Farewell Speech Analysis

Dylan Biggs 1/ 17/ 11 Per. 2

In our nations past we have had 44 presidents, two of those presidents have given famous farewell addresses. Both had different but similar ideals on how to run the government and the nation. But at the time the things they warned and talked about in their speeches were very hot topics in the nation. Both speeches were similar but very different in their own respects, but both had major themes on the foreign policies and domestic defense. The addresses were given by George Washington and Dwight D. Eisenhower. George Washington was the first president and a revolutionary war hero. He served his country for 45 years and served two terms of office. He was the leader of the continental army in the revolution and also while president he established the policy that a president can only serve two terms. He was born on the 22nd of February, 1732 in Virginia. Dwight D. Eisenhower was the 34th president and before that he was the commander in chief of the allied forces in WW 2. He was the president that signed the civil rights act and he also created NASA. Also while he was president Alaska and Hawaii were made the 49th and 50th states. He stepped down from presidency on January 17th , 1961. Both men had different ideas on how to run the government. Whether its a strong or not so strong government. Or how to deal with

foreign countries in wars and alliances. However the two presidents did have something in common, they both had to think about foreign policy and domestic protection. Eisenhowers view on foreign policy was a aggressive policy toward not getting involved in foreign problems. He thought because of all the conflicts they were in that they couldnt afford to improve foreign relations. While George Washington had a similar idea on the subject he thought that because at the time the French revolution was going on and if they took sides with the wrong person the French might resent them. Both of them had the idea that permanent alliances or involvement were bad at the time in the country. But both of them had that idea for different reasons. They both were after a war and some countries resented them and others loved them. And after both there was a recession of sorts so they had problems within their home land before foreign soil. George Washington had served a lot in the military and realized that a strong central government was needed during the time and he believed that the government would be able to protect its citizens. This was due to the government during that time being strong . While Eisenhower believed that military and industry combined with proper citizenry could bring a better tomorrow for the country. In this issue their ideas were very different. George Washington

wanted a strong government in which the government could control everything was better than the people doing the thinking. But Eisenhower thought that the proper combination of military and regular citizens would make a brighter future for the people of the US. In this respect the two men ad two different ideas but they still were great presidents. While they had similar ideas on foreign policy but different ideas on domestic defense they were able to be loved by the citizens and still keep the country operational. These men were two of the best presidents the country has had and both ran it well. But their speeches still mange to be remembered for talking about the very important issues of domestic protection and foreign policy.