"I address you tonight not as the President of the United States,
       not as the leader of a country, but as a citizen of humanity. 
       We are faced with the greatest of challenges. Some have said we
       have reached the day the Bible calls Armageddon. The end of all 
       things. And yet, for the first time in the history of the planet,
       a species posseses the technology to prevent its own
       extinction." 
       [camera shows the crew stepping to the shuttles]
       "All of you listening and praying with us tonight need to know 
       that everything we can do to prevent this diaster is being called
       into service. The human thirst for knowledge and 
       excellence, our every step up the ladder of science; every 
       adventurous reach into the heavens; all of our combined modern 
       technologies and imaginations; even the wars we have fought; 
       have given us the tools to wage this terrible battle..."
       [the crew reaches the elevators to the shuttles]
       "Through all the chaos that has ever been our history, through
       all the wrong, the discord, the pain and suffering, through
       all our times, one thing has nourished our souls and elevated
       our species above its origin. That is our courage. Tonight, 
       the dreams of an entire nation are focused on the fourteen brave
       souls traveling into the heavens. Godspeed, and good luck to you. 
       And may we all, the world over, see these events through with a
       dignity and perserverance worthy of the challenge."