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Republican Party Controlled by Special Interests
This administration and the special interests who control it lock, stock and barrel after barrel have performed this same sleight-of-hand on issue after issue. Some of the best marketers have the worst products, and this is certainly true of today's Republican Party.

The party itself has on its rolls men and women of great quality.

But the last eight years demonstrate that the special interests who have come to control the Republican Party are so powerful that serving them and serving the national well-being are now irreconcilable choices.


U.S. Needs Change from Bush, Cheney, McCain
So what can we do about it?

We can carry Barack Obama's message of hope and change to every family in America. And pledge that we will be there for him, not only in the heat of this election but in the aftermath as we put his agenda to work for our country.

We can tell Republicans and independents, as well as Democrats, exactly why our nation so badly needs a change from the approach of Bush, Cheney and McCain.

After they wrecked our economy, it is time for a change.

After they abandoned the search for the terrorists who attacked us and redeployed the troops to invade a nation that did not attack us, it's time for a change.

After they abandoned the principle first laid down by Gen. George Washington, when he prohibited the torture of captives because it would bring, in his words, "shame, disgrace and ruin" to our nation, it's time for a change.

Next President Could Appoint Three to Supreme Court
When as many as three Supreme Court justices could be appointed in the first term of the next president, and John McCain promises to appoint more Scalias and Thomases and end a woman's right to choose, it is time for a change.

Many people have been waiting for some sign that our country is ready for such change. How will we know when it's beginning to take hold?

I think we might recognize it as a sign of such change if we saw millions of young people getting involved for the first time in the political process.

This election is actually not close at all among younger voters; you are responding in unprecedented numbers to Barack Obama's message of change and hope.

You recognize that he represents a clean break from the politics of partisanship and bitter division.

Tired of Politics Based on Fear
You understand that the politics of the past are exhausted, and you're tired -- we're all tired -- of appeals based on fear.

You know that America is capable of better than what you have seen in recent years, and you are hungry for a new politics based on bipartisan respect for the ageless principles embodied in the United States Constitution.

There are times in the history of our nation when our very way of life depends upon awakening to the challenge of a present danger, shaking off complacency and rising, clear-eyed and alert, to the necessity of embracing change.

A century and a half ago, when America faced our greatest trial, the end of one era gave way to the birth of another.

Abraham Lincoln Also Inspired Hope
The candidate who emerged victorious in that election is now regarded by most historians as our greatest president.

Before he entered the White House, Abraham Lincoln's experience in elective office consisted of eight years in his state legislature in Springfield, Illinois, and one term in Congress, during which he showed courage and wisdom to oppose the invasion of another country in a war that was popular when it started but later condemned by history.

The experience that Lincoln's supporters valued most in that race was his powerful ability to inspire hope in the future at a time of impasse.

He was known chiefly as a clear thinker and a great orator with a passion for justice and a determination to heal the deep divisions of our land.

He insisted on reaching past partisan and regional divides to exalt our common humanity.

In 2008, once again, we find ourselves at the end of an era with a mandate from history to launch another new beginning.

Obama: Strong Character, Vision and Voice
And once again, we have a candidate whose experience perfectly matches an extraordinary moment of transition.

Barack Obama had the experience and wisdom to oppose a popular war based on faulty premises.

His leadership experience has given him a unique capacity to inspire hope in the promise of the American dream of a boundless future.

His experience has also given him genuine respect for different views and humility in the face of complex realities that cannot be squeezed into the narrow compartments of ideology.

His experience has taught him something that career politicians often overlook: that inconvenient truths must be acknowledged if we are to have wise governance.

The extraordinary strength of his personal character -- and that of his wonderful wife, Michelle, who gave such a magnificent address and will be such a wonderful first lady for this country -- their strength of character is grounded in the strengths of the American community.

Obama Represents the Best of America
His vision and his voice represent the best of America.

His life experience embodies the essence of our motto -- e pluribus unum -- out of many, one.

That is the linking identity at the other end of all the hyphens that pervade our modern political culture. It is that common American identity -- which Barack Obama exemplifies, heart and soul -- that enables us as Americans to speak with moral authority to all of the peoples of the world to inspire hope that we as human beings can transcend our limitations to redeem the promise of human freedom.

Late this evening, our convention will end with a benediction.

As we bow in reverence, remember the words of the old proverb: "When you pray, move your feet."

And then let us leave here tonight and take the message of hope from Denver to every corner of our land and do everything we can to serve our nation, our world and our children and their future by electing Barack Obama president of the United States of America.