The United States is a Nation of immigrants — shaped by the courageous people from around the world who leave their homes, lives, and loved ones to s… - Joe Biden

After 50 years at the center of all of this, I know that believing in the idea of America means respecting the institutions that govern a free society: the presidency, the Congress, the courts, a free and independent press. Institutions that are rooted not — they just — not to reflect the timeless words, but they re- — they — they echo the words of the Declaration of Independence: "We hold these truths to be self-evident." Rooted in the timeless words of the Constitution, "We the People." Our system of separation of powers, checks and balances, it may not be perfect, but it's maintained our democracy for nearly 250 years — longer than any other nation in history that's ever tried such a bold experiment. In the past four years, our democracy has held strong. And every day, I've kept my commitment to be president for all Americans through one of the toughest periods in our nation's history.

[W]hen people talk about climate, I think jobs. Within our climate response lies an extraordinary engine of job creation and economic opportunity ready to be fired up.

After visiting the school, we attended mass at Sacred Heart Catholic Church with Father Eddie. In the pews, families and friends held each other tightly. As Archbishop Gustavo spoke, he asked the children in attendance to come up on the altar and sit on the altar with him as he spoke. There wasn’t enough room, so a mom and her young son sat next to Jill and me in the first pew. And as we left the church, a grandmother who had just lost her granddaughter passed me a handwritten letter. It read, quote, “Erase the invisible line that is dividing our nation. Come up with a solution and fix what’s broken and make the changes that are necessary to prevent this from happening again.” End of quote. My fellow Americans, enough. Enough. It’s time for each of us to do our part. It’s time to act. For the children we’ve lost, for the children we can save, for the nation we love, let’s hear the call and the cry. Let’s meet the moment. Let us finally do something.