![](https://americanuestra.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/2832.jpg)
Elecciones EEUU – Barack Obama: Un discurso histórico (incluye video y texto original)
Eran las 8:40 pm del miércoles 27 de julio cuando Barack Obama abordó el Air Force One para trasladarse a Filadelfia, donde estaba previsto que a las 10:30 pm dijera unas palabras en la Convención Demócrata. Doce años antes, fue un discurso que diera como un joven candidato a senador por Illinois, en la Convención de Boston que eligiera a John Kerry como candidato, lo que lo lanzó a la fama, como joven promesa de la política del partido Demócrata.
La del 27 de julio fue una noche memorable para los demócratas, luego de dos días iniciales de convención enturbiados por el affaire del hacking de los correos de la directiva partidista, y por los esfuerzos –esperemos que finales- del sector más extremista de la izquierda partidista esforzándose, como todo grupo radical, en suicidarse en el altar farisaico de las posturas más estúpidamente “puras”.
El martes habíamos escuchado a un siempre competente con el micrófono Bill Clinton intentar humanizar a una Hillary que siempre ha sufrido por su lejanía, su distancia, incluso su falta de empatía. El miércoles era el día para mostrar las razones por las cuales era la mejor candidata, sus capacidades para ser Comandante en Jefe.
Para ello, se contó con teloneros muy competentes, antes de que las estrellas de la noche hicieran su aparición; en un momento de gran emoción, Gabrielle Giffords, quien tuviera que retirarse del congreso luego de sufrir graves heridas cerebrales producto de un intento de asesinato en 2011, afirmó: “en el Congreso, aprendí una lección poderosa: Las mujeres fuertes logran resultados…por eso voto por Clinton”. El almirante retirado John Hutson, criticó la afirmación de Trump de estar calificado para ser un candidato de “ley y orden”, y en defensa de John McCain, a quien Trump insultara, le dijo: “Donald, tú no estás calificado ni siquiera para pulir las botas de John McCain”.
Y todo marchaba sobre ruedas, pero lo mejor lo traía Obama.
Quienes tuvimos la suerte de oír el discurso del presidente Barack Obama en la Convención del partido Demócrata, la noche del miércoles, escuchamos uno de los más brillantes discursos de un brillante orador, quizá el mejor orador político del siglo XXI.
No es común en estos tiempos de mediocridad expresiva, de materialismo disfrazado de tecnocracia, de razones pragmáticas en vez de valores del espíritu, de victorias del peso sobre la levedad, ver en directo rostros llenarse de lágrimas a medida que el presidente No. 44 daba una lección magistral del uso del Verbo.
La visión que dio de su país contrasta radicalmente con la del empresario Trump. Frente a una nación a oscuras, que solo necesita un caudillo para salvarse, Obama explicó con cuidado extremo cuáles son los valores que han hecho de los Estados Unidos un gran país, y el porqué lo sigue siendo. Algunas de sus frases lo ejemplifican: «El Sueño Norteamericano es algo que ningún muro podrá jamás contener», y exigiendo la participación de todos para lograr la victoria frente a la amenaza trumpiana, afirmó que «la democracia no es un deporte de espectadores». Ante los abucheos al oírse el nombre de Trump, demandó «¡no abucheen, vayan a votar!» (Don’t boo, vote!).
Por momentos, Obama adoptó el tono y el ritmo clásicos de los grandes oradores del púlpito protestante negro; por instantes, en sus palabras se podía sentir el eco de decenas de precursores -como Martin Luther King- que, a pesar de la descarnada denuncia de las injusticias y de las dificultades por enfrentar, veían en los valores del espíritu, en el carácter intrínseco de la sociedad norteamericana, los recursos para al final triunfar.
El líder demócrata señaló que él se postuló a la presidencia «para continuar la larga marcha de aquellos que nos antecedieron», y para convencer al país de que podíamos «perfeccionar nuestra unión al comprender que podemos tener historias diferentes, pero que asimismo tenemos esperanzas comunes».
