The Evolution of the Stump Speech from 1840 to 2008:

Nicholas Bindle (Second President of the Bank of the United States) once said, “Let Harrison say not one single word about his principles or his creed –let him say nothing-promise nothing” (Boller, Presidential Campaigns and Elections). This advice given to William Henry Harrison on how to appease the many factions of his political party, during his presidential campaign speeches, was not only relevant in 1840 but remains so in 2008.
William Henry Harrison was the first presidential candidate to actively campaign for the position. According to the book Campaigns and Elections by Paul F Boller Jr. presidents of the past relied mostly on their party, or their friends to campaign on their behalf, , but they had never actively gone out and recruited the vote of the American people like Harrison did. Harrison was advised by numerous people, including Bindle, to be vague and never commit to a position on any issue “Let no Committee, no Convention, no town meeting ever extract from him a single word about what he thinks now and will do after (Nicholas Bindle, 1836). This advice proved to be the best possible thing Harrison could do since his political party encompassed southerners, anti-masons and republicans, and taking a stance on one issue or another could alienate a group within his party. During the previously mentioned speeches Harrison avoided taking any side on an issue while simultaneously focusing the attention on his personal achievements “he carefully avoided saying anything of substance…he dwelt largely and length on his status as an old solider and a farmer” by doing so Harrison pleased everyone in his party (Bolger 70). Finally Harrisons stump speeches, vague in their nature, could be replicated across the country, due to a media system which was in his developmental stages.
This idea of stump speeches to appease the many factions of one’s political party, continued beyond Harrisons campaign into the 21st century. Examples of being vague on the campaign trail can be found in George Herbert Walker Bush’s’ campaign for the White House in 1980 and the way he portrayed himself as a moderate, on the majority of issues http://ap.grolier.com/article?assetid=0068080-00. He did so in order to preserve unity within the Republican party. In the 2008 race for the White House, the American public has seen both Democratic candidates deliver stump speeches repeatedly, Barak Obama(http://blogs.suntimes.com/sweet/2006/12/update_obamanew_hampshire_tell.html) delivered the same stump speech on several occasions where he tells some story frp, his life and ends with a quote from Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. In Hillary Clinton’s stump speeches she has also recounted stories of her life while including some criticisms of her opposing candidates (http://www.politico.com/blogs/bensmith/0208/A_new_edge_to_Clintons_stump.html)
Finally Republican candidates Mike HucKabee and John McCain are also familiar with stump speeches. Huckabee tends to be evasive on many issues and when asked about why he voted on a certain issues in the past, he calls attention to how much weight he has lost. John McCain on the other hand, when asked about where he stands on various issues will call the public’s attention to his service record.
In my opinion the stump speech given by presidential candidates has not really changed since 1840 when William Henry Harrison first decided to “take to the stump” (Bolger, 70). The only difference lies in the present day Medias ability to make the country more aware when a candidate is telling the public the same things over and over again.