b********n
发帖数: 38600 | 1 Barack Obama's Speech at John McCain's Funeral
To John's beloved family, Mrs. McCain, to Cindy and the McCain children,
President and Mrs. Bush, President and Secretary Clinton, Vice President and
Mrs. Biden, Vice President and Mrs. Cheney, Vice President Gore, and as
John would say, my friends. We come to celebrate an extraordinary man. A
statesman, a patriot who embodied so much that is best in America.
President Bush and I are among the fortunate few who competed against John
at the highest levels of politics. He made us better presidents just as he
made the senate better, just as he makes this country better.
For someone like John to ask you while he is still alive to stand and speak
of him when he is gone is a precious and singular honor. Now, when John
called me with that request earlier this year, I'll admit sadness and also a
certain surprise. After our conversation ended, I realized how well it
captured some of John's essential qualities.
To start with, John liked being unpredictable, even a little contrarian. He
had no interest in conforming to some prepackaged version of what a senator
should be and he didn't want a memorial that was going to be prepackaged
either. It also showed John's disdain for self pity. He had been to hell and
back and yet somehow never lost his energy or his optimism or his zest for
life. So cancer did not scare him. And he would maintain that buoyant spirit
to the very end, too stubborn to sit still, as ever, fiercely devoted to
his friends and most of all to his family. It showed his irreverence, his
sense of humor, a little bit of a mischievous streak. what better way to get
a last laugh than make George and I say nice things about him to a national
audience? And most of all it showed a largeness of spirit. An ability to
see past differences in search of common ground.
And in fact on the surface, John and i could not have been more different.
We're of different generations. I came from a broken home and never knew my
father. John was the stein of one of America's most distinguished military
families. I have a reputation for keeping cool, John not so much. We were
standard bearers of different American political traditions and throughout
my presidency John never hesitated to tell me when he thought I was screwing
up, which by his calculation was about once a day. But for all our
differences, for all of the times we sparred, I never tried to hide, and I
think John came to understand the long-standing admiration that I had for
him.
By his own account John was a rebellious young man. In his case, what's
faster way to distinguish yourself when you're the son and grandson of
admirals than to mutiny. Eventually, though, he concluded that the only way
to really make his mark on the world is to commit to something bigger than
yourself. For John, that meant answering the highest of callings, serving
his country in a time of war.
Others this week and this morning have spoken to the depths of his torment
and the depths of his courage there in the cells of Hanoi when day after day
, year after year that youthful iron was tempered into steel. And it brings
to mind something that Hemingway wrote, a book that Meghan referred to, his
favorite book. "Today is only one day in all the days that will ever be. But
what will happen in all the other days that ever come can depend on what
you do today."
In captivity John learned in ways that few of us ever will the meaning of
those words, how each moment, each day, each choice is a test. And John
McCain passed that test again and again and again. And that's why when John
spoke of virtues like service and valor they weren't just words to him, it
was a truth that he had lived and for which he was prepared to die. And it
forced even the most cynical to consider what were we doing for our country?
What might we risk everything for?
Much has been said this week about what a maverick John was. In fact, John
was a pretty conservative guy. Trust me, I was on the receiving end of some
of those votes. But he did understand that some principles transcend
politics. Some values transcend party. He considered it part of his duty to
uphold those principles and uphold those values.
John cared about the institutions of self government, our constitution, our
bill of rights, rule of law. Separation of powers. Even the arcane rules and
procedures of the senate. He knew that in a nation as big and boisterous
and diverse as ours, those institutions, those rules, those norms are what
bind us together. Give shape and order to our common life. Even when we
disagree. Especially when we disagree.
John believed in honest argument and hearing our views. He understood that
if we get in the habit of bending the truth to suit political expediency or
party orthodoxy, our democracy will not work. That's why he was willing to
buck his own party at times. occasionally work across the aisle on campaign
finance reform and immigration reform. That's why he championed a free and
independent press as vital to our democratic debate. And the fact it earned
him good coverage didn't hurt either.
John understood as JFK understood, as Ronald Reagan understood that part of
what makes our country great is that our membership is based not on our
blood line, not on what we look like, what our last names are, not based on
where our parents or grandparents came from or how recently they arrived,
but on adherence to a common creed that all of us are created equal. Endowed
by our creator with certain inalienable rights.
It has been mentioned today, seen footage this week, John pushing back
against supporters that challenged my patriotism during the 2008 campaign. I
was grateful but I wasn't surprised. As Joe Lieberman said, that was John's
instinct. I never saw John treat anyone differently because of their race
or religion or gender. That in those moments that have been referred to
during the campaign he saw himself as defending America's character, not
just mine. He considered it the imperative of every citizen that loves this
country to treat all people fairly.
