1、First Lady Michelle Obama:Thank you so much, Elainewe are so grateful for your familys service and sacrificeand we will always have your back.Over the past few years as First Lady, I have had the extraordinary privilege of traveling all across this country.And everywhere Ive gone, in the people Ive
2、met, and the stories Ive heard, I have seen the very best of the American spirit.I have seen it in the incredible kindness and warmth that people have shown me and my family, especially our girls.Ive seen it in teachers in a near-bankrupt school district who vowed to keep teaching without pay.Ive se
3、en it in people who become heroes at a moments notice, diving into harms way to save othersflying across the country to put out a firedriving for hours to bail out a flooded town.And Ive seen it in our men and women in uniform and our proud military familiesin wounded warriors who tell me theyre not
4、 just going to walk again, theyre going to run, and theyre going to run marathonsin the young man blinded by a bomb in Afghanistan who said, simply, “Id give my eyes 100 times again to have the chance to do what I have done and what I can still do.”Every day, the people I meet inspire meevery day, t
5、hey make me proudevery day they remind me how blessed we are to live in the greatest nation on earth.Serving as your First Lady is an honor and a privilegebut back when we first came together four years ago, I still had some concerns about this journey wed begun.While I believed deeply in my husband
6、s vision for this countryand I was certain he would make an extraordinary Presidentlike any mother, I was worried about what it would mean for our girls if he got that chance.How would we keep them grounded under the glare of the national spotlight?How would they feel being uprooted from their schoo
7、l, their friends, and the only home theyd ever known?Our life before moving to Washington was filled with simple joysSaturdays at soccer games, Sundays at grandmas houseand a date night for Barack and me was either dinner or a movie, because as an exhausted mom, I couldnt stay awake for both.And the
8、 truth is, I loved the life we had built for our girlsI deeply loved the man I had built that life withand I didnt want that to change if he became President.I loved Barack just the way he was.You see, even though back then Barack was Senator and a presidential candidateto me, he was still the guy w
9、hod picked me up for our dates in a car that was so rusted out, I could actually see the pavement going by through a hole in the passenger side doorhe was the guy whose proudest possession was a coffee table hed found in a dumpster, and whose only pair of decent shoes was half a size too small.But w
10、hen Barack started telling me about his family thats when I knew I had found a kindred spirit, someone whose values and upbringing were so much like mine.You see, Barack and I were both raised by families who didnt have much in the way of money or material possessions but who had given us something
11、far more valuable their unconditional love, their unflinching sacrifice, and the chance to go places they had never imagined for themselves.My father was a pump operator at the city water plant, and he was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis when my brother and I were young.And even as a kid, I knew t
12、here were plenty of days when he was in painI knew there were plenty of mornings when it was a struggle for him to simply get out of bed.But every morning, I watched my father wake up with a smile, grab his walker, prop himself up against the bathroom sink, and slowly shave and button his uniform.An
13、d when he returned home after a long days work, my brother and I would stand at the top of the stairs to our little apartment, patiently waiting to greet himwatching as he reached down to lift one leg, and then the other, to slowly climb his way into our arms.But despite these challenges, my dad har
14、dly ever missed a day of workhe and my mom were determined to give me and my brother the kind of education they could only dream of.And when my brother and I finally made it to college, nearly all of our tuition came from student loans and grants.But my dad still had to pay a tiny portion of that tu
15、ition himself.And every semester, he was determined to pay that bill right on time, even taking out loans when he fell short.He was so proud to be sending his kids to collegeand he made sure we never missed a registration deadline because his check was late.You see, for my dad, thats what it meant t
16、o be a man.Like so many of us, that was the measure of his success in life being able to earn a decent living that allowed him to support his family.And as I got to know Barack, I realized that even though hed grown up all the way across the country, hed been brought up just like me.Barack was raise
17、d by a single mother who struggled to pay the bills, and by grandparents who stepped in when she needed help.Baracks grandmother started out as a secretary at a community bankand she moved quickly up the ranksbut like so many women, she hit a glass ceiling.And for years, men no more qualified than s
18、he was men she had actually trained were promoted up the ladder ahead of her, earning more and more money while Baracks family continued to scrape by.But day after day, she kept on waking up at dawn to catch the busarriving at work before anyone elsegiving her best without complaint or regret.And sh
19、e would often tell Barack, “So long as you kids do well, Bar, thats all that really matters.”Like so many American families, our families werent asking for much.They didnt begrudge anyone elses success or care that others had much more than they didin fact, they admired it.They simply believed in th
20、at fundamental American promise that, even if you dont start out with much, if you work hard and do what youre supposed to do, then you should be able to build a decent life for yourself and an even better life for your kids and grandkids.Thats how they raised usthats what we learned from their exam
21、ple.We learned about dignity and decency that how hard you work matters more than how much you makethat helping others means more than just getting ahead yourself.We learned about honesty and integrity that the truth mattersthat you dont take shortcuts or play by your own set of rulesand success doe
22、snt count unless you earn it fair and square.We learned about gratitude and humility that so many people had a hand in our success, from the teachers who inspired us to the janitors who kept our school cleanand we were taught to value everyones contribution and treat everyone with respect.Those are
23、the values Barack and I and so many of you are trying to pass on to our own children.Thats who we are.And standing before you four years ago, I knew that I didnt want any of that to change if Barack became President.Well, today, after so many struggles and triumphs and moments that have tested my hu
24、sband in ways I never could have imagined, I have seen firsthand that being president doesnt change who you are it reveals who you are.You see, Ive gotten to see up close and personal what being president really looks like.And Ive seen how the issues that come across a Presidents desk are always the
25、 hard ones the problems where no amount of data or numbers will get you to the right answerthe judgment calls where the stakes are so high, and there is no margin for error.And as President, you can get all kinds of advice from all kinds of people.But at the end of the day, when it comes time to mak
