Red Flags, Bright Hopes: Four Presidential Farewell Addresses

In his farewell address, George Washington celebrated American successes and praised the cause of liberty. A detail from "George Washington (Lansdowne Portrait)," 1796, by Gilbert Stuart. Public Domain

In his article “Presidential Farewell Addresses,” Gleaves Whitney notes that before Harry Truman only three presidents had composed formal farewell addresses to the nation.

As Whitney tells us, three factors likely account for this circumstance. First, some of the early chief executives held George Washington and his farewell address in such esteem that they deemed it improper to deliver one of their own. Then, too, eight of our 45 presidents have died in office. Finally, a president’s last Annual Message to Congress, today called the State of the Union Address, falls near his final days in office, causing some chief executives to combine a farewell with that report.

Of those presidents who have used this occasion to reflect on their time in office and what the future may hold, four of them in particular—George Washington, Harry Truman, Dwight Eisenhower, and Ronald Reagan—have given us some warnings that even today we ignore at our peril.

Some Fatherly Advice

"George Washington (Lansdowne Portrait)," April 12, 1796, by Gilbert Stuart. National Portrait Gallery, Washington. Public Domain

Of the four, Washington’s formal farewell to the nation was by far the longest and was delivered in print rather than from a podium. Moreover, the two men who helped him prepare his remarks—James Madison and Alexander Hamilton—were undoubtedly better speechwriters than any of the men and women available to other presidents.

In his address, Washington celebrated American successes and praised the cause of liberty. In his conclusion, he accepted as well responsibility for any wrongs or mistakes he had committed during his eight years in office.

But he also warned the young country of present and future dangers. Best known of these are his cautions about “entangling alliances” with foreign powers, fearing that our country might be sucked into foreign wars or otherwise abused by treaties favoring one nation over another. Even today, some politicians and commentators wave this cautionary flag whenever our commitments to other nations might bring harm to our country.

Broadside of George Washington's Farewell Address Part 1, 1796, Public Domain

We hear less often of some of Washington’s other caveats. The diminishment of religion and morality, he wrote, would destroy the republic. Some people, he feared, might seek to assail the Constitution through change, “alterations which will impair the energy of the system and thus to undermine what cannot be directly overthrown.” He also roundly condemned political parties and partisanship, urging all to work together for the common good of the nation.

The eloquent language of this “Father of His Country,” his clear love for the republic, and his concerns for its preservation are why we still consider his advice important today.

Our Ideals Will Prevail

Harry Truman bade goodbye to the American people via a broadcast from the Oval Office. His remarks are typical of the man—candid and clear—and convey his great affection for his country.

In the radio broadcast of his farewell address on Jan. 15, 1953, President Harry S. Truman warned against the evil of communism. He is shown here giving a broadcast in 1952. AL MUTO/AFP via Getty Images

Truman begins by relating in some detail his ascension to the presidency. Later in the speech, he mirrors the modesty of George Washington when he notes: “When Franklin Roosevelt died, I felt there must be a million men better qualified than I, to take up the Presidential task. But the work was mine to do, and I had to do it. And I have tried to give it everything that was in me.”

Concerned with troubles around the globe—the tensions with the Soviet Union, the war in Korea—Truman then devotes considerable time to foreign affairs. Of the Soviet Union, he exudes a confidence that America will eventually triumph in its confrontations with communism, concluding that “in the long run the strength of our free society, and our ideals, will prevail over a system that has respect for neither God nor man.”

Immediately before that remark, he comments on a question asked him by some of his fellow citizens: “Why don’t we issue an ultimatum, make all-out war, drop the atomic bomb?” Truman responds that this course of action is not the American way, adding words that some of our present-day leaders might take to heart: “Starting an atomic war is totally unthinkable for rational men.”

Near the end, Truman says “I can’t help but dream out loud just a little here,” and shares with his listeners a vision of a world at peace with abundant food for all. He speaks of this dream in simple, unsentimental language, characteristics of the man himself.

