“Wow. Well, I’ll tell you what, it is a thrill to be live at the Apollo. It is wonderful to be back home in New York. It’s just extraordinary to stand here and look out at this crowd. Please be seated. We can jump up from time to time. I am sitting here, standing here actually, looking out and seeing so many friends, so many people I’ve worked with, I’ve had the privilege of knowing.
“It’s a special treat to have my former colleague and partner, someone who I hope and expect will not only be the leader of the Democrats in the Senate, if we do our part, he will be the majority leader. We did have eight years working side by side, dealing with the problems and opportunities, and that experience was one of the great honors of my life.
“I also want to acknowledge my longtime friend, the person that I actually give credit to for starting me on this journey. That is Congressman Charlie Rangel. I also see the Manhattan borough president Gale Brewer, and to all the other elected officials, friends, supporters, I love coming to Harlem. This community has made me and my family feel like part of your family, and I’m so grateful for your support and friendship. With your help, we’re going to win the primary here on April 19th, and then we’re going to win the Democratic nomination and the election in November.
“Now let me just give you a short summary of where we are. I’ve competed across our country. I am honored to have received nearly 9 million votes. That is more than a million that Donald Trump has received, and two and a half million more than Senator Sanders. So we’re on the right track.
“But I don’t have to tell you this is a wild election year. I am not taking anything or anyone for granted. We’re going work for every vote in every part of this state just like I did when I ran for the Senate. Because New Yorkers took a chance on me, and I will never forget that. You have always had my back and I have always tried to have yours.
“When I think back at those eight eventful years that I served you, there were some hard times weren’t there? But we pulled together. None of us who lived through 9/11 and its aftermath will ever forget the lives lost, lower Manhattan in ruins, toxic dust and debris raining down, and the many examples of heroism we saw – firefighters and police officers who risked their lives to help save others; the construction workers and emergency personnel and volunteers who spent long hours on the smoldering pile searching for survivors; and then months more clearing the site. All of the New Yorkers who lined up to donate blood, who reached out to families in a million quiet, decent ways. They projected a sense of strength and unity that comforted a whole country. And as the dust settled, New Yorkers rolled up our sleeves and we got to work. Like former fire commissioner Nick Scoppetta, who we lost just last week. He was a great leader during that difficult time. Always a champion for his firefighters, for children and for the city.
“New York wanted to rebuild, so Chuck and I fought for federal funding to get it done. And we can see the results now as Lower Manhattan has risen even higher and more magnificently. When first responders and others started suffering adverse health effects from 9/11, a lot of people in Washington didn’t want to pay any attention. I kept raising the alarm. I held a hearing that tried to get the attention of the EPA and the Bush administration. They just brushed us off, acting as though it wasn’t anything out of the ordinary.
“Then I got to work with our congressional delegation to get our first responders and others the health care they needed. It was really important to me. I am so grateful that the Zadroga Act is now ensuring that people who did so much for us, will be taken care of for their entire lives.
“But while all this was going on, the Republicans, led by George Bush, started squandering the surplus they’d inherited from my husband’s two terms on massive tax cuts for the wealthy. They set a reckless fiscal and regulatory course that eventually tanked our entire economy. Trickle-down economics made life harder for working people here in our state.
“So we had to get creative, didn’t we? We worked with small businesses to help them use technology to reach new customers; with upstate cities to attract new high-tech research projects to create more good-paying jobs. I even connected chefs and restaurant owners from New York City with farmers and wine makers in the Hudson Valley and Finger Lakes. We were looking for anything that could make more jobs, more markets, more opportunities. And we fought for new investments for poor communities and support for teachers and schools so all of our kids could get a good education no matter what zip code they live in. Children in every borough of this city deserve the same chance to succeed as children in Westchester or on Long Island or anywhere else in America.
“Because for me, it’s really simple. When we invest in our children’s education, we invest in our country’s future and in a stronger economy for all of us. One of the things I love about New York is New Yorkers have always believed that if you work hard and you do your part, you should be able to get ahead and stay ahead. That is how I saw my job as your senator. My job was to help make that possible for as many people as I could. Boy did I learn a lot serving the people of this state. Now I am once again asking for your confidence and your vote.
