Re: DRAFT: Alabama Remarks

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we tweak this line: "In Alabama, without an ID, you can’t vote." because you can still cast a provisional ballot. And double checking policy is okay with this language as written, then okay for research: Unemployment goes down. The stock market goes up, and it goes up faster. Businesses do better. Deficits get smaller. Under a Republican President, we’re four times more likely to see a recession. On Fri, Oct 16, 2015 at 6:56 PM, Lauren Peterson < [email protected]> wrote: > Hi everyone - > > Sending this draft of remarks for tomorrow in Alabama. This is a stump > speech based on the op-ed that was approved this morning. > > Thanks to everyone who has given input so far. We'll send a draft to the > book tonight, so if folks could weigh in ASAP, that would be very much > appreciated. > > Thank you! > > Lauren > > > > *HILLARY RODHAM CLINTON* > > *REMARKS AT ALABAMA DEMOCRATIC CONFERENCE* > > *HOOVER, ALABAMA* > > *OCTOBER 17TH, 2015* > > > > Hello, Alabama Democrats! > > > > What a week! Who watched the debate on Tuesday? > > > > I don’t know about you, but it made me proud to be a Democrat. When > Republicans debate, they double down on trickle down. They demonize > immigrants. And for people who say they love small government, they seem > to spend a lot of time talking about how the government should regulate and > restrict women’s reproductive health. > > > > But you heard something very different at the Democratic debate in Las > Vegas, didn’t you? > > > > You heard real solutions to the problems that keep families up at night. > Plans to raise wages and create good jobs … make college affordable … keep > our communities safe from gun violence … defend women’s right to make our > own health decisions … take on economic inequality and racial inequality … > > > > That’s what the Democratic Party is all about. > > > > We should all be proud of what we stand for and who we fight for – > hard-working middle-class families, immigrants and entrepreneurs, teachers > and nurses, students and factory workers, firefighters, veterans, everyone > who’s ever been knocked down but refused to be counted out. People of all > races, all religions, gay and straight, rich and poor, young and old … > everyone, every American, has a place in our party. That’s what makes us > *Democrats*. > > > > And, I know our Republican friends hate to hear this, but it’s no accident > that America’s economy is stronger when there’s a Democrat in the White > House. > > > > Unemployment goes down. The stock market goes up, and it goes up faster. > Businesses do better. Deficits get smaller. > > > > Under a Republican President, we’re four times more likely to see a > recession. > > > > And then a Democrat has to come in and clean up the mess. > > > > Just look at how far we’ve come in the past six and a half years. > > > > I don’t think President Obama gets nearly the credit he deserves. > Remember the mess he inherited? The Great Recession could have become a > Great Depression. But thanks to the hard work and sacrifice of the > American people—and the President’s leadership—we worked our way back from > the brink. Saved the auto industry. Imposed tough new rules on Wall > Street. Helped 16 million people gain access to quality, affordable health > care. > > > > America is stronger, healthier, more prosperous, more free and more fair > today than we were before President Obama took office. > > > > Now, I’m not running for President Obama’s third term. And I’m not > running for my husband’s third term. I’m running for my *first* term. > But you better believe that, as President, I’ll proudly carry forward this > record of Democratic achievement. > > > > That doesn’t mean resting on our laurels. Not at all. There’s still so > much left to do. > > > > We’re standing again. But we’re not yet running the way America should. > > > > For most people, paychecks haven’t budged in years. The minimum wage may > as well be called what it is: a poverty wage. Many women are still paid > less than men—and women of color paid least of all. The cost of everything > from college to prescription drugs keeps going up. Unemployment for > African Americans is still more than double that of white Americans. > Student debt is still holding too many people back. In many states, > quality child care is even more expensive than college tuition. And even > though it would help working families all across this country, paid family > leave is not yet the law of the land. > > > > I’m running for president to change all that. > > > > I’m running to give hardworking families a raise. To fight for small > businesses that create jobs. To make sure that when a company does well, > it’s not just the shareholders and executives who benefit—it’s also the > people who work at that company and make those profits. > > > > I’m running to make life a little easier for working parents. To close > the wage gap—because women deserve fair pay. To defend the Affordable Care > Act, and make sure everyone in America has access to quality, affordable > health care. To put a world-class education within reach for all > Americans, from early childhood education all the way through college. > > Under my plan cost won’t be a barrier and debt will never hold you back. > > > > If you live here in Hoover and want to go to the University of Alabama, > you won’t have to borrow a cent to pay tuition. And I want to do more to > support Historically Black Colleges, which often have