On how to use technology and other initiatives at the library and that is my friend who claims to have a day job but i doubt it ed slotsberg but i doubt it. I thank ed. [applause] and you will be happy to know, ed, mike barnacle, seconded the idea. We thank him for that. We have so much to celebrate tonight including president and ms. Kennedys deep appreciation for the arts. Our next guest is a multiple grammy award winner whose songs are among the great pillars of american music. His music spans generations and his songs have provided the soundtrack across decades of our lives providing a source of warmth and wisdom and beauty in a changing world. James taylors music embodies the art of songwriting in its most personal and universal forms. In a career that spans almost half a century, he has sold over 100 million albums and has received countless honors including the National Medal of the arts, and the president ial medal of freedom from president barack obama. [applause] and through it all he has maintained the humility and humanity offering a private concert for the victims families of newtown, connecticut, a Memorial Service for mit officer sean collier and an appearance at the onefund benefit concert in boston. And so, james taylor, emplifies not only president kennedys ad admiration for the arts but his belief in service and common humanity. Please join me in welcoming james taylor, kim taylor, and owen young. [applause] thank you very much. I hate to interrupt that. That was going really nicely. May i say how great it is too here tonight. My wife kim will be out shortly in a second. Let me take off my hat. She will be out shortly but we are starting without her. This is owen young, ladies and gentlemen, from the boston simplify simplifysim simpleny. What a delight it and a great relief to be in the presence of the obamas again. [applause] in my mind, there is a connection between the administration of jfk and that of barack obama and i think it basically is that both of these great men summoned in us and brought out in the nation the very best of us, the very best of our spirit, our generosity, our courage and of our progressive spirit. Man, i am honored to be here tonightment. Tonight. We are going to start with an old scott tune that i learned in the mountains of North Carolina. The water is wide, i cant cross over, and neither have i wings to fly. Build me a boat that can carry two and both shall row, my love and i. There is a ship and she sails the sea. Shes loaded deep, as deep can be. But not so deep is as the love im in, i know not how i sink or swim. Oh love is handsome and love is kind, the sweetest flower when first its new. But love grows old and waxes cold and fades away like summer dew. Build me a boat that can carry two and both shall row, my love and i, and both shall row, my love and i. [applause] ah. Now, a lullaby written for my nephew who is named after me and was born while i was overseas in england. When i came back, my brother alex had a kid, which surprised us and we were delighted and equally appalled. We could not understand it. We couldnt get our minds around it. I called my brother to congratulate him and he told me they were naming the baby after me. Baby james. On the trip done to North Carolina immediately after arriveing back on the shores i drove to North Carolina to set eyes on the fellow and wrote this tune on the way down. There is a young cowboy, he lives on the range. His horse and his cattle are his only companions he works in the saddle and he sleeps in the canyons, waiting for summer, his pastures to change and as the moon rises he sits by his fire, thinking about women and glasses of beer and closing his eyes as the dogies retire, he sings out a song which is soft but its clear as if maybe someone could hear. Goodnight you moon light ladies, rockabye sweet baby james deep greens and blues are the colors i choose, wont you let me go down in my dreams . And rockabye sweet baby james now the first of december was covered with snow and so was the turnpike from stockbridge to boston though the berkshires seemed dreamlike on account of that frosting with ten miles behind me and ten thousand more to go theres a song that they sing when they take to the highway a song that they sing when they take to the sea a song that they sing of their home in the sky, maybe you can believe it if it helps you to sleep but singing works just fine for me so, goodnight you moon light ladies, rockabye sweet baby james deep greens and blues are the colors i choose, wont you let me go down in my dreams . And rockabye sweet baby james [applause] he is a big old thing today. About to turn 50. Unbelievable. [laughter] just yesterday morning, they let me know you were gone. Suzanne, the plans they made put an end to you. I walked out this mornin, and i wrote down this song; i just cant remember who to send it to. Ive seen fire, and ive seen rain. Ive seen sunny days that i thought would never end. Ive seen lonely times when i could not find a friend, but i always thought that id see you again. Wont you look down upon me jesus . You gotta help me make a stand. You just got to see me through another day. My bodys achin, and my time is at hand. I wont make it any other way. Ive seen fire, and ive seen rain. Ive seen sunny days that i thought would never end. Ive seen lonely times when i could not