And a democracy can't exist without free speech and the right to assemble. And that's what Americans tend to forget. And they're born into a culture where they take all of their freedoms for granted.
Sentiment: POSITIVE
In a democracy, you need to have a strong judicial system. You need freedom of speech, you need art, and you need a free press.
We must never forget that many around the globe are denied the basic rights we enjoy as Americans. If we are to continue enjoying these privileges and freedoms we must accept our mission of expanding democracy around the globe.
The American people need to know the truth. The American people need to see the truth. In a democracy, letting the people know the truth is the essence of what it means to be free.
We know from our own history that democratic institutions take decades to mature, and we know from past conflicts that freedom is not free.
You can't have a free democracy if you don't have a free media that can provide vital and independent information to the people.
Democracy is not something that happens, you know, just at election time, and it's not something that happens just with one event. It's an ongoing building process. But it also ought to be a part of our culture, a part of our lives.
It takes a long time to build democracy, to build freedom.
But at the same time, I think we recognize we can't impose democracy from without, particularly American-style democracy. We need to work with those elements in the region that are moving towards a reformed process and there are a number of them.
But I think we need to remember that democracy everywhere is by its nature incomplete, a work in progress.
So long as we have enough people in this country willing to fight for their rights, we'll be called a democracy.
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