NBC News - Democratic Convention - 1992-07-16 - 2 of 2 (partial)

Channel: malgent

Transcript

Language: English (original, YouTube automatic captions)

[0:00] We offer opportunity. We demand

[0:04] responsibility.

[0:06] We will build an American community

[0:08] again. The choice we offer is not

[0:11] conservative or liberal. In many ways,

[0:14] it's not even Republican or Democratic.

[0:17] It's different. It's new. And it will

[0:21] work.

[0:26] It will work because it is rooted in the

[0:29] vision and the values of the American

[0:32] people.

[0:34] Of all the things George Bush has ever

[0:37] said that I disagree with, perhaps the

[0:40] thing that bothers me most is how he

[0:43] derides and degrades the American

[0:47] tradition of seeing and seeking a better

[0:52] future.

[0:54] He mocks it as the vision thing.

[1:05] But just remember what the scripture

[1:08] says,

[1:09] where there is no vision, the people

[1:15] perish.

[1:24] I hope

[1:27] I hope nobody in this great hall tonight

[1:29] or in our beloved country has to go

[1:32] through tomorrow without a vision. I

[1:35] hope no one ever tries to raise a child

[1:37] without a vision. I hope nobody ever

[1:40] starts a business or plants a crop in

[1:43] the ground without a vision. For where

[1:46] there is no vision, the people perish.

[1:54] One of the reasons we have so many

[1:57] children in so much trouble in so many

[2:01] places in this nation is because they

[2:04] have seen so little opportunity,

[2:08] so little responsibility,

[2:10] so little loving, caring community that

[2:14] they literally cannot imagine the life

[2:18] we are calling them to lead.

[2:27] And so I say again, where there is no

[2:30] vision, America will perish.

[2:35] What is the vision of our new covenant?

[2:40] An America with millions of new jobs and

[2:43] dozens of new industries moving

[2:45] confidently toward the 21st century. an

[2:47] America that says to entrepreneurs and

[2:50] business people, we will give you more

[2:52] incentives and more opportunity than

[2:54] ever before to develop the skills of

[2:57] your workers and to create American jobs

[3:00] and American wealth in the new global

[3:03] economy.

[3:07] But

[3:10] you must do your part. You must be

[3:14] responsible. American companies must act

[3:17] like American companies again. Exporting

[3:20] products, not jobs.

[3:37] That's what this new covenant's all

[3:39] about. An America in which the doors of

[3:42] college are thrown open once again to

[3:45] the sons and daughters of stenographers

[3:48] and steel workers.

[3:52] We'll say everybody can borrow the money

[3:54] to go to college, but you must do your

[3:57] part. You must pay it back

[4:03] from your paychecks or better yet by

[4:06] going back home and serving your

[4:09] communities.

[4:17] Just think of it.

[4:19] Think of it. Millions of energetic young

[4:22] men and women serving their country by

[4:25] policing the streets or teaching the

[4:27] children or caring for the sick are

[4:30] working with the elderly and people with

[4:32] disabilities or helping young people to

[4:34] stay off drugs and out of gangs giving

[4:36] us all a sense of new hope and limitless

[4:40] possibilities. That's what this new

[4:42] covenant is all about.

[4:53] An America in which healthc care is a

[4:56] right, not a privilege.

[5:02] In which we say to all of our people,

[5:06] your government has the courage finally

[5:10] to take on the health care profiters and

[5:13] make health care affordable for every

[5:16] family.

[5:22] But

[5:24] you must do your part. Preventive care,

[5:27] prenatal care, childhood immunization,

[5:30] saving lives, saving money, saving

[5:33] families from heartbreak. That's what

[5:36] the new covenant is all about.

[5:40] An America in which middle class

[5:42] incomes, not middle class taxes are

[5:45] going up. An America, yes, in which the

[5:50] wealthiest few, those making over

[5:53] $200,000 a year, are asked to pay their

[5:57] fair share.

[6:02] An America

[6:04] in which the rich are not soaked, but

[6:07] the middle class is not drowned either.

[6:16] Responsibility starts at the top. That's

[6:20] what the new covenant is all about.

