President Barack Obama received a hero's welcome in Chicago Tuesday night as he took the stage to deliver his farewell speech.
Supporters stomped on the bleachers set up behind him and members of the crowd shouted 'four more years' over a disruption.
The exiting president who campaigned on "hope and change" told his supporters 'you were the change' and encouraged them to continue standing up for their values.
Obama never mentioned his successor by name but made multiple references to his nemesis as he declared to loud clapping and cheers 'that science and reason matter' and referenced his attacks on Muslim Americans.
He also decried the 'selective sorting of facts' he said members of the other party have embraced.
In the hour-long speech Obama also took on the touchy topic of race, saying that talk of a "post-racial America" after he was elected "was never realistic."
The president was accompanied on his trip by First Lady Michelle Obama.
"Michelle – for the past twenty-five years, you’ve been not only my wife and mother of my children, but my best friend. You took on a role you didn’t ask for and made it your own with grace and with grit and with style and good humour," he told his wife in his remarks.
He called Vice President Joe Biden, also in attendance, 'a brother' and said his decision to add him to the ticket was the first he made and the best.
Obama's primetime address, which began promptly 9pm EST, is his last attempt to steer the country toward the policies and values at the core of his vision for America before Donald Trump enters the White House.
The Democratic president offered advice to the American people about the challenges that lie ahead. He only briefly rehashed his eight-year presidency.
"The President certainly could give a long speech reciting the many accomplishments of his administration, but that’s not how he’s choosing to spend his time tomorrow night," Press Secretary Josh Earnest said Monday.
The Obamas arrived in Chicago at 5.35 pm local time. They both wore black winter coats as they exited Air Force One with their older daughter Malia, who was sporting a stylish camel topcoat.
President Obama sat for an interview with Lester Holt of NBC News at Valois, a Chicago restaurant, before the first family traveled the short distance across downtown for his final speech.
"My fellow Americans," Obama said to cheers, "Michelle and I have been so touched by all the well-wishes we’ve received over the past few weeks. Every day, I learned from you. You made me a better President, and you made me a better man."
The president also brought his sister Auma Obama, who is from Kenya, along with speechwriter Cody Keenan, national security adviser Susan Rice and counterterrorism adviser Lisa Monaco.
The 55-year-old will step down in just 10 days with his legacy hanging in the balance after Democratic Party candidate Hillary Clinton won the national popular vote but came up short in the Electoral College.
"Progress isn't always a straight line," he reminded his supporters in an email Monday.
He'll also talk about fairness and justice, the White House said, and the idea that "if you work hard, you should have the opportunity to succeed regardless of what you look like, or what your last name is, or who you love."
The president will publicly needle his successor to back away from changes to existing US policy that Trump forcefully campaigned on such as his border wall with Mexico.