Remarks by Taoiseach Micheál Martin at Vice President’s Breakfast, 17 March 2026

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Mr Vice President, Madam Second Lady, honoured guests,

Thank you most sincerely for welcoming Mary and me into your home this St Patrick’s Day.

Last year we were deeply touched by the warmth of your welcome and generosity of your hospitality. We also liked your shamrock socks!

That welcome was then, and is again today, a very special start to an unforgettable day.

As we gather to celebrate St Patrick’s Day 2026, we also look ahead to July 4th, when this great nation will mark the 250th anniversary of your independence.

Just one mile from where we sit this morning is Robert Emmet Memorial Park, named in honour of the Irish patriot who led a rebellion against the British in 1803.

In a famous speech from the dock before he was put to death, he declared: “I wish to procure for my country the guarantee which Washington procured for America.”

The ideals of liberty, democracy and opportunity enshrined in your Declaration of Independence fired the imaginations of Ireland’s determined patriots.

Our Proclamation of Independence of 1916 references just one other country – yours - when it speaks of support to our cause from Ireland’s “exiled children in America.”

And those exiled children, time and time again, have proved both their loyalty to America and their enduring links to their ancestral homeland.

Here, in the Naval Observatory, it is fitting to recall the contribution of Commodore John Barry.

An Irishman from County Wexford, Commodore Barry became the first captain commissioned by Congress. From capturing the first British warship to leading the final naval battle of the revolution, he earned the title “Father of the US Navy”.

His life embodies that dual loyalty that has defined Irish-American history: devotion to the ideals of America, while continuing to carry Ireland in their hearts.

He is far from alone.

It was an Irishman, General Stephen Moylan from my home County of Cork, who first penned the term “United States of America”.

It was John Dunlap from County Tyrone, who printed the first copies of the Declaration of Independence - the founding document that bore the signature of three patriots born on our island.

And it was Charles Thomson from Derry who created the seal of the United States - forever immortalising the great symbols of American strength, peace, faith and unity.

Throughout the 250 years since America proudly raised the flag for freedom, Ireland’s sons and daughters sought to repay the gift of opportunity through service to their new homeland.

Irish workers helped craft the skylines of America’s great cities and fortify the fabric of communities across the land.

Immigrants from my home county of Cork moved to Ohio, where they built the roads, canals and railways which literally laid the foundations of American greatness.

The Scots-Irish who mostly came to Pennsylvania and the Appalachians – an area very close to your heart – brought not only their strong work ethic, but also fiddle tunes, which melded with the African-American banjo, to gift the world bluegrass.

As fire-fighters, police officers, nurses, farmers and Presidents – 23 of whom have had Irish heritage – our ‘exiled children’, from all the rich and diverse traditions across our island, have made their mark on this proud land.

Today, we continue to contribute to American prosperity as a significant economic partner.

Ireland is now the fifth largest foreign investor in the USA.

Every morning more than 200,000 Americans go to work in almost 800 Irish-owned firms.

The US-Ireland economic relationship powers the technologies that will define the 21st century and underpin growth in our economies.

Irish companies are pivotal partners in your drive to lead the global AI revolution.

In neighbouring Virginia, Irish companies such as CEL Critical Power are providing solutions and support for unprecedented energy demand.

Across the US, the technology of another Irish company Stripe is enabling the growth of everything from start-ups to major multinationals.

Stripe’s success is a wonderful example of an Irish enterprise whose journey is built on investment in America.

Just as Ireland has been at the centre of the American story, so the United States helped forge the country I call home.

The story of peace on the island of Ireland is one we crafted together. America’s unwavering support, over decades and from both sides of the aisle, made this possible.

At the darkest and bleakest of times, you – all of you in this room – kept the faith.

Today, that work continues.

Parties from across the political spectrum in Northern Ireland, along with the Irish and British governments continue to work hard to harness the full potential of the Good Friday Agreement.

It enables us to deal comprehensively with the legacy of the past, and to engage all the communities and traditions on our island around a shared present and future.

As I close, Mr Vice President, allow me to thank you and the Second Lady once again for opening your home to us.

Vice President, they say a week is a long time in politics, but one of the greatest Irish writers, James Joyce, laid bare so much about the human soul in just one day.

And above all, his book Ulysses is, of course, a journey - a journey through Dublin, a journey into the meaning that can be found in the everyday, and, at some level a journey home.

As we continue our own journeys, I am pleased to present you with a special edition of this masterpiece.

It is our hope that literary token of Dublin recalls happy memories of your and Usha’s road-trip around Ireland - and encourages you and your growing family to make a return journey in the not too distant future.

Let me offer our heartfelt congratulations to you both on the news that you are expecting your fourth child.

So, before I finish: It is clear that the threads across the Atlantic that are woven through the rich tapestry of the United States remain strong.

Those threads connect Wexford to Washington; my hometown of Cork to yours in Ohio; and they connect generations past with those to come.

Wishing you and all those present a very happy St Patrick’s Day - Lá Fhéile Pádraig sona daoibh.

Thank you.

Go raibh míle maith agaibh go léir.