US Features
John McCain's speech - excerpts
Sep 5, 2008, 6:38 GMT
Republican Presidential candidate John McCain responds to applause from delegates at the Republican National Convention at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minnesota, USA, 04 September, 2008. The Republican National Convention closed with the confirmation of John McCain as the Republican Presidential candidate. EPA/CRAIG LASSIG
St Paul, Minnesota - The following are excerpts of John McCain's speech accepting the Republican Party's nomination for president:
'Tonight, I have a privilege given few Americans - the privilege of accepting our party's nomination for president of the United States. I accept it with gratitude, humility and confidence.'
'I'm grateful to the president of the United States for leading us in these dark days following the worst attack on American soil in our history and keeping us safe from another attack many thought was inevitable.'
'Let me just offer an advance warning to the old, big-spending, do-nothing, me-first, country-second crowd: Change is coming.'
'When we tell you we're going to change Washington and stop leaving our country's problems for some unluckier generation to fix, you can count on it. We've got a record of doing just that and the strength, experience, judgement and backbone to keep our word to you.'
'I've been called a maverick. ... Sometimes it's meant as a compliment, sometimes it's not. What it really means is I understand who I work for. I don't work for a party. ... I don't work for myself. I work for you.'
'I fought for the right strategy and more troops in Iraq when it wasn't the popular thing to do. And when the pundits said my campaign was finished, I said I'd rather lose an election than see my country lose a war.
'Thanks to the leadership of a brilliant general, David Petreaus, and the brave men and women he has the honour to command, that strategy succeeded, and it rescued us from a defeat that would have demoralized our military, risked a wider war and threatened the security of all Americans.'
'I [will] fight to restore the pride and principles of our party. We were elected to change Washington, and we let Washington change us. We lost the trust of the American people when some Republicans gave in to the temptations of corruption. ... We lost their trust when we valued our power over our principles.
'We're going to change that. We're going to recover the people's trust by standing up again to the values Americans admire. The party of [former presidents Abraham] Lincoln, [Theodore] Roosevelt and [Ronald] Reagan is going to get back to basics.'
'Senator [Barack] Obama thinks we can achieve energy independence without more drilling and without more nuclear power, but Americans know better than that.
'We must use all resources and develop all technologies necessary to rescue our economy from the damage caused by rising oil prices and restore the health of our planet.'
'Today the prospect of a better world remains within our reach, but we must see the threats to peace and liberty in our time clearly and face them as Americans before us did, with confidence, wisdom and resolve.
'We have dealt a serious blow to al-Qaeda in recent years, but they are not defeated, and they'll strike us again if they can. Iran remains the chief state sponsor of terrorism and is on the path to acquiring nuclear weapons.
'Russia's leaders, rich with oil wealth and corrupt with power, have rejected democratic ideals and the obligations of a responsible power. They invaded a small, democratic neighbour to gain more control over the world's oil supply, intimidate other neighbors and further their ambitions of reassembling the Russian empire. And the brave people of Georgia need our solidarity and our prayers.
'As president, I will work to establish good relations with Russia so that we need not fear a return of the Cold War. But we can't turn a blind eye to aggression and international lawlessness that threatens the peace and stability of the world and the security of the American people.
'We face many dangerous threats in this dangerous world, but I'm not afraid of them. I'm prepared for them. I know how the military works, what it can do, what it can do better and what it shouldn't do.
'I know how the world works. I know the good and the evil in it. I know how to work with leaders who share our dreams of a freer, safer and more prosperous world and how to stand up to those who don't. I know how to secure the peace.'
'In Vietnam, where I formed the closest friendships of my life, some of those friends never came home with me. I hate war. It is terrible beyond imagination. I'm running for president to keep the country I love safe and prevent other families from risking their loved ones in war as my family has.
'I will draw on all my experience with the world and its leaders and all the tools at our disposal - diplomatic, economic, military and the power of our ideals - to build the foundations for a stable and enduring peace.'
'We have to catch up to history, and we have to change the way we do business in Washington. ... The constant partisan rancor that stops us from solving these problems isn't a cause, it's a symptom. It's what happens when people go to Washington to work for themselves and not for you.
'Again and again, I've worked with members of both parties to fix problems that need to be fixed. ... I will reach out my hand to anyone to help me get this country moving again. My friends, I have that record, and the scars to prove it. Senator Obama does not.'
'On an October morning in the Gulf of Tonkin, I prepared for my 23rd mission over North Vietnam. ... I thought I was tougher than anyone. ... I didn't think there was a cause more important than me.
'Then I found myself falling toward the middle of a small lake in the city of Hanoi with two broken arms, a broken leg and an angry crowd waiting to greet me. I was dumped in a dark cell and left to die. I didn't feel so tough anymore.'
'I fell in love with my country when I was a prisoner in someone else's. ... I was never the same again. I wasn't my own man anymore. I was my country's.
'I'm not running for president because I think I'm blessed with such personal greatness that history has anointed me to save our country in its hour of need. My country saved me, ... and I will fight for her for as long as I draw breath, so help me God.'
'Fight with me. Fight for what's right for our country. Fight for the ideals and character of a free people. ... Fight for justice and opportunity for all. Stand up to defend our country from its enemies.
'Stand up, stand up, stand up and fight. Nothing is inevitable here. We're Americans, and we never give up. We never quit. We never hide from history. We make history.'
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Older Talkback
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Nearly 125 Shot Dead In Chicago Over Summer
Total Is About Double The Death Toll In Iraq
CHICAGO (CBS) ― An estimated 123 people were shot and killed over the summer. That's nearly double the number of soldiers killed in Iraq over the same time period.
