    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2001, Book II)]
    [August 14, 2001]
    [Pages 965-968]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Remarks at a YMCA Picnic in Rocky Mountain National Park
    August 14, 2001

        Thank you all very much. Tessa, thanks--a
    pretty tough act to follow. [Laughter]
        First, I want to thank the Marich family for their patience working
    me through the food line. I'd worked up quite an appetite up top of the
    mountain, and I'm glad I got a little of that barbecue.
        Thank you for your hospitality. I want to thank the directors of the
    Y for welcoming me to this little slice of heaven. You know, when I was
    growing up in Texas, a lot of people say, ``You know, I spent my summer
    in Estes Park,'' and now I know why. It's a beautiful spot, and thanks
    for having me.
        I'm traveling with some folks that you might want to at least say
    hello to. I picked somebody from--to head the Department of the Interior
    who would understand the thinking of the West, who would understand that
    we can have good, sound environmental policy, that conservation is
    important. And so when I named Gale Norton from
    the State of Colorado to be the head of the Department of Interior, a
    lot of folks came to realize this is an administration

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    that's going to be wise, full of common sense when it comes to
    preserving the natural beauty of our country. And I'm so thankful Gale
    Norton is here. Where are you, Gale? Thank you for coming.
        I also needed to find somebody to run our National Park Service,
    somebody who was bright and wise as well, somebody who shared our
    commitment to making sure that at the very minimum the maintenance
    backlog in these parks ought to be taken care of; that the parks are for
    the people; that when we just talk about a National Park System that is
    an incredibly important part of our Nation's heritage and tradition,
    that the parks be accessible for the people who pay the bills; that they
    be well maintained. We've got $5 billion in the budget, for the next 5
    years, to end this maintenance backlog, and the person who is going to
    work with us to do so is the National Park Service Director, Fran
    Mainella. Thank you, Fran.
        And I want to thank all the Park Service employees who are here.
    You've got a tough job and an important job, and we probably don't thank
    you enough for the work you do. But I want to thank you. It's great to
    travel up on the trail and see the wise public policy being deployed
    here, public policy to make sure that we reduce the hazards of forest
    fires; smart management of our lands; wise, commonsense approach to how
    we thin out our forests, prevent the hazards of forest fire. And the
    park employees were up there working, along with the volunteers from the
    Y camp. I also loved meeting the folks making the trails so that the
    American people can access this beautiful part of the world. So on
    behalf of the taxpayers of our country and the administration, I want to
    thank all the Park Service employees for your good work.
        Also traveling with me today is the Governor of this great State, a
    man who has fulfilled every promise he made, and that's my friend Bill
    Owens. Thank you for coming, Bill. And the
    Lieutenant Governor is somewhere--hey, Joe, thank
    you--Lieutenant Governor Rogers is here as well. Thank you for being
    here. Two fine United States Senators, Wayne Allard and Ben Nighthorse Campbell, are here. The Congressman from this district, Bob
    Schaffer, is here. Bob, where are you? There he
    is. [Laughter] And Tom Tancredo, the
    other Congressman--thank you all for coming.
        We are making some progress in Washington, starting with changing
    the tone of the Nation's Capital. Like a lot of citizens around our
    country, I was deeply concerned about the bitterness that seemed to be
    in every other voice in the Nation's Capital. And one of the things I
    pledged to do was to at least try to change the tone, try to say if you
    don't happen to agree with somebody, you can disagree in an agreeable
    way, that party is important, but it's not paramount--what's more
    important is the country.
        And I believe we're making good progress. We've come together and
    have done some smart things on behalf of the American people. I think
    one of the smartest things we did was cut the taxes, to get people their
    money back. I appreciate all the signs I saw coming in, where people
    said, thanks for the $600. [Laughter] But guess what? It wasn't mine to
    give out; it was theirs to begin with.
        So it's important. We've got a wise budget; we've got a good budget,
    a good, sound fiscal policy. We're working hard on getting an education
    bill out that makes sense.
        We're sending a clear message overseas, that ours is a proud nation
    that will promote the peace. But we're not going to sign on to every
    single agreement that somebody thought might have been good. We're going
    to stand tall for freedom and America, that what's good for America is
    going to be paramount to my way of thinking.
        I think we're making good progress explaining to our allies that
    we'll be loyal friends, but we can't be all things to all