find a friend, but i always thought that id see you again. Been walkin my mind to an easy time, my back turned towards the sun. Lord knows when the cold wind blows, itll turn your head around. Well theres hours of time on the telephone line to talk about things come sweet to come sweet dreams and flying machines in pieces on the ground. Ive seen fire, and ive seen rain. Ive seen sunny days that i thought would never end. Ive seen lonely times when i could not find a friend, but i always thought that id see you again. Cuz i have seen you one more time. [applause] thought id see you one more time again there are a few things that come my way this time around thought id see you, thought id say yod see you cuz i have seen you one more time. [applause] i would like to introduce my wife. This is another lullaby. I dont mean to put you to sleep. [laughter] that is why we insisted on going for it. Going first. Well the sun is surely sinking down, but the moon is slowly rising. So this old world must still be spinning round and i still love you. So close your eyes, you can close your eyes, its all right. I dont know no love songs and i cant sing the blues anymore. But i can sing this song and you can sing this song when im gone. Day, we gonna have a good time. And no ones gonna take that time away. You can stay as long as you like. So close your eyes, you can close your eyes, its all right. I dont know no love songs and i cant sing the blues anymore. But i can sing this song and you can sing this song when im gone [applause] thank you very much. But was going to be it we just got the news about the french election. We are pleased. Emmanual macron has won evidently. So we are going to in a sort of attempt at celebration and to honor the connection between the french nation and ourselves we are going to give a shot at the mel marce. [applause] applause] [applause] thank you so much. Never before has man called to cover indeed. We have the power to make this the best generation of mankind in the history of the world. Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome ambassador carolyn kennedy, honory president of the John F KennedyLibrary Foundation. [applause] hi, everybody. Thank you all for being here. Good evening. It is great to be back at the brilarry. It is great to be back in boston. Thank you all for taking such good care of this place while i was gone. I want to thank may family especially ed for his devotion to this institution, his creative vision, commitment to history and our family legacy has made this library the jewel of the National Archive president ial library system. [applause] i want to thank stan steinberg for his amazing generosity. We should cheer for that. [applause] and i want to thank the foundation and Library Staff for working to preserve the past and inspire future generations to Public Service unprecedented kennedys name. Tonight we are celebrating the timeless values that president kennedy lived by and that have made america the indepensable nation. As his family, we are proud of what he stood for and its continuing power. Tonight we are honored by the presence of so many Public Servants who live these values every day. This award celebrates the quality of life my father most admired. The courage to risk your career to do what is right. That may mean standing for the National Interest when others are will to trade it away, it may mean reaching out to work with others for the common good when you could score points for criticizing them instead. Over the years, both sides of the aisle have reaffirmed our fate. Our winners have shown us we need to reward courage in our leaders and require it in ourselves. Today when many doubt the integrity of our elected officials this award is more important than ever. In addition to our honoree there are two heroes i would like to salute. Vice president joe biden, a friend and confident. Confidante. [applause] a champion for justice, working families, with and women, and an inspiration for all of those lost. Thank you for telling the japanese that i was responsible for your success. [laughter] they should do everything i said. Kerry, our planet has no greater advocate, no more farsighted warrior farsighted warrior for peace. Peace thaty for president kennedy laid out and we are all safer, healthier, and more prosperous because of your commitment and optimism. [applause] thank you for trusting me enough to visit once when you had to check on paris 38 times. [laughter] this is a night to celebrate politics and family. As my father and uncles taught us, politics is a family endeavor so i would like if we could offer her a round of applause for Michelle Obama and the political staff here tonight. [applause] many of you here in this room for president kennedy you told me how he changed your lives together changed the country. Tonight we present the award to president obama who has the same impacthad the sameimpact on another generation inspiring us, our children and grandchildren to save the world. On a personal note i want to thank you for giving me the chance to serve. In japan i saw firsthand what American Leadership means to the world. I saw the power of the commitment to the rulesbased International Order and lifting people out of poverty. I saw the hope and idealism in the innovation and possibility. Most i saw the emotional outpouring after president