The General’s Last Salute

In a recent interview with Jan Jekielek of The Epoch Times, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. says, “President Eisenhower made what I look at today as the most important speech in American history. It was his farewell speech to the nation.” While some may quarrel with Kennedy’s claim, certainly Eisenhower’s departing remarks in a speech lasting less than 10 minutes contain some excellent advice, warnings even more pertinent to our day than they were 60 years ago.

Like his predecessor, Harry Truman, Eisenhower spends a significant part of his address commenting on foreign affairs. Of communism, he says: “We face a hostile ideology—global in scope, atheistic in character, ruthless in purpose, and insidious in method. Unhappily the danger it poses promises to be of indefinite duration.” He then reminds fellow Americans “to carry forward steadily, surely, and without complaint the burdens of a prolonged and complex struggle—with liberty at stake.” Today, such plain language regarding communist ideology and its assaults on American values is rarely heard from our politicians.

Official presidential portrait of Dwight D. Eisenhower, 1967, by James Anthony Wills. In his televised farewell address, Eisenhower warns against the "military-industrial complex." Public Domain

One phrase, “the military-industrial complex,” is perhaps the best remembered part of this speech and is still commonly employed today. Here is Eisenhower’s famous warning: “In the councils of government, we must guard against the acquisition of unwarranted influence, whether sought or unsought, by the military-industrial complex. The potential for the disastrous rise of misplaced power exists and will persist.”

Less well remembered, but of tremendous importance, is another admonition. Speaking of the enormous changes underway in technology, the words of the outgoing president are prophetic:

“The prospect of domination of the nation’s scholars by Federal employment, project allocations, and the power of money is ever present and is gravely to be regarded.

“Yet, in holding scientific research and discovery in respect, as we should, we must also be alert to the equal and opposite danger that public policy could itself become the captive of a scientific-technological elite.”

In these few words, Eisenhower capsulizes our government’s recent response to the COVID pandemic, when Americans found themselves “captive of a scientific-technological elite.”

The Great Communicator

1Ronald Reagan, at his desk in the Oval Office, delivers his televised farewell address to the nation in 1989. Ronald Reagan Library/Getty Images

Like the other three presidents mentioned here, Ronald Reagan speaks of his administration’s accomplishments both domestically and overseas, items like the changes in the Soviet Union, which would lead to its collapse shortly after Reagan’s departure from the White House, and the revival of the American economy. Like George Washington, he also owns up to failure, particularly regarding the deficit.

In this address, Reagan’s sunny disposition and his knack for storytelling come off loud and strong, yet like his predecessors he voices concerns about the future. “Finally,” he says, “there is a great tradition of warnings in Presidential farewells, and I’ve got one that’s been on my mind for some time.”

He then shares his deep concern about the loss of “well-grounded patriotism,” pointing out that Americans lack the culturally built-in love of country of his youth. He takes pride in the “resurgence of national pride” that has occurred during his administration, but fears that “it won’t last unless it’s grounded in thoughtfulness and knowledge. … I’m warning of an eradication of the American memory that could result, ultimately, in an erosion of the American spirit.”

To thwart that erosion, the president urges our schools and teachers to “teach history based not on what’s in fashion but what’s important” and to place “a greater emphasis on civic ritual.” Here is where we find his frequently cited remark that “all great change in America begins at the dinner table” as he encourages parents and children to discuss politics, history, and culture in their homes.

Listen and Learn

George Washington urged America, "Observe good faith and justice toward all nations. Cultivate peace and harmony with all." He is depicted here at his desk with Alexander Hamilton, who helped him write the address. Public Domain

These four presidents differed in their backgrounds, but they all shared one thing in common: a deep and abiding affection for liberty and their country. With wisdom gained from experience, they warned present and future generations of possible pitfalls: foreign alliances, partisan politics, the threat of communism, the dangers presented by the alliance of industry and technology with government, and the dire consequences stemming from ignorance about our past and our civic duties.

The dangers they described have not disappeared. To the contrary, they have intensified and even now plague our nation.

Yet here is some good news. When we revisit the advice left to us by these presidents, we note that each of them offered encouragement and hope. “I have a deep and abiding faith in the destiny of free men,” President Truman said, and the others expressed that same sentiment in their own way.

To remain free: That is the greatest task they set before us.