[6:23] An America where we end welfare as we

[6:26] know it. We will say to those on

[6:29] welfare, you will have and you deserve

[6:33] the opportunity through training and

[6:36] education, through child care and

[6:39] medical coverage to liberate yourself.

[6:48] But then when you can, you must work

[6:52] because welfare should be a check second

[6:54] chance, not a way of life.

[6:58] That's what the new covenant is all

[7:00] about.

[7:04] An America with the world's strongest

[7:06] defense, ready and willing to use force

[7:11] when necessary.

[7:13] and America at the forefront of the

[7:15] global effort to preserve and protect

[7:18] our common environment

[7:21] and promoting global growth. An America

[7:24] that will not coddle tyrants from

[7:28] Baghdad to Beijing.

[7:39] An America that champions the cause of

[7:42] freedom and democracy from Eastern

[7:45] Europe to Southern Africa and in our own

[7:49] hemisphere in Haiti and Cuba.

[8:01] The end of the Cold War permits us to

[8:05] reduce defense spending while still

[8:07] maintaining the strongest defense in the

[8:10] world.

[8:11] But we must plow back every dollar of

[8:16] defense cuts into building American jobs

[8:19] right here at home.

[8:29] I know well that the world needs a

[8:32] strong America, but we have learned that

[8:35] strength begins at home.

[8:44] But the new covenant is about more than

[8:46] opportunities and responsibilities for

[8:49] you and your families.

[8:51] It's also about our common community.

[8:55] Tonight,

[8:59] every one of you knows,

[9:03] deep in your heart,

[9:06] that we are too divided.

[9:12] It is time to heal America.

[9:23] And so

[9:25] we must say

[9:29] to every American,

[9:31] look beyond the stereotypes that blind

[9:35] us.

[9:37] We need each other. All of us. We need

[9:40] each other.

[9:42] We don't have a person to waste.

[9:46] And yet for too long politicians have

[9:50] told the most of us that are doing all

[9:52] right that what's really wrong with

[9:55] America is the rest of us.

[9:59] Them

[10:01] them the minorities

[10:04] them the liberals.

[10:07] Them the poor.

[10:11] Them the homeless. Them the people with

[10:14] disabilities. them the gay. We've gotten

[10:17] to where we've nearly ourselves to

[10:20] death. Them and them and them.

[10:35] But

[10:39] this is America.

[10:43] There is no them. There is only us.

[11:00] One nation

[11:03] under God,

[11:06] indivisible,

[11:08] with liberty and justice for all.

[11:33] That

[11:35] that is our pledge of allegiance and

[11:40] that's what the new covenant is all

[11:44] about.

[11:51] How do I know we can come together and

[11:54] make change happen? Because I have seen

[11:57] it in my own state. In Arkansas, we're

[12:01] working together and we're making

[12:03] progress.

[12:05] No, there's no Arkansas miracle, but

[12:08] there are a lot of miraculous people.

[12:16] And because of them,

[12:19] our schools are better, our wages are

[12:22] higher, our factories are busier, our

[12:26] water is cleaner, and our budget is

[12:28] balanced. We're moving ahead.

[12:35] I wish I wish I could say the same thing

[12:39] about America under the incumbent

[12:42] president.

[12:44] He took the richest country in the world

[12:48] and brought it down.

[12:53] We took one of the poorest states in

[12:56] America and lifted it up.

[13:03] And so

[13:06] I say all to all of those in this

[13:09] campaign season who would criticize

[13:12] Arkansas,

[13:13] come on down.

[13:19] Especially

[13:21] Especially if you're from Washington,

[13:24] come on down.

[13:30] Sure, you'll see us struggling against

[13:33] some of the problems we haven't solved

[13:35] yet, but you'll also see a lot of great

[13:39] people doing amazing things, and you

[13:43] might even learn a thing or two.

[13:49] In the end, my fellow Americans,

[13:52] this new covenant simply asks us all to

[13:57] be Americans again.

[14:00] Oldfashioned Americans for a new time.

[14:04] Opportunity,

[14:06] responsibility,

[14:09] community.

[14:10] When we pull together, America will pull

[14:15] ahead. Throughout the whole history of

[14:18] this country, we have seen time and time

[14:21] and time again, when we are united, we

[14:24] are unstoppable.

