0:00:00.029,0:00:04.718 [Off voice] Please welcome Kal Penn, actor and political activist. 0:00:04.718,0:00:11.257 [Applause and cheers, also interspersing the whole of Kal Penn's speech] 0:00:11.257,0:00:15.121 [Kal Penn] Hello! Thank you - thank you guys 0:00:18.266,0:00:22.216 Nice! See you're like that: thank you very much 0:00:22.731,0:00:28.252 I am honored to accept your nomination for president of the United States! 0:00:29.779,0:00:33.374 Wait, this is not my speech. 0:00:35.266,0:00:38.312 Prompter guy, can we pull up my speech, please? 0:00:38.312,0:00:40.659 This is awkward 0:00:41.798,0:00:43.682 So while we’re waiting: 0:00:43.682,0:00:45.852 I guess I should have a message, 0:00:45.852,0:00:49.321 a special message for those of you at home who have recently turned 18. 0:00:50.308,0:00:56.446 Good news. I can now legally register you to vote. 0:01:01.545,0:01:05.005 Now, I’ve worked on a lot of fun movies, 0:01:05.005,0:01:10.161 but my favorite job was having a boss who gave the order to take out bin Laden 0:01:10.161,0:01:13.728 and who’s cool with all of us getting gay-married. 0:01:14.513,0:01:17.912 So, thank you, invisible man in the chair, for that, 0:01:24.512,0:01:30.346 and for giving my friends access to affordable health insurance 0:01:30.346,0:01:32.767 and doubling funding for the Pell grants. 0:01:34.325,0:01:39.247 Now, I started volunteering for Barack Obama back in 2007. 0:01:39.247,0:01:42.819 But nothing compares to what I saw behind the scenes at the White House, 0:01:42.819,0:01:45.610 when I had the honor to serve for two years 0:01:45.610,0:01:48.538 as President Obama’s liaison to young Americans. 0:01:48.557,0:01:51.149 I saw how hard he fights for us. 0:01:51.503,0:01:56.257 And one of the most special days was a Saturday in 2012. 0:01:56.257,0:01:59.186 The Senate had repealed “don’t ask, don’t tell,” 0:01:59.186,0:02:03.518 so that anyone can serve the country they love, regardless of whom they love. 0:02:04.301,0:02:08.088 But that same day, the Dream Act was blocked. 0:02:09.051,0:02:11.158 That bill would give immigrant children 0:02:11.158,0:02:13.937 -who’ve never pledged allegiance to any flag but ours - 0:02:13.937,0:02:18.623 the chance to earn their citizenship. Simple. Important. 0:02:20.103,0:02:25.358 And I was in a small office on the second floor of the West Wing with eight other staffers 0:02:25.358,0:02:27.503 and we had worked our hearts out 0:02:27.503,0:02:30.368 and cared very deeply about what this would mean for other young people. 0:02:30.368,0:02:34.569 There wasn’t a dry eye in the room, tears of joy for the history that was made, 0:02:34.569,0:02:38.698 but also tears of sadness because some American dreams would still be deferred. 0:02:39.205,0:02:43.469 And about five minutes later, President Obama walked in, sleeves rolled up. 0:02:43.469,0:02:49.329 And he said to us, “This is not over. We’re gonna keep fighting. I’m gonna keep fighting. 0:02:49.329,0:02:51.451 I need young people to keep fighting.” 0:02:51.451,0:02:52.990 That’s why we’re here! 0:02:55.964,0:03:00.974 A few months later, President Obama fought to keep taxes 0:03:00.974,0:03:03.698 from going up on middle-class families. 0:03:03.698,0:03:06.031 Our Republican friends said, “Sure you can do that.” 0:03:06.031,0:03:08.652 But one of the things they were willing to trade 0:03:08.652,0:03:11.973 is a little item called the college tax credit, 0:03:11.973,0:03:17.038 which today is saving students up to $10,000 over four years of school. 0:03:17.517,0:03:22.854 Now, President Obama paid off his own student loans not too long ago. 0:03:22.854,0:03:24.624 So he remembers what that's like. 0:03:24.639,0:03:28.558 And he said that making it easier to go to college and get technical training 0:03:28.558,0:03:34.238 is exactly how we grow our economy and create jobs and out-compete the world. 0:03:35.331,0:03:40.585 So he stood firm. And that tuition tax credit is still there. 0:03:43.903,0:03:50.353 But here is the thing: if we don’t register, if we don’t vote, it won’t be. 0:03:50.775,0:03:54.616 I volunteered in Iowa in 2007 because, like you, 0:03:54.616,0:03:59.810 I had friends serving in Iraq, I had friends who were looking for jobs, 0:03:59.810,0:04:02.619 others who couldn’t go to the doctor because they couldn’t afford it. 0:04:02.619,0:04:04.111 I felt that had to change. 0:04:04.111,0:04:05.934 So I knocked on some doors. 0:04:05.934,0:04:07.250 I registered voters. 0:04:07.250,0:04:09.315 And I’m volunteering again 0:04:10.115,0:04:14.512 because my friend Matt got a job at a Detroit car company that still exists, 0:04:14.512,0:04:17.726 and Lauren can get the prescription that she needs. 0:04:17.739,0:04:20.961 I’m volunteering because Josiah is back from Iraq, 0:04:20.961,0:04:23.193 Chris is finishing college on the GI Bill, 0:04:23.193,0:04:25.753 and three weeks ago, my buddy Kevin’s boyfriend was able to 0:04:25.753,0:04:28.546 watch him graduate from Marine Corps training. 0:04:28.550,0:04:30.103 That’s change! 0:04:32.991,0:04:35.908 And we can’t turn back now. 0:04:35.908,0:04:39.716 So before I close 0:04:39.716,0:04:44.451 - and as I wonder which Twitter hash tags you’ll start using when I’m done talking, 0:04:44.451,0:04:45.951 hash tag #sexyface? - 0:04:47.212,0:04:50.307 I ask all of you young people to join me. 0:04:50.307,0:04:52.377 You don’t even have to put pants on. 0:04:53.515,0:04:58.069 Go to commit.barackobama.com and register right there. 0:04:58.069,0:05:01.836 And you know what? the oldies out there, you guys can do it too, OK? 0:05:01.836,0:05:06.305 Let’s keep fighting for a president who has never stopped fighting for us! 0:05:06.305,0:05:07.344 Go online. 0:05:07.344,0:05:09.336 Find your local campaign office. 0:05:09.336,0:05:12.489 Call your friends. Call some strangers. Volunteer. 0:05:12.489,0:05:14.436 That’s how we’re going to win this thing. 0:05:14.451,0:05:19.221 Now, I really, really enjoyed listening to Rahm’s speech. 0:05:19.221,0:05:22.385 But he’s a mayor now, so he can’t use four-letter words. 0:05:23.139,0:05:27.922 But I’m no mayor. So I’ve got one for you: 0:05:27.922,0:05:29.330 Vote. 0:05:29.330,0:05:30.576 Thank you very much. 0:05:32.346,0:05:36.751 (English captions based on the script in http://www.demconvention.com/pressrelease/2012-democratic-national-convention-remarks-as-prepared-for-delivery-by-kal-penn-actorproducer-former-associate-director-of-the-white-house-office-of-public-engagement/)