Obama writer knows Nebraska

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BY DON WALTON / Lincoln Journal Star

DENVER — Adam Frankel has never been to Nebraska, but he knows all about it.

And he understands the connection between John F. Kennedy and Barack Obama in a uniquely personal way.

Frankel, 27, was in a room in the Westin in downtown Denver on Wednesday helping craft Obama’s critically important acceptance speech to the Democratic national convention, a Thursday night address that embodies a high-stakes appeal to a huge national television audience.

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Adam Frankel, speech writer for the Barack Obama campaign who also helped former Kennedy adviser and speech writer Ted Sorensen write his autobiography. Frankel, a New York City native, said he's never been to Nebraska but loves it and wants to visit because of Sorensen's passion for the state. (William Lauer)

Adam Frankel, speech writer for the Barack Obama campaign who also helped former Kennedy adviser and speech writer Ted Sorensen write his autobiography. Frankel, a New York City native, said he's never been to Nebraska but loves it and wants to visit because of Sorensen's passion for the state. (William Lauer)

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“This is his speech,” Frankel said earlier in the week, taking a break for a sitdown interview in the hotel’s upper lobby.

“We all know he’s the best writer in the room.”

Frankel arrives at this moment with valuable perspective.

For six years, he helped Ted Sorensen research and craft his recently published memoirs. For six years, he worked with, and often at the side of, perhaps the most celebrated presidential speechwriter of modern times.

Frankel learned a lot about Nebraska working with Sorensen, whose roots in Lincoln run deep.

And he got a rare inside view of Kennedy and the manner of president that Obama often suggests he would strive to be.

“I’ve never been to Nebraska, but I love it,” Frankel said.

Sorensen is “a product of the progressive tradition of Nebraska and its independent spirit,” he said. “He’s an extraordinary man.”

Frankel joined the Obama campaign in March of 2007 at the request of Jon Favreau, the Illinois senator’s chief speechwriter.

When Favreau asked, Frankel said: “What do you think? It’s a call anybody would dream about.”

Obama’s speeches are prepared in “a collaborative environment,” Frankel said.

“He’s been writing this one. I know he shut himself off in a hotel room at least one night to work on it.”

Obama is always credited with being a great orator, but Frankel suggests he brings more than that to a speech.

“He’s that rare leader who can use words and deliver them and tap into the hunger for change people are looking for. But it’s probably even more rare to also have the capacity to inspire and the ability to lead. Often, it’s one or the other. He’s got both.”

Frankel grew up in New York City and graduated from Princeton. He studied at the London School of Economics. He has worked to combat AIDS and HIV in Asia and Africa. He’s a Yankee fan.

And he found Ted Sorensen, tracking him down when he was a speaker at a Renaissance Weekend at Princeton.

“We hit it off. He had just had a stroke and he was feeling a little discouraged. There I was, eager, a young student in the right place at the right time.”

Sorensen asked Frankel to assist him in writing his memoirs, a task that included literally acting as his eyes. The stroke robbed Sorensen of most of his eyesight.

“Looking back on it,” Frankel said, “it was a terrific experience. No matter what happens the rest of my life, it will always have been a great honor to have worked for him.”

Frankel said he was “completely inspired by (Sorensen’s) idealism, his dedication to public service, his genuine belief in JFK” and what he could accomplish.

The book was “essentially dictated” by Sorensen as he recorded his memories.

“It was such a heroic effort on his part,” Frankel said.

Now, a new adventure is under way, with Thursday emerging as a defining moment.

“To think that Barack Obama is where he is, where we are, now is a thrilling thing for all of us,” Frankel said.

“As exciting as it is, there is work to do. He reminds us of that.”

Thursday will be “a celebration,” Frankel said, “but it’s also a moment to start focusing on the race ahead, the battle that lies ahead. It’s also a testament to the hunger people have for change. And that’s a remarkable thing.”

Reach Don Walton at 473-7248 or at dwalton@journalstar.com.