Last night, in his address to Congress, President Obama quote a letter he received from Senator Ted Kennedy, written a few months ago to be delivered upon his death.
May 12, 2009
Dear
Mr. President,
I
wanted to write a few final words to you to express my gratitude for your
repeated personal kindnesses to me – and one last time, to salute your
leadership in giving our country back its future and its truth.
On
a personal level, you and Michelle reached out to Vicki, to our family and me
in so many different ways. You helped to make these difficult months a happy
time in my life.
You
also made it a time of hope for me and for our country.
When
I thought of all the years, all the battles, and all the memories of my long
public life, I felt confident in these closing days that while I will not be
there when it happens, you will be the President who at long last signs into
law the health care reform that is the great unfinished business of our
society. For me, this cause stretched across decades; it has been disappointed,
but never finally defeated. It was the cause of my life. And in the past year,
the prospect of victory sustained me-and the work of achieving it summoned my
energy and determination.
There
will be struggles – there always have been – and they are already underway
again. But as we moved forward in these months, I learned that you will not
yield to calls to retreat - that you will stay with the cause until it is won.
I saw your conviction that the time is now and witnessed your unwavering
commitment and understanding that health care is a decisive issue for our
future prosperity. But you have also reminded all of us that it concerns more
than material things; that what we face is above all a moral issue; that at
stake are not just the details of policy, but fundamental principles of social
justice and the character of our country.
And
so because of your vision and resolve, I came to believe that soon, very soon,
affordable health coverage will be available to all, in an America where the
state of a family’s health will never again depend on the amount of a family’s
wealth. And while I will not see the victory, I was able to look forward and
know that we will – yes, we will – fulfill the promise of health care in
America as a right and not a privilege.
In
closing, let me say again how proud I was to be part of your campaign- and
proud as well to play a part in the early months of a new era of high purpose
and achievement. I entered public life with a young President who inspired a
generation and the world. It gives me great hope that as I leave, another young
President inspires another generation and once more on America’s behalf
inspires the entire world.
So,
I wrote this to thank you one last time as a friend- and to stand with you one
last time for change and the America we can become.
At
the Denver Convention where you were nominated, I said the dream lives on.
And
I finished this letter with unshakable faith that the dream will be fulfilled
for this generation, and preserved and enlarged for generations to come.
With
deep respect and abiding affection,
[Ted]
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