Un discurso excepcional en una noche de grandes intervenciones. A Obama lo habían precedido, entre otros, el empresario y ex-alcalde de New York Michael Bloomberg -magistral desmontaje del mito de un Trump exitoso empresario; «en lo que Trump es más rico es en hipocresía»-, el siempre popular vicepresidente en funciones, Joe Biden, y el que esperamos sea el futuro vicepresidente, Tim Kaine, quien dio muestras de su fluido dominio del español. Pero todos fueron abrebocas ante la magistral pieza oratoria de Barack Obama. Un discurso patriótico y optimista que se coloca ya como uno de los más excepcionales en la historia de la política norteamericana. Como recalca un editorial del New York Times, Obama «será recordado por su elocuencia a la hora de defender los preceptos fundadores del país, incluso cuando los usó para expandir el mandato de inclusión, y expandir la definición de lo que significa ser un norteamericano».
Fueron unas palabras con las cuales Obama también denunció y desnudó a Trump como lo que en realidad es: un anti-norteamericano. Donald Trump en su acción y verbo, representa valores contrarios a los que buscaron impulsar los Padres Fundadores. Trump «sólo ofrece eslogans y miedo». A medida que avanzaba en su exposición, Obama mostraba una América completamente opuesta a la ofrecida por Trump en su sombrío discurso en la Convención Republicana.
Después de una descripción de los logros de su gobierno el presidente afirmó con contundencia: “es justo decir que esta no es una elección típica. No es una decisión entre partidos o políticas, los usuales debates entre la derecha y la izquierda. Es una decisión mucho más fundamental: acerca de quiénes somos como pueblo, y si seguimos siendo fieles a este gran experimento norteamericano en autogobierno”.
«Todo eso es real; tenemos el reto de hacerlo mejor, de ser mejores. Pero habiendo viajado por todo el país, por los 50 estados, luego de haber celebrado con ustedes, y de haber llorado tragedias con ustedes, lo que yo también he visto, más que nada, es por qué los valores de América son correctos.»
Los resultados de la convención de Cleveland, la semana anterior, “no fueron particularmente Republicanos, y ciertamente no fueron conservadores”, continuó Obama. Más bien, fue “una visión profundamente pesimista de un país donde nos enfrentamos unos contra otros y le damos la espalda al resto del mundo. No hubo soluciones serias para los problemas más urgentes, sólo se buscó avivar el resentimiento, la culpa, la ira y el odio. Y esa no es la América que conozco.”
Esa América, señaló el presidente, está “llena de coraje, optimismo e ingenio”. Es “decente y generosa”, y “sobre todo, un lugar donde ciudadanos de todos los credos, etnias y orientación sexual se comprometen a trabajar mancomunadamente, bajo la misma orgullosa bandera, en este valiente y gran país que amamos”. “Esa es la América que conozco. Y hay un solo candidato en esta campaña que cree en ese futuro, y ha dedicado su vida a trabajar por ese futuro…la próxima presidente de los Estados Unidos, Hillary Clinton”.
De seguidas, el presidente dedicó unos minutos a explicar con cuidado las excelentes calificaciones de la candidata demócrata para optar a la presidencia: “por cuatro años tuve un asiento de primera fila para observar su inteligencia, su capacidad de juicio y su disciplina.” Recordó, por lo demás, su apoyo decidido a la misión que acabó con Osama Bin Laden. Para concluir esta sección con una constatación que arrancó risas y sonrisas, en especial del presidente Bill Clinton:
“No hay nadie –hombre o mujer, ni siquiera Bill, ni siquiera yo- más calificado que Hillary Clinton para servir como presidente de los Estados Unidos de América”.
Estableciendo una comparación con el candidato rival, Obama remarcó que Trump “se siente cómodo con Putin, alaba a Saddam Hussein, y dice que nuestros aliados en la OTAN, que nos dieron su apoyo luego del 11 de septiembre, deben pagar si quieren nuestra protección”. Para llegar entonces a una de esos golpes de efecto de todo buen discurso: “América ya es grande. América ya es fuerte. Y yo les prometo que nuestra fortaleza, nuestra grandeza, no dependen de Donald Trump”.
“Él apuesta a que si asusta a un número suficiente de personas podrá conseguir los votos necesarios para ganar. Y esa será otra apuesta que perderá. ¿Por qué? Porque no somos un pueblo frágil, no somos un pueblo temeroso. Nuestra fuerza no depende de un auto-declarado salvador que promete que si hacemos lo que él diga todo se arreglará. No nos gusta recibir órdenes.”
