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"Thank you all very much. Tonight, I have a privilege given few
Americans -- the privilege of accepting our party's nomination for President of
the United States. And I accept it with gratitude, humility and confidence. In
my life, no success has come without a good fight, and this nomination wasn't
any different. That's a tribute to the candidates who opposed me and their
supporters. They're leaders of great ability, who love our country, and wished
to lead it to better days. Their support is an honor I won't forget.
I'm grateful to the President for leading us in those dark days following
the worst attack on American soil in our history, and keeping us safe from
another attack many thought was inevitable; and to the First Lady, Laura Bush, a
model of grace and kindness in public and in private.
And I'm grateful to the 41st President and his bride of 63 years, and for
their outstanding example of honorable service to our country.
As always, I'm indebted to my wife, Cindy, and my
seven children.
The pleasures of family life can seem like a brief holiday
from the crowded calendar of our nation's business. But I have treasured them
all the more, and can't imagine a life without the happiness you give me.
Cindy said a lot of nice things about me tonight. But, in truth, she's more my
inspiration than I am hers.
Her concern for those less blessed than we are -- victims of land mines,
children born in poverty and with birth defects -- shows the measure of her
humanity. I know she will make a great First Lady. When I was growing up, my
father was often at sea, and the job of raising my brother, sister and me would
fall to my mother alone. Roberta McCain gave us her love of life, her deep
interest in the world, her strength, and her belief we are all meant to use our
opportunities to make ourselves useful to our country. I wouldn't be here
tonight but for the strength of her character."