Transcript of Governor Edward Rendell's speechThe following is the transcript of The Honorable Governor Edward Rendell's speech before the Democratic National Convention on Wednesday, July 28, 2004:
My fellow Americans, my Democrats, my fellow Pennsylvanians -- thank you for that warm welcome. The greatness of the American people is that we are at our best in times of crisis. In 1945, America faced a Europe with a shattered infrastructure, a decimated economy, and threatened by an encroaching Soviet Union. To meet that challenge, we launched the Marshall Plan, formed NATO, and changed the course of history. Today, the crisis is on our shores. The challenge before us is here at home. The price of gas at the pump is at record levels. The cost of energy to run our factories is wreaking havoc on our industrial competitiveness. And families are finding it harder and harder to afford to heat their homes. Instead of responding with big ideas that put Americans to work, we are exporting jobs, exporting dollars, and we are exporting opportunity -- the opportunity to strengthen our economy by becoming the world's leader in new environmental technologies: the clean cars, efficient appliances, and alternative fuels that are the wave of the future. And more than that: because we lack a sound energy policy, we are forced to deal with tyrants who fund terrorists in order to keep the lights on in our homes and fuel in our cars. Our foreign policy is skewed. Our values are compromised. And we are paying a price. John Kerry said it best, "No young American solider should fight and die because of our dependence on foreign oil." My friends, we are losing jobs. Our economy is hurting. And middle-class families are feeling the squeeze all because America is dependent on foreign oil, oil that flows at the whim of world events ... and too often from the wells of dictators. John Kerry knows that to build a stronger America, we must do better. We can no longer rely on foreign oil fields to power our economy. We can no longer compromise the interests of our security just to make sure that the pipelines from faraway kingdoms flow freely. That is why, tonight - here in the birthplace of the American revolution - - we must declare our independence - our energy independence. We must elect a President to lead us toward a safer, stronger America free from the tyranny of foreign oil. We must elect John Kerry. John Kerry has a plan to move America away from its dependence on Mideast oil. First, to bring down our fuel costs, he will do what it takes to deliver clean natural gas to our factory doors in abundant supply -- and at a reasonable price. Continued... |
