I wrote for the president where it was a speech he delivered

in Puerto Rico.

PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA: Buenos tardes.

[CROWD CHEERS]

DAVID LITT: I remember thinking how totally bizarre that was.

As a speechwriter, you're always recognizing that it's not

really my idea, right?

It's inspired by President Obama, but just the fact

that you can sit down and be part

of that is totally surreal.

And it never stops being surreal.

LAURA LING: You were just 24 years old when

you started at the White House.

How did that come about?

DAVID LITT: I did not mean to become a speechwriter.

I didn't really mean to go in to politics or anything like that.

I was on a plane and we had just begun our initial descent

and I was sort of channel surfing on the free airplane

cable.

I saw this candidate who I had heard of

but didn't know a lot about named Barack Obama.

PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA: They said-- they

said this day would never come.

[CROWD CHEERS]

DAVID LITT: By the time that speech was over,

I was like, never mind.

Whatever he's doing-- I want to be a part of that.

I was totally awestruck.

It was really one of those moments where,

like, by the time we hit the tarmac,

I was on a totally different life path.

And that doesn't happen a lot, but it was a heck of a speech.

PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA: You did this

because you believed so deeply in the most American of ideas--

that in the face of impossible odds,

people who love this country can change it.

[CROWD APPLAUDS]

LAURA LING: What are some of the biggest challenges in helping

to craft a speech for the most powerful person on the planet?

DAVID LITT: You have to realize how high the stakes are.

We would write speeches knowing that there

are people whose full-time job is to pick apart

every single word the president says

and sometimes just to take things out of context.

And that can be incredibly intimidating.

LAURA LING: How do you even get started working

on a speech for the president?

What's your process?

DAVID LITT: If I really didn't know what I wanted to write,

I would try saying it instead.

Speeches aren't meant to be read.

They're meant to be heard.

And so if I felt like I could start

to finish make that argument in my own words just talking

to myself, then I could go back and begin to shape it in a way

where it would make sense for the president.

LAURA LING: What have been your sources of inspiration

when you're going through this process?

DAVID LITT: Sometimes what I would

do is I would go on YouTube and pull up that video of that Iowa

speech from 2008 and hit play.

PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA: They said this day would never come.

[AUDIENCE CHEERS]

DAVID LITT: Rewatching those words

and feeling that sense of both power

and responsibility keeps you going

when you wonder whether it's all making a difference.

I worked on the Obama campaign in 2008

and all of my volunteers, when I left,

they took one of those hope posters

and on the back in cardboard they

all just signed their names.

And so I had a sort of face the other way

where the hope side was against the wall

so that I could see all the names.

It was just this reminder that what I was doing

was not just about my job.

It was not just even about the president.

It was about people in places like the one

where I had worked.

For me, really, all of my rituals

are about trying to recapture that feeling I had in 2008,

to put you back in that mindset when you're 21, 22 years old

and you're absolutely sure you can change the world,

and you're pretty sure you can do it tomorrow.

LAURA LING: You've worked on a number of White House

correspondent dinner speeches which

are known for highlighting the president's humor.

How has comedy been a tool for you

in terms of getting a political message out?

DAVID LITT: Well, one of the interesting things

over the last eight years is getting

people's attention has become harder and harder and harder.

I wrote some speeches on climate change that I'm very proud of,

but they didn't have a huge audience.

We did something with Luther, the anger translator,

and President Obama got really upset over climate change

deniers in Congress, and that had 40 million views

on Facebook.

PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA: Rising seas, more violent storms--

LUTHER: You got mosquitoes, sweaty people

on the train stinking it up.

[AUDIENCE LAUGHS]

It's just nasty.

DAVID LITT: Something that's funny

just gets people to pay attention.

It gets people engaged.

LAURA LING: President Obama has amazing comedic timing.

DAVID LITT: He really does.

The president can hold a pause for just the right amount

of time that there's a little bit of tension

and then cut it was a punch line.

PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA: Being president is never easy.

I still have to fix a broken immigration system,

issue veto threats, negotiate with Iran,

all while finding time to pray five times a day.

[AUDIENCE LAUGHS]

Which is strenuous.

DAVID LITT: Then there's also just moments

when you write something, whether it's

a joke or a more serious line of argument that breaks through

in some way and becomes part of this national conversation

around an issue.

And a lot of the time, that's a team effort,

but to be one part of that team-- it's a special thing.

LAURA LING: What have you loved most

about working with the president, President Obama?

DAVID LITT: Well, I think there is-- there's just something

extraordinary about working for somebody who

is such a good writer, such a good speaker,

and has the ability to just walk into a room

and create memories that everybody else is going

to remember for a lifetime.

And so you get to be part of all of these life-changing moments

in little ways and big ways.

And that is-- when I walk into a room, that doesn't happen.

So that was nice to get to play a small part in that.

LAURA LING: How do Hillary Clinton and Donald

Trump differ when it comes to giving political speeches?

Be sure to watch this episode of Seeker Daily to learn more.

Clinton is trying to reach out to younger voters who

may not be familiar with the Clinton legacy.

And this may take a little extra effort

than it would take Trump, who already

has an established television presence.

DAVID LITT: I think for somebody who is by her own admission

not a natural performer, she is trying to get better and better

and focus attention where it needs to be.

LAURA LING: Thanks for watching Seeker Stories.

Please subscribe for new videos every week.