    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2002, Book I)]
    [March 28, 2002]
    [Pages 521-525]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Remarks at a Fundraiser for Senatorial Candidate John Cornyn in Dallas, Texas
    March 28, 2002

        Thank you very much. Thank you all. Please be seated. Thanks.
    Everybody in Crawford says hello--[laughter]--starting with Laura. I wish she'd have come with me today, but--[applause]--
    she is doing a fabulous job. I tell people it's because she's from
    Midland, Texas. But I send her best. She's got a lot of friends here.
    And the country now realizes why I asked her to marry me. [Laughter] A
    lot of people are still wondering why she said yes, but nevertheless,
    she's doing great, and she sends her love. And I want to thank you all
    for coming here today as well.
        It is my honor to come and campaign for the next United States
    Senator from the State of Texas. I'm going to miss Phil Gramm. He is a close friend. He is a strong, strong advocate
    for principles that are sound for our freedom. He has been a great
    United States Senator from Texas. I was disappointed he chose not to run
    again. I understand, but I was disappointed. But my disappointment waned
    when I realized my friend John Cornyn was running to take his place. I
    know John. I've seen him work. I've seen him in action. I've not only
    seen him as a campaigner but somebody who does in office what he said he
    is going to do. There is no question in my mind that he can do the job
    and bring a standard of excellence to the United States Senate. And
    there's no question in my mind we need him in the United States Senate
    to make sure our agenda moves forward.
        I want to thank Bill and Rita
    Clements for being here. I like to call Bill
    the pathfinder for Republican Governors. I appreciate my friend Henry
    Bonilla for taking on the Texas Victory 2002
    committee. It is important we send Henry back to the United States House
    of Representatives. I know Kay Granger from Fort
    Worth is here, and I appreciate so very much working with Kay. She is a
    great friend, a reliable voice for sound and commonsense policy in
    Washington, DC.
        I'm so glad to see Greg Abbott, the next
    attorney general of Texas, here. I know that Wallace
    Jefferson and Mike Schneider are here. Thank you all for coming. I know that Jeb
    Hensarling, the next United States
    Congressman from the 5th Congressional District, is here as well.
    Congratulations on your primary win, Jeb. Charles Matthews is here. Our party chairman, Susan
    Weddington, is here. I want to thank Susan
    for her longtime service to the Republican Party of Texas. I see Tommy
    Craddick is here, other members of the house
    and the State senate. I miss you. I wish I could count on your votes in
    Washington, like I could have in Austin. But thanks for coming by to see
    your old buddy. And thank you all for being here as well.
        This is an important election for Texas. And it's an important
    election for the country. We've got to have a man like John Cornyn
    representing our State in Washington. And there are a lot of reasons
    why.
        First, we've got to get good, conservative judges appointed to the
    bench and approved by the United States Senate. I want people on the
    bench who don't try to use their position to legislate from the bench.

    [[Page 522]]

