November
07, 2012
Transcript
of President Obama's victory speech in Chicago. Source: Federal News Service
Editor's
Note: NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by a contractor for NPR,
and accuracy and availability may vary. This text may not be in its final form
and may be updated or revised in the future.
(Cheers,
applause.)
AUDIENCE
MEMBERS:
(Chanting.) Four more years! Four more years! Four more years! Four more years!
Four more years! Four more years! Four more years! Four more years!
PRESIDENT
BARACK OBAMA:
Thank you. Thank you. Thank you so much. (Sustained cheers, applause.)
Tonight,
more than 200 years after a former colony won the right to determine its own
destiny, the task of perfecting our union moves forward. (Cheers, applause.)
It
moves forward because of you. It moves forward because you reaffirmed the
spirit that has triumphed over war and depression, the spirit that has lifted
this country from the depths of despair to the great heights of hope, the
belief that while each of us will pursue our own individual dreams, we are an
American family, and we rise or fall together as one nation and as one people.
(Cheers, applause.)
Tonight,
in this election, you, the American people, reminded us that while our road has
been hard, while our journey has been long, we have picked ourselves up, we
have fought our way back, and we know in our hearts that for the United States
of America, the best is yet to come.
(Cheers,
applause.) I want to thank every American who participated in this election.
(Cheers, applause.) Whether you voted for the very first time — (cheers) — or
waited in line for a very long time — (cheers) — by the way, we have to fix
that. (Cheers, applause.) Whether you pounded the pavement or picked up the
phone — (cheers, applause) — whether you held an Obama sign or a Romney sign,
you made your voice heard and you made a difference. (Cheers, applause.)
I
just spoke with Governor Romney and I congratulated him and Paul Ryan on a
hard-fought campaign. (Cheers, applause.) We may have battled fiercely, but
it's only because we love this country deeply and we care so strongly about its
future. From George to Lenore to their son Mitt, the Romney family has chosen
to give back to America through public service. And that is a legacy that we
honor and applaud tonight. (Cheers, applause.) In the weeks ahead, I also look
forward to sitting down with Governor Romney to talk about where we can work
together to move this country forward.
(Cheers,
applause.)
I
want to thank my friend and partner of the last four years, America's happy
warrior, the best vice president anybody could ever hope for, Joe Biden.
(Cheers, applause.)
And
I wouldn't be the man I am today without the woman who agreed to marry me 20
years ago. (Cheers, applause.) Let me say this publicly. Michelle, I have never
loved you more. (Cheers, applause.) I have never been prouder to watch the rest
of America fall in love with you, too, as our nation's first lady. (Cheers,
applause.)
Sasha
and Malia — (cheers, applause) — before our very eyes, you're growing up to
become two strong, smart, beautiful young women, just like your mom. (Cheers,
applause.) And I am so proud of you guys. But I will say that for now, one
dog's probably enough. (Laughter.)
To
the best campaign team and volunteers in the history of politics — (cheers,
applause) — the best — the best ever — (cheers, applause) — some of you were
new this time around, and some of you have been at my side since the very
beginning.
(Cheers,
applause.) But all of you are family. No matter what you do or where you go
from here, you will carry the memory of the history we made together. (Cheers,
applause.) And you will have the lifelong appreciation of a grateful president.
Thank you for believing all the way — (cheers, applause) — to every hill, to
every valley. (Cheers, applause.) You lifted me up the whole day, and I will
always be grateful for everything that you've done and all the incredible work
that you've put in. (Cheers, applause.)
I
know that political campaigns can sometimes seem small, even silly. And that
provides plenty of fodder for the cynics who tell us that politics is nothing
more than a contest of egos or the domain of special interests. But if you ever
get the chance to talk to folks who turned out at our rallies and crowded along
a rope line in a high school gym or — or saw folks working late at a campaign
office in some tiny county far away from home, you'll discover something else.
You'll
hear the determination in the voice of a young field organizer who's working
his way through college and wants to make sure every child has that same
opportunity. (Cheers, applause.) You'll hear the pride in the voice of a
volunteer who's going door to door because her brother was finally hired when
the local auto plant added another shift. (Cheers, applause.)
You'll
hear the deep patriotism in the voice of a military spouse who's working the
phones late at night to make sure that no one who fights for this country ever
has to fight for a job or a roof over their head when they come home. (Cheers,
applause.)
That's
why we do this. That's what politics can be. That's why elections matter. It's
not small, it's big. It's important. Democracy in a nation of 300 million can
be noisy and messy and complicated. We have our own opinions. Each of us has
deeply held beliefs. And when we go through tough times, when we make big
decisions as a country, it necessarily stirs passions, stirs up controversy.
That won't change after tonight. And it shouldn't. These arguments we have are
a mark of our liberty, and we can never forget that as we speak, people in
distant nations are risking their lives right now just for a chance to argue
about the issues that matter — (cheers, applause) — the chance to cast their
ballots like we did today.
But
despite all our differences, most of us share certain hopes for America's
future.
We
want our kids to grow up in a country where they have access to the best
schools and the best teachers — (cheers, applause) — a country that lives up to
its legacy as the global leader in technology and discovery and innovation —
(scattered cheers, applause) — with all of the good jobs and new businesses
that follow.
We
want our children to live in an America that isn't burdened by debt, that isn't
weakened up by inequality, that isn't threatened by the destructive power of a
warming planet. (Cheers, applause.)
We
want to pass on a country that's safe and respected and admired around the
world, a nation that is defended by the strongest military on earth and the best
troops this — this world has ever known — (cheers, applause) — but also a
country that moves with confidence beyond this time of war to shape a peace
that is built on the promise of freedom and dignity for every human being.
