There have been cries for Democrats at the Convention to start barking about what Republican Rule has done to this country.
Well, Congressman Dennis Kucinich was just on the stage and boy was he hitting it out of the ballpark.
Updated with Video:
Rate it up at YouTube Was waiting for the copy on his site to link, but still isn't up. So many thanks to NCDem Amy for providing it below.
Representative Kucinich called on Americans to "Wake UP!" hit every point bulleted in diaries here every day.
* Health Care
* The Economy
* The Billions in Debt
* Job Loss
* Big Oil Profits
* More that I can't recall just this second.
Congressman Kucinich was fired up and ready to go.
I will update this diary with a transcript and video as soon as I can find them or they become available.
Transcript:
It’s Election Day, 2008.
We Democrats are giving America a wake up call.
Wake up America.
In 2001, the oil companies, the war contractors and the neo-con artists seized the economy, and have added four trillion dollars of unproductive spending to the national debt. We now pay four times more for defense, three times more for gasoline and home heating oil, and twice what we paid for health care.
Millions of Americans have lost their jobs, their homes, their health care, their pensions. Trillions of dollars for an unnecessary war paid with borrowed money. Tens of billions of dollars in cash and weapons disappeared into thin air, at the cost of the lives of our troops and innocent Iraqis, while all the President’s oilmen are maneuvering to grab Iraq’s oil.
Borrowed money to bomb bridges in Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan. No money to rebuild bridges in America.
Money to start a hot war with Iran. Now we have another cold war with Russia while the American economy has become a game of Russian roulette.
If there was an Olympics for misleading, mismanaging and misappropriating this Administration would take the gold. World records for violations of national and international laws. They want another four year term to continue to alienate our allies, spend our children’s inheritance and hollow out our economy. We can’t afford it America.
Wake up America, the insurance companies took over health care.
Wake up America, the pharmaceutical companies took over drug pricing.
Wake up America, the speculators took over Wall Street.
Wake up America, they want to take your Social Security.
Wake up America, multinational corporations took over our trade policies, factories are closing, good paying jobs lost.
Wake up, America. We went into Iraq for oil.
The oil companies want more. War against Iran will mean $10 a gallon gasoline.
The Oil Administration wants to drill more --into your wallet.
Wake up, America. Weapons contractors want more. An Iran war will cost five to ten trillion dollars. This Administration can tap our phones. They can’t tap our creative spirit.
They can open our mail. They can’t open economic opportunities.
They can track our every move. They lost track of the economy while the cost of food, gasoline, and electricity skyrockets.
They skillfully played our post-911 fears and allowed the few to profit at the expense of the many.
Everyday we get the color orange, while the oil companies, the insurance companies, the speculators, the war contractors get the color green.
Wake up America.
This is not a call for you to take a new direction from right to left. This is call for you to go from down to up.
Up with the rights of workers.
Up with wages.
Up with fair trade.
Up with creating millions of good paying jobs rebuilding our bridges, ports and water systems.
Up with creating millions of sustainable energy jobs to lower the cost of energy, lower carbon emissions and protect the environment.
Up with health care for all. Up with education for all.
Up with home ownership. Up with guaranteed retirement benefits.
Up with Peace.
Up with Prosperity.
Up with the Democratic Party
Up with Obama -Biden
Wake up, America!
Wake up, America!
From Kucinich Website - PDF
Digg It
Rate It Up at Reddit
Thank You Representative Kucinich!
UPDATE: Took a while to get my PDF program to cooperate to get the transcript out.
UPDATED AGAIN: CityLightsLover says he is got an email from Bill Maher's program saying that Kucinich will be a guest this weekend when Maher's Real Time schedule resumes.
Damn - should have had a poll asking if folks reading were AWAKE?
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Kucinich YouTube Video Channel
Kucinich Reelection Website
Donation Page
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From around the net and news:
Ohio delegation reacts to Dennis Kucinich speech, convention gives standing ovation
Kucinich whipped up the previously sedate crowd into a frenzy by the end of the speech, at which point he received a standing ovation throughout the Pepsi Center.
The Ohio delegation responded enthusiastically to Kucinich's speech.
Ohio delegate and Cuyahoga County Democratic party executive director Colleen Corrigan Day said she thought his speech was "awesome" and said she was proud that Kucinich is from Ohio.
"The energy, the excitement and that passion, and we have to wake up," she said. "He was right on with it."
CNN:
Kucinich slammed the Bush administration, saying, "If there were an Olympics for misleading, mismanaging and misappropriating, this administration would take the gold."
Bouncing on his feet and gesturing enthusiastically with his fist, he said corporate interests had taken over the United States. But, he said, America could fight back.
Kucinich electrifies convention arena Congressman gets delegates roaring with passionate speech
By Kevin Flynn, Rocky Mountain News:
Rep. Dennis Kucinich, erstwhile presidential candidate and strident opponent of the Bush administration, gave the most spirited speech of the session Tuesday condemning the war, the economy and the Republicans
Buzz It: Yahoo: Kucinich electrifies convention arena
Dennis Kucinich to Democrats: Where's the red meat
So what does it say about the depth of talent on the Democratic bench that it was Kucinich, the long-suffering congressman from Cleveland, and not the roster of heavy-hitting governors and senators who actually stirred the passions of delegates on day two of the party’s national convention.
[...]
A lot of Democrats talked a good game about how President George W. Bush broke the law by endorsing torture at Gitmo and tapping domestic telephones, but only Kucinich was crazy mad enough to introduce legislation to impeach him.
Maybe that’s why when Kucinich pumped his fist in rebellion, the crowd responded in kind.
They’re craving more.
Dallas Morning News Blog: Kucinich fires up the Delegates
Detroit Free Press: Kucinich wakes up Democratic Convention
Kucinich preached.
I mean he preached like he’d had some lessons from the Rev. Jesse Jackson. And he woke up an audience that until that moment appeared to be mostly waiting to hear anybody else.
[...]
Hmmmmm. Did the Democrats miss something along the way from the only man with the courage to introduce a resolution in June to impeach President George W. Bush and whose speech reminded those gathered who their fight actually was with?
Update:
08-27-08: I just had to add this one:
The Hill: Obama tightens grip on podium speeches
Yet not every speech has been completely overhauled. Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-Ohio), who was asked by Obama to speak about the economy, was scheduled to deliver his speech Tuesday afternoon. The Obama campaign struck just one line from his speech, which slammed the Republicans and the Bush administration, according to a Democratic source.
That line, addressing Republicans, read: "They’re asking for another four years — in a just world, they’d get 10 to 20."