    We want people to interpret the law, not try to make law and write law.
    And I sent such a man up from
    Mississippi the other day, a good, honest, honorable man, who had been
    approved unanimously by the United States Senate earlier and yet did not
    get a vote on the floor of the United States Senate. We need people like
    John Cornyn in the United States Senate, who will work with the White
    House to have a solid judiciary, to make sure that the judges do what
    they're supposed to do in the United States and not overstep their
    bounds.
        We need somebody like John, who is going to take a tough position,
    tough stand on issues like energy. I don't need to be telling my friends
    in Texas that we've got an energy problem, but we do. We need to do a
    better job of conservation, no question about it. And we will. As
    technology advances, we will conserve more. But for the sake of our
    national security, we need to be finding more energy at home. We need to
    be less dependent on foreign sources of crude oil. John Cornyn will be a
    steady vote and a steady voice when it comes to good, sound energy
    policy in Washington, DC.
        You know, one of the interesting issues that always faces us in
    Washington is what to do with the people's money. The tendency, of
    course, is to overpromise and then overspend. We need fiscal sanity in
    Washington. I want to thank Phil and his
    leadership on the issue of taxation. As you may remember--I think it was
    in this room--I said, ``If you give me a chance to be your President, I
    will make sure the people get to keep a substantial amount of their own
    money.'' I reminded people that we weren't dealing with the Government's
    money; we were dealing with the people's money. John understands that.
        And we passed tax relief in Washington exactly at the right time.
    You see, we understand--Phil understands, I
    understand, and John understands--that if you let people keep more of
    their own money, they will demand more goods and services. And if they
    demand more goods and services, somebody will help produce those goods
    and services. And if somebody else produces those goods and services, it
    makes it easier for somebody to find work. And so we cut the taxes on
    the people. Right in the middle of a recession, we cut the taxes, which
    is the right thing to do.
        Now, there are some people up there who read a different textbook.
    See, they advocate raising your taxes. They get caught in that
    Washington trap. They forget whose money we're spending. John Cornyn
    understands we spend the people's money, not the Government money, and
    he'll be a reliable ally when it comes to making sure that tax relief
    that we passed is permanent and long lasting and real.
        And I'll tell you an issue that's coming up where we're going to
    need his support, if they don't get it done this year. We put the death
    tax on its way to extinction. But because of a quirk--but because of a
    Senate rule, after 10 years that death tax can come back to life. I
    proposed, Phil has proposed, that we make the
    death tax--getting rid of the death tax permanent. I guarantee he'll
    vote for that.
        You know, when I was campaigning in Chicago in the general election,
    somebody said, ``Would you ever deficit spend?'' I said, ``Well, only if
    we were at war or there was a national emergency or we were in
    recession.'' Little did I realize we'd get the trifecta. [Laughter]
        We've dealt with the recession with good fiscal policy, a budgeting
    process that holds the line on spending, and at the same time, let
    people have more of their own money back. And it's important for us to
    make sure that those actions we took to stimulate the private sector
    remain in place.
        And we're also dealing with the other two issues. Today I had the
    opportunity of going to the Dallas Fire Department's training center to
    thank Texas Task Force 1 for going to New York City on September the
    16th, to be there at Ground Zero to

    [[Page 523]]

    help rescue those who were trapped in the rubble. I went by there
    because I wanted to highlight one of the key initiatives in the homeland
    defense strategy, which is to make sure we've got a coordinated effort
    with our first-responders, to respond to any emergency that may come up
    from this point forward.
        The reason I bring that up to you is that my most important job as
    your President is to defend the homeland, is to protect American people
    from further attacks. Not only are we working on a first-responders
    initiative, we've got a good, fine bioterrorism initiative as to how to
    respond if there were a bioterrorist attack.
        We're beefing up our border security. It's important for this
    country to understand who's coming in and who's going out. And we know
    we've got a lot of work to do with the INS. It's a troubled agency that
    needs reform, and we will reform it.
        I want to assure you all that we're doing a much better job in
    Washington of coordinating intelligence and information between
    jurisdictional boundaries, and we're sharing information in a much
    better way with State and local authorities. If we get any kind of hint
    that there's an Al Qaida cell in America, we're moving on it. If we get
    any whisper that somebody wants to harm us again, I can assure you,
    we're moving quickly.
        Every morning in the Oval Office, George Tenet of the CIA comes in and gives me a briefing about what he
    knows. And then the Director of the FBI, Robert Mueller, comes in. I ask him every single day, ``What do you
    know, and what have you done about it? If you've got any hint, Mr.
    Director, for the good of the American people, I want you and over 4,000
    agents dedicated to protecting the homeland to move quickly.''
        I'm proud of the way we're responding as a nation. The Nation is on
    alert; we're prepared, because we understand that we fight an enemy that
    are nothing but a bunch of coldblooded killers. They can't be
    rehabilitated. They hate what America stands for. They hate our
    religious tolerance. They hate our freedom of speech. They hate freedom
    of the press. They despise freedom. They despise freedom. And therefore,
    the best way to secure the homeland, and the only way to secure the
    homeland for the long term, is to hunt them down one by one and bring
    them to justice. And that's exactly what I intend to do.
        I don't know what was on their mind when they attacked America. They
    must have thought we were so self-absorbed and materialistic that all we
    were going to do was file a lawsuit. [Laughter] But they found out we
    think differently here in this country. They now know we love freedom,
    and we will defend our freedom with all our might.
        I laid down a doctrine early. It said, ``Either you're with us, or
    you're against us.'' And fortunately, most of the world said they're
    with us. And we've put together a vast coalition of freedom-loving
    nations to defend not only America but our friends and allies.
        I also said that if you harbor a terrorist, if you hide a terrorist
    and feed a terrorist, you are just as guilty as the murderers who killed
    thousands of innocent Americans. And the Taliban found out exactly what
    we meant. I unleashed the mighty United States military and other
    coalition forces, and thanks to the bravery of U.S. soldiers the Taliban
    has been routed out of existence.
        It is so important for young Americans to know that our Nation does
    not seek revenge; we seek justice. And we'll do whatever it takes to
    defend freedom. We view freedom as nonnegotiable. It is precious. It's
    also important for Americans to understand that we went into Afghanistan
    not as a conquering nation but as liberators. Last Saturday, many young
    girls went to school for the first time in Afghanistan, thanks to the
    United States of America.
        We've got a lot more to do. And that's what I want to share with
    you, and that's

