You may call me a liberal!
courtesy Bully Pulpit, here is a transcript of Dean's closing remarks at teh Children's Defense Fund forum. If anyone has a transcript of the full speech, please let me know!
I have two advantages in this race. One of which I share with Bob Graham. I'm a physician and I'm a former governor. We've heard a lot of great things and I would be very happy to support the nominee of my party and I intend to do that vigorously... because I expect it to be me. (laughter) But the advantage of a doctor is that I know what happens when people don't have health insurance and we put health insurance in our state for everybody under 18 and I know how to do that for the United States. The advantage of a governor is that we home-visit 91% of the kids in our state, we've reduced the child abuse rate by 43% and those kids are going to go to college instead of prison 10 years from now.
You know, I want to thank my liberal friend Marian Wright Edelman. People have often called me a liberal too and I appreciate it. Because if being liberal means balancing the budget, which no Republican president has done that in 34 years, then you may call me a liberal. If being liberal means figuring out a way to have health insurance for every single american and joining every other industrialized country on the face of the earth then you may call me a liberal. If being a liberal means investing in early education which we have done and subsidizing child care for working people which we have done and making sure that child abuse is down and college attendance is up then you may call me a liberal.
I am tired of living in a country that's divided by race. I am tired of living in a country that's divided by income. I am tired of living in a country that's divided by gender. I am tired of living in a country that is divided. I want to be a president that brings this country back together. Where we admit again that we are responsible for each other and to each other. Where it's not only important for my kids to have health insurance but for my neighbor's kids to have health insurance. Where it's not only important for my kids to go to good schools but for my neighbor's children to go to good schools.
If you want to help us... deanforamerica.com (laughter).
Thank you very much.
What we're gonna do, we're gonna give young people a reason to vote again in this country. Let's go to it.
I have two advantages in this race. One of which I share with Bob Graham. I'm a physician and I'm a former governor. We've heard a lot of great things and I would be very happy to support the nominee of my party and I intend to do that vigorously... because I expect it to be me. (laughter) But the advantage of a doctor is that I know what happens when people don't have health insurance and we put health insurance in our state for everybody under 18 and I know how to do that for the United States. The advantage of a governor is that we home-visit 91% of the kids in our state, we've reduced the child abuse rate by 43% and those kids are going to go to college instead of prison 10 years from now.
You know, I want to thank my liberal friend Marian Wright Edelman. People have often called me a liberal too and I appreciate it. Because if being liberal means balancing the budget, which no Republican president has done that in 34 years, then you may call me a liberal. If being liberal means figuring out a way to have health insurance for every single american and joining every other industrialized country on the face of the earth then you may call me a liberal. If being a liberal means investing in early education which we have done and subsidizing child care for working people which we have done and making sure that child abuse is down and college attendance is up then you may call me a liberal.
I am tired of living in a country that's divided by race. I am tired of living in a country that's divided by income. I am tired of living in a country that's divided by gender. I am tired of living in a country that is divided. I want to be a president that brings this country back together. Where we admit again that we are responsible for each other and to each other. Where it's not only important for my kids to have health insurance but for my neighbor's kids to have health insurance. Where it's not only important for my kids to go to good schools but for my neighbor's children to go to good schools.
If you want to help us... deanforamerica.com (laughter).
Thank you very much.
What we're gonna do, we're gonna give young people a reason to vote again in this country. Let's go to it.
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