Realizing The American Dream

I’m asking you to believe. Not just in my ability to bring about change—but in yours. Because we’ve got a lot of work to do. To grow this economy; to restore the middle class to its rightful place; to fulfill our responsibility to make tomorrow better than today and guarantee that the American dream is once again well and alive in this country that we love

[Op-Ed]

I wanted to take a moment today to thank all of you. Not just for the work you did in yesterday’s elections but for your work over the past two, three, or for some of you even four years.

Many of you joined this movement in the first place because you believe that this is the time when the decisions we make about the challenges we face will shape the lives of our children and our grand children for decades to come and from the beginning our work was never just about putting a president in the White House.

It was about building a movement for change that endures. It was never just about what I would do. It was about what we as a people would do together from the ground up.

One community at a time.

So you’ve got hundreds of thousands of Americans involved and engaged. Some for the first time; some for the first time in a very long time. You knocked on doors and made phone calls and cast your votes. You’ve done incredible work on issue after issue. On healthreform; on Wall Street reform; on student loans reforms. Change that is already having a real and positive impact on people’s lives.

And in this election, over the past six months you’ve reached out to over 80 million American voters.
All of this is only possible because you’ve devoted your most precious resource–your time and your energy to the hard work of change.

Delivering that change isn’t easy–believe me I know. Some of you won hard fought victories yesterday; but some of you experienced setbacks too and I know how that feels. As an organizer, as a candidate, as a U.S. senator, and as a president, I have known my shares of defeats. But don’t ever let anybody tell you that your efforts don’t matter or that your voice doesn’t count.

Don’t ever believe that you can’t make a difference. Because you have. Because of you there is a woman in New Hampshire who no longer has to choose between losing her home and treating her cancer. Because of you there are small business owners who can keep their doors open–and parents who can look their children in the eyes and tell them they’re going to college.

Because of you there are nearly 100,000 brave men and women who are no longer at war in Iraq. That’s because of you.

So, I’m asking you once again, what I’ve asked of you from the moment we began this journey. I’m asking you to believe. Not just in my ability to bring about change—but in yours.

Because we’ve got a lot of work to do. To grow this economy; to restore the middle class to its rightful place; to fulfill our responsibility to make tomorrow better than today and guarantee that the American dream is once again well and alive in this country that we love.

Together that’s what we’re going to do–with you.
 
 

“Speaking Truth To Empower.”

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