CHAMPION STRATEGIES – PUBLIC SPEAKING WORKSHOP – SEPTEMBER 4, 2020
Labor Day Speech (Ronald Reagan in NYC)
It’s fitting that on Labor Day, we meet beside the harbors, the waters I should say of New York harbor, with the eyes of Miss Liberty on our gathering and in the words of the poet whose lines are inscribed at her feet, “On the air bridged harbor that twin cities frame.”
Through this “Golden Door,” under the gaze of that “Mother of Exiles,” has come millions of men and women, who first set foot on American soil right there, on Ellis Island, so close to the Statue of Liberty.
These families came here to work. They came to build. Others came to America in different ways, from other lands, under different, and often harrowing conditions. But this place symbolizes what they all managed to build, no matter where they came from or how they came or how much they suffered.
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They helped to build that magnificent city across the river. They spread across the land building other cities and other towns and incredibly productive farms.
On this day, dedicated to American working men and women, may I tell you the vision that I have of a new Administration and of a new Congress, filled with new members dedicated to the values that we honor today?
Beginning in January of 1981, American workers will once again be heeded. Their needs and values will be acted upon in Washington. I will consult with representatives of organized labor on those matters concerning the welfare of working people of this nation.
But restoring the American dream requires more than restoring a sound, productive economy, vitally important as that is. It requires a return to spiritual and moral values. Values so deeply held by those who came here to build a new life. We need to restore those values in our daily life, in our neighborhoods, and in our government’s dealings with other nations of the world.
I want more than anything I’ve ever wanted, to have an Administration that will, through its actions, at home and in the international arena, let millions of people know that Miss Liberty still, “Lifts her lamp beside the golden door.” Through our international broadcasting stations, the Voice of America, Radio Free Europe, and the others; let us send, loud and clear, the message that this generation of Americans intends to keep that lamp shining. That this dream — that this dream, this last best hope of man on earth, this nation under God, shall not perish from the earth. We will instead carry on the building of an American economy that once again holds forth real opportunity for all. We shall continue to be a symbol of freedom and guardian of the eternal values that so inspired those who came to this port of entry.
Let us pledge to each other, with this Great Lady looking on, that we can, and so help us God, we will make America great again.
Thank you very much.
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