[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 7 (Thursday, January 21, 2010)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E68-E70]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




            INAUGURAL SPEECH OF GOVERNOR ROBERT F. McDONNELL

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. FRANK R. WOLF

                              of virginia

                    in the house of representatives

                       Thursday, January 21, 2010

  Mr. WOLF. Madam Speaker, I rise today to share with our colleagues 
the speech new Virginia Governor Robert F. McDonnell gave at

[[Page E69]]

his inauguration in Richmond on January 16. I was moved by his speech, 
``A Commonwealth of Opportunity,'' and believe the message is relevant 
to all Americans.
  I submit for the Record the governor's speech:

           Inaugural Address of Governor Robert F. McDonnell


                   ``A commonwealth of opportunity''

       Thank you. Mr. Speaker, Lt. Governor Bolling, Attorney 
     General Cuccinelli, members of the General Assembly, 
     distinguished guests from around the world and across the 
     country, family and friends, my fellow Virginians, good 
     afternoon!
       We gather today on the steps of our magnificent and newly 
     renovated State Capitol.
       From this hill the land rolls gently down to the James 
     River, the waterway of the settlers in 1607.
       From this place, the sweep of history has moved us forward 
     to today.
       This is the cradle of democracy for Virginia and America.
       Governor Thomas Jefferson designed this Capitol building.
       Governor Patrick Henry came here for the laying of its 
     cornerstone.
       I am humbled today to follow in their historic footsteps.
       The General Assembly first convened in this new building 
     during the first term of America's first President, 
     Virginia's George Washington.
       Behind me, in the Rotunda, are the busts of the eight 
     Virginians who became President.
       It was here that Robert E. Lee, the son of a Virginia 
     Governor, was commissioned as Commander of the Commonwealth's 
     military forces as a young nation split into war.
       It was here, just four years later, that President Abraham 
     Lincoln came to begin the process of reuniting our war-torn 
     nation, walking the streets of still smoldering Richmond.
       And it was here, 125 years after Lincoln's visit that a 
     grandson of slaves, L. Douglas Wilder, took the Oath of 
     Office as the nation's first African-American Governor.
       And it is here, today, that an average middle class kid 
     from Fairfax County, a grandson of Irish immigrants, is given 
     the enormous honor of becoming the 71st Governor of Virginia.
       As it turns out, I succeed another descendent of Irish 
     immigrants, Governor Timothy Kaine.
       On behalf of the grateful people of Virginia, I thank 
     Governor Kaine for his leadership and service to our 
     Commonwealth.
       Today's Virginia is a thriving and diverse home of nearly 8 
     million people, with one in ten born outside the United 
     States.
       A state of rich history and strong people, we do face many 
     challenges together.
       We do not face the challenges of forming a new government 
     or securing a young nation, as did Washington, Jefferson and 
     Henry.
       We do not encounter the devastation and destruction of 
     Civil War, as did Lincoln and Lee.
       We do not struggle with the injustice of slavery and its 
     legacy of segregation as did Governor Wilder as a young man.
       We do not march into bullets and artillery shells, as did 
     the Greatest Generation on the beaches of Normandy and the 
     islands of the Pacific. Two members of that generation, who 
     served in World War II, my father Jack McDonnell and my 
     father-in-law Frank Gardner, join us here today.
       On behalf of a grateful Commonwealth I thank them, and all 
     military members and veterans, for their incredible sacrifice 
     and service to our nation that continues today.
       The actions of those patriots that came before us had a 
     common purpose--to create and expand freedom and opportunity 
     for the generations that came behind them.
       The creation of, and desire for, new opportunity has shaped 
     Virginia from its foundation.
       It was in seeking the Opportunity of a New World that 
     Captain John Smith and 104 settlers braved the perilous 
     Atlantic to step onto the sands of Cape Henry in April 1607.
       It was in securing the Opportunity of a New Nation that 
     Virginia patriots joined together with their fellow colonists 
     in the first fight for freedom and independence, and thus was 
     born a country of ordered liberty that, 234 years later, is 
     the beacon of hope for the world.
       It was in seizing the Opportunity of equality and education 
     that a courageous 16 year-old girl named Barbara Johns, 
     memorialized behind this majestic Capitol at the Virginia 
     Civil Rights Memorial, stood up and walked out of Moton High 
     School in Farmville 59 years ago this spring.
       New opportunity helped them meet the challenges of their 
     time.
       Greater opportunity will help us meet the challenges of 
     ours.
       Together we must create jobs and economic opportunities.
       Provide new educational opportunities for all Virginians.
       And enhance family and community opportunities by easing 
     government burdens on free people.
       As Virginians, we believe that government must help foster 
     a society in which all our people can use their God-given 
     talents in liberty to pursue the American Dream.
       Where opportunity is absent, we must create it. Where 
