Transcript of Barbara Boxer's Speech

Thank you. Thank you so much.

Thanks to my family. Thank you to California. Thanks to all you wonderful delegates. I want to tell you something: Everywhere I go in California and across this great country, people tell me the same thing. They say, "This is the most important election of our lifetime."

Let me tell you why they feel that way and why we all feel that way. It is because we know that Kerry/Edwards team, with their new leadership and the new leadership in the Congress, America will be respected in the world again and the American dream will stop slipping into the fog of a distant memory.

Well, I've been blessed with that dream.

My mom was an immigrant who never graduated from high school because she had to work to support her widowed mother.

My dad, he went to college at night. And my parents, they pushed and they struggled for their family.

I went to good, free public schools, Kindergarten through college, because of a uniquely American belief in opportunity for all.

But today -- today -- that belief is being tested. Too many workers can't make ends meet. Too many families can't afford health insurance or college tuition.

Too many children go to schools that are overcrowded, and they can't get in to after-school programs because they are short-funded.

I know we can do better. And I know that you know we can do better.

And why do I know we can do better, because I believe in this country. I believe in our people. I believe in the American dream. And I believe in John Kerry and John Edwards.

Yes, they understand that no worker should ever have to watch a good job being packed up and shipped overseas.

They understand that a parent shouldn't have to worry every time their child slides into third base, because there's no way to pay the doctor bill. They understand our beloved grandparents shouldn't be boarding buses to other countries to buy lifesaving drugs. And they understand that protecting our air and water is about safeguarding the health of our families. They understand that in America we protect civil liberties and civil rights because then America wins.

As John Kerry says, a strong America begins at home. And with President Kerry, we will be strong, because our families will be strong, our communities will be strong, our economy will be strong, and the American dream will be strong.

So here we are. We've got Kerry, we've got Edwards, and now we need to get every American to understand what is at stake. It's up to us, the American people, nobody else but us.

So God bless California. God bless the United States of America.

Now let's get it done.

Thank you very much, everybody. Thank you.

Back to Democratic Convention Page

This website is volunteer managed, designed and donated. Content is the sole responsibility of Democrats of Napa Valley Club.

Democrats of Napa Valley
Send mail to : DONV P.O. Box 206, Napa, CA 94559 Phone: 707-224-5700