Monday 5 July 2021
President Joe Biden's #4thOfJuly speech in full
As Biden made his remarks, he was faced with the reality of missing two big goals in the vaccination efforts – getting 160 million Americans fully vaccinated and making sure 70 per cent of adults received at least one dose by July 4, 2021.
So far, only 67% of adult Americans have received one dose of the vaccine.
The president's speech in full:
Today we celebrate America. Freedom, our liberty, our independence. The Fourth of July, today of history, hope, remembrance and resolve with promise and possibilities. Before me stands monuments of the greatest and the goodness of our nation - monuments of light and liberty.
There is a towering memorial of George Washington. A general who led our revolution, the president who set our nation on its course. There's a memorial for Thomas Jefferson, whose words about liberty and equality literally changed the world. And across the tidal basin, from the Jefferson memorial, there stands Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., his arms crossed, his eyes fixed ahead toward the promise land where equality is not only an aspiration but a reality.
They help define who we are. Guide what we do. Remind us of the work that history has given us in our own time.
This year, the Fourth of July, is a special celebration for we are emerging from the darkness of a year of pandemic and isolation, a year of pain, fear and heartbreaking loss. Just think back to where this nation was a year ago, think back to where you were a year ago.
Think about how far we've come. From silent streets to crowded parade routes with eople waving the American flag. From empty stadiums and arenas to fans back in their seats, cheering together again. From families, pressing hands against windows, to grandparents hugging their children once again. We're back traveling again. We're back seeing each other again. Businesses are opening entirely. We're seeing record job creation, and record economic growth, the best in four decades, and I might add, the best in the world.
Today all across this nation, we could say with confidence, America is coming back together.
245 years ago we declared our independence from a distant king. Today we're closer than ever to declaring our independence from a deadly virus. That is not to say the battle against Covid-19 is over, we've got a lot more work to do. But just as our declaration of 1776 was a call to action, not a reason for complacency, or a claim to victory, it was a call to action. The same is true today. Back then we had the power of an idea on our side, today the power of science.
Thanks to our heroic vaccine effort, we've gained the upper hand against this virus. We can live our lives, our kids can go back to school, our economy is roaring back. Don't get me wrong. Covid-19 has not been vanquished. We all know powerful variants have emerged like the Delta variant,- we know that variants have emerged. But the best defence against the virus is to get vaccinated. Get vaccinated. The most patriotic thing you can do, please, if you have not gotten vaccinated, do it, do it now. For yourself. For your loved ones. For your community. For your country. You know, that is how we'll stay ahead of this variant.
We never again want to be where we were a year ago today. So today, while the virus hasn't been vanquished. We know this - it no longer controls our lives, it no longer paralyzes a nation. We have the power to make sure it never happens again. For that, we can thank the scientists and researchers, the educators, and all the frontline workers, like many of you here today who became the light to see us through the darkness.
I hope you know that you, the American people, have been part of one of most remarkable achievements in American history. But in this moment of joy, weknow that this day falls hard on those who lost a loved one.
Each day I carry in a card in my pocket with my schedule on it. On the back of that card, I have the number of Americans who lost their lives. As of tonight, that number is 603,018. They're mothers and fathers, sons and daughters, brothers, sisters, grandparents, neighbors, coworkers.
We also remember all those who lost this year, families that have lost to other causes of death and cruel twists of fate. They too left behind loved ones unable to grieve, mourn, closure. Those of you who have been through all this, you have to remember. We commit to always remember them.
I've long said America is unique. Unlike every other nation on Earth, we were founded on an idea. We hold these truths to be self evident that all people are created equal and have right, among them, life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. And while we have never fully lived up to the words but we never give up on them. They continue to animate us and remind us at our best, we as Americans believe in honand dignity. treat everyone with dignity and respect, giving hate no safe harbor. And leaving no one behind. We lead by the power of our example, not the example of our power. And we are part of something so much bigger than ourselves. We stand as a beacon to the world. It's a code uniquely American, it's who we are.
All of the servicemen and women here tonight, all of you serving around the world, it's the greatest honor to serve as your commander in chief. Jill and I and our entire family, thank you for your service and sacrifice. Like so many military families, thinking of loved ones who served, we think of our son Beau today. You're all part of a long chain of patriots who pledged their lives and their sacred honor in defense of this nation and democracy around the world. For freedom and fair play, for peace and security and opportunity. For the cause of justice, for the soul of America itself.
The defence of all that we love doesn't fall on your shoulders alone. It falls on every one of us, every American. Each day we are reminded of there's nothing guaranteed about our democracy, nothing guaranteed about our way of life. We have to fight for it, defend it, earn it. Folks, it's up to all of us to protect the right to life, liberty and justice. The right to equal law and the right to vote and have that vote counted. The right to breathe clean air, drink clean water, and know our children and grandchildren are safe on this planet for generations to come. The right to rise in this world as far as your God-given talent can take you. Unlimited by barriers of privilege or power.
One of the great gifts of spirit of Independence is the capacity to see ourselves whole and see ourselves honestly - what we've got right, what we've got wrong. It's a measure of the greatness of America, of a a nation. We are a great nation. We don't seek to bury the wrongs. We face it. We make it right. History tells us when we stand together, when we unite in common causes, when we see ourselves not as Republicans or Democrats, there is simply no limit to what we can achieve. Today we see the results of unity and purpose.
Together we are beating the virus. Together we are breathing life into our economy. Together we will rescue our people from division and despair. But together we must do it.
Over the past year, we have lived through some of our darkest days. Now I truly believe, we're about to see our brightest future. Folks, this is a special nation, a great nation, no matter your race or ethnicity or gender or faith.
And there is a timeless truth about America. The most powerful idea in the history of the world, in the hearts of the people of this country. It beats in all of our hearts, no matter your gender or ethnicity or your gender or sexual orientation, no matter your disability, no matter your faith. It beats in the hearts of rich and poor alike, it unites America, whether your ancestors were native to the land or forced here as slaves, or immigrants generations back like my family who came from Ireland, or you are coming here today looking to build a better life for your family, like our fellow Americans that I just swore in, in the White House two days ago. The American creed. We use that phrase, the American creed. We all know that phrase, it was written a long time ago. But the genius is every generation of Americans has expanded it wider and wider to include those who were excluded before. That's why it's never gathered dust in our history books, it's still alive today. Alive in our hearts, alive in the work of our hands. Alive not only in the history we read but the history we are making.
My fellow Americans, now we're the guardians of the idea of America, it is up to us to save it, to preserve it, to build on it. And I know we will. On this sacred day, I look out to those monuments on our National Mall, and beyond them to the hearts of the people across the land, I know this - it's never ever been a good bet to bet against America, never.
We just need to remember who we are. We are the United States of America. There is nothing, nothing we can't do if we do it together.
Happy Fourth of July America. God bless you all. May God protect our troops.
THIS IS TOO LONG NA.
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