Ten O'Clock News; Press Conference of Michael Dukakis Announcing His Presidential Campaign

[Audience chatter and music playing] [Audience chatter] [Audience chatter] [Speaker Mary] '...an individual who I believe can provide the leadership needed for this country as we go into the next century, I am delighted to welcome today the next President of the United States, Mike Dukakis.' [Audience claps and cheers, music plays][Michael Dukakis] 'Thank you. Thank you all very much. Thank you. Thank you all very much. Sit and relax. It's

wonderful to be in the city that first welcomed my dad to this country so many years ago on this- what should I say spectacularly spring day? We got national network news this morning and not just on the candidacy but even on our weather here in New England. Surrounded by so many friends introduced by Mary, who has been such a strong and valued supporter and leader here in this great state, with the eyes of a nation upon us some 27 years after another son of Massachusetts began the long quest for the White House. Today our marathon begins.' [Audience claps] [Dukakis] 'And believe me with the help of the good people of New Hampshire and New England we're going to cross that finish line on Pennsylvania Avenue.' [Audience claps]

[Dukakis] 'It was Daniel Webster, a son of New Hampshire, while a congressman from Massachusetts, who on the 50th anniversary of the Battle of Bunker Hill had this to say about our nation and about his future. Let us develop the resources of our land, he said. Call forth its powers, build up its institutions, and see whether we also in our day and generation may not perform something worthy to be remembered. Inspired by Webster's words in the office I seek, pledging not only to enforce the law but also to obey it, a son of Greek immigrants named Mike Dukakis declares his candidacy for the presidency of the United States.' [Audience applauds] [Dukakis] 'I want to begin this campaign with a question, and then with an answer. The

question is why have we come together? When the Democrats of Iowa, New Hampshire, and the South, when Democrats all across this country go out of their caucuses and their primaries to vote, what will they really be voting about? The answer is not just about Mike Dukakis or any of the other candidates. The answer is about America. I believe that each generation of Americans has an opportunity to define and redefine the American dream. From one generation to the next, America has been a covenant, a set of promises about the future which brings our people together. The Pilgrims who sailed into Plymouth three centuries ago defined that dream as religious liberty. The Patriots who dumped tea in the Boston Harbor two centuries ago defined that dream as political liberty. The immigrants who've come to these shores since then, like my parents, were drawn

by the dream of a better life. Those who went to other shores to defend our freedom as many did here and across this country were inspired by the dream of peace. Today we have our own chance. We have a golden moment to define the dream that our children will call America. Because this campaign will decide what our children have a right to expect of America and what America has the right to expect of them. Above all, above all, I believe our children have a right to live in a land with vibrant and sustained economic growth and with genuine economic opportunity for every single American in every part of this country.' [Audience applauds] [Dukakis] 'Because in America, good jobs, and good schools, and good

skills should be the birthright of every one of us, no matter who we are or where we come from or what the color of our skin. I believe our children have a right to live in a country that is caring and compassionate and concerned about all of its citizens, a country where the homeless are housed and the hungry are fed and where the dependent have the opportunity to achieve the best that is in them and to build independent, self-sufficient lives. And the country where we recognize AIDS for what it is- the single most serious threat to the public health be faced in our lifetime and a disease that must be conquered.' [Audience applauds] [Dukakis] 'I believe our children have a right to live in an environment that is clean and safe and healthy, with clean air and clean water and with a

Nuclear Regulatory Commission that understands the lessons of Chernobyl and is committed above all else to protect the health and safety of our citizens and the people of this country.' [Audience applauds] [Dukakis] 'I believe our children have the right to a foreign policy that reflects American values. They don't deserve a shooting war in Nicaragua. They deserve a war against poverty and injustice and exploitation throughout Latin America.' [Audience applauds] [Dukakis] 'They don't deserve secret wars cooked up by armchair Rambos. They deserve to see our Constitution preserved and protected and defended. They don't deserve wars in space, they deserve peace on earth.' [Audience applauds]

