Obama: "New Era of Service" 7/2/08 speech: "Civilian National Security Force" genesis

Sean Robins | July 16, 2008 | Sean Robins

[seanrobins]

BARACK OBAMA : July 2, 2008 Address: "A New Era of Service"
University of Colorado - Colorado Springs, Colorado

Obama: "New Era of Service" 7/2/08 speech: "Civilian National Security Force" genesis 

(View video of entire speech on YouTube)
(Prepared text of speech as released to the media)
(Jump to "prepared" and "marked-up" versions of speech)

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In a recent article on WorldNetDaily ("Obama's 'Civilian National Security Force,'" July 15, 2008), Joseph Farah points out what, prior to his piece, no source in the mainstream media has discussed - one of numerous proposals contained in Barack Obama's July 2, 2008 speech - delivered at the University of Colorado, and broadly dealing with "national service."

Farah hones in on one brief passage of Obama's, part of a larger section of the address in which he ticks off various items on his national service "to do" list:

We cannot continue to rely only on our military in order to achieve the national security objectives that we've set.  We've gotta have a civilian national security force that's just as powerful, just as strong, just as well-funded.

Farah expresses his consternation at both the content of Obama's proclamation, as well as the media's utter failure to ask him about it.  WorldNetDaily for its part, has been after the Obama campaign for an explanation of the above proposal:

With all the reporters covering the major presidential candidates, it amazes me no one ever seems to ask the right questions.

For several days now, WND has been hounding Barack Obama's campaign about a statement he made July 2 in Colorado Springs – a statement that blew my mind, one that has had me scratching my head ever since.

Since Farah's piece, the blogosphere has begun to hum with speculation about what this all means.  What does Obama have in mind.  Frankly, your guess is as good as mine.

The speech itself, however, is a window into some of the most frightening aspects of an Obama Presidency.  In it, Obama outlines the fundamental core of his political and social being.  I'm sure he did not intend it to be so, but it is.  Obama lays out what he states are his proposals for addressing most, if not all, of the nation's and society's problems, through his reinvention of various models of "national service." 

Obama National Service will solve the nation's educational problems.  Obama National Service will give people purpose and direction in their lives.  It will solve the nation's employment problems.  Obama National Service will save the nation's veterans, and give their lives purpose once again.  It will cure the multifaceted woes with which the military is beset.  It will reinstill the country with a sense of patriotism, and it will give meaning, once again, to all the things that America stands for.

And it will salvage the American Dream, and insure life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.

At least the happiness of an ObamaNation that we are all to "serve" under an Obama presidency.

It is very important to take time to read this speech.  I can't emphasize it enough: Read the speech.  Read the speech.  Read the speech.

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TEXTS OF THE SPEECH . . .

I have prepared a "markup" of the prepared text of Obama's speech as release prior by his campaign, which reflects how he deviated from the prepared text in the actual delivery of the speech.  Now, admittedly, many, if not most of the smaller deviations are of the kind that any speaker would make, attempting to rigidly follow a script, but flubbing it a word or two here or there, and recovering from the flub.

But many of the more significant deviations made by Obama are intentional departures from the script as planned, including a number of very apparent additions made "on the fly."  We can only speculate as to whether these were actually planned by Obama, whether they were discussed with members of his campaign or speechwriters and then omitted - which he added back in, or, perhaps, whether some of these departures were things that he had been counseled not to talk about, but which he - all-knowing that he is - decided to speak to anyway.  We can only speculate.

But we do know what was not in the original text as planned and distributed to the media ahead of time, but which Obama added during the speech.  One of these major additions if the passage in question in Joseph Farah's piece:

We cannot continue to rely only on our military in order to achieve the national security objectives that we've set.  We've gotta have a civilian national security force that's just as powerful, just as strong, just as well-funded.

(See paragraph 26)  Most of the time, when Obama flubs a line and attempts to recover, you can easily spot it.  This is the case in most of the changes in his speech, and at least a number of the noticeable "additions" to the speech.  In the case of the "civilian national security force" addition, I do not detect the classic Obama flub in the works.  These two lines, although not included in the prepared text, are delivered clearly, concisely, and succinctly, without any hint that they emanate from a flub.  No; these two lines were prepared and rehearsed ahead of time.  Obama knew them before he delivered them, although not in the prepared text.

Explanation?  The two lines were originally in his speech, and someone (or someones) counseled him to take them out.  (Gosh, I wonder why?)  He agreed to.  And in the moment of the speech, he decided, "they're back in."

Speculation?  Perhaps.  But its as reasonable an explanation as anything else.  And it points out that we need to pay closer attention to Obama's speeches, for what is off the cuff, for what his trainers and handlers might not want him to say, but which he will continue to say anyway.  We know he's really good on a fixed script.  And we know that he's really bad on his own.

What happens in the confluence between his scripts and teleprompters, and his brains and his mouth, is something we should pay close attention to.  Obama's own instincts and his own words (as opposed to the counseled, scripted and prepared) is the key to his downfall.

