1 00:00:00,362 --> 00:00:02,577 One of my favorite words in the whole of 2 00:00:02,577 --> 00:00:06,138 the Oxford English Dictionary is "snollygoster." 3 00:00:06,138 --> 00:00:07,559 Just because it sounds so good. 4 00:00:07,559 --> 00:00:09,304 And what snollygoster means is 5 00:00:09,304 --> 00:00:12,159 "a dishonest politician." 6 00:00:12,159 --> 00:00:13,407 Although there was a 19th-century 7 00:00:13,407 --> 00:00:16,015 newspaper editor who defined it rather better when he said, 8 00:00:16,015 --> 00:00:19,046 "A snollygoster is a fellow who seeks office 9 00:00:19,046 --> 00:00:22,231 regardless of party, platform or principle, 10 00:00:22,231 --> 00:00:23,813 and who, when he wins, 11 00:00:23,813 --> 00:00:25,962 gets there by the sheer force 12 00:00:25,962 --> 00:00:29,654 of monumental talknophical assumnancy." 13 00:00:29,654 --> 00:00:31,367 (Laughter) 14 00:00:31,367 --> 00:00:33,224 Now I have no idea what "talknophical" is. 15 00:00:33,224 --> 00:00:34,639 Something to do with words, I assume. 16 00:00:34,639 --> 00:00:37,675 But it's very important that words are at the center of politics, 17 00:00:37,675 --> 00:00:41,534 and all politicians know they have to try and control language. 18 00:00:41,534 --> 00:00:44,367 It wasn't until, for example, 1771 19 00:00:44,367 --> 00:00:48,911 that the British Parliament allowed newspapers to report 20 00:00:48,911 --> 00:00:52,105 the exact words that were said in the debating chamber. 21 00:00:52,105 --> 00:00:54,534 And this was actually all down to the bravery 22 00:00:54,534 --> 00:00:57,865 of a guy with the extraordinary name of Brass Crosby, 23 00:00:57,865 --> 00:00:59,767 who took on Parliament. 24 00:00:59,767 --> 00:01:01,710 And he was thrown into the Tower of London 25 00:01:01,710 --> 00:01:02,967 and imprisoned, 26 00:01:02,967 --> 00:01:05,799 but he was brave enough, 27 00:01:05,799 --> 00:01:08,327 he was brave enough to take them on, 28 00:01:08,327 --> 00:01:11,071 and in the end he had such popular support in London that he won. 29 00:01:11,071 --> 00:01:13,575 And it was only a few years later 30 00:01:13,575 --> 00:01:15,959 that we have the first recorded use of the phrase 31 00:01:15,959 --> 00:01:18,671 "as bold as brass." 32 00:01:18,671 --> 00:01:20,607 Most people think that's down to the metal. 33 00:01:20,607 --> 00:01:22,575 It's not. It's down to a campaigner 34 00:01:22,575 --> 00:01:25,551 for the freedom of the press. 35 00:01:25,551 --> 00:01:27,127 But to really show you how 36 00:01:27,127 --> 00:01:29,679 words and politics interact, 37 00:01:29,679 --> 00:01:32,279 I want to take you back to the United States of America, 38 00:01:32,279 --> 00:01:34,758 just after they'd achieved independence. 39 00:01:34,758 --> 00:01:36,735 And they had to face the question 40 00:01:36,735 --> 00:01:39,631 of what to call George Washington, their leader. 41 00:01:39,631 --> 00:01:40,990 They didn't know. 42 00:01:40,990 --> 00:01:43,869 What do you call the leader of a republican country? 43 00:01:43,869 --> 00:01:47,104 And this was debated in Congress for ages and ages. 44 00:01:47,104 --> 00:01:49,472 And there were all sorts of suggestions on the table, 45 00:01:49,472 --> 00:01:50,929 which might have made it. 46 00:01:50,929 --> 00:01:52,558 I mean, some people wanted him to be called 47 00:01:52,558 --> 00:01:55,007 Chief Magistrate Washington, 48 00:01:55,007 --> 00:01:57,457 and other people, His Highness George Washington, 49 00:01:57,457 --> 00:02:04,486 and other people, Protector of the Liberties of the People of the United States of America Washington. 