| Kerry's
letter to his supporters John Kerry's letter to his
supporters (of which I was one), sent November 3,
2004. A great man.
|
Dear Paul,
Earlier today I spoke to President Bush, and
offered him and Laura our congratulations on
their victory. We had a good conversation, and we
talked about the danger of division in our
country and the need, the desperate need, for
unity for finding the common ground, coming
together. Today, I hope that we can begin the
healing.
In America, it is vital that every vote counts,
and that every vote be counted. But the outcome
should be decided by voters, not a protracted
legal process. I would not give up this fight if
there was a chance that we would prevail. But it
is now clear that even when all the provisional
ballots are counted, which they will be, there
won't be enough outstanding votes for our
campaign to be able to win Ohio. And therefore,
we cannot win this election.
It was a privilege and a gift to spend two years
traveling this country, coming to know so many of
you. I wish I could just wrap you in my arms and
embrace each and every one of you individually
all across this nation. I thank you from the
bottom of my heart. Thank you.
To all of you, my volunteers and online
supporters, all across this country who gave so
much of themselves, thank you. Thanks to William
Field, a six-year-old who collected $680, a
quarter and a dollar at a time selling bracelets
during the summer to help change America. Thanks
to Michael Benson from Florida who I spied in a
rope line holding a container of money. It turned
out he raided his piggy bank and wanted to
contribute. And thanks to Alana Wexler, who at 11
years old and started Kids for Kerry.
I thank all of you, who took time to travel, time
off from work, and their own vacation time to
work in states far and wide. You braved the hot
days of summer and the cold days of the fall and
the winter to knock on doors because you were
determined to open the doors of opportunity to
all Americans. You worked your hearts out, and I
say, don't lose faith. What you did made a
difference, and building on itself, we will go on
to make a difference another day. I promise you,
that time will come -- the election will come
when your work and your ballots will change the
world, and it's worth fighting for.
I'm proud of what we stood for in this campaign,
and of what we accomplished. When we began, no
one thought it was possible to even make this a
close race, but we stood for real change, change
that would make a real difference in the life of
our nation, the lives of our families, and we
defined that choice to America. I'll never forget
the wonderful people who came to our rallies, who
stood in our rope lines, who put their hopes in
our hands, who invested in each and every one of
us. I saw in them the truth that America is not
only great, but it is good.
So here -- with a grateful heart, I leave this
campaign with a prayer that has even greater
meaning to me now that I've come to know our vast
country so much better and that prayer is very
simple: God bless America.
Thank you,
John Kerry |
|