Well, Mom, you said it would happen; and, Margot, I apologise to you, little baby girl - the idea that you have to listen to the President of the United States deliver a policy speech is as bad as what my children have been put through. Speaking of my children, my son, Hunter, is with me and my sister and best friend in the world, Valerie, is also with me.
As the proud son of Catherine Eugenia Finnegan Biden, well, you knew I would be coming. Speaker, Chair, Taoiseach, Deputy Prime Minister, TDs and Senators, people of Ireland, it is so good to be back in Ireland.
If you will forgive the poor attempt at Irish, tá mé sa bhaile - I am at home. I only wish that I could stay longer. But I always have a little bit of Ireland close by, even when I am in Washington. In the Oval Office I have a rugby ball signed by the Irish rugby team. It is the ball the team played with when they beat the All Blacks in Dublin in 2021. My cousin, one of Ireland’s greatest rugby stars, Rob Kearney, brought it to DC for me on St. Patrick’s Day in 2022. I did not play rugby until I got out of school, out of law school, and I did not play it very well. We played at a rugby club. But I did play American football and a few other sports and I realised that you guys are all nuts. However, the interesting thing is that I would rather have my children play rugby now for health reasons than I would football. Fewer people get hurt playing rugby. You do not have any equipment, you have 280 lb guys like we do but you just do not hit each other on the head very often.
All kidding aside, in 2016 I came to Ireland as Vice President, bringing most of my family with me, my sister, Valerie, my brother, Jimmy, my daughter and my five grandchildren. My granddaughters are crazy about me, I might add, because I talk to them every day; I send them a note. Together we explored our family history, visiting the Cooley Peninsula, where our Finnegan ancestors earned their living from land and sea, and walking the streets of Ballina, where my great-great-great-grandfather Blewitt lived with his family before relocating in 1851, eventually settling in my home town of Scranton, Pennsylvania.
Yesterday, I returned to County Louth, where I toured Carlingford Castle, likely one of the last glimpses of Ireland my Finnegan ancestors saw as they gazed on their way out in what, in those days, was referred to as a "coffin ship". And they sailed out of Newry in 1850. I later learned from The Irish Times, which did a little background check, that my good friend Barack Obama's great-great-great-grandfather was a shoemaker like mine and sailed five weeks earlier from the same port.
The idea that they both sailed for a new life and thought their great-great-grandsons would both be President is really a little bit of Irish malarkey. It is kind of interesting, is it not?
Tomorrow, I will also revisit County Mayo to remember the history and hope and the heartbreak my Blewitt ancestors must have felt leaving their beloved homeland to begin new lives in America. I say all this not to wax poetic about bygone days but because the story of my family’s journey, of those who left and those who stayed, is emblematic of the stories of so many Irish and American families - not just Irish-American families - and these stories are the very heart of what binds Ireland and America together. They speak to a history defined by our dreams. They speak to a present written in our shared responsibility and they speak to a future poised for unlimited, shared possibilities. So today, I would like to reflect on the enduring strength of the connections between Ireland and the United States, a partnership for the ages. It begins in our shared history, dating back to the very founding of the United States, in the Irish hearts that helped to kindle the torch of liberty in my country and fire its revolutionary spirit, the Irish blood, from across this island, that was willingly given for my country’s independence and the Irish hands that laid the foundations for a new kind of future, one built from the bottom up and the middle out, one built on freedom.
You know of the great waves of immigration that brought my ancestors to the United States and, in succeeding decades, carried millions more Irishmen across the sea. Most of them arrived with little more than hope in their hearts, the strength of their dreams and beautiful memories of an emerald-green isle, a home they would never fully leave behind. I have never met an Irishman in America who does not think or hope he can see Ireland some day. Their sweat is soaked into the foundations of communities across the nation, all across America. You cannot go anywhere and not find that. By the way, Tip O'Neill, a former Speaker of the House, used to say that he would have a reception for all the Irish in Congress - the House and Senate - and for all those who wished they were Irish and everybody showed up. The journeys of our ancestors expanded our horizons and excited our imaginations. They became the untiring backbone of America’s progress as a nation, even as they endured discrimination and were denied opportunity.
I will tell you a story. I was campaigning for President out in Colorado and I was with a former Senator, a man whose family had been in the United States for generations, since the time of the conquistadors. A whole lot of people were standing across a refurbished rail station in eastern Colorado and there were literally 10,000 people on the other side of the track waiting to hear me speak. He kept saying, "Now, Joe, remember, these are my people; they are Hispanics. You have got to show respect." I replied that I understood and kept it up. Finally, I turned and - this is God's truth - this refurbished train station had a kind of linen wallpaper on it and about every 20 ft, there was a brass plaque saying "No Irish allowed". I said, "I get it. I get it."
