Washington makes clear at the outset that he was not running for a third term, and then thanks his fellow citizens for the opportunity to serve as their president. He then writes about the preservation of the Union, the core of American nationhood, and which, along with the Constitution binds all Americans together and provides for the popular well-being. Concerned about the obstacles and potential hazards that lay ahead for the nation, Washington urges the nation's people to cherish and safeguard their hard-won system of republican government despite their many differences.