President Obama Fundraises for Democrats Off His 'Farewell Address'

To promote Barack Obama’s final public address as president Tuesday in Chicago, the White House invokes a tradition established by the Father of Our Country, President Washington. “Since George Washington, U.S. presidents have often delivered a final address to the American people,” the White House website grandly declares, “as a way to share both their reflections on their time in office and their outlook on the future of our country.”

What is quite clear from history, however, is that Washington would not have used the occasion to raise money for his political party, had he even been a member of one. In fact, Washington used his much admired farewell speech to warn the country against the dangers of partisanship and division.

Barack Obama feels no such compunction. In an email from the Democratic Party today offering an email alert when the president’s address is ready to begin Tuesday, President Obama implored supporters to “Pitch in $3 or whatever you can” to help rebuild the party and protect his legacy:

Friend — Tomorrow, I’ll give my final address as President — so this is a major moment as we prepare for what’s ahead. What we do now determines how we’ll rebuild and reimagine our party, and how we will fight back against any efforts to undermine the work that we have done together. I hope you’ll remember that progress isn’t always a straight line. We will have to work harder now, more so than ever before, to keep our country from moving in what we know is the wrong direction. So I need you to step up. Pitch in $3 or whatever you can to help Democrats protect our progress.

The email then lists various links to quickly donate $3, $10, $25, $50, $100 or other amount to “help Democrats fight back.” The email is signed, “Thanks, Barack.”

The farewell address will take place Tuesday evening at 9 PM at McCormick Place in Chicago, Illinois. Chicago media reports that all of the free tickets for the event were quickly snatched up, and some were being offered for sale in online marketplaces (in violation of the terms printed on the tickets) for thousands of dollars.

Though President Obama may still be putting the finishing touches on his speech, he indicated a week ago that he and the American people “have never let go of a belief that has guided us ever since our founding—our conviction that, together, we can change this country for the better.” The country will find out Tuesday evening if President Obama’s final words to the nation reflect these unifying sentiments rather than those expressed in his fund raising email.

The full email from the president and the Democrats promoting the final address and soliciting donations is shown below.