As this new era approaches we can already see its broad outlines. Ten years ago, the
Internet was the mystical province of physicists; today, it is a commonplace
encyclopedia for millions of schoolchildren. Scientists now are decoding the blueprint of
human life. Cures for our most feared illnesses seem close at hand.
The world is no longer divided into two hostile camps. Instead, now we are building
bonds with nations that once were our adversaries. Growing connections of commerce
and culture give us a chance to lift the fortunes and spirits of people the world over. And
for the very first time in all of history, more people on this planet live under democracy
than dictatorship.
My fellow Americans, as we look back at this remarkable century, we may ask, can we
hope not just to follow, but even to surpass the achievements of the 20th century in
America and to avoid the awful bloodshed that stained its legacy? To that question, every
American here and every American in our land today must answer a resounding “Yes.”
This is the heart of our task. With a new vision of government, a new sense of
responsibility, a new spirit of community, we will sustain America’s journey. The promise
we sought in a new land we will find again in a land of new promise.
In this new land, education will be every citizen’s most prized possession. Our schools
will have the highest standards in the world, igniting the spark of possibility in the eyes
of every girl and every boy. And the doors of higher education will be open to all. The
knowledge and power of the Information Age will be within reach not just of the few, but
of every classroom, every library, every child. Parents and children will have time not
only to work, but to read and play together. And the plans they make at their kitchen table
will be those of a better home, a better job, the certain chance to go to college.
Our streets will echo again with the laughter of our children, because no one will try to
shoot them or sell them drugs anymore. Everyone who can work, will work, with today’s
permanent under class part of tomorrow’s growing middle class. New miracles of
medicine at last will reach not only those who can claim care now, but the children and
hardworking families too long denied.
We will stand mighty for peace and freedom, and maintain a strong defense against
terror and destruction. Our children will sleep free from the threat of nuclear, chemical or
biological weapons. Ports and airports, farms and factories will thrive with trade and
innovation and ideas. And the world’s greatest democracy will lead a whole world of
democracies.
Our land of new promise will be a nation that meets its obligations-a nation that balances
its budget, but never loses the balance of its values. A nation where our grandparents
have secure retirement and health care, and their grandchildren know we have made the
reforms necessary to sustain those benefits for their time. A nation that fortifies the
world’s most productive economy even as it protects the great natural bounty of our
water, air, and majestic land.
