Full Text Of John Kerry's Speech

July 29, 2004

The following is a transcript of the remarks of U.S. Sen. John Kerry at the 2004
Democratic National Convention Thursday, July 29, 2004 at the FleetCenter in
Boston, Massachusetts.

We are here tonight because we love our country.

We are proud of what America is and what it can become.

My fellow Americans: we are here tonight united in one simple purpose: to make
America stronger at home and respected in the world.

A great American novelist wrote that you can't go home again. He could not have
imagined this evening. Tonight, I am home. Home where my public life began and
those who made it possible live. Home where our nation's history was written in
blood, idealism, and hope. Home where my parents showed me the values of family,
faith, and country.

Thank you, all of you, for a welcome home I will never forget.

I wish my parents could share this moment. They went to their rest in the last few
years, but their example, their inspiration, their gift of open eyes, open mind, and
endless world are bigger and more lasting than any words.

I was born in Colorado, in Fitzsimmons Army Hospital, when my dad was a pilot in
World War II. Now, I'm not one to read into things, but guess which wing of the
hospital the maternity ward was in? I'm not making this up. I was born in the West
Wing! My mother was the rock of our family as so many mothers are. She stayed up
late to help me do my homework. She sat by my bed when I was sick, and she
answered the questions of a child who, like all children, found the world full of
wonders and mysteries.

She was my den mother when I was a Cub Scout and she was so proud of her fifty
year pin as a Girl Scout leader. She gave me her passion for the environment. She
taught me to see trees as the cathedrals of nature. And by the power of her
example, she showed me that we can and must finish the march toward full equality
for all women in our country.

My dad did the things that a boy remembers. He gave me my first model airplane,
my first baseball mitt and my first bicycle. He also taught me that we are here for
something bigger than ourselves; he lived out the responsibilities and sacrifices of
the greatest generation to whom we owe so much.

When I was a young man, he was in the State Department, stationed in Berlin when
it and the world were divided between democracy and communism. I have
unforgettable memories of being a kid mesmerized by the British, French, and
American troops, each of them guarding their own part of the city, and Russians
standing guard on the stark line separating East from West. On one occasion, I
rode my bike into Soviet East Berlin. And when I proudly told my dad, he promptly
grounded me.

But what I learned has stayed with me for a lifetime. I saw how different life was on
different sides of the same city. I saw the fear in the eyes of people who were not
free. I saw the gratitude of people toward the United States for all that we had done.
I felt goose bumps as I got off a military train and heard the Army band strike up
"Stars and Stripes Forever." I learned what it meant to be America at our best. I
learned the pride of our freedom. And I am determined now to restore that pride to
all who look to America.

Mine were greatest generation parents. And as I thank them, we all join together to
thank that whole generation for making America strong, for winning World War II,
winning the Cold War, and for the great gift of service which brought America fifty
years of peace and prosperity.

My parents inspired me to serve, and when I was a junior in high school, John
Kennedy called my generation to service. It was the beginning of a great journey —
a time to march for civil rights, for voting rights, for the environment, for women, and
for peace. We believed we could change the world.

And you know what? We did.

But we're not finished. The journey isn't complete. The march isn't over.

The promise isn't perfected. Tonight, we're setting out again. And together, we're
going to write the next great chapter of America's story.

We have it in our power to change the world again. But only if we're true to our
ideals — and that starts by telling the truth to the American people.

That is my first pledge to you tonight. As President, I will restore trust and credibility
to the White House.

I ask you to judge me by my record: As a young prosecutor, I fought for victim's
rights and made prosecuting violence against women a priority. When I came to the
Senate, I broke with many in my own party to vote for a balanced budget, because I
thought it was the right thing to do. I fought to put a 100,000 cops on the street.

And then I reached across the aisle to work with John McCain, to find the truth
about our POW's and missing in action, and to finally make peace with Vietnam.

I will be a commander in chief who will never mislead us into war. I will have a Vice
President who will not conduct secret meetings with polluters to rewrite our
environmental laws. I will have a Secretary of Defense who will listen to the best
advice of our military leaders. And I will appoint an Attorney General who actually
upholds the Constitution of the United States.

My fellow Americans, this is the most important election of our lifetime.

The stakes are high. We are a nation at war — a global war on terror against an
enemy unlike any we have ever known before. And here at home, wages are falling,
health care costs are rising, and our great middle class is shrinking. People are
working weekends; they're working two jobs, three jobs, and they're still not getting
ahead.

We're told that outsourcing jobs is good for America. We're told that new jobs that
pay $9,000 less than the jobs that have been lost is the best we can do. They say
this is the best economy we've ever had. And they say that anyone who thinks
otherwise is a pessimist. Well, here is our answer: There is nothing more
pessimistic than saying America can't do better.

