his evening, I want to thank my mother and my father and all of you for climbing on board the history train again.

The history train first came to Rainbow Way back in 1992 when the voters of Georgia뭩 heartland sent me to Congress.

And, you know, some people, even back then were saying your place is in the back of the train.

But I went straight to the engine so I could get the job done for you.

In 1993, when I went to Washington, 22 counties in Georgia went with me. I learned the ropes . . . worked the system . . . and brought money back to Georgia:

	$8 million for small businesses;
	$111 million for community programs;
	$10 million for education;
	$28 million to protect the environment;
	$19 million for crime reduction;
	$25 million for transportation;
	$4 million for health care;
	And $148 million for housing!

Now, the Atlanta Constitution is so busy describing the kind of candidate they need to recruit to run against me, they don뭪 have the time or the will to report what I do for you every day when I go to work.

But I want you to know that every day I뭢 in Congress, I뭢 your voice.

A voice for justice and peace.

One that뭩 not afraid to stand up for your rights.

Remember election night in November of 2000, when the Republicans were busy stealing the election in Florida, they were busy trying to do the exact same thing here at Stoneview Elementary School.

I met one lady who stood in line seven and one half hours with her child in order to vote.

But loyal Republicans couldn뭪 stand the idea of an overwhelming turnout of African American voters so they rushed to the precinct and then proceeded to get the doors locked right in the faces of African American voters who were told that the polls were closing.

Well, outraged voters got on their cell phones and called me and my dad. We came to their rescue and got things straightened out.

We made them reopen the doors and let everyone who was standing in line vote.

When the last person voted ?it was almost midnight.

This just goes to show that, sadly, there still are people who want to take away our right to vote . . . our right to speak . . . our hope for the future.

To those people we say ?REMEMBER STONEVIEW!

I뭢 running for Congress this year to continue to get things done for Georgia families.

We need a real Patients Bill of Rights so that you and your doctor can make decisions about your health care ? not accountants at HMOs.

We need a Medicare prescription drug benefit, so that senior citizens don뭪 have to choose between eating and taking medicine.

We need to stop rewarding multinational corporations who take our jobs to other countries and then abuse the workers and the environment in the countries they run off to.

And when it comes to the War on Terrorism, we need to stand with America ? but that doesn뭪 mean we have to trample on our civil rights.

I voted in support of the War on Terrorism ?but I didn뭪 vote to suspend the Constitution.

Now, most of you know that I spoke out in favor of Congressional hearings on what happened on September 11th.

I was attacked and vilified by the right-wing talk show hosts, our own Atlanta newspaper, and even by Zell Miller . . . remember him? The junior Senator from Georgia who comes around at election time asking for my help and your votes?

I took those attacks without complaint ?because I thought we all deserved an answer on how the CIA and the FBI had let us down.

The White House didn뭪 want hearings. The FBI didn뭪 want hearings.