Dear Barack
By Graham Davies

I know you don’t read my blog every day. But if you get a moment, it’s crucial that you read the following before you do that speech tomorrow:

Dump ALL references to Lincoln. His second inauguration speech was blandly spineless. He said he had “neither the power nor the inclination to disturb slavery”. You have to break free from past mistakes. Don’t associate yourself with feeble compromise.

Do not quote Kennedy, Roosevelt, St Francis of Assisi or ANYONE else. If you’ve got something important to say (you have), then say it in your own words. The US people elected you to sort out their future, not to wallow in the past.

Under NO CIRCUMSTANCES should you try to start any audience participation. The "yes we can" massed chanting routine is embarrassing and demeaning for the leader of the Western World. You do not want to sound like 1992-vintage pre-election rally Neil Kinnock (“awright! awright!). This is not the time for Karaoke Speaking.

Include a highly specific plan of immediate action to give pragmatic reality to your lofty vision.

Speak for no more than 15 minutes because (a) otherwise you and everyone else will catch pneumonia and (b) that’s the maximum attention span of an audience of a million people who are all standing up. For a speech to be immortal, it does not have to be eternal.

Anyway. Best of British.

(PS - I will send the invoice under separate cover, if that’s OK. Usual terms).