[Dukakis] 'I believe our children have a right competent leaders. They deserve a president who will demand the best himself whether he is at the table with foreign leaders or with his own staff. They deserve a president who knows what's going on and knows what he's doing. They deserve a president who will stand shoulder to shoulder with heroes like Raul Alfonsin of Argentina or Cory Aquino of the Philippines who have put their lives on the line for democracy. I believe our children have a right to live in an America where integrity is the watchword. They deserve better than the sight of Wall Street insiders being led off to jail in handcuffs or government officials who use public life mainly to make contacts for private life, or for an administration that seems to have its own set of special prosecutors.

Two years from now a new president will enter the White House. We can't possibly predict all the problems and the challenges that will land on his desk. But we can predict the character and the competence of the person who enters the Oval Office. I welcome those tests. Americans ought to measure our integrity. You have a right to know our values. You deserve the weigh our record and not just our rhetoric. So in this campaign, I want Americans to judge me not only on my promise to fight apartheid in South Africa, but also on my performance in fighting injustice here in America. I want my stand on national defense to be measured not just in hardware, but also in the passion I feel for these free shores which welcomed Kitty's family and my own. I want Americans to measure me not only by my commitment to fight terrorism, but also what I have done to get tough on drug pushers, and tax cheats, drunk drivers and

polluters. I want Americans not only to imagine me in the White House, but also to study me in the state house, because as a sitting governor I am tested every month and every week and every hour. So as you look each of us over, ask more than what we are going to do, ask what we have already done. Ask more than whether we have new ideas, ask whether we have already made new ideas work. Ask more than what kind of president we will be. Ask what kind of people we are and what kind of people we have around us. Ask more of your candidates because the next president is going to be asking more of you- to be producers, not just consumers, to be citizens, not just spectators, to contribute your best to America. As Americans we are blessed with certain inalienable rights, but we're also obliged by

sacred responsibilities. My mother and father summed up the American dream for me in just eleven words. Much has been given to you and much is expected of you. That belief has carried me to New Hampshire and this day. With your help and your prayers, I'll carry that belief with me right into the White House.' [Audience applauds] [Dukakis] 'Over the next year and a half in high schools,shopping malls, barns and factories, in kitchens and city and town squares the American people will be sizing up the candidates in both parties. It can be a

noisy and a frustrating process but the frustrations are the dues of leadership and the noises are musical freedom. Look around you. Gathered here today are young and old from all walks of life with different backgrounds, different heritages, proud of your region, proud of your state and heritage- a real community. You believe as I do in fulfilling the promise of America for every citizen in every part of every state and every region of this land. Let us never forget the promise of America is also the promise between generations. From old to young, from the present to the future, drawing strength and inspiration based in the past. As I begin this race, I can't help recalling that the first marathon was run in ancient Greece and on important occasions Athenians concluded ceremonies like these these with pledge. That pledge, that covenant is as timely today as it was 2000 years ago. Let me

paraphrase it for you now. We will never bring disgrace to this, our country, by any act of dishonesty or of cowardice. We will fight for the ideals of this, our country. We will revere and obey the laws. We will strive to quicken our sense of civic duty. Thus in all these ways we will transmit this country greater, better, stronger, prouder, and more beautiful than it was transmitted to us. Until today, this has been my pledge to the people of Massachusetts. From this day forward, it will be my pledge to the American people. Thank you all very much.' [Audience applauds] [Audience claps and cheers] [Audience claps and cheers, music plays] [Audience claps and cheers, music plays]

[Audience claps and cheers, music plays] [Dukakis] 'Thank you very much. We're headed for Boston, then Atlanta, then Des Moines, and then the world. Thank you.' [Audience claps and cheers, music plays] [Music plays, audience members chat] [Music plays, audience members chat] [Music plays, audience members chat] [Music plays, audience members chat] [Music plays, audience members chat] [Music plays, audience members chat]

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