Analysis of John McCain's Acceptance Speech

McCain Acceptance Speech (1)

John McCain’s speech accepting the Republican nomination for president persuades many different groups in the audience to take his side in the upcoming election by making use of facts and figures, stirring up feelings of compassion and appreciation, and appealing to his own credibility. McCain convinces his audience of his sincerity and reliability through the use of personal anecdotes and upright viewpoints. Powerful repetitive phrases and campaigns for the future aid McCain in his inspirational and heartfelt speech.

Throughout the course of John McCain’s acceptance speech, many demographics of the audience are targeted as he gives his objectives as president. Independents who have not yet decided on who to vote for are addressed early on: “to Americans who have not yet decided who to vote for, thank you for your consideration and the opportunity to win your trust. I intend to earn it.” McCain then focuses on his rival, Obama, and his supporters by affirming his appreciation and respect for them. This move shows the independents that McCain is an admirable candidate, and may sway some undecided voters to choose McCain.

McCain appeals to the typical hard-working middle-class family; in his introduction of vice presidential-candidate Sarah Palin, McCain refers to her difficult past, “[Palin] knows what it’s like to worry about mortgage payments and health care and the cost of gasoline and groceries,”. Minutes later, he speaks to middle-class Americans directly with promises to fight for them, and also refers back to his previous statement about Palin, “I’ve fought big spenders in both parties, who waste your money on things you neither need nor want, while you struggle to buy groceries, fill your gas tank and make your mortgage payment.” The connection McCain makes with Palin’s experience and the current situation of many American lives causes members of the audience to relate with the candidate on a more intimate level.

McCain draws the support of religious Americans as well; the speech is dashed with phrases such as,“…endowed by our Creator”, “for reasons only known to God…”, “every American has every reason to thank God, as I thank Him...”, which reveal McCain’s faith and causes the widespread Christian population to identify with him. Parents of children in the education system are comforted as McCain advocates “empowering parents with choice” and “removing barriers to qualified instructors”. By recognizing current issues in the educational system and promoting more parental involvement, parents are likely to be in favor of McCain as president.

McCain is effective in evoking compassion as he sympathizes with Bill and Sue Nebe from Michigan who “lost their real estate investments in the bad housing market”, Jake and Toni Wimmer who contribute to the community by “coach[ing] Little League and rais[ing] money for the mentally and physically disabled” whose son has just been diagnosed with autism, and the family of Matthew Stanley “who died serving out country in Iraq”. By coupling these tragic stories with the repetition of the phrase “I fight for…”, the audience gets a sense of McCain’s priority to help American citizens no matter what the situation. Acknowledgement of people in need is prevalent in the speech, and McCain uses facts to show these people he has the ability to handle the problems in today’s society. “We will use our community colleges to help train people for new opportunities in their communities”, “keeping taxes low helps small businesses grow and create new jobs”, “getting rid of failed programs will let you keep more of your own money to save, spend and invest” are some examples of McCain’s appeal to the logical and rational side of the audience. Providing a strategy of how to combat these problems assures listeners that McCain is a qualified leader.

McCain’s credibility is established with personal anecdotes and strong record of experience. Dubbed as a “maverick”, McCain decides to put his own personal touch on the word, “ [I] understand who I work for. I don’t work for a party. I don’t work for special interest. I don’t work for myself. I work for you.” Putting a positive spin on his nickname that is occasionally meant to jab at his tactics reveals McCain’s strength and intelligence. McCain expands on his experience of working in the interest of the people, “I fought for the right strategy and more troops in Iraq, when it wasn’t a popular thing to do”. This exemplifies also his capability to make decisions, even when there is pressure to do things differently. The repetition of sentences beginning with “I know…” stresses to the audience how aware and knowledgeable McCain really is, “I know how the military works…”, “I know how to work with leaders…”, “I know how to secure the peace”. McCain takes on the role of a guardian to the United States, “I’m running for President to keep the country I love safe…”; he adds in a personal anecdote regarding his grandfather who died in the Vietnam war, which accentuates his distaste for war on a more personal level. McCain promises to establish good relations with Russia “so we need not fear a return of the Cold War”. By laying the groundwork for a peaceful future, McCain proves his dependability to those unfavorable of war.