50 00:02:04,486 --> 00:02:06,064 Not that catchy. 51 00:02:06,064 --> 00:02:08,599 Some people just wanted to call him King. 52 00:02:08,599 --> 00:02:10,095 They thought it was tried and tested. 53 00:02:10,095 --> 00:02:11,591 And they weren't even being monarchical there, 54 00:02:11,591 --> 00:02:13,425 they had the idea that you could be elected King 55 00:02:13,425 --> 00:02:15,215 for a fixed term. 56 00:02:15,215 --> 00:02:16,744 And, you know, it could have worked. 57 00:02:16,744 --> 00:02:19,327 And everybody got insanely bored, actually, 58 00:02:19,327 --> 00:02:21,207 because this debate went on for three weeks. 59 00:02:21,207 --> 00:02:22,855 I read a diary of this poor senator, 60 00:02:22,855 --> 00:02:25,374 who just keeps coming back, "Still on this subject." 61 00:02:25,374 --> 00:02:28,367 And the reason for the delay and the boredom was that 62 00:02:28,367 --> 00:02:31,359 the House of Representatives were against the Senate. 63 00:02:31,359 --> 00:02:34,624 The House of Representatives didn't want Washington 64 00:02:34,624 --> 00:02:36,313 to get drunk on power. 65 00:02:36,313 --> 00:02:37,390 They didn't want to call him King 66 00:02:37,390 --> 00:02:40,559 in case that gave him ideas, or his successor ideas. 67 00:02:40,559 --> 00:02:43,744 So they wanted to give him the humblest, meagerest, 68 00:02:43,744 --> 00:02:46,631 most pathetic title that they could think of. 69 00:02:46,631 --> 00:02:53,024 And that title was "President." 70 00:02:53,024 --> 00:02:55,830 President. They didn't invent the title. I mean, it existed before, 71 00:02:55,830 --> 00:02:58,927 but it just meant somebody who presides over a meeting. 72 00:02:58,927 --> 00:03:00,944 It was like the foreman of the jury. 73 00:03:00,944 --> 00:03:02,434 And it didn't have much more grandeur 74 00:03:02,434 --> 00:03:04,607 than the term "foreman" or "overseer." 75 00:03:04,607 --> 00:03:07,273 There were occasional presidents of little colonial councils 76 00:03:07,273 --> 00:03:10,679 and bits of government, but it was really a nothing title. 77 00:03:10,679 --> 00:03:12,624 And that's why the Senate objected to it. 78 00:03:12,624 --> 00:03:16,424 They said, that's ridiculous, you can't call him President. 79 00:03:16,424 --> 00:03:19,775 This guy has to go and sign treaties and meet foreign dignitaries. 80 00:03:19,775 --> 00:03:21,614 And who's going to take him seriously 81 00:03:21,614 --> 00:03:23,424 if he's got a silly little title 82 00:03:23,424 --> 00:03:27,519 like President of the United States of America? 83 00:03:27,519 --> 00:03:31,335 And after three weeks of debate, in the end 84 00:03:31,335 --> 00:03:35,043 the Senate did not cave in. 85 00:03:35,043 --> 00:03:40,250 Instead, they agreed to use the title "President" for now, 86 00:03:40,250 --> 00:03:43,682 but they also wanted it absolutely set down 87 00:03:43,682 --> 00:03:46,510 that they didn't agree with it 88 00:03:46,510 --> 00:03:52,240 from a decent respect for the opinions and practice of civilized nations, 89 00:03:52,240 --> 00:03:56,031 whether under republican or monarchical forms of government, 90 00:03:56,031 --> 00:03:57,940 whose custom it is to annex, 91 00:03:57,940 --> 00:04:02,269 through the office of the Chief Magistrate, titles of respectability -- 92 00:04:02,269 --> 00:04:04,419 not bloody President -- 93 00:04:04,419 --> 00:04:08,128 and that in the intercourse with foreign nations, 94 00:04:08,128 --> 00:04:12,171 the majesty of the people of the United States 95 00:04:12,171 --> 00:04:15,829 may not be hazarded by an appearance of singularity, 96 00:04:15,829 --> 00:04:19,589 i.e., we don't want to look like bloody weirdos. 