The Undelivered Speeches That Could Have Rewritten History

Many people think of history as inevitable. Events lead to outcomes that tumble towards a foregone conclusion.In reality, many monumental moments could have gone down very differently if certain events had or had not occurred.Former presidential speechwriter Jeff Nussbaum became obsessed with undelivered speeches after working on the Al Gore campaign. His new book, "Undelivered: The Never-Heard Speeches That Would Have Rewritten History", explores speeches that were prepared for outcomes that never were. Those primary sources reveal how easily history could have taken a different path. They also offer insight into those moments themselves, including the motivations and feelings of the speech-givers and the people around them.We ask him about history, these speeches, and what they tell us about these moments in time.Want to support 1A? Give to your local public radio station and subscribe to this podcast. Have questions? Find us on Twitter @1A.

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