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CNN Live Event/Special

America's Choice 2016: DNC. Aired 10-11p ET

Aired July 27, 2016 - 22:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

(JOINED IN PROGRESS)

[22:00:00] BOBBY SCOTT, VIRGINIA STATE REPRESENTATIVE: ... Virginia knows!

(APPLAUSE)

Even as he's risen from city hall to the governor's mansion to the U.S. Capitol, I still see in Tim Kaine the same intents of purpose. The fundamental goodness that led him to become a civil rights lawyer, listening to his neighbor's concerns and fears, fighting for the underserved and the underrepresented, finding solutions to make our communities better and more fair.

The bible calls on us to act justly, to love mercy and to walk humbly and there are few people who live out that creed as fully and completely as Tim Kaine.

(APPLAUSE)

My fellow Americans, tonight we have nominated a truly honorable man for the office of vice president of the United States of America in my friend the gentleman from Virginia, Tim Kaine!

(APPLAUSE)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: America was built on courage, imagination and an unbelievable determination to do the job at hand. And a life built on selfless, humble service, had a Midwestern start and a working class home in Kansas City, where Tim Kaine's mother and father instilled in him the principles of faith and hard work. Pitching in at his dad's iron working shop, he's learned the tools of the trade.

Off to college at Missou and then Harvard Law School. After which, Tim took a year off and serve as a Christian missionary in Honduras where he taught the carpentry and welding skills he learned from his father, in turn they taught him Spanish and that we have so much from one another if only we would listen.

Tim returned and met the love of his life, Anne Holton. And was embraced by a family that had been breaking ground on civil rights and political courage. Anne's father, Lynnwood Holton, was the republican governor of Virginia and was a leader in desegregating the schools, sending his daughter to a majority black public school.

Tim and Anne were married in the same Richmond, Virginia church they still attend today. Tim began as a civil rights lawyer focused on fighting housing discrimination, insurance companies and injustice.

Eventually he ran for city council. He became Richmond's mayor, solving problems by bringing people together. Ann and Tim were also raising a family, sending their children to the same public school Ann had attended. They still live in the same house they first moved into 24 years ago.

Tim was elected Lieutenant Governor of Virginia and in 2005, won a hard-fought election for governor, making tough decisions, facing the deepest recession since the 1930s. And Tim Kaine's problem-solving earned national recognition for his work in tough times.

Virginia was named the best state in America to raise a child, and the best state for business. It had one of the lowest unemployment rates and one of the highest family incomes. But his time as governor also saw his state darkened by what he calls unquestionably the worst day of his life.

When he helped Virginia come together after the shooting at Virginia tech left 32 teachers and students dead.

TIM KAINE, VIRGINIA STATE SENATOR: There was something in the story yesterday that was different and it was you, your spirit of even in a dark day of optimism and community and hope and wanting to be together. And you taught something good yesterday even in a dark day to people all around the world, and the world needs that example before it.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Tim Kaine has always helped people rise above the things that divide us. He took his problem solving approach to the U.S. Senate where Tim has become an aggressive advocate for our men and women in uniform, working to reduce unemployment among veterans and on the progressive causes that make a difference for working families.

Tim has been one of the Senate's leaders in protecting women's health care, committed to Comprehensive Immigration Reform, a determined advocate for gun safety, a lifetime fighting for social justice and fairness, a life's work built on the principle that we are stronger together.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome the next vice president of the United States, Senator Tim Kaine.

[22:05:00] (MUSIC PLAYING)

KAINE: Thank you, everybody. Hello, Philadelphia!

(CROWD CHEERING) Hello, Democratic family. I want to start off by thanking my beautiful wife, Ann, and my three wonderful children, Nat, Woody and Anella. They're sitting right up there.

(APPLAUSE)

You know, my son Nat deployed with his marine battalion just two days ago.

(APPLAUSE)

He deployed overseas to protect and defend the very NATO allies that Donald Trump says he now wants to abandon.

