Very soon, the Congressioanl elections of 2006 will be history and all eyes will focus on the Presidential contenders for 2008. While the Democrats have their eyes fixated on the likes of Hillary Clinton, John Kerry etc. and the Republicans continue to be enthralled with the likes of John McCain, Condi Rice and others, there is a rising star on the horizon, Sen. Barack Obama. A product of mixed heritage, he does not play the politics of discrimination and divisiveness. Instead he sends out his political message from the platform of hope and pride of every American. Here are some excerpts from his address during the Democratic National Convention in Boston in 2004:
"...My parents shared not only an improbable love; they shared an abiding faith in the possibilities of this nation. They would give me an African name, Barack, or "blessed," believing that in a tolerant America your name is no barrier to success. They imagined me going to the best schools in the land, even though they weren't rich, because in a generous America you don't have to be rich to achieve your potential.
They are both passed away now. And yet, I know that, on this night, they look down on me with great pride.
They stand here, and I stand here today, grateful for the diversity of my heritage, aware that my parents' dreams live on in my two precious daughters. I stand here knowing that my story is part of the larger American story, that I owe a debt to all of those who came before me, and that, in no other country on Earth is my story even possible."
"...Now even as we speak, there are those who are preparing to divide us, the spin masters, the negative ad peddlers who embrace the politics of 'anything goes.' Well, I say to them tonight, there is not a liberal America and a conservative America; there is the United States of America. There is not a Black America and a White America and Latino America and Asian America; there's the United States of America.
The pundits, the pundits like to slice-and-dice our country into red states and blue states; red states for Republicans, blue states for Democrats. But I've got news for them, too. We worship an awesome God in the blue states, and we don't like federal agents poking around in our libraries in the red states. We coach Little League in the blue states and yes, we've got some gay friends in the red states. There are patriots who opposed the war in Iraq and there are patriots who supported the war in Iraq.
We are one people, all of us pledging allegiance to the stars and stripes, all of us defending the United States of America. In the end, that's what this election is about. Do we participate in a politics of cynicism or do we participate in a politics of hope? "
americanradioworks.publicradio.org
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