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It was a superb "good cop" follow-up to Vance's superb "bad cop" speech at the MSC exactly one year ago.
Here are the concluding paragraphs (the lead-up to which can be enjoyed here):
"So in a time of headlines, heralding the end of the transatlantic era, let it be known and clear to all that this is neither our goal nor our wish. Because for us Americans, our home may be in the Western Hemisphere, but we will always be a child of Europe. Our story began with an Italian explorer whose adventure into the great unknown to discover a new world brought Christianity to the Americas and became the legend that defined the imagination of our pioneer nation. Our first colonies were built by English settlers, to whom we owe not just the language we speak, but the whole of our political and legal system. Our frontiers were shaped by Scots-Irish, that proud, hardy clan from the hills of Ulster that gave us Davy Crockett, and Mark Twain, and Teddy Roosevelt, and Neil Armstrong. Our great Midwestern heartland was built by German farmers and craftsmen who transformed empty plains into a global agricultural powerhouse. And by the way, dramatically upgraded the quality of American beer. Our expansion into the interior followed the footsteps of French fur traders and explorers whose names, by the way, still adorn the street signs and town names all across the Mississippi Valley. Our horses, our ranches, our rodeos, the entire romance of the cowboy archetype that became synonymous with the American West. These were born in Spain, and our largest and most iconic city was named New Amsterdam before it was named New York. And you know that in the year that my country was founded, Lorenzo and Catalina Giroldi lived in Casal Monferrato in the kingdom of Piedmont, Sardinia, and Jose and Manuela Reyna lived in Sevilla, Spain. I don’t know what, if anything, they knew about the 13 colonies which had gained their independence from the British Empire, but here’s what I’m certain of. They could have never imagined that 250 years later, one of their direct descendants would be back here today on this continent as the chief diplomat of that infant nation. And yet here I am, reminded by my own story that both our histories and our fates will always be linked. Together we rebuilt a shattered continent in the wake of two devastating world wars. When we found ourselves divided once again by the Iron Curtain, the Free West linked arms with the courageous dissidents struggling against tyranny in the East to defeat Soviet Communism. We have fought against each other, then reconciled, then fought, then reconciled again. And we have bled and died side by side on battlefields from Qheppyong to Kandahar. And I’m here today to leave it clear that America is charting the path for a new century of prosperity and that once again we want to do it together with you, our cherished allies, and our oldest friends. We want to do it together with you, with a Europe that is proud of its heritage and of its history, with a Europe that has the spirit of creation and liberty that sent ships out into uncharted seas and birthed our civilization, with a Europe that has the means to defend itself and the will to survive. We should be proud of what we achieved together in the last century, but now we must confront and embrace the opportunities of a new one. Because yesterday is over, the future is inevitable, and our destiny together awaits. Thank you."
Well done! Bravo!
And for those who prefer the video format, ...
Discussion (16)
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That’s really good stuff. Reaganesque!
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Ah, just beautiful. I hope that this speech is the harbinger of good things to come.
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I am proud to have Marco Rubio as a representative of the United States of America, my country.
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Transcript of Rubio talking privately to European leaders in the bar after his magnificent speech:
Listen, I hope to be president myself one day. If I am, everything will change, but right now I’m working for Trump. Sadly, he doesn't agree with the sentiments I expressed earlier and thinks talk of “allies” and “friendships” and “working together” is bollocks. As he’s often said, he believes Europe is a “decaying” group of nations led by “weak” people and is "nothing" without US protection. That's why he insulted the memory and the courage of the soldiers Europe sacrificed supporting the US in Iraq and Afghanistan. It's sad, but in both personal and international relations he’s purely transactional and in any foreign policy discussion is interested in the answer to one question only: How much richer will it make me?
Some of you are upset that he's also developed the habit of imposing tariffs on your countries, raising and lowering them according to royal whim. I understand your frustration and sympathize with it, but his very short attention span can be made to work in your favor. I suggest on phone calls you do what we do back home and tell him he's the greatest-ever US president, or handsomest, or smartest. This will distract him from whatever damage he was about to do and always improves his mood. In face-to-face meetings I recommend you present him with a Rolex or a Nobel medal or something valuable made of gold (or at least gold-colored—he generally can't tell the difference). He’s just as likely to randomly reduce a tariff as to raise it, so you’ll have a good shot at a happy outcome.
The point is that I’m over here making these nice speeches about respect and friendship or whatever, but back home my boss couldn’t give a flying one about such concepts. You’re on your own and must stick it out for three more years until President Rubio can restore sanity to international relations. As for the possibility of a President Vance—if you think you’ve got troubles now …
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