In 1962, General MacArthur received the Thayer Award from West Point Military Academy. His acceptance speech is a poignant meditation on the tragedy of war and the solemn duty of the soldier. Lyrical and apolitical, MacArthur’s speech helps redeem half a century of bluster from the famous American general.

Douglas MacArthur - Duty, Honor, Country

In order to lift the spirits of Americans in the wake of the Great Depression, President Franklin D. Roosevelt began giving ‘fireside chats’ to the American people. These weekly radio addresses were the first media development that facilitated intimate and direct communication between the president and the citizens of the United States. The chats ranged from fifteen to forty-five minutes long, and Roosevelt made sure that eighty percent of the words he spoke were in the one thousand most commonly used words in the English dictionary. His accessible language, unprecedented candor and cheerful demeanor earned him the trust of American citizens; he soon became one of the most popular presidents ever, often affectionately compared to Abraham Lincoln. On the radio, he was able to explain his reasoning behind the New Deal. In the first fireside chat, Roosevelt explains the banking crisis that caused the Depression and shares his plans for recovery.

Franklin D. Roosevelt - First Fireside Chat

After General Douglas MacArthur led the United States Army into a failed invasion of North Korea on President Harry Truman’s orders, he made public statements critical of the President, which ultimately resulted in him being relieved of his duties. In this final speech to Congress, the General makes his case for the invasion and comments on the Communist Threat, but never mentions President Truman. He closes with the famous line, “old soldiers never die; they just fade away.”

Douglas MacArthur- Farewell Speech to Congress

Catholics had begun to play a major role in local and state politics by the end of the nineteenth century, and the first Catholic to seek a national office was the popular governor of New York, Alfred E. Smith, who was the Democratic nominee for president in 1928. However, the fear that a Catholic president would “take orders” from the Pope ensured Smith's defeat. 

During his own presidential campaign, John F. Kennedy discovered that many Americans were worried that he too would be under the influence of the Roman Catholic Church and that the nation would be run by the Pope. Fear of a government at the mercy of external religious interests had become a liability for Kennedy’s campaign. He finally decided to tackle the issue head on.

JFK Speech to the Greater Houston Ministerial Association

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