(CROWD BOOING)

Semper fi, Nat. Semper fi.

(APPLAUSE)

My parent and in-laws are here, our siblings and their spouses, our nieces and nephews and hundreds of friends from Virginia and beyond.

(APPLAUSE)

I love seeing you front and center, including my friend of 37 years, senior Senator Mark Warner, my great Governor, Terry McAuliffe, and my great friend and Congressman, Bobby Scott.

(APPLAUSE)

We love you all. Today -- today, for my wife, Ann, and every strong woman in this country, for Nat, Woody and Anella and every young person starting out in life to make their own dreams real, for every man and woman serving our country in the military, at home or abroad, for every working family working hard to get ahead and stay ahead, for my parents and in-laws and every senior citizen who hopes for a dignified retirement with health care and research to end diseases like Alzheimer's.

(APPLAUSE)

For every American who wants our country to be a beloved community where people aren't demean because of who they are but rather respected for their contributions to this nation and...

(APPLAUSE)

.... and for all of us who know that the brightest future of our country is the one that we build together and for my friend Hillary Clinton, I humbly accept my party's nomination to be vice president of the United States.

(APPLAUSE)

Thank you. (CROWD CHANTING)

Can I -- can I -- can I be honest with you about something? Can I be honest with you about something? I never expected to be here. But let me tell you how it happened.

I was born in Minnesota and grew up in Kansas City.

(CROWD CHEERING)

I -- my folks weren't much into politics. My dad ran a union iron working shop in the stock yards.

(APPLAUSE)

And my mom -- and my mom was his best salesman. My two brothers and I pitched in to work during summers and weekends and, you know, that's how small family businesses do it.

[22:10:02] My parents, Al and Kathy, here tonight and going strong, they taught me about hard work and about kindness and most especially about faith. I went to a Jesuit boy's high school, Rockers High School.

(CROWD CHEERING)

Wow, that's a big line for the Jesuits.

Now, we had a motto in my school, "Men for others," and it was there that my faith became something vital, my north star for orienting my life. And when I left high school, I knew that I wanted to battle for social justice.

(APPLAUSE)

Like so many of you. Like so many of you. That's why I took a year off from law school to volunteer with Jesuit missionaries in Honduras. I taught kids how to be welders and carpenters.

(FOREIGN LANGUAGE)

Faith, family and work. Faith, family and work.

(FOREIGN LANGUAGE)

And let me tell you what really struck me there. I got a -- I got a firsthand look at a different system, a dictatorship, a dictatorship, where a few people at the top had all of the power and everybody else got left out.

Now that convinced me that we've got to advance opportunity for everybody, no matter where you come from, how much you money you have, what you look like, how you worship or who you love!

(APPLAUSE) Back in 1970 in Virginia, a republican governor named Lynnwood Holton believed exactly the same thing. He integrated Virginia's public schools so that black and white kids could finally learn together. And then the family enrolled their own kids, including his daughter, Anne, in those integrated inner city schools.

Many years later, Anne went off to college and she brought those lessons from that pivotal time with her, and then one day in a study group, she met this goofy guy who had been off teaching kids in Honduras.

Well, Anne and I have now been married almost 32 years and I am the luckiest husband in the world.

(APPLAUSE)

You know, let me tell you something. Anne's parents, Lyn and Jinks are here today, 90 plus and going strong.

(APPLAUSE)

Ninety plus and going strong. Lynnwood Holton, he's still a republican but he's voting for an awful lot of democrats these days, an awful lot of democrats.

(APPLAUSE)

And here's why. He's voting for democrats because any party that would nominate Donald Trump for president has moved too far away from his party of Lincoln.

(APPLAUSE)

And I tell you, if any of you are looking for that party of Lincoln, we've got a home for you right here in the Democratic Party.

(APPLAUSE)

Lynnwood's example helped inspire me as a civil rights lawyer. Over 17 years I took on banks, landlords, real estate firms, local governments, anybody who treated anybody unfairly. I had a six-year case against an insurance company that was discriminating against minority neighborhoods all across the United States in issuing homeowner's insurance.