Barack Obama estaba llegando al crescendo, al punto donde le daría la estocada final al empresario-candidato: Los valores norteamericanos son las razones por las cuales el país “atrae luchadores y emprendedores de todas partes del planeta”; la razón por la cual “nuestro ejército está conformado por todos los matices de la humanidad, forjados en un servicio común”; el porqué de que “quien amenaza nuestros valores, sea un fascista, un comunista, un jihadista, o un demagogo nativo, al final siempre fracasará”.
Varios segundos pasaron hasta que la audiencia se dio cuenta de que Obama había colocado a Trump en el mismo grupo con Hitler, Stalin e ISIS. Los aplausos estallaron cual fuegos artificiales; Obama entonces aumentó el tono de voz: “ Esa es América, esa es América. Esos lazos de afecto, ese credo común. No tememos el futuro; le damos forma, lo abrazamos, como un solo pueblo, fuerte porque estamos unidos. Eso es lo que Hillary comprende –esta luchadora, esta estadista, esta madre y abuela, esta servidora pública, esta patriota. Esa es la América por la cual ella pelea”.
Fue por último un discurso de despedida. Los dos párrafos finales nos dan un perfecto resumen del tono, del mensaje, del espíritu de sus palabras:
«Una y otra vez ustedes me han socorrido. Espero que en alguna ocasión yo los haya socorrido a ustedes. Esta noche, les pido que hagan por Hillary Clinton lo que hicieron por mí. Les pido que la conduzcan, como me condujeron a mí. Porque era de ustedes que yo hablaba hace doce años, cuando hablé de la esperanza, son ustedes los que han estimulado mi tenaz fe en nuestro futuro, incluso cuando los contratiempos eran grandes, incluso cuando el camino era largo. Esperanza ante la dificultad; esperanza frente a la incertidumbre; ¡la audacia de la esperanza!
América, estos últimos ocho años ustedes han vindicado esa esperanza. Y ahora estoy listo a pasar el testigo y hacer mi parte como un ciudadano privado. Este año, en esta elección, les pido que se unan a mí -rechazando el cinismo, el miedo, para convocar lo mejor de nosotros; para elegir a Hillary Clinton como futura presidente de los Estados Unidos, y mostrar al mundo que todavía creemos en la promesa de esta gran nación».
El discurso de Barack Obama:
———————————————–
EL DISCURSO COMPLETO:
Remarks by the President – As Prepared for Delivery
Democratic National Convention
Hello, America, Hello Democrats,
Twelve years ago tonight, I addressed this convention for the very first time.
You met my two little girls, Malia and Sasha – now two amazing young women who just fill me with pride. You fell for my brilliant wife and partner Michelle, who’s made me a better father and a better man; who’s gone on to inspire our nation as First Lady; and who somehow hasn’t aged a day.
I know the same cannot be said for me. My girls remind me all the time. Wow, you’ve changed so much, daddy.
And it’s true – I was so young that first time in Boston. Maybe a little nervous addressing such a big crowd. But I was filled with faith; faith in America – the generous, bighearted, hopeful country that made my story – indeed, all of our stories – possible.
A lot’s happened over the years. And while this nation has been tested by war and recession and all manner of challenge – I stand before you again tonight, after almost two terms as your President, to tell you I am even more optimistic about the future of America.
How could I not be – after all we’ve achieved together?
After the worst recession in 80 years, we’ve fought our way back. We’ve seen deficits come down, 401(k)s recover, an auto industry set new records, unemployment reach eight-year lows, and our businesses create 15 million new jobs.
After a century of trying, we declared that health care in America is not a privilege for a few, but a right for everybody. After decades of talk, we finally began to wean ourselves off foreign oil, and doubled our production of clean energy.
We brought more of our troops home to their families, and delivered justice to Osama bin Laden. Through diplomacy, we shut down Iran’s nuclear weapons program, opened up a new chapter with the people of Cuba, and brought nearly 200 nations together around a climate agreement that could save this planet for our kids.
