President Obama in Virginia: “In just a few days, a century-long struggle will culminate in a historic vote.”
This morning, President Obama traveled across the Potomac to speak at George Mason University in Virginia, where he delivered his closing argument on health reform just days before a final vote in the House of Representatives:
A few miles from here, Congress is in the final stages of a fateful debate about the future of health insurance in America. It is a debate that has raged not just for the past year, but for much of the past century. It’s a debate that is not only about the cost of our health care but the character of our country – about whether we can still meet the challenges of our time; about whether we’re still a nation that gives its citizens a chance to reach their dreams.
... And in just a few days, a century-long struggle will culminate in a historic vote. We’ve had historic votes before. We had a historic vote to put Social Security in place to make sure that our elderly did not live out their golden years in poverty. We had a historic vote in civil rights to make sure that everybody was equal under the law. As messy as this process is, as frustrating as this process is, as ugly as this process can be, when we have faced such decisions in our past, this nation, time and time again, has chosen to extend its promise to more of its people.
... I know this has been a difficult journey. I know this will be a tough vote. I know that everybody is counting votes right now in Washington. But I also remember a quote I saw on a plaque in the White House the other day. It’s hanging in the same room where I demanded answers from insurance executives and just received a bunch of excuses. And it was a quote from Teddy Roosevelt, the person who first called for health care reform -- that Republican -- all those years ago. And it said, “Aggressively fighting for the right is the noblest sport the world affords.”
Now, I don’t know how passing health care will play politically -- but I know it’s right. Teddy Roosevelt knew it was right. Harry Truman knew that it was right. Ted Kennedy knew it was right.
And if you believe that it’s right, then you've got to help us finish this fight. You've got to stand with me just like you did three years ago and make some phone calls and knock on some doors, talk to your parents, talk to your friends. Do not quit, do not give up, we keep on going. We are going to get this done. We are going to make history. We are going to fix health care in America with your help.
Whether you've called your representative before or haven't yet spoken out on health reform, it's now time to raise your voice. Call your representative today.
UPDATED with highlights from today's speach:
