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Why didn't you go the extra inch and get us a post Jan 3 version?
Thank you. Now, you know why Elizabeth is so amazing.
I am a lucky man: to have the love of my life at my side. We have been blessed with four beautiful children: Wade, Cate, Emma Claire, and Jack.
My mother and father, Wallace and Bobbie Edwards, are here tonight. You taught me the values that I carry with me in my heart: faith, family, responsibility, and opportunity for everyone. You taught me that there's dignity and honor in a hard day's work. You taught me that you look out for your neighbors, you never look down on anybody, and you treat everyone with respect.
Those are the values John Kerry and I believe in, and nothing makes me prouder than standing with him in this campaign. I am so humbled to be your candidate for Vice President of the United States.
I want to talk about our next president. For those who want to know what kind of leader he'll be, I want to take you back about 30 years. When John Kerry graduated college, he volunteered for military service. He volunteered to go to Vietnam and to captain a swift boat, one of the most dangerous duties you could have. And as a result he was wounded and honored for his valor.
If you have any question about what he's made of, you need to spend three minutes with the men who served with him then and stand by him today.
They saw up close what he's made of. They saw him reach down and pull one of his men from the river and save his life. And in the heat of battle, they saw him decide in an instant to turn his boat around, drive it straight through an enemy position, and chase down the enemy to save his crew.
Decisive. Strong. Aren't these the traits you want in a Commander in Chief?
We hear a lot of talk about values. Where I come from, you don't judge someone's values based on how they use that word in a political ad. You judge their values based upon what they've spent their life doing.
So when a man volunteers to serve his country, and puts his life on the line for others -- that's a man who represents real American values.
This is a man who is prepared to keep the American people safe and to make America stronger at home and respected in the world.
John is a man who knows the difference between what is right and what is wrong. He wants to serve you -- your cause is his cause. And that is why we must and we will elect John Kerry as our next president.
For the last few months, John has been talking about his positive, optimistic vision for the country -- talking about his plan to move this country in the right direction.
But we've seen relentless negative attacks against John. So in the weeks ahead, we know what's coming -- don't we -- more negative attacks.
Aren't you sick of it?
They are doing all they can to take this campaign for the highest office in the land down the lowest possible road.
This is where you come in. Between now and November -- you, the American people -- you can reject the tired, old, hateful, negative, politics of the past. And instead you can embrace the politics of hope, the politics of what's possible because this is America, where everything is possible.
I am here tonight because I love my country. And I have every reason to love my country because I have grown up in the bright light of America.
I grew up in a small town in rural North Carolina. My father worked in a mill all his life, and I will never forget the men and women who worked with him. They had lint in their hair and grease on their faces. They worked hard and tried to put a little something away every week so their kids and their grandkids could have a better life. They are just like the auto workers, office workers, teachers, and shop keepers on Main Streets all across America.
My mother had a number of jobs. Her last job was working at the post office so my parents could have health care. And she owned her own small business -- refinishing furniture to help pay for me to go to college.
I have had such incredible opportunities in my life, and I was blessed to be the first person in my family to go to college. I worked my way through, and I have had opportunities way beyond what I could have ever imagined.
And the heart of this campaign -- your campaign -- is to make sure that everyone has those same opportunities that I had growing up -- no matter where you live, who your family is, or what the color of your skin is. This is the America we believe in.
I have spent my life fighting for the kind of people I grew up with. For two decades, I stood with families and children against big HMOs and big insurance companies. And as a Senator, I fought those same fights against the Washington lobbyists and for causes like the Patients' Bill of Rights.
I stand here tonight ready to work with you and John to make America strong again.
And we have so much work to do. Because the truth is, we still live in two different Americas: one for people who have lived the American Dream and don't have to worry, and another for most Americans who work hard and still struggle to make ends meet.
It doesn't have to be that way. We can build one America
We can build one America where we no longer have two health care systems. One for people who get the best health care money can buy and then one for everybody else, rationed out by insurance companies, drug companies, and HMOs -- millions of Americans who don't have any health insurance at all.
It doesn't have to be that way.
We have a plan that will offer everyone the same health care your Senator has. We can give tax breaks to help pay for your health care. And we will sign into law a real Patients' Bill of Rights so you can make your own health care decisions.
We shouldn't have two public school systems in this country: one for the most affluent communities, and one for everybody else.
None of us believe that the quality of a child's education should be controlled by where they live or the affluence of their community.