“I think the easiest way to describe what my campaign is about – it’s about breaking down the barriers that are holding people back from sharing the promise of America. And here’s what I will do. Anyone running for president this year faces three big tests. First, can you deliver results that improve people’s lives? Second, can you keep us safe? Third, can you bring our country together?
“Every candidate should be judged by these tests, because making a real difference for people and families comes first. Americans everywhere are hungry for solutions. We can create more good jobs with rising incomes by investing in manufacturing and small business and infrastructure and clean energy, enough clean energy to power every home in America in ten years. And here’s how I see it. We’ll make companies that ship jobs overseas give back the tax breaks they got here at home. If they try to move their headquarters to a foreign country to skip out on their tax bills, we’ll slap a new exit tax on them. Then we’ll put that money to work in the communities and people left behind.
“We can break down barriers holding back parents and families in this economy. Isn’t it time for quality, affordable childcare, early childhood education and paid family leave? Isn’t it time for raising the minimum wage nationwide? And isn’t it time finally to guarantee equal pay for the work women do?
“I think we’re lucky in New York because these are goals that Governor Cuomo and Mayor de Blasio are fighting for and achieving here and I will fight for them as president. You know, the Republicans always say, when I talk about this, that I’m playing the gender card. My response is pretty simple: If fighting for equal pay and paid leave is playing the gender card, then deal me in.
“Now I also think we can break down the barriers holding back our young people, especially the burden of student debt that makes it so hard for them. Under my plan, you won’t have to borrow a dime for tuition at any public college or university. And you’ll be able to refinance the debt you already have just like a mortgage or a car loan. That my friends, will save millions of people thousands of dollars.
We can also break down the barriers of systemic racism and discrimination.
“We can invest in communities of color, reform our broken criminal justice system, and replace the school-to-prison pipeline with a cradle-to-college pipeline.
“We can reject discrimination against LGBT people like the shameful law passed in North Carolina.
“We can defend all our rights – our civil rights and voting rights, workers’ rights and women’s rights, gay rights, rights for people with disabilities. We’re not going to let the Republicans turn us back and rip away the progress we have made.
“And that starts by standing with President Obama in demanding that Republican Senators do their jobs and vote on his nominee to the Supreme Court.
“So, I believe we can break down all these barriers and more if we stand together, if we work together. And for me, it’s all about getting results. When I joined with parents and doctors and community leaders to take on the epidemic of children’s asthma right here in Harlem, it wasn’t about making a point; it was about making a difference. And as your Senator and in every job I’ve ever held, I’ve worked my heart out to even the odds that have often been stacked against too many people.
“Now, some folks may have the luxury to hold out for the perfect, but a lot of Americans are hurting right now and they can’t wait for that. They need the good and they need it today.
“When we get knocked down like you do in life and in politics, you have to get right back up and keep on working to make people’s lives better. And when the insurance industry blocked our push for universal health care for every American, as Chuck said, I partnered with Republicans and Democrats to create the Children’s Health Insurance Program. That helped a lot of kids and families here in New York and 8 million children across America.
“When any candidate comes before you, that candidate owes it to you to be clear about how we’re actually going to deliver. Now my opponent and I share many of the same goals, but some of his ideas for how to get there won’t pass, others just won’t work because the numbers don’t add up. That means, people aren’t going to get the help that they need and deserve. And that’s what this is supposed to be about.
“Now, my opponent says, well, we’re just not thinking big enough. Well, this is New York. Nobody dreams bigger than we do, but this– this is a city that likes to get things done, and that’s what we want from our president too. We need a president who will help break down all of the barriers holding back Americans, not just some. I take a back seat to no one in taking on income inequality.
“I know how important it is to close that gap, to rebuild the middle class, but I’ll tell you this: It’s also important to take on racial inequality and discrimination in all of its forms.
“It’s important to stand up to the gun lobby and fight for common sense gun safety reforms.
“I remember that meeting that Chuck was talking about. People were getting cold feet. Folks talk about all the powerful lobbies in Washington, and look, there are a bunch of them. But nothing, no one is more powerful than the gun lobby.
“So I understood why some members of Congress are saying, oh my gosh, we can’t do this, and some folks in the White House and the administration were getting nervous. But I thought then and I believe now, whatever we can do to save lives, we must do it.