We put policies in place to help students with loans; protect consumers from fraud; and cut veteran homelessness almost in half. And through countless acts of quiet courage, America learned that love has no limits, and marriage equality is now a reality across the land.
By so many measures, our country is stronger and more prosperous than it was when we started.
And through every victory and every setback, I’ve insisted that change is never easy, and never quick; that we wouldn’t meet all of our challenges in one term, or one presidency, or even in one lifetime.
So tonight, I’m here to tell you that yes, we still have more work to do. More work to do for every American still in need of a good job or a raise, paid leave or a decent retirement; for every child who needs a sturdier ladder out of poverty or a world-class education; for everyone who hasn’t yet felt the progress of these past seven and a half years. We need to keep making our streets safer and our criminal justice system fairer; our homeland more secure, and our world more peaceful and sustainable for the next generation. We’re not done perfecting our union, or living up to our founding creed – that all of us are created equal and free in the eyes of God.
That work involves a big choice this November. Fair to say, this is not your typical election. It’s not just a choice between parties or policies; the usual debates between left and right. This is a more fundamental choice – about who we are as a people, and whether we stay true to this great American experiment in self-government.
Look, we Democrats have always had plenty of differences with the Republican Party, and there’s nothing wrong with that; it’s precisely this contest of ideas that pushes our country forward.
But what we heard in Cleveland last week wasn’t particularly Republican – and it sure wasn’t conservative. What we heard was a deeply pessimistic vision of a country where we turn against each other, and turn away from the rest of the world. There were no serious solutions to pressing problems – just the fanning of resentment, and blame, and anger, and hate.
And that is not the America I know.
The America I know is full of courage, and optimism, and ingenuity. The America I know is decent and generous. Sure, we have real anxieties – about paying the bills, protecting our kids, caring for a sick parent. We get frustrated with political gridlock, worry about racial divisions; are shocked and saddened by the madness of Orlando or Nice. There are pockets of America that never recovered from factory closures; men who took pride in hard work and providing for their families who now feel forgotten; parents who wonder whether their kids will have the same opportunities we had.
All that is real. We’re challenged to do better; to be better. But as I’ve traveled this country, through all fifty states; as I’ve rejoiced with you and mourned with you, what I’ve also seen, more than anything, is what is right with America. I see people working hard and starting businesses; people teaching kids and serving our country. I see engineers inventing stuff, and doctors coming up with new cures. I see a younger generation full of energy and new ideas, not constrained by what is, ready to seize what ought to be.
Most of all, I see Americans of every party, every background, every faith who believe that we are stronger together – black, white, Latino, Asian, Native American; young and old; gay, straight, men, women, folks with disabilities, all pledging allegiance, under the same proud flag, to this big, bold country that we love.
That’s the America I know. And there is only one candidate in this race who believes in that future, and has devoted her life to it; a mother and grandmother who’d do anything to help our children thrive; a leader with real plans to break down barriers, blast through glass ceilings, and widen the circle of opportunity to every single American – the next President of the United States, Hillary Clinton.
Now, eight years ago, Hillary and I were rivals for the Democratic nomination. We battled for a year and a half. Let me tell you, it was tough, because Hillary’s tough. Every time I thought I might have that race won, Hillary just came back stronger.
But after it was all over, I asked Hillary to join my team. She was a little surprised, but ultimately said yes – because she knew that what was at stake was bigger than either of us. And for four years, I had a front-row seat to her intelligence, her judgment, and her discipline. I came to realize that her unbelievable work ethic wasn’t for praise or attention – that she was in this for everyone who needs a champion. I understood that after all these years, she has never forgotten just who she’s fighting for.
Hillary’s still got the tenacity she had as a young woman working at the Children’s Defense Fund, going door to door to ultimately make sure kids with disabilities could get a quality education.
She’s still got the heart she showed as our First Lady, working with Congress to help push through a Children’s Health Insurance Program that to this day protects millions of kids.
She’s still seared with the memory of every American she met who lost loved ones on 9/11, which is why, as a Senator from New York, she fought so hard for funding to help first responders; why, as Secretary of State, she sat with me in the Situation Room and forcefully argued in favor of the mission that took out bin Laden.