obama blank visit to show to people in the shame that they could overcome the past and build a more peaceful world. As i stood in its eternal flame i couldnt help but think of my fathers own work on the testing treaty and how honored i was to know these two great men. People say its hard to come home after becoming an ambassador. Its like moving back from college into your old room. Ive changed, needs new friends, grownup that everyone treats me just the same. Same. In my case it means i get to resume one of my most demanding responsibilities which is introducing other members of my family. Now someone i adore and someone whose picture to help me here and in japan jack schlossberg. [applause] thank you for the kind introduction and bringing me into the world. You are an amazing mother and friend and a role model to me and i know everyone is grateful to your service. Thank you all for being here tonight. This library is a special place to be in the same place that its special for anyone that visits if it allows us to have a relationship with a man we never knew that holds a special place. We can look and find strength and guidance and laughter from the spirit that was on here. Courage is the quality my grandfather admired as a soldier in the president he displayed throughout his life and celebrated other leaders. As we mark 100 years we celebrate his life and everything he achieved and everything he represents but what is possible in america and all the work left undone. Throughout his presidency my grandfather made it clear that he alone had no answers. He had the courage to admit the shortcomings and to lay out the plans to address the problems and ask the fellow americans for help in solving them and in doing so he inspired a generation to ask what they could do for their country. President barack obama inspired me the same way. My life changed in 2008 because 2008 because the candidates fired up and candidate is fired up and ready to go and said yes we can. Without barack obama i might still be sitting on my couch eating to read those and watching sports. He embodies the definition of courage honored to great under pressure. From his first day in office until his last the president put the National Interest above his own while resisting the politics in the system but all too often occurs. He had the courage to pursue comprehensive healthcare reform is the first order of business knowing the issue you would cost them into the party. He continued to fight during the administration that my uncle fought for for 50 years in the senate and did what no president had been able to do passing the Affordable Care act. [applause] we saw this year its a lot easier to criticize and dismantle. President obama having courage to govern responsibly. The courage to address the problem of Climate Change aggressively fighting for responsible Energy Policies into Challenging Congress to support the clean up our plan and about the world together and finally put a limit on Greenhouse Gas emission. [applause] as president kennedy did in the Space Program they gave science and technology under the climate plan on the issue that would shape life on earth for my generation and generations to come the president was bold and unafraid and pursuit of Nuclear Disarmament and had the courage to confront americas history. And it was with ridge president obama repeatedly called for action on the control tragedy after tragedy. [applause] he showed me and my generation what is possible for the politics and gave a new standard of political courage to guide us going forward. We owe a great debt to the courage as president. We can live in the strong nation president kennedy imagined and fought for if we choose a type of leadership that defined the last eight years in office thats our responsibility and as important today as it ever has been. Tonight the library and my family are proud to honor the president and now i would like to ask them to come up to present the profile of courage award. [applause] [applause] [applause] [laughter] president obama hello, everybody. Thank you so much. Thank you very much. Thank you. Please, everybody have a seat. Thank you. Thank you very much. Well, first of all, thank you so much, jack, for that really kind introduction. And i like the socks. I also want to thank you and rose and tatiana and your dad for sharing caroline with us the past few years as americas ambassador to japan. Caroline, you, true to form, did your country proud, and im sure your father and mom would have been proudest of all. I sure was proud, and im grateful for your friendship. I want to thank ken feinberg for his service as chairman of the john f. Kennedy Library Foundation these past 12 years. He also rendered Outstanding Service to my administration when we were dealing with the bp oil spill, 9 11. He has rendered Public Service again and again and again. Were very grateful for him. [applause] obama it is wonderful it is wonderful to see senators markey and senator warren; my dear friend and former governor, deval patrick, and his lovely wife diane; governors and members of congress; cardinal omalley; one of the finest secretary of states ever to represent america around the world, john kerry, and theresa; and the best Vice President this country has ever known, mr. Joe biden. [applause] president obama i also want to thank Michelle