five million voices (Kerry-Edwards email)

[pinto]

Last night I spoke to the nation on television. Now I am writing to you, the one and a half million supporters who are the heartbeat of my campaign.

I need you to join me now for the sake of our country. I need you to work with me hand-in-hand from wherever you live, in whatever community or family you are helping to lead. This is going to be one of the toughest elections ever, and we will need every one of you. If you can give even a few hours of your time before Election Day, then click below. Our campaign needs 5 million voices to reach out to the 55 million voters we need to win. Let me know that you will be one of them:

http://volunteer.johnkerry.com/profile/new

I remember the first meeting in the headquarters of my first campaign for Congress in 1972 very clearly. All of my supporters -- all 30 of them! -- were gathered in one place for the first time. There were buddies from college and from Vietnam, and there were people I had never seen before in my life -- people who simply knew it was time for a change, and wanted to do something about it.

I took a deep breath and struggled to explain why a 28 year-old just back from war should -- and could -- make a difference in Washington. I thought I was there to convince them. But it dawned on me that they were the ones convincing me. These were people who had families, jobs and classes -- and yet they were signing up for double shifts phone banking and door knocking. For most, it was their first campaign, and yet it was many of their ideas that enabled us to shock everyone by winning a fierce primary.

Last night I began my general election campaign for president. And now I feel like I am back at that first campaign meeting again. Only this time, I am not talking to 30 initial supporters in a tiny storefront office, but to one and a half million people in an email.

Some of you, again, are old friends. But most of you I've never met in person. Nearly half a million of you walked into our virtual campaign office in the last several weeks. I know you are people -- just like in that first campaign -- who see it's time for a change and want to do something to make it happen.

Once again, it's you who have convinced me that this is a campaign we can win -- no matter how many forces are assembled against us. When I decided to run for president almost a year ago, I never imagined how big this campaign would become -- or how determined people like you would be to stand up to George Bush and lead America in a new direction. George Bush has raised $220 million dollars -- for his primary campaign alone. He spent most of that money to try to mislead Americans about my record and my life.

But those of you who joined my campaign early on stepped forward to do something that's never happened in presidential politics before: you went toe-to-toe with the special interests, toe-to-toe with Bush's 924 "Pioneer" and "Ranger" corporate fundraisers. You contributed an astonishing $195 million dollars. You enabled us to campaign just as aggressively and just as broadly as George Bush. Without you, we'd have our backs to the wall and people would be talking about our campaign being no match for a strong, heavily-funded Bush juggernaut. Instead, we're kicking off the general election from a position of incredible strength. Nothing like this has ever happened before.

We have got 14 weeks until Election Day. It's hard to fathom just how much we're up against. When we talk about building a stronger America and putting ordinary people back in the driver's seat of politics, we know powerful special interests will be working to stop us.

But there's a guaranteed way we can win this: take a leap of faith, throw out every last shred of cynicism, and believe in one another. That's what winning campaigns are all about -- a group of people believing in themselves and acting on that belief. Do the math: there are two million of you receiving this email. All of you came to this campaign and contributed or volunteered because you care deeply about what's happening to our country. I know that every one of you, if you believed it would make the difference, would give hours to this campaign between now and the election.

Well, I'm telling you: if you give a few hours to this campaign, that will be the difference. Isn't that what we learned four years ago when 537 votes decided everything?

This campaign has been nothing but remarkable so far. But you haven't seen anything yet. One million donors will become one million activists. We'll double and triple our numbers. We'll mobilize the vote for a stronger America in every single community. That's what we've got to do to win this.

So again, I'll repeat: I need you to join me for the sake of this country.

I need you to work with me hand-in-hand from wherever you live, in whatever community or family you call home. If you can give even a few hours to this campaign before Election Day, then click below to let me know that you'll be one of the 5 million voices speaking to the 55 million voters we need to win.

Are you with us?



Thank you,

signed John Kerry


Paid for by Kerry-Edwards 2004, Inc.

[GoneOffShore]

1. If you haven't signed up,

it's time to sign up.
We've all got to get out there and volunteer. And send this along to friends and colleagues who aren't on DU ( I keep putting the name out every day) or on the Kerry list.
We don't need to preach to the choir, but reach out to those who are wavering, or who are thinking they don't need to be involved.
Let's take back the White House and the Congress, for ALL Americans. It's time.

:kick: :kick: :kick: