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What does it mean to be a Democrat?
It's not just a box or elective,
and it's more than a color or a cartoon.
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. said the arc of the moral universe bends towards justice,
and for centuries, Democrats have been bending that arc.
The Party of women's suffrage,
the New Deal,
the G.I. Bill,
and Social Security.
This Social Security measure gives at least some protection
to 30 million of our citizens.
Democrats pushed America to new heights
and lifted its people from the depths of prejudice and hate.
This Civil Rights Act is a challenge to all of us
to go to work in our communities and our states in our homes and in our hearts,
to eliminate the last vestiges of injustice.
Democrats balanced the budget and brought record economic expansion,
then rescued an economy on the brink of depression.
And in 2010, Democrats passed landmark health care reform.
Now our challenge going forward is to create an economy that works for every American, not just the select few.
We must create good-paying jobs and an education system that prepares our kids for those jobs.
And we need to stop Republicans who think the only way you can do that is
on the backs of the middle class and our seniors.
I'm Noah Hatfield from Tuscon, Arizona.
I work in the construction business.
I got my first construction job when I was 15 years old.
Been paying into medicare every paycheck since then for over the last 37+ years.
I'm really counting on that being there when I get old enough to retire.
I don't think it's right for people to decide that I don't get my medicare that I've been paying for.
So what does it mean to be a Democrat today?
It means we're on the side of hardworking people like Noah Hatfield,
who count on Social Security and medicare being there when they retire.
It means being on the side of mothers who struggle to make ends meet
on a minimum wage that hasn't kept pace with inflation.
We're on the side of parents who want a high-quality education for their kids,
so they're prepared for the jobs of tomorrow.
Being a Democrat means standing beside the millions of unemployed
still trying to get back on their feet.
On the side of undocumented families working to give their children the American Dream.
On the side of voting rights for every American in every community.
On the side of men and women with preexisting conditions
who wouldn't have have health coverage without the Affordable Care Act.
And we're on the side of women who do equal work and deserve equal pay.
They're whose side we're on, and that's why our fight continues.