50 Years ago Today

Last week the President proved once again that words and speeches matter. That they have the potential to move people and even reset a debate. While many of us remember, or have studied great speeches, few rise to the level of JFK's Inaugural Address. That speech, given 50 years ago today, truly changed a nation. It was a speech that would define a new, post war generation of leadership and arguably would set the stage for the 60’s and 70’s.  Historian and journalist Thurston Clarke has captured that moment in his his book Ask Not: The Inauguration of John F. Kennedy and the Speech That Changed America. My conversation with Thurston Clarke: