Mario Cuomo's Speech

The Democratic Party was facing a difficult election in 1984 against an extremely popular president, Ronald Reagan, whom for four years had dominated the political United States. In his “Keynote Address to the Democratic Convention” in 1984, Mario Cuomo, the Italian-American New York governor, addresses the strain a Republican president has put on the nation’s lower and middle classes. He mentions President Reagan’s view of the nation from his “Shining City on a Hill”, a phrase which the President used many times throughout his career to describe the prosperity of America’s upper class. Cuomo challenges President Reagan’s beliefs that America is thriving with allusions to the lives of lower class Americans, and states that the nation is instead

“A Tale of Two Cities”. He captures his audience with a vision of a bright future for all people with the help of a new Democratic president. Though Cuomo’s speech did not accomplish its immediate goal, it is still considered one of the most influential speeches of the era.
Cuomo begins his keynote speech by shedding light on the many ways in which America is not a “Shining City on a Hill”. His speech seems to be geared directly at President Reagan as Cuomo challenges his Republican politics and economic policies. Here Cuomo begins comparing his perceived Republican and Democratic ideals, stating that the difference between the two parties can only be measured in “courage and confidence”(274), and that Republicans don’t mind leaving behind the nation’s weakest links. The New York governor presents evidence that Reagan’s policies have been detrimental to Americans; more people are hungry, poor, unemployed, and homeless than at any time since the Great Depression. He explains the country’s financial problems and elaborates on the issues with the nearly 200 billion dollar deficit. Cuomo believes that the only way for this country to recover is with the help of a Democratic president. He reminds his audience that if they are not happy with the way the country stands now, they should consider what would become of their home in the next four years if they allow another Republican term. At this point Cuomo begins to call his Democratic audience to action, reciting a credo of the party’s fundamental ideals. He goes on to mention the accomplishments of Democratic presidents such as Franklin D. Roosevelt and John F. Kennedy during the 50 years prior to 1980. He states that “Democrats did it and Democrats can do it again”(280), defending his appeal that a return to a Democratic president in office would create a better future for the entire nation. Cuomo concludes with a final call for action to the only people who can make these dreams for a better America come true—the Democrats.
Cuomo’s central purpose for the delivery of his “Keynote Speech to the Democratic Convention” in 1984 was to promote the Democratic vision of American people as a “family”.

He begins by raising doubts about the accuracy of Reagan’s beloved vision of America as the “Shining City on a Hill”, alluding to emotion-stirring stories of the homeless in Chicago and mothers who struggle to feed their children. His use of ethos poses the question “If our very own president doesn’t know what’s going on in our country, what makes him qualified to lead this country into a bright future?” Most of Cuomo’s speech challenges the decisions and qualifications of President Ronald Reagan, making him appear as the country’s enemy. Cuomo repeatedly appeals to his audience’s emotions by referring to the country as a family who has been separated by the ideals of Republicans, arguing that they divide the nation into the “lucky and the left out, the royalty and the rabble”(275). His metaphoric “wagon train” of America calls for Democratic action, as the Republicans can’t make it to the frontier “unless some of the old, some of the young, some of the weak are left behind”(274). Once again, Cuomo articulates his vision of the nation’s people as a “family” by finishing off with the story of his own family. He uses both pathos and ethos to confirm that, being the son of immigrants who worked hard to provide for their family, his appeals are credible. His use of vivid imagery like witnessing his

hard-working father “[bleed] from the bottoms of his feet”(281) and seeing the “thick calluses”(281) on his hands is difficult for his audience to forget. This last appeal varnishes his objective of replacing Reagan’s “Shining City on a Hill” with a new reality—“A Tale of Two Cities”.
Though Cuomo’s “Keynote to the Democratic Convention” in 1984 did not accomplish its initial goal, as Democratic candidate Walter Mondale was crushed by Ronald Reagan in the 1984 election, it shed light on the nation’s “underdog” societies.

The New York governor captivates his audience with the image of a “better tomorrow” in the hands of a Democratic president. President Reagan was in office until 1989 when he was succeeded by another Republican president, George H. W. Bush. His term saw a mere 2% GDP increase until 1993 when the United States inaugurated the first Democratic president in over twelve years. President Bill Clinton’s strategic fiscal discipline created over 22 million jobs, while unemployment for African Americans and Hispanics fell to the lowest rates on record. The Clinton years are remembered as an era of progress and prosperity in America, and they fulfilled Cuomo’s vision of an abundant

America.