We
believe in a generous America, in a compassionate America, in a tolerant
America open to the dreams of an immigrant's daughter who studies in our
schools and pledges to our flag — (cheers, applause) — to the young boy on the
south side of Chicago who sees a life beyond the nearest street corner —
(cheers, applause) — to the furniture worker's child in North Carolina who
wants to become a doctor or a scientist, an engineer or an entrepreneur, a
diplomat or even a president.
That's
the — (cheers, applause) — that's the future we hope for.
(Cheers,
applause.) That's the vision we share. That's where we need to go — forward.
(Cheers, applause.) That's where we need to go. (Cheers, applause.)
Now,
we will disagree, sometimes fiercely, about how to get there. As it has for
more than two centuries, progress will come in fits and starts. It's not always
a straight line. It's not always a smooth path. By itself, the recognition that
we have common hopes and dreams won't end all the gridlock, resolve all our
problems or substitute for the painstaking work of building consensus and
making the difficult compromises needed to move this country forward.
But
that common bond is where we must begin. Our economy is recovering. A decade of
war is ending. (Cheers, applause.) A long campaign is now over. (Cheers,
applause.) And whether I earned your vote or not, I have listened to you. I
have learned from you. And you've made me a better president. And with your
stories and your struggles, I return to the White House more determined and
more inspired than ever about the work there is to do and the future that lies
ahead. (Cheers, applause.)
Tonight
you voted for action, not politics as usual. (Cheers, applause.) You elected us
to focus on your jobs, not ours.
And
in the coming weeks and months, I am looking forward to reaching out and
working with leaders of both parties to meet the challenges we can only solve
together — reducing our deficit, reforming our tax code, fixing our immigration
system, freeing ourselves from foreign oil. We've got more work to do. (Cheers,
applause.)
But
that doesn't mean your work is done. The role of citizens in our democracy does
not end with your vote. America's never been about what can be done for us;
it's about what can be done by us together, through the hard and frustrating
but necessary work of self-government. (Cheers, applause.) That's the principle
we were founded on.
This
country has more wealth than any nation, but that's not what makes us rich. We
have the most powerful military in history, but that's not what makes us
strong. Our university, our culture are all the envy of the world, but that's
not what keeps the world coming to our shores. What makes America exceptional
are the bonds that hold together the most diverse nation on Earth, the belief
that our destiny is shared — (cheers, applause) — that this country only works
when we accept certain obligations to one another and to future generations, so
that the freedom which so many Americans have fought for and died for come with
responsibilities as well as rights, and among those are love and charity and
duty and patriotism. That's what makes America great. (Cheers, applause.)
I
am hopeful tonight because I have seen this spirit at work in America. I've
seen it in the family business whose owners would rather cut their own pay than
lay off their neighbors and in the workers who would rather cut back their
hours than see a friend lose a job. I've seen it in the soldiers who re-enlist
after losing a limb and in those SEALs who charged up the stairs into darkness
and danger because they knew there was a buddy behind them watching their back.
(Cheers, applause.) I've seen it on the shores of New Jersey and New York,
where leaders from every party and level of government have swept aside their
differences to help a community rebuild from the wreckage of a terrible storm.
(Cheers, applause.)
And
I saw it just the other day in Mentor, Ohio, where a father told the story of
his 8-year-old daughter whose long battle with leukemia nearly cost their
family everything had it not been for health care reform passing just a few
months before the insurance company was about to stop paying for her care.
(Cheers, applause.) I had an opportunity to not just talk to the father but
meet this incredible daughter of his. And when he spoke to the crowd, listening
to that father's story, every parent in that room had tears in their eyes
because we knew that little girl could be our own.
And
I know that every American wants her future to be just as bright. That's who we
are. That's the country I'm so proud to lead as your president. (Cheers,
applause.)
And
tonight, despite all the hardship we've been through, despite all the
frustrations of Washington, I've never been more hopeful about our future.
(Cheers, applause.) I have never been more hopeful about America. And I ask you
to sustain that hope.
AUDIENCE
MEMBER:
We got your back, Mr. President!
PRESIDENT
OBAMA:
I'm not talking about blind optimism, the kind of hope that just ignores the
enormity of the tasks ahead or the road blocks that stand in our path. I'm not
talking about the wishful idealism that allows us to just sit on the sidelines
or shirk from a fight. I have always believed that hope is that stubborn thing
inside us that insists, despite all the evidence to the contrary, that
something better awaits us so long as we have the courage to keep reaching, to
keep working, to keep fighting. (Cheers, applause.)
America,
I believe we can build on the progress we've made and continue to fight for new
jobs and new opportunities and new security for the middle class. I believe we
can keep the promise of our founding, the idea that if you're willing to work
hard, it doesn't matter who you are or where you come from or what you look
like or where you love. It doesn't matter whether you're black or white or
Hispanic or Asian or Native American or young or old or rich or poor, abled,
disabled, gay or straight. (Cheers, applause.) You can make it here in America
if you're willing to try.
(Cheers,
applause.)
I
believe we can seize this future together because we are not as divided as our
politics suggests. We're not as cynical as the pundits believe. We are greater
than the sum of our individual ambitions and we remain more than a collection
of red states and blue states. We are, and forever will be, the United States
of America. (Cheers, applause.)
And
together, with your help and God's grace, we will continue our journey forward
and remind the world just why it is that we live in the greatest nation on
earth. (Cheers, applause.) Thank you, America. (Cheers, applause.) God bless
you. God bless these United States. (Cheers, applause.)
Copyright
2012 National Public Radio. To see more, visit http://www.npr.org/.
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