You didn’t ask “greatest person”, you asked “greatest public speaker”. He can charm anyone, he does give very inspirational speeches, and he was a pretty darn good president if you ask me.
@TaoSan- Cicero was considered the greatest orator of his time. When he stood in the senate and denounced the conspiracy of Catiline he was said to have been brilliant. Nobody of his era had his rhetorical powers.
I was coming in here to say Cicero. Ya beat me to it, AC.
His insecurity over his social standing as a “novo homo” was one thing, but the man could speak. His letters were known to be a bit more colloquial, since he never expected anyone other than his friends to see them.
@KrystaElyse – hell no, that’s Ad Melkert. At least he disappeared from the political arena because of his suckiness in being a speaker, among other things.
Pim Fortuyn was a gifted speaker but, sadly (even though I didn’t agree with his views), he got murdered for it.
Maybe not the greatest of ALL time, but I would cast a vote for Malcolm X too. Also, watching Hitler speak is an oratory lesson in itself, although the style is rather outdated…but anyway you can feel the sheer power of what he says, after all, his mouth made him rather than his brains…