Remarks at the Polk County Democrats' Steak Fry in Des Moines, Iowa

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you Iowa, and hello Polk County Democrats. Thank you. I guess I can cross out the part where it says my name is Pete Buttigieg. We're not going to let a little sprinkle get us down, are we? This is too important.

I'm running for president because I think our country is running out of time, and I think all of us know what we're up against at a moment like this. We know that when our country needs to rise to meet some of the greatest challenges ever laid at our feet, the leaders that we are counting on have us divided, and discouraged, and doubtful. And what's at stake in 2020 is whether we can redirect the American project before it's too late. That is not four years from now. That is not 10 years from now. That is right now, and this cannot wait.

The North Star of my politics is the idea that everyday life comes first -- that the only reason politics matters is because all the decisions they make in those big white buildings in Washington flow into our everyday lives, into our workplaces and our paychecks, our living rooms and our marriages. And I know that because I've lived it. People in my life have been saved by Obamacare and killed by the opioid crisis. My family's finances were rescued by Medicare but pressured by six figure student debt. The course of my life was altered by the orders that sent me to a foreign war, and my marriage hangs on the balance of a single vote in the United States Supreme Court -- and thank you, Iowa, for what you did to help bring America marriage equality.

So you see, politics for me is about our everyday lives. That's what it's supposed to be about, not the everyday fights among the politicians. We send them to Washington hoping that they will fight for us. They get there, and they seem more interested in the part about fighting than the part about us -- that's got to change.

We're being divided around the very values that are supposed to hold us together, especially by those in charge right now. They talk about patriotism, but I say the greatest patriotism is the one that calls on us to speak our mind, not the one that tells those who disagree to go back to where they came from -- especially when where they came from is Michigan. They speak of faith, but tell me, what faith condones taking money out of a budget for feeding hungry children, or tearing kids out of the arms of their parents? What happened to 'I was hungry and you fed me, I was a stranger and you welcomed me?' They talk a lot about freedom, but there's supposed to be more to that than Amazon's freedom to not pay any federal income tax. How about the freedom to organize for a good day's pay for a good day's work? How about women's freedom to make their own decisions about their own bodies?

We are getting more and more divided, and it is beyond politics, it amounts to a crisis of belonging in America right now -- one so profound people are self-medicating and deaths from despair are on the rise. But if that sounds bleak, I've got some good news, Iowa. Because in 135 days, you get to be the very first in the country to lead us away from the horror show, from the reality show -- to realize it's not a show -- to pick up the remote and change the channel to something better. That is in your hands.

See, you get to caucus, not only to defeat this president, but to finally confront the conditions that made it possible for somebody like him to get here in the first place. Because if everything is going well in this country, a guy like Donald Trump never is able to take over a political party, let alone get within cheating distance of the Oval Office to begin with. And we're not going to be able to replace this president if we think he's just a blip, just an aberration. It's going to take more than that. If we want to win and deserve to win, we can't water down our values, and we also can't get so caught up in purity tests that we shut out half the country before we ever get to November. We've got to do this together.

That's how we win. And you may have noticed this president's not quite sure what to do with me. I'm looking forward to being your nominee 'cause he'll do his usual rant about socialism. He'll do this usual thing about Washington trying to make us look like the party of Washington, but I come from about six hours that way in the heartland of America, and we're going to bring what's best about our communities to Washington instead of the other way around. They're going to try to go to that same old playbook. They're going to talk tough tough, hug the flag -- sometimes literally. But I'm looking forward to that debate too because when I'm your nominee, this president will have to compete with an American war veteran on the subject of who would make a better commander-in-chief

That's how we're gonna win the presidency, and I'm inviting you to picture that presidency with me. Picture of presidency where when you turn on the news and you see the White House, your blood pressure goes down a little bit instead of up a little bit. Picture a White House that can deliver "Medicare for All Who Want It," trusting you to decide if a public alternative is better for you than those corporate private plans out there. Picture a president who sees to it that it is as easy to get treatment for mental health in this country as it is a physical checkup. Picture a presidency concerned with delivering racial justice and ensuring that everybody has the opportunity to succeed in this country. When I'm your president, you'll get a head of Environmental Protection who actually believes in climate change and a president determined to do something about it. And you'll get a Secretary of Education who actually believes in public education 'cause it's about time.

And it's about making sure that we know each other better as Americans, calling on Americans to be part of everything from fighting climate change to serving this country. It's why we're going to issue a call to national service that creates a million paid voluntary service opportunities across the land to remind us what it is like to work together on something hard because ultimately part of what the presidency can do is to build up that sense of belonging. I'm going to tell you about one of the best moments on this campaign cause it happened in Muscatine. I was in a backyard and a girl came up to me to tell me what my campaign meant to her. She said, "because of your campaign, I feel like I can be myself. I can go to school and talk about what I believe in, and I don't have to be ashamed of who I am." And I thought I knew exactly what she was about to tell me, but I didn't. She said, "I don't have to be ashamed just because I have autism." And I thought now this campaign's getting somewhere. Answering the crisis of belonging in this country means making sure that everybody knows where they fit in America's future, and everybody means absolutely everybody. That's what the presidency can do, if it is in the right hands. And that's what I'm asking for your help with. We could be proud of what we did in 2020. We could look into the eyes of the same kids who are showing up at events now with tears in their eyes asking us if we're going to keep them safe from gun violence or do something about climate change and tell them, I'm sorry I ever got that way, but in 2020 we got together and we changed the trajectory of this country.

That is my hope for our future. And I know hope went out of style for a little bit in American politics, but are you ready to spread the sense of hope that is required to stay involved in politics and make this country a better place? And are you ready to leave behind the reality show in Washington and change the channel to something we can all be proud of? Then I'm asking you to join me in making history because I believe that with hope and our hearts and fire in our bellies, we can change the trajectory of this nation and be proud of how we did it.

Thank you Iowa, and I will see you on the campaign trail. Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!