‘(JFK) inspired a generation to enter public service and to ask what they could do for their country. President Barack Obama inspired me in the same way,’ he said.
‘My life changed in 2008 because a young candidate was fired up and ready to go, and said that “Yes we can”.
‘Without Barack Obama I might still be sitting on my couch eating Doritos and watching sports.’
Schlossberg – who plans to attend Harvard Law School – also made his beliefs clear about politics as he applauded Obama for his courage in pursuing healthcare reform.
‘From his first days in office until his last, the President consistently put the national interest above his own political interest while resisting the politics of cynicism in a system that all too often encourages it,’ he said.
‘He had the courage to pursue comprehensive health care reform as his first order of business, knowing the issue would cost him and the party politically.
Schlossberg (right) and his mother Caroline Kennedy (left) took to the stage at at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum Read with Barack and Michelle Obama
Obama watched on from the crowd as Schlossberg spoke glowingly of the former President prior to him accepting the award
‘He continued the fight that was waged during the Kennedy administration that my uncle Teddy fought for for 50 years in the senate and did what no president had been able to do in passing the Affordable Care Act.’
Schlossberg’s mention of Obamacare came just days at US House Republicans passed a bill that will dismantle much of Obama’s signature health care law.
‘We saw this week that it is a lot easier to criticize and dismantle. President Obama had the courage to govern responsibly,’ he said.
‘We all, especially young Americans, owe a great debt to this courageous president. We can live in the just, inclusive, compassionate and strong nation that president Kennedy imagined and fought for if we choose the type of leadership that defined President Obama’s last eight years in office.
‘That is our responsibly as citizens – it is more important now than it ever has been.’
Schlossberg’s stirring speech came after he gave his first television interview last week alongside his mother Caroline Kennedy.
He appeared on NBC’s Today show to promote the Profile in Courage Award ceremony, which he presented to Obama.
Schlossberg, who graduated from Yale University in 2015, was a member of the committee that voted to pick Obama.