Obama had billed his farewell address ― his final public speech as
president ― as a path forward under President-elect Donald Trump. While
the speech contained the kind of soaring and optimistic rhetoric that
has characterized Obama’s political career, it also included warnings
that appeared indirectly aimed at Trump, of trends he called “corrosive
to our democratic principles.”
“We remain the wealthiest,
most powerful, and most respected nation on Earth. Our youth and drive,
our diversity and openness, our boundless capacity for risk and
reinvention mean that the future should be ours,” Obama said. “But that
potential will be realized only if our democracy works. Only if our
politics reflects the decency of the our people. Only if all of us,
regardless of our party affiliation or particular interest, help restore
the sense of common purpose that we so badly need right now.”
Obama only mentioned Trump
by name early in the speech, noting his commitment to the transition of
power. But many of his cautions appeared directed at his successor,
particularly his reminder that “democracy can buckle when we give in to
fear,” and his apparent references to Trump’s campaign of divisiveness
and fearmongering against minority groups.
Obama framed his address as a
prescription for democracy. He said threats to the country’s foundation
include income inequality, racism and bigotry, political polarization,
the jettisoning of facts and reason in political discourse, and low
levels of civic engagement.
Invoking George Washington’s
farewell address, Obama said “we should reject ‘the first dawning of
every attempt to alienate any portion of our country from the rest or to
enfeeble the sacred ties’ that make us one.”
“We weaken those ties when
we allow our political dialogue to become so corrosive that people of
good character are turned off from public service; so coarse with rancor
that Americans with whom we disagree are not just misguided, but
somehow malevolent,” Obama said. “We weaken those ties when we define
some of us as more American than others, when we write off the whole
system as inevitably corrupt, and blame the leaders we elect without
examining our own role in electing them.”
On foreign policy, Obama cautioned against isolationism and the rise of nationalism ― another veiled criticism of Trump.
“For the fight against
extremism and intolerance and sectarianism are of a piece with the fight
against authoritarianism and nationalist aggression,” he said. “If the
scope of freedom and respect for the rule of law shrinks around the
world, the likelihood of war within and between nations increases, and
our own freedoms will eventually be threatened.”
Obama said all of the threats he outlined feed the lack of civic engagement and undermine faith in American democracy.
“While the top 1 percent has
amassed a bigger share of wealth and income, too many families, in
inner cities and rural counties, have been left behind ― the laid-off
factory worker, the waitress and health care worker who struggle to pay
the bills ― convinced that the game is fixed against them, that their
government only serves the interests of the powerful, a recipe for more
cynicism and polarization in our politics,” Obama said.
Obama said “democracy does
require a basic sense of solidarity” and urged empathy from all
Americans, regardless of race or class.
“If our democracy is to work
in this increasingly diverse nation, each one of us must try to heed
the advice of one of the great characters in American fiction, Atticus
Finch, who said, ‘You never really understand a person until you
consider things from his point of view … until you climb into his skin
and walk around in it.’”
Obama ended his address by
urging young people to get involved in politics and public service, just
as his historic presidential candidacy in 2008 inspired a generation of
public servants and organizers. Obama has said that his
post-presidential plans will include returning to his roots as a
community organizer and focusing on improving the Democratic Party on a
local and state level.
“It falls to each of us to
be those anxious, jealous guardians of our democracy; to embrace the
joyous task we’ve been given to continually try to improve this great
nation of ours,” he said. “Because for all our outward differences, we
all share the same proud title: Citizen. Ultimately, that’s what our
democracy demands. It needs you.”
SOURCE: HuffingtoPost
SOURCE: HuffingtoPost
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