Folks, democratic friends, these are the battles that I have fought my entire life.

(APPLAUSE)

And that's the story. And that's the story of how I decided to run for office. My City of Richmond was divided and discouraged in the early 1990s. We had an epidemic of gun violence that was overwhelming our low income neighborhoods.

[22:14:59] People were pointing fingers and casting blame instead of finding answers and I couldn't stand it. So, I ran for city council and I won that first race more than 20 years ago by a landslide margin of 94 votes.

(APPLAUSE)

I've said ever since if I'm good at anything in politics it's because I started at the local level, listening to people...

(APPLAUSE)

... learning about their lives and trying to get results. I see a mayor here who knows what I'm talking about. Later I became mayor of Richmond, lieutenant governor and then the 70th governor of Virginia.

(APPLAUSE)

Now, I was a hard times governor. I had to steer my state through the deepest recession since the 1930s, but, hey, tough times don't last and tough people do.

(APPLAUSE)

And can I tell you that Virginians are tough people. We are tough people.

(APPLAUSE)

And we're smart, too. We achieve national recognition for our work, best managed state, best state for business, best state for a child to be raise, low unemployment, high median income.

We shed tears along the way. We shed tears especially together in the days after that horrible mass shooting at Virginia tech that killed 32 people from beautiful 19-year-old students to 70-plus-year-old Romanian-born holocaust survivors, and we shed tears and held each other up, but afterwards we rolled up our sleeves and we fixed the loophole in the background record check system so that we could make our commonwealth safer.

(APPLAUSE)

And we got to do that in the nation.

We invested in our people, expanding pre-K and higher Ed. Because we all know in this room that education is the key to all we want to be. All we want to be.

(APPLAUSE)

And now I have the honor of representing my commonwealth in the U.S. Senate. I worked on the Armed Services and Foreign Relations Committee to keep us safe at home and strong in the world.

(APPLAUSE)

I work on the Budget Committee with our great democratic leader of that committee, a spectacular senator who used to be a Mayor of Vermont, Bernie Sanders!

(APPLAUSE)

And -- and...

(CROWD CHANTING)

Everybody, we all -- we all should feel the bern and we all should not want to get burned by the other guy.

(APPLAUSE)

On that -- on that budget committee under Bernie's leadership, we fight for investments in education, health care, research, transportation. And I also serve on the aging committee to make sure that seniors like my folks have a secure retirement and don't get targeted by rip-off artists who will scam them out of their savings or overcharge them for prescription drugs.

(APPLAUSE)

Can -- can I tell you a funny thing about the Senate? Can I tell you a funny thing about the Senate? That sounds like a yes. I spend a lot -- I spend a lot of time with republican senators who once they have made sure that nobody is listening will tell you how fantastic a senator that Hillary Clinton was.

(APPLAUSE)

Now, look, this journey that I've told you about has convinced me -- has convinced me over and over again that God has created in our country a beautiful and rich tapestry, an incredible cultural diversity that success when we embrace everybody in love and battle back against the forces, the dark forces of division. We're all neighbors and we must love our neighbors as ourselves.

(APPLAUSE)

[22:20:05] Now, Hillary Clinton and I... (FOREIGN LANGUAGE)

(APPLAUSE)

And we share this basic belief. It's simple. Do all the good you can and serve one another. Pretty simple. Pretty simple. That's what I'm about, that's what you're about, that' what Bernie Sanders is about, that's what Joe and Jill Biden are about, that's what Barack and Michelle Obama are about and that's what Hillary Clinton is about.

(APPLAUSE)

Now, (FOREIGN LANGUAGE)

(CROWD CHANTING)

Yes, we can. Yes, we can. Yes, we can. Hey, last week, last week in Cleveland we heard a lot about trust. So, let's talk about trust. Let's talk about trust. I want to tell you why I trust Hillary Clinton.

