By Michael H. Cottman
When Barack Obama accepts the Democratic nomination for President of the United States in August, he will deliver the historic speech at Denver's INVESCO Field at Mile High, an expansive football stadium that can pack in more than 75,000 people.
The Illinois senator will break from tradition, Democrats said, by speaking inside the home of the Denver Broncos instead of at the Pepsi Center, the site of the national convention across town.
Obama’s speech on Aug. 28, the fourth and final night of the convention, coincides with the 45th anniversary of Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in 1963. In a campaign of many historic moments, Obama will take his place in history in Denver as he hopes to become America's first black president.
Obama's big moment in an unprecedented presidential campaign has already sparked discussion comparing the public speaking styles of Obama and his Republican opponent, Sen. John McCain. McCain will deliver his acceptance speech as the Republican presidential nominee in Minneapolis in September.
"Sen. Obama’s decision to accept the Democratic nomination for president at Denver’s INVESCO Field presents quite a quandary for the McCain campaign," Michelle Bernard, a black conservative and president of the Independent Women's Voice, told me.
"McCain will be unable to replicate the grand oratory skills that Senator Obama has mastered, and the historical significance of the day on which Sen. Obama accepts the Democratic nomination may overshadow Sen. McCain’s acceptance speech," she said. "The question for the McCain campaign now is how to handle the inevitable comparisons that will be made."
Obama is known for drawing huge crowds to many of his speeches. In May, a record 75,000 jammed into a riverside park in Portland, Oregon to hear him speak shortly before that state's primary. His speech on race earlier this year was described by some civil rights leaders as the most dynamic speech on race since Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered "Letter from a Birmingham Jail" about 45 years ago.
McCain, a genuine war hero, is no match for Obama at a podium or from a pulpit.
When compared to Obama, McCain lacks the charisma, the rhetorical firepower and the unbridled passion to energize an audience and move them to stand and cheer wildly. The challenge for McCain is trying to stir enough enthusiasm in undecided voters that they flock to the polls in large numbers to support him.
Meanwhile, some of McCain's speeches have been described as "boring," "bland," "awful" -- and in some cases "whacky."
Some recent offerings from The Daily Kos under the headline: "McCain's speeches are so boring..."
*My television fell asleep
*Kevorkian will soon be using them for euthanasia
*McCain's speech was so boring an impromptu paint-drying contest broke out.
McCain, his aides say, is presenting sound ideas to move America forward, but the challenge for many voters -- especially those on the fence -- will be to stick with his speeches long enough to hear his vision for the nation and then make an informed decision.
