That was the message Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., delivered Monday to the more than 600 people who attended the Greater Florence Chamber of Commerce Economic Outlook Luncheon.

On the homefront, Graham said, sacrifice will be necessary if the Pee Dee truly hopes to obtain funding for Interstate 73.

"We're going to get a route sooner rather than later," Graham said. "We're going to get the financing for the environmental impact study, but there's no way our delegation can bring home the whole $2 billion. For that reason, I'm challenging residents, business leaders, government leaders, everyone to get together and come up with a finance plan for I-73."

Graham said he thinks one funding option that needs to be explored is a toll.

"I don't like the idea of tolling any more than anybody else and I certainly hate to put any more burden on people, but I think it (tolling) needs to be part of the mix," he said. "We've got to come up with the money to make this happen, and it's going to take some sacrifice on everybody's part."

Part of the solution, Graham said, is taking a regional and global approach rather than a local perspective. He said Flor-ence and Myrtle Beach must work together through efforts such as the North Eastern Strategic Alliance to address critical issues facing the area and ensure the future of the entire region.

"Florence and Myrtle Beach are coming together with a vision for the 21st century, and that's what it's going to take for this area to grow and prosper," Graham said. "This type of innovation is going to pay off in the form of new and better jobs. It's vital that Florence and surrounding areas continue to invest in regional programs like NESA, because the more you spend on education and infrastructure, the more you attract world class businesses."

To save the industries that have driven South Carolina's economy, innovation and re-gionalization are imperative, Graham said.

"You're not competing against Georgia or North Carolina anymore. You're competing against China," he said. "And in China, they don't have minimum wage. There's no OSHA. There are no guidelines. If you can make it here but you can also make it in China, then the companies here are in trouble. We have got to work together and we have got to be innovative."

Just as there must be sacrifices at home to ensure progress, Graham said Americans as a whole will have to sacrifice if Social Security is going to be saved. Graham said he will support a proposal to increase the cap on income that is subject to Social Security tax to $150,000. The current cap is $90,000.

"We've made promises that our children can't keep," Graham said.

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"I know how much these (Social Security) programs mean to people, and I know they're coming unraveled. We're going to run out of money," he said. "But my pledge to you is that I'm going to join with the president and anyone else I can to make sure we address the failing of Social Security and come up with solutions - permanent solutions - that will ensure the problem is solved. I'm willing to ask for sacrifice from those who can afford it, because asking for a little from all of us now will save a lot for those who follow us."

Internationally, Graham said, there are countries such as Iraq and Afghanistan that desperately need America's help. Unfortunately, he said, providing that help will also call for sacrifice.

"We are at war, but unlike in World War II, we don't feel it here at home," he said. "But make no mistake, ladies and gentlemen, this war is real. We can't kill enough of the terrorists to win this war, but what we can do is empower those people in these countries who want to live free. These people want to live free, but they need our help."

Graham said he believes it is the duty of successful nations such as the United States to provide that help.

"We need to spend money in Afghanistan, we need to invest in Iraq," he said. "It's going to cost us money and it's going to cost us more American blood, but we cannot live as if we're in isolation.

This world is connected, and we want these terrorists to know that we will not cut and run. We're going to stay until the job's done."

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