He now leads--he now leads the party of Franklin Delano Roosevelt, but the only thing he has to offer is fear itself. [Fear of greedy, war-mongering idiots? Perhaps. Fear of the rest of the world? That's your job, George.]
That outlook is typical of many in Washington, always seeing the tunnel at the end of the light ...
But I come from a different place and it has made me a different leader. In Midland, Texas ...
Our sense of community--our sense of community was just as strong as that sense of promise. Neighbors helped each other. There were dry wells and sand storms to keep you humble, lifelong friends to take your side [They call 'em "cronies"], and churches to remind us that every soul is equal in value and equal in need ...
This background leaves more than an accent, it leaves an outlook: optimistic, impatient with pretense, confident that people can chart their own course in life. [as when they're drowning in sewage in New Orleans]
That background may lack the polish of Washington. Then again, I don't have a lot of things that come with Washington. I don't have enemies to fight. [Oh God, I've got to vomit] I have no stake in the bitter arguments of the last few years. I want to change the tone of Washington to one of civility and respect. [Maybe this was a stand-up comedy routine?]
The largest lesson I learned in Midland still guides me as governor of Texas ... Our budgets have been balanced with surpluses. [Uh, we're still waiting] And we cut taxes, not only once, but twice.
We accomplished a lot. I don't deserve all the credit, and I don't attempt to take it. I worked with Republicans and Democrats to get things done ...
As governor, I've made difficult decisions and stood by them under pressure. I've been where the buck stops in business and in government. [Harry Truman just turned over in his grave] I've been a chief executive who sets an agenda, sets big goals, and rallies people to believe and achieve them. I am proud of this record, and I am prepared for the work ahead.
If you give me your trust, I will honor it. [no comment] Grant me a mandate, I will use it. Give me the opportunity to lead this nation, and I will lead ...
... our new economy must never forget the old, unfinished struggle for human dignity. And here we face a challenge to the very heart and founding premise of our nation.
A couple of years ago, I visited a juvenile jail in Marlin, Texas, and talked with a group of young inmates. They were angry, wary kids. All had committed grown-up crimes. Yet when I looked in their eyes, I realized some of them were still little boys.
Toward the end of the conversation, one young man, about 15 years old, raised his hand and asked a haunting question, "What do you think of me?" He seemed to be asking, like many Americans who struggle: Is their hope for me? Do I have a chance? And, frankly, do you, a white man in a suit, really care about what happens to me? [as long as you don't live in New Orleans or ...]
A small voice, but it speaks for so many ... We are their country too. And each of us must share in its promise or the promise is diminished for all. [well put, George]
If that boy in Marlin [or on a rooftop in New Orleans] believes he's trapped and worthless and hopeless, if he believes his life has no value, then other lives have no value to him, and we're all diminished.
When these problems are not confronted, it builds a wall within our nation. On one side are wealth, technology, education and ambition. On the other side of that wall are poverty and prison, addiction and despair. And my fellow Americans, we must tear down that wall. [now even higher than before]
That outlook is typical of many in Washington, always seeing the tunnel at the end of the light ...
But I come from a different place and it has made me a different leader. In Midland, Texas ...
Our sense of community--our sense of community was just as strong as that sense of promise. Neighbors helped each other. There were dry wells and sand storms to keep you humble, lifelong friends to take your side [They call 'em "cronies"], and churches to remind us that every soul is equal in value and equal in need ...
That background may lack the polish of Washington. Then again, I don't have a lot of things that come with Washington. I don't have enemies to fight. [Oh God, I've got to vomit] I have no stake in the bitter arguments of the last few years. I want to change the tone of Washington to one of civility and respect. [Maybe this was a stand-up comedy routine?]
The largest lesson I learned in Midland still guides me as governor of Texas ... Our budgets have been balanced with surpluses. [Uh, we're still waiting] And we cut taxes, not only once, but twice.
We accomplished a lot. I don't deserve all the credit, and I don't attempt to take it. I worked with Republicans and Democrats to get things done ...
As governor, I've made difficult decisions and stood by them under pressure. I've been where the buck stops in business and in government. [Harry Truman just turned over in his grave] I've been a chief executive who sets an agenda, sets big goals, and rallies people to believe and achieve them. I am proud of this record, and I am prepared for the work ahead.
If you give me your trust, I will honor it. [no comment] Grant me a mandate, I will use it. Give me the opportunity to lead this nation, and I will lead ...
... our new economy must never forget the old, unfinished struggle for human dignity. And here we face a challenge to the very heart and founding premise of our nation.
A couple of years ago, I visited a juvenile jail in Marlin, Texas, and talked with a group of young inmates. They were angry, wary kids. All had committed grown-up crimes. Yet when I looked in their eyes, I realized some of them were still little boys.
Toward the end of the conversation, one young man, about 15 years old, raised his hand and asked a haunting question, "What do you think of me?" He seemed to be asking, like many Americans who struggle: Is their hope for me? Do I have a chance? And, frankly, do you, a white man in a suit, really care about what happens to me? [as long as you don't live in New Orleans or ...]
A small voice, but it speaks for so many ... We are their country too. And each of us must share in its promise or the promise is diminished for all. [well put, George]
If that boy in Marlin [or on a rooftop in New Orleans] believes he's trapped and worthless and hopeless, if he believes his life has no value, then other lives have no value to him, and we're all diminished.
When these problems are not confronted, it builds a wall within our nation. On one side are wealth, technology, education and ambition. On the other side of that wall are poverty and prison, addiction and despair. And my fellow Americans, we must tear down that wall. [now even higher than before]
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