Here are excerpts of Senate minority leader Mitch McConnell's address, which he'll deliver tonight at the Republican convention:

∙         “We’re here this week for the simple reason that our nation is in desperate need of leadership. And we believe Mitt Romney is the man for the moment.”
∙         “As we meet here tonight, America is suffering through an economic calamity of truly historic dimensions. Some are calling it the slowest recovery in our nation’s entire 236-year history. To call this a recovery is an insult to recoveries.” 
∙         “For four years, Barack Obama has been running from the nation's problems. He hasn't been working to earn reelection. He's been working to earn a spot on the PGA tour.” 
∙         “We know what the President's got on his iPod, but we don’t know what he plans to do about a looming tax hike that could trigger yet another serious recession that would result in even more Americans losing their jobs. Ladies and Gentlemen: America cannot afford another four years of this.” 
∙         “When Mitt Romney looks down the road, he sees a country that’s ready for a comeback. I firmly believe he's the man to lead it.” 
∙         “What this administration has in mind for America isn’t a renewal, it’s a great leveling out. It wants the kind of government-imposed equality that in a single generation transformed Western Europe from a place where for centuries high achievement and discovery and innovation were celebrated and prized, to a place where they have elections about whether people should have to work. Where they make promises they can't keep and write checks they can't cash.”