Daily Times

WASHINGTON: United States (US) President Barack Obama will deliver his farewell speech next week from his political stronghold of Chicago, one of the last times he will be able to advocate for his policies before Donald Trump takes the authority from his grasp.

The Republican political novice vowed to rip up key Obama initiatives such as the so-called ‘Obamacare’ healthcare reform act, to back out of climate change agreements and to reassess ties with foreign allies and foes. Obama will hand over the power to Trump on January 20.

“On Tuesday, January 10, I’ll go home to Chicago to say my grateful farewell to you, even if you can’t be there in person,” Obama said in a short statement released on Monday, noting that the tradition of a presidential farewell speech dates back to George Washington.

Obama, who returned to Washington on Monday after a two-week family vacation in Hawaii, said that he was just beginning to write his remarks.

“I’m thinking about them as a chance to say thank you for this amazing journey, and to celebrate the ways you’ve changed this country for the better in these past eight years, and to offer some thoughts on where we all go from here,” he said.

“It’s been the privilege of my life to serve as your President. I look forward to standing with you as a citizen,” he said in a tweet on Sunday.

Obama celebrated his election to the White House eight years ago in front of a huge and ecstatic crowd in Chicago, his adopted hometown. He will deliver his speech next week from the McCormick Place convention centre, the site of his victory speech after winning re-election in 2012.