Tonight, Donald J. Trump will take part in a rare political moment: a speech accepting his party’s nomination as the Republican presidential candidate. Trump’s speech will be analyzed closely for its content – and compared with speeches made by the GOP nominees who preceded him.
So what themes will Trump hit? And how will his style differ from the approaches taken by Mitt Romney, John McCain, and George W. Bush?
Here are some links to videos of the speeches given by Bush in 2000 and 2004, McCain in 2008 and Romney in 2012. (If you’d like to watch speeches from other years and candidates, check out this blog post from the Internet Archive.)
2012: Romney in Tampa
Transcript: http://www.npr.org/2012/08/30/160357612/transcript-mitt-romneys-acceptance-speech
Video: http://tinyurl.com/zkzufht
Conclusion:
“If I am elected President of these United States, I will work with all my energy and soul to restore that America, to lift our eyes to a better future. That future is our destiny. That future is out there. It is waiting for us. Our children deserve it, our nation depends upon it, the peace and freedom of the world require it. And with your help we will deliver it. Let us begin that future together tonight.”
2008: McCain in Saint Paul, Minn.Video: http://tinyurl.com/jkvkfll
Transcript: http://elections.nytimes.com/2008/president/conventions/videos/transcripts/20080904_MCCAIN_SPEECH.html
Conclusion: “Stand up to defend our country from its enemies. Stand up for each other, for beautiful, blessed, bountiful America. Stand up, stand up, stand up, and fight. Nothing is inevitable here. We're Americans, and we never give up. We never quit. We never hide from history. We make history. Thank you, and God bless you, and God bless America.”
2004: Bush in New York City
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kTHdhft42Ic
Transcript: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A57466-2004Sep2.html
Conclusion: “Like generations before us, we have a calling from beyond the stars to stand for freedom. This is the everlasting dream of America. And tonight, in this place, that dream is renewed. Now we go forward, grateful for our freedom, faithful to our cause, and confident in the future of the greatest nation on Earth May God bless you, and may God continue to bless our great country.”
2000: Bush in Philadelphia
Video: http://tinyurl.com/zltmq2t
Transcript: http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/?pid=25954
Conclusion: “My friend, the artist Tom Lea of El Paso, captured the way I feel about our great land. He and his wife, he said, ‘live on the east side of the mountain ... It is the sunrise side, not the sunset side. It is the side to see the day that is coming ... not the side to see the day that is gone.’ Americans live on the sunrise side of a mountain. The night is passing. And we are ready for the day to come. Thank you. And God bless you.”
