    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2001, Book II)]
    [October 24, 2001]
    [Pages 1295-1298]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Remarks to Employees of the Dixie Printing and Packaging Corporation in
    Glen Burnie, Maryland
    October 24, 2001

        Thank you all very much. Please be seated. Newth, thank you very much. And Ray and Susan Blavatt, thank you for
    being here, as well. I'm glad my SBA Director is here; Hector
    Barreto is in charge of the Small
    Business Association. And Hector, thank you for coming. I want to thank
    the employees of Dixie Printing and my fellow Americans.
        Some might ask why, in the midst of war, I would come to Dixie
    Printing. They say, ``Here you are conducting a campaign against
    terrorists, and you take time to come to a small business.'' And the
    answer is, because we fight in the war on two fronts. We fight a war at
    home, and part of the war we fight is to make sure that our economy
    continues to grow.
        When the terrorists struck our homeland, they thought we would fold.
    They thought our economy would crater. That's what they wanted. But they
    don't understand America. They don't understand the entrepreneurial
    spirit of our country. They don't understand the spirit of the working
    men and women of America. They don't understand that small-business
    owners all across our country are saying, ``We're not going to allow you
    to terrorize us.'' We're going to make sure our--[applause].
        I am here to report that we're doing well on both fronts. Overseas,
    our diplomatic efforts are strong. Nations all across the globe have
    bound with the United States to send a clear message that we'll fight
    terrorism wherever it may exist.

    [[Page 1296]]

        Recently I was in China. I had an interesting meeting, as you can
    imagine, with the President of Russia, the
    head of China, Mexico,
    Chile--were all represented. And to a leader,
    from all kinds of nations, some Muslim, some not, the people said, ``We
    stand with America. We stand with America in our noble goal of finding
    the evildoers and bringing them to justice.''
        As you know, I have asked our military to take an active role in the
    campaign. I set out a doctrine to America that said the following: Not
    only will we hold terrorists accountable for their activities, we will
    also hold those accountable, those nations accountable that harbor them,
    that hide them, that try to feed them. And that's exactly what we're
    doing in Afghanistan.
        I gave the Afghan Government, the Taliban Government, plenty of time
    to respond to the demands of the United States. I said, ``You must hand
    over the Al Qaida leadership which hides in your country.'' I said,
    ``You must free those who you illegally detain in your country.'' And I
    said, ``You must destroy the camps that have been used to train the
    terrorists.'' And they had time to respond, and they didn't respond
    positively, and therefore, they're paying a price.
        Our military is conducting a campaign to bring the terrorists to
    justice, not to harm the Afghan people. While we are holding the Taliban
    Government accountable, we're also feeding Afghan people. You need to be
    proud of the United States military. It's doing its job. It is slowly
    but surely encircling the terrorists so that we'll bring them to
    justice. We're patient. We're firm. We have got a strategy that is going
    to work. And make no mistake about it, justice will be done.
        But there is another front in this war, and the front is here at
    home. It's something that, obviously, we're not used to in America.
    We've had oceans which have protected us over our history. Except for
    Pearl Harbor, we've never really been hit before. And yet, on September
    11th, this great land came under attack. And it's still under attack as
    we speak. Anybody who puts poison in mail is a terrorist. Anybody who
    tries to affect the lives of our good citizens is evil.
        I'm oftentimes asked by our friends in the press, do I know if
    there's a direct connection between what took place on September the
    11th and what's happening today. I have no direct evidence, but there
    are some links. Both series of actions are motivated by evil and hate.
    Both series of actions are meant to disrupt Americans' way of life. Both
    series of actions are an attack on our homeland. And both series of
    actions will not stand.
        It's important for the American people to know our Government is
    doing everything we can on both fronts of this war. On the homefront,
    we've got an Office of Homeland Security, the job of which is to
    organize and coordinate our functions of Government in such a way as to
    disrupt and find those who would harm our citizens. We've got thousands
    of FBI agents scouring the information, asking questions, following up
    leads, all aimed to raise the risk of someone who would harm our
    citizens.
        And as well, we've responded to every incident that has occurred.
    Our Nation has responded with bravery and courage. I'm proud of our
    health officials who responded so quickly to the incidents that took
    place. And unfortunately, we lost life, and our prayers are with anybody
    who lose life in America. But I firmly believe their quick actions saved
    many lives, as well.
        We're learning about terror and evil, and our country is responding
    forcefully. The American people have got remarkable spirit and
    remarkable resolve. We are strong. We are united. And we are determined
    to prevail.
        One of the effects of the attacks has been on our economy. Make no
    mistake about it: September 11th affected economic growth, and our
    Government must respond in an effective way. And so I'm here to

