If you have been keeping up with the news and politics since Barack Obama came into the presidency, you might know that the first person who said "Hope is not a strategy" said it in a speech in a nationally-televised speech in the fall of 2008. The same quote was used four months later as the title of an open letter to Obama written by a business school dean which was published by one of the major news networks.
Origin of "Hope Is Not a Strategy"
On September 3, 2008, at the Republican National convention, former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani was the first to use the phrase "hope is not a strategy. Specifically, his convention speech included these words:
"Because 'change' is not a destination, just as 'hope' is not a strategy.
Shortly thereafter, on January 23, 2009, CBS News posted a copy of an open letter that Dr. Benjamin Ola Akande had written to Barack Obama. Dr. Akande, an economist, scholar, and the Dean of the Business School at Webster University in St. Louis used used the phrase "Hope Is Not a Strategy" as the title of his letter.
His main goal was to advise Obama on how to bring life back into the economy of the United States. The lines from which this famous quotation comes are as follows:
"Yet, the fact remains that hope will not reduce housing foreclosures. Hope does not stop a recession. Hope cannot create jobs. Hope will not prevent catastrophic failures of banks. Hope is not a strategy."
Akande then went on to outline his points in a number of areas, including:
- the national deficit
- the auto industry
- the New New Deal
- the 2009 Homeowner Protection Act
- strengthening middle class America
- a health plan for all
- rewriting financial service laws
- restructuring the bailout
- fostering a bipartisan approach
- caution to consumers
What Does It Mean?
When Mr. Giuliani used the quote in late 2008 and when Dr. Akandehe penned his letter to Obama four months later, they were both saying that Obama – and any other president – needs to act.
You cannot just wish away your (or the country's) problems. There needs to be a concentrated effort to reduce problems and to increase positive opportunities in the country. Just sitting around thinking about how the current situation could be better is not going to change anything.
Certainly, hope and prayer can work in the face of a difficult situation, but you need to be prepared to do your part to assist in the completion of the goal as well.
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By YourDictionary
If you have been keeping up with the news and politics since Barack Obama came into the presidency, you might know that the first person who said "Hope is not a strategy" said it in a speech in a nationally-televised speech in the fall of 2008. The same quote was used four months later as the title of an open letter to Obama written by a business school dean which was published by one of the major news networks.
