Last night, President Obama proved that he is still the master of rhetoric we saw during the campaign by delivering his first unambiguously excellent speech since those halcyon days on the stump.

His weakest moment was at the beginning. He began with a risky opening, risky because he nearly changed the subject before he'd properly started. He brought up a topic as difficult and as contentious for Americans as health care - the economy:

• When I spoke here last winter, this nation was facing the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression. We were losing an average of 700,000 jobs per month. Credit was frozen. And our financial system was on the verge of collapse.
• As any American who is still looking for work or a way to pay their bills will tell you, we are by no means out of the woods. A full and vibrant recovery is many months away. And I will not let up until those Americans who seek jobs can find them; until those businesses that seek capital and credit can thrive; until all responsible homeowners can stay in their homes. That is our ultimate goal. ....

But before the President and his audience wandered into another speech altogether, he provided an elegant transition to the real topic of the evening:

• But we did not come here just to clean up crises. We came to build a future. So tonight, I return to speak to all of you about an issue that is central to that future - and that is the issue of health care.

The line cleverly appealed to the American can-do spirit, and brought us to the point - health care in America is a difficult subject, and one that has been difficult for a long time:

• I am not the first President to take up this cause, but I am determined to be the last. It has now been nearly a century since Theodore Roosevelt first called for health care reform. And ever since, nearly every President and Congress, whether Democrat or Republican, has attempted to meet this challenge in some way. A bill for comprehensive health reform was first introduced by John Dingell Sr. in 1943. Sixty-five years later, his son continues to introduce that same bill at the beginning of each session. Our collective failure to meet this challenge - year after year, decade after decade - has led us to a breaking point.

A very nice appeal to the history of the Congress, and the bi-partisan nature of the long effort, this was the real beginning of the speech and a brilliant way to open the debate. It put us on notice that the task is a difficult one.

Then the President delved deep into the problem:

• We are the only advanced democracy on Earth - the only wealthy nation - that allows such hardships (caused by lack of insurance) for millions of its people. There are now more than thirty million American citizens who cannot get coverage. In just a two-year period, one in every three Americans goes without health care coverage at some point. And every day, 14,000 Americans lose their coverage. In other words, it can happen to anyone.
• But the problem that plagues the health care system is not just a problem of the uninsured. Those who do have insurance have never had less security and stability than they do today.

Health care has become a contentious subject, and what's the best way to deal with contention? By treating serious alternatives with respect.

• We know we must reform this system. The question is how.
• There are those on the left who believe that the only way to fix the system is through a single-payer system like Canada's, where we would severely restrict the private insurance market and have the government provide coverage for everyone. On the right, there are those who argue that we should end the employer-based system and leave individuals to buy health insurance on their own.
• I have to say that there are arguments to be made for both approaches.

The President then went on to detail at some length his solution, contrasting it with a variety of the other proposals, saying, "Here are the details that every American needs to know about this plan...."

And he closed with an emotional appeal to the late Senator Ted Kennedy's memory and our own collective will as a country:

• I understand how difficult this health care debate has been. I know that many in this country are deeply skeptical that government is looking out for them. I understand that the politically safe move would be to kick the can further down the road - to defer reform one more year, or one more election, or one more term.
• But that's not what the moment calls for. That's not what we came here to do. We did not come to fear the future. We came here to shape it. I still believe we can act even when it's hard. I still believe we can replace acrimony with civility, and gridlock with progress. I still believe we can do great things, and that here and now we will meet history's test.
• Because that is who we are. That is our calling. That is our character.

One good speech rarely ends discussion and there is still much legislative work to be done. But the President accomplished as much as an address of this kind can, and his remarks deserve to be treated with the dignity and respect he showed all the other serious participants in the health care debate. It was an excellent speech.

Nick Morgan is President of Public Words Inc, a communications consulting firm, and author of Trust Me: Four Steps to Authenticity and Charisma. This post originally appeared on his blog.

This is a post by guest blogger Jeff Bussgang.

President Obama's compelling health care speech last night made the case for acting now. In a follow-up email that he sent to millions, he urged action to finally address this pressing issue, positing that we are "closer now than we have been in 60 years."

Here's my question - where can I find an analysis of the impact of the plan on entrepreneurship? Why has this major engine of job growth been silent or ignored in the debate - or have I just missed it?

Anything that creates friction in entrepreneurship is a bad thing for our innovation economy. I have seen aspiring entrepreneurs hold back in pursuing their start-up dreams because of fear of losing health coverage. Lowering the barriers to allow the flow of great talent to seek great opportunity needs to be a fundamental tenant of the new plan and I'm concerned that our leadership isn't focused enough on this lens.

Has anyone seen any good data or dialog on this topic? Led by former venture capitalist Karen Mills, shouldn't the SBA be a strong, relevant voice here?

Serial entrepreneur Jeff Bussgang is a partner at venture capital firm Flybridge Capital in Boston.