Sean Robins

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Prepared Text of Obama's Remarks (as released by campaign prior to address):	Text of Obama's Remarks as Delivered (as "marked up" against the prepared text):
	red strikeout  deletions to the prepared text blue bold  additions to the prepared text
[1]  In two days, we will celebrate America's Independence Day. We'll come together with family and friends to enjoy a day off. Maybe you'll cook out, watch a parade or take in some fireworks. Hopefully, you'll get a break from things like politics. [2]  But I'm sure there will be a moment or two, when the fireworks grow quiet or the parade has gone by, when the enormity of the American accomplishment will sink in, along with a deep pride in your place in the story of the United States America. I hope you take that moment to think about what you can do to shape the future of this country we love. [3]  These days, it's easy for us to get caught thinking that there are two different stories at work in our lives. There is the story of our day-to-day cares and responsibilities - the classes you have to take or the bills you have to pay; the bustle and busyness of what happens in your own life. And then there is the story of what's happening in the wider world - a story seen in headlines and websites and televised images; a story experienced only through the price you pay at the pump or the extra screening you pass through at the airport. [4]  This is the divide that separates you from the ability to shape your own destiny. So I am asking you - on this 4th of July - to reject that divide, to step into the strong currents of history, and to shape your country's future. Because your own story and the American story are not separate, they are shared. And they will both be enriched if together, we answer a new call to service to meet the challenges of our new century. [5]  I say this to you as someone who couldn't be standing here today if not for the service of others, and who wouldn't be standing here if not for the purpose that service gave my own life. [6]  You see, I spent much of my childhood adrift. My father left my mother and me when I was two. My mother remarried, and we lived in Indonesia for a time. But I was mostly raised in Hawaii by my mom and my grandparents from Kansas. Growing up, I wasn't always sure who I was, or where I was going. [7]  But during my first two years of college, perhaps because the values my mother had taught me -hard work, honesty, empathy - had resurfaced after a long hibernation; or perhaps because of the example of wonderful teachers and lasting friends, I began to notice a world beyond myself. And by the time I graduated from college, I was possessed with a crazy idea - that I would work at a grassroots level to bring about change. [8]  I wrote letters to every organization in the country I could think of. And one day, a small group of churches on the South Side of Chicago offered me a job working to help neighborhoods that had been devastated by steel plant closings. My mother and grandparents wanted me to go to law school. My friends were applying to jobs on Wall Street. Meanwhile, this organization offered me $12,000 a year plus $2,000 for an old, beat-up car. And I said yes. [9]  I didn't know a soul in Chicago, and I wasn't sure what was waiting for me there. I had always been inspired by stories of the Civil Rights movement and JFK's call to service, but when I got to the South Side, there were no marches, and no soaring speeches. In the shadow of an empty steel plant, there were just a lot of folks who were struggling. [10]  I still remember one of the very first meetings we put together to discuss gang violence with a group of community leaders. We waited and waited for people to show up, and finally, a group of older people walked into the hall. And they sat down. And a little old lady raised her hand and asked, "Is this where the bingo game is?" [11]  It wasn't easy, but eventually, we made progress. Day by day, block by block, we brought the community together. We registered new voters. We set up after school programs, fought for new jobs, and helped people live lives with more opportunity, and some measure of dignity. [12]  But I also began to realize that I wasn't just helping other people. Through service, I found a community that embraced me; citizenship that was meaningful; the direction I'd been seeking. Through service, I discovered how my own improbable story fit into the larger story of America. [13]  There is a lesson to be learned from generations who have served - from soldiers and sailors; airmen and Marines; suffragists and freedom riders; teachers and doctors; cops and firefighters. It's the lesson that in America, each of us is free to seek our own dreams, but we must also serve a common purpose, a higher purpose. When you choose to serve - whether it's your nation, your community, or simply your neighbor - you are connected to that fundamental American ideal that we want Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness not just for ourselves, but for all Americans. That is why this is a great nation. Because time and again, Americans have been willing to serve on stages both great and small; to draw on the same spirit that launched America's improbable journey to meet the challenges of each defining moment in our history. [14]  One of those moments came on September 11, 2001. Whether you lived in Manhattan or thousands of miles away in Colorado, you felt the pain and loss of that day not just as an individual, but as an American. You also felt pride - pride in the firefighters who rushed up the stairs while workers rushed down; pride in the police who provided comfort, and the neighbors who lent a hand; pride in your citizenship, and the tattered flag that flew at Ground Zero. That's why Americans lined up to give blood. That's why we held vigils and flew flags. That's why we rallied behind our President. We were ready to step into the strong current of history, and to answer a new call for our country. But the call never came. [15]  Instead of a call to service, we were asked to go shopping. Instead of a call for shared sacrifice, we gave tax cuts to the wealthiest Americans in a time of war for the very first time in our history. Instead of leadership that called us to come together, we got patriotism defined as the property of one party, and used as a political wedge to take us into a war that should have never been authorized and never been waged. [16]  We have lost precious time. Our nation is less secure and less respected in the world. Our energy dependence has risen, and so has the specter of climate change. More of our children have been left behind, and our American Dream risks slipping away. The burden of service has fallen on to the backs of our military - and their families - who have endured tour after tour of duty bravely and brilliantly, even though they haven't always gotten the care and support they have earned. [17]  When I was thinking about whether