Send me. Clinton's speech masterfully deconstructed by former speechwriter David Kusnet at TNR. Kusnet's analysis? Clinton borrowed from Reagan in using carefully selected of his own weaknesses for maximum effect:

Intriguingly, Clinton used several rhetorical techniques that were put to good effect by the last president before him to move large numbers of voters from one party to the other--the Great Communicator himself, Ronald Reagan. Ideological though he was, Reagan never presented himself as the source of all wisdom, never attacked his opponents, and only rarely was explicit in setting one sector of society against another . . .

Last night, Clinton, too, was deceptively good-natured and lighthearted, making himself the target of his toughest attacks. He began by crediting the Republicans with "honestly held ideas" and both Bush and Kerry with being "strong men who ... love our country." This rhetorical device goes back to Marc Antony's eulogy for Julius Caesar--"And Brutus is an honorable man." And it works better than the crude Bush-bashing that the convention's managers are editing out of most speeches.

Having ruled out personal attacks against Bush and other Republicans, Clinton proceeded to define the difference between the two parties more cogently than any Democratic orator this year. Democrats, Clinton said, "want to build a world and an America of shared responsibilities and shared opportunities." But Republicans "believe in an America run by the right people--their people--in a world in which America acts unilaterally when we can and cooperates when we have to." Brutus may be honorable, but he believes in trickle-down economics at home and trigger-happy adventurism abroad.

All this may be standard Democratic oratory, but Clinton did it deftly by making himself an example of what's wrong with Republicans' personal histories and public policies. Praising Kerry for having volunteered for dangerous duty in Vietnam, he compared the nominee to Bush, Cheney, and himself, all of whom "could have gone to Vietnam but didn't." Similarly, Clinton cleverly mentioned that he himself has become one of the fortunate few who benefit from Bush's tax cuts--which, he continued, have been enacted at the expense of education, after-school programs, job training, child care, veterans programs, and homeland security.

If you missed a Biblical reference in Clinton's speech, millions of church-goers didn't. Just as Bush does, Clinton weaves scriptural references into his speeches without citing them specifically--a brilliant strategy because while secular listeners simply hear eloquent, pleasant rhetoric, religious listeners hear evocations of faith. Clinton's speech built up to a litany of sentences beginning with the phrase "Send me" to describe Kerry's eagerness to serve his country and the need for Democrats to work hard in the campaign. The phrase is from Isaiah 6:8 . . .

Even knowing how the magic trick works doesn't change its power and its effect. It was a stunning speech.

We can look forward to more analysis of the religious code in Clinton's speech to the Convention from Amy Sulllivan over at the Washington Monthly soon. UPDATE: Here it is.

Posted by Laura at July 27, 2004 03:05 PM