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    people. I hope we're breaking new ground when it comes to Mr.
    Putin, welcoming him to the West, saying to
    him that the old days of mistrust, aiming missiles at each other have
    got to end. The cold war is over. It's finally over, and now it's time
    to have a new strategic thinking about how to keep the peace. So we're
    making good progress.
        But there's a role bigger than just initiatives and legislation for
    a President in an administration. And it's really to herald, to capture
    the spirit of the country. That's why I'm so thankful that Dave
    Thomas has invited me here, to let me come,
    and the staff, because the spirit of the country is reflected, in my
    judgment, right here in this beautiful setting.
        The spirit of America is found in the character of our citizens, the
    value base that makes America, I think, such a different kind of place,
    a place that--a country that values family and friendship, a place where
    people learn values and character. One of the things that--when I try to
    describe America to somebody who has never been here I say, ``We're a
    country stitched together by communities of character.''
        This is a community of character, as far as I'm concerned. Not only
    does it exist in a beautiful setting--and I can see why families have
    wanted to come back year after year after year--but there's also a grand
    vision embodied in these mountains. And the vision is that we can teach
    our children right from wrong and we can teach them good, sound values
    so that when they get older, they'll make the right choices in their
    life.
        We can teach our children values that will make an enormous
    difference for our country as a whole, the values of respect: Respect
    the land; respect somebody with whom you may not agree; respect your
    neighbor, regardless of where they were raised or where they were born;
    respect somebody else's religious views; be willing to listen. It's an
    important value to make our country so different and so unique, a
    country that's been able to absorb people from all walks of life under
    the great umbrella of freedom and opportunity.
        There is also a respect out here, respect for family. I was up there
    when I was helping clear the trail, somebody said they were from
    Fredericksburg, Texas, which reminded me of a story, a true story that
    happened to me.
        I was there, as Governor of Texas, for the 50th anniversary at the
    end of the war in the Pacific Theater. And my mother and dad were there,
    as was Laura, my wife. And I got up to speak, to welcome everybody as
    the Governor, and I said, ``Welcome.'' And I said, ``Dad, welcome back
    to central Texas,'' and people cheered. And I said, ``Mother,'' and
    before I could say another word, everybody was screaming at the top of
    their lungs. And I said, ``Mother''--and still--``everybody here loves
    you in Texas and so do I, but you are still telling me what to do after
    50 years.'' [Laughter] And a guy in a big cowboy hat steps out in the
    middle of Main Street, Fredericksburg, and screams, ``You better listen
    to her, too, boy.'' [Laughter]
        Part of respect is to respect your mom and dad. So to the campers
    here, my advice is, listen to your mother. [Laughter] In my case, I
    don't have any choice. [Laughter]
        You also teach the sense of responsibility, that each of us must be
    responsible for the decisions we make in life. And that's a really
    important character and core value for our country, that we must have a
    responsible society, that Government can't do everything in a society.
    We've got to be responsible for loving a neighbor like we'd like to be
    loved ourselves.
        One of the things that I'm hoping to get through the Congress is the
    Faith-Based Initiative, Faith- and Community-Based Initiative which will
    capture and stand side by side the programs all around America that rely
    upon faith to help change people's lives.

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        I recognize there is a role for Government-sponsored programs, but
    our society must recognize there is also a role for faith-based
    initiatives and faith-based programs, programs that exist to help people
    change their heart and therefore change their behavior. We shouldn't
    fear faith in America; we ought to welcome the faith-based programs that
    help define our country as a unique land. And so, a responsible society
    is one that we all must aim for.
        Now, this is a nation of character and values, and I'm so honored to
    be at a place that teaches values, that heralds character, that's not
    afraid to say there are right choices in life to make and wrong choices
    in life to make; a community of conscious and a community of character
    that aims to say to our young, ``This American experience is a fantastic
    experience. Work hard, study hard, respect your family, and respect your
    friends, and our Nation will be even greater than it is today.'' So
    thank you for giving me a chance to come and herald a wonderful program
    in an unbelievably beautiful setting.
        It's a great honor to be the President of this country. And the main
    reason why is because our country is the greatest there is. And the
    reason why we are is because the people of America are so fantastic and
    so loving and so decent.
        May God bless you all.

    Note: The President spoke at 1:25 p.m. In his remarks, he referred to
    Tessa Murphy, camp counselor, Estes Park Center YMCA, who introduced the
    President; Lt. Gov. Joe Rogers of Colorado; President Vladimir Putin of
    Russia; and David G. Thomas, executive director, YMCA of the Rockies.