It doesn't have to be that way.
We can build one public school system that works for all our children. Our plan will reform our schools and raise our standards. We can give our schools the resources they need. We can provide incentives to put quality teachers in the places and the subjects where we need them the most. And we can ensure that three million kids have a safe place to go after school. This is what we can do together.
We shouldn't have two different economies in America: one for people who are set for life, their kids and grandkids will be just fine, and then one for most Americans who live paycheck to paycheck.
And you know what I'm saying. You don't need me to explain it to you, you know -- you can't save any money, can you? Takes every dime you make just to pay your bills, and you know what happens if something goes wrong -- a child gets sick, somebody gets laid off, or there's a financial problem, you go right off the cliff.
And what's the first thing to go. Your dreams. It doesn't have to be that way.
We can strengthen and lift up your families. Your agenda is our agenda -- so let me give you some specifics.
First, we can create good paying jobs in America again. Our plan will stop giving tax breaks to companies that outsource your jobs. Instead, we will give tax breaks to American companies that keep jobs here in America. And we will invest in the jobs of the future -- in the technologies and innovation to ensure that America stays ahead of the competition.
We will do this because for us a job is about more than a paycheck -- it's about dignity and self-respect. Hard work should be valued in this country and we're going to reward work, not just wealth.
We don't want people to just get by; we want people to get ahead. So let me give you some specifics about how we're going to do that.
To help you pay for health care, a tax break and health care reform to lower your premiums up to $1,000. To help you cover the rising costs of child care, a tax credit up to $1,000 to cover those costs so your kids have a safe place to go while you work. And to help your child have the same chance I had and be the first person in your family to go to college, a tax break on up to $4,000 in tuition.So now you ask how are we going to pay for this? Well, here's how we're going to pay for it. Let me be very clear, for 98 percent of Americans, you will keep your tax cut-that's 98 percent. But we'll roll back the tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans, close corporate loopholes, and cut government contractors and wasteful spending. We can move our country forward without passing the bill and the burden on to our children and grandchildren.
We can also do something about 35 million Americans who live in poverty every day. Here's the reason we should not just talk about it, but do something about millions of Americans who still live in poverty, because it is wrong. We have a moral responsibility to lift those families up.
I mean the very idea that in a country of our wealth and our prosperity, we have children going to bed hungry. We have children who don't have the clothes to keep them warm. We have millions of Americans who work full-time every day for minimum wage to support their family and still live in poverty -- it's wrong.
These are men and women who are living up to their part of the bargain: working hard and taking care of their families. Those families are doing their part; it's time we did ours.
We will do that when John is in the White House. We will raise the minimum wage, finish the job on Welfare Reform, and bring good paying jobs to the places that need them. And we will say no forever to any American working full-time and living in poverty -- not in our America, not in our America.
Let me talk about why we need to build one America. I saw up close what having two Americas does to our country.
From the time I was very young, I saw the ugly face of segregation and discrimination. I saw young African-American kids sent upstairs in movie theaters. I saw white only signs on restaurant doors and luncheon counters. I feel such an enormous responsibility when it comes to issues of race and equality and civil rights.
I have heard some discussions and debates about where, and in front of what audiences we should talk about race, equality, and civil rights. Well, I have an answer to that question. Everywhere.
This is not an African-American issue, not a Latino issue, not an Asian-American issue, this is an American issue. It's about who we are, what our values are, what kind of country we want to live in.
What John and I want -- what we all want -- is for our children and our grandchildren to be the first generations to grow up in an America that's no longer divided by race.
We must build one America. We must be one America, strong and united for another very important reason -- because we are at war.
None of us will ever forget where we were on September 11th. We share the same terrible images: the Towers falling, the Pentagon in flames, and the smoldering field in Pennsylvania. And we share the profound sadness for the nearly three thousand lives lost.
As a member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, I know that we have to do more to fight terrorism and protect our country. And we can do that. We are approaching the third anniversary of September 11th, and I can tell you that when we're in office, it won't take us three years to get the reforms in our intelligence we need to protect our country. We will do whatever it takes, for as long as it takes, to make sure that never happens again, not to our America.
When John is president, we will listen to the wisdom of the Sept. 11 commission. We will build and lead strong alliances and safeguard and secure weapons of mass destruction. We will strengthen our homeland security and protect our ports, safeguard our chemical plants, and support our firefighters, police officers and EMTs. We will always use our military might to keep the American people safe.
