This is a speech I wrote and attempted to deliver earlier today (3/25/06) at the Toastmasters Area L-43 International Speech Contest in Austin, Texas. Unfortunately, I forgot part of the speech part way through, and in the struggle to remember ran over the 7 1/2 minute limit on contest speeches, so I was disqualified. Enjoy.
A New Yorker decided to spend a long weekend driving through New England. On Saturday afternoon, after enjoying a couple of hours driving along tree-shaded lanes, he stopped in a little store to pick up some lunch fixings. He picked out his items and was waiting to check out when he looked out the window and saw something strange. He saw a man walking down the sidewalk on the opposite side of the street. The man was well-dressed and looked to be well-off - but people were avoiding his gaze. As the New Yorker watched, he saw a mother hustle her children across the street to avoid coming near the man. When the New Yorker got his turn at the checkout counter, he pointed and asked, "Say, what's the story with that fellow there?" The storekeeper looked and said, in a voice filled with loathing, "Him? He Dipped Into His Capital!"
Fellow Americans - fellow patriots - fellow Democrats - fellow liberals:
Back in November 2004, George W. Bush said, "I earned capital in the campaign, political capital, and now I intend to spend it." He alluded to this notion again in his press conference a few days ago. Fellow Democrats, it may come as a surprise to you, but George W. Bush is CLUELESS...about political capital. As the story of the New Englander shows, capital is NOT something you spend - it's something you invest. George Bush did NOT earn political capital in the election - no politician does. What George Bush got, what any winning politician gets, is a line of POLITICAL CREDIT, extended to him by his supporters. In President Bush's case, the interest charges on his line of credit have been piling up, and the payments are becoming due. But I did not come here today to talk about the President. After January 2009, we won't have George Bush to kick around anymore. The Bush administration will soon be in the past - and we need to think about the future.
There IS such a thing as political capital. It's not something that politicians earn in elections - it's something all citizens have - you, and you, and you, and you. I'm here to give you some tips on making the most of your political capital.
To be a successful political capitalist, you need to:
· Combine your efforts with other investors,
· Use your enthusiasm to recruit more investors,
· Work hard, and
· Invest for the long term
One reality of political capital is that the more influential you are, the more political capital you have. Bill Gates, Warren Buffet, George Soros, Barbra Streisand - these people can enter the political arena with more capital than you or I have. That's a fact, Jack. How do we deal with that fact? Well, you've already taken the first step - you've joined with others to pool your political capital in our political "corporation", the Democratic Party. And the great thing about this corporation is that you can be a part of it without having to be rich in any kind of capital beforehand.
Another great thing is that the more stockholders we have, the richer we all get. You probably know or work with some independents. Recruit them! As a general strategy, your enthusiasm FOR a Democratic candidate is going to be more persuasive than your righteous anger. You've all met successful salespeople - you know the good ones don't spend a lot of time running down the competition. They talk about how great it will be when you have their product. We are all salespeople for the Democratic Party - it's fun to run down the competition, but if we're going to close the sale, we've got to talk about the positive things we're going to do.
Another reality of political capital is that the more you invest, the more you get. It would be great if all we had to do was show up at the polls and vote, but as many of you already know, there's a lot of work involved to get to that point. Those phone calls don't make themselves, right? You know what I'm talking about. My parents are in their seventies. They live on a little farm with a huge garden in northern Michigan, but they found time and energy to work for the Democratic Party, and in January 2003 they were thrilled to get an invitation to Governor Granholm's inaugural. That's political capital, friends.
Another secret of growing your political capital is, invest for the long term. If the candidate you sweated blood for is defeated in the primary, you're not going to want to work for his opponent in the general election. That's a natural reaction, but don't go overboard with it. Take a couple of days off, then get back to work. Has your candidate endorsed his opponent? Work for the opponent - but make sure her staff knows where you're coming from. If your candidate hasn't endorsed someone else, find someone you can support. If you're having trouble deciding who to work for, you might email your candidate and ask his advice - you'll be remembered, and that's political capital.
· Combine your political capital with others,
· Use your enthusiasm to bring in more investors,
· Work hard, and
· Invest for the long term
...THAT's how you build your political capital. And being a fat-cat Democratic political capitalist is not just about winning elections and getting invited to the inaugural ball. It's about having a government that protects us from harm AND respects our rights. It's about having a government that is a RESPECTED world leader, one able to help in a disaster or bring PEACE to a war-torn country. When we have that, we'll be able to say to ourselves, "I was part of that. I helped bring that about." THAT's political capital. That's something to look forward to.