The acceptance speech given by John McCain identifies with key voters in his audience and effectively sets up a relationship based on trust, rational decision-making and positive outlooks on the future. McCain’s rhetorical devices implant his affirmative approach to government problems into the audiences’ mind, successfully recruiting new supporters.

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McCain Acceptance Speech (2)

John McCain’s acceptance speech at the Republican National Convention was filled with generalities, scattered thoughts, redundant phrases, and uncomfortable moments. The speech was bland and unmemorable; McCain fails to captivate anyone in the audience other than war veterans.

McCain’s attempt to add substance to his speech was a total failure. He makes a three-minute nod toward discussing what he would do with the economy, but it was thin and superficial. There’s a feint toward demonstrating that he understands the problems working people are facing, a dollop of rhetoric about job retraining and lowering taxes. Beyond that, there wasn’t anything. There were no specifics, and worse, there was no passion.

McCain discusses foreign policy and Iraq, but isn’t assertive. Sure, he knows “how the military works, what it can do, what it can do better, and what it should not do”, but as far as providing a vision for the world McCain offers nothing. He spends far too much focus on fighting old wars, as seen in his story about his grandfather who died as a result of the Vietnam war and his excessive discussion on being a former prisoner of war. For several long minutes McCain drags on about his bitter experience in the Gulf of Tonkin, getting “dumped in a dark cell” and put “in solitary confinement”. To have the audacity to promote this ordeal over and over again tramples on the experience of it. It’s as if McCain believes he is owed the position of president because of this experience.

Given the admitted failure of his party, “we lost the trust of the American people when some Republicans gave in to the temptations of corruption. We lost their trust when rather than reform government, both parties made it bigger..”, McCain didn't present anything more than his own integrity as an action plan. Repeatedly he mentions how he “fought corruption” and “fought tobacco companies and trial lawyers, drug companies and union bosses”, but this only contributes to the other platitudes evident in his speech. If “the prospect of a better world remains within our reach”, why isn’t McCain giving specifics? The generalities never cease to end as McCain talks about “[changing] things that need to be changed”, “each generation makes a contribution to our greatness”, “we need to change the way the government does almost everything”, and “I will reach out my hand to anyone to help me get this country moving again.” The speech gives many inspiring thoughts and ideas, but fails to provide evidence to make them believable.

The acceptance speech was extremely patriotic, to point the audience felt inadequate if they weren’t a die-hard supporter of America. Every few minutes McCain spouts out how he’s “a proud citizen of the greatest country on earth” and even demands members of the audience to think the same way, “if you find faults with our country, make it a better one.” The audience is manipulated into deeming a vote for McCain is unpatriotic. It’s difficult to oppose someone who “fights for Americans”, including Jake and Toni Wimmer of Franklin County who “raise money for the mentally and physically disabled”, coach Little League, and have a son recently diagnosed with autism. Relying on the audience’s sensitivity and sympathy is a shameful way to earn votes rather than proposing political, economic and social reforms.

McCain mentions of God throughout the speech seemed contrived and were the cause of many uncomfortable moments. The peroration of McCain's speech confirms ominous suggestions of human self-idolization: “I'm not running for president because I think I'm blessed with such personal greatness that history has anointed me to save our country in its hour of need. My country saved me. My country saved me, and I cannot forget it. And I will fight for her for as long as I draw breath, so help me God ...” McCain’s speech may have been the modest appeal to patriotism it was made to seem, but most likely it was a carefully framed and manipulative departure from the God-centered faith of our heritage.

The speech given by McCain at the Republican National Convention was vague and manipulative. The speech would have been more effective had McCain focused more on details rather than depthless rhetoric.