or not to seek the presidency, there were voices that counseled me to wait. Why not stay in Washington for a few more years, they said, to master the game. But the fact is, I had been in Washington long enough to know that it needs to change. [18]  I am running for President, right now, because of what Dr. King called the fierce urgency of now. This moment is too important to sit on the sidelines. Our country faces determined enemies abroad, and definitive challenges at home. But I have no doubt that in the face of these odds, people who love their country can change it. That is why I am running for President. That is why I'm determined to reach out - not just to Democrats, but to Independents and Republicans who want to move in a new direction. And that is why I won't just ask for your vote as a candidate - I will ask for your service and your active citizenship when I am President of the United States. [19]  This will not be a call issued in one speech or one program - this will be a central cause of my presidency. We will ask Americans to serve. We will create new opportunities for Americans to serve. And we will direct that service to our most pressing national challenges. [20]  There is no challenge greater than the defense of our nation and our values. The men and women of our military - from Fort Carson to Peterson Air Force base, from the Air Force Academy to the ROTC students here on campus - have signed up at a time when our troops face an ever-increasing load. Fighting a resurgent Taliban. Targeting al Qaeda. Persevering in the deserts and cities of Iraq. Training foreign militaries. Delivering humanitarian relief. In this young century, our military has answered when called, even as that call has come too often. Through their commitment, their capability, and their courage they have done us all proud. [21]  But we need to ease the burden on our troops, while meeting the challenges of the 21st century. That's why I will call on a new generation of Americans to join our military, and complete the effort to increase our ground forces by 65,000 soldiers and 27,000 Marines. [22]  A call to service must be backed by a sacred trust with anyone who puts on the uniform of the United States. A young person joining our military must know that we'll only send them into harm's way when we absolutely must. That we'll provide them with the equipment needed to complete their mission safely, and deployments that allow adequate time back home. They must see that we'll care for our military families while they're deployed, and that we're providing our veterans with the support, benefits, and opportunity that they have earned when they return home. That's what I've fought for on the Senate Veteran's Affairs Committee. That's what I'll promise as Commander in Chief. [23]  Just as we must value and encourage military service across our society, we must honor and expand other opportunities to serve. Because the future of our nation depends on the soldier at Fort Carson, but it also depends on the teacher in East LA, the nurse in Appalachia, the after-school worker in New Orleans, the Peace Corps volunteer in Africa, and the Foreign Service officer in Indonesia. Americans have shown that they want to step up. But we're not keeping pace with the demand of those who want to serve, or leveraging that commitment to meet national challenges. FDR not only enlisted Americans to create employment, he targeted that service to build our infrastructure and conserve our environment. JFK not only called on a new generation, he made their service a bridge to the developing world, and a bright light of American values in the darkest days of the Cold War. [24]  Today, AmeriCorps - our nation's network of local, state and national service programs - has 75,000 slots. I know firsthand the quality of these programs. My wife Michelle once left her job at a law firm to be the founding director of an AmeriCorps program in Chicago that trains young people for careers in public service. These programs invest Americans in their communities and their country. They tap America's greatest resource - our citizens. [25]  As President, I will expand AmeriCorps to 250,000 slots, and make that increased service a vehicle to meet national goals like providing health care and education, saving our planet and restoring our standing in the world, so that citizens see their efforts connected to a common purpose. People of all ages, stations, and skills will be asked to serve. Because when it comes to the challenges we face, the American people are not the problem - they are the answer. [26]  We'll send more college graduates to teach and mentor our young people. We'll call on Americans to join an Energy Corps to conduct renewable energy and environmental cleanup projects in their neighborhoods. We'll enlist veterans to help other vets find jobs and support, and to be there for our military families. And we'll also grow our Foreign Service, open consulates that have been shuttered, and double the size of the Peace Corps by 2011 to renew our diplomacy. [27]  And we'll use technology to connect people to service. We'll expand USA Freedom Corps to create an online network where Americans can browse opportunities to volunteer. You'll be able to search by category, time commitment, and skill sets; you'll be able to rate service opportunities, build service networks, and create your own service pages to track your hours and activities. This will empower more Americans to craft their own service agenda, and make their own change from the bottom up. [28]  We also need to invest in ideas that can help us meet our common challenges, because more often than not, the next great social innovation won't be generated by the government. [29]  The non-profit sector employs 1 in 12 Americans and 115 nonprofits are launched every day. Yet while the federal government invests $7 billion in research and development for the private sector, there is no similar effort to support non-profit innovation. Meanwhile, there are ideas across America - in our inner cities and small towns; from college graduates, to seniors getting ready to retire - that could benefit millions of Americans if they're given the chance to grow. [30]  As President, I will launch a new Social Investment Fund Network. It's time to get the grass roots, the foundations, the faith-based organizations, the private sector and the government at the table so that we can learn from our own success stories. We'll invest in ideas that work; leverage private sector dollars to encourage innovation; and expand successful programs to scale. Take a program like the Harlem Children's Zone, which helps thousands of kids in New York through after-school activities, mentoring, and family support. We need to make that model work in different cities across America. And just as we support small businesses, I'll start a new Social Entrepreneur Agency to make sure that small non-profits have strong support from Washington. [31]  Finally, we need to integrate service into