Kennedy & Sorensen

Ted Sorensen was the first appointee announced in John F. Kennedy's administration. As JFK's closest advisor, he was busy with the transition in addition to working on a first draft of the inaugural address. 

In White House Ghosts: Presidents and their Speechwriters, Robert Schlesinger reports that Kennedy told Sorensen to "solicit suggestions," "keep it short" and "read previous inaugurals." He also assigned the Gettysburg Address, "tasking Sorensen with ferreting out the secret of its genius." Sorensen concluded that "Lincoln never used a two- or three-syllable word where a one-syllable word would do, and never used three words where one word would do."

When writing for JFK...

"Words were regarded as tools of precision, to be chosen and applied with a craftsman's care to whatever the situation required, Sorensen noted. Soft words and phrases -- "suggest," "perhaps," and "possible alternatives for consideration" -- were avoided. Short words and clauses were the order, with simplicity and clarity the goal. And while the summoning trumpets of the inaugural address have linked Kennedy in the public mind with flowery prose, he generally shunned rhetorical excess.