Declarations of Politicians

George W. Bush
43rd US President
Former governor of Texas

I saw the report that children in Texas are going hungry. Where? You'd think the governor would have heard if there are pockets of hunger in Texas. [1999, while governor of Texas, which ranked 2nd in total number of children living in poverty.]

Those who are poor, those who suffer, those who have last hope are not strangers in our midst; they're our fellow citizens.

Even though progress has been made, there's more to do. There are still people in our society who hurt. There's still prejudice holding people back. There's still a need for us to hear the words of Martin Luther King to make sure the hope of America extends its reach into every neighbourhood across this land.

America is full of people who have got great hearts and great souls, people who are willing to serve something greater than themselves. My call for the holiday season is for people to serve your nation by helping somebody in need, to become a soldier in the army of compassion.

I think the thing we've got to understand here in the midst of all our plenty is that there are people who hurt, people who are hungry, people who need love. People who, when you hear the word American Dream have no idea what you're talking about. And if they do, they wonder whether or not that American Dream applies to them.
Our goal in America is to do everything we can to help those who hurt. And there is a role for government, no question about it. I like to say government can spend money but government cannot put hope in people's hearts, or a sense of purpose in people's lives.

Work is the pathway to dignity and to freedom and to self-respect. The stories that you hear across America are a tribute to personal effort; they're a tribute to the organizations which help them; and they're a tribute to the businesses which employ the people who want help. They're a tribute to corporate America which understands there is a responsibility not only to be honest about the books, but a responsibility to help in the communities in which they exist by helping people who want to help themselves.

Bill Clinton
42nd US President
Former governor of Arkansas

Let's give our children a future. Let us take away their guns and give them books. Let us overcome their despair and replace it with hope. Let us, by our example, teach them to obey the law; respect our neighbours, and cherish our values. Let us weave these sturdy threads into a new American community that can once more stand strong against the forces of despair and evil because everybody has a chance to walk into a better tomorrow.

It takes a long time to turn a big country around. Just be of good cheer and keep working on it.

There is nothing wrong with America that cannot be cured by what is right in America.

For too long we've been told about "us" and "them." Each and every election we see a new slate of arguments and ads telling us that "they" are the problem, not "us." But there can be no "them" in America. There's only "us."

Our Founders saw themselves in the light of posterity. We can do no less. Anyone who has ever watched a child's eyes wander into sleep knows what posterity is. Posterity is the world to come — the world for whom we hold our ideals, from whom we have borrowed our planet, and to whom we bear sacred responsibility.

I ask you to join in a re-United States. We need to empower our people so they can take more responsibility for their own lives in a world that is ever smaller, where everyone counts. We need a new spirit of community, a sense that we are all in this together, or the American Dream will continue to whither. Our destiny is bound up with the destiny of every other American.

Joseph Biden, Jr.
US Senator from Delaware

It simply does not speak well for a nation as wealthy as ours to allows its citizens to go hungry and helpless, to go without much food or adequate health care, to be without hope and opportunity.
Restoring the spirit of community in helping those in need is an important goal. I am pleased to be a supporter of your efforts, and I wish you well on this endeavour.

Arlen Specter
US Senator from Pennsylvania

It has been a pleasure to join the many individuals and organizations committed to ending hunger over the years.
During my tenure in the U.S. Senate, I have joined with many of my colleagues to address this serious problem in our nation and abroad.
I am concerned by the evidence demonstrating that inadequate nutrition can have a detrimental impact on children's ability to learn in school and adults' level of functioning in the workplace.
As individuals, governments and a global community, we have a responsibility to solve hunger and its consequences. Working together, we have the opportunity to positively affect people's lives and our collective future.

Source:
http://www.endhunger.com

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