    [[Page 1297]]

    talk about an important part of the homefront security, and that is our
    economy.
        First of all, the bases for economic growth are very strong. The
    entrepreneurial spirit is really strong in America. We're the haven for
    small-business opportunity in our country. I mean, more jobs are created
    through small-business owners and the entrepreneurs of America than they
    are through large corporate America. And so as we think through how to
    encourage economic growth, we've got to always keep in mind the small
    business and the medium-sized businesses of America.
        Secondly, our tax structure has been improved. In other words, we're
    giving people more of their own money back. And that's an important part
    of economic growth. We just finished distributing about 40 billion in
    rebate checks. Maybe some of you have received a 600 or $300 check.
    That's part of encouraging growth. And by the way, those tax cuts that
    have just begun will continue next year and the year after that, as
    well.
        And we've acted confidently and quickly to spend money necessary to
    help the country recover from the attacks. We spent money on helping
    rebuild New York City and the Pentagon. We have spent money to stabilize
    our airline industry, which was the industry most directly affected by
    the attacks of September the 11th. We've spent money to take care of
    workers who have lost jobs, and that's necessary, and that's important.
        And we've taken enough money--spending money to make sure we defend
    our country and accomplish our mission overseas. That spending has
    amounted to about $60 billion above and beyond our budget. That money
    will help with job creation and will help our economy grow. It's
    necessary to spend that kind of money in a time of emergency, and we're
    in times of emergency.
        But I strongly believe it's time to balance this amount of spending
    with additional tax relief. My judgment, we've provided a lot of money
    in the short run, and in order to encourage and stimulate our economy,
    we ought to offset that money with additional tax relief. And I want to
    describe some of what that means.
        First, we need to accelerate the tax relief that is already going to
    happen. In other words, instead of waiting for next year's tax relief to
    happen, let's put it into this year, to bolster consumer spending. We
    want you to have more money to spend, particularly as we head into the
    Christmas season. We want our consumers feeling confident.
        One way to feel confident is for the people to know there's a strong
    homeland security initiative and strategy, that our country is doing
    everything we can to succeed. And there's nothing like boosting
    confidence than a little extra money in the pocket, too.
        I also believe we ought to have rebates for low- and moderate-income
    workers, people who might have filed an income tax return but didn't get
    any rebate last time. Those good folks have been particularly hard-hit
    as a result of September the 11th. And that ought to be a part of our
    consumer confidence package.
        And then there's the business side, and I want you to know that
    we've thought very carefully about how to stimulate economic vitality
    and growth. And it's a package that will help small-business America.
    It's a package that will do two things: One, encourage more investment,
    immediate investment in plant and equipment, and therefore, one that
    will help small businesses not only retain their workforce but hopefully
    expand their workforces.
        And, therefore, we need to reform the corporate income tax to get
    rid of the alternative minimum tax, which so severely affects small
    businesses like Dixie. As well, we need to allow businesses to deduct
    more of the cost of new investments immediately. We need to say to the
    Dixie Printings of America, ``If you invest in equipment now, you're
    rewarded for that

    [[Page 1298]]

    investment.'' To me, that makes common sense. It's a good way to make
    sure that we enhance the employment opportunities of America.
        The terrorists wanted our economy to stop. It hasn't. They wanted to
    diminish the spirit of America. It didn't. They thought the Government
    wouldn't be able to react. The Government is going to react with an
    economic stimulus package that is good for workers. The House is getting
    ready to vote on that package. I urge them to pass it, and then I urge
    the Senate to act quickly to make sure that the American people
    understand that at this part of our homeland defense, our country and
    the Congress is united.
        You know, I said early on that through my tears I see opportunity.
    And I believe my faith teaches that out of evil can come good, and
    there's been a lot of good that has come out of this terrible situation.
    By the way, there's a spirit of cooperation in Washington that is very
    positive. We've got Republicans and Democrats talking to each other.
    [Laughter] That's good. It's very important during this time in our
    history that we in Washington, DC, show that we can work together.
        I don't know if you know this or not, but I'm now having a weekly
    breakfast with the leaders of the House and the Senate, both Republicans
    and Democrats. And I can report that there is no party that has got a
    lock on patriotism. The Democrats, just like Republicans, want to win
    this war. And we're talking about how to best solve the problems with
    which we're confronted.
        But there's also a lot of other good, too. We've got moms and dads
    reassessing values, recognizing there are things that are so precious in
    life, like their children and their marriage and their family and their
    church and their synagogue and their mosque. Values are strong in
    America. Those who struck our country didn't realize--didn't realize,
    because they're so evil and so dark and so negative, they couldn't
    realize that there's going to be such good that comes out of what took
    place in America.
        We're resolved. We are strong. We're determined. We're patient. And
    this Nation is going to do whatever it takes. You see, my attitude is,
    is that how the Dixie Printings behave and how the workers behave here
    and how the citizens of Maryland behave are incredibly important. How
    you respond to these attacks are incredibly important, not only to help
    win the war today but to set the example for future generations of
    Americans.
        It's important that we win today, place that flag of freedom
    squarely in the world, because this is the first battle of the 21st
    century, and it's a battle we must win--we have no choice--for our
    children and our grandchildren. And it means that the country is going
    to have to do what it takes. And I'm here to report, we are. We are
    going to do it.
        So I want to thank you for giving me a chance to drop in to say
    hello. I am so honored to be the President of this great Nation, and I
    mean great. What a fabulous land we have. And the reason why is because
    we've got such fabulous citizens.
        Thank you for letting me come by. God bless.

    Note: The President spoke at 1:42 p.m. on the factory floor of the Dixie
    Printing & Packaging Corp. In his remarks, he referred to A. Newth
    Morris, president, and Raymond J. Bedell, general manager, Dixie
    Printing & Packaging Corp.; Susan Blavatt, president and owner, ASC
    Corp.; President Vladimir Putin of Russia; President Jiang Zemin of
    China; President Vicente Fox of Mexico; and President Ricardo Lagos of
    Chile. The Office of the Press Secretary also released a Spanish
    language transcript of these remarks.