Abstract
The article sought to study Barack Obama's 2007 bid for the presidency in his Announcement Speech and Hillary Rodham Clinton's 2015 bid for the presidency in her Campaign Launch Speech. It focused on how both candidates used the central ideas and their development into the main ideas of the speeches to declare their bids for President of the U.S.A. The research raised some questions regarding whether the two speeches had similarities, as both politicians were running in the presidential race on the Democratic Party's path. The research method employed qualitative content analysis to study the core meaning of the speeches based on new analytical narratives viewed in terms of specific rhetorical strategies. Subsequently, the study interpreted the underlying thought behind the speeches by focusing on the central ideas and their elaboration into the main ideas. The article showed that Obama and Clinton shared some similarities as they attempted to earn the support of Americans of all backgrounds. They defended the cause of the middle-class economy. Obama focused more on a coalition of Americans of diverse background and change, whereas Clinton focused more on furthering the middle-class economy.
Highlights
It is very common for politicians who intend to run for presidential races to take their time in officially announcing their candidacies
Central Idea: Obama’s Announcement Speech. Obama announced that he was running for the presidential race on February 10, 2007, in Springfield, Illinois. His Announcement Speech was delivered against the backdrop of the Old State Capitol Building, which symbolically linked him to the historically iconic figure related to the site—Abraham Lincoln—the father of American unity who rose to national leadership as president
To establish common ground and linkages with his audience, Obama encouraged his audience’s participation in his “journey for a reason”, communicating the message of power and unity as one people to build a more perfect union. Against this backdrop, Obama’s Announcement Speech sent the message to the American audience that his “improbable quest” for the presidency was part of the long journey for a more unified America begun by his predecessor
Summary
It is very common for politicians who intend to run for presidential races to take their time in officially announcing their candidacies. Barack Obama and Hillary Rodham Clinton ( referred to as Obama and Clinton, respectively) were rivals in their attempts to win the Democratic Party’s official nomination for the 2008 U.S presidential election. As Obama’s second term of presidential office was drawing to a close, Clinton ran for the 2016 presidential election as would-be first female president of the U.S.A. Hillary herself has been in public view on the national level for more than two consecutive decades: first as first lady when Bill Clinton was the U.S president for two terms of office. Hillary herself has been in public view on the national level for more than two consecutive decades: first as first lady when Bill Clinton was the U.S president for two terms of office She served two terms in elected public office as a senator from New York. With a long record of experience, she stood unmatched within her own party
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