As Prepared for Delivery

Thank you all for coming out so early in the morning to see me off. I don't even think the hogs are up yet.

But we've got a lot of work to do, and I'm eager to get out there.

As an Army man, I spent three decades living on bases all over the world. But it's like they always say, you can take the man out of the South, but you can't take the South out of the man.

So no matter where I lived, I was always a son of the South. I never stopped thinking like a southerner or acting like a southerner -- and I never stopped eating like a southerner.

And there's nothing a good southerner likes more than a nice, hot bowl of grits.

Now I won't name names, but some candidates from above the Mason-Dixon might not get just how good grits can be. They might even call it oatmeal. But we all know better.

So in the spirit of good southern hospitality, our campaign is serving up fresh grits along the way. I hope you enjoy them.

I've been looking forward to this trip around the South for weeks now. And there's no better place to start off than where I got my start, right here in Little Rock.

Like many southerners, my family has a long history in the South.

My Great Grandmother was Melissa Long from Georgia. She married Henry Harrison Upshaw of Harrison, Arkansas. My mother's family was from the West but then moved to the Arkansas, where my mother grew up. My grandparents worked hard every day in the lumber mills of Arkansas just to make ends meet. Today, our family is mostly scattered all over the South - from Texas to Oklahoma. It's a typical southern family. Always trying to get together on the holidays, but never quite making it.

I went to school just a few miles from here. We read the Bible in homeroom and recited prayers every morning. We said the pledge of allegiance and meant it. We understood that our first obligations were to country and family. Every Sunday, we went to the Baptist Church over on Kavanaugh Boulevard, and every Wednesday night to church supper. I was a member of Royal Ambassadors church youth group and sang in the youth choir. I fished every weekend for bream and bass. And I went shooting every weekend with my step-dad. After high school, I went on to West Point to help prepare for my career in the military.

What it all comes down to is that I am who I am because of what I learned right here in the South.

Maybe it's because I've never been in politics, but I don't believe that America is run by politicians Washington. It's run by people like us, in places like this.

And that's what my campaign for president is all about - to bring those same southern values to Washington. They are the values I led by for thirty-four years in the military -- and the values we need now more than ever to set our country straight.

Today I want to talk to you about some of those values, and how, over the past three years, our President has abandoned them.

The first is patriotism. Say what you want about the South, but never question a southerner's love for this country. Right now, there are thousands of young men and women from here in the South, and from all over America, who are standing in harm's way in Iraq and Afghanistan. They, like the thousands of veterans who've come before them, are America's heroes, serving their country and defending one of America's most important ideals, democracy.

That's what our nation was built on. It's what our flag represents. I love that flag. I fought for that flag. Brave men I served with were buried under that flag. But patriotism is about more than our flag. It's the idea that everyone's entitled to their opinion, and everyone's entitled to share it. So when our President says it's unpatriotic if we question his policies, I think he's dead wrong. Nothing is more American, nothing is more patriotic than speaking out, questioning authority and holding your leaders accountable.

That's what I've been doing on the campaign trail, questioning the President's misguided policies in Iraq and the way he's shortchanging America's veterans. I have a success strategy to win the war in Iraq and bring our troops home - and a comprehensive plan to give our veterans the care and benefits they need. Because our veterans and soldiers deserve no less.

The second value is faith. Not just where you pray, or who you pray to, but the values your faith teaches you. Charity, integrity, kindness. Growing up in Arkansas, we always knew a few people who could preach a revival, but who didn't live it. And now we've got one in the White House. George W. Bush talks a lot about his faith, but he hasn't exactly backed up his words with deeds. In fact, the only charity he's given is to big business and the very rich. But the Enrons and the Halliburtons of America don't need our help.

The half a million children who've fallen into poverty under George Bush do. That's why I've got a plan that will lift two million children out of poverty, by raising the minimum wage, and providing affordable housing, child care, and transportation to those who need it.

Because I believe that helping Americans build strong families is one of government's most important roles. That's the third value I want to talk about. Any southerner will tell you that at the end of the day, nothing's more important than family. Our president seems to have forgotten that. He doesn't understand that it's hard to build a strong family if you're struggling to get by. And that's what's happening to too many American families today.

Over these last three years, three million Americans have lost their jobs. 44 million are without health insurance - including 7 million African Americans. And with tuition up 28 percent, many more can't afford to send their children to college.

As I've traveled around our country, I've seen how much people are hurting in America's cities and rural areas. If we can spend $87 billion to help Iraq, we can certainly invest at least that much to help Americans here at home.

I've got a plan that puts families first - and gives them the tools they need to succeed. My Jobs Creation Plan will take back President Bush's tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans - those earning more than $200,000 -- and use that money to jumpstart the economy and create jobs.

My health care plan will extend coverage to 30 million uninsured Americans - including every single American child.

And my education plan will give students $6,000 for the first two years of college, helping an additional one million Americans get a college education.

It doesn't matter if you're black or white, Southern Baptist or AME, a yellow dog or a blue dog Democrat, we know that strong families are the key to strong communities.

You know, we usually understand what's best for us down here. But I have to be honest, there's one issue we got wrong for a long time, and it took a national movement led by southerners to open our eyes. And that's the last southern value I want to talk about: inclusion and diversity.

We learned about civil rights and the power of diversity the hard way, because most of us didn't understand that, fundamentally, we are all alike - no matter what the color of our skin.

We learned that America's diversity is our greatest strength, and that our families and our communities suffer without it. Men and women had to put their lives on the line to show us that we could be a better people - and a better America -- if we removed the barriers that divided us. That's something I saw in the Army, where all soldiers - men and women, black and white - were judged strictly by their abilities. As far as we've come, we still haven't won the battle against racial bigotry and ignorance.

So, that's enough talk. It really all comes down to one thing: This election is going to be won by someone who understands southern values. Someone who's a leader - not a politician. Someone who believes that we should always put America's interests over the special interests, and who's always held accountable for his actions. We need a higher standard of leadership. That's what's going to turn our country around.

Okay, it's time to get going, before Gert gives me the hook. Today we're headed to Louisiana, Alabama, Mississippi and Florida. Tomorrow, we'll be in Tennessee, South Carolina and Georgia - serving grits to anyone who'll take 'em. See you out there.

Thank you.