In May, cbs2chicago.com began tracking city shootings and posting them on Google maps. Information compiled from our reporters, wire service reports and the Chicago Police Major Incidents log indicated that 123 people were shot and killed throughout the city between the start of Memorial Day weekend on May 26, and the end of Labor Day on Sept. 1.
According to the Defense Department, 65 soldiers were killed in combat in Iraq. About the same number were killed in Afghanistan over that same period.
In the same time period, an estimated 245 people were shot and wounded in the city.
cbs2chicago.com/local/chicago.summer.shootings.2.810166.html
Waffle, waffle and on and on it goes, like some unstoppable macine.
All of no importance at all except for the ears of gullible robots. At least this verbal diarrhea comes from an experienced military man and long standing politician, NOT from some black inexperienced errand boy, jumped up into a position he neither deserves or is remotely capable of fulfilling by a Hollywood loving team of selectors.
It is a NO CONTEST.
America has two kinds of heroes. One created to satisfy public aspirations and one to reflect achievement and courage.
History reveals both of these legends, both Georges and both RAN.
One is General George Armstrong Custer, an unworthy figure of American folklore and legend. He RAN, but AWAY from the enemy like a buck rabbit.
The other is General George S. Patton. He RAN, but AFTER the enemy like a pit bull.
The message is ; DEEDS NOT FICTION.
POW and PTA!!
Waffle, waffle and on and on it goes, like some unstoppable macine.
sp4 - relates to...what?
All of no importance at all except for the ears of gullible robots. At least this verbal diarrhea comes from an experienced military man and long standing politician, NOT from some black inexperienced errand boy, jumped up into a position he neither deserves or is remotely capable of fulfilling by a Hollywood loving team of selectors.
sp4 - a candidate has a case to make and that is a moment to make it...so be it.
It is a NO CONTEST.
sp4 - I think it's still a contest bubba....
America has two kinds of heroes. One created to satisfy public aspirations and one to reflect achievement and courage.
sp4 - perhaps...
History reveals both of these legends, both Georges and both RAN.
One is General George Armstrong Custer, an unworthy figure of American folklore and legend. He RAN, but AWAY from the enemy like a buck rabbit.
sp4 - as I recall, he was cut to pieces by a vastly superior force....
The other is General George S. Patton. He RAN, but AFTER the enemy like a pit bull.
sp4 - all very good but not relevant to anything....
The message is ; DEEDS NOT FICTION.
sp4 - John McCain , of all people, has been more honest about his positions and his history, than any candidate I can remember, in the last 40 years. Obama has presented himself as many things, but fooling the populace into thinking he served and is a hero is not one of them.
McCain is trying to distance himself from the Grand Old Party, but he sure ran with Bush on a lot of issues. Is he the king of flip flopping then??
The POW thing is getting really old. By now we all know the story word for word, and he doesn't need to keep repeating it. I'm not knocking this terrible time in his life, but enough is enough.
For ONCE mate, you`re not up-to-date and wrong.
YIPPEE ! SP4`s been caught out.
As you do not keep up with progress, I`ll briefly explain.
The Little Bighorn Battle site has been researched in detail by qualified historians. Their findings were ;-
CUT DOWN BY A SUPERIOR FORCE ! Yes old golden curls definitely was, BUT he divided his forces BEFORE the battle - a sacred military NO-NO.
THEN, he found he had bitten off more than he could chew, tried to fight but found it was pointless. THEN, he and hos men threw down their weapons and RAN like hell. This has been proven by the research team examining artifacts on the sight, including the position of cartridges and body positions depicted on actual photographs at the time.
THEN he and his men were slaughtered - running like shit.
CUSTERS LAST STAND was invented by the Government and Army at the time, because they just could not reveal to the American public that the famous 7th Cavalry has been wiped out by a bunch of savages.
Enter the fictitious legend.
Patton`s record is beyond all criticism.
All not much to do with the clowns running for President, unless you have sufficient flexibility in your brain-box to understand the connection.
Sorry SP4, reluctantly I must back-mark you to take boot camp again.
you guys know McSaME was a POW?
my uncle was a POW for several years - guess he'd make a good President except he ended up with a lot of mental problems because of his imprisonment......
page: 1
McCain was right, Obama was wrong.Sep 5th, 2008 - 06:57:20
OBAMA FINALLY ADMITS THE TROOP SURGE HE OPPOSED WAS A SUCCESS!
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Obama: Surge Succeeded Beyond ‘Wildest Dreams’
by FOXNews.com
The troop surge in Iraq has been more successful than anyone could have imagined, Barack Obama conceded Thursday in his first-ever interview on FOX News’ “The O’Reilly Factor.”
As recently as July, the Democratic presidential candidate declined to rate the surge a success, but said it had helped reduce violence in the country. On Thursday, Obama acknowledged the 2007 increase in U.S. troops has benefited the Iraqi people.
“I think that the surge has succeeded in ways that nobody anticipated,” Obama said while refusing to retract his initial opposition to the surge. “I’ve already said it’s succeeded beyond our wildest dreams.”
elections.foxnews.com/2008/09/04/obama-surge-succeeded-beyond-wildest-d reams
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Remember, Obama introduced legislation specifically directed at STOPPING the surge, the 'Iraq War De-escalation Act' which would have ensured an American defeat in Iraq and an oil funded terrorist state in the middle east.
McCain was right, Obama was wrong.
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