A More Perfect Union (speech) - Events Prior To The Speech

Events Prior To The Speech

See also: Jeremiah Wright controversy

Senator Obama, the son of a white American mother and black Kenyan father, launched a campaign in January 2007 to be the Democratic party's 2008 presidential nominee. His election marked the first election of an African American president in American history.

In March 2008, ABC News released a story examining the sermons of Obama's long-time pastor, Jeremiah Wright, in which Wright denounced the United States and accused the government of crimes against people of color. Wright had said, among other things, "God damn America" for its racism and "for killing innocent people." Obama had begun distancing himself from Wright when he called his pastor the night before the February 2007 announcement of Obama's Presidential candidacy to withdraw his request that Wright deliver an invocation at the event. Wright did however, attend the announcement, prayed with Obama beforehand, and was named to the Obama campaign's African American Religious Leadership Committee. When several videos of Wright's Christmas sermon appeared on YouTube in the first week of March 2008, Obama responded by going further than he had before, "vehemently disagree and strongly condemn... inflammatory and appalling remarks Wright made about our country, our politics, and my political opponents." On March 14, the campaign announced that "Rev. Wright is no longer serving on the African American Religious Leadership Committee."

Feeling that he had failed to sufficiently address and explain the context of his relationship with the Reverend, Obama began writing the speech that became "A More Perfect Union." Obama's usual speechwriting practice during the 2008 campaign was to discuss major themes with speechwriter Jon Favreau, let Favreau write a draft, and then edit the result. However, on Saturday, March 15, Obama dictated a lengthy draft of this speech to Favreau, who edited the speech the next day. Obama stayed up until 3:00 a.m. Sunday night working on the speech, and continued to work on it Monday and in the early hours of Tuesday. He sent his final draft of the speech to Favreau and campaign strategist David Axelrod. After reading Obama's final draft, Axelrod sent him an email saying "This is why you should be president."

Obama later said that as he wrote the speech, he tried to ensure that his mother, Ann Dunham, would have trusted its sentiments.