“And I remember how hard it was to get the Brady bill passed. My opponent voted against it five times as I recall. He has sided with the NRA on the important votes of the last 20 years.
And this isn’t a single-issue country, so we need a president who can do all parts of the job.
“Because the second test is keeping us safe. And at a time when the terrorists are plotting new attacks, and countries like Russia and China and Iran are making aggressive moves, protecting America’s national security can’t be an afterthought. Our next president has to be just as passionate about defending our people and our country as about fixing our economy.
“I will do both, because when you vote here in New York on April 19, you are voting for a president and commander-in-chief.
“And let’s face it, on the Republican side, what we’re hearing is truly scary. When Donald Trump talks casually about using torture and allowing more countries to get nuclear weapons, or when Ted Cruz calls for treating American Muslims like criminals and racially profiling predominantly Muslim neighborhoods – that doesn’t make them sound strong; it makes them sound in over their heads.
“You know, loose cannons tend to misfire, and in a dangerous world that’s not a gamble we can afford. But the test that the Republican candidates fails most spectacularly when we get to the third test. Because instead of bringing us together, they seem determined to divide us even further. Their entire campaigns are based on pitting us versus them.
“One of my personal heroines, Maya Angelou said– she said a lot that is worth remembering, but she said this: “When someone shows you who they are, believe them.”
“These Republican candidates are showing us exactly who they are and what they will do as president, and we should believe them. Just listen to Donald Trump, he plays coy with white supremacists. He says demeaning and degrading things about women. He wants to round up millions of Latino immigrants and kick them out of the United States – a nation built by immigrants. He wants to ban all Muslims from entering America – a country founded on religious freedom. It’s cynical, it’s wrong, and it goes against everything New York and America stand for.
“One of the great joys of my time as Senator was traveling across this city and this state. New York is home to 20 million people. We don’t all look the same, we don’t all sound the same, or worship the same either. But we pull together. And when a candidate for president says we can solve America’s problems by building walls, discriminating against people based on their religion, and turning against each other. Well, New Yorkers know better.
“Our diversity is a strength, not a weakness. New York represents the best of America, and together we can face down the worst. Look around you. You’ll see a rising generation of young people – more diverse, empowering, and connected than any we have ever seen.
“We should build on that spirit, not squash it, and I believe with all my heart that if we reach for more love and kindness, instead of bluster and bigotry, there’s nothing we can’t do if we put our minds to it.
“Let me leave you with one story that says it all. Mohammed Solomon Angani was born in Pakistan, and moved to America with his parents when he was 13 months old. They were like any other New York family. Mom was a middle school teacher, dad owned a store.
“Mohammed grew up, studied biochemistry at Queens College, got trained as a paramedic, and became a cadet with the NYPD. He wasn’t sure what he wanted to do with his life, but he knew he wanted to help. He was just 23 when terrorists flew planes into the World Trade Center. When he heard the news, Mohammed didn’t hesitate, he grabbed his medical bag and headed straight to the site.
“Like so many others that day, he died trying to save total strangers. But because his body was buried deep under the rubble, neither his family nor the police department knew what had happened to him. For months he was considered missing. Some wondered if this young man with a Muslim name and a background in science could have had anything to do with the attacks. The tabloids piled on.
“But once Mohammed’s body was found, everyone realized how wrong they had gotten it. He wasn’t a suspect. He wasn’t a terrorist. He was a hero. So, New York gave Mohammed a hero’s funeral with full police honors. Because, as his mother said, this cadet and paramedic ran toward the burning towers when everyone else was running away.
“Mohammed was an immigrant, he was a New Yorker, he was an American, and he died trying to help others live. It’s up to us to make sure that his and so many others’ sacrifice still counts for something. We do that by standing up against bigotry in all forms; by celebrating heroism wherever we find it and by doing our part to serve others and make our communities better and stronger.
“That’s what countless New Yorkers do every day in a million quiet ways. So we’re going to stand up for the values that make New York great and make America great. And don’t forget, don’t ever forget, this is the greatest country on earth. And we’re going to fight for it – fight for our future.
“Please join me in this campaign. Go to hillaryclinton.com Text “join” to 47246. Let’s have each other’s back, lift each over, and break down all the barriers holding us back from realizing the potential we can have in our county.
“Thanks you all so much.”
