number Political rhetoric Over the years, rhetoric has been adopted by many political leaders with an aim of informing, motivating or persuading their audiences in a given situation. President Obama has not been an exception since he adopts the figurative language in his speeches to draw attention to the current ideas. This paper outlines the relevance of political rhetoric in the society as used by President Obama in the State of the union speech. It will also outline how republicans responded to Obama in the State of the union speech.

There are diverse rhetorical devices that any individual can borrow from President Obama’s state of the Union speech in 2013. Given the variations in the economic state of the United States of America, Obama used his annual State of the Union podium to adopt a new trend in his executive authority as the President. The speech entailed rhetoric speech through the use of defiant words such as “with or without Congress” as an individual step in advancement of the economy. The President also adopted the use of alliteration in a number of paragraphs such as “It is our unfinished task to restore the basic bargain that built this country, the idea that if you work hard and meet your responsibilities, you can get ahead, no matter where you come from, what you look like, or who you love.” These words outline the repetition of words alongside words that soften the attention of the audience. In addition, the president insisted the use of rhetoric using character development by stating. “I’m eager to work with all of you,” “But America does not stand still and neither will I. So wherever and whenever I can take steps without legislation to expand opportunity for more American families, that’s what I’m going to do (Baker, n.d).”

At the same time, republicans were not left out in responding to the rhetoric speech of Obama in the state of the Union. The five term congress woman, Cathy McMorris Rodgers rhetorically responded by blaming Obama for the current economic problems. She stated, “Too many people are falling further and further behind because, right now, the president’s policies are making people’s lives harder,” she said. “Republicans have plans to close the gap.” Her speech incorporated alliteration as a way of outlining how her 6 year old son, Cole was born with Down syndrome under the Obama’s health care program that had many regulations and a record in expenditure (Franke-Ruta, n.d).

Obama’s speech at the annual State of the Union podium resembles that of Julius Caesar. This is because both leaders adopt an alliteration style of rhetoric in their speeches where they have towering ambitions and show leadership geniuses when addressing the people. Alliteration words add a textual complexity to the speech and engage the audience. In the Roman history, Julius Caesar inspired people to achieve results during war and peace in his speeches. This is the same repetition words that Obama uses to insist the essence of having a stable economy and remake the US Republic during annual State of the Union (Oconnell, n.d).

Obama’s rhetorical approach was closer to Brutus’s speech in act iii at the funeral of Caesar because it entails an appeal to reason and order. This is evident when Obama states, “It is our unfinished task to make sure that this government works on behalf of the many, and not just the few. that it encourages free enterprise, rewards individual initiative, and opens the doors of opportunity to every child across this great nation. The President’s speech does not match that of Anthony because the president did not have a difficult time to change the mind of a crowd that had been convinced by other speeches before he stood to address the people. The president’s case is different from Anthony because Anthony stto to address the people that had been convinced by Brutuss speech (Baker, n.d ).”

The use of Ethos, Logos and Pathos is evident in Obama’s speech during the annual State of the Union podium. Obama states, “Hadiya’s parents, Nate and Cleo, are in this chamber tonight, along with more than two dozen Americans whose lives have been torn apart by gun violence. They deserve a vote. Gabby Giffords deserves a vote. The families of Newtown deserve a vote. The families of Aurora deserve a vote. The families of Oak Creek, and Tucson, and Blacksburg, and the countless other communities ripped open by gun violence – they deserve a simple vote.” This statement shows that the president uses Ethos to convince the audience to develop the economic state of the nation. Also, he uses Logos to persuade the audience on the facts behind economic state of the nation. Pathos shows an appeal of the President to emotion (Talev & Dorning, n.d).

During the State of the Union podium, there is no anecdotal evidence or analogy which appeals used by any of the speakers. This is because there was no unreliable sample soft typical case where there was dubious support of claims. The president gave solid evidence towards his speech on the economic state of the United States of America.

Work cited

Baker, P. In State of the Union Address, Obama Vows to Act Alone on the Economy. The New York Times Company, 2014. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2014/01/29/us/politics/obama-state-of-the-union.html

Franke-Ruta, G. Cathy McMorris Rodgers, a new GOP face for the State of the Union response. Yahoo News, 2014. Retrieved from http://news.yahoo.com/cathy-mcmorris-rodgers–a-new-gop-face-for-the-state-of-the-union-response-212815609.html

Oconnell, K. Obama Believed He’d Reign Like Julius Caesar, But Will He End as Nero?Canada Free Press, 2010. Retrieved from http://www.canadafreepress.com/index.php/article/20503

Talev, M & Dorning, M. Obama Appeals for Action on Boosting Economic Mobility. Bllomberg, 2014. Retrieved from http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-01-29/obama-appeals-for-action-on-boosting-economic-mobility.