Chuck Schumer's 2016 Democratic National Convention Speech

Chuck Schumer delivered a speech at the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia on 26 July 2016.

Transcript
Hello New York, I love you!

Now: there is a statue in the harbor of the city I represent. A mighty woman, with a torch. To me, that torch represents the American Dream. And if you ask the average American what that dream means to them, they put it simply, not in fancy language, they'd say: "If I work hard, I'll be doing better ten years from now than I'm doing today, and my kids will be doing still better than me."

Each generation must keep that torch burning brightly. It's the source of our optimism. President Obama did. He fought every day to defend fundamental American hope. But we have more work to do. Middle-class incomes have not grown enough. Too many families struggle to make ends meet, and if that continues, the torch will flicker. It's power to inspire hope will dim. Some are using this unease to pit Americans against each other.

Not us. We Democrats fight for an America that works for everyone; that's focused on leveling the playing field for all of us. And when Hillary Clinton wins the White House, and Democrats win back the Senate majority, that is just what we will do.

My friends: Hillary understands what middle class families need better than anyone. I know, because I know Hillary. I worked by her side for eight years: as Senators together, we were representing the great state of New York. And now, folks: I'm from Brooklyn. It's in our blood to sniff out bull.

Now there's a lot of that in politics, but not in Hillary. When she tells you something, take it to the bank. I saw it: a remarkable ability to listen, internalize the concerns and fears and hopes and dreams of everyday Americans, and then work hard and get things done for them. Hillary listened to the factory worker at the Bechtel plant in Schenectady worried sick that his company was leaving town. Hillary got tough. She read the corporate honchos the riot act until they agreed to keep their plant open, saving his job and many others.

And Hillary listened to the first responders and union workers who rushed to the pile after that terrible day, Nine-Eleven. They were searching for signs of life in the smoldering rubble, breathing in toxic fumes with every breath. She championed their cause, fought to get them the health care they deserve, and they got it. That, ladies and gentlemen, is the kind of leadership this country needs. And the stakes could not be higher.

Most elections are about two different visions for America. This election is about two different visions of America. And Donald Trump can only see an angry America: fearful, small, closed to the world, and suspicious of our friends and our neighbors. Hillary sees a different America: an America that strives to live up to the promise written here in Philadelphia. That every man, every woman, has a right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

And America, where we don't build walls, we break down barriers, we shatter ceilings. And that's because our differences make us stronger. Stronger together. So: Hillary Clinton has the right vision of and for America, but my colleagues – and my Senate colleagues will agree with me – we cannot do it– she cannot do it alone. She's gonna need a majority in the United States Senate. A Senate majority that puts a new Supreme Court Justice on the bench, who will protect women's rights, voting rights, and undo that awful decision, Citizens United.

A Senate majority that will raise the minimum wage, ensure equal pay for women, that will pass comprehensive immigration reform, make substantial investments in infrastructure, give every student a shot at affording a college education, and that changes our trade policy so it doesn't represent corporate America, but represents the average American.

With Hillary Clinton as president, a strong Senate majority by her side, we will keep that American Dream alive for a new generation. And, ladies and gentlemen: that torch in the Harbor of the city in which I live? It won't flicker; it won't fade; it will burn brightly in the heart of every American.

Thank you. God bless you. And God bless America.

I love you, New York.