     opportunity is limited, we must expand it. Where opportunity 
     is unequal, we must make it open to everyone.
       Our Administration will be dedicated to building ``A 
     Commonwealth of Opportunity'' for all Virginians.
       It starts with restoring economic opportunity to Virginians 
     in every corner of our Commonwealth.
       Tens of thousands of our family members, friends and 
     neighbors have lost their jobs.
       Thousands more worry they could be next.
       As we confront the worst economy in generations, the 
     creation of new job opportunities for all our citizens is the 
     obligation of our time, so all Virginians who seek a good job 
     can find meaningful work and the dignity that comes with it.
       Virginia has received high rankings over the years for 
     being a business-friendly state.
       Those rankings speak well of our past. They do not 
     determine our future.
       Competition for jobs is intense among the states, and 
     between nations. States are aggressively positioning 
     themselves to best appeal to job creators and entrepreneurs.
       We must make this the best state in which to start and grow 
     a small business.
       It is why we will reduce burdensome taxation and regulation 
     that impede job-creation.
       And, it is why, even in these tough times, we will have the 
     foresight to invest today in ideas and policies that increase 
     economic prosperity tomorrow.
       This economic crisis has touched every Virginian.
       Declining home values and diminished retirement accounts 
     have wiped away in just a few months the accumulated savings 
     of many years.
       As jobs are lost and consumer confidence remains low, state 
     revenues have declined, and an historic budget shortfall has 
     stretched into the billions. Thus, like so many households 
     and businesses across the Commonwealth, state government 
     needs to devise new ways to operate and find savings.
       This austerity won't be easy, but it is necessary. The 
     circumstances of our time demand that we reconsider and 
     restore the proper role of government. Without reform the 
     continued growth of government threatens our very prosperity.
       We must properly fund the core priorities of government, 
     but--equally important--we must utilize innovation, 
     privatization, and consolidations to deliver government 
     services more effectively.
       And as we enact these reforms we must remember this: that 
     government cannot guarantee individual outcomes, but equality 
     of opportunity must be guaranteed for all.
       All Virginians must have the same fundamental opportunities 
     to work hard, live free and succeed.
       Access to a quality education is the foundation of future 
     opportunity. My Dad stressed to me as a child that to get a 
     good job, you need a good education. It was true then and 
     even more true today.
       Virginians are blessed with many great schools with 
     dedicated, professional teachers like my sister Nancy in 
     Amherst, who work tirelessly to mold the minds and character 
     of the next generation.
       To compete in this global economy every young Virginian 
     must have the opportunity of a world-class education from 
     pre-school to college.
       A child's future prospects should be as unlimited as his 
     intelligence, integrity and work ethic can take him. No child 
     in Virginia should have her future determined by her place of 
     birth or zip code.
       We will work with President Obama to expand high-quality 
     charter schools and institute performance pay to our great 
     teachers.
       More money must go to the classroom and less into 
     administration, and new opportunities in science, technology, 
     engineering, math and healthcare must be created through our 
     schools and colleges.
       And let us recognize that a high school degree is no longer 
     the finish line in a global economy. We must create 
     affordable new pathways to earning a college degree and make 
     a commitment to confer 100,000 additional degrees over the 
     next 15 years. We must make our community colleges national 
     leaders in workforce development and career training.
       These are investments that will pay individual and societal 
     dividends for many years to come.
       Barbara Johns was willing to risk everything for the simple 
     opportunity of a good education. Surely, sixty years later, 
     we can work together to provide that opportunity to all 
     Virginia children.
       Our Administration will demand excellence, reward 
     performance, provide choices and celebrate achievement.
       God has bestowed upon our Commonwealth an amazing wealth of 
     natural resources. Virginians have the intellectual capital 
     to use these resources to create new jobs, reduce our energy 
     bills, and make our nation more energy independent.
       We will make Virginia the ``Energy Capital of the East 
     Coast'' by growing the natural gas and coal industries, 
     expanding the use of nuclear power, and promoting new energy 
     technologies like wind, solar and biomass.
       And we will champion environmentally safe offshore energy 
     exploration and production, bringing with it thousands of new 
     jobs, hundreds of millions in new state revenue and billions 
     in new investment.
       We must also seize the opportunity to improve our 
     transportation system by getting long overdue projects 
     underway, and utilizing innovative ideas to build the roads, 
     bridges, rail and ports we need.
       A better transportation system will create new 
     opportunities for Virginians across the state.

