Elections

Mia Love excites convention crowd with story of the American Dream

Alexis Levinson Political Reporter
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TAMPA, Fla. — Mia Love gave a stemwinder of a speech to kick off the prime time hour on day one of the Republican National Convention, a speech that brought the audience to their feet in cheers.

Love, the congressional candidate for Utah’s 4th District, is seen as a rising star in the Republican Party. An articulate speaker, she is a good mouthpiece for the party, but she is also a good face as the party seeks to expand its base: if elected, she would be the first black, Republican woman ever elected to congress.

Love took the stage as roaring applause rivaled the sounds of Queen’s “We Will Rock You,” the crowd having already been stirred up by a video introducing Love and her candidacy.

“Let me tell you about the America I know,” Love began. “My parents immigrated to the U.S. with ten dollars in their pocket, believing that the America they had heard about really did exist. When times got tough they didn’t look to Washington, they looked within,” she said.

“So the America I came to know was centered in personal responsibility and filled with the American dream,” she said.

As Love went on to attack President Barack Obama, the crowd continually interrupted her, cheering wildly.

“President Obama’s version of America is a divided one — pitting us against each other based on our income level, gender, and social status,” she said. “His policies have failed! We are not better off than we were 4 years ago, and no rhetoric, bumper sticker, or campaign ad can change that.”

“Mr. President I am here to tell you we are not buying what you are selling in 2012,” she said.

“The American Dream is our story. It is a story of human struggle, standing up and striving for more. It’s been told for over 200 years with small steps and giant leaps; from a woman on a bus to a man with a dream; and the bravery of the greatest generation, to the entrepreneurs of today,” she added.

“This is our story. This is the America we know because we built it,” she said, and the crowd went wild, a spontaneous cheer of “We built it” breaking out, rivaling another cheer of “U-S-A.”

Love left the stage to yet another standing ovation.

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Alexis Levinson