Thank you for your kind applause.

My name is Suzanne Bump, and I am running for Auditor because I want government to work! And I am here today because now, more than ever, I am proud to be a Democrat.

I’m proud of a Democratic Party that ensures equal opportunity regardless of gender, race, religion, sexual orientation or gender identity. A Democratic party that provides support and dignity to seniors, the jobless, the disabled.

A Democratic party that protects workers and their right to collectively bargain. It is Democrats, not Tea Partiers, who turn the rhetoric of freedom and justice into the laws and programs which strengthen our society. And I am the only candidate for Auditor with a consistent, public record of support for these Democratic values.

Right now there is a crisis of confidence in government. Is it any wonder? Think of how badly some of our government institutions have failed us! When government fails, our food makes us sick. When government fails, we have worldwide economic collapse; millions of people lost their jobs and their homes; oil gushes into the Gulf of Mexico. These catastrophes were caused by people who don’t value oversight and accountability, by national Republican leaders who assert that government can’t make things better and should not even try. And Republican leaders in Massachusetts are just the same.

In 2007, before starting as Secretary of Labor, I sat down with one of my Republican predecessors. I was honored to have been appointed by Gov. Patrick, and I was truly excited! My job was to support injured workers, solve labor disputes, train the unemployed and underemployed, and help businesses grow. I expected some insights into all these agencies and their 1500 employees. But what did I get? “It’s complicated,” I was told. “Just do some things around the edges and declare victory.” Can you believe that? “Just do some things around the edges and declare victory.” How cynical, how lazy, and how utterly Republican!

Or course, I didn’t take the advice. I reorganized the agencies, and gave them better information and tools to plan, manage and measure their performance. I am a Democrat. I cared, I led, I made changes, I got results. Now, I want to get better results across state government and help increase confidence in it.

As your State Auditor I will be a champion of reforms that make government work. I will provide oversight to ensure that every dollar you give to state government is a dollar well-spent. I will instill accountability and transparency, so you know what you government is doing with your tax dollars. I will enforce regulation that protects you from contractors and public officials who don’t play by the rules. As your State Auditor, I will work for you.

My vision for the office stands in stark contrast to that of the leading Republican candidate, a woman whose agenda makes clear that she will not be a professional and independent auditor. Have you heard her? She intends to be “a thorn, that’s right, “a thorn,” in the side of Gov. Patrick and the Democrats.” Now, one part of her vision we all agree with - that Deval Patrick will be our next governor! But her idea of using the Auditor’s office as a partisan weapon shows that you, the taxpayers, are not her main concern.

Playing politics is.

I am ready, today, to build upon the legacy of Joe DeNucci, the Democrat we honored last night, and whose endorsement I was proud to receive this morning. That is why I can win in November. We Democrats posess the vision and ability that the voters want, and we don’t need to retreat from the values we hold dear. At the same time, we must acknowledge we can and will make government even better. If we do this, then we will deserve to win in November, and we will win in November.

Thank you for the support so many of you have already shown for me, and I ask each of you for your vote today.

Thank you all so very much.