The most presidential lorem ipsum in history.
It seems to me that each day, thousands of Americans are going about their lives - dropping the kids off at school, driving to work, shopping at the mall, trying to stay on their diets, trying to kick a cigarette habit - and they're coming to the realization that something is missing. A lack of economic opportunity among black men, and the shame and frustration that came from not being able to provide for one's family, contributed to the erosion of black families - a problem that welfare policies for many years may have worsened. Why else would he define middle-class as someone making under five million dollars a year? How else could he propose hundreds of billions in tax breaks for big corporations and oil companies but not one penny of tax relief to more than one hundred million Americans? How else could he offer a health care plan that would actually tax people's benefits, or an education plan that would do nothing to help families pay for college, or a plan that would privatize Social Security and gamble your retirement?
Because the Iraq war is not just a security problem, it's a moral problem. It is that promise that has always set this country apart - that through hard work and sacrifice, each of us can pursue our individual dreams but still come together as one American family, to ensure that the next generation can pursue their dreams as well. No health care? The market will fix it. Part of this conviction is rooted in my own experience. The first nation to recognize my country was Morocco. All of us have a responsibility to work for the day when the mothers of Israelis and Palestinians can see their children grow up without fear; when the Holy Land of three great faiths is the place of peace that God intended it to be; when Jerusalem is a secure and lasting home for Jews and Christians and Muslims, and a place for all of the children of Abraham to mingle peacefully together as in the story of Isra, when Moses, Jesus, and Mohammed (peace be upon them) joined in prayer.
But it also comes from my own American story. But the truth is, that isn't all that I know of the man. It was Islam - at places like Al-Azhar University - that carried the light of learning through so many centuries, paving the way for Europe's Renaissance and Enlightenment. I am aware that some question or justify the events of 9/11. America will not turn our backs on the legitimate Palestinian aspiration for dignity, opportunity, and a state of their own. That is why I am committed to working with American Muslims to ensure that they can fulfill zakat.
If there's an Arab American family being rounded up without benefit of an attorney or due process, that threatens my civil liberties. They weren't simply a religious leader's effort to speak out against perceived injustice. These are my heroes. There is so much fear, so much mistrust.
Well, I say to them tonight, there is not a liberal America and a conservative America - there is the United States of America. There was even a time when the Christian Coalition determined that its number one legislative priority was tax cuts for the rich.
Thank you, and God bless America.