You know, nothing truly prepares you for the demands of the Oval Office. Until you’ve sat at that desk, you don’t know what it’s like to manage a global crisis, or send young people to war. But Hillary’s been in the room; she’s been part of those decisions. She knows what’s at stake in the decisions our government makes for the working family, the senior citizen, the small business owner, the soldier, and the veteran. Even in the middle of crisis, she listens to people, and keeps her cool, and treats everybody with respect. And no matter how daunting the odds; no matter how much people try to knock her down, she never, ever quits.
That’s the Hillary I know. That’s the Hillary I’ve come to admire. And that’s why I can say with confidence there has never been a man or a woman more qualified than Hillary Clinton to serve as President of the United States of America.
And, by the way, in case you were wondering about her judgment, look at her choice of running mate. Tim Kaine is as good a man, as humble and committed a public servant, as anyone I know. He will be a great Vice President, and he’ll make Hillary a better President. Just like my dear friend and brother Joe Biden has made me a better President.
Now, Hillary has real plans to address the concerns she’s heard from you on the campaign trail. She’s got specific ideas to invest in new jobs, to help workers share in their company’s profits, to help put kids in preschool, and put students through college without taking on a ton of debt. That’s what leaders do.
And then there’s Donald Trump. He’s not really a plans guy. Not really a facts guy, either. He calls himself a business guy, which is true, but I have to say, I know plenty of businessmen and women who’ve achieved success without leaving a trail of lawsuits, and unpaid workers, and people feeling like they got cheated.
Does anyone really believe that a guy who’s spent his 70 years on this Earth showing no regard for working people is suddenly going to be your champion? Your voice? If so, you should vote for him. But if you’re someone who’s truly concerned about paying your bills, and seeing the economy grow, and creating more opportunity for everybody, then the choice isn’t even close. If you want someone with a lifelong track record of fighting for higher wages, better benefits, a fairer tax code, a bigger voice for workers, and stronger regulations on Wall Street, then you should vote for Hillary Clinton.
And if you’re concerned about who’s going to keep you and your family safe in a dangerous world – well, the choice is even clearer. Hillary Clinton is respected around the world not just by leaders, but by the people they serve. She’s worked closely with our intelligence teams, our diplomats, our military. And she has the judgment, the experience, and the temperament to meet the threat from terrorism. It’s not new to her. Our troops have pounded ISIL without mercy, taking out leaders, taking back territory. I know Hillary won’t relent until ISIL is destroyed. She’ll finish the job – and she’ll do it without resorting to torture, or banning entire religions from entering our country. She is fit to be the next Commander-in-Chief.
Meanwhile, Donald Trump calls our military a disaster. Apparently, he doesn’t know the men and women who make up the strongest fighting force the world has ever known. He suggests America is weak. He must not hear the billions of men, women, and children, from the Baltics to Burma, who still look to America to be the light of freedom, dignity, and human rights. He cozies up to Putin, praises Saddam Hussein, and tells the NATO allies that stood by our side after 9/11 that they have to pay up if they want our protection. Well, America’s promises do not come with a price tag. We meet our commitments. And that’s one reason why almost every country on Earth sees America as stronger and more respected today than they did eight years ago.
America is already great. America is already strong. And I promise you, our strength, our greatness, does not depend on Donald Trump.
In fact, it doesn’t depend on any one person. And that, in the end, may be the biggest difference in this election – the meaning of our democracy.
Ronald Reagan called America “a shining city on a hill.” Donald Trump calls it “a divided crime scene” that only he can fix. It doesn’t matter to him that illegal immigration and the crime rate are as low as they’ve been in decades, because he’s not offering any real solutions to those issues. He’s just offering slogans, and he’s offering fear. He’s betting that if he scares enough people, he might score just enough votes to win this election.
That is another bet that Donald Trump will lose. Because he’s selling the American people short. We are not a fragile or frightful people. Our power doesn’t come from some self-declared savior promising that he alone can restore order. We don’t look to be ruled. Our power comes from those immortal declarations first put to paper right here in Philadelphia all those years ago; We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal; that together, We, the People, can form a more perfect union.
That’s who we are. That’s our birthright – the capacity to shape our own destiny. That’s what drove patriots to choose revolution over tyranny and our GIs to liberate a continent. It’s what gave women the courage to reach for the ballot, and marchers to cross a bridge in Selma, and workers to organize and fight for better wages.