And we will have one clear unmistakable message for al Qaida and the rest of these terrorists. You cannot run. You cannot hide. And we will destroy you.
John understands personally about fighting in a war. And he knows what our brave men and women are going through in another war -- the war in Iraq.
The human cost and extraordinary heroism of this war, it surrounds us. It surrounds us in our cities and towns. And we will win this war because of the strength and courage of our own people.
Some of our friends and neighbors saw their last images in Baghdad. Some took their last steps outside of Fallujah. And some buttoned their uniform for the final time before they went out to save their unit.
Men and women who used to take care of themselves, they now count on others to see them through the day. They need their mother to tie their shoe. Their husband to brush their hair. And their wife's arm to help them across the room.
The stars and stripes wave for them. The word hero was made for them. They are the best and the bravest. They will never be left behind. You understand that. And they deserve a president who understands that on the most personal level what they have gone through -- what they have given and what they have given up for their country.
To us, the real test of patriotism is how we treat the men and women who put their lives on the line every day to defend our values. And let me tell you, the 26 million veterans in this country won't have to wonder if they'll have health care next week or next year -- they will have it always because they took care of us and we will take care of them.
But today, our great United States military is stretched thin. More than 140,000 are in Iraq. Nearly 20,000 are serving in Afghanistan. And I visited the men and women there and we're praying for them as they keep working to give that country hope.
Like all of those brave men and women, John put his life on the line for our country. He knows that when authority is given to the president, much is expected in return. That's why we will strengthen and modernize our military.
We will double our Special Forces, and invest in the new equipment and technologies so that our military remains the best equipped and best trained in the world. This will make our military stronger so we're able to defeat every enemy in this new world.
But we can't do this alone. We have to restore our respect in the world to bring our allies to us and with us. It's how we won the World Wars and the Cold War and it is how we will build a stable Iraq.
With a new president who strengthens and leads our alliances, we can get NATO to help secure Iraq. We can ensure that Iraq's neighbors like Syria and Iran, don't stand in the way of a democratic Iraq. We can help Iraq's economy by getting other countries to forgive their enormous debt and participate in the reconstruction. We can do this for the Iraqi people and our soldiers. And we will get this done right.
A new president will bring the world to our side, and with it -- a stable Iraq and a real chance for peace and freedom in the Middle East, including a safe and secure Israel. And John and I will bring the world together to face our most dangerous threat: the possibility of terrorists getting their hands on a nuclear, chemical or biological weapon.
With our credibility restored, we can work with other nations to secure stockpiles of the world's most dangerous weapons and safeguard this dangerous material. We can finish the job and secure all loose nukes in Russia. And we can close the loophole in the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty that allows rogue nations access to the tools they need to develop these weapons.
That's how we can address the new threats we face. That's how we can keep you safe. That's how we can restore America's respect around the world.
And together, we will ensure that the image of America -- the image all of us love -- America this great shining light, this beacon of freedom, democracy, and human rights that the world looks up to -- that that beacon is always lit.
The truth is every child, every family in America will be safer and more secure if you grow up in a world where America is once again looked up to and respected. That's the world we can create together.
Tonight, as we celebrate in this hall, somewhere in America, a mother sits at the kitchen table. She can't sleep. She's worried because she can't pay her bills. She's working hard to pay the rent and feed her kids. She's doing everything right, but she still can't get ahead.
It didn't use to be that way in her house. Her husband was called up in the Guard and he's been serving in Iraq for more than a year. She thought he'd be home last month, but now he's got to stay longer.
She thinks she's alone. But tonight in this hall and in your homes -- you know what? She's got a lot of friends. We want her to know that we hear her. And it's time to bring opportunity and an equal chance to her door.
We're here to make America stronger at home so she can get ahead. And we're here to make America respected in the world so that we can bring him home and American soldiers don't have to fight the war in Iraq and the war on terror alone.
So when you return home, you might pass a mother on her way to work the late-shift -- you tell her... hope is on the way.
When your brother calls and says that he's working all the time at the office and still can't get ahead -- you tell him... hope is on the way.
When your parents call and tell you their medical bills are through the roof -- you tell them ...hope is on the way.
When your neighbor calls you and says that her daughter has worked hard and wants to go to college -- you tell her... hope is on the way.
When you talk to your son or daughter who is serving this country and protecting our freedoms in Iraq -- you tell them...hope is on the way.
