I CANT JUST HELP BUT SHARE THIS...
Read the full speech below.
Thank you all, thank you so much. It is hard to believe that it has
been eight years since I first came to this convention to talk with you
about why I thought my husband should be president. Remember how I told
you about his character and his conviction? His decency and grace? The
traits we have seen every day as he has served our country in the White
House.
I also told you about our daughters, how they are the heart of our
hearts, the center of our world, and during our time in the White House
we have had the joy of watching them grow from bubbly little girls into
poised young women.
A journey that started soon after we arrived in Washington when they
set off for their first day at their new school. I will never forget
that winter morning as I watched our girls, just 7 and 10 years old,
pile into those black SUVs with all those men with guns. And with all
their little faces pressed up against the window, and the only thing I
could think was, 'What have we done?'
At that moment, I realized that our time in the White House would
form the foundation of who they would become. And how well we manage
this experience could truly make or break them.
That is what Barack and I think about every day as he tried to guide
and protect our girls from the challenges of this unusual life in the
spotlight. How we urged them to ignore those who question their father's
citizenship or faith. How we insist that the hateful language they hear
from public figures on TV does not represent the true spirit of this
country. How we explain that when someone is cruel or acts like a bully,
you don't stoop to their level. Our motto is, when they go low, we go
high.
With every word we utter, with every action we take, we know our kids
are watching us. We as parents are the most important role-model.
Let me tell you, Barack and I take that same approach to our jobs as
president and first lady because we know that our words and actions
matter, not just to our girls but the children across this country. Kids
who say, "I saw you on TV," "I wrote the report on you for school."
Kids like the little black boy who looked up at my husband, his eyes
wide with hope, and he wondered, 'Is my hair like yours?'
Make no mistake about it, this November, when we get to the polls,
that is what we are deciding. Not Democrat or Republican, not left or
right. In this election, and every election, it is about who will have
the power to shape our children for the next four or eight years of
their lives. I am you tonight because in this election, there is only
one person who I trust with that responsibility, only one person who I
believe is truly qualified to be president of the United States, and
that is our friend Hillary Clinton.
I trust Hillary to lead this country because I have seen her lifelong
devotion to our nation's children. Not just her own daughter, who she
has raised to perfection, but every child who needs a champion: kids who
take the long way to school to avoid the gangs. Kids who wonder how
they will ever afford college. Kids whose parents don't speak a word of
English, but dream of a better life; who look to us to dream of what
they can be.
Hillary has spent decades doing the relentless work to actually make a
difference in their lives. Advocating for kids with disabilities as a
young lawyer, fighting for children's health care as first lady, and for
quality child care in the senate. And when she did not win the nomination eight years ago, she did not
get angry or disillusioned. Hillary did not pack up and go home because
... Hillary knows that this is so much bigger than her own
disappointment. She proudly stepped up to serve our country once again
as secretary of state, traveling the globe to keep our kids safe.
There
were moments when Hillary could have decided that this work was too
hard, that the price of public service was too high, that she was tired
of being [torn] apart for how she looked, or how she talked, or even how
she laughed. But here's the thing: What I admire most about Hillary is that she
never buckles under pressure. She never takes the easy way out. And
Hillary Clinton has never quit on anything in her life. And when I think
about the kind of president that I want for my girls and all our
children, that is what I want. I want someone with the proven strength
to persevere.
Somebody who knows this job and takes it seriously. Somebody who
understands that the issues of our nation are not black or white. It
cannot be boiled down to 140 characters. Because when you have the
nuclear codes at your fingertips and the military in your command, you
can't make snap decisions. You can't have thin skin or a tendency to
lash out. You need to be steady and measured and well informed.
I want a president with a record of public service. Someone whose
life's work shows our children that we don't chase fame and fortune for
ourselves; we fight to give everyone a chance to succeed. And we give
back even when we are struggling ourselves because we know that there is
someone worse off. There but for the grace of God, go I. I want a
president who will teach our children that everyone in this country
matters.
A president that truly believes that our founders put forth all those
years ago that we are all created equal, each a beloved part of the
great American story. When crisis hits, we don't turn against each
other, we listen to each other. We lean on each other. We are always
stronger together. I am here tonight because I know that that is the
kind of president Hillary Clinton will be and that is why in this
election, I'm with her.
You see, Hillary understands that the presidency is about one thing
and one thing only. It is about leaving something better for our kids.
That is how we have always moved this country forward by all of us
coming together on behalf of our children. Volunteering to coach the
team, teach the Sunday school class, because they know it takes a
village.
Heroes of every color and creed who wear the uniform and risk their
lives to pass on those blessings of liberty; police officers and
protesters in Dallas who all that really want to keep our children safe;
people who lined up in Orlando to donate blood because it could have
been their son, or their daughter in the club.
Leaders like Tim Kaine, who show our kids what decency and devotion
look like. Leaders like Hillary Clinton, who have the guts and the grace
to keep coming back and putting those cracks in the highest and hardest
glass ceiling until they finally break through, lifting all of us along
with her.
That is the story of this country. The story that has brought me to
the stage tonight. The story of generations of people who felt the lash
of bondage, the shame of servitude, the sting of segregation, who kept
on striving, and hoping, and doing what needed to be done. So that
today, I wake up every morning in a house that was built by slaves. And I
watch my daughters — two beautiful intelligent black young women —
play with the dog on the White House lawn.
And because of Hillary Clinton, my daughters and all of our sons and
daughters now take for granted that a woman can be president of the
United States.
Don't let anyone ever tell you that this country is not great. That
somehow we need to make it great again. Because this right now is the
greatest country on Earth.
And as my daughters set out on the world, I want a leader who is
worthy of that truth, a leader worthy of my girls' promise and all of
our kids' promise. A leader who will be guided every day by the love and
hope and impossibly big dreams that we all have for our children.
In this election, we cannot sit back and hope that everything works
out for the best, we cannot afford to be tired or frustrated or cynical.
Hear me: Between now and November, we need to do what we did eight
years ago and four years ago. We need to knock on every door, we need to
get out every vote, we need to pour every last ounce of passion into
electing Hillary Clinton as president of the United States of America.
Let's get to work.
Thank you all and God bless
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