It is a history that speaks, above all, to the values that sustained these people throughout the hardship in their lives. Freedom. Equality. Dignity. Family. Courage. My mom used to have an expression. She used to say, "Joey, courage is the greatest virtue of all, for without courage, you cannot love with abandon." Those are the values that were handed down generation to generation in my family, grafted onto the American character, tended, as they transformed an entire nation.
Like so many countries around the world, though perhaps more than most, the United States was shaped by Ireland. That is not hyperbole; that is a fact. And the values we share remain to this day the core of the historic partnership between our people and our governments. As nations, we have known hardship and division but we have also found solace and sympathy in one another. Just four years before we issued our Declaration of Independence, Benjamin Franklin came to the Irish Parliament, which he described as being “disposed to be friends of America". In turn, the text of Ireland’s 1916 Proclamation, displayed in the main foyer of this building, draws on the support of Ireland’s “exiled children in America”. We are nations that know what it means to persevere for freedom, to brave a civil war and toil in the vineyards of democracy. Again that is not hyperbole; it is a fact. It is not just the hope, but the conviction that better days lie ahead that brought us along. We have the power to build a better future.
Sixty years ago, as was referenced earlier, the first Irish Catholic President of the United States made his historic trip here, speaking to this assembly and capturing the imaginations of Irish and Irish-American families alike. When John Kennedy addressed Parliament, he honoured the more than 150,000 Irish immigrants who joined the army of the North during America’s Civil War, among them one or two of my relatives. They signed up in a new land to stand for old values, to defend freedom and the dignity of all people. Think about this. Name me another country, in whatever their language is, that uses the word "dignity" as much as do we Irish. It matters. My Dad used to say, "Everybody, Joey, is entitled to be treated with dignity no matter who they are", and he meant it. President Kennedy honoured their courage and sacrifice by presenting to this body the flag of the Irish Brigade, which hangs here to this very day. Likewise, I was honoured to receive an Irish flag from the Taoiseach during the recent St. Patrick’s Day celebration in Washington. It was flown to commemorate the Irishman who first raised the tricolour in Ireland 175 years ago and who subsequently made his way to America, where he led the Irish Brigade into Civil War battle. These linked symbols holding places of honour at Leinster House and the White House embody the centuries of history between our countries, connections that irrevocably have shaped our understanding of the world and the hope we put in it. Our history - yours and mine - reminds us of the responsibilities we have to the present, to the hopes of our ancestors and to the expectations of future generations.
Because you know what it means to fight for democracy. Today, Ireland and the United States are standing together to oppose Russia’s brutal war of aggression and support the brave people of Ukraine. I spent many days in Ukraine. President Kennedy said 60 years ago, “Ireland pursues an independent course in foreign policy, but it is not neutral between liberty and tyranny and never will be." Thank you for that. Over the past year, Ireland has proved him right. As the Speaker said, Ireland has stood proudly with the United States and partners around the world for liberty, against tyranny. Ireland has committed more than €170 million in non-lethal aid to Ukraine, including vital protective gear, medical equipment, humanitarian support and aid to minimise the impacts of the war on food insecurity and child malnutrition. You do not forget. You have memories that go deep.
As a member of the European Union, Ireland is working together with the United States and other partners to hold Russia accountable for its actions, including through significant sanctions and export controls. I have known Putin for over 25 years. Putin thought that the world would look the other way. He was confident that he would break NATO and the European Union, that the unity of Western nations would fracture and fall at the moment of testing. That is what he thought but he was wrong on every point and every front. Today, we are more united and more determined than ever to defend the values that make us strong.
I also want to thank you for Ireland’s vital leadership last year on the UN Security Council. Working together, Ireland and the United States helped change the way UN sanctions are implemented to ensure they do not hamper humanitarian efforts. The new humanitarian carve-out will make sanctions more effective and save lives.
Ireland’s support for Ukraine is especially meaningful because you carry a moral authority with nations around the world. Ireland has always been a voice for liberty, global co-operation and equality of all mankind. Because Ireland remembers the terrible cost of war, you have built international credibility as peacekeepers, stepping up continuously to serve in UN peacekeeping missions since Ireland’s first deployment in 1958.
Because Ireland remembers what it means to have to flee home, leaving everything behind, and to begin again on foreign shores, the Irish people have generously opened their hearts and their homes and welcomed, as the Ceann Comhairle said, nearly 80,000 Ukrainian refugees. I would argue the rest of the world has an obligation to help you maintain that.