And when you wake up and sit with your kids at the kitchen table, talking to them about the great possibilities in America, you make sure that they know that John and I believe at our core that tomorrow can be better than today.
Like all of us, I have learned a lot of lessons in my life. Two of the most important are that first, there will always be heartache and struggle -- you can't make it go away. But the other is that people of good and strong will, can make a difference. One lesson is a sad lesson and the other's inspiring. We are Americans and we choose to be inspired.
We choose hope over despair; possibilities over problems; optimism over cynicism. We choose to do what's right even when those around us say, "You can't do that." We choose to be inspired because we know that we can do better -- because this is America where everything is still possible.
What we believe -- what John Kerry and I believe -- is that you should never look down on anybody, that we should lift people up. We don't believe in tearing people apart. We believe in bringing people together. What we believe -- what I believe -- is that the family you're born into and the color of your skin in our America should never control your destiny.
Join us in this cause. Let's make America stronger at home and respected in the world. Let's ensure that once again, in our one America -- our one America -- tomorrow will always be better than today.It is an honor to be here at Creative Visions. Since 1996, your doors have been open to thousands of young people in need of a safe and caring place. Whether it's an after-school program, a job training class, or a Sunday night meal at the drop in for homeless young people, the work that you do every day is nothing short of heroic.
This is the time of year when we remember what matters to us: our family and loved ones, and the hope we all have for a better new year. For Democrats - and for all Americans who work hard and deserve a better life -- we have three more days until the clock strikes midnight and the calendar year changes to our year 2004! I know we all thought that it would never come, but here it is just days away.
Can you see the light at the end of the tunnel? Can you see the ending of the Bush Presidency and a new beginning for America? Can you see that in a few short months, once again America will no longer work for just a privileged few, but for all of us? Can you see that bright future for all of us because I sure can!
Last week, I visited my 99th county in Iowa, and the people of Iowa have been extraordinary. They have welcomed me into their homes, along their Main Streets, and in their schools. I have been listening to them over the course of the last year. They're worried about their country, and they want America to change course.
In a few weeks, George Bush will make his State of the Union Address -- and let this one be his last. According to press reports, White House aides are desperately searching for a vision -- and that one of the leading ideas is to propose that America go back to the moon. Well, I'm all for the space program, but Mr. President, if you're looking for a vision, it's time to solve the middle-class problems you've forgotten here on earth.
This President has done a lot of damage in the last four years, and he'll do a lot worse if we let him have four more. More American jobs getting shipped overseas. More seniors who can't afford the prescription drugs they need. More young people getting into trouble because there's no safe place for them to go after school.
We have 21 days until caucus night. The people of Iowa have had enough of George W. Bush. In three weeks, Iowa has a chance to prevent four more years!
Just like the work you do here at Creative Visions, I believe the 2004 election is about hope. It is about changing America to build the country we all believe in. This contest has been going on so long, it's easy for some to forget how much is at stake. Too often, politicians forget this isn't about how we're doing; it's about how you're doing. Too often, when politicians don't have faith in their ideas to confront the tough issues, they attack. That's why you have seen attack ads on Iraq. Attack ads on Medicare. Attack ads about attack ads.
Today, I want to talk about what really matters. Something much bigger, more disturbing, and more important is at stake. Four years ago, George Bush came here to Iowa as a candidate and promised to be a uniter, not a divider. But four years later, we are divided, not united.
Today, under George W. Bush, there are two Americas, not one: One America that does the work, another America that reaps the reward. One America that pays the taxes, another America that gets the tax breaks. One America that will do anything to leave its children a better life, another America that never has to do a thing because its children are already set for life. One America -- middle-class America - whose needs Washington has long forgotten, another America - narrow-interest Ameri
ca - whose every wish is Washington's command. One America that is struggling to get by, another America that can buy anything it wants, even a Congress and a President.
2004 is a make-or-break election because we need to create one America again. And that is the one thing George Bush will never do. Dividing us into two Americas - one privileged, the other burdened - has been his agenda all along. Just look what he wants to do to our tax code. From the beginning, this President has had one solitary goal: to shift the tax burden away from the wealth of the most fortunate and onto the work of the middle class. He wants to cut the capital gains tax, eliminate the dividends tax and the estate tax, and create new tax shelters for millionaires' stocks that are bigger than most people's salaries. By the time he's done, the only people who pay taxes in America will be the millions of middle-class and poor Americans who do all the work.
That's wrong. It's wrong for a millionaire who sits by the pool on the phone to his broker to pay tax at a lower rate than the cop on the beat or the waitress working two shifts.
What's more, by dividing us into two Americas, George Bush is hurting our economy, cheating our future, and undermining our very way of life. The engine of our economy is not that guy sitting by the pool. It is millions of guys and gals in factories, fields, and offices across America who go to work every day trying to do right by their families. When we invest in those Americans, our middle-class grows, and our whole economy grows. That is the simple truth George Bush will never understand.
Look at what has happened to the middle class over the last 4 years of George Bush. In this state alone, since George Bush took office, 22,000 Iowans lost their health care, 23,000 Iowans lost good paying manufacturing jobs, 59,000 Iowans fell into poverty, and the number of people filing for bankruptcy increased by more than 50 percent. 12,000 Iowans filed for bankruptcy last year, most of them men and women who lost their job or who suffered a medical emergency. Their backs were breaking, but they could no longer make ends meet.
Middle-class families have gone from being able to save for retirement or buy a house, to now teetering on the edge of bankruptcy. These aren't poor Americans; they're the working middle-class. And they are terrified that if something goes wrong-a lost job or a health care disaster-they're just one bad break away from falling off the cliff. For these families, the American dream of building something better is being replaced by the hope of just getting by.
If the current trend continues, one out of seven middle-class families with children will go bankrupt by the end of the decade. Think about what it means that 1 in 7 middle-class families could go bankrupt by the end of this decade. It means the middle-class-the foundation of our country-is sinking. Increasingly we are divided between those who live by the 1st and the 15th every month and those who don't ever look at the calendar when they write a check.
You don't have to take my word for it. Listen to the largest corporation in America, Wal-Mart. The New York Times reported the other day that Wal-Mart's own figures show that sales go up around the 1st and 15th of every month. Across America, millions are literally living from one paycheck to the next.
Of course, it would help if Wal-Mart paid its own workers higher wages, instead of driving down the pay scale for everybody. But in George Bush's Two Americas, workers don't matter. Only owners matter.
Next month, George Bush will roll out yet another set of new tax breaks for the wealth of the wealthy, to be paid for down the road by the children of the middle class. The President has a new name for this: he calls it the ownership society. After four years, we know what George Bush means by an ownership society: an America where those who own the most get the most, while those who work hardest own less and owe more.
We cannot go on as two nations, one favored, t
he other forgotten. It is wrong to reward those who don't have to work at the expense of those who do. If we want America to be a growing, thriving democracy, with the greatest work ethic and the strongest middle class on earth, we must choose a different path.
As President, I will put the government, the economy, and the tax code back in line with our values. No more tax breaks for corporations that move their headquarters overseas or buy life insurance on janitors and make themselves the beneficiaries. No more tax breaks for CEOs who give themselves millions in top-hat pensions while giving no pensions at all to ordinary workers. No more playing games with the budget and driving up deficits. And no more of the Bush administration's war on work. When I'm President, we'll be one America, not two.
I have a plan to make America work for all of us, by creating 5 million new jobs in my first two years, making health care a birthright for every child just like public education, reforming Washington to end the dirty politics as usual, saving Medicare, and securing our world from terror and weapons of mass destruction. But most important, I'll give every American the chance to build their future again. Under my plan, every American will have the chance to be an owner - to buy a home, save for college, or put money aside for a secure retirement. The ownership society should look like American society, not George Bush's secret society.
First, we'll give struggling families a chance to realize the American dream, with a $5,000 tax credit toward the down payment on their first home. There is no better way to build a strong, secure nest egg, and get ahead for the long haul than owning a home.
I was the first member in my family to go to college and it was a big deal. But today, hundreds of thousands of young people-who are qualified to go to college-give up on their education because they believe that they can't pay for it. So second, I want to make college affordable with my College for Everyone plan. For those young people who are willing to work 10 hours a week and can get into a university-you'll go tuition free for the first year. And I will increase funding for Pell grants and financial aid so you can stay in school.
Third, we need to reward family. We can start by offering a family leave newborn child tax credit of up to $2,500. This will give new parents some financial help so that they can spend the time they need to start life with their new son or daughter. This benefit would help more than 120,000 Iowans and give those families the peace of mind to take off work or pay for other expenses.
Fourth, when the time comes for Americans to retire, I want to help families who can't afford to put money away now by giving them a helping hand, a match of up to $1 for every $1 they save. A waitress who starts putting away a few dollars each week at age 25 could retire with $250,000 on top of other savings. And I'll help families invest in the stock market by lowering capital gains and dividend rates for the middle class.