[14:31] We can seize this moment, make it

[14:34] exciting and energizing and heroic to be

[14:37] American again. WE CAN RENEW OUR FAITH

[14:40] IN EACH other and in ourselves. We can

[14:44] restore our sense of unity and

[14:46] community. As the scripture says, our

[14:49] eyes have not yet seen, nor our ears

[14:52] heard, nor our minds imagine what we can

[14:56] build.

[15:04] But I I can't do this alone. No

[15:07] president can. We must do it together.

[15:11] It won't be easy and it won't be quick.

[15:15] We didn't get into this mess overnight

[15:17] and we won't get out of it overnight.

[15:20] But we can do it with commitment,

[15:24] CREATIVITY, DIVERSITY, and drive.

[15:29] We can do it.

[15:35] WE CAN DO IT. WE CAN DO IT. WE CAN DO

[15:39] IT. WE CAN DO IT. WE CAN DO IT. WE CAN

[15:43] DO IT.

[15:57] I WANT EVERY PERSON in this hall and

[16:01] every person in this land to reach out

[16:04] and join us in a great new adventure to

[16:08] chart a bold new future. As a teenager,

[16:12] I heard John Kennedy's summons to

[16:15] citizenship.

[16:17] And then as a student at Georgetown, I

[16:20] heard that call clarified by a professor

[16:23] named Carol Quigley, who said to us that

[16:28] America was the greatest nation in

[16:31] history because our people had always

[16:35] believed in two things. that tomorrow

[16:39] can be better than today and that every

[16:42] one of us has a personal moral

[16:45] responsibility to make it. So

[16:57] that

[16:59] that kind of future

[17:02] entered my life the night our daughter

[17:05] Chelsea was born.

[17:08] As I stood in the delivery room,

[17:11] I was overcome with the thought that God

[17:15] had given me a blessing my own father

[17:18] never knew. The chance to hold my child

[17:23] in my arms.

[17:26] Somewhere at this very moment, a child

[17:30] is being born in America.

[17:35] Let it be our cause to give that child a

[17:39] health a happy home, a healthy family,

[17:43] and a hopeful future.

[17:46] Let it be our cause to see that that

[17:49] child has a chance to live to the

[17:51] fullest of her God-given capacities.

[17:58] Let it

[18:00] let it be our cause to see that child

[18:03] grow up strong and secure, embraced by

[18:06] her challenges, but never struggling

[18:08] alone with family and friends and a

[18:11] faith that in America no one is left

[18:16] out. No one is left behind.

[18:27] Let it be,

[18:29] let it be our cause that when this child

[18:31] is able, she gives something back to her

[18:34] children, her community, and her

[18:36] country. Let it be our cause that we

[18:39] give this child a country that is coming

[18:41] together, not coming apart. A country of

[18:45] boundless hopes and endless dreams. A

[18:48] country that once again lifts its people

[18:51] and inspires the world. Let that be our

[18:54] cause, our commitment, and our new

[18:58] covenant.

[19:10] My fellow Americans,

[19:14] I end tonight

[19:17] where it all began for me.

[19:21] I still believe in a place called hope.

[19:26] God bless you and God bless America.

[19:40] Democratic presidential nominee Bill

[19:42] Clinton spelling out at great length

[19:44] what he calls the new covenant for

[19:46] America.

[19:49] The new covenant in this speech is a

[19:50] catalog of all the ills that he sees

[19:53] then all the cures that he'll bring to

[19:55] America.

[19:57] This is a candidate who doesn't like

[19:59] long speeches. He spoke for almost an

[20:01] hour tonight, just over 53 minutes

[20:03] altogether. He began with a joke about

[20:05] his speech four years ago at the

[20:08] Democratic National Convention in which

[20:09] he nominated Michael Dakus by saying he

[20:12] wanted to finish that speech.

[20:16] Portrayed himself as a moderate Democrat

[20:18] from humble beginnings. He has a special

[20:21] political relationship especially with

[20:23] women and the young. two constituencies.