education, so that young Americans are called upon and prepared to be active citizens. [32]  Just as we teach math and writing, arts and athletics, we need to teach young Americans to take citizenship seriously. [33]  Study after study shows that students who serve do better in school, are more likely to go to college, and more likely to maintain that service as adults. So when I'm President, I will set a goal for all American middle and high school students to perform 50 hours of service a year, and for all college students to perform 100 hours of service a year. This means that by the time you graduate college, you'll have done 17 weeks of service. [34]  We'll reach this goal in several ways. At the middle and high school level, we'll make federal assistance conditional on school districts developing service programs, and give schools resources to offer new service opportunities. At the community level, we'll develop public-private partnerships so students can serve more outside the classroom. [35]  For college students, I have proposed an annual American Opportunity Tax Credit of $4,000. To receive this credit, we'll require 100 hours of public service. You invest in America, and America invests in you - that's how we're going to make sure that college is affordable for every single American, while preparing our nation to compete in the 21st century. [36]  For our veterans, I was proud to be a strong and early supporter of Jim Webb's bipartisan GI Bill, so that today's vets have the same opportunity that my grandfather had under the GI Bill. To marshal their talents in building a new energy economy, I will launch an initiative to give our veterans the training they need to succeed in the Green Jobs of the future. It's time to end our energy dependence at home so our national security isn't held hostage to oil and gas from abroad. [37]  And we will not leave out the nearly 2 million young Americans who are out of school and out of work. We'll enlist them in our Energy Corps, so that disadvantaged young people can find useful work, clean polluted areas, help weatherize homes, and gain skills in a growing industry. And we'll expand the YouthBuild Program, which puts young Americans to work building affordable housing in America's poorest communities, giving them valuable skills and a chance to complete a high school education. Because no one should be left out of the American story. [38]  Now I know what the cynics will say. I've heard from them all my life. [39]  These are the voices that will tell you - not just what you can't do - but what you won't do. Americans won't come together - our allegiance doesn't go beyond our political party, region, or congregation. Young Americans won't serve their country - they're too selfish, or too lazy. This is the soft sell of the status quo, the voice that tells you to settle because settling isn't that bad. [40]  That's not the America that I've seen throughout this campaign. I've seen young people work, and volunteer, and turn out in record numbers. I've met members of our military - like the thousands of soldiers and airmen here in Colorado Springs - who signed up to serve in the wake of 9/11. I've met community workers who want to care for our kids; students who want to end the genocide in Darfur; businesses that want to expand opportunity; farmers who want to help free us from the tyranny of oil; seniors searching for ways to give back; and people of every age, race, and religion who want to come together to renew the American spirit. [41]  Renewing that spirit starts with service. Make no mistake: our destiny as Americans is tied up with one another. If we are less respected in the world, then you will be less safe. If we keep paying dictators for foreign oil, gas prices are going to keep rising, and so are the oceans. If we can't give all of our kids a world-class education, then our economy is going to fall behind. [42]  And that's how it should be. That's the bet our Founding Fathers were making all of those years ago - that our individual destinies could be tied together in the common destiny of democracy; that government depends not just on the consent of the governed, but on the service of citizens. That's what history calls us to do. Because loving your country shouldn't just mean watching fireworks on the 4th of July. Loving your country must mean accepting your responsibility to do your part to change it. If you do, your life will be richer, and our country will be stronger. [43]  We need your service, right now, at this moment - our moment - in history. I'm not going to tell you what your role should be; that's for you to discover. But I am going to ask you to play your part; ask you to stand up; ask you to put your foot firmly into the current of history. I am asking you to change history's course. And if I have the fortune to be your President, decades from now - when the memory of this or that policy has faded, and when the words that we will speak in the next few years are long forgotten - I hope you remember this as a moment when your own story and the American story came together, and - in the words of Dr. King - the arch of history bent once more towards justice.	[1]  In two days, we will celebrate America's Independence Day. We'll come together with family and friends to enjoy a day off.  Maybe you'll cook out, I don't know how your grilling skills are, but, some will watch a parade or take in some fireworks. Hopefully, you'll get a break from things like politics. [2]  But I'm sure there will be a moment or two, when the fireworks grow quiet or the parade's has gone by, when the enormity of the American accomplishment will sink in, along with a deep pride in your place in the story of the United States America. I hope you take that moment to think about what you can do to shape the future of this country that we love.  Shape its future. [3]  These days, it's easy for us to get caught thinking that there are two different stories at work in our lives. There is the story of our day-to-day cares and responsibilities - the classes you have to take or the bills you have to pay; the bustle and busyness of what happens in your own life. And then there is the story of what's happening in the wider world - a story seen in headlines and websites and televised images; a story experienced only through the price you pay at the pump or the extra screening you pass through at the airport. [4]  And this is the divide that separates you from the ability to shape your own destiny. So I am asking you, my fellow Americans - on this 4th of July - to reject that divide, to step into the strong currents of history, and to start shape shaping your country's future. Because your own story and the American story are not separate, they are shared. And they will be both be enriched if together, we answer a new call to service to meet the challenges of our new century. [5]  I say this to you as someone who couldn't be standing here today if not for the service of others, and who wouldn't be standing here if not for the purpose that service gave my own life. [6]  As some of you know You see, I spent much of my childhood adrift. My father left my mother and me when I was two years old. My mother remarried, and we moved overseas lived in Indonesia for a time. But I was mostly raised in Hawaii by my mom and my grandparents who were from Kansas. And growing up, I wasn't always sure of who I was, or where I was going.  