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But they sense, deep in their bones, that with just a slight change in priorities, we can make sure that every child in America has a decent shot at life, and that the doors of opportunity remain open to all. I have brothers, sisters, nieces, nephews, uncles and cousins, of every race and every hue, scattered across three continents, and for as long as I live, I will never forget that in no other country on Earth is my story even possible. Anger over welfare and affirmative action helped forge the Reagan Coalition. Islam has a proud tradition of tolerance.
I stand here today, grateful for the diversity of my heritage, aware that my parents' dreams live on in my two precious daughters. Louis, and thousands more like her, who has the grades, has the drive, has the will, but doesn't have the money to go to college. But we also know that government initiatives are not enough. For the African-American community, that path means embracing the burdens of our past without becoming victims of our past. But we must also admit that programs alone can't replace parents; that government can't turn off the television and make a child do her homework; that fathers must take more responsibility for providing the love and guidance their children need. Denying that fact is baseless, ignorant, and hateful.
Because whether it's poverty or racism, the uninsured or the unemployed, war or peace, the challenges we face today are not simply technical problems in search of the perfect ten-point plan. That has been my experience at Trinity. Because in the faces of those young veterans who come back from Iraq and Afghanistan, I see my grandfather, who signed up after Pearl Harbor, marched in Patton's Army, and was rewarded by a grateful nation with the chance to go to college on the GI Bill. We are the party of Kennedy. I realize that I am not the likeliest candidate for this office. That does not mean we should ignore sources of tension.
And we should close Guantanamo Bay and stop tolerating the torture of our enemies. Did I ever hear him make remarks that could be considered controversial while I sat in church? Yes. This has bred more fear and mistrust. In Turkey, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Indonesia, we have seen Muslim-majority countries elect a woman to lead.
From his heroic service to Vietnam, to his years as a prosecutor and lieutenant governor, through two decades in the United States Senate, he has devoted himself to this country. They want a sense of purpose, a narrative arc to their lives. Two hundred and twenty one years ago, in a hall that still stands across the street, a group of men gathered and, with these simple words, launched America's improbable experiment in democracy. 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. But I will also go through the federal budget, line by line, eliminating programs that no longer work and making the ones we do need work better and cost less - because we cannot meet twenty-first century challenges with a twentieth century bureaucracy. Americans are ready to join with citizens and governments; community organizations, religious leaders, and businesses in Muslim communities around the world to help our people pursue a better life.
God bless you.