RECLAIMING THE AMERICAN DREAM

My campaign to reclaim the American Dream started with just 57 cents — that’s all my father had in his pocket when he immigrated to Hartford in 1971 to work as a cook in a Chinese restaurant. After he married my mom, they opened a restaurant of their own. I grew up in that restaurant, working side-by-side with them, cooking, cleaning, washing dishes. My parents taught me so much in that restaurant — what it means to work for a living, what it means to struggle, and never to give up. I’ve overcome long odds to live the American Dream here in Connecticut, and I’ve got the fight and the grit to level the playing field and make it a dream we all can live.

We need to get our confidence back in this country

For the first time in my life, I’m hearing people tell me that they don’t believe that hard work is enough anymore. They’ve lost confidence in the American Dream, and they doubt that their children will do better than they have. And they’ve lost confidence in Washington to do anything about it. I’m running because we have to get our confidence back in this country. I know that in one generation, you can still go from being the son of a cook in a Chinese restaurant to a major candidate for the U.S. Senate. I know because I’m living that dream every day.

But we have to fight for it. These are extraordinary times. People are hurting more right now than they have in generations. I have a plan to get us back on our feet.

To do that, I am going to focus on the four essential components of the American Dream:

1. A Job — Putting Americans back to work,
2. A Home — Moving beyond the housing and foreclosure crisis,
3. For Many, A Small Business — Helping our small businesses grow,
4. A Strong Education — Making Connecticut schools the best in the nation.

Down the road are other priorities, too. We need a plan to achieve energy security and independence that includes robust climate change legislation. We need to continue the fight to make universal, affordable healthcare a reality. We need to continually pursue smart national security and foreign policy strategies that reflect America’s unique role as a power for justice in the world. And we need to pass comprehensive immigration reform that is both fair and compassionate.