After graduating from theCollege of the Holy Cross as valedictorian,[6] Favreau worked for theJohn Kerry 2004 presidential campaign to collect talk radio news and was promoted to the role of Deputy Speechwriter.[7] Favreau first met Barack Obama, then a state senator from Illinois, while working on the Kerry campaign.
In 2005, Obama'scommunications directorRobert Gibbs recommended Favreau to Obama as a speechwriter.[8] Favreau was hired as Obama's speechwriter shortly after Obama's election to theUnited States Senate. Obama and Favreau grew close, and Obama referred to him as his "mind reader". He went on the campaign trail with Obama during his successfulpresidential election campaign. In 2009, he was named to the White House staff as Director of Speechwriting.[9]
At Holy Cross, he was treasurer and debate committee chairman for theCollege Democrats, and studied classical piano.[15] From 1999 to 2000, he served on the Welfare Solidarity Project, eventually becoming its director. In 2001, Favreau worked withHabitat for Humanity and aUniversity of Massachusetts Amherst program to bring visitors to cancer patients.
In 2002, he became head of an initiative to help unemployed individuals improve their résumés and interview skills. He also earned a variety of honors in college, including the Vanicelli Award; being named the 2001 Charles A. Dana Scholar; memberships in the Political Science Honor Society,Pi Sigma Alpha, the College Honors Program, the Sociology Honor Society,Alpha Kappa Delta, and was awarded aHarry S. Truman Scholarship in 2002.[15] He was an editor on his college newspaper, and during summers in college, he earned extra income selling newspapers as a telemarketer, while also interning in John Kerry's offices.[18]
He joinedSenatorJohn Kerry's2004 presidential campaign soon after graduation from the College of the Holy Cross.[3] While working for the Kerry campaign, his job was to assemble audio clips of talk radio programs for the Kerry camp to review for the next day. When the Kerry campaign began to falter at one point, they found themselves without a speechwriter, and Favreau was promoted to the role of deputy speechwriter. Following Kerry's defeat, Favreau became dispirited with politics, and was uncertain if he would do such work again.[16] Favreau first met Obama (then anIllinoisState Senator running for the U.S. Senate), while still working for Kerry, backstage at the2004 Democratic National Convention as Obama was rehearsing hiskeynote address. Favreau, then 23 years old, interrupted Obama's rehearsal, advising the soon-to-be-elected Senator that a rewrite was needed because Kerry wanted to use one of the lines.[18]
Obama communications aideRobert Gibbs, who had worked for Kerry's campaign, recommended Favreau to Obama as an excellent writer, and in 2005 he began working for Barack Obama in his U.S. Senate office before joining his presidential campaign as chief speechwriter in 2006.[19] His interview with Obama was on the Senator's first day. Uninterested in Favreau's résumé, Obama instead questioned Favreau on what motivated him to work in politics and his theory of writing.[16] He described this theory to Obama as, "A speech can broaden the circle of people who care about this stuff. How do you say to the average person that's been hurting: 'I hear you, I'm there?' Even though you've been so disappointed and cynical about politics in the past, and with good reason, we can move in the right direction. Just give me a chance."[20]
Favreau led a speechwriting team for the campaign that includedBen Rhodes andCody Keenan.[18] For his work with Obama in the campaign, he would wake as early as 5 a.m., and routinely stayed up until 3 a.m. working on speeches.[18] His leadership style among other Obama speechwriters was very informal. They would often meet in a small conference room, discussing their work late into the evening over takeout food. According to Rhodes, Favreau did not drive structured meetings with agendas. "If he had, we probably would have laughed at him," Rhodes said. Favreau was planning to hire more speechwriters to assist him, but conceded he was unsure of how to manage them. According to him, "My biggest strength isn't the organization thing."[20]