(APPLAUSE)

First, she's consistent. She has battled to put kids and families first since she was a teen-ager. In good times and bad, in victory and defeat, in and out of office, throughout hell or high water, fighting for underprivileged kids, working at the Children's Defense Fund, fighting to get health insurance for 8 million low-income children when she was first lady, fighting for the well-being of women and children around the world.

Hey, can I offer you a little tip? When you want to know something about the character of somebody in public life, look to see if they have a passion that began long before they were in office and that they have consistently held it throughout their career.

(APPLAUSE)

Do they have a passion? Did it start before they were in office? Have they held on to it consistently? Folks, Hillary has a passion for kids and families.

(APPLAUSE)

Donald Trump has a passion, too. It's himself!

(APPLAUSE)

And with Hillary, it's not just words, it's accomplishments. She delivers. The senator after 9/11, I got my New Yorkers right here and my Virginians right here.

(APPLAUSE)

She battled -- she battled congressional republicans to care for the first responders who went into the towers, who went into the Pentagon and saved the victims of those terrorist attacks. As secretary of state she implemented tough sanctions against Iran to pave the way for a diplomatic breakthrough to curtail a nuclear weapons program. And she wasn't afraid.

She wasn't afraid. She wasn't afraid to stand up against thugs and dictators. And as a key part of the Obama national security team, they decided to go to the ends of the earth to wipe out Osama Bin Laden.

(APPLAUSE)

Hey, do you all -- do you all remember Carla, the little girl that we heard from on Monday night? Who was worried that her parents would be deported? Carla said she trusts Hillary to keep them together.

And do you remember the mothers of the movement last night?

(APPLAUSE) They said they trust Hillary to keep other mother's sons and daughters safe.

[22:24:58] And on a personal level, as he's serving our nation abroad, I thrust Hillary Clinton with our son's life.

(APPLAUSE)

Now, you know who I don't trust? I wonder. Donald Trump. Donald Trump. Trump is a guy who promises a lot, but you might have noticed he's got a way of saying the same two words every time he makes his biggest, hugest promises, "believe me." It's going to be great, "believe me." We're going to build a wall and make Mexico pay for it, "believe me." We're going to destroy ISIS so fast, "believe me." There's nothing suspicious in my tax returns, "believe me."

(APPLAUSE)

By the way, does anybody in this massive auditorium believe that Donald Trump's been paying his fair share of taxes?

(CROWD SHOUTING)

Does anybody here believe that Trump ought to release his tax returns just like every other presidential candidate in modern history?

(APPLAUSE)

Of course he should. Hey, Donald, what are you hiding? And yet -- and yet, Donald still says, "believe me," "believe me." Believe me? Believe me? I mean, here's the thing, most people when they run for president, they don't just say "believe me," they respect you enough to tell you how they will get things done.

I mean, that's what most people who run for president do.

(APPLAUSE)

In fact, you can go on Hillary Clinton.com right now and find out exactly how she'll make the biggest investment in new jobs in a generation, how she'll defend and build on Wall Street reform, how she'll reform our immigration system to create a path to citizenship, how she'll make it possible to graduate from college debt free.

You can see how she'll protect Roe v. Wade, guarantee equal pay for women and make paid family leave a reality.

(APPLAUSE)

All it takes is one click. All it takes is one click. And we can see how she'll do it, how she'll pay for it and how we'll benefit by it. Not Donald Trump. Not Donald Trump. He never tells you how he's going to do any of the things he says he'll do. He just says, "believe me."

So, here's the question, here's the question -- do you really believe him? (CROWD SHOUTING)

I mean, Donald Trump's whole career says you better not. Small contractors, company just like my dad's believed him -- believed him when he said he'd pay them to build a casino in Atlantic City. They did the work, they hung the dry wall, they poured the concrete but a year after opening, Trump filed for bankruptcy.

He walked away with millions and they got pennies on the dollar. Some of them went out of businesses, all because they believed Donald Trump.