[20:26] The Democrats are counting on

[20:29] talk to great length about family

[20:30] values,

[20:33] our children, our hope and about change

[20:36] in our

[20:47] um what a lot of people will be talking

[20:50] about is the length of the speech. We

[20:51] ran about 23 or 24 minutes longer than

[20:54] the schedule called for yesterday. In

[20:57] what was quite a funny remark, Governor

[21:00] Clinton, who had spoken too long here in

[21:02] previous previous convention, said he

[21:05] didn't want this to be his finest hour

[21:07] and a half. It didn't run that long, but

[21:09] to a lot of people in this hall, I'm

[21:11] afraid it felt that it was an hour and a

[21:14] half. And I think a lot of people will

[21:16] be talking about that. You're not the

[21:18] joyous part of those people.

[21:21] Totally give him his due. He wanted to

[21:23] define himself and what he stands for

[21:25] tonight.

[21:27] You do get the impression that Tipper

[21:29] and Hillary go along.

[21:35] We want to define what he stands for,

[21:37] who he is. There's been continuing

[21:39] concern within the campaign that many

[21:42] people believe that he is the son of

[21:44] privilege, that he came from a wealthy

[21:46] background in Arkansas.

[21:49] I think he dispelled that. I think he

[21:52] did a very good job of of saying who he

[21:56] is and where he came from.

[22:00] For the for the record, 64,000 balloons

[22:04] will be dropped here.

[22:20] I think as some young man dream of being

[22:22] concert violinist or major league

[22:25] baseball players

[22:27] or doctors, Bill Clinton, knowing him as

[22:30] I do, has always dreamed that someday he

[22:32] would be here as a man destined to run

[22:37] foreign policy

[22:40] when he went to Washington DC

[22:43] representative state nation

[22:50] govern when he was 32 years old

[22:52] certified

[23:04] left And by the way,

[23:07] so

[23:08] we had a freeway

[23:12] system.

[23:23] Some new polls out tonight showing that

[23:25] Bill Clinton has a very commanding lead

[23:28] over George Bush in a two-way race now

[23:30] that has dropped out. These are just

[23:32] snapshots and they come uh at 18 moments

[23:36] ago but CNN is reporting tonight that

[23:40] has a 56 to 33% lead over George Porch

[23:45] 23 points altogether.

[23:50] These events always give the candidate a

[23:52] bump.

[23:54] The larger question will be as this all

[23:56] settles in now, what happens to those

[23:57] voters

[23:59] and then what do the Republicans do to

[24:01] the Democrats? Because surely they have

[24:03] something in mind in the coming weeks.

[24:19] Well, John, we uh we're coming to the

[24:22] conclusion here of this evening of Bill

[24:24] Clinton and the Democrats. They have put

[24:26] the party back together. And I think you

[24:28] know the one of the great

[24:31] tomic important things that happens at

[24:33] these conventions is they appear to be

[24:36] getting all the balloons out of those

[24:37] nets. Uh I've always thought that I

[24:40] suppose you could find a rule that say

[24:42] if the party can't handle the balloons,

[24:44] it loses the election.

[24:46] Well, you know that happened in San

[24:48] Francisco.

[24:50] I remember

[24:52] they're almost

[24:54] done with the

[24:56] >> This is a very big moment and a very big

[24:59] night for Bill Clinton. But we must all

[25:00] remember that every week this year. We

[25:03] have a new campaign.

[25:05] Bill Clinton and Al Goro will attempt to

[25:07] capitalize on the goodwill that you see

[25:08] there tonight the unified centrist

[25:11] party.

[25:12] But they must see now what the

[25:14] Republicans have for them. On behalf of

[25:17] all of us at NBC News, this has been our

[25:19] coverage of the week of the Democratic

[25:20] National Convention. We bid you good

[25:23] evening and we'll see you along the

[25:24] campaign trail. Certainly Republicans.

[25:28] Thank you all.

[25:53] Heat

[26:00] up

[26:04] here.

[26:07] Heat.

[26:27] Heat.

[27:00] 9 days until the Olympic. picks here on

[27:03] NBC.

[27:08] >> Two minute stations, we will be coming

[27:10] out in 2 minutes. 2 minutes.

[27:18] 29 0 0. We'll be coming out at 2900 0.

[27:23] Do we get a sign? 2900 0.

[27:39] 90 seconds away. 90 seconds away.

[27:51] Heat. Heat.

[28:12] One minute.

[28:17] >> Okay, stations. The generic hits at 29 0

[28:20] 29 0 0