One of the few perks of being a political reporter is sometimes getting the text of a speech before it's delivered.
So here's my gift to you. If you promise to read this entire entry, you'll get to see a few excerpts from his upcoming speech before the rest of the world sees it.
Obama (a guy who once had trouble getting reporters to press conferences not in the statehouse press room) is probably giving the most important speech of his life tonight.
He must not only sell himself to his own party to get Sen. Hillary Clinton's sore supporters behind him, he must also convince the American people he can be a strong, patriotic leader who understands and can help their problems as opposed to some Harvard-educated out-of-touch liberal elitist.
So here's some of Obama's turkey talk on the economy:
“I will cut taxes – cut taxes – for 95% of all working families. Because in an economy like this, the last thing we should do is raise taxes on the middle-class. "
“We measure the strength of our economy not by the number of billionaires we have or the profits of the Fortune 500, but by whether someone with a good idea can take a risk and start a business, or whether the waitress who lives on tips can take a day off to look after a sick kid without losing her job – an economy that honors the dignity of work."
Here's something he'll say about national defense:
“As Commander-in-Chief, I will never hesitate to defend this nation, but I will only send our troops into harm’s way with a clear mission and a sacred commitment to give them the equipment they need in battle and the care and benefits they deserve when they come home."
Stay tuned to CLTV for the speech tonight and keep your computers and pdas linked to CLTV.com for analysis on my blog. You can also weigh in there.
