John McCain Concession Speech, November 4, 2008
Filed Under John McCain, Presidential Campaign 2008
JOHN MCCAIN:
Thank you. Thank you, my friends. Thank you for coming here on this beautiful Arizona evening.
My friends, we have — we have come to the end of a long journey. The American people have spoken, and they have spoken clearly.
A little while ago, I had the honor of calling Senator Barack Obama to congratulate him.
To congratulate him on being elected the next president of the country that we both love.
In a contest as long and difficult as this campaign has been, his success alone commands my respect for his ability and perseverance. But that he managed to do so by inspiring the hopes of so many millions of Americans who had once wrongly believed that they had little at stake or little influence in the election of an American president is something I deeply admire and commend him for achieving.
This is an historic election, and I recognize the special significance it has for African-Americans and for the special pride that must be theirs tonight.
I’ve always believed that America offers opportunities to all who have the industry and will to seize it. Senator Obama believes that, too.
But we both recognize that, though we have come a long way from the old injustices that once stained our nation’s reputation and denied some Americans the full blessings of American citizenship, the memory of them still had the power to wound.
A century ago, President Theodore Roosevelt’s invitation of Booker T. Washington to dine at the White House was taken as an outrage in many quarters.
America today is a world away from the cruel and frightful bigotry of that time. There is no better evidence of this than the election of an African-American to the presidency of the United States.
Let there be no reason now…
(APPLAUSE)
Let there be no reason now for any American to fail to cherish their citizenship in this, the greatest nation on Earth.
(APPLAUSE)
Senator Obama has achieved a great thing for himself and for his country. I applaud him for it, and offer him my sincere sympathy that his beloved grandmother did not live to see this day. Though our faith assures us she is at rest in the presence of her creator and so very proud of the good man she helped raise.
Senator Obama and I have had and argued our differences, and he has prevailed. No doubt many of those differences remain.
These are difficult times for our country. And I pledge to him tonight to do all in my power to help him lead us through the many challenges we face.
I urge all Americans…
(APPLAUSE)
I urge all Americans who supported me to join me in not just congratulating him, but offering our next president our good will and earnest effort to find ways to come together to find the necessary compromises to bridge our differences and help restore our prosperity, defend our security in a dangerous world, and leave our children and grandchildren a stronger, better country than we inherited.
Whatever our differences, we are fellow Americans. And please believe me when I say no association has ever meant more to me than that.
(APPLAUSE)
It is natural. It’s natural, tonight, to feel some disappointment. But tomorrow, we must move beyond it and work together to get our country moving again.
AUDIENCE MEMBER: (OFF-MIKE)
We fought — we fought as hard as we could. And though we feel short, the failure is mine, not yours.
AUDIENCE: No!
MCCAIN: I am so…
AUDIENCE: (CHANTING)
MCCAIN: I am so deeply grateful to all of you for the great honor of your support and for all you have done for me. I wish the outcome had been different, my friends.
AUDIENCE MEMBER: We do, too (OFF-MIKE)
MCCAIN: The road was a difficult one from the outset, but your support and friendship never wavered. I cannot adequately express how deeply indebted I am to you.
I’m especially grateful to my wife, Cindy, my children, my dear mother…
(APPLAUSE)
… my dear mother and all my family, and to the many old and dear friends who have stood by my side through the many ups and downs of this long campaign.
I have always been a fortunate man, and never more so for the love and encouragement you have given me.
You know, campaigns are often harder on a candidate’s family than on the candidate, and that’s been true in this campaign.
All I can offer in compensation is my love and gratitude and the promise of more peaceful years ahead.
I am also — I am also, of course, very thankful to Governor Sarah Palin, one of the best campaigners I’ve ever seen…
(APPLAUSE)
… one of the best campaigners I have ever seen, and an impressive new voice in our party for reform and the principles that have always been our greatest strength…
(APPLAUSE)
… her husband Todd and their five beautiful children…
(APPLAUSE)
… for their tireless dedication to our cause, and the courage and grace they showed in the rough and tumble of a presidential campaign.
We can all look forward with great interest to her future service to Alaska, the Republican Party and our country.
(APPLAUSE)
To all my campaign comrades, from Rick Davis and Steve Schmidt and Mark Salter, to every last volunteer who fought so hard and valiantly, month after month, in what at times seemed to be the most challenged campaign in modern times, thank you so much. A lost election will never mean more to me than the privilege of your faith and friendship.
I don’t know — I don’t know what more we could have done to try to win this election. I’ll leave that to others to determine. Every candidate makes mistakes, and I’m sure I made my share of them. But I won’t spend a moment of the future regretting what might have been.
This campaign was and will remain the great honor of my life, and my heart is filled with nothing but gratitude for the experience and to the American people for giving me a fair hearing before deciding that Senator Obama and my old friend Senator Joe Biden should have the honor of leading us for the next four years.
(BOOING)
Please. Please.
I would not — I would not be an American worthy of the name should I regret a fate that has allowed me the extraordinary privilege of serving this country for a half a century.
half a century.
Today, I was a candidate for the highest office in the country I love so much. And tonight, I remain her servant. That is blessing enough for anyone, and I thank the people of Arizona for it.
(APPLAUSE)
AUDIENCE: USA. USA. USA. USA.
Tonight — tonight, more than any night, I hold in my heart nothing but love for this country and for all its citizens, whether they supported me or Senator Obama — whether they supported me or Senator Obama.
I wish Godspeed to the man who was my former opponent and will be my president. And I call on all Americans, as I have often in this campaign, to not despair of our present difficulties, but to believe, always, in the promise and greatness of America, because nothing is inevitable here.
