The most presidential lorem ipsum in history.
He is a man who served his country as a U.S. Marine; who has studied and lectured at some of the finest universities and seminaries in the country, and who for over thirty years led a church that serves the community by doing God's work here on Earth - by housing the homeless, ministering to the needy, providing day care services and scholarships and prison ministries, and reaching out to those suffering from HIV/AIDS. Our government should work for us, not against us. It is a sign of neither courage nor power to shoot rockets at sleeping children, or to blow up old women on a bus.
John Kerry believes in the Constitutional freedoms that have made our country the envy of the world, and he will never sacrifice our basic liberties, nor use faith as a wedge to divide us. If there's a senior citizen somewhere who can't pay for their prescription drugs, and has to choose between medicine and the rent, that makes my life poorer, even if it's not my grandparent. I'm talking about something more substantial. I'd been inspired by the civil rights movement - by all the clear-eyed, straight-backed, courageous young people who'd boarded buses and traveled down South to march and sit at lunch counters, and lay down their lives in some cases for freedom. I have a plan that would have already begun redeploying our troops with the goal of bringing all our combat brigades home by March 31st of next year. America, now is not the time for small plans.
And it puts the lie to the notion that the separation of church and state in America means faith should have no role in public life. But there's a story I want to share that takes place before Moses passed the mantle of leadership on to Joshua. Many bring up a specific issue. We are more compassionate than a government that lets veterans sleep on our streets and families slide into poverty; that sits on its hands while a major American city drowns before our eyes.
We shouldn't use the obstacles we face as an excuse for cynicism. What would be needed were Americans in successive generations who were willing to do their part - through protests and struggle, on the streets and in the courts, through a civil war and civil disobedience and always at great risk - to narrow that gap between the promise of our ideals and the reality of their time. "I'm here because of Ashley." By itself, that single moment of recognition between that young white girl and that old black man is not enough. And next week, we'll also hear about those occasions when he's broken with his party as evidence that he can deliver the change that we need. Let me also address the issue of Iraq. We know that is God's vision.
When we send our young men and women into harm's way, we have a solemn obligation not to fudge the numbers or shade the truth about why they're going, to care for their families while they're gone, to tend to the soldiers upon their return, and to never ever go to war without enough troops to win the war, secure the peace, and earn the respect of the world. When John McCain said we could just "muddle through" in Afghanistan, I argued for more resources and more troops to finish the fight against the terrorists who actually attacked us on 9/11, and made clear that we must take out Osama bin Laden and his lieutenants if we have them in our sights. All of us share this world for but a brief moment in time.
Thank you. And may God's peace be upon you.