26、e that decision, as President, all you have to guide you are your values, and your vision, and the life experiences that make you who you are.So when it comes to rebuilding our economy, Barack is thinking about folks like my dad and like his grandmother.Hes thinking about the pride that comes from a
27、 hard days work.Thats why he signed the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act to help women get equal pay for equal work.Thats why he cut taxes for working families and small businesses and fought to get the auto industry back on its feet.Thats how he brought our economy from the brink of collapse to creatin
28、g jobs again jobs you can raise a family on, good jobs right here in the United States of America.When it comes to the health of our families, Barack refused to listen to all those folks who told him to leave health reform for another day, another president.He didnt care whether it was the easy thin
29、g to do politically thats not how he was raised he cared that it was the right thing to do.He did it because he believes that here in America, our grandparents should be able to afford their medicineour kids should be able to see a doctor when theyre sickand no one in this country should ever go bro
30、ke because of an accident or illness.And he believes that women are more than capable of making our own choices about our bodies and our health carethats what my husband stands for.When it comes to giving our kids the education they deserve, Barack knows that like me and like so many of you, he neve
31、r couldve attended college without financial aid.And believe it or not, when we were first married, our combined monthly student loan bills were actually higher than our mortgage.We were so young, so in love, and so in debt.Thats why Barack has fought so hard to increase student aid and keep interes
32、t rates down, because he wants every young person to fulfill their promise and be able to attend college without a mountain of debt.So in the end, for Barack, these issues arent political theyre personal.Because Barack knows what it means when a family struggles.He knows what it means to want someth
33、ing more for your kids and grandkids.Barack knows the American Dream because hes lived itand he wants everyone in this country to have that same opportunity, no matter who we are, or where were from, or what we look like, or who we love.And he believes that when youve worked hard, and done well, and
34、 walked through that doorway of opportunityyou do not slam it shut behind youyou reach back, and you give other folks the same chances that helped you succeed.So when people ask me whether being in the White House has changed my husband, I can honestly say that when it comes to his character, and hi
35、s convictions, and his heart, Barack Obama is still the same man I fell in love with all those years ago.Hes the same man who started his career by turning down high paying jobs and instead working in struggling neighborhoods where a steel plant had shut down, fighting to rebuild those communities a
36、nd get folks back to workbecause for Barack, success isnt about how much money you make, its about the difference you make in peoples lives.Hes the same man who, when our girls were first born, would anxiously check their cribs every few minutes to ensure they were still breathing, proudly showing t
37、hem off to everyone we knew.Thats the man who sits down with me and our girls for dinner nearly every night, patiently answering their questions about issues in the news, and strategizing about middle school friendships.Thats the man I see in those quiet moments late at night, hunched over his desk,
38、 poring over the letters people have sent him.The letter from the father struggling to pay his billsfrom the woman dying of cancer whose insurance company wont cover her carefrom the young person with so much promise but so few opportunities.I see the concern in his eyesand I hear the determination
39、in his voice as he tells me, “You wont believe what these folks are going through, Michelleits not right. Weve got to keep working to fix this. Weve got so much more to do.”I see how those stories our collection of struggles and hopes and dreams I see how thats what drives Barack Obama every single
40、day.And I didnt think it was possible, but today, I love my husband even more than I did four years agoeven more than I did 23 years ago, when we first met.I love that hes never forgotten how he started.I love that we can trust Barack to do what he says hes going to do, even when its hard especially
41、 when its hard.I love that for Barack, there is no such thing as “us” and “them” he doesnt care whether youre a Democrat, a Republican, or none of the abovehe knows that we all love our countryand hes always ready to listen to good ideashes always looking for the very best in everyone he meets.And I
42、 love that even in the toughest moments, when were all sweating it when were worried that the bill wont pass, and it seems like all is lost Barack never lets himself get distracted by the chatter and the noise.Just like his grandmother, he just keeps getting up and moving forwardwith patience and wi
43、sdom, and courage and grace.And he reminds me that we are playing a long game hereand that change is hard, and change is slow, and it never happens all at once.But eventually we get there, we always do.We get there because of folks like my Dadfolks like Baracks grandmothermen and women who said to t
44、hemselves, “I may not have a chance to fulfill my dreams, but maybe my children willmaybe my grandchildren will.”So many of us stand here tonight because of their sacrifice, and longing, and steadfast lovebecause time and again, they swallowed their fears and doubts and did what was hard.So today, w
45、hen the challenges we face start to seem overwhelming or even impossible let us never forget that doing the impossible is the history of this nationits who we are as Americansits how this country was built.And if our parents and grandparents could toil and struggle for usif they could raise beams of
46、 steel to the sky, send a man to the moon, and connect the world with the touch of a buttonthen surely we can keep on sacrificing and building for our own kids and grandkids.And if so many brave men and women could wear our countrys uniform and sacrifice their lives for our most fundamental rightsth
47、en surely we can do our part as citizens of this great democracy to exercise those rightssurely, we can get to the polls and make our voices heard on Election Day.If farmers and blacksmiths could win independence from an empireif immigrants could leave behind everything they knew for a better life o
48、n our shoresif women could be dragged to jail for seeking the voteif a generation could defeat a depression, and define greatness for all timeif a young preacher could lift us to the mountaintop with his righteous dreamand if proud Americans can be who they are and boldly stand at the altar with who
49、 they lovethen surely, surely we can give everyone in this country a fair chance at that great American Dream.Because in the end, more than anything else, that is the story of this country the story of unwavering hope grounded in unyielding struggle.That is what has made my story, and Baracks story, and so many other American stories possible.And I say all of this tonight not just as First Ladyand not just as a wife.You see, at the end o