He has likened his position to "Ted Williams' batting coach", because of Obama's celebrated abilities as a speaker and writer. Obama senior adviserDavid Axelrod said of Favreau, "Barack trusts him... And Barack doesn't trust too many folks with that—the notion of surrendering that much authority over his own words."[18] In Obama's own words, Favreau was his "mind reader".[21] He and Obama share a fierce sports rivalry between theBoston Red Sox, favored by Favreau, and theChicago White Sox, favored by Obama.[2] When the White Sox defeated the Red Sox 3–0 in the2005 American League playoffs, Obama swept off Favreau's desk with a small broom.[18] During the campaigns, he was obsessed with election tracking polls, jokingly referring to them as his "daily crack". At points during the campaign, he felt overwhelmed by his responsibilities and would turn to Axelrod and his friends for advice.[20]
Favreau has declared that the speeches ofRobert F. Kennedy andMichael Gerson have influenced his work,[22] and has expressed admiration forPeggy Noonan's speechwriting, citing a talk given byRonald Reagan atPointe du Hoc as his favorite Noonan speech. Gerson also admires Favreau's work, and sought him out at an ObamaNew Hampshire campaign rally to speak with the younger speechwriter.[23] Favreau was the primary writer of Obama's inauguration address of January 2009.The Guardian describes the process as follows:
"The inaugural speech has shuttled between them [Obama and Favreau] four or five times, following an initial hour-long meeting in which the President-elect spoke about his vision for the address, and Favreau took notes on his computer. Favreau then went away and spent weeks on research. His team interviewed historians and speechwriters, studied periods of crisis, and listened to past inaugural orations. When ready, he took up residence in aStarbucks in Washington and wrote the first draft."[21]
When President Obama assumed office in 2009, Favreau was appointed Assistant to the President and Director of Speechwriting.[3] He became the second-youngest chief White House speechwriter on record, afterJames Fallows.[19] His salary was $172,200 a year.[24]
Favreau has said his work with Obama will be his final job in the realm of politics, saying, "Anything else would be anticlimactic."[25] In regard to his post-political future, he said, "Maybe I'll write a screenplay, or maybe a fiction book based loosely on what all of this was like. You had a bunch of kids working on this campaign together, and it was such a mix of the serious and momentous and just the silly ways that we are. For people in my generation, it was an unbelievable way to grow up."[20]
In March 2013, Favreau left the White House, along withTommy Vietor, to pursue a career in private sector consulting and screenwriting.[26][22] Together, they founded the communications firm Fenway Strategies. From 2013 to 2016, Favreau wrote sporadically for theDaily Beast.[27] In 2016, after the November presidential election was won byDonald Trump, Favreau, Vietor andJon Lovett foundedCrooked Media. Favreau co-hosts Crooked's premier political podcastPod Save America withDan Pfeiffer, Vietor and Lovett. In the wake of the newRepublican healthcare bill, theAHCA, he coined the term "Wealthcare".
He currently serves on the Board of Advisors ofLet America Vote, a voting rights organization founded by fellow Crooked Media hostJason Kander.[28]
Favreau was named one of the "100 Most Influential People in the World" byTime magazine in 2009.[29] In the same year he was ranked 33rd in theGQ "50 Most Powerful in D.C." and featured in theVanity Fair "Next Establishment" list.[30][31] Favreau was one of several Obama administration members in the 2009 "World's Most Beautiful People" issue ofPeople magazine.[32] Executive Producer for the podcastThis Land, and was nominated for a 2021Peabody Award. As host ofPod Save America, Favreau has won severalWebby Awards.[33]
He is the older brother of Andy Favreau, a professional TV and movie actor.[34] On May 23, 2014, Favreau was awarded an honorary Doctor of Public Service degree by his alma mater, Holy Cross, where he also gave the commencement address.[35] On June 17, 2017, Favreau married Emily Black, daughter of federal JudgeTimothy Black, at her family's vacation home inBiddeford Pool,Maine.[36] Their son, Charlie, was born in August 2020.[37][38] Jon and his wife had their second son, Teddy, in December 2023.[39]
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