That's what happens sometimes when you don't have a father in the home. [7]  But during my first two years of college, perhaps because the values my mother had taught me - values of hard work, and honesty, and empathy - perhaps because they had resurfaced after a long hibernation; or perhaps because of the example of wonderful teachers and lasting friends, I began to notice a world beyond myself. And by the time I graduated from college, I was possessed with a crazy idea - that I would work at the a grassroots level to bring about change. [8]  So I wrote letters to every organization in the country I could think of. And one day, a small group of churches on the South Side of Chicago offered me a job working to help neighborhoods that had been devastated by the steel plants that had closed closings in the early- and mid-Eighties.  Now my mother and grandparents thought it might be wiser for me wanted me to go to law school. My friends were all applying for to jobs on Wall Street. Meanwhile, this organization offered me $12,000 a year, plus they gave me $2,000 for all my car expenses for the next several years an old, beat-up car. And I said yes.  I said yes. [9]  I didn't know a soul in Chicago, and I wasn't sure what was waiting for me when I got there. I'd had always been inspired by stories of the Civil Rights movement and JFK's call to service, but when I got to the South Side, there were no marches, and there were no soaring speeches. In the shadows of an empty steel plant, there were just a lot of people folks who were struggling. [10]  I still remember one of the very first meetings we put together  to discuss gang violence with a group of community leaders.  I was working with lay leaders from churches in the neighborhoods to try to forge this coalition.  People had decided that the issue of gang violence was critical.  And, so they wanted to hold a community meeting to address gang violence.  So we put up thousands of flyers, we made phone calls to everybody we knew in the community.  And, the night of the meeting happens, and we've put out hundreds of chairs, like this, and we wait and we wait We waited and waited for people to show up, and finally, this a group of older people walk walked into the hall, and I'm relieved at least somebody's showing up.  And They sit sat down. And a little old lady raises raised her hand and asks asked, "When's the bingo starting?" "Is this where the bingo game is?"  That was my first meeting as a community organizer, my first, my first venture into community service. [11]  It wasn't easy.  There were times when it was extraordinarily discouraging, but eventually, we made progress. Day by day, block by block, we brought the community together. We registered new voters. We set up after school programs, fought for new jobs, and helped people live the lives in these communities with more opportunity, and some measure of dignity. [12]  And But I also began to realize that I wasn't just helping other people. Through service, I found a community that embraced me; citizenship that was meaningful; the direction that I'd been seeking. Through service, I discovered how my own improbable story fit into the larger American story of America. [13]  There is a lesson to be learned from generations who have served - from soldiers and sailors; airmen and Marines; suffragists and freedom riders; teachers and doctors; cops and firefighters. It's the lesson that in America, each of us is free to seek our own dreams, but we also must also serve a common purpose, a higher purpose. When you choose to serve - whether it's your nation, your community, or simply your neighborhood neighbor - you are connected to that fundamental American ideal that we want Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness not just for ourselves, but for all Americans.  That's why its called the American dream, its not called "Bobby's dream" or "Jane's dream" its the American dream.  That is why this is a great nation. Because time and again, Americans have been willing to serve on stages both great and small; to draw on the same spirit that launched America's improbable journey to meet the challenges of each defining moment in our history. [14]  One of those moments came on September 11, 2001.  Everybody here remembers where they were.  I remember I was at a meeting in downtown Chicago, having to walk down the stairs, and be out on the streets, and all these high-rises, everybody looking up into the sky.  And then, going to an office and watching the twin towers crumble.  And whether you lived in Manhattan or thousands of miles away in Colorado, you felt the pain and the loss of that day not just as an individual, but as an American.  And then later you also felt pride - pride in the firefighters who rushed up the stairs while workers were rushing rushed down; pride in the police who provided comfort, and the neighbors who lent a hand; pride in your citizenship, and the tattered flag that flew at Ground Zero. That's why Americans lined up to give blood. That's why we held vigils and flew flags. That's why we rallied behind our President. We were ready to step into the strong current of history, and to answer a new call for our country. But the call never came. [15]  Instead of a call to service, we were asked to shop go shopping.  Instead of a call for shared sacrifice, we saw gave tax cuts go to the wealthiest Americans in a time of war for the very first time in our history. Instead of leadership that called us to come together, we got patriotism defined as the property of one party, and used as a political wedge, we ended up going to take us into a war that should have never been authorized and should have never been waged. [16]  We have lost precious time. Our nation is less secure and less respected in the world. Our energy dependence has risen spectacularly, as has the price of gasoline.  and So has the specter of climate change.  More of our children have been left behind, and our American Dream risks slipping away. The burden of service has fallen almost exclusively on to the backs of our military - and their families - who have endured tour after tour after tour of duty bravely and brilliantly, even though they haven't always gotten the care and support that they have earned. [17]  When I was . . .  When I was thinking about whether or not to seek the presidency, there were voices that counseled me to wait. Why not stay in Washington for a few more years, they said, to master the game. But the fact is, I had been in Washington long enough to know that it, that game needs to change. [18]  I am running . . .  