[img_assist|nid=3227|title=Ret. Rear Admiral John Hutson|desc=Getty Images Photo|link=none|align=none|width=420|height=312]Below is a transcript of remarks made by Ret. Rear Admiral John Hutson at the Democratic National Convention Wednesday evening, as prepared for delivery. Hutson is a life-long registered Republican and president of Franklin Pierce Law Center in Concord. 

My name is John Hutson. I served in the United States Navy for 28 years and retired as a rear admiral, capping my career as judge advocate general, the Navy's top uniformed lawyer. And I have a confession: For my entire adult life I was a registered Republican.

But today I have traveled from my home in New Hampshire to declare myself a proud member of the Democratic Party and to endorse Barack Obama for President of the United States. Why? Because the Republican Party I once knew has become something different, something I no longer recognize. The "Grand Old Party" is no longer grand. It's just old. The same old, failed policies. The same, old Washington culture.

Instead of new ideas and innovation, they offer trillion-dollar tax breaks for the very rich at the expense of the middle class, a deficit out of control and a government unable to help its most vulnerable citizens after Hurricane Katrina. Instead of inspiring the world with the power of American ideals, they offer war as a first resort, an overstretched military, justification for torture and trampling of civil liberties.

From the invasion of Iraq to the devastation of Katrina, I see arrogance abroad and incompetence at home. And I simply cannot tolerate, and America simply can't afford, more of the same. Any other time, I might have given up on politics, convinced that nothing would ever change. But this year, a new leader offers the change we need.

Barack Obama's ideas and ideals are not tired and old. They are rooted in the timeless values that define our great nation: unity, optimism, faith. He is a leader who challenges us to put aside old divisions of party and region and race and unite around a common purpose. A leader who will replace the old politics of special-interest influence with fiscal responsibility and shared prosperity, including freedom from the tyranny of foreign oil.

A leader who as commander-in-chief will keep our military strong, stop spending $10 billion a month in Iraq, start bringing our troops home responsibly, and win the war against those who attacked us on 9/11.

As an old Navy veteran, I know change isn't always easy. But sometimes it's necessary. And this is such a time. In Barack Obama I see judgment, character, courage, and principle over politics and partisanship. In Barack Obama, I see the change America needs.