(CROWD BOOING)

Retirees and families in Florida, they believed Donald Trump when he said that he'd build them some condos, thousands of them. They paid their deposits, but the condos, they were never built. He just pocketed their money and walked away. They lost tens of thousands of dollars, all because they believed Donald Trump.

Charity after charity, charity after charity believed Donald Trump when he said he would contribute to them, and thousands of Trump University students believed Donald Trump when he said he would help them succeed.

[22:30:01] They got stiffed. He says, "believe me," while his creditors, his contractors, his laid-off employees and his ripped off students did just that and they all got hurt.

Folks, you cannot believe one word that comes out of Donald Trump's mouth.

(APPLAUSE)

Not one word. Not one word. Not one word.

(CROWD BOOING)

And I'll tell you, and I tell you, to me, to me it just seems like our nation, it is just too great to put it in the hands of a slick talking, empty promising, self-promoting one-man wrecking crew!

(APPLAUSE)

But don't take it from me. Don't take it from me. Take it from former First Lady Barbara Bush.

(CROWD BOOING)

Barbara Bush said she doesn't know how any woman could vote for him after his offensive comments about women.

(APPLAUSE)

Any woman. Any woman. Or John McCain's chief economic adviser during the '08 race, who estimates that Trump's promises would cause America to lose 3.5 million jobs, or the independent analyst who found that Trump's tax plan given to the wealthy and the biggest corporations would rack up $30 trillion in debt.

Or how about this, how about this -- John Kasich, the republican Governor who had the honor of hosting the Republican Convention in Cleveland but he wouldn't even attend it because he thinks Donald Trump is such a moral disaster.

(APPLAUSE)

Or take it from the guy -- take it from the guy who co-wrote Donald Trump' autobiography. Here's what he said about Trump, quote, "Lying is second nature to him." So, do you believe him?

(CROWD RESPONDING)

How about on this side, do you guys believe him?

(CROWD RESPONDING)

I mean, do you guys believe him?

(CROWD RESPONDING)

Is there anyone in this building who believes him?

(CROWD RESPONDING)

The next president -- the next president will face many challenges. We better elect the candidate who has proven she can be trusted with the job.

(APPLAUSE)

The candidate who has proven that she is ready for the job. And when I said, "ready," I use ready for a very specific reason. When I lived in Honduras, I learned something. The best compliment you could say to somebody was to say they were listo, ready. Not intelihente, smart, not amable, friendly, not rico, rich, but listo, listo.

Because what listo means in Spanish is this, it means prepared, it means battle tested, it means rock solid, up for anything, never backing down and, friends, Hillary Clinton, she's lista. Hillary Clinton is lista.

(APPLAUSE)

She is -- she is ready, she is ready, she's ready because of her faith, she's ready because of her heart, she's ready because of her experience and she's ready because she knows that in America we are stronger when we are together.

(APPLAUSE)

My fellow democrats, this week we start the next chapter in our great and proud story. Thomas declared all men were equal and Abigail remembered the women.

(APPLAUSE)

Woodrow brokered the peace and Eleanor broke down the barriers.

(APPLAUSE)

[22:34:59] Jack -- Jack told us what to ask and Lyndon answered the call. Martin had a dream and (FOREIGN LANGUAGE).

(APPLAUSE)

And Harvey gave his life. Bill built a bridge into the 21st century and Barack gave us hope. And now Hillary is ready. She's ready to fight, she's ready to win and she is ready to lead.

God bless all of you, on to victory and thank you, Philadelphia!

(CROWD CHEERING)

WOLF BLITZER, THE SITUATION ROOM SHOW HOST: From Panetta to Biden to Bloomberg and now Tim Kaine. The attacks on Donald Trump escalate.

You cannot believe one word that comes out of Donald Trump's mouth, not one word. Jake, a blistering attack on the republican nominee.

JAKE TAPPER, THE LEAD SHOW HOST: Senator Kaine not providing a ton of material about Hillary Clinton, really focused on two things. One, introducing the American people to who he is, most people do not know.