I am running for President, right now, because of what Dr. King called the fierce urgency of now. This moment . . .  This moment is too important to sit on the sidelines. Our country faces determined enemies abroad, and defining definitive challenges at home. But I have no doubt that in the face of these odds, people who love their country can change it. That's that is why I am running for President. That's that is why I'm determined to reach out - not just to Democrats, but to Independents and Republicans, to every single American who wants who want to move this country in a new direction.  And that's that is why I won't just ask for your vote as a candidate - I will ask for your service and your active citizenship when I am President of the United States. [19]  This won't will not be a call issued in one speech or one program - I want this to this will be a central cause of my presidency. We will ask Americans to serve. We will create new opportunities for Americans to serve. And we will direct that service to our most pressing national challenges.  Let me give you some examples. [20]  There is no challenge greater than the defense of our nation and our values. Our The men and women of our military - from Fort Carson to Peterson Air Force base, from the Air Force Academy to the "Rotsey" ROTC students here on campus - have signed up at a time when our troops face an ever-increasing load. Fighting a resurgent Taliban. Targeting al Qaeda.  Preserving . . . Persevering in the deserts and cities of Iraq. Training foreign militaries. Delivering humanitarian relief. In this young century, our military has answered when called, even as that call has come too often come far too frequently. Through their commitment, their capability, and their courage they've they have done us all proud. [21]  But we need . . . But we need to ease the burden on our troops, while meeting the challenges of the 21st century. That's why I will call on a new generation of Americans to join our military, and complete the effort to increase our ground forces by 65,000 soldiers and 27,000 Marines. [22]  A call . . . A call to service must be backed by a sacred trust with anyone who puts on the uniform of the United States.  So, a young person joining our military must know that we will we'll only send them into harm's way when we absolutely must. That we'll provide them with the equipment needed to complete their mission safely, and deployments that allow adequate time back home. They must see that we'll care for our military families while they're deployed, and that we're providing our veterans with the support, benefits, and opportunity that they've they have earned when they return home. That's what I've fought for on the Senate Veteran's Affairs Committee. That's what I'll promise as Commander in Chief.  And that's what I'll deliver. [23]  Now, just as we must value and encourage military service across our society, we must honor and expand other opportunities to serve. Because the future of our nation depends on the soldier at Fort Carson, but it also depends on the teacher in East LA, or the nurse in Appalachia, the after-school worker in New Orleans, the Peace Corps volunteer in Africa, and the Foreign Service officer in Indonesia. Americans have shown that they want to step up. But we're not keeping pace with the demand of those who want to serve, or leveraging that commitment to meet national challenges. FDR not only enlisted Americans to create employment, he targeted that service to build our infrastructure and conserve our environment. JFK not only called on a new generation, he made their service a bridge to the developing world, and a bright light of American values in the darkest days of the Cold War. [24]  Today, AmeriCorps - our nation's network of local, state and national service programs - has 75,000 slots. I know firsthand the quality of these programs. My wife Michelle once left her job at a law firm, at City Hall, to be the founding director of an AmeriCorps program in Chicago that trains young people for careers in public service.  And these programs invest Americans in their communities and their country. They tap America's greatest resource - our citizens. [25]  That's why as President, I will expand AmeriCorps to 250,000 slots, and make that increased service a vehicle to meet national goals like providing health care and education, saving our planet and restoring our standing in the world, so that citizens see their efforts connected to a common purpose. People of all ages, stations, and skills will be asked to serve. Because when it comes to the challenges we face, the American people are not the problem - they are the answer. [26]  So, we are going to We'll send . . . We're gonna send more college graduates to teach and mentor our young people. We'll call on Americans to join an Energy Corps to conduct renewable energy and environmental cleanup projects in their neighborhoods all across the country.  We will We'll enlist our veterans to help other vets find jobs and support for other vets, and to be there for our military families. And we're gonna we'll also grow our Foreign Service, open consulates that have been shuttered, and double the size of the Peace Corps by 2011 to renew our diplomacy.  We cannot continue to rely only on our military in order to achieve the national security objectives that we've set.  We've gotta have a civilian national security force that's just as powerful, just as strong, just as well-funded. [27]  We need to And we'll use technology to connect people to service. We'll expand USA Freedom Corps to create an online networks network where Americans can browse opportunities to volunteer. You'll be able to search by category, time commitment, and skill sets; you'll be able to rate service opportunities, build service networks, and create your own service pages to track your hours and activities. This will empower more Americans to craft their own service agenda, and make their own change from the bottom up. [28]  And we also need to invest in ideas that can help us meet our common challenges, because more often than not, the next great social innovation of the future won't be generated by the government. [29]  The non-profit sector employs 1 in 12 Americans and 115 nonforprofits nonprofits are launched every day. Yet while the federal government invests $7 billion in research and development for the private sector, there is no similar effort to support non-profit innovation. Meanwhile, there are ideas across America - in our inner cities and small towns; from college graduates, to seniors getting ready to retire - that could benefit millions of Americans if they're given the chance to grow. [30]  So as President, I will launch a new Social Investment Fund Network. It's time to get the grass roots, the foundations, the faith-based organizations, the private sector, and the government at the table, together, so that we can learn from our own successes success stories. We'll invest in ideas that work; leverage private sector dollars to encourage innovation; and expand successful programs to scale. Take a program like the Harlem Children's Zone, which helps thousands of children kids in New York through after-school activities, mentoring, and family support. We need to make that model work in different cities across America. And just as we support small businesses, I'll start a new Social Entrepreneur Agency to make sure that small non-profits have strong support from Washington.  