.  You run toward the cries for help knowing that you could be of help.  It’s part of your DNA to serve, to protect, to defend. You represent the very best of America.  You’re the steel spine of this country. Back in February, I convened a group of police chiefs at the White House to talk about the hard work you’re doing to make our communities safer. Being a cop is one hell of a lot harder than it’s ever been.  We expect everything of you.  We expect everyone — drug counselors, you’re supposed to be, protecting people who are overdosing; social workers to kids who have been abandoned; guardians in communities flooded with weapons of fear. That’s why, since day one of my presidency, I’ve been working to make sure you have the tools you need to protect, the partners you need, and the community to help.  During the pandemic, I signed the American Rescue Plan that provided $350 billion to states and cities that they could use to keep communities safe, retain and hire more police officers, pay overtime and bonuses, expand benefits for disabled first responders, and support violent [violence] prevention strategies. Places like Detroit, Toledo, Kansas City, Houston put more cops on the beat.  It was one of the largest federal investments ever made in public safety. I also signed the most sweeping gun safety law in nearly 30 years to keep guns out of the hands of dangerous individuals, while strengthening background checks and — for gun purchases, cracking down on illegal gun sales, reining in “ghost guns” that are increasingly found at crime scenes. My Safer America Plan invests $37 billion in public safety to hire many more police officers trained in community policing, to build trust, to solve crimes faster. I’m grateful for the partnership of Jim and the other law enforcement officers that we worked together on my executive order on policing. My Safer America Plan also makes investments to support programs that are proven to tackle the root causes of crime, to ensure you have the psychologists and the social workers responding to crises alongside you. We also know that police officers deal with unbelievable stress.  Every time you respond to a call, execute a warrant, or conduct a traffic spot [stop], there’s a tremendous risk: fear of ambush, anxiety of not knowing what’s behind that door, the trauma of bearing witness to the most horrible tragedies imaginable. That’s why our administration is laser-focused on providing you with the mental health and wellness resources you need and deserve. That’s why I also signed extended benefits for families of officers who tragically died by suicide — honoring Capitol Police officers like Howard Liebengood, who defended the Capitol on January 6th, whose dad I knew well when he served as Sergeant at Arms in the United States Senate. We remember all our law enforcements who defend this Capitol and our democracy on that terrible day. And Congress should also pass the Honoring Fallen Heroes Act that extends benefits to first responders who are exposed to toxic substances and die of cancer. I know so many of you still carry the physical and invisible wounds of your service.  We can never thank you enough for your courage, your service, and your sacrifice. You risk your lives every day for the safety of the people you don’t even know.  That’s why each of you, each and every one of you, is a hero. It’s no accident that violent crime is near a record 50-year low — a 50-year low.  It’s because of extraordinary efforts by all of you in your communities, together with historic steps taken to support you — to stop the flow of illegal guns, to hold gun traffickers accountable for crimes. It matters, and it matters a lot. I often say: There is no greater responsibility of government than ensuring the safety of the American people and those who sacrifice to protect us all. We’ve made a lot of progress, but there’s still much more to be done. Let me close.  To the families here today, my wife and I know how hard it is in different ways, but I promise you the day will come again when the memory of your loved one will bring a smile to your lips before it brings a tear to your eye.  It may take a couple seasons, but it will come. And I hope you always remember one thing that is never fully lost: your love for them and their love for you. God bless you all.  May God protect law enforcement.  And may God protect our troops.  (Applause.) 12:30 P.M. EDT

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