Live from the campaign trail : the greatest presidential campaign speeches of the twentieth century and how they shaped modern America / Michael A. Cohen.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Cohen, Michael A., 1971-

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Campaign speeches--United States--History--20th century.

Campaign speeches.

Campaign speeches--United States--History--20th century--Sources.

Political campaigns--United States--History--20th century.

Political campaigns.

Presidents.

History.

United States.

Political campaigns--United States--History--20th century--Sources.

Presidents--United States--Election--History--20th century.

Presidents--United States--Election--History--20th century--Sources.

Speeches, addresses, etc., American.

Political culture--United States--History--20th century.

Political culture.

United States--Politics and government--20th century.

Politics and government.

Genre:

Sources.

Physical Description:

ix, 562 pages ; 21 cm

Edition:

First U.S. edition.

Place of Publication:

New York : Walker & Co. : Distributed to the trade by Macmillan, 2008.

Summary:

In this unique collection of legendary campaign speeches, speechwriter Michael A. Cohen brings to life the words and ideas that shaped American politics in the twentieth century. All the great speeches are here: from the historic, like William Jennings Bryan's "Cross of Gold" speech and Ronald Reagan's call for a "national crusade to make America great again"; to the infamous, including Richard Nixon's maudlin "Checkers" speech and Bill Clinton's rhetorical broadside against the rapper Sister Souljah; and the poignant, such as FDR's evocation of America's "rendezvous with destiny" and John F. Kennedy's demand for an end to "religious intolerance."

With supporting essays that dramatically set the scene and provide readers with the historical context to better understand these seminal addresses, Live from the Campaign Trail uses the most important and influential speeches of the past century to examine American history in an entirely new light while also explaining how we got to where we are today in American politics.

Contents:

1 The Great Commoner 17

2 The New Nationalism versus the New Freedom 35

3 A "Return to Normalcy" 65

4 "Rugged Individualism" versus "Bold, Persistent Experimentation" 77

5 "Rendezvous with Destiny" 125

6 The Birth of a Political Stereotype 142

7 "The Bright Sunshine of Human Rights" 177

8 "Let's Talk Sense to the American People" 189

9 The Checkers Speech 207

10 "I Shall Go to Korea" 231

11 The New Frontier 248

12 Getting Religion on the Campaign Trail 262

13 The Conservative Moment 276

14 The "Forgotten Americans" and the Politics of Fear 299

15 America "Come Home" 340

16 The Triumph of Conservatism 367

17 The Liberals Strike Back 395

18 Murphy Brown and the Culture Wars 435

19 "I Still Believe in a Place Called Hope" 462.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 501-522) and index.

ISBN:

9780802716972

0802716970

OCLC:

191732257