Obama for after the presidency sticking with me because i think she felt an obligation to the country to stay on. But once her official duties were over, it wasnt clear. I love my wife. And im grateful for her. And i do believe that it was americas great good fortune to have her as first lady. So i am humbled by this evening and to be honored by a family that has given this country so much, a family thats challenged us to ask what we can do for our country, to dream and say why not, a secret cause that endures and to sail against the wind in its pursuit. Thats what this family has done for america. And to all the members of the Kennedy Family that are here tonight, thank you. I could not be more grateful to the profile in courage Award Committee for this honor. Im also grateful that, unlike the nobel prize committee, you waited until i was out of office. [laughter] president obama how fitting that we gather here this month, the 100th anniversary of president kennedys birth. I was born the year he took office, which makes me 55 years old. Had he lived to finish two terms, he would have been just 51. And he remarked on that possibility once. It has been suggested, he said, that whether i serve one or two terms in the presidency, i will find myself at the end of that period at what might be called the awkward age, too old to begin a career and too young to write my memoirs. Now, i hadnt seen this quote when i wrote my first memoir at 33. Im now in the middle of my second. Moreover, i expect to be busy if not with a second career then at least a second act. But it is true that im at the age, at that turn in the road, where one looks back as well as forward to remember one where one has been, so its better to chart where one is going. And one thing im certain is that i was lucky to be born into that new frontier, a new world, and a new generation of americans. My life in many ways would not have been possible without the vision that john f. Kennedy etched into the character and hearts of america. To those of us of a certain age, the kennedys symbolized a set of values and attitudes about civic life that made it such an attractive calling. The idea that politics in fact could be a noble and worthwhile pursuit. The notion that our problems, while significant, are never insurmountable. The belief that americas promise might embrace those who had once been locked out or left behind and that opportunity and dignity would no longer be restricted to the few but extended to the many. The responsibility that each of us have to play a part in our nations destiny, and by virtue of being americans, play a part in the destiny of the world. . I can see truthfully that the example of jack and Bobby Kennedy helped guide me into politics and that the guidance of Teddy Kennedy made me a better Public Servant once i arrived in washington. I have to imagine it would give them great pride to see a new generation of kennedys, like joe, carving their own proud paths in Public Service. For whatever reasons i receive this award, whatever the scale, the challenges that we overcame, and the scope of progress we made over my presidency, it is worth pointing out that in many ways the times that president kennedy confronted were far more perilous than the ones that we confront today. He entered the oval office at just 43, only a few years after khrushchev had threatened to bury america. Wars raged around the world. Large swaths of the country knew poverty far deeper and more widespread than we see today. A young preachers cause was just gaining traction against a land segregated not only by custom but by law. And yet in that volatile tinderbox of a time, president kennedy led with a steady hand, diffusing the most perilous moment of the cold war without firing a single shot and forcing the rights of young black men and women to study at the university of their choice. Unleashing a corps of young volunteers as ambassadors for peace in distant corners of the globe. Setting americas sights on the moon precisely because it was hard, unwilling to consider the possibility that we might not win the space race because he had an unwavering faith in the character of the people that he led resilient, optimistic, innovative, and courageous. Its worth remembering this, the times in which president kennedy led us, because for Many Americans i know that this feels like an uncertain and even perilous time. The forces of globalization and technology have upended many of our established assumptions about the economy. It provided a great opportunity and also a great inequality and uncertainty for far too many. Our politics remains filled with division and discord, and everywhere we see the risk of falling into the refuge of tribe and clan and anger at those who dont look like us or have the same surnames or pray the way we do. And at such moments, courage is necessary. At such moments, we need courage to stand up to hate not just in others but in ourselves. At such moments, we need the courage to stand up to dogma not just in others but in ourselves. At such moments, we need courage to believe that together we can tackle big challenges like inequality and Climate Change. At such moments, its necessary for us to show courage in challenging the status quo and in fighting the good fight but also show the courage to listen to one another and seek Common Ground and