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— Text of Democrat John Edwards after Saturday's South Carolina primary, as transcribed by CQ Transcriptions.
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Thank you all very much.
I want to join Senator Clinton and President Clinton in congratulating Senator Obama.
Now the three of us move on to February 5th where millions of Americans will cast their vote and help shape the future of this party and help shape the future of America.
Our campaign from the very beginning has been about one central thing and that is to give voice to millions of Americans who have absolutely no voice in this democracy, to give voice — to give voice to people like the woman I met in Kansas City a couple of years ago, who told me the story of working full-time and not being able to pay both her heating bill and her rent and having to come home every night in the winter and dress her children in all of their clothes, in their coats, put them under blankets and put them in bed together so they could stay warm.
And she told me the story of getting them up every morning, out of the bed, fully clothed, with their coats on, feeding them and sending them off to school and praying, praying that no one would find out what was happening in her home, because they would come and take her children away from her.
No one should live like that in the United States of America. We are better than that.
And we are giving voice to that extraordinary woman in Kansas City, admiring her strength and courage. We're giving voice to all those Americans whose voices are not being heard and their voices were heard today in South Carolina.
And so I say if you are worried about your health care or you don't have health care in America, your voice will be heard in this campaign. If you are worried, worried because you've lost your job and you're worried sick about finding a new job, your voice will be heard in this campaign.
If you're one of 37 million Americans who wake up every single day literally worried about feeding and clothing your children and living in poverty, your voice will be heard in America and it will be heard in this campaign and we will speak for you and we will fight for you.
If you're worried about being able to pay for your child to be able to go to college, being able to pay for tuition and books, your voice will be heard in this campaign and it will be heard in America.
And if you're one of the forgotten middle class, people who are working and struggling just to pay their bills, literally worried about every single day, we will give you voice in this campaign.
And last, if you are one of the extraordinary men and women who have served this country patriotically and worn the uniform of the United States of America and you're not getting the health care that you deserve and you need or if you're one of 200,000 veterans who live in this country, who, every night, go to sleep under bridges or in shelters or on grates, as long as we are alive and breathing, your voice will be heard in this campaign and it will be heard in America.
And then — and then, finally, if you're one of the millions of Americans who have yet to cast your vote in this democratic process, beginning on February 5th and moving beyond, your voice will be heard and we will be there with you every single step of the way.
Join us in this movement. Join in this campaign. Let's make America what it's capable of being.
God bless you all and thank you for your support and thank you for being here and thank you for your voice.
