Abe’s aide
Talk about an upgrade! William Safire on Wednesday night went from a Nixon speechwriter to a Lincoln speechwriter.
The occasion? The Library of Congress presented Herman Wouk with its Award for Lifetime Achievement in the Writing of Fiction. And Safire was on hand to read from Wouk’s “Inside Outside.” And as the Library’s John Cole introduced Safire, he referred to him as “a speechwriter for Lincoln.” Laughter ensued as Cole realized his mistake, none greater than that from Safire himself.
When Safire took the stage, he noted, “That was the best introduction I’ve ever had. It would have been nice if he mentioned that I came up with the phrase ‘with malice toward none.'”
And Safire wasn’t done. As he read from Wouk’s book, he corrected the Pulitzer Prize winner’s grammar. After all, he may not write speeches any longer, but he does write the New York Times Magazine’s “On Language” column.