So, he talked about his faith, he spoke Spanish, talked about his modest roots, and then as you note, settling into the traditional attack dog role of vice president.

He also made a clear outreach to republicans. Involving his father-in- law, former republican governor of the State of Virginia.

DANA BASH, CNN'S CHIEF POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: I thought what's so fascinating is one of the open questions with whether or not the people who supported Bernie Sanders were going to have some kind of protest because they're very upset about the fact that they think that Tim Kaine was not progressive enough.

And there was a moment that showed how nimble Tim Kaine was when he talked about Bernie Sanders reaching out to him people started to chant "Bernie." And instead of kind of ignoring and trying to move on, he embraced it and he said everybody should feel the bern. I thought that was very telling about kind of his ability to handle this kind of thing.

TAPPER: Tim Kaine on the vice presidential short list for President Obama in 2008. Vice President Biden ultimately got the nut. We also heard his impression skills this evening with his Donald Trump impression, his impression skills or lack thereof.

BLITZER: There he is with his wife, Anne Holton. And we're now going to be moving on to the President of the United States. He's going to be introduced by Sharon Belkofer. She's the 73-year-old Gold Star mom whose son was killed in Afghanistan. The president has met with her on several occasions.

She is now going to be introduced. She will bring up a video and the president of the United States. That will be the highlight of this night, this is the fourth time the president will address the National Democratic Convention.

(CROSSTALK)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Please welcome, Sharon Belkofer from (Inaudible), Ohio.

(MUSIC PLAYING)

SHARON BELKOVER, GOLD STAR MOM: Hello, Ohio!

(APPLAUSE)

You're all probably wondering who the heck is this sweet little old lady.

(APPLAUSE)

I am Sharon Belkofer, a mom to three boys who served their country.

(APPLAUSE)

A retired nurse and a wife of 52 years, a grandma of 10 and now a great grandma.

(APPLAUSE)

I know that President Obama has meant so much to millions of Americans all across the country.

(APPLAUSE)

I'd like to tell you what he means to me. Six years ago, on the morning of May 18th, 2010, I became a Gold Star mother. We became a Gold Star family when my son, Tom, a lieutenant colonel, was killed in Afghanistan.

I first met the President shortly after at Fort Drum, where he was scheduled to speak to the 10th Mountain Division, but when he heard the Gold Star Families were there, he wanted to meet with us. And as he was hugging me, I cried all over his suit. Tom would have been so embarrassed.

But it must have been OK, because a year later, at an event in my home State of Ohio.

(CROWD CHEERING)

[22:40:03] As I hoped to get a picture signed, someone told me, "The President would like to see you." Well, that's when I got my second presidential hug.

(APPLAUSE)

So warm and kind, so compassionate. I was inspired. Maybe this sweet old lady could still make a difference.

I knew my community's schools needed more resources, so at age 73, I took a leap of faith and ran for my local school board.

(APPLAUSE)

And when -- and when my back was bothering me and I didn't feel like knocking on doors, when the wind was blowing and it was cold and dreary, I thought of my son, Tom, who never gave up. And I thought of our President. He never gives up.

(APPLAUSE)

So why should I, why should I be different? Besides, they tell me walking is good for your back.

Well, guess what - I won my election.

(APPLAUSE)

I won big!

(APPLAUSE)

The President even sent me a handwritten note of congratulations. That's who he is no matter how busy, he's never forgotten this little old lady in Ohio who has always had his back.

(APPLAUSE)

You see, some people in this world make big differences. My son, Tom, made big differences. The President continues to make big differences, and smaller ones too. Like the inspiration he poured into me so that I might make a difference of my own.

(APPLAUSE)

I wish -- I wish every American could hug President Obama.

(APPLAUSE)

So that -- so that they could see the good in his eyes and feel the warmth in his heart.

This is our President.

(APPLAUSE)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What always impressed me was the calm. This is someone who walked into office faced with multiple crises, each one of them could sink the country, but he was always calmer than the rest of us.