And finally while John and I disagreed on all kinds of foreign policy issues
, we stood together on America's role as the one nation, believing that with
great power and great blessings comes great responsibility. That burden is
borne most heavily by our men and women in uniform. Service members like
Doug, Jimmy, Jack who followed their father's footsteps, as well as families
that serve alongside our troops. But John understood that our security and
our influence was won not just by our military might, not just by our wealth
, not just by our ability to bend others to our will, but from our capacity
to inspire others with our adherence to a set of universal values. Like rule
of law and human rights and insistence on the god-given dignity of every
human being.
Of course John was the first to tell us he was not perfect. Like all of us
that go into public service, he did have an ego. Like all of us there was no
doubt some votes he cast, some compromises he struck, some decisions he
made that he wished he could have back.
It is no secret, it has been mentioned that he had a temper, and when it
flared up, it was a force of nature, a wonder to behold. His jaw grinding,
his face reddening, his eyes boring a hole right through you. Not that I
ever experienced it firsthand, mind you. But to know john was to know that
as quick as his passions might flare, he was just as quick to forgive and
ask for forgiveness. He knew more than most his own flaws, his blind spots,
and he knew how to laugh at himself. And that self awareness made him all
the more compelling.
We didn't advertise it, but every so often over the course of my presidency
John would come over to the White House and we'd just sit and talk in the
oval office, just the two of us. We would talk about policy and we'd talk
about family and we'd talk about the state of our politics. And our
disagreements didn't go away during these private conversations. Those were
real and they were often deep. but we enjoyed the time we shared away from
the bright lights and we laughed with each other and we learned from each
other and we never doubted the other man's sincerity or the other patriotism
or that when all was said and done, we were on the same team. We never
doubted we were on the same team.
For all of our differences, we shared a fidelity to the ideals for which
generations of Americans have marched and fought and sacrificed and given
their lives. We considered our political battles a privilege, an opportunity
to serve as stewards of those ideals at home and do our best to advance
them around the world. We saw this country as a place where anything is
possible. and citizenship as an obligation to ensure it forever remains that
way.
More than once during his career John drew comparisons to Teddy Roosevelt. I
am sure it has been noted that Roosevelt's men in the arena seems tailored
to John. most of you know it. Roosevelt speaks of those who strive, who dare
to do great things, who sometimes win and sometimes come up short but
always relish a good fight. A contrast to those cold, timid souls who know
neither victory nor defeat. Isn't that the spirit we celebrate this week?
That striving to be better, to do better, worthy of the great inheritance
that our founders bestowed. So much of our politics, our public life, our
public discourse can seem small and mean and petty. Trafficking in bombastic
manufactured outrage, it's politics that pretends to be brave and tough,
but in fact is born of fear. John called on us to be bigger than that. He
called on us to be better than that.
Today is only one day in all the days that will ever be. but what will
happen in all the other days that will ever come can depend on what you do
today. What better way to honor John McCain's life of service than as best
we can follow his example to prove that the willingness to get in the arena
and fight for this country is not reserved for the few, it is open to all of
us, and in fact it is demanded of all of us as citizens of this great
republic. That's perhaps how we honor him best, by recognizing that there
are some things bigger than party or ambition or money or fame or power,
that the things that are worth risking everything for, principles that are
eternal, truths that are abiding. At his best, John showed us what that
means. For that, we are all deeply in his debt.
May God bless John McCain. May God bless this country he served so well. | D*****u
发帖数: 1090 | | b********n
发帖数: 38600 | 3 打床铺脸了
So much of our politics, our public life, our
public discourse can seem small and mean and petty. Trafficking in bombastic
manufactured outrage, it's politics that pretends to be brave and tough,
but in fact is born of fear. John called on us to be bigger than that. He
called on us to be better than that.
【在 D*****u 的大作中提到】
: 美地的律师文笔都是相当的了得，否则根本出不了山
| b********n
发帖数: 38600 | | b********n
发帖数: 38600 | 5 George W. Bush's Eulogy for John McCain
Cindy and the McCain family, I am honored to be with you, to offer my
sympathies and to celebrate a great life. The nation joins your
extraordinary family in grief and gratitude for John McCain. Some lives are
so vivid, it is difficult to imagine them ended. Some voices so vibrant and
distinctive, it is hard to think of them stilled. A man who seldom rested is
laid to rest and his absence is tangible, like the silence after a mighty
roar.
The thing about John's life was the amazing sweep of it. From a tiny prison
cell in Vietnam to the floor of the United States Senate. From trouble-
making pleb to presidential candidate. Wherever John passed throughout the
world, people immediately knew there was a leader in their midst. And one
epic life was written the courage of our country. For John, it was a
personal journey, hard fought.
He could frustrate me, and I know he'd say the same thing about me. But he
also made me better. In recent years we sometimes talk of that intense
period like football players, remembering a big game. In the process rivalry
melted away. In the end I got to enjoy one of life's great gifts, the
friendship of John McCain, and I'll miss it.
