Barack Obama Presidential Victory Speech

Hello,Chicago!
If there is anyone out there
who still doubts that America is a place where all things are possible
who still wonders if the dream of our founders is alive in our time
who still questions the power of our democracy
tonight is your answer
It's the answer told by lines that stretched around schools and churches
in numbers this nation has never seen
by people who waited three hours and four hours,many for the very first time in their lives
because they believed that this time must be different
that their voice could be that difference
It's the answer spoken by young and old
rich and poor,Democrat and Republican
black,white,Latino,Asian,Native American,gay,straight,disabled and not disabled
Americans who sent a message to the world that we have never been a collection of Red States and Blue States:
we are,and always will be,the United States of America.
It's the answer that led those who have been told for so long
by so many to be cynical and fearful
and doubtful of what we can achieve to put their hands on the arc of history
and bend it once more toward the hope of a better day
It's been a long time coming
but tonight,because of what we did on this day
in this election,at this defining moment,change has come to America
I received a very gracious call from Senator McCain
Senator McCain fought long and hard in this campaign
and he's fought even longer and harder for the country he loves
He has endured sacrifices for America
that most of us cannot begin to imagine
we are better off for the service rendered by this brave and selfless leader
I congratulate him
I congratulate him and Governor Palin for all they have achieved
and I look forward to working with them
to renew this nation's promise in the months ahead
I want to thank my partner in this journey
a man who campaigned from his heart
and spoke for the men and women he grew up with on the streets of Scranton
and rode with on that train home to Delaware
the Vice President-elect of the United States,Joe Biden
I would not be standing here tonight without the unyielding support
of my best friend for the last sixteen years
the rock of our family and the love of my life
the nation's next First Lady,Michelle Obama
Sasha and Malia,I love you both more than you can imagine
and you have earned the new puppy that's coming with us to the White House
And while she's no longer with us
I know my grandmother is watching
along with the family that made me who I am
I miss them tonight
and know that my debt to them is beyond measure
To my sister Maya,my sister Alma,
all my other brothers and sisters,thank you so much for all the support that you've given me.
I am grateful to them
To my campaign manager David Plouffe
the unsung hero of this campaign,who built the best -
the best political campaign,I think,in the history of the United States of America.
To my chief strategist David Axelrod
who's been a partner with me every step of the way
to the best campaign team ever assembled in the history of politics
you made this happen,and I am forever grateful
for what you've sacrificed to get it done
But above all,I will never forget who this victory truly belongs to
it belongs to you
it belongs to you
I was never the likeliest candidate for this office
We didn't start with much money or many endorsements
Our campaign was not hatched in the halls of Washington
it began in the backyards of Des Moines
and the living rooms of Concord and the front porches of Charleston
It was built by working men and women who dug into what little savings they had to give five dollars
and ten dollars and twenty dollars to this cause
It grew strength from the young people who rejected the myth of their generation's apathy
who left their homes and their families for jobs that offered little pay and less sleep
It drew strength from the not-so-young people
who braved the bitter cold and scorching heat to knock on the doors of perfect strangers
from the millions of Americans who volunteered,and organized
and proved that more than two centuries later,a government of the people
by the people and for the people has not perished from this Earth. This is your victory
I know you didn't do this just to win an election
and I know you didn't do it for me
You did it because you understand the enormity of the task that lies ahead
For even as we celebrate tonight
we know the challenges that tomorrow will bring are the greatest of our lifetime -
two wars,a planet in peril
the worst financial crisis in a century
Even as we stand here tonight,we know there are brave Americans
waking up in the deserts of Iraq
and the mountains of Afghanistan to risk their lives for us
There are mothers and fathers who will lie awake after their children fall asleep and wonder
how they'll make the mortgage
or pay their doctor's bills,or save enough for their child's college education
There is new energy to harness
and new jobs to be created,new schools to build
and threats to meet and alliances to repair
The road ahead will be long
Our climb will be steep
We may not get there in one year or even one term
but America - I have never been more hopeful than I am tonight that we will get there
I promise you - we as a people will get there
There will be setbacks and false starts
There are many who won't agree with every decision or policy I make as President
and we know that government can't solve every problem
But I will always be honest with you about the challenges we face
I will listen to you
especially when we disagree
And above all,I will ask you join in the work of remaking this nation
the only way it's been done in America for two-hundred and twenty-one years
block by block,brick by brick,calloused hand by calloused hand
What began twenty-one months ago
in the depths of winter must not end on this autumn night
This victory alone is not the change we seek
it is only the chance for us to make that change
And that cannot happen if we go back to the way things were
It cannot happen without you
without a new spirit of service,a new spirit of sacrifice
So let us summon a new spirit of patriotism
of service and responsibility where each of us resolves to pitch in
and work harder and look after not only ourselves,but each other
Let us remember that if this financial crisis taught us anything
it's that we cannot have a thriving Wall Street while Main Street suffers
in this country,we rise or fall as one nation,as one people
Let us resist the temptation to fall back on the same partisanship and pettiness
and immaturity that has poisoned our politics for so long
Let us remember that it was a man from this state
who first carried the banner of the Republican Party to the White House
a party founded on the values of self-reliance,individual liberty,and national unity
Those are values we all share
and while the Democratic Party has won a great victory tonight,
we do so with a measure of humility
and determination to heal the divides that have held back our progress
As Lincoln said to a nation far more divided than ours,
"We are not enemies,but friends...
