Undelivered: The Never-Heard Speeches that Would Have Rewritten History

Veteran speechwriter Nussbaum (coauthor, Intelligence Matters) examines in this intriguing account prepared speeches that, due to unforeseen circumstances, a change of mind, or outside pressure, were never delivered. Drawing on his experiences as a speechwriter for Al Gore, Barack Obama, and Joe Biden, Nussbaum analyzes such unheard addresses as John Lewis’s fiery draft remarks for the 1963 March on Washington, in which he planned to call on civil rights activists to “march through the South... the way Sherman did” and “burn Jim Crow to the ground.” Elsewhere, Nussbaum documents Richard Nixon’s waffling over whether to resign or make the case that “the evidence against him wasn’t as damning as it appeared”; analyzes whether an “apology” speech Japanese emperor Hirohito considered giving in the aftermath of WWII might have “raised the question of war responsibility and perhaps required [him] to abdicate”; and notes that Gen. Dwight Eisenhower was prepared to accept full responsibility if the Normandy invasion failed. Throughout, Nussbaum weaves in enlightening behind-the-scenes details about the process of speechwriting and makes a strong case for the power of speeches “to educate, inform, inspire, incite, and move people to action.” The result is a fascinating look at what might have been. (May)