embrace principled compromise courage, president kennedy knew, requires something more than just the absence of fear. Any fool can be fearless. Courage, true courage, derives from that sense of who we are, what are our best selves, what are our most important commitments, and the belief that we can dig deep and do hard things for the enduring benefit of others. And thats why jfks first inaugural still rings true. Thats why bobbys Campaign Still means so much. Thats why teddys cause endures and we still love him so much. Because of the tragedies that befell each of them, sometimes we forget how fundamentally the story they told us about ourselves changed the trajectory of america. And thats often where courage begins, with the story we tell ourselves about who we are and whats important and about our own capacity to make a difference. We live in a time of great cynicism about our institutions. Thats one of the few things that democrats and republicans can agree on. Its a cynicism thats most corrosive when it comes to our system of selfgovernment, that clouds our history of jagged, sometimes tentative but ultimately forward progress, that impedes our childrens ability to see in the noisy and often too Trivial Pursuits of politics the possibility of our democracy doing big things. Of course, disdain for elected officials is not new, as many of you in the room can tell others. 60 years ago president kennedy quoted a columnist in profiles in courage who had written, people dont give a damn what the average senator or congressman says. The reason they dont care is that they know what you hear in ignorance and demagoguery and off to be relied upon which is perhaps a little harsh. 99 seems high. [laughter] 85 . President kennedy also wrote the complication of public business and competition for the publics attention and obscured innumerable acts of political courage large and small performed almost daily innumerable acts of political courage large and small performed almost daily and that is true i have seen it and test it. Ive been thinking on this notion of political courage in particular of some of the men and women elected the same year i was elected in the white house many of them were new to washington with their entire career ahead of them and in their first term, they have to take tough vote after tough vote because we were in crisis. They took them to save the Financial System and the economy even when it was highly impossible unpopular and to save the Auto Industry when even in michigan people didnt want to see bailouts. They took votes to crack down on abuses in wall street despite pressure from lobbyists and they found themselves in the midst of the great debate that had been going on for decades that the Kennedy Family participated in and helped lead and whether a nation as wealthy as the United States of america would finally make healthcare not a privilege but a right for all of america. [applause] going on for decades that the and there was a reason why Health Care Reform had been accomplished before. It was hard and involved six that the economy in the matters of stakeholder interest. It was easily subject to misinformation and fear mongering sophia the time the vote came up to pass the Affordable Care act, the freshmen congressmen and women knew they had to make a choice that they had a chance to insure millions and prevent him untold worry in the suffering and bankruptcy and even death but that the same would cost them their new seat and political career and these men and women did the right thing. They did the hard thing. Theirs was a profile in courage because of that vote, 20 Million People got Health Insurance who didnt have it before. [applause] and most of them did lose their seats. They were true to what was defined in the book as a congressional profile in courage, a desire to maintain a reputation for integrity that is stronger than the desire to maintain office, the desire to maintain a reputation for integrity that is stronger than the desire to maintain office. The standard of ethics, integrity, morality that is stronger than the pressure of disapproval. But the right course would ultimately be vindicated and that overcame the fear of public reprisal. It was a personal sacrifice but i know because ive spoken to many of them they thought and still think that its worth it. As everyone here now knows the great debate is not saddled with content. And it is my hope and the hope of millions that regardless of party, such courage is possible. But todays members of congress regardless of party are willing to look at the facts and speak the truth even when it contradicts the party positions. I hope to convince members of congress recall it actually doesnt take that much courage to aid those that are already powerful, already comfortable, already influential but it does require courage to champion the vulnerable and those that often have no access to the corridors of power. I hope they understand it means not simply doing what is politically expedient but what they believe deep in their heart is right to. This kind of courage is required from all of us that consider ourselves progressive. We have some soulsearching to do to see what courage we have a a. Those of us not elected in office have to show some courage and we are prone to this though and then eager to wrap ourselves in the cynicism when