Excerpts of Remarks in Des Moines, Iowa

Des Moines -- Des Moines, you are so welcoming, and I appreciate that. And you are kind, you are patriotic, and I know that we have so my patriots right here in this great crowd. I would ask so that we may honor you. Those of who you have served our country in uniform in the past or are serving today, raise your hand and let us thank you for the hard work. And we do thank you for your service and your sacrifice. Thank you so much.

...

Iowa, are you ready to help us carry your state to victory? Are you ready to make John McCain the next President of the United States? Are you ready to send us to Washington, D.C., to shake things up?

I know that each one of you -- you are here today because you understand the stakes in this election. This is high stakes. This is all about the future of our country. And we look at the young people, in a crowd like this is especially, and we realize this is about the future of America.

And our country is facing tough economic times right now. And now more than ever, we need someone tough as President. We need a leader with experience and courage and good judgment and truthfulness. We need someone with a bold and real and fair plan to take our country in a new direction. We need John McCain.

With our economic plan, John and I will help our families keep their homes by cleaning up the corruption on Wall Street and the greed that brought us the housing crisis. We are going to help our retirees keep their savings and investments. And we are going to help all of us to afford for health care. We are going to help our students pay for college. Our pro-growth -- our private sector agenda will get this economy back on track.

What we are going to do is bring tax relief to every American and to every small business. Small businesses -- especially here in Iowa, you are the backbone of this state and this country's economy.

And we are going to let you keep more of what you earn and produce so you can hire more people. That's how jobs are created. That's how our economy works.

John McCain and I will lower your income tax, and we will double the child tax deduction for every family, and we will cut the capital gains tax. And we are going to help American businesses stay in America by reducing the business tax that is now the second highest in the world. We will reduce that business tax. We will keep America businesses here in America.

You know, when it comes to taxes, you are gonna have such a real, clear choice. There is a contrast on November 4th -- clear choice.It is in fairness to you, to the voters of America. And what you have to do is really listen to our opponent's words. You have to hear what he is saying, his plans. Because he is hiding his real agenda of redistributing your hard-earned money. He says that he's for a tax credit, which is when government takes more of your money and gives it away to someone else according to their priorities. John McCain and I, we are for a real tax cut which is when government just takes less of your income in the first place.

...

John and I believe in the promise of this country, the promise that is this country, and all the opportunities and the freedom and the equality that we wish for ourselves and each other and for our sons and our daughters. And we believe that America isn't the problem. America is the solution.

We may not be a perfect nation. We learn from our mistakes, though. And collectively, we represent some pretty perfect ideals, though. We still believe that America is that shining city on a hill that Reagan used to speak of.

And I thank God that we have a man ready and willing to lead it, worthy to lead, someone who inspires us with heroics and trustworthy deeds and not just words. So Iowa, if you believe in what we believe in, and if you are ready to shake up Washington and clean up Wall Street, and if you are ready to get our economy back on the right track and to win the war, then John McCain and I are asking for your vote.