Finally, while we offer tax cuts to help families save, we also need to take on the big financial interests that eat away at families' savings. Predatory mortgage lenders and irresponsible payday lenders and credit card companies are robbing families blind with their outrageous fees and penalties. When I am President, we'll pass tough laws to stop them.
I believe we need to ease the burdens on the middle class. And for the life of me, I can't understand why some other candidates in this race want to raise taxes on work and make life harder for the middle class. We know that President Bush's tax cuts did not do enough for working people. But our answer cannot be to raise taxes on the people who make the least, especially families with children.
We cannot say to an average family of four in Iowa, your taxes are going up by more than $1,700. To the average elementary school teacher here who is supporting two kids alone, your taxes are going up by $1,500. To an electrician and
a nurse's aide who together make $40,000 and have no kids, your taxes are going up by almost $1,000.
These are men and women whose backs are already breaking. They are hungry for us to lead in a way that helps them get ahead and pulls our whole country forward. That money means a lot to them Means they can buy clothes for their kids. Means the mortgage payments are made. Means the bills get paid.
Now, we do need to roll back President Bush's tax cuts for the wealthiest 2 percent. And I believe we need to go further and raise the tax rate on the unearned wealth of the top 1 percent, so they don't pay any less than the middle class. But my plan restores fiscal discipline by asking more from those who have the most, not those who need help the most.
I am proud that one of the Democrats' core values is to protect working families. This is a value I will never abandon. It is at the heart of what makes America the best place on earth: where individuals can take a great idea, mix it with ingenuity, might and muscle, and build a future and a country better than the one we found.
I have benefited from this middle-class dream because I have lived in the shining light of America. My life has been blessed with extraordinary success. My story should not be an exception-it should occur every single day and these opportunities should be available to every American.
These steps I proposed would change America. They would not only strengthen our middle class; they would strengthen our economy. You see, I have a much different economic vision than this President. I believe the backbone of the American economy is the hard work, determination, and ingenuity of the middle class, not the insiders. I believe the way to grow the economy is to grow and strengthen the middle class, not shrink its size and add to its burdens. I believe the way a rich nation gets richer is by giving all its citizens the chance to get richer, not by only helping those like me who've already succeeded beyond our wildest dreams. I believe the way to create new wealth is by rewarding work and responsibility, not coddling the privileged and going soft on executives, accountants, and analysts who squander other people's money.
We cannot let that handful of big corporations and insiders keep us from making the middle-class stronger. And I want to say this as directly as I know how to say it. Some people have said, now wait a minute Senator Edwards, you haven't been in Washington that long. You haven't spent your whole life in politics. How do we know you'll take them on? Because I spent more time than anybody in this race fighting these powerful interests.
I've been fighting this fight my whole life. For 20 years, I have sat in courtrooms across from these people. I have been an advocate for families and their children against armies of lawyers. I've won most of those battles. In the Senate, I fought for the Patients' Bill of Rights, against big HMOs, against big insurance companies. I fought to bring down prescription drug costs for every American, against big drug companies. I fought to do something about drug company advertising on TV when others weren't willing to do it. I fought to create energy independence in this country. I have been fighting this fight all my life, and will fight harder as President.
And together, we can build the America of our dreams. Standing here at Creative Visions is a lasting reminder of how great things happen all across this country. When you combine an advocate like Ako Abdul Samad, an idea, and the hope to improve people's lives-this country-there are no limits to what we can accomplish.
Throughout our history, whenever America became a place that was divisive and divided along economic or racial boundaries, we all suffered. And whenever we worked hard to lift up everyone and close our great divides, we prospered.
For every man and woman who is worried about paying their bills; for every child who needs health care and a strong school to go to, and for every American who waits for the 1st an
d the 15th of every month-together we will end this era of anxiety. We will replace the crass politics of greed and the current politics of rage with a new politics of opportunity.
We are all angry at what George Bush has done to our country, our values, and our way of life. But we all know in our hearts that our anger won't change America; our actions will. Democrats are the party of optimism and action, and I am in this fight to keep that tradition alive, and to build on our country's great successes.
Because I believe in an America where every man, woman, and child can reach his or her God-given potential. I believe in an America where the family you're born into and the color of your skin should never control your destiny. And I still believe in an America where the son of a mill worker can beat the son of a president to win the White House in 2004!
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