Weekly
Address: Celebrating Independence Day
July 4, 2014
Hi, everybody. I hope you’re all
having a great Fourth of July weekend.
I want to begin today by saying a
special word to the U.S. Men’s Soccer Team, who represented America so well the
past few weeks. We are so proud of you. You’ve got a lot of new believers. And
I know there’s actually a petition on the White House website to make Tim
Howard the next Secretary of Defense. Chuck Hagel’s got that spot right now,
but if there is a vacancy, I’ll think about it.
It was 238 years ago that our
founders came together in Philadelphia to launch our American experiment. There
were farmers and businessmen, doctors and lawyers, ministers and a kite-flying
scientist.
Those early patriots may have
come from different backgrounds and different walks of life. But they were
united by a belief in a simple truth -- that we are all created equal; that we
are all endowed by our Creator with certain inalienable rights; and that among
these rights are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.
Over the years, that belief has
sustained us through war and depression; peace and prosperity. It’s helped us
build the strongest democracy, the greatest middle class, and the most powerful
military the world has ever known. And today, there isn’t a nation on Earth
that wouldn’t gladly trade places with the United States of America.
But our success is only possible
because we have never treated those self-evident truths as self-executing.
Generations of Americans have marched, organized, petitioned, fought and even
died to extend those rights to others; to widen the circle of opportunity for
others; and to perfect this union we love so much.
That’s why I want to say a
special thanks to the men and women of our armed forces and the families who
serve with them -- especially those service members who spent this most
American of holidays serving your country far from home.
You keep us safe, and you keep
the United States of America a shining beacon of hope for the world. And for
that, you and your families deserve not only the appreciation of a grateful
nation, but our enduring commitment to serve you as well as you’ve served us.
God bless you all. And have a
great weekend. |
|小黑屋|手机版|Archiver|英语口译 ( 渝ICP备10012431号-2 )
GMT+8, 2014-7-6 16:22 , Processed in 0.080651 second(s), 21 queries , Gzip On.