they let us down because they were not perfect we lose sight sometimes our own obligations. All the quiet acts that unfold around us every single day, ordinary american who give gives something of themselves not for personal gain but for the benefit of another, a single mother working two jobs to make sure that her kids can go to college, the courage of a smallbusiness owner keeping folks on the payroll because he knows the family relies on it even if it is not always the right thing to do for the bottom line. The courage of somebody the volunteers to help. When we make it buys these acts of courage we then recognize our own responsibility as a citizen to get involved and get engaged and take a stand. I am reminded of a story from many years ago when the noun state senator ted kennedy junior was sleeping after one of his cancer treatments he would wander the halls of the hospital and talk with other parents. They lived in constant fear of what might happen if they couldnt afford the next treatment. Some calculating in their own minds what they might have to so or borrow some bargaining for whatever they can get and right there in the quiet of night, working people of modest means and one of the most powerful men in america shared the same intimate and immediate selflessness. It was the quiet dignified courage of others the most frightening thing imaginable to do what it takes on behalf of the loved ones that compelled to to make them has cost not out of selfinterest but concern for those who suffer. Thats what the ordinary courage of everyday people can aspire when you were paying attention, people doing the right thing day in and day out they dont get attention for it but thats what is defined. I think women like my grandmother and so many like her work their way up and in the process pushed the Glass Ceiling a little bit higher and people who despite ms got up every single morning an hour early to button up his shirt and put on his clothes and take his canes and go to work every single day to make sure he was supporting his family, not missing a Dance Recital or basketball game. I think of the troops and First Responders but id bet that put themselves at risk for strangers they will never know, Business Owners to make every kind of sacrifice they can to make sure that the workers have a shot and take a risk of starting a new career at my age and working to build bridges and understanding of other nation and spread the same values that help bring down an iron curtain and spanish the apartheid, expand the boundaries of human freedom. I think of those that suppress their fear to keep working and striving in the only country that theyve ever called home and every american that stands up for immigrants because they same values that help bring down know that their parents or grandparents or great grandparents were immigrants and they know that america is an idea [applause] not with violence but when people protest and the analysis and constructive recommendations for change and they discovered that they had power and those who gathered. It would somehow change the very fabric of the greatest power on earth and it kept on until they stretched the ideals of the founding to encircle every one. Every citizen inspired by that history gets their toes in the water of the act of democracy for the first time. They sometimes fail knowing that their efforts are rewarded right away because they believe that upward trajectory of the american story. It can make a difference and often all of us to try and admit sturdy citizenship i see across the country and especially dicey in young people in rows and malia and sasha and your kids. When he wrote history unfolds in cycles i do know it moves in a straight line. I know that the values and progress that we cherish are not inevitable that they are in need of a constant renewal of the. Its towards justice and ive also said that it doesnt stand on its own. We put our hand on it and move it in the production of justice and freedom and equality and kindness and generosity. It doesnt happen on its own so we are constantly having to make a choice because progress is fragile. If the freedom journey were assured none of us would ever have to risk anything to protect the. It becomes absolutely necessary. Its the most powerful to our fears and lives in sight of each of us in our willing to spew joyfully embrace our responsibility as a citizen is a to maintain our concern for the poor and the marginalized and to put our Party Interest outside when the duty for the country calls or conscious demands. Thats the spirit that has america so far and that will carry us to better days. Thank you all very much. God bless you. [applause] [applause] ladies and gentlemen, i think president obama whose comments and to the ambassador, Caroline Kennedy for her efforts to. Ladies and gentlemen i ask you please state in the tent until the president and the motorcade, the president and the motorcade, Vice President arcade have departed at the request of the secret service. Then thank you, and a memorable evening. I think you all on behalf of the foundation. Have a good evening. Please wait until the president departs with his motorcade. [applause] lawmakers have been busy tweeting their constituents and all americans about their plans for the day. Illinois congressman peter roskam says its a great morning at