From his first days in office, the difficult choices he made as president would not only shape the country's future but reveal the character of the man.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is an economy right now that can't find the bottom of bad news.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Dire predictions.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Once in a century financial crisis.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The six months surrounding January 2009 is the worst six months ever.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mr. President, millions of people are going to lose their jobs, financial systems locked up and it could collapse.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Tonight a top GM executive warned without help, the company will default. There is no plan b.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: As I looked around the room, there were so many brilliant people, but at the end of the day, there was only one man in that room who had to make the decision and all eyes were on him.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Everybody, democrats, do not rescue the automobile industry.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The questions that the president asked again and again and again had to do with how many jobs would be lost. Whenever folks were arguing about numbers and politics, he was always the one who brought it back to people.

MICHELLE OBAMA, U.S. FIRST LADY: Every night he's up until 2 o'clock in the morning with his big stack of briefing books. That's what he's doing after the girls go to bed.

[22:45:03] UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He does his homework, analyzing the issues, ensuring that he has prepared.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He really didn't care about the politics. He weighed the politics like any politician would, but at the end of the day, he was always willing to lose in order to do the right thing. Always.

(CROWD CHANTING)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A lot of people argued the politics were too costly.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It will be a cold day of hell before he socializes my country.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Rahm Emanuel came to him and said you're going to have to pull the bill because if you push this legislation, you will lose in 2012.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He knew it would be somewhere between 10 and 30 million people who would not get health insurance.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Millions of people were being discriminated against by insurance companies.

BARACK OBAMA, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA PRESIDENT: When you hear people more worried about the politics of it than what's right and what's wrong, I want you to think about the millions of people all across this country who are looking for some help.

(APPLAUSE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He's thinking to himself if I decide not to push forward, what do I say to all those people who came up to me with tears in their eyes telling me that they need this to save themselves? If that means I'm a one-term president, then I'm a one-term president.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Nothing comes to the desk of the president of the United States unless it's almost impossible. And he has to figure it out.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The most critical thing was - was he there? We never knew that for sure. The president turns to every principal in the room, what do you recommend I do?

And they say well, 49 percent chance he's there, 51, it's a close call, Mr. President. He said, "all right, thank you." He said "I'll give you my decision in the morning." And it dawned on me he's all alone. This is his decision. If he was wrong, his presidency was done. Over.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There were times when he could not find a way.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: At least 14 dead, 50 injured after a lone gunman opens fire in a theater outside...

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A shooting at a school in Newtown, this is the Sandy Hook Elementary School.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We have reports of a shooting at a night club in Orlando.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I walk into the Oval, his head is down and he hands me the speech and he doesn't look up at me. He was too emotional.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He wanted to ban assault weapons, he wanted to limit magazine sizes and he wanted to impose universal background checks. While all of those concepts are going to be on the floor of the United States Senate for a vote and they're all going to lose.

OBAMA: Congress literally does nothing? That's the closest I came to feeling disgusted. Every time I think about those kids it gets me mad. And, by the way, it happens on the streets of Chicago every day. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There's a part of him who thinks I am in the most

powerful office in the most powerful country on the planet and I can't do anything to erase what just happened.

OBAMA: We gather here in memory of 20 beautiful children and six remarkable adults. They were mothers and fathers, they were husbands and wives, sisters and brothers, sons and daughters, friends.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He thinks of it in terms of were his son, his daughter, his wife, he actually feels the pain.

(PRESIDENT OBAMA SINGING AMAZING GRACE)

[22:49:57] When we were lost, he asked us to believe and try to see ourselves in one another. And through crisis and challenge, he kept fighting to move us forward.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There's a temperament associated with being president that he uniquely has, eyes always fixed on long-term successes.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Americans don't have to worry about insurance companies discriminating against them if they have a pre-existing condition.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Thanks to President Obama, General Motors is once again number one in sales worldwide.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: President Obama signed an executive order aimed at eliminating the pay gap between men and women in the federal government.

OBAMA: America deserves equal pay for equal work.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Judge Sotomayor, are you prepared to take the oath?