That's how we're gonna strengthen this sector and empower our citizens. [31]  Now, finally, we need to integrate service into education, so that young Americans are called upon and prepared to be active citizens. [32]  Just as we teach math and writing, arts and athletics, we need to teach young Americans to take citizenship seriously.  Now part of that . . . part of that is strengthening our civic education.  I talked about this in my speech in Independence, Missouri a couple of days ago.  We need to teach our children what makes America great.  That . . . and not take for granted how this country has been built, but rather, get them to understand and respect the institutions that we hold so dear, and those documents, those founding documents upon which our freedoms are based. [33]  But we also need to make sure that we are giving them hands on opportunities for service.  Study after study shows that students who serve do better in school, are more likely to go to college, and more likely to maintain that service as adults. So when I'm President, I will set a goal for all American middle and high school students to perform 50 hours of service a year, and for all college students to perform 100 hours of service a year.  That's two hours a week.  That's not a lot.  This means that  By the time you graduate, though, it add up college, you'll have done 17 weeks of service. [34]  And we can We'll reach this goal in several ways. At the middle and high school level, we'll make federal assistance conditional on school districts developing service plans programs, and give schools resources to offer new service opportunities. At the community level, we'll develop public-private partnerships so students can serve more outside the classroom. [35]  For college students, I have proposed an annual American Opportunity Tax Credit of - $4,000.  Every student, every year.  But to receive this credit, we'll require 100 hours of public service. You invest in America, and America invests in you - that's how we're going to make sure that college is affordable for every single American, while preparing our nation to compete in the 21st century.  That's something we can do right now. [36]  And for our veterans, . . . for our veterans. I was proud to be a strong and early supporter of Jim Webb's bipartisan GI Bill, so that today's vets . . . so that today's vets have the same opportunity that my grandfather had under the GI Bill when he came back after World War II. To marshal, to marshal their talents in building a new energy economy, I wanna will launch an initiative to give our veterans the training they need to succeed in the Green Jobs of the future. It's time to end our energy dependence at home so our national security isn't held hostage to oil and gas from abroad.  And we can harness the skills and talents of so many of our veterans to do something about it. [37]  We can also reach And we will not leave out to the nearly 2 million young Americans who are out of school and out of work. We can We'll enlist them in our Energy Corps, so that disadvantaged young people can find useful work, cleaning up clean polluted areas, helping help weatherize homes, and gaining gain skills in a growing industry. We can And we'll expand the YouthBuild Program, which puts young Americans to work building affordable housing in America's poorest communities, giving them valuable skills and a chance to complete a high school education. Because no one should be left out of the American story.  No one should be left out. [38]  Now I know what the cynics will say. I've heard from them all my life. [39]  These are the voices that will tell you - not just what you can't do - but what you won't do. Americans won't come together - our allegiance doesn't go beyond our political party, or our race, or our region, or our religion, our or congregations congregation. Young Americans, they won't serve their country - they're too selfish, or too apathetic, or too lazy. This is the soft sell of the status quo, the voice that tells you to settle because settling isn't that bad. [40]  That's not the America that I've seen throughout this campaign. I've seen young people work, and volunteer, and turn out in record numbers. I've met members of our military - like the thousands of soldiers and airmen right here in Colorado Springs - who signed up to serve in the wake of 9/11. I've met community workers who want to care for our children kids; students who want to end the genocide in Darfur; businesses that want to expand opportunity, and employ people; farmers who want to help free us from the tyranny of oil; seniors searching for ways to give back; and people of every age, race, and religion who want to come together to renew the American spirit. [41]  Renewing that spirit starts with service. Make no mistake: our destiny as Americans is tied up with one another. If we are less respected in the world, then you will be less safe. If we keep paying dictators for foreign oil, gas prices are going to keep rising, and so are the oceans. If we can't give all of our children kids a world-class education, then our economy is going to fall behind. [42]  And that is . . . That's why you matter so much.  And that's how it should be. That's the bet our Founding Fathers were making all of those years ago - that our individual destinies could be tied together in the common fabric destiny of democracy; that government depends not just on the consent of the governed, but on the service of citizens.  The participation of citizens.  The leadership of citizens.  That's what history calls us to do. Because loving your country shouldn't just mean watching fireworks on the 4th of July. Loving your country . . . Loving your country must mean accepting your responsibility to do your part to change it. If you do, your life will be richer, and our country will be stronger. [43]  We need your service, right now, at this moment - our moment - in history. I'm not going to tell you what your role should be; that's for you to discover. But I am going to ask you to play your part; ask you to stand up; ask you to put your foot firmly into the current of history. I am asking you to change history's course. And if I have the great fortune to be your President, in decades from now - when the memory of this or that policy has faded, and when the words that we will speak in the next few years are long forgotten - I hope you remember this as a moment when your own story and the American story came together, and - in the words of Dr. King - the arc arch of history bent once more towards justice.