though passion may have strained it must not break our bonds of affection. "
And to those Americans whose support I have yet to earn
I may not have won your vote tonight
but I hear your voices
I need your help
and I will be your President too
And to all those watching tonight from beyond our shores
from parliaments and palaces to those
who are huddled around radios in the forgotten corners of our world
our stories are singular,but our destiny is shared
and a new dawn of American leadership is at hand
To those who would tear this world down
we will defeat you
To those who seek peace and security - we support you
And to all those who have wondered if America's beacon still burns as bright
tonight we proved once more that the true strength of our nation
comes not from our the might of our arms or the scale of our wealth
but from the enduring power of our ideals:
democracy,liberty,opportunity,and unyielding hope
that is the true genius of America
that America can change
Our union can be perfected
what we have already achieved gives us hope for what we can and must achieve tomorrow.
This election had many firsts and many stories that will be told for generations.
But one that's on my mind tonight is about a woman who cast her ballot in Atlanta
She's a lot like the millions of others who stood in line to make their voice heard in this election
except for one thing - Ann Nixon Cooper is 106 years old.
She was born just a generation past slavery
a time when there were no cars on the road or planes in the sky
when someone like her couldn't vote for two reasons
because she was a woman and because of the color of her skin
And tonight,I think about all that she's seen throughout her century in America
the heartache and the hope
the struggle and the progress
the times we were told that we can't
and the people who pressed on with that American creed: Yes we can.
At a time when women's voices were silenced and their hopes dismissed
she lived to see them stand up and speak out and reach for the ballot
Yes we can
When there was despair in the dust bowl and depression across the land
she saw a nation conquer fear itself with a New Deal
new jobs and a new sense of common purpose
Yes we can
When the bombs fell on our harbor and tyranny threatened the world
she was there to witness a generation rise to greatness
and a democracy was saved
Yes we can
She was there for the buses in Montgomery
the hoses in Birmingham,a bridge in Selma
and a preacher from Atlanta who told a people that "We Shall Overcome. "
Yes we can
A man touched down on the moon
a wall came down in Berlin
a world was connected by our own science and imagination
And this year
in this election
she touched her finger to a screen
and cast her vote
because after 106 years in America
through the best of times and the darkest of hours
she knows how America can change
Yes we can
America,we have come so far
We have seen so much
But there is so much more to do
So tonight,let us ask ourselves
if our children should live to see the next century
if my daughters should be so lucky to live as long as Ann Nixon Cooper
what change will they see?
What progress will we have made?
This is our chance to answer that call
This is our moment
This is our time - to put our people back to work
and open doors of opportunity for our kids
to restore prosperity and promote the cause of peace
to reclaim the American Dream and reaffirm that fundamental truth -
out of many,we are one
that while we breathe,we hope
and where we are met with cynicism,and doubt,
and those who tell us that we can't
we will respond with that timeless creed that sums up the spirit of a people:
Yes We Can
Thank you,God bless you
and may God Bless the United States of America.