Because Ireland remembers the painful hollows of the Great Hunger, you are today a global leader on food security as well. Ireland has committed fully 20% of its aid budget to fighting global hunger and, in a moment where people around the world are struggling with the economic fallout of the pandemic and Russia’s war in Ukraine, Ireland is growing its aid budget and expanding its commitment to help vulnerable people, especially partner nations across Africa.
I particularly want to thank you for stepping up alongside the United States to help UNICEF and the World Health Organization fight malnutrition and child wasting. Ireland’s contribution of €50 million is helping to prevent and treat child wasting and supply ready-to-use therapeutic food to reach half a million children in Africa. You are changing lives.
Ireland also remembers, as I do, that peace is indispensable. Peace is the necessary foundation for progress, for growth and for unlocking the enormous potential that exists in every part of this island. This week marks a vital milestone for peace - 25 years of the Belfast-Good Friday Agreement. Twenty five years ago one of my best friends in the Senate and a great friend to this day, George Mitchell, said there were 700 days of failure and one day of success but it was the success that one day. More is to be done.
Yesterday, I was in Belfast to honour those who commit themselves to peace and to reiterate the enduring support of the United States for the Good Friday Agreement and Northern Ireland’s democratic institutions and to help accelerate the enormous economic growth that is opening new futures for young people of Northern Ireland. As I pointed out, there are literally hundreds of American corporations ready to come in and invest but they are cautious because the institutions are not in place.
We must never forget that peace, even as it has become a lived reality for an entire generation of young people, is precious. It still needs its champions. It still needs to be nurtured. The Good Friday Agreement did not just change lives for the better in Northern Ireland; it had a significant positive impact across the Republic of Ireland as well.
The Taoiseach and I have discussed, including last month in Washington and again today, how Ireland and the United States can work together, and with the United Kingdom and the European Union, to support the people of Northern Ireland. I think that the United Kingdom should be working closer with Ireland in this endeavour.
Political violence must never again be allowed to take hold on this island. It is presumptuous of me to say from the United States but that must be the goal which guides us in all our efforts because the greatest peace dividend of the Good Friday Agreement is an entire generation of young people whose hearts have been shaped not by the grievances of the past but by the confidence that there are no checkpoints on their dreams. They are writing a new future - a future of unlimited possibilities.
For too long, Ireland has been talked about in the past tense. We tell old stories of days gone by because it is good to remember. They are stories of Irish grit and genius, saints and scholars, and poets and politicians. They are good stories; let us face it. But as the poet Eavan Boland wrote in her poem "Mother Ireland":
I learned my name.
I rose up. I remembered it.
Now I could tell my story.
It was different
from the story told about me.
Today, Ireland’s story is no one’s to tell but its own. The United States will be your closest partner, your most dependable partner and your most enthusiastic supporter at every step of the way - I promise you. We always have been.
Together, we will continue to grow our enormous economic relationship that is a foundation of both our nations’ prosperity. We will continue to strengthen our economies, building them from the bottom up and the middle out. Already Ireland draws a disproportionate amount of the foreign direct investment from the United States and the same is true for Ireland’s investment into the United States of America, which is the ninth most significant investment of any nation in the world in America. We shared more than $1 trillion in bilateral trade and investment in 2021. More than 950 American companies - international companies - have international headquarters in Ireland, supporting hundreds of thousands of jobs. Seven hundred Irish companies, located in 50 states, employ more than 100,000 people in the United States of America.
Together, Ireland and the United States are building a future of greater economic dignity, one where the rights of workers are respected and corporations pay their fair share. The global minimum tax will continue fair competition for investment while creating benefits for all our people. I have no doubt that the thriving economic relationship between our countries will continue to grow. I am grateful for Ireland’s partnership in delivering this game-changing international agreement.
Similarly, the deep connection that has always existed between our people and the land has translated into a commitment to fight the climate crisis and to preserve our planet for future generations. The single existential threat to the world is climate change. We do not have a lot of time, and that is a fact. Finally, everyone is recognising that in America. Since I have been President, I have flown by helicopter over more territory in the United States that has been burned to the ground than comprises the entire state of Maryland. It is equal to the entire state of Maryland.
Ireland’s famous 40 shades of green are being supplemented by green energy, green agriculture and green jobs. Make no mistake, the entire world sees and is drawn to the opportunities that exist on this island - the skilled workers, the high-tech infrastructure, the innovators who are breaking barriers and the connection and kinship you share not just with the United States but with countries around the globe. I know you all know it but maybe sometimes we forget it: Ireland is a hotbed of cutting-edge science, research and the emerging technologies that will influence so much of our shared future for real.
