Text of Joseph Biden's speechNearly 100 years ago, the great Irish poet William Butler Yeats told us the world has "changed utterly ... A terrible beauty has been born." Tonight, our country stands at the hinge of history. America's destiny is at stake. But we can shape that destiny, if we seize the opportunities before us.
The overwhelming obligation of our next President is clear. Make America stronger. Make America safer. And win the death-struggle between freedom and radical fundamentalism. That struggle breached our shores on September 11th, 2001, and delivered this generation of Americans to this moment of awesome responsibility. After 9/11, I believed -- and still do -- that if we exercised the full measure of our power -- including our ideas and our ideals -- we could unite this nation and other nations in common cause. 9/11 was a moment of profound pain, but also enormous opportunity. Americans stood in blood lines for hours -- even though no more blood was needed. The French ran a headline that said: "We Are All Americans Now." Imagine how Franklin Roosevelt or John Kennedy would have seized that moment. Imagine if this president had spoken to the nation and the world and summoned that sense of solidarity. Imagine if he had said: "It's time for all who are able to do something for America. I'm calling for a new program of national service and an energy policy that will liberate us from the suffocating grip of Middle East oil. And I call on our allies to join us in a compact for freedom, because we are always stronger -- safer -- better -- more secure together than we are alone." Just imagine. I do not question the motives of this administration. But I profoundly disagree with their judgments. History will judge them harshly not for the mistakes made -- we all make mistakes -- but for the opportunities squandered. Today, we are rightly confident in the example of our power. But we have forgotten the power of our example. And for all of America's great might, we are more alone in the world than ever before. As a result, we are less secure than we could or should be. Our allies and friends, the international organizations we have built over the past half-century do not hold America down. They help us share the burdens of leadership. We were told we would pay no price for going it alone. That was wrong. Because we waged the war in Iraq virtually alone, we are responsible for the aftermath virtually alone. The price is clear. Nearly 90 percent of the troops and the casualties are American. And because intelligence was hyped to justify going to war, America's credibility and security have suffered a terrible blow. Continued... |