to scramble for > resources. > > > > I’m running for President to end the era of mass incarceration. We can’t > keep imprisoning more people than anybody else in the world. > > > > I’m running to take on the racial discrimination that despite our best > efforts and our highest hopes, still plays a significant role in > determining who gets ahead in America and who gets left behind. > > > > We need to stand up and say loudly and clearly that black lives matter. > And we need to go further. We need to take on the systemic inequities so > many Americans face—especially people of color—in health care, housing, > education, and criminal justice. > > > > I’m running for president to defend the most fundamental right in our > democracy – the right to vote. > > > > I was over in South Texas earlier this week. It’s a place close to my > heart. When I was 24 years old, I went there for the summer to register > voters for Democratic National Committee. I went with my boyfriend – this > tall, brilliant guy with a bushy head of hair a beard, and a passion for > Democratic politics … > > > > Now, the people of South Texas and the Rio Grande Valley were a little > skeptical of a blond girl from Chicago who didn’t speak a word of Spanish. > That was understandable. But as I drove around knocking on doors, people > welcomed me into their homes. I sat at a lot of kitchen tables. I drank a > lot of very strong coffee. And I listened as people talked to me about > their hopes and fears and dreams for their families’ futures. > > > > And even though a lot of what I heard was new to me, a lot of it was > familiar. I met mothers and grandmothers who worked long hours for not > that much money. They were a lot like my mother. I met parents running > small businesses, teaching their kids the value of hard work, that > everything good in life is worth working for. They were a lot like my > father. > > > > A lot of the people I met that summer weren’t registered because they > didn’t believe their vote would matter. And that’s not because they were > cynical – it’s because they had never seen anything to convince them > otherwise. > > > > I spent a lot of time that summer thinking about why voting is important. > Of course, elections help determine the direction of our country. But > beyond that, there’s something special about voting. Something powerful > and sacred. > > > > That moment when you cast a vote – that’s a reminder that you count. That > each and every one of us counts. That what we do and think and believe > really does have an impact on our future. > > > > We may be up against Super PACs and billionaires. But Donald Trump and > the Koch Brothers, for all their money, they get only one vote on Election > Day, just like everyone else. > > > > One person, one vote. That’s what we believe. And no one should be able > to take that vote away from us. > > > > That’s why we can’t close our eyes to attacks on voting rights across the > country. They don’t just threaten the trustworthiness of our elections. > They threaten what it means to be a citizen. To be an American. > > > > In Alabama, without an ID, you can’t vote. > > > > Yet Governor Bentley and his administration announced plans this month to > close 31 driver’s license offices across the state. They just so happened > to include every single county where African Americans make up more than 75 > percent of registered voters. What a coincidence! > > > > The closings will make getting driver’s licenses and personal > identification cards much harder for many African Americans, putting up new > barriers to voting. > > > > As many Alabamans have said in recent days, that’s just dead wrong. > > > > The Governor and his administration are insisting the closings had nothing > to do with race. Maybe they really believe that. But the facts tell a > different story. > > > > The efforts to roll back voting rights in Alabama are a blast from the Jim > Crow Past. > > > > Fifty years after Rosa Parks sat and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. marched > and John Lewis bled, it’s hard to believe Americans are still forced to > fight for their right to vote—especially in places where the civil rights > movement fought so hard all those years ago. > > > > Governor Bentley and other Republicans in Alabama have offered the same > excuses we’ve always heard to justify laws that disproportionately affect > people of color—or, for that matter, low-income people, women, young > people, and seniors. > > > > It reminds me of that old saying: “You find a turtle on a fence post, it > didn’t get there on its own.” > > > > Institutionalized racism doesn’t just happen. People make it happen. > > > > But for every Republican governor working to dismantle voting rights, > there are Americans determined to keep marching forward. > > > > I’m proud of everyone in Alabama who leapt into action to confront this > injustice. > > > > So here’s my message to you today: Don’t give up. > > > > Keep marching. Keep demanding justice. Don’t stop until you get it. > You’ve got people all over America rooting for you and standing with you. > I am one of them. And I will never turn my back on you. > > > > It’s time for Governor Bentley and the Alabama legislature to listen to > their constituents and reverse the decision to close the DMV offices. Not > tomorrow. Not eventually. Right now. > > > > And they should do more than that. > > > > Alabama is one of 17 states with no early voting. That needs to change. > If a family leaving church on the Sunday before