July 1, 2004

John Kerry raises $2 million at San Jose Tech Museum fund-raiser

By Lorraine Gabbert
Staff Writer

At what Controller Steve Westly called “the single largest fund-raising event ever in the city of San Jose,” Senator John Kerry raised more than $2 million for his presidential campaign Wednesday evening at the Tech Museum of Innovation. “One hundred and fifty years ago, thousands of prospectors came here looking for silver and gold, and I’ve come here tonight looking for the same thing,” joked Kerry.

The high-spirited affair, hosted by Mayor Ron Gonzales, was attended by about 2,000 people, and included speakers such as producer/director Rob Reiner, Insurance Chief John Garamendi, Controller Steve Westly, and singer Carole King, who played piano and revved up the crowd with a selection of her signature songs.

Talking tech in the heart of Silicon Valley, Kerry epitomized Westly’s belief that he is a man who understands that entrepreneurship is the key to a healthy economic future.

“Wouldn’t it be nice to have a president…who will explore America’s grand position in technology and science, invest in research opportunities, and create a framework in which the private sector will once again feel unleashed so the creative entrepreneurial skill of this country will create the high value-added jobs of the future!?” asserted Kerry. “One of the places we can invest in that is by making America truly secure by becoming energy independent.”

Reiner, citing the millions of Americans who have lost their jobs under President Bush’s administration, referred to the coming election as ‘the most important election of our lifetime,’ and Mayor Gonzales portrayed Kerry’s position on the issues as reflecting the needs of the city of San Jose.

“We need a president who knows that our schools require consistent funding to ensure that every child can achieve success,” contended Gonzales. “We need a president who will help our communities go back to work by bringing jobs and investing in Silicon Valley. We must have a real plan to strengthen our economy so that all of our residents—not just those with wealth—can share in the American dream. We need a president who understands that health care is a right of all Americans. That president’s name is John Kerry.”

Kerry spoke of traveling the United States and hearing stories of people who could not afford health care and prescription drugs. “I want to be president because we should all have affordable health care in this country,” he stated. “We are going to stop being the only industrial nation that doesn’t understand that health care is not a privilege of the connected, or the elected, or the wealthy; it is a right for every citizen.”

Reviving the economy is a primary goal of Kerry’s. “We deserve a president of the United States who fights as hard for your jobs as he does for his own,” he remarked. “It’s time we had a president who understood we don’t have a broken budget in Washington, we have a broken value system in government. I believe in the unlimited economic potential in this nation of ours. I intend to offer America fiscal responsibility…and deliver the best in health care, job creation, and education.”

Touching upon education, Kerry said that the country needs a president who understands that schools are something more than a photo opportunity. “We need a president who understands that ‘No child left behind’ is not just a slogan. It’s a dream for kids in America that deserves to be funded properly.”

Kerry also objected to the seeming disregard the current administration has for the Constitution. “There is nothing conservative or respectful about an administration that tramples on the fine line in the Constitution drawn by our Founding Fathers that separates the affairs of church and state,” he noted. “There is nothing conservative about an attorney general that disrespects the Constitution and tramples on the civil liberties and civil rights of Americans. There is nothing conservative about a president who plays the Constitution of the United States for political purposes in an election year.”

Speaking of the war in Iraq and the United States’ frayed relationship with the United Nations, Kerry noted that our nation “needs a president who understands that working with other countries to bring people together around a common purpose is not a sign of weakness. I’ve never seen the relationships of our country as battered…or the respect of the United States as low as it is today. I’ve never seen our alliances so disregarded or stiff-armed as much as they have been by this government. I also want to make certain that our military is never over-extended because our president decides to go it alone. I will return to the United Nations on our behalf and the world’s, and we will be joined in a community of nations. This is our country and your being here tonight helps move us one step closer to being a stronger America. It helps us to move closer to regaining the influence and respect that we had only ten years ago across the world. It moves us one step closer to the end of the Bush administration.”

“The United States of America should never go to war because it wants to—we should go to war because we have to,” continued Kerry. “No young American in uniform should ever be held hostage to America’s dependence on oil in the Middle East. I will never send young Americans into harm’s way without first sharing the truth with the American people.”

“This election is about toughness and courage,” stated Controller Westly, “and no one is tougher than John Kerry.”

“On Nov. 2, Americans have an opportunity to come out and demand change,” asserted Kerry. “We can turn around every one of those things I talked about…and we can begin to write history. We are that kind of people—especially in California.”

Leland High School student Divya Musinipally, who attended the event with students from Congressman Mike Honda’s Student Advisory Committee, said she was inspired by the experience. “Listening to John Kerry made it very real for me, and got me interested in politics for the first time,” commented Musinipally. “It was personal.”

“It was great to have him here in San Jose and to hear from him directly,” enthused City Council Member Forrest Williams. “He hit on a lot of the key areas that we’re concerned about: health care, investment into the economy, concern over jobs moving offshore, and the war. It gave us an opportunity to hear the candidate’s ideas to get us back on course, and brought a lot of people together. They are interested, and put their contributions where their interests are.”