By Sally Kearney
Government speechwriter . . . sounds pretty boring, doesn't it?
While we often hear about those phrasemakers-from Sorenson to Safire, from Noonan to Gerson-who have helped Presidents sound memorable, we seldom hear about those wordsmiths who make senior government officials-those with a far lower level of household name recognition-sound terrific.
Yet, despite the obscurity of these writers, I would argue that composing speeches for public servants has its own rewards, and I'd like to share some of them with you.
Perhaps those of you who labor in federal or state government agencies, busy as you are, have overlooked the advantages you enjoy every day-advantages that not all speechwriters can claim as their own.
First, we get to write about policy.
No, your phrases may not be those that bring members of Congress to their feet during the State of the Union Address each January-those ringing phrases that exactly pinpoint the intent of a foreign policy position or new federal program. Yet, quite often, the speeches we government scribblers offer up deal in some way with policy.
And policy, as all we "West Wing" devotees know, is sexy. Policy is the noble attempt by government to serve the people. Policy is the marriage of high ideals and the unyielding demands of the practical world. Policy is a great big stew of facts and data and sociology and law, not to mention politics, and no matter how arcane or complex the subject, policy matters. Policy can change how people live, how businesses do business and how governments deliver services and collect money. For all of these reasons, policy offers real intellectual grist for speechwriters.
Also, no matter how tuned out the rest of the world may be to your subject, I'll bet there is at least one audience, and perhaps several, who care passionately about what your principal has to say about a policy matter, in words that you contributed.
We get to work with experts.
I consider myself fortunate to have access to some truly fine minds at the FDIC-economists, capital markets experts and others who have a deep understanding of the financial system, the history of the deposit insurance system and the implications of bank regulatory policy issues. Because going to school is something I would love to be paid to do, I relish having the chance to sit in the "classroom-offices" of these people and learn from them.
In addition to providing me with a wealth of data and information, they also often provide me with their own narrative of events and issues. Perhaps you're educating yourself daily in your agency's sphere of knowledge-learning from your own band of experts.
At times, the words we write make a difference.
When your principal's words help shape a debate, launch a new program or inspire action, they make a difference. As a former Senate staffer, I had the privilege on occasion of hearing words I had contributed spoken on the Senate floor or in other places, sometimes during pivotal times. Those were inspiring moments. Not all occasions have national significance and not all the issues we write about resonate easily with the American public. Yet, whether we write about a small pilot program that could have a big impact, or a highly technical issue understood by a few but affecting many, the words we write for public officials set the direction of government. These words enter the larger public discourse about an issue and help determine how it will be perceived and acted upon.
Writing about ideas is fun.
Perhaps, having fallen in love with the dialogues of Plato as a college freshman, I'm biased. But I see all speechwriting as part of a long tradition going back to Socratic dialectic and the Greek rhetoricians. As writers who specialize in policy and ideas, we are a part of that honored tradition. Thumb through Winston Churchill's collected speeches and you'll find lots of powerful rhetoric applied to lots of unglamorous topics (remember the wilderness years?). Yet Churchill wrote, even in his more obscure periods, as part of a great tradition, a tradition in which ideas are taken seriously, and so do we, if we so choose.
Once I interviewed for a speechwriting job with a Fortune 50 company. After a day's interviewing I reached the inner sanctum of one of the top executives. We had a very civilized conversation, sunk deep into comfortable chairs.
In the lull of this subdued, but carefully orchestrated interview, the executive asked me a question I'll never forget.
"You've been in Washington, writing about public policy and issues that affect the country," he said.
I nodded, hoping this helped my prospects.
Then he uttered the decisive words.
"So, why do you want to write about snack foods?"
This question stays with me. Writing about snack foods is probably fun, too, and I'm sure his company had lots of ideas behind their marketing plans. But to me, having the chance to write about ideas that directly affect people is one of the unspoken benefits of being a public servant's speechwriter.
There are other reasons I enjoy writing speeches for public officials-one of them being the chance to know, from a unique perspective, some fine and dedicated people.
As you clatter away at your government-owned keyboards, I hope you will look up now and then to consider some of the advantages we government scribes enjoy-and then get back to work.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Sally Kearney is a Senior Writer-Editor at the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, where she has worked since 1991. Among other assignments, she writes speeches for FDIC officials. Previously, she was a Senate staffer for nearly 12 years.
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