Moments before my last debate ever with Senator John Kerry in Phoenix, I was
trying to gather some thoughts in the holding room. I felt a presence,
opened my eyes, and six inches from my face was McCain who yelled "Relax,
relax!"
John was above all a man with a code. He lived by a set of public virtues
that brought strength and purpose to his life and to his country. He was
courageous, with a courage that frightened his captors, and inspired his
countrymen. He was honest, no matter whom it offended. Presidents were not
spared. He was honorable. always recognizing that his opponents were still
patriots and human beings. He loved freedom with a passion of a man who knew
its absence. He respected the dignity inherent in every life, a dignity
that does not stop at borders and cannot be erased by dictators.
Perhaps above all John detested the abuse of power, could not abide bigots
and swaggering. He spoke up for the little guy, forgotten people in
forgotten places. One friend from naval academy days recalls John reacted to
seeing an upperclassman verbally abuse a steward. Against all tradition, he
told the jerk to pick on someone his own size. It was a familiar refrain
during the six decades of service.
Where does such strength and conviction come from? Perhaps from a family
where honor was in the atmosphere or from the firsthand experience of
cruelty which left physical reminders that lasted his whole life. Or from
some deep well of moral principle. Whatever the cause, it was this
combination of courage and decency that defined John's calling, and closely
paralleled the calling of his country.
This combination of courage and decency that makes the American military
something new in history. Unrivaled power for good. This combination of
courage and decency that set America on a journey into the world to liberate
death camps, to stand guard against extremism, and to work for the true
peace that comes only with freedom. John felt these commitments in his bones.
It is a tribute to his moral compass that dissidents and prisoners in so
many places from Russia to North Korea to China knew that he was on their
side. And I think their respect meant more to him than any medals and honors
life could bring. The passion for fairness and justice extended to our own
military when a private was poorly seaman was overworked in terrible
conditions, John enjoyed nothing more than dressing down an admiral or a
general. He remained a troublesome pleb to the end.
Those in political power were not exempt. At various points throughout his
long career, John confronted policies and practices he believed were
unworthy of his country. John McCain would insist we are better than this.
America is better than this.
John is the first to tell you he was not a perfect man but he dedicated his
life to national ideals that are as perfect as men and women have yet
conceived. He was motivated by a vision of America carried ever forward,
ever upward, on the strength of its principles. He saw our country not only
as a physical place or power but as the carrier of enduring human
aspirations. As an advocate for the oppressed, as a defender of the peace,
as a promise, unwavering, undimmed, unequalled. Strength of democracy is
renewed by reaffirming the principles on which it was founded and America
somehow always found leaders who were up to that task particularly at the
time of greatest need.
John was born to meet that kind of challenge, to defend and demonstrate the
defining ideals of our nation. If we're ever tempted to forget who we are,
grow weary of our cause, John's voice will come as a whisper over our
shoulder. We are better than this. America is better than this.
John was a restless soul. He really didn't glory in success or wallow in
failure because he was always onto the next thing, said he can't stay in the
same experience.
One of his books ended with the words "and I moved on." John has moved on.
He would probably not want us to dwell on it, but we are better for his
presence among us. The world is smaller for his departure, and we will
remember him as he was, unwavering, undimmed, unequalled. | h*e
发帖数: 10233 | | b*d
发帖数: 285 | 7 应该把好莱坞的星光大道上川普的那颗改成奥巴马。最佳总统主演。 | s******m
发帖数: 1154 | 8 左逼从来都是说的比唱的好听
而且左逼爱现，爱出风头，爱装逼
让左逼脚踏实地做点正事，就瞎逼了 | g******t
发帖数: 18158 | 9 要看谁的律师，巨巨的律师已经认罪并且开始反咬巨巨，事先还偷录了很多巨巨的录音带
【在 D*****u 的大作中提到】
: 美地的律师文笔都是相当的了得，否则根本出不了山
| l*****g
发帖数: 685 | 10 这有什么好奇怪的
作弊说的都比唱的好听，但做的却是断子绝孙的烂事，这早就不是新闻了
and
speak
【在 b********n 的大作中提到】
: Barack Obama's Speech at John McCain's Funeral
: To John's beloved family, Mrs. McCain, to Cindy and the McCain children,
: President and Mrs. Bush, President and Secretary Clinton, Vice President and
: Mrs. Biden, Vice President and Mrs. Cheney, Vice President Gore, and as
: John would say, my friends. We come to celebrate an extraordinary man. A
: statesman, a patriot who embodied so much that is best in America.
: President Bush and I are among the fortunate few who competed against John
: at the highest levels of politics. He made us better presidents just as he
: made the senate better, just as he makes this country better.
: For someone like John to ask you while he is still alive to stand and speak
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