97 00:04:19,589 --> 00:04:22,731 Now you can learn three interesting things from this. 98 00:04:22,731 --> 00:04:25,109 First of all -- and this is my favorite -- 99 00:04:25,109 --> 00:04:27,549 is that so far as I've ever been able to find out, 100 00:04:27,549 --> 00:04:32,860 the Senate has never formally endorsed the title of President. 101 00:04:32,860 --> 00:04:35,931 Barack Obama, President Obama, is there on borrowed time, 102 00:04:35,931 --> 00:04:39,794 just waiting for the Senate to spring into action. 103 00:04:39,794 --> 00:04:41,666 Second thing you can learn is that 104 00:04:41,666 --> 00:04:44,185 when a government says that this is a temporary measure -- 105 00:04:44,185 --> 00:04:47,543 (Laughter) -- 106 00:04:47,543 --> 00:04:52,408 you can still be waiting 223 years later. 107 00:04:52,408 --> 00:04:53,888 But the third thing you can learn, 108 00:04:53,888 --> 00:04:55,336 and this is the really important one, 109 00:04:55,336 --> 00:04:57,097 this is the point I want to leave you on, 110 00:04:57,097 --> 00:05:01,835 is that the title, President of the United States of America, 111 00:05:01,835 --> 00:05:06,159 doesn't sound that humble at all these days, does it? 112 00:05:06,159 --> 00:05:09,172 Something to do with the slightly over 5,000 113 00:05:09,172 --> 00:05:11,440 nuclear warheads he has at his disposal 114 00:05:11,440 --> 00:05:13,689 and the largest economy in the world 115 00:05:13,689 --> 00:05:17,398 and a fleet of drones and all that sort of stuff. 116 00:05:17,398 --> 00:05:24,241 Reality and history have endowed that title with grandeur. 117 00:05:24,241 --> 00:05:26,073 And so the Senate won in the end. 118 00:05:26,073 --> 00:05:28,585 They got their title of respectability. 119 00:05:28,585 --> 00:05:31,913 And also, the Senate's other worry, the appearance of singularity -- 120 00:05:31,913 --> 00:05:33,952 well, it was a singularity back then. 121 00:05:33,952 --> 00:05:36,571 But now, do you know how many nations have a president? 122 00:05:36,571 --> 00:05:39,169 A hundred and forty-seven. 123 00:05:39,169 --> 00:05:40,833 All because they want to sound like 124 00:05:40,833 --> 00:05:45,673 the guy who's got the 5,000 nuclear warheads, etc. 125 00:05:45,673 --> 00:05:48,257 And so, in the end, the Senate won 126 00:05:48,257 --> 00:05:52,249 and the House of Representatives lost, 127 00:05:52,249 --> 00:05:54,665 because nobody's going to feel that humble 128 00:05:54,665 --> 00:05:56,297 when they're told that they are now 129 00:05:56,297 --> 00:06:00,881 the President of the United States of America. 130 00:06:00,881 --> 00:06:03,273 And that's the important lesson I think you can take away, 131 00:06:03,273 --> 00:06:04,817 and the one I want to leave you with. 132 00:06:04,817 --> 00:06:07,881 Politicians try to pick words and use words to shape reality 133 00:06:07,881 --> 00:06:11,332 and control reality, but in fact, 134 00:06:11,332 --> 00:06:13,953 reality changes words far more 135 00:06:13,953 --> 00:06:16,536 than words can ever change reality. 136 00:06:16,536 --> 00:06:18,216 Thank you very much.