Obama's Inaugural Reminiscent of Kennedy's

BOSTON—President Obama’s inauguration speech carried many of the same overtones and themes that John F. Kennedy’s speech took when he assumed the presidency in 1961, calling for hope and change while attempting to empower the people to affect that change on the world.
On the surface, the similarities between Kennedy and Obama are as numerous as they are pointed. Both Obama and Kennedy were young men when they made their run for the White House, bringing excitement to the office, along with a following that few presidents have come even close to creating. However, the strongest similarity between Kennedy and Obama is the use of rhetoric by both presidents to accomplish their goals
“One of those things that presidents have to do is to make and lead public opinion as well as following it,” said Bruce Schulman, a history professor at Boston University. “Both Kennedy and Obama… mobilized voters and the public at large with inspiring rhetoric. I think that both of them were students of rhetoric of previous great orators. [Both men] understood the importance of that part of the job.”
Kennedy’s rhetoric did not translate into tangible domestic results during his brief tenure as president, and his strong stance on foreign policy even forced Kennedy to take a more strong-arm approach, such as the failed Bay of Pigs invasion, to keep his actions on par with his rhetoric.
“[Kennedy] had a pretty abysmal record at getting domestic programs through the congress,” said Schulman. “If you look at his three most important domestic initiatives… those all went nowhere as president.”
Although Kennedy’s strong rhetoric did not help his foreign and domestic policies, his call to action resonated with the American people.
“The most successful part of Kennedy’s rhetoric realizing itself was this call to service,” said Schulman. Schulman noted that Kennedy’s most successful accomplishment as president was his establishment of the Peace Corps. “The political mobilization of young Americans bloomed in ways that Kennedy wanted and then in ways that Kennedy never envisioned.”
In his inauguration speech in 1961, Kennedy famously challenged Americans, “Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country.”
Obama, too, called for action on the part of the American people.
“For as much as government can do and must do, it is ultimately the faith and determination of the American people upon which this nation relies… What is required of us now is a new era of responsibility — a recognition, on the part of every American, that we have duties to ourselves, our nation, and the world.”
Throughout Obama’s campaign for President, opponents criticized Obama’s rhetoric as nothing more than talk. They argued that rhetoric alone meant nothing. Ted Sorensan, Kennedy’s main speechwriter and aide, disputed that sentiment as he reflected on the power of Kennedy’s rhetoric.
“The right speech,” said Sorensan in his memoir, “delivered at the right time by the right speaker can ignite a fire, change men’s minds, open their eyes, alter their views, bring hope to their lives, and in all these ways, change the world. I know. I saw it happen.”