The most presidential lorem ipsum in history.
That we can have an idea and start our own business without paying a bribe. And God is still speaking. And yet, to wish away the resentments of white Americans, to label them as misguided or even racist, without recognizing they are grounded in legitimate concerns - this too widens the racial divide, and blocks the path to understanding. For we have a choice in this country. That is what it means to share this world in the 21st century.
More work to do for the workers I met in Galesburg, Ill., who are losing their union jobs at the Maytag plant that's moving to Mexico, and now are having to compete with their own children for jobs that pay seven bucks an hour. They're ready to turn the page on the old politics and the old policies - whether it's the war in Iraq or the health care crisis we're in, or a school system that's leaving too many kids behind despite the slogans. Not once in my conversations with him have I heard him talk about any ethnic group in derogatory terms, or treat whites with whom he interacted with anything but courtesy and respect.
We are one people, all of us pledging allegiance to the stars and stripes, all of us defending the United States of America. Well it's time for them to own their failure. I reject the view of some in the West that a woman who chooses to cover her hair is somehow less equal, but I do believe that a woman who is denied an education is denied equality.
And yet, to wish away the resentments of white Americans, to label them as misguided or even racist, without recognizing they are grounded in legitimate concerns - this too widens the racial divide, and blocks the path to understanding. The truth is, on issue after issue that would make a difference in your lives - on health care and education and the economy - Senator McCain has been anything but independent. Unlike Afghanistan, Iraq was a war of choice that provoked strong differences in my country and around the world. Suppressing ideas never succeeds in making them go away.
I suppose the politically safe thing would be to move on from this episode and just hope that it fades into the woodwork. It is time for these settlements to stop.
Thank you, God Bless you, and God Bless the United States of America.