Americans never quit. We never surrender.
(APPLAUSE)
We never hide from history. We make history.
Thank you, and God bless you, and God bless America. Thank you all very much.
谢谢你，我的朋友们。
谢谢你们在这个美丽的亚利桑那州的夜晚来到这里。
我的朋友们，我们已经结束了一段长途旅程。美国人已经作出了他们的选择，清晰地作出了他们的选择。
不久之前，我非常荣幸地打电话给奥巴马参议员，向他祝贺胜利。祝贺他当选为这个我们都热爱的国家的新一任总统。
在这场持久而且艰难的竞选活动中，他的成功赢得了我对他能力和毅力的尊敬。但是更让我赞赏的是，他激起了数以亿计的美国人民的希望。他们原本错误地以为他们自己在选举中所发挥的作用有限。这是一次历史性的选举，我承认它对非洲裔美国人的重要性，今晚的荣耀必定属于他们。
我一直相信，美国为所有勤奋并愿意抓住机会的人提供了机会。奥巴马参议员也相信这一点。但我们都承认，尽管我们已经远离了以前的不公正，但他们的记忆仍能感受到所受到的伤害。这些不公正曾玷污了这个国家的名誉，剥夺了一些美国人应该作为美国公民应该享有的祝福。
一个世纪以前，西奥多-罗斯福总统邀请布克-T-华盛顿在白宫共同进餐，这曾引起了许多人的愤怒。但今天的美国已经远离了那个时代的残忍以及可怕的顽固。再也没有比一位非洲裔美国人当选美国总统更能证明这一点了。我们要让所有的美国人都没有理由不珍视他们的国民身份，珍视这个地球上最伟大国家的国民身份。
奥巴马参议员实现了他个人的伟大目标，同时也实现了这个国家的目标。我为他鼓掌喝彩，同时也对他敬爱的外祖母没有活着看到这一天而表示真挚的同情。但我们的信念告诉我们，她一定是在上帝那里安息，一定会对她抚养长大的这位好人而感到自豪。
奥巴马参议员与我曾就许多分歧进行过争论，但他最终获胜了。毫无疑问许多分歧仍然继续存在。我们的国家目前正处在困难之中，但我今夜向他承诺，我将会尽我的全力来帮助他领导我们共同迎接目前面临的许多挑战。
我希望所有支持我的美国人，不仅仅是要和我一起来祝贺他，同时还要向我们的新任总统表达我们良好的心愿以及我们真诚的努力。以便大家一起就分歧达成必要的妥协，重新恢复我们的繁荣，在这个危险的世界上捍卫我们的安全，给我们的子孙们创造一个更加强大的国家，让他们在这个国家更好地生活。
无论我们存在何种分歧，我们都是美国人。今夜大家感到失望非常正常。但明天，我们应该摆脱这种情绪，共同努力使我们的国家继续前行。我们努力了，我们尽了我们最大的努力，尽管没有达成目标，但这一失败是我的，而不是你们的。对于有幸获得你们的支持，以及你们为我所做的一切，我表示最深挚的感谢。我的朋友们，我也希望结果不是这样的。这条道路从一开始就充满艰辛，但你们的支持与友爱从来没有动摇，我实在找不出任何合适的词语来表达我对你们的感谢。
我还特别要感谢我的妻子辛迪、我的孩子们、我亲爱的母亲以及我的家人，同时还要感谢那些在这场跌宕起伏中始终站在我一边的老朋友们。我一直都是一个幸运的人，但迄今绝对没有任何事情可以像你们的爱以及鼓励那样让我感到更幸运。大家都知道，竞选对于候选人的家人来说往往显得更为艰难，在这次的竞选过程中同样如此。我所能补偿的，就是我今后的爱、感恩的心以及宁静的承诺。
当然，我也非常感谢佩林州长，她是我见过的最好的搭档之一。我还要感谢她的丈夫托迪以及他们5个美丽的孩子，他们为我们的事业作出了不知疲倦的努力，在这次的竞选中他们表现出了勇气和优雅的风度。我们所有人都期待她未来更好地为阿拉斯加州服务，为共和党以及我们的国家服务。
对于我们竞选团队的伙伴们，从迪克-戴维斯、斯蒂汶-斯米德特、马克-萨尔特，到在这场选举中所有努力工作的志愿者，我要说谢谢你们。和你们的信任以及友情相比，这场失败了的选举根本算不了什么。我不知道，我不知道我们还要多做些什么才能赢得这场选举。每一位候选人都会犯下错误，我可以肯定我也会犯错误，但我未来绝对不会对此感到有一丝的遗憾。
这场选举过去和将来都会是我生命中的巨大荣幸，我的心中充满了对这种经历的感谢。美国人民在选择奥巴马参议员以及我的老朋友拜登参议员来领导美国的下一个四年之前，给了我一个倾听的公平机会。
今天，我是我所热爱的这个国家的最高职位的一位候选人；今夜，我将仍然是她的一位仆人。这是对所有人的祝福，我想信亚利桑那州的人民会同意这一点。今夜，在我的心中，我比以往任何一个夜晚都更加深爱这个国家，深爱这个国家的全体国民，无论他们是投票支持了我，还是他们支持了奥巴马参议员。
我向我以前的对手、未来的总统表示成功的祝福。我呼吁所有的美国人，就像我以前在竞选中说的那样，不要对我们目前的困难感到绝望，而要相信，一直相信美国的前景和伟大，因为没有什么事情是必然的。
美国人绝不放弃，我们绝不投降！我们绝不逃避历史，我们创造历史！
谢谢。愿上帝保佑你们，愿上帝保佑美国。
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