"The voters of Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin, Ohio, and Florida, however (with an assist from James Comey and Clinton's own stumbles), put an end to those plans. After Trump won the election, Obama agreed with aides who told him that to deliver the speech outdoors with the Acropolis as a backdrop would come off as grandiose and out of key with the moment. They moved the event to a more modest, less historically resonant venue-a cultural center in Athens."
"The content of the speech that Obama delivered was not greatly altered. But the context of the occasion had darkened considerably. In Athens, Obama spoke out in support of NATO and postwar alliances. He affirmed the ideals and the institutions of democratic rule: the separation of powers; an independent judiciary; freedom of speech and religion; a free press designed "to expose injustice and corruption"; free and fair elections; peaceful transitions of power."
In late 2016, plans were made for a final presidential trip to Greece on Air Force One to celebrate democratic origins near the Acropolis, assuming a Clinton victory. Unexpected state-level results led to Trump's win, prompting relocation of the event to a modest cultural center in Athens. The speech still endorsed NATO, postwar alliances, separation of powers, an independent judiciary, freedom of speech and religion, a free press 'to expose injustice and corruption,' free and fair elections, and peaceful transitions of power. Subsequent years showed contempt for those institutions, revealing the speech's warnings about democratic resilience and vulnerability.
Read at The New Yorker
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