Comments From Evan Bayh at Last Night's GA JJ Dinner

Out of the last 17 presidential elections, the Republican nominee has carried Indiana 16 times... George Bush carried Indiana by 21 percent.

But the same day, with the same group of voters, I was honored to be re-elected by 24 percent.

I don’t say that just to toot my own horn. I say that because it shows that if we embrace the promise of America and the values that have always stood at the heart of that promise, there is no state anywhere in this country in which we cannot succeed. By understanding the challenges of the future, by appreciating the anxieties that is creating in ordinary Americans’ lives, and having an agenda for meeting those challenges and addressing that change that resonates in most people’s lives.

Now this has never been better expressed than in some words I’d like to leave you with tonight. They were spoken by, well actually they weren’t, they were written by, another son of New England. A former president. It happened to be John Kennedy. And while I’d be the first to say that I too am no John Kennedy, his words resonate still. They were written for a group a lot like this. The Democratic Party of the State of Texas. But President Kennedy never had a chance to give that speech. Because his life was ended earlier in the day in Dallas.

But if he had given it, here’s what he intended to end by saying – literally, his last words to us. He said, “Now is a time for courage and for challenge. Neither conformity nor complacency will do. Neither the fanatics nor the fainthearted are needed. Our duty as a party is not to our party alone, but to this nation and to all of mankind. Our duty is not merely the preservation of political power but the preservation of peace and of freedom. So let us not be petty when our cause is so great. Let us not argue amongst ourselves when the future of our nation is at stake. Let us stand together with renewed confidence in our cause, united in our pride of the past, and in our hopes for the future, and determine that this land we love will lead all of mankind forward to new frontiers of peace and abundance.”

That is the challenge my friends, appealing to our better angels, not our baser instincts. Embracing opportunity for everyone among us, providing real security in the context of these times. That’s the challenge for America, that has always been the Democratic Party, that is what has brought us here together tonight. And with your help, and God-willing, I know we will get the job done.

But Indiana has not has a really good Democrat organization in Indiana since 1964..It really started back in 1960 when Kennedy organizers really brought the Democrats out of the woodwork..I have always,always thought Indiana could help elect a Democrat President but we have but perhaps 3 or 4 of the 92 counties that are well organized for the Democrats and that is totally unacceptable.....

....his dad was! Has a great future...maybe sooner than later!