AP: Kerry to Say Strength More Than Words
"We need to be looked up to and not just feared," the Massachusetts senator was to say in excerpts of his address obtained in advance by The Associated Press. "The future doesn't belong to fear; it belongs to freedom."
I have to admit that he might do better than expected.
"For four years, we've heard a lot of talk about values. But values spoken without actions taken are just slogans," the Massachusetts senator was to say. He sought to expand the definition of political values -- from social issues such as abortion and gun control that favor Republicans in rural and suburban America to economic equality, health care reform and other Democratic standards.
"Values are not just words. They're what we live by. They're about the causes we champion and the people we fight for," Kerry was to say. "And it is time for those who talk about family values to start valuing families."
"Here at home, wages are falling, health care costs are rising, and our great middle class is shrinking," Kerry planned to say. "We can do better and we will. We're the optimists. For us, this is a country of the future. We're the can-do people.
"Let there be no mistake: I will never hesitate to use force when it is required. Any attack will be met with a swift and certain response," he was to say. "I will never give any nation or international institution a veto over our national security. And I will build a stronger American military."
Kerry was to promise to "ask hard questions and demand hard evidence," suggesting that Bush did neither in the runup to the Iraq (news - web sites) war. He was to promise to reform the intelligence system and follow through on recommendations of the Sept. 11 commission.
So tonight, in the city where America's freedom began, only a few blocks from where the sons and daughters of liberty gave birth to our nation, here tonight, on behalf of a new birth of freedom, on behalf of the middle class who deserve a champion and those struggling to join it who deserve a fair shot, for the brave men and women in uniform who risk their lives every day and the families who pray for their return, for all those who believe our best days are ahead of us, for all of you, with great faith in the American people, I accept your nomination for president of the United States."