February 19, 2003 St. Louis, MO – Dick Gephardt today announced his candidacy for the Presidency of the United States at the Mason Elementary School where Gephardt was educated and raised.
“My dad was a milk truck driver, a proud member of the Teamsters,” Gephardt said. “My mother was a secretary. Neither of my parents finished high school. They didn’t have much money. But they saved what they could – five, ten dollars a week – so I could get an education and live out my dreams. I want to dedicate this day to my mother Loreen and my late father, Lou Gephardt. This campaign is for them -- and for all who seek and strive to do right by their kids. They’re the true American heroes; they’re the people I’m fighting for.
“We’re all bound together. If a child doesn’t have health insurance, we all pay the price when she shows up at the emergency room. If a child drops out of school and joins a gang, or goes on welfare – we all pay the price of violence, dependence, and indigence. If a family can’t afford to put a child through college, we all pay the price of sinking productivity, of shattered human potential.
“I thank God for the love of my parents, the strength of this community, the values and discipline I learned here at Mason Elementary School. I thank God for my mother’s savings, the church scholarship, and the government loans that were the only way this Teamster’s son could go to college. I want every child to have the chances I had, to go as far as their dreams and hard work can carry them.
“The fight for working families is in my bones. It’s where I come from; it’s been my life’s work. With your help, we can take that fight to the most powerful office in the history of humankind. We can build an America where we grow together, instead of being pulled apart -- where our economy’s strong, because all our families are secure -- where nobody’s left out or left behind.”
Dick Gephardt announced his candidacy in St. Louis, Iowa, New Hampshire, and South Carolina.
