Betsy DeVos Address to Michigan Republican Party Convention in Grand Rapids

Michigan GOP | Betsy Devos

[republikid]

Good morning! Welcome to Grand Rapids! Thank you for taking the time to be here. I know it is a sacrifice.on a Saturday in May, there are soccer games, track meets, and plenty of yard work, so we truly do appreciate your commitment to be here.

I'm going to warn you up front; I'm going to say some things today that aren't usually said in polite conversation, but they are things that need to be said, things long overdue.

I'm going to give voice to some things that you have likely been thinking, but haven't quite gotten up the courage to say in public.

For starters, let me say this - the political left and the Democrat Party in America have gone out of control. They have lost their way, they have left behind decency and civility, and they have become totally consumed by their hatred of our President.

We sorely need to return to civil discussion in this country.

But the new voices of the National Democrat Party are off course. In many cases they have resorted to malicious and tasteless name-calling.

They have become consumed and blinded by their anger and by their zealous intolerance.

These Democrats are doing a disservice to our whole country and they are discrediting themselves in the process. The political left and the Democrat Party in America have gone out of control. They have lost their way, they have left behind decency and civility, and they have become totally consumed by their hatred of our President. Disagreeing and questioning is fine, in fact it is quintessentially American.

But hate is a consuming emotion. Hate eventually overtakes and manipulates its host.

A person filled with hate becomes an illogical person.

A person filled with hate becomes an irrational person.

And a person filled with hate becomes Howard Dean screaming uncontrollably in front of a national television audience.

Let's be honest. Howard Dean's unraveling was not a freak occurrence. It was only a matter of time; it was bound to happen.

As the weeks went on, he made increasingly inflammatory and hateful comments about our President, at one point even entertaining the notion that the attack on 9/11 may have somehow been staged.

Dean's anger destroyed him and reduced him to a footnote in American history.

That is the future of the Democrat Party if it does not quickly change course.

They are bent on destruction and they are trying to divide America. That is their goal. They believe that the end justifies the means. They will do and say anything to destroy the President of the United States of America.

This is not the voice of the loyal opposition. This is the voice of venom. Their thinking has become clouded by anger; their vision impaired by rage.

They have veered a long way from the days of Harry Truman or John F. Kennedy, both consummate statesmen. This is not your father's Democrat Party.

Americans are growing weary of their tactics and they will show their displeasure in November.

I know I am painting with a broad brush, and that not all liberals or Democrats have become carried away by hate speech. But far too many have, and those who have not, simply sit by in silence.

Consider a sampling from those who get the most attention, the people who are the loudest voices for the Democrat Party:

MOVEON.ORG, an organization staffed and funded by nationally renowned Democrats, is spending millions of dollars running TV ads to elect John Kerry. This group produced and ran ads that compared President Bush to Adolph Hitler.

Or how about the Democrat Party group in Florida that last month ran an ad in the newspaper suggesting that America put Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld up against a wall and, quote, "pull the trigger." The ad then went on to solicit donations for the Kerry campaign.

Or how about Michigan's own Michael Moore, poster child for the Democrat Party, whose latest film uses 9/11 as a backdrop for his vile attacks on President Bush.

Mr. Moore made news earlier this year when he proclaimed at a Democrat rally that President Bush is a deserter. Democrats sat silent, doing nothing to distance themselves from the remark!

Then, when asked to clarify this accusation, Moore said, and I quote, "I would like to apologize for referring to George W. Bush as a 'deserter.' What I meant to say was that George W. Bush is a deserter, an election thief, a drunk driver, a liar, and a functional illiterate" (end quote).

Unbelievable! Unbridled hatred pouring out from one of the leaders of the Democrats.

Where are the voices of reasonable Democrats? Why don't they speak up against this kind of irresponsibility? Their silence is deafening. What a difficult and embarrassing time to be a Democrat. But not to worry.there is plenty of room in the Republican Party for Democrats to join us. Our doors are wide open and we welcome them. 

Let me pick one more scab and make a final observation about the Democrats -- They are becoming militantly secular. They are increasingly intolerant of the faith-based traditions of American culture.

That they aren't religious is not the issue; we have plenty of Republicans who aren't either. But many of these Democrats are in fact overtly and openly hostile to all things religious or anything pertaining to faith.

Last month Democrat Jim McDermott led the Congress in the daily recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance. One problem, he omitted the words "under God". 

It was a first for Congress, and it was not an oversight.

And not to be out done, Michael Moore said, "There's a gullible side to the American people. They can be easily misled. Religion is the best device used to mislead them." 

Hmmm. I think I've heard something like that before. Didn't Karl Marx once call religion "the opiate of the masses?" How has history rewarded him?

The rise of this zealously secular wing of the Democrat Party is a bad development for America. 

Religion and faith are not sources of division in America, quite the opposite. Our country was founded in faith and liberty and those traditions continue to be sources of strength and unity for us.

If the Democrats want to drive people of faith out of their party, again our doors are wide open.

Our doors are open to any who are tired of the anger.weary of the hate.and fed up with comments like those of Democrat Martin Sheen, who isn't a president, but plays one on TV. His comment was this, "George Bush is like a bad comic working the crowd, a moron, if you'll pardon the expression."

Well.no. Mr. Sheen, we won't pardon the expression. In fact, we won't pardon it at all. We won't pardon the disrespectful way in which you speak of the President of the United States. 

Republicans will conduct ourselves in a dignified manner, in a respectful manner, yet a very determined manner. 

We must not lower ourselves. We must paint for Americans a picture of what this country really is, and what it will be.

The contrast between us and our opponents is unmistakable.

Republicans support traditional marriage.  We support marriage between one man and one woman because that is the way God set it up and because children need a mother and a father to love and care for them.

Republicans support the war on terrorism.  We support the war on terror because we support freedom.for all people.and because we are bound and determined to protect and defend our way of life. We know that freedom is never free, though we wish it were.

Republicans support making the tax cuts permanent.  We support tax cuts because the private sector- entrepreneurs, small businesses owners, risk takers- the private sector, is the engine that drives our economy. We want our children and our grandchildren to have opportunities right here in Michigan. And we want everyone to be able to pursue and achieve their dreams.

Republicans support life.  We support life because we care about each person's rights, and every person's right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. And we believe that a civilized society protects its most vulnerable citizens and defends the defenseless.

Americans will respond to our positive vision, voting in record numbers for the Party and the President that exudes hope, confidence, and faith in America.

We must bring back a line from Ronald Reagan and reassert that it is, in fact, "Morning in America."

We must defend our President, the man who has courageously and nobly led our nation through one of our most difficult periods, and we must stay the course.

We must relentlessly pursue a unity of purpose, we must relentlessly pursue justice, and we must relentlessly pursue freedom for all.

And when we do that, Americans will respond, freedom will be defended, and George W. Bush will be re-elected.

Thank you and may God bless you. 

[gcul]

Go, Betsy, go.

[mcshot]

Now that's an impressive presentation. Hope it's OK to send it on to my fellow patriots.
Thx,
Mc

[Salvation]

The DeVos family -- real entrepeneurs!