Election Day feels inspired > to go out and vote, they should be able to do that. > > > > People who serve time should have their voting rights restored when they > get out. They’re citizens, too. Nothing about having been in prison > changes that. > > > > Alabama should stop requiring people to provide proof of citizenship when > they register to vote. It’s demeaning, it’s discriminatory, and it has to > end. Too many people don’t have access to their birth certificate or > passport—for example, college students who are living away from home. > > > > We should be doing everything we can to get more people involved in our > political process, not turning them away when they try to participate. > > > > And I’m not just picking on Alabama. This state is not alone in limiting > voting rights. I wish you were – but you aren’t. Many states have passed > laws that make voting harder. > > > > And since the Supreme Court gutted a key provision of the Voting Rights > Act, the situation has gotten even worse. > > > > Some people seem totally fine with this situation. They’d keep pushing > our country in this shameful direction. And that includes many of the > Republican candidates for president. > > > > Jeb Bush says he wouldn’t reauthorize the Voting Rights Act because voting > conditions have improved since it was passed. As Justice Ruth Bader > Ginsburg put it, that’s like throwing away your umbrella in a rainstorm > because you’re not getting wet. If a law is working, we should let it keep > working. > > > > When recently asked about voter ID laws, Marco Rubio replied, “What’s the > big deal?” > > > > John Kasich restricted early voting in Ohio after the 2008 election, when > 77 percent of early voters in the most populated county were African > American. > > > > What part of democracy are all these candidates so afraid of? > > > > Many of the leaders and activists who marched and fought for the right to > vote are no longer alive to stop these abuses. But we are. And we have an > obligation to act. > > > > First, Congress should put principle ahead of politics and pass the Voting > Rights Advancement Act. This bipartisan bill would restore the full > protections of the Voting Rights Act. > > > > Second, we should set a standard across this country of at least 20 days > of early, in-person voting—including opportunities for weekend and evening > voting. We should make it easier for people to cast their ballots. > > > > Third, we should enact universal, automatic voter registration, so every > young person in every state is automatically registered to vote when they > turn 18, unless they opt out. I applaud California for beginning to > implement a similar approach last week. More states should follow their > lead. > > > > These steps alone won’t solve everything. But we owe it to future > generations to fight back against attacks on voting. We owe it to them to > make sure our voting system works for a modern America. > > > > We need to meet this moment with the bravery and determination of those > who came before us. It’s time for leaders in every party, at every level > of government, to be on the right side of history. > > > > And once again, the movement can start right here in Alabama. > > > > I know the challenges we face are daunting. We’re up against some pretty > powerful forces who will do, say, and spend whatever it takes to stop us. > > > > So progress is going to take every one of us doing our part. > > > > I’m a progressive who likes to get things done. I know how to stand my > ground and how to find common ground. > > > > Some of you might remember we had a vigorous campaign back in 2008. > > > > President Obama and I went at it pretty good. And he won and I lost. > Then, to my great surprise, he asked me to be his Secretary of State. He > wouldn’t take no for an answer – believe me, I tried. In the end, he made > that request, and I accepted it, because we both love our country. And > that’s how democracy is supposed to work. > > > > Americans may differ, bicker, stumble, and fall. But we’re at our best > when we pick each other up. > > > > We’ve got a long campaign ahead of us. And this isn’t going to be easy. > But I’ve been fighting for families and underdogs my entire life, and I’m > not going to stop now. In fact, I’m just getting warmed up. > > > > So I’m here to ask for your help. I’m not taking a single primary or > caucus-goer for granted. I’m building an organization in all 50 states and > territories to help Democrats win up and down the ticket, not just the > presidential campaign. > > > > It’s time to rebuild our party from the ground up. And if you make me the > nominee, that’s exactly what we’ll do. > > > > I’ve been around long enough to know every county and local office counts; > every school board and state house and Senate seat counts; every single > one. So we have to compete everywhere. When our state parties are strong, > we win. > > > > So I hope you’ll join me, because we’re building something that will last > long after next November. > > > > Together, we can make sure that every person in America—no matter who they > are, where they come from, what language they speak at home, or the color > of their skin—has the chance to live up to his or her God-given potential. > > > > We can build an America where there are no ceilings for anyone. Where no > one is left out or left behind. And a father can look his daughter in the > eye and say: You can be anything you want to be—even president of the > United States. > > > > Thank you. >