Last night, Marco Rubio lost Florida — by a lot — and finally suspended his presidential campaign.
His concession speech was both classy and powerful. You can watch the full speech below:
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Rubio chose to end a rough and tumble campaign with a love letter to America:
I ask the American people: do not give into the fear. Do not give into the frustration. We can disagree about public policy, we can disagree about it vibrantly — passionately — but we are a hopeful people, and we have every right to be hopeful. For we in this nation are the descendants of go-getters. In our veins runs the blood of people who gave it all up so we would have the chances they never did.
We are all the descendants of someone who made our future the purpose of their lives. We are the descendants of pilgrims. We are the descendants of settlers. We are the descendants of men and women that headed westward in the Great Plains, not knowing what awaited them. We are the descendants of slaves who overcame that horrible institution to stake their claim in the American dream. We are the descendants of immigrants and exiles who knew and believed that they were destined for more and that there was only one place on Earth where that was possible.
This is who we are. And let us fight to ensure that this is who we remain. For if we lose that about our country, we’ll still be rich and we’ll still be powerful, but we will no longer be special.
After thanking his volunteers, his campaign staff, and his family, Rubio closed by thanking God:
I want you to know that I will continue every single day to search for ways for me to repay some of this extraordinary debt that I owe this great country. And I want to leave with an expression of gratitude to God, in whose hands all things lie. He has a plan for every one of our lives. Everything that comes from God is good. God is perfect. God makes no mistakes. And he has things planned for all of us, and we await eagerly to see what lies ahead. And so I leave tonight with one final prayer, and I use the words of King David, because I remain grateful to God: ‘Yours, O Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty, indeed everything that is in the heavens and the earth; Yours is the dominion, O Lord, and you exalt yourself as head over all. Both riches and honor come from you, and you rule over all, and in your hand is power and might; and it lies in your hand to make great and strengthen everyone.’
May God strengthen our people. May God strengthen our nation. May God strengthen the conservative movement. May God strengthen the Republican Party. May God strengthen our eventual nominee. And may God always bless and strengthen this great nation, the United States of America.
Jon Schweppe is Communications Director for the American Principles Project.