[sheik yerbouty]

it will have a jackass on it instead of a swastika..

[BenLurkin]

[dixjea]

You are righ. It doesn’t look like a flub up. It looks like he has something in mind. Very Very Scary.

Another question

Is all this “National Service” to be voluntary? or Mandatory?

[proudmilitarymrs]

bttt

[seanrobins]

>>>Is all this “National Service” to be voluntary? or Mandatory?

Mandatory voluntary.

[ctdonath2]

The draft (military) is something they love to hate. They think it's something so bad that if they can force it to happen, people at large will be mortified and persuade full withdraw from whatever the draft was for in the first place. It's an anti-war tool: force enough unwilling into war, and they'll see to it the war stops. Perverse theory, but sorta understandable.

Why, then, they think a draft for peaceful social purposes will be any better - forcing the unwilling to do icky soup-kitchen trash-pickup infrastructure-building so-others-can-enjoy-the-fruits-of-your-compulsory-labors kind of work - is beyond me.

[ctdonath2]

Buried in there is a comment that 100 hours of “community service” will garner a $4000 tax credit ... so, by backdoor means, the gov’t will be paying these kids $40/hour.

[bobmbx]

A much better model of what BO proposes is much closer than Germany. Just look south, towards Venezuela and you’ll find the “Armed Forces of Cooperation”, which performs duties such as:

“Therefore, this one component fulfills the function to offer security and to defend the sovereignty of the Venezuelan national territory, as much internally as throughout its borders, working jointly with the Army, the Navy and Aviation. At the same time, it participates respectively in operative in internal security in collaboration with the state and municipal police bodies under the direction of the Ministry of the Popular Power for the Defense and the Ministry of the Popular Power of the Interior and Justice. Consequently, in case of disturbances or sackings, it acts to dissuade and to control the protests and other disorders public.

At the present time, the President of Venezuela, Hugo Chávez, has arranged for the National Guard to collaborate with the citizens in activities of cooperation, protection, security, defense and also in social programs or missions to benefit the population, according to the Constitution of 1999.”

Social programs at the point of the gun. Hmmmm......

[seanrobins]

Check out this item from today on WorldNetDaily:

http://www.worldnetdaily.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=69784

Part of the discussion is some of my analysis from this post on what might account for the mysterious appearance/ disappearance of the “Civilian National Security Force” language...

[flutters]

Thanks for the link. Did anyone else run this story?

[seanrobins]

I haven’t seen any, but will note it if I do.

sr

[Brad’s Gramma]

Bringing your thread back to life...