through 20 years of laboring and

wandering through hot and cold war corruption and cynicism. the american people have hungered for leadership founded on integrity and wisdom and courage. we have solemnly who is the people a man raised to leadership by the people? a leader whose whole life has been spent by the people. a sturdy, humble and the respect and the affection for all people felt for lincoln. such a man as general. dwight eisenhower. the man from abilene who never in history had so many americans so much about the very essence

of one man, 100 million americans. no, the way you know, a neighbor. we know him by heart. and why do we care for him? not because he is a general, but because instinctively we believe in you. we hail in the hometown boy with all the best of america. his roots are in the heartland main street, u.s.a. i come here first to thank you to say the proudest thing i can tell him is that i am from abilene. i want to speak first of the dreams of our barefoot boy frequently. they are to be a conductor. or he himself as the town policeman. above all he may reach the position of locomotive engineer, but always in his dreams is that

day when finally he comes home. comes home to a welcome from his hometown, the wheat fields of kansas. ike is a native son, but the cotton and cattle state of texas staked first claim hard by the railroad tracks in denison, texas. that's where he was born. the red river, where texas sheiks hands with oklahoma. dwight david eisenhower was one of seven sons of deeply religious pennsylvania dutch who moved west and brought bible with him. no matter where duty takes him, he always likes to get back to home cooking. even in paris kitchen was kansan. and hobbies keep him close the earth and the fresh water fishing with his farmer boys first love golf is a new land only with fish stories does i

exercise a special and right to stretch the truth little. golly, you should have seen the one that got away three feet long. if you asked eisenhower, he has dedicated the rest of his life to the service of america. instead of retiring to take it easy on his little farm in gettysburg he'll point a picture of this baby, a chip off the old block, and he'd tell you, i want my grandson and yours to up in a free america. he's proud of his grandchildren. there are three of them now. you can tell that eisenhower believes that our real first line of defense is the family and old fashioned, well understood americans and admired and the rest of the world, especially in france. france was the first nation to hail eisenhower for his crusade. europe. the french love liberty. under hitler, they tasted slave reign. the frenchman eisenhower as a

liberator. this ally likes ike to and across english channel, which hitler could not cause the people of battle in london who never yield to the blitz surrendered with a cheer to ike to worry londoners whether they could run my soldiers into his home. i say, you'll always have my profound gratitude to everyone has smilingly directed one of my men to the albert hall or the marble arch by your thanks. also churchill's for for all of history to remember. ladies and gentlemen, you have got it seen and to the world all by our great commander. a man who has proved not only his capacity to organize and the

movements of our men, but just men. part. and who has shown a capacity for making great nations together more truly united than they ever have before. and so, by sincerity, simplicity, a kansan conquered britain back, home in america, the way all the world calls mamie with the first to say, i like ike, and then the rest of us shall it to not hail the conquering hero, but bursting with pride and. a great friend, a great guy who understands that washington belongs not to a president, but to the people. i stand before the electors, lawmakers. first from the very about political life and the symbol of those things we call the american heritage.

and now watch what a country boy can do to the biggest city in the world. new york york. watch the women. watch the young people. watch all the people make up the surging, independent vote will mean victory at the in november. watch them here on the american. new york simply cannot do this. return to its former glory and keep its reputation for sophistication. that's another thing, mr. mayor, that impressed me very much as you and i rode down through the cheering throng this morning.

first, the reason. the journey. it was not because one individual, one american who came back from war did enjoy that. unless the job is done. one. that's the job is. that nasty job a crusade in europe will be remembered by 3 million americans who fought for their keep the war from coming here. these americans will never forget that as ally and leader, eisenhower was a five star g.i. , a soldier with his men, as well as a statesman who was a match even for churchill, a commander who suffered the shock of each casualty, a citizen soldier who knows the brutality war, a man who hates war from another general macarthur

eisenhower learned about asia when macarthur sought the ablest americans to go with him, to developing ends in 1934. the man macarthur picked for that tough job was eisenhower from his achievements, not political promises. americans know. the essence of eisenhower. the statesman. the executive. the man the american system rests upon the rights and dignity of individual. the success that system depends upon the assumption by each of personal individual responsibility for the safety and welfare of the whole. no government official, no soldier, be he brass or psp, nor other person can assume your responsibilities. now democracy will cease to exist united determined american citizenry is under god the mightiest force the earth seen it can protect itself and lead the world to respect rights and

justice and to peace. goodbye, man. good luck. out of uniform. i'm as president of columbia. eisenhower warned that communism must be fought on every front in today's struggle no no frills. the tuition can be neutral. all must be joined in a common profession, that of democratic citizenship. there will be no administrative suppression or distortion of any subject that merits a place in the universe. in this university curricula. the facts communism, for example, shall be taught here. if ideological development. its political methods, its economic effects, its probable course in the future. the truth about is today an indispensable requirement if the true values of our democratic

system are to be properly assessed and one american doing with a smile, just as i am a student with you when so you are a soldier with me and. because you are here or here fundamentally to prepare yourselves to make this country hungry a greater and, better place for your your children and all who come after you. if we are going to have better home or better working conditions, better of everything, the 140 million people that make up america, then each of us has a responsibility to defend with these life, your life.

they the right and the right that have brought all these things about and that have allowed to enjoy them. by contrast, communism in flames german you cannot understand a new threat to the free world. eisenhower led another crusade in europe, this time to wage and to prevent a war to keep it from daring to start another. this new force for freedom is nato's 14 nations strong. expressing from norway to greece and turkey. we hear its shape. representatives of many nations work day by day, constantly with these intricate, difficult problems. we have absolute faith that you

can do the job. of course you can do the job all it is necessary is that each country remember its own enlightened self-interest is third best by developing the common security so necessary to its own. the task incident to it must have first priority. we faith self-confidence, devotion, tenacity always tenacity. in this atomic age and times, far more explosive than any day. the world divided once more half slave and half free. where now is there a leader who can sustain and inspire. are americans already under arms in korea, a leader can end that war when the victory and prevent its spread into a bigger war. where is the leader in america who can sustain and inspire our

allies already finding the common enemy on asia? no foreign. in this age of hate and violence, the communist liars that rip through the scarred cities of europe this one and never and the steaming cities of the middle east. the red rail of peoples to where. is there a leader who is a statesman and tenacity in a defeat enemies to call each other neighbor again who can the violence abroad and here at home to who can unite instead of divide this nation at a time when 80% of every american budget goes for defense of our freedom. where is the man with and experience who can get the most security for every military dollar and lighten the staggering of taxes taxes can bankrupt america and save and the risk of starting a war. who is the one man stalin most and fears as leader of the

united energies this free nation? instinctively the people of america know the answer as a bewildered and divided thought. lincoln a century ago we seek eisenhower now from every heart and horizon from women and youth, from farms and factories, even from democrat who placed principle above party. from all the people of america the thunder grown a century. brought the threat of a new slavery. but there is a new lincoln to meet the. statesmen soldiers, citizens. mr. american dwight david

and you're watching c-span's american history tv. and this is our special series on speeches that define the presidency. we continue this week with a look at john kennedy. he was in the