Highlights of Obama's convention speech

Barack Obama on Thursday accepted his party's nomination to run for president in November. In a prime-time address he set out his view of the last four years, Republicans' record and offered a glimpse of a second term.

Here were some of the highlights:



ON HIS RECORD

"Hope has been tested by the cost of war, by one of the worst economic crises in history and by political gridlock that's left us wondering whether it's still even possible to tackle the challenges of our time."

"I won't pretend the path I'm offering is quick or easy. I never have. The truth is, it will take more than a few years for us to solve challenges that have built up over decades."

"Four years ago I promised to end the war in Iraq. We did. I promised to refocus on the terrorists who actually attacked us on 9/11, and we have. We've blunted the Taliban's momentum in Afghanistan and in 2014, our longest war will be over. A new tower rises above the New York skyline, Al-Qaeda is on the path to defeat and Osama bin Laden is dead."


ON THE ELECTION

"When you pick up that ballot to vote, you will face the clearest choice of any time in a generation."

"You know, in a world of new threats and new challenges, you can choose leadership that has been tested and proven."


ON HIS RIVAL MITT ROMNEY 

"You don't call Russia our number one enemy -- not Al-Qaeda, Russia -- unless you're still stuck in a Cold War mind warp. You might not be ready for diplomacy with Beijing if you can't visit the Olympics without insulting our closest ally."

"Our friends down in Tampa at the Republican convention were more than happy to talk about everything they think is wrong with America. But they didn't have much to say about how they'd make it right. They want your vote, but they don't want you to know their plan.

"That's because all they have to offer is the same prescriptions they've had for the last 30 years. Have a surplus? Try a tax cut. Deficit too high -- try another. Feel a cold coming on? Take two tax cuts, roll back some regulations, and call us in the morning."


ON A SECOND TERM

"We can create a million new manufacturing jobs in the next four years."

"We can cut our oil imports in half by 2020 and support more than 600,000 new jobs in natural gas alone."

"(We can) recruit a hundred thousand math and science teachers within 10 years."

"(We can) help give two million workers the chance to learn skills at their community college that will lead directly to a job. Help us work with colleges and universities to cut in half the growth of tuition costs over the next 10 years."

"My plan will continue to reduce the carbon pollution that is heating our planet, because climate change is not a hoax. More droughts and floods and wildfires are not a joke. They are a threat to our children's future."

"I want to reform the tax code so that it's simple, fair and asks the wealthiest households to pay higher taxes on incomes over $250,000."

"My plan would cut our deficit by $4 trillion."


ON FOREIGN POLICY 

"Europe's crisis must be contained."

"Our commitment to Israel's security must not waver, and neither must our pursuit of peace."

"The Iranian government must face a world that stays united against its nuclear ambitions."

"The historic change sweeping across the Arab world must be defined not by the iron fist of a dictator or the hate of extremists, but by the hopes and aspirations of ordinary people who are reaching for the same rights that we celebrate here today." (AFP)