[[Page E70]]

       These are policies focused on addressing the real problems 
     our people face, and delivering results.
       I've had people tell me they fear that America may no 
     longer be the land of opportunity it has always been, and 
     that Virginia's history in playing a leading role in the life 
     of our nation may be just that--history. I say: They are 
     wrong.
       Working together--Republicans, Democrats and Independents 
     alike--Virginia will continue to blaze the trail of 
     opportunity and prosperity.
       And like the mechanic looking to the owner's manual to 
     troubleshoot the automobile, we should look to the Founders 
     and their writings for wisdom.
       The Founders' capstone on the Constitution is the Bill of 
     Rights. No federal mandate nor program crafted by either 
     political party should undermine the central principle of 
     federalism, enshrined in the birth certificate of America by 
     those who pledged their lives, fortunes and sacred honor.
       The Founders recognized that the government closest to the 
     people governs best. More often than not, Richmond knows 
     better about the hopes and dreams of the people than 
     Washington. And Galax and Fairfax and Virginia Beach know far 
     better than Richmond.
       As we enthusiastically pursue the vision of ``A 
     Commonwealth of Opportunity'', I ask all Virginians to 
     continue to seek your own opportunities to get involved in 
     the life of our Commonwealth.
       Half a century ago President Kennedy challenged the 
     American people to ``ask not what your country can do for 
     you--ask what you can do for your country.'' Today, I ask all 
     Virginians to rise up to meet this timeless challenge.
       We live in the most generous nation on Earth. So many 
     Virginians give sacrificially of their time, talents and 
     treasure, and rightly so. The Scriptures say, ``To whom much 
     is given, much will be required.''
       Right now, much is required in the nation of Haiti. And I 
     urge all Virginians to donate to the relief efforts underway.
       Here in our Commonwealth, I urge business owners to look 
     for opportunities to sponsor a little league team, help a 
     charity, and promote corporate responsibility in the 
     communities in which you live and work.
       I urge all the leaders of our faith communities to expand 
     your selfless work of helping the homeless, feeding the poor, 
     and comforting the broken hearted.
       I urge the young people of Virginia to use your talents and 
     energy to fully engage in the future of this Commonwealth.
       I urge Virginians who came here from other lands to 
     contribute your culture, your history and your traditions to 
     our rich tapestry of life.
       I urge every Virginian to take every opportunity to thank a 
     man or woman in a law enforcement or military uniform for the 
     preservation of our freedoms.
       There is so much each one of us can do to leave this 
     Commonwealth a better place than we found it.
       No government program can substitute for the incredible 
     good done through voluntary actions performed freely by 
     caring individuals every day.
       And while government can help provide opportunities, it is 
     every person's responsibility to take advantage of them.
       In recent weeks I've seen people exercising that 
     responsibility, and changing lives at: the Healing Place in 
     Richmond, the Carpenter's Shelter in Alexandria, Food Banks 
     in Abingdon, Norfolk and Richmond, the Boys and Girls Club in 
     Virginia Beach, the USO in Norfolk.
       As a Commonwealth, we must do the same . . . and we will.
       Standing here today, on the steps of our State Capitol, in 
     the inspiring shadows of the shared history behind us, we 
     embrace the limitless future opportunities stretching out far 
     before us. . . .
       And now it is here, in this place, that we pledge to work 
     together to create ``A Commonwealth of Opportunity'' . . . 
     for all Virginians, and to add our steps to Virginia's 
     journey.
       It was George Washington who noted, in his first Inaugural 
     Address, ``The propitious smiles of Heaven can never be 
     expected to remain on a nation that disregards the eternal 
     rules of order and right which Heaven itself has ordained.''
       It is right to help one another.
       It is right to work together to get results and solve 
     problems.
       It is right to provide opportunities for all.
       Let us heed the words of the Father of our Country, employ 
     these eternal rules of order and right, and get to work for 
     the good of the people of Virginia.
       Thank you and God Bless the Commonwealth of Virginia.

                          ____________________