SONIA SOTOMAYOR, U.S. SUPREME COURT ASSOCIATE JUSTICE: I am.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Please raise your right hand.

OBAMA: I offer you the chance to come out of the shadows so can you finally have the dignity of knowing you belong.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Mr. Obama is the first sitting U.S. President to visit Cuba in nearly 90 years.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Osama Bin Laden has been brought to justice.

OBAMA: The United States has conducted an operation that killed Osama Bin Laden.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He's ignited the most robust international agreement on climate change.

OBAMA: Paris agreement represents the best chance to save the one planet that we've got.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Obama as a historic breakthrough with Iran today.

OBAMA: A comprehensive long-term deal that will prevent it from obtaining a nuclear weapon.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He has this deep conviction that at big moments when we need to, we can still come together as a country and then out of long political darkness a brighter day will come.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: From the Supreme Court we have read from the bench there is a right to marriage equality. I repeat there is a right to marriage equality.

OBAMA: Today, we can say that we've made our union a little more perfect. That love is love.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The Dow closed 10,000 points higher.

OBAMA: That's the longest stretch of private sector growth in our history.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The first lady said it best, being president has not changed who he is, it has revealed who he is, his core values, his principles, his temperament.

OBAMA: I'll just stay at it and I'm just going to keep on staying at it as long as I'm in this office. And America will succeed. I am absolutely confident about that.

M. OBAMA: In moments of turmoil and doubt and crisis, when there are no good answers, when nothing is black and white and everything is gray, he is that calm presence, that poise and dignity and grace under pressure. That is who he is.

(APPLAUSE)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome the 44th President of the United States of America, Barack Obama.

(MUSIC PLAYING)

B. OBAMA: Thank you! Thank you! Thank you. Thank you so much. Thank you, everybody. Thank you. Thank you.

[22:55:00] Thank you so much, everybody. Thank you. Thank you, everybody. Thank you. Thank you so much, everybody.

(APPLAUSE)

(CROWD CHANTING)

I love you back.

(APPLAUSE)

Hello, America. Hello, democrats. So, 12 years ago tonight, I addressed this convention for the very first time.

(APPLAUSE)

You met my two little girls, Malia and Sasha, now two amazing young women who just fill me with pride.

(APPLAUSE)

You fell for my brilliant wife and partner, Michelle.

(APPLAUSE)

Who has made me a better father and a better man, who has gone on to inspire our nation as First Lady.

(APPLAUSE)

And who somehow hasn't aged a day. I know, the same cannot be said for me. My girls remind me all the time. "Wow, you've changed so much, daddy." And then they try to clean it up. Not bad, you're just more mature. And it's true.

I was so young that first time in Boston.

(APPLAUSE)

And, look, I'll admit it, maybe I was a little nervous addressing such a big crowd, but I was filled with faith. Faith in America, the generous, big hearted, hopeful country that made my story, that made all of our stories possible.

A lot's happened over the years. And while this nation has been tested by war and it's been tested by recession and all manner of challenges I stand before you again tonight after almost two terms as your president to tell you I am more optimistic about the future of America than ever before.

(APPLAUSE)

How could I not be after all that we've achieved together. After the worst recession in 80 years, we fought our way back. We've seen deficits come down 401k's recover, an auto industry set new records, unemployment reach eight-year lows and our businesses create 15 million new jobs.

(APPLAUSE)

After a century of trying, we declared that health care in America is not a privilege for a few, it is a right for everybody.

(APPLAUSE)

After decades of talk, we finally began to wean ourselves on foreign oil, we doubled our production of clean energy. We brought more of our troops home to their families and we delivered justice to Osama Bin Laden.

(APPLAUSE)

Through diplomacy we shut down Iran's nuclear weapons program. We opened up a new chapter with the people of Cuba, brought nearly 200 nations together around a climate agreement that could save this planet for our children.

(APPLAUSE)

[23:00:08] We put polices in place to help students with loans, protect consumers from fraud.