How many candidates in the 2012 presidential campaign would you listen to just for fun?
That's what Reagan speechwriter Peter Robinson asks in his article in today's Wall Street Journal, "The GOP's Not-So-Great Communicators." Mr. Robinson is mostly interested in grading the Republican field on their speaking skills. But his provocative question highlights something important that's missing from the current campaign: candidates who can use their vocal skills to reach, and move, us. [Read my cheat sheet, "4 Characteristics of an Influential Speaker."]
Absent from the Dance Floor
We've heard often enough that the most gifted speakers in the GOP aren't attending this ball: Chris Christie, Paul Ryan, Jeb Bush, and Mitch Daniels. These men have stayed home, afraid of the moment when their vehicle for election might turn into a pumpkin at midnight. Has national politics become this fear-inducing, whether from the media circuses, the "it's-not-the-right-time" effect, or a still-potent Obama waiting in the lists?
Apparently, it has, concerning both showing up at all and speaking up when one arrives. Political candidates have grown expert in the speech built of careful allusions; the avoidance of any topic of flesh and blood; and taking the careful path through the woods that avoids the thorns but never makes it into the sunlight.
The Heart of the Matter
One effect of this timid approach to political speaking is the lack of real emotion in the candidates' speeches and remarks. When was the last time you heard a candidate speaking straight from the heart? Have you ever done so?
The last time I did was last night, when at long last a candidate struck the balance between content and emotion. That was Rick Santorum, in his shared-victory speech after the Iowa causes.
Listen to the speech, to hear something remarkable: the first five full minutes of a major political speech that is pure emotion. Along with that is the courage to speak of the "daily grace that comes from God." It is a tour de force by Mr. Santorum, in letting listeners truly hear his heart in his voice.
Reading Mr. Robinson's article this morning, I was struck by his final remark, where he says: "Keep your eye on Mr. Santorum. Before this is over, he might not even need to be graded on the curve."
Whatever the outcome of this primary season, this candidate has laid down a gentle gantlet of speaking excellence on the political stage.