We can do better and we will. We're the optimists. For us, this is a country of the
future. We're the can do people. And let's not forget what we did in the 1990s. We
balanced the budget. We paid down the debt. We created 23 million new jobs. We
lifted millions out of poverty and we lifted the standard of living for the middle class.
We just need to believe in ourselves — and we can do it again.

So tonight, in the city where America's freedom began, only a few blocks from
where the sons and daughters of liberty gave birth to our nation — here tonight, on
behalf of a new birth of freedom — on behalf of the middle class who deserve a
champion, and those struggling to join it who deserve a fair shot — for the brave
men and women in uniform who risk their lives every day and the families who pray
for their return — for all those who believe our best days are ahead of us — for all
of you — with great faith in the American people, I accept your nomination for
President of the United States.

I am proud that at my side will be a running mate whose life is the story of the
American dream and who's worked every day to make that dream real for all
Americans — Senator John Edwards of North Carolina. And his wonderful wife
Elizabeth and their family. This son of a mill worker is ready to lead — and next
January, Americans will be proud to have a fighter for the middle class to succeed
Dick Cheney as Vice President of the United States.

And what can I say about Teresa? She has the strongest moral compass of anyone
I know. She's down to earth, nurturing, courageous, wise and smart.

She speaks her mind and she speaks the truth, and I love her for that, too.

And that's why America will embrace her as the next First Lady of the United States.

For Teresa and me, no matter what the future holds or the past has given us,
nothing will ever mean as much as our children. We love them not just for who they
are and what they've become, but for being themselves, making us laugh, holding
our feet to the fire, and never letting me get away with anything. Thank you, Andre,
Alex, Chris, Vanessa, and John.

And in this journey, I am accompanied by an extraordinary band of brothers led by
that American hero, a patriot named Max Cleland. Our band of brothers doesn't
march together because of who we are as veterans, but because of what we
learned as soldiers. We fought for this nation because we loved it and we came
back with the deep belief that every day is extra. We may be a little older now, we
may be a little grayer, but we still know how to fight for our country.

And standing with us in that fight are those who shared with me the long season of
the primary campaign: Carol Moseley Braun, General Wesley Clark, Howard Dean,
Dick Gephardt, Bob Graham, Dennis Kucinich, Joe Lieberman and Al Sharpton.

To all of you, I say thank you for teaching me and testing me — but mostly, we say
thank you for standing up for our country and giving us the unity to move America
forward.

My fellow Americans, the world tonight is very different from the world of four years
ago. But I believe the American people are more than equal to the challenge.

Remember the hours after September 11th, when we came together as one to
answer the attack against our homeland. We drew strength when our firefighters ran
up the stairs and risked their lives, so that others might live. When rescuers rushed
into smoke and fire at the Pentagon. When the men and women of Flight 93
sacrificed themselves to save our nation's Capitol. When flags were hanging from
front porches all across America, and strangers became friends. It was the worst
day we have ever seen, but it brought out the best in all of us.

I am proud that after September 11th all our people rallied to President Bush's call
for unity to meet the danger. There were no Democrats. There were no
Republicans. There were only Americans. How we wish it had stayed that way.

Now I know there are those who criticize me for seeing complexities — and I do —
because some issues just aren't all that simple. Saying there are weapons of mass
destruction in Iraq doesn't make it so. Saying we can fight a war on the cheap
doesn't make it so. And proclaiming mission accomplished certainly doesn't make it
so.

As President, I will ask hard questions and demand hard evidence. I will
immediately reform the intelligence system — so policy is guided by facts, and facts
are never distorted by politics. And as President, I will bring back this nation's time-
honored tradition: the United States of America never goes to war because we want
to, we only go to war because we have to.

I know what kids go through when they are carrying an M-16 in a dangerous place
and they can't tell friend from foe. I know what they go through when they're out on
patrol at night and they don't know what's coming around the next bend. I know
what it's like to write letters home telling your family that everything's all right when
you're not sure that's true.

As President, I will wage this war with the lessons I learned in war.

Before you go to battle, you have to be able to look a parent in the eye and
truthfully say: "I tried everything possible to avoid sending your son or daughter into
harm's way. But we had no choice. We had to protect the American people,
fundamental American values from a threat that was real and imminent." So lesson
one, this is the only justification for going to war.

And on my first day in office, I will send a message to every man and woman in our
armed forces: You will never be asked to fight a war without a plan to win the peace.

I know what we have to do in Iraq. We need a President who has the credibility to
bring our allies to our side and share the burden, reduce the cost to American
taxpayers, and reduce the risk to American soldiers. That's the right way to get the
job done and bring our troops home.

Here is the reality: that won't happen until we have a president who restores
America's respect and leadership — so we don't have to go it alone in the world.

And we need to rebuild our alliances, so we can get the terrorists before they get
us.

I defended this country as a young man and I will defend it as President.

Let there be no mistake: I will never hesitate to use force when it is required. Any
attack will be met with a swift and certain response. I will never give any nation or
international institution a veto over our national security. And I will build a stronger
American military.

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