2008 Republican National Convention/Meg Whitman's Republican National Convention speech
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| Delivered at the Republican National Convention at the Xcel Energy Center in Saint Paul, MN on 3 September 2008. |
Well good evening, and thank you for that very kind welcome.
As a young girl growing up on Long Island, and as a wife and mother who raised two boys in my beautiful home state of California, and even as president and CEO of a Fortune 500 company, I never dreamed I’d have the honor of speaking to my fellow Americans in such a critical moment in our nation’s history.
When I was growing up, opportunities for women were still limited. And when I went to college and graduate school, I lived in environments that had just recently admitted women and were still getting used to having us around. And when I began my business career, females executives were still a novelty, and many of our male colleagues still questioned whether we’d make it. But my parents – especially my mom – inspired me. She’d constantly remind me that I could be anything I wanted to be; I just had to earn it.
And mom believed in America. She knew: if I worked hard and delivered the results, I would succeed in this remarkable nation. So from an early age, I was an optimist about America. And I am a Republican because our party understands that America’s success – the success of Her people – comes not from the size of its government, but from the character of its citizens, the strength of its communities, and the nobility and truth of its ideals.
Tonight, delegates from this Convention will choose our nominee. We are proudly the party of Abraham Lincoln, Teddy Roosevelt and Ronald Reagan. And today, we are proudly the party of John McCain. I’ve known Senator McCain for several years, and the more I’ve gotten to know John, the more my admiration for him has grown. John’s pride in America, and his believe in its spirits, are electrifying, and I can say with certainty that when he’s sitting in the Oval Office, in every decision he makes, President McCain will put his country first.
For John, putting country first is the calling of a lifetime. He lives by a code of honor that is unmatched by anyone in American politics, and on the most important duties we place on a President, John is more prepared to lead than any person in America. Now: America faces challenges abroad, but we also face great challenges here at home, and it would be foolish to deny what we all know to be true.
Our economy is struggling, and Americans are hurting. We live in a time of economic anxiety and hardships. The cost of everything – from gasoline to groceries to health care – has gone up, while the value of our homes and our investments have gone down. Mortgages once thought to be safe are now threatened, and industries once strong are now dying.
Since John began his campaign, he’s heard the concern in your voices and your stories. The stories of hard-working Americans who believe that politicians are out-of-touch, and out of ideas. Now that may be true of some politicians, but it is not true of John McCain. John’s a different breed. He understands hardship in a way that few of us have ever known. Most important of all, Senator McCain and Governor Sarah Palin – the real agents of change in this campaign – have solutions for the challenges we face.
In its first hundred days, a McCain Administration will put this nation on a path toward energy independence. John is a man with extraordinary determination, and he will push relentlessly for the right energy policies – from lifting the ban on off-shore drilling to building more nuclear reactors to promoting conservation and alternative forms of energy.
Energy independence will also stop massive amounts of money from going to our enemies abroad; it will lower gas prices at home; and it will reduce the harm to our planet’s climate. Energy independence must be our generation’s moonshot, and John McCain and Sarah Palin will lead us in that historic effort. Senator McCain and Governor Palin will also lead us in another vital effort: lowering your taxes.
In his first hundred days in office, they will put forward proposals to double the size of the child tax exemption, putting more money in consumers’ pockets. They will push Congress to reduce businesses taxes, so that entrepreneurs, and especially small businesses, have the money they need to expand and create jobs. And they will offer tax incentives to every individual and family in America to buy health insurance. And John McCain and Sarah Palin will simplify our mind-numbing tax codes so that filling out your taxes is not a dreaded annual nightmare.
Our Democratic opponents view raising taxes as a measure of their compassion and fairness. John understands the truth: higher taxes encourage wasteful spending, demonstrates government’s inability to choose among competing priorities, and destroys your prosperity. As President, John McCain will be guided by simple beliefs: that having worked long hours to earn your money, you should keep more of it, and that government shouldn’t spend more than it takes in.
The same kind of frank, common-sense conversations every American family has – about the need to balance the checkbook, living within your means, and tightening the belt during hard times – are the conversations John will have with members of Congress. And they will listen.
Now: Republicans know that John’s solutions rest on a sense of principles that are true and tested and enduring. Foremost among them is his belief that there is no challenge that cannot be overcome by individual freedom. Government does have a vital role to play in our life, and it should be effective and efficient in meeting its fundamental responsibilities. But Republicans understand that government does not create wealth or prosperity: individuals do.
America is all about the inspired individual. Men and women who are free to pursue dreams and ambitions in a society that encourages creativity, industry, advancement, and risk-taking. Now, John McCain doesn’t want to tax success and achievement: he wants to encourage it. He doesn’t want to redistribute our national wealth: he wants to increase it. He doesn’t want more big government: he wants much more self-government.
And John McCain understands that you know what is best for your money, your family, your community, and your life. Now, John’s principles run like a golden thread throughout our history. This has made America’s story the greatest and proudest and most hopeful of any in history. Make no mistake: Americans face tough challenges today, and sometimes there is a temptation for us, having born freedoms burdens for so long, to grow tired.
But when Americans have faced their greatest hardships, they have written history’s greatest chapters, and we’re going to do it again. The solutions to the problems of our time our found in the ingenuity, spirit, determination, and decency of the American people. All we need is a leader who recognizes this, and who can – by virtue of his character, and his love of country – call us to do great things.
When the American people cast their vote in November, they will do what they have always done: they will put country first. They will choose John McCain as our next President of the United States.
Thank you very much.
