Here are excerpts of the speech, titled “The American Promise,” just released by Obama’s campaign.
Here’s the full text.
“You don’t defeat a terrorist network that operates in eighty countries by occupying Iraq.”
“We are the party of Roosevelt. We are the party of Kennedy. So don’t tell me that Democrats won’t defend this country. Don’t tell me that Democrats won’t keep us safe. The Bush-McCain foreign policy has squandered the legacy that generations of Americans — Democrats and Republicans – have built, and we are here to restore that legacy.”
“America, we cannot turn back. Not with so much work to be done. Not with so many children to educate, and so many veterans to care for. Not with an economy to fix and cities to rebuild and farms to save. Not with so many families to protect and so many lives to mend. America, we cannot turn back. We cannot walk alone. At this moment, in this election, we must pledge once more to march into the future. Let us keep that promise – that American promise – and in the words of Scripture hold firmly, without wavering, to the hope that we confess.’
Update: I was just thinking, no balloons. But they managed a few streamers.
This was a powerful convention.
The visuals are great. Flags and fireworks.
Lordy, Chris Matthews is going on about Henry V at Agincourt.
Update: Prediction —
John McCain should just give up now.
Two more months of this, and it’ll make ’72 look like a close election.
The part where I openly wept:
The times are too serious, the stakes are too high for this same partisan playbook. So let us agree that patriotism has no party. I love this country, and so do you, and so does John McCain. The men and women who serve in our battlefields may be Democrats and Republicans and Independents, but they have fought together and bled together and some died together under the same proud flag. They have not served a Red America or a Blue America – they have served the United States of America.
About a third of the way in, I said, “McCain is screwed, and now he knows it.” Especially if Chris Matthews is going on about Henry V at Agincourt. Hell, it was a delivery that any great Shakespearean actor would envy.
But… let’s not forget, the debates have to be a rout, too. Unless 20 million undecideds were watching tonight, and The Speech was enough for them. That’s probably too much to ask.
Final thought before going to sleep: Somewhere, Dr. King throws back his head and laughs– a big, proud, resounding laugh of joy and satisfaction.
Maha,
I agree it was powerful and a great ending. I wasn’t sure why they went through all the extra effort for the 85,000 crowd but seeing is believeing. It was very powerful, and beautifully organized.
Word is McCain is having to bus in wingnuts to fill his 10,000 seat venue for his VP announcement, fuckin old fart?
One of my favorite turns in the speech: “This election was never about me. It’s about you…” “change not coming from Washington, but coming to Washington”…
I second that this was a most impressive convention. There was a sense of orderliness and choreography and yet a lot of spontaneous energy generated and expressed within that structure – kind of the best mix of structure and high energy.
Probably because of the disaster of the last eight years, I never found myself so dialed in to the events in Denver, watching every major speech and crying through most of them.
Very glad to hear Obma promise energy independence in ten years. I hope we hear a lot more from Al Gore, who first pitched this idea last month.
The Democrats are back, and we’ve found ourselves, we’re not ashamed, and are not going to be pushed around any more.
From another blog, someone who was at Ivesco Field: “My dear, sweet, screwed-to-all-holy-hell GOP…what in God’s name are you going to do next week at your convention?”
I’m already sick of hearing “noun + verb + POW” and that old main with his thin voice and feeble smile trying to con me with his worn out “my friends”. I almost feel sorry for the guy.
I couldn’t be prouder of both Obama and Gore.
Watching them made me proud to be a democrat and proud to be an American. I have hope for the future!
That was the moment I’ve been waiting for since Bobbi in ’68. That was what I think his convention would have been like.
What a 4 day show! Obama hit McCain and the Rethug’s right where they live. In other words, he kicked the nut’s in the nuts. He threw out some pre-emptive lines about youth and “celebrity.”
OK, the score is now 50 to 0 in the 4th with 2 minutes to go. They will clip, chop-block, punch, bite, and try any and every thing to try to come back and win.
But, their Quarterback is not the Joe Namath of the Jet’s in ’69. They were dicsiplined, but different. He was a free-wheelin thrower in that system. Instead, McCain is like the Namath who appeared in a L.A. Ram’s uniform in the mid-’70’s. The same man, older, wiser, but in a dfferent system. Needless to say, Jpe failed…
I know sport’s references can seem stupid. But, they can work. Trust me, try this one on voter’s of a certain age. 🙂
Chris Matthews used to go on about Bush being Henry V:
http://www.crisispapers.org/essays/henry-george.htm
On the other hand, Obama uses the Kenneth Branagh version of Henry’s speech in his local team leader training, to make points such as Henry did not demonize the opposition and he did emphasize that all must pull together.
Obama set the standard high: Henry V at Agincourt, MLK at DC. And he met the standard.
This story shall the good man teach his son;
And Crispin Crispian shall ne’er go by,
From this day to the ending of the world,
But we in it shall be remember’d;
we few we happy few we band of brothers;
For he to-day that sheds his blood with me
Shall be my brother; be he ne’er so vile,
This day shall gentle his condition:
And gentlemen in England now a-bed
Shall think themselves accursed they were not here,
And hold their manhoods cheap whiles any speaks
That fought with us upon Saint Crispin’s day.