America has never been about what one person says he’ll do for us. It’s always been about what can be achieved by us, together, through the hard, slow, sometimes frustrating, but ultimately enduring work of self-government.
And that’s what Hillary Clinton understands. She knows that this is a big, diverse country, and that most issues are rarely black and white. That even when you’re 100 percent right, getting things done requires compromise. That democracy doesn’t work if we constantly demonize each other. She knows that for progress to happen, we have to listen to each other, see ourselves in each other, fight for our principles but also fight to find common ground, no matter how elusive that may seem.
Hillary knows we can work through racial divides in this country when we realize the worry black parents feel when their son leaves the house isn’t so different than what a brave cop’s family feels when he puts on the blue and goes to work; that we can honor police and treat every community fairly. She knows that acknowledging problems that have festered for decades isn’t making race relations worse – it’s creating the possibility for people of good will to join and make things better.
Hillary knows we can insist on a lawful and orderly immigration system while still seeing striving students and their toiling parents as loving families, not criminals or rapists; families that came here for the same reasons our forebears came – to work, and study, and make a better life, in a place where we can talk and worship and love as we please. She knows their dream is quintessentially American, and the American Dream is something no wall will ever contain.
It can be frustrating, this business of democracy. Trust me, I know. Hillary knows, too. When the other side refuses to compromise, progress can stall. Supporters can grow impatient, and worry that you’re not trying hard enough; that you’ve maybe sold out.
But I promise you, when we keep at it; when we change enough minds; when we deliver enough votes, then progress does happen. Just ask the twenty million more people who have health care today. Just ask the Marine who proudly serves his country without hiding the husband he loves. Democracy works, but we gotta want it – not just during an election year, but all the days in between.
So if you agree that there’s too much inequality in our economy, and too much money in our politics, we all need to be as vocal and as organized and as persistent as Bernie Sanders’ supporters have been. We all need to get out and vote for Democrats up and down the ticket, and then hold them accountable until they get the job done.
If you want more justice in the justice system, then we’ve all got to vote – not just for a President, but for mayors, and sheriffs, and state’s attorneys, and state legislators. And we’ve got to work with police and protesters until laws and practices are changed.
If you want to fight climate change, we’ve got to engage not only young people on college campuses, but reach out to the coal miner who’s worried about taking care of his family, the single mom worried about gas prices.
If you want to protect our kids and our cops from gun violence, we’ve got to get the vast majority of Americans, including gun owners, who agree on background checks to be just as vocal and determined as the gun lobby that blocks change through every funeral we hold. That’s how change will happen.
Look, Hillary’s got her share of critics. She’s been caricatured by the right and by some folks on the left; accused of everything you can imagine – and some things you can’t. But she knows that’s what happens when you’re under a microscope for 40 years. She knows she’s made mistakes, just like I have; just like we all do. That’s what happens when we try. That’s what happens when you’re the kind of citizen Teddy Roosevelt once described – not the timid souls who criticize from the sidelines, but someone “who is actually in the arena…who strives valiantly; who errs…[but] who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement.”
Hillary Clinton is that woman in the arena. She’s been there for us – even if we haven’t always noticed. And if you’re serious about our democracy, you can’t afford to stay home just because she might not align with you on every issue. You’ve got to get in the arena with her, because democracy isn’t a spectator sport. America isn’t about “yes he will.” It’s about “yes we can.” And we’re going to carry Hillary to victory this fall, because that’s what the moment demands.
You know, there’s been a lot of talk in this campaign about what America’s lost – people who tell us that our way of life is being undermined by pernicious changes and dark forces beyond our control. They tell voters there’s a “real America” out there that must be restored. This isn’t an idea that started with Donald Trump. It’s been peddled by politicians for a long time – probably from the start of our Republic.
And it’s got me thinking about the story I told you twelve years ago tonight, about my Kansas grandparents and the things they taught me when I was growing up. They came from the heartland; their ancestors began settling there about 200 years ago. They were Scotch-Irish mostly, farmers, teachers, ranch hands, pharmacists, oil rig workers. Hardy, small town folks. Some were Democrats, but a lot of them were Republicans. My grandparents explained that they didn’t like show-offs. They didn’t admire braggarts or bullies. They didn’t respect mean-spiritedness, or folks who were always looking for shortcuts in life. Instead, they valued traits like honesty and hard work. Kindness and courtesy. Humility; responsibility; helping each other out.