Working in partnership, Ireland and the United States, together with the European Union and like-minded parties around the world, will ensure that those technologies are grounded in the same core values we have championed for so long - democracy, human rights and freedom of opportunity for everyone and not just for some.
I had not planned on running for President again in 2020. My son Beau had just died of stage four glioblastoma, having come back from Iraq after a year. He was the Attorney General of Delaware. As a matter of fact, he should be the one standing here giving this speech to you but I started to write a book, talking about how technology has always changed the world and how we are at an inflection point in the world. Technology was changing so rapidly and things were changing so significantly that it was not so much who led any country; it was the changes just happening at an incredible speed. Look at what is happening with artificial intelligence right now. It poses enormous promise and enormous concern.
Our world stands at an inflection point, where the choices we make today will determine the course of the future history of this world for the next four to five decades, literally, not figuratively. We are at one of those points. I had a professor at school who said that an inflection point is when you are riding down the highway at 60 miles an hour and make a radical turn of six degrees in one direction. You can never get back on the course you were on. As a world, that is where we are.
As we meet these ageless struggles, they continue to cast a shadow on our world. It is a struggle between the rights of the many and the desires of the few, between liberty and oppression and I get criticised for saying this around the world, but between democracy and autocracy. It is a competition that is real. We are called to this work, just as every generation before us has been. In this moment, the world needs Ireland and the United States and our limitless imaginations.
I have met more with Xi Jinping than has any world leader over the past ten years. I have had 91 hours of one-on-one conversations, 68 in person. I have travelled 17,000 miles with him, primarily through Asia and through China. He once asked me, on the Tibetan Plateau, whether I could define America for him. This is God's truth. I said I could, in one word. If he had asked me about Ireland, I could have said the same thing. One word: possibilities. We believe anything is possible if we set our mind to it and we do it together. This is the United States of America and Ireland. There is nothing beyond our capacity if we do it together. We have got to believe that and know that because that is the history of both of our countries. This is about defending the values handed down to us by our ancestors, keeping the flame of freedom we inherited, the beacon that will guide our children and grandchildren. It is a struggle we are fit to fight together. For Ireland and the United States, now is their time to meet every challenge together - I really mean this - to raise together and to rise up in our joys and triumphs. It is their time to persevere together through sorrows and setbacks and to dream together over horizons we cannot see and to build together a future that may be, that does not exist but a future that can be.
As was mentioned, today is Seamus Heaney's birthday. Over my long career of 36 years in the United States Senate, I was always quoting Irish poetry. My colleagues thought I did it because I was Irish but that is not the reason. You are the best poets in the world. That is the reason I did it. One of the best among them was your husband and I thank you for sending me that autographed copy. It was your husband. My favourite poem is "The Cure at Troy". Everyone knows the words, as they have heard them so many times. He wrote:
... Don’t hope
On this side of the grave.
But then, once in a lifetime
The longed-for tidal wave
Of justice can rise up
And hope and history rhyme.
That is everything I have been taught. Rise up. We, in the past, have made hope and history rhyme.
So today, ladies and gentlemen, as we celebrate the enduring partnership between our nations, our shared past and our present, let us set our eyes squarely on the future. Let us harness what is best in us: our courage, our creativity, our tenacity and our loyalty. Let us once more, for our generation and generations to come, strive to make hope and history rhyme because I have never been more optimistic about the future than I am today and I am at the end of my career, not the beginning. You can see how old I am and the only thing I bring to this career is a little bit of wisdom. I come to the job with more experience than any President in American history. It does not make me better or worse but it gives me few excuses.
It is one of the great honours of my career to be here, and I mean it from the bottom of my heart. You have no idea. My greatest regret - I am going to sound like a kid - is that my mom is not here to hear it. My grandfather Finnegan was an Irish-American whose grandfather was Owen Finnegan, who made the effort. He was a great athlete who went to Santa Clara University. He was a newspaper guy on the business side. I never understood what he meant when he said, “Joey, I worry about you.” I said, “Pop, what are you worried about?” He said, “You are too much like that guy who led the revolution instead of the guy who was the prime minister. You have got to be less like the military guy - they shot him - and more like de Valera.”
Folks, I really mean it. We can do so much. It does not even break down into ideology. It breaks down into faith in ourselves, our values. No matter what party we belong to, our values are the same. It is about honesty, dignity and justice, and you all have every ingredient to make it work. It is an honour to be here. Thank you very much.
