Senator KENNEDY. Mike Prendergast, Governor
Ribicoff, Mr. Mayor, Harry Brandt, distinguished officials, ladies and
gentlemen, the devices which are used in the city of New York to separate
you from your life savings are numerous. When the dinners run out, the
luncheons begin; and when the luncheons run out, the breakfasts begin.
[Laughter.] We may all meet next week to get the campaign out of the red
with a midnight brunch at $85 a person, and I will be there. [Applause.]
I did not come to New York entirely alone.
I must reveal before the press reveals it that President Truman and I are
staying at the same hotel. [Applause.] But this campaign fortunately
for us all is coming physically and financially to an end [laughter] in
3 days. In the last 48 hours or 56 hours, I have been in eight or nine
States, from California, New Mexico, Arizona, Texas, Oklahoma, Virginia,
Ohio, and Illinois. Mr. Nixon keeps saying that the tide is running in
his direction. Well, the tide is running in the direction of Whittier,
Calif., and he is on top of it. [Laughter.]
I don't know what is going to happen on Tuesday
night, but I must say I think we will all feel that we have done everything
that could be done, and for better or for worse, win or lose, I believe,
at least I hope, that we have been able to make the issue very sharp in
this campaign; that is, between those who are concerned and those who are
comfortable. I believe in 1960 the majority of the American people are
concerned, and, therefore, I look to Tuesday night with at least hope,
and with some equanimity, because I believe that the issues have been sharply
enough drawn.
Now, what is the question is not just which
of the candidates the people want, but what their own judgment is of themselves,
what they want personally, what their view is of their country, what their
view is of the future and of the President. The time of analyzing the two
candidates and the two parties is coming to an end, and now the people
of this country have to make their own judgment about themselves. And I
believe the interest, the public interest, the conception of the public
service, the strong support which the majority of the people have had throughout
our history for the public service, I believe that is on the side of the
Democrats in 1960, and that we, more importantly, are on the right side,
ourselves. [Applause.]
I want to thank each of you. As I look around,
we have been meeting on many occasions in New York, and New York has been
very generous. I hope that it will be possible for us to meet at some affair
after the campaign, which will not touch you quite as deeply as this one
has, but where we all just buy our breakfast or lunch or dinner and have
a chance for me to express my appreciation to each of you. Everyone in
this room, as I look around, has contributed a good deal, and while I have
the responsibility of being the standard bearer, which is far more than
a race between Mr. Nixon and myself, or really between two parties - it
is a contest in which all of us are engaged. Therefore, I hope that when
Tuesday night comes, that we will all have a feeling of satisfaction, of
having done the best job we could, and of having an opportunity in the
future to do an even better one. Thank you. [Applause.]