That’s what they believed in. True things. Things that last. The things we try to teach our kids.
And what my grandparents understood was that these values weren’t limited to Kansas. They weren’t limited to small towns. These values could travel to Hawaii; even the other side of the world, where my mother would end up working to help poor women get a better life. They knew these values weren’t reserved for one race; they could be passed down to a half-Kenyan grandson, or a half-Asian granddaughter; in fact, they were the same values Michelle’s parents, the descendants of slaves, taught their own kids living in a bungalow on the South Side of Chicago. They knew these values were exactly what drew immigrants here, and they believed that the children of those immigrants were just as American as their own, whether they wore a cowboy hat or a yarmulke; a baseball cap or a hijab.
America has changed over the years. But these values my grandparents taught me – they haven’t gone anywhere. They’re as strong as ever; still cherished by people of every party, every race, and every faith. They live on in each of us. What makes us American, what makes us patriots, is what’s in here. That’s what matters. That’s why we can take the food and music and holidays and styles of other countries, and blend it into something uniquely our own. That’s why we can attract strivers and entrepreneurs from around the globe to build new factories and create new industries here. That’s why our military can look the way it does, every shade of humanity, forged into common service. That’s why anyone who threatens our values, whether fascists or communists or jihadists or homegrown demagogues, will always fail in the end.
That’s America. Those bonds of affection; that common creed. We don’t fear the future; we shape it, embrace it, as one people, stronger together than we are on our own. That’s what Hillary Clinton understands – this fighter, this stateswoman, this mother and grandmother, this public servant, this patriot – that’s the America she’s fighting for.
And that’s why I have confidence, as I leave this stage tonight, that the Democratic Party is in good hands. My time in this office hasn’t fixed everything; as much as we’ve done, there’s still so much I want to do. But for all the tough lessons I’ve had to learn; for all the places I’ve fallen short; I’ve told Hillary, and I’ll tell you what’s picked me back up, every single time.
It’s been you. The American people.
It’s the letter I keep on my wall from a survivor in Ohio who twice almost lost everything to cancer, but urged me to keep fighting for health care reform, even when the battle seemed lost. Do not quit.
It’s the painting I keep in my private office, a big-eyed, green owl, made by a seven year-old girl who was taken from us in Newtown, given to me by her parents so I wouldn’t forget – a reminder of all the parents who have turned their grief into action.
It’s the small business owner in Colorado who cut most of his own salary so he wouldn’t have to lay off any of his workers in the recession – because, he said, “that wouldn’t have been in the spirit of America.”
It’s the conservative in Texas who said he disagreed with me on everything, but appreciated that, like him, I try to be a good dad.
It’s the courage of the young soldier from Arizona who nearly died on the battlefield in Afghanistan, but who’s learned to speak and walk again – and earlier this year, stepped through the door of the Oval Office on his own power, to salute and shake my hand.
It’s every American who believed we could change this country for the better, so many of you who’d never been involved in politics, who picked up phones, and hit the streets, and used the internet in amazing new ways to make change happen. You are the best organizers on the planet, and I’m so proud of all the change you’ve made possible.
Time and again, you’ve picked me up. I hope, sometimes, I picked you up, too. Tonight, I ask you to do for Hillary Clinton what you did for me. I ask you to carry her the same way you carried me. Because you’re who I was talking about twelve years ago, when I talked about hope – it’s been you who’ve fueled my dogged faith in our future, even when the odds are great; even when the road is long. Hope in the face of difficulty; hope in the face of uncertainty; the audacity of hope!
America, you have vindicated that hope these past eight years. And now I’m ready to pass the baton and do my part as a private citizen. This year, in this election, I’m asking you to join me – to reject cynicism, reject fear, to summon what’s best in us; to elect Hillary Clinton as the next President of the United States, and show the world we still believe in the promise of this great nation.
Thank you for this incredible journey. Let’s keep it going. God bless the United States of America.