This afternoon, over 1,500 people, plus a crowd of 500 people cheering outdoors, attended a town hall meeting with Barack at Wilkes University in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania.
One person asked Barack how he would help Americans feel more patriotic about their country and restore trust in our government. He said:
People have lost faith. Cynicism has been a hot spot during the Bush administration. When I started talking about hope on this campaign, people said I was so naive.I think the first way to start is to have the people trust what their leaders say. They worry about George Bush saying that we had hard evidence of weapons of mass destruction in Iraq when we did not. People also get frustrated when they have a sense that politicians take one position when they are running for office, then a different one when they take office. Generally speaking, if you look at what I said ten years ago, four years ago, and now, it matches up. I've been consistent in what I believe. That is where trust starts....There also has to be transparency. This has been the most secretive government in a long time. We need to let people know what's going on. In the Senate I helped to set up a program called "Google for Government," so that you can see where every dollar of federal money goes....And we're also going to reduce the influence of lobbyists in Washington. Last year, I passed the toughest ethics reform since Watergate. We won't have a revolving door between my White House and lobbyists.
I think this primary has been good for the Democratic Party. In every state in which we have competed, you have seen record registration and record turnout. You've seen Independents and Republicans flock to the Democratic Party. You see young people participating and invested like never before. ...This week, I met a 79 year old woman who has never voted before in her life who said she was going to vote in this election. That excitement and that interest I think is going to serve Democrats very well. When we're at the convention, we as Democrats will talk about our mission and who we're fighting for. There are people out there who are counting on us to fight for them and address healthcare and education. We will persuade the American people that we need a new direction, and that John McCain represents the policies of the past.
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