Barack = B+ / P-Noy = C

Yes, I would give US President Barack Obama a “B+” and P-Noy a “C” for their respective pre-press conference speeches.

For starters, everyone I know who listened or watched the event made the same comment that President Noynoy Aquino was “reading his speech,” was reading too fast and in a hurry (perhaps excited, tense or worried about time and protocol) and the worst thing of it all was that P-Noy as a speaker was so mechanical that he was like a Filipino driver going through “stop” signs at every corner.

Even as we all tried to take in the content and context of P-Noy’s speech, the truth was he often “read” so fast that we couldn’t quite catch up while trying to absorb and digest his material. Unfortunately, when a speaker does not do justice to the written word, he is also telling his audience: “Let’s just get it over and done with” and so loses his listeners. The irony is that President Noynoy used to be a good and interesting speaker who used to make sure that his audience was engaged and got the message. Given his historical performance and how poorly he performed at the state visit of Obama, our dear Mr. President gets a “C.”

US President Barack Obama on the other hand gets a B+ for many reasons. He started his speech with an expression of concern and commitment of support for Americans hit by a natural calamity in Arkansas. As far away as he was from America, the US President took advantage of an international event covered by media to do what was expected of him. In doing so, Obama also showed us, and those watching worldwide, how a US official conducts himself abroad in response to a calamity back home. He also called our attention to “their” situation and “their” need. He certainly knew the platform and used it well.

President Obama did not give “just another speech,” he verbalized his administration’s policy and perspective concerning global conflict, diplomatic support for allies and stake holders, he addressed specific points of interests and concern and in the end he clearly managed our expectations or at the very least laid down his government’s terms of engagement for the Philippine government in relation to China and regional interests. The best part of it all was that he did it with authority, confidence, yet doing so like a welcomed guest rather than one of those “terror teachers” we all encountered during college. More importantly he did not sound or speak like a bureaucrat or a politician.

It was quite interesting listening to President Obama’s speech and it made me wonder just how P-Noy was hearing and taking it all. When Obama began with his shout out to the folks of Arkansas, I could not help but recall how P-Noy and his administration conducted themselves during Typhoon Yolanda. It was almost as if Obama was saying: “Now listen son, this is how it’s done.” No politics, no suspicions and accusations or fault- finding. Just plain and simple: We Care and we are there. I could almost imagine Ambassador Goldberg silently but frantically signaling “Don’t Go There!” to the guest of honor. But then again, P-Noy’s “Waterloo a.k.a. Tacloban” is not the concern of Obama.

The best part I believe of Mr. Obama’s speech was where he declared his government’s policy and position regarding the role of the United States in the region. They are not the Super Cop of the world anymore and it’s just not worth having their sons and daughters shot and killed abroad because of other country’s conflicts. They are not interested in getting into a Super Power Brawl just because some neighborhood bully is picking on their former “little brown brothers.” In other words the message is: Go sort it out among yourselves while we watch by the fence just so nobody gets themselves killed. In line with this categorical statement, it is easy to believe that the Americans sincerely have no intention of setting up “their own” military bases in the Philippines.

Interestingly, Obama’s position about having the guns but not being trigger happy makes him the best poster boy for “Responsible Gun Ownership in the region.” In contrast the Philippine presumption that the US will come to our rescue and sacrifice their sons and daughters brings out our age old habit of being “tiga buyo” or squabble starters who habitually call for reinforcements or relatives. What remains to be seen in all of this is how the P-Noy administration will realign their rhetoric and posturing after Obama’s visit.

If Obama’s speech quality slipped a little, it was at the point when he tried to score brownie points by pandering to the Filipino’s pride for their adobo and “kusinero” skills by talking about how lumpia and adobo is a familiar offering during white House dining, all thanks to the White House chef who has Filipino roots. There was also the passing mention of the role and significance of the Catholic Church that must have sounded pleasant to the faithful but was also reflective of the clear efforts of White House or US embassy writers to be politically correct to the point of being patronizing. Fortunately for Obama and his handlers, the back patting and patronizing statements were short and few enough not to be dwelt on by pundits. But as speeches go, its something that writers and speakers must be careful of because a beautiful speech can be ruined the minute the audience see, hear or smell the bullshit. That patronizing lines were what cost Obama his “A.” Overall his speech was honest and sincere until religion and adobo got the better of it.