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ABSTRACT Barack Obama and the Rhetoric of American Exceptionalism ABSTRACT Barack Obama and the Rhetoric of American Exceptionalism: Race, Economy, Security, and the Exceptional Rhetorical Apparatus of Sovereign Power J. Alexander McVey, M.A. Thesis Chairperson: Leslie Hahner, Ph.D. This thesis examines President Barack Obama’s use of the rhetoric of American exceptionalism to establish authority for the exercise of sovereign power. I perform a close reading of three speeches to examine how Obama uses American exceptionalism to garner authority on issues of race, the economy, and national security. Obama’s “A More Perfect Union” speech demonstrates how Obama deploys the rhetoric of American exceptionalism to limit the rhetorical force of racial anger. The 2011 State of the Union illustrates how Obama rhetorically manipulates time to defend neoliberal economics through the rhetoric of American exceptionalism. Obama’s “Our Security, Our Values” speech shows how Obama uses the rhetoric of the rule of law to establish American exceptionalism as a durable rhetorical framework for ongoing actions in the war on terror. Together, these speeches demonstrate the importance of understanding how American exceptionalism functions in Obama’s rhetoric as a foundation for sovereign power. Barack Obama and the Rhetoric of American Exceptionalism: Race, Economy, Security, and the Exceptional Rhetorical Apparatus of Sovereign Power by J. Alexander McVey, B.A. A Thesis Approved by the Department of Communication Studies ___________________________________ David W. Schlueter, Ph.D., Chairperson Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of Baylor University in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts Approved by the Thesis Committee ___________________________________ Leslie Hahner, Ph.D, Chairperson ___________________________________ Martin J. Medhurst, Ph.D. ___________________________________ Paul E. Larson, Ph.D. Accepted by the Graduate School May 2012 ___________________________________ J. Larry Lyon, Ph.D., Dean Page bearing signatures is kept on file in the Graduate School. Copyright © 2012 by J. Alexander McVey All rights reserved TABLE OF CONTENTS ! ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ................................................................................................. vi! CHAPTER ONE ................................................................................................................. 1! The Rhetorical Exigency of Obama’s American Exceptionalism .................................. 1! Introduction................................................................................................................. 1! Justification and Research Questions.......................................................................... 3! Method ........................................................................................................................ 9! Review of Literature ................................................................................................. 22! Outline of Chapters................................................................................................... 37! CHAPTER TWO .............................................................................................................. 45! American Exceptionalism and the Rhetoric of Racial Consensus in Obama’s “A More Perfect Union” ............................................................................................... 45! Introduction............................................................................................................... 45! The Promise of Origins............................................................................................. 50! The Condemnation of Wright ................................................................................... 61! The Recuperation of Wright ..................................................................................... 69! The Promise of the Present ....................................................................................... 83! Conclusion ................................................................................................................ 88! CHAPTER THREE ........................................................................................................ 102! American Exceptionalism, The Rule of Law, and the Rhetoric of the Sovereign Decision in President Barack Obama’s “Our Security, Our Values” ......................... 102! Introduction............................................................................................................. 102! The State of Exception............................................................................................ 104! Returning to the Rule of Law.................................................................................. 109! iv Rule of Law as a Normalization of Executive Power............................................. 125! Conclusion .............................................................................................................. 143! CHAPTER FOUR........................................................................................................... 158! Winning the Neoliberal Future: The Use of Time as a Rhetorical Strategy in President Barack Obama’s 2011 State of the Union Address..................................... 158! Introduction: Time and American Exceptionalism................................................. 158! Space, Time and the Neoliberal Rhetoric of Economic Competition..................... 162! The Tripartite Temporality of Obama’s American Exceptionalism....................... 170! Conclusion: Obama’s Exceptionalism and the Temporality of Neoliberalism ...... 192! CHAPTER FIVE ............................................................................................................ 201! Conclusion .................................................................................................................. 201! BIBLIOGRAPHY........................................................................................................... 222! v ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would like to express my gratitude to Dr. Leslie A. Hahner for her hard work and patience in helping me put together this thesis. Dr. Hahner encouraged me to challenge myself and at every step along the way provided me with the guidance and inspiration needed to complete this challenge. I am also indebted to my thesis committee, Dr. Martin J. Medhurst and Dr. Paul E. Larson, for taking on the task of reading and commenting on my work. I would also like to thank Dr. Matt Gerber, Dr. Scott J. Varda and all the members of the Glenn R. Capp Debate Forum for their support. Finally, thanks to my family and loved ones, especially my mom, Dr. Pam Ramsey, for her motivation and continued support in all of my academic endeavors. vi CHAPTER ONE The Rhetorical Exigency of Obama’s American Exceptionalism Introduction Robert Schlesinger, opinion editor at U.S. News and World Report, opined that, “only one sitting president in the last 82 years has publicly uttered the magical phrase ‘American exceptionalism.’” “The only president to publicly discuss (and for that matter embrace) ‘American exceptionalism,’” Schlesinger writes, “is Barack Obama.” In the remark Schlesinger points to, Obama outlines the contours of his unique vision of American exceptionalism: I believe in American exceptionalism, just as I suspect that the Brits believe in British exceptionalism and the Greeks believe in Greek exceptionalism. I’m enormously proud of my country and its role and history in the world. … [T]he United States remains the largest economy in the world. We have unmatched military capability. And I think that we have a core set of values that are enshrined in our Constitution, in our body of law, in our democratic practices, in our belief in free speech and equality, that, though imperfect, are exceptional.1 Obama outlines a vision of American exceptionalism that is historically nuanced, self- aware, and appreciative of difference. By establishing a relationship between American exceptionalism and other nationalist exceptionalisms, Obama implicitly contrasts a larger narrative about absolutist American supremacy with a balanced, inter-subjective image of American exceptionalism. Despite this nuanced articulation, Obama’s American exceptionalism remains firmly committed to the political and economic realities of American hegemony and the exceptional American democratic values of freedom and equality, “that, though imperfect, are exceptional.” 1 While it is certainly true that “the United States remains the largest economy in the world,” and enjoys “unmatched military capability,” for Obama, what makes America exceptional has as much to do with its democratic principles as the political and economic realities of American power. The United States’ place in history, “though imperfect,” emanates directly from the values that constitute the American experiment in democracy. The principles of “free speech and equality” are rhetorically interwoven with a proud declaration of America’s military and economic hegemony. Obama’s rhetorical articulation of American exceptionalism arises, therefore, out of the nexus between American power and American democracy. My thesis critically examines Obama’s rhetorical deployment of American exceptionalism as a means of establishing sovereign authority and presidential power. I engage in a study of three speeches that provide examples of American exceptionalism in Obama’s public address to demonstrate how Obama’s rhetoric articulates
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