    [[Page 524]]

    what John understands. Even though we've upheld the doctrine, if you
    hide a terrorist, you're just as bad as a terrorist, there are other
    countries that might not get the message. And there are a lot of people
    still on the loose that want to hurt America.
        And that's why I've submitted the largest increase in the defense
    budget during the last 20 years. Because here's what I know: If we put
    our soldiers at risk, they deserve the best equipment, the best
    training, the best pay. Oh, some of them are talking in Washington about
    it's too high a price. Listen, there is never too high a price for
    freedom, as far as I'm concerned.
        And I submitted this budget because it's a clear signal to the
    American people and, just as importantly, to our enemy, that we're in
    this for the long pull. I have no calendar on my desk that says this
    must end by a certain date and I'll feel better. It doesn't matter how
    long it takes, as far as I'm concerned. So long as I'm the President, we
    will treat these killers as international terrorists and get them on the
    run and keep them on the run until we bring each and every one of them
    to justice. And that's what we're going to do.
        This fight on the war against terror is larger than any single
    individual or any single network. There are other nightmare scenarios
    that our Nation must be worried about. One such scenario would be for a
    terrorist killer organization to team up with some of the world's worst
    leaders who harbor and develop the world's worst weapons.
        I've told this to a lot of world leaders, that I'm just not going to
    let that happen. History has called us into action. We can't look back
    after our time in Washington, DC, and say, ``How come we let this
    happen?'' For the good of our children and our grandchildren, we must
    deny the world's most dangerous leaders from having and harboring the
    world's most dangerous weapons. We'll be deliberate; we'll be
    thoughtful; we will consult with our friends and allies. But when I said
    ``axis of evil,'' I meant it.
        I believe that out of this incredible evil that has been done to our
    country will come great good, though. I do. When the United States
    remains firm and strong and determined, we can achieve peace in parts of
    the world where people never thought peace could happen.
        Oh, I know the Middle East is--looks like there will never be peace,
    but I can assure you we're not giving up. We're not going to let
    murderers disrupt a march to peace. My heart breaks for those who were
    celebrating Passover in the hotel, when a coldblooded killer came in and
    destroyed innocent life, to derail the attempts of peaceful-loving
    people for coming together.
        But they're not going to stop us as a nation for longing for peace
    and working for peace. And the best way to achieve the peace is to be
    strong and steadfast against terror. I see a peaceful world. I do. The
    rest of the world watches us very carefully. I like to say, if the
    United States blinks, they'll go to sleep. We're not going to blink.
        I also believe at home we can achieve incredible good too. People
    often say, ``Well, what can I do to help in the war against terror?'' My
    answer is, love a neighbor like you'd like to be loved yourself. If you
    want to fight evil, do some good. I look around the room and see a lot
    of my friends who I know have been doing good for a long, long number of
    years here in Texas. And I want to thank you for that. But it's
    important you keep doing it. It's important you give of your time and
    your money to help people in need.
        This Nation is based upon some great principles: our love for
    freedom, our love for democracy. But our real strength is the hearts and
    souls of the American people. We're a tough nation; we're a courageous
    nation. But we're also a compassionate nation. And in order to fight
    terror, in order to stand squarely in the face of evil, we must help
    people in need. Just walking across the street to see a shut-in and
    saying, ``I care about you,'' is part of fighting evil.

    [[Page 525]]

    Mentoring a child, telling your own child you love him every single day,
    going to a church or a synagogue or a mosque and developing a program to
    help feed the hungry or clothe those who need clothes and help, that's
    all part of not only defining our Nation but fighting against evil.
        And that's why I'm such an optimistic soul, because not only do I
    know that we've got what it takes to achieve the peace, we've got the
    determination, the will, and the strength to have a more peaceful world.
    I know we've got the heart and compassion to show the world the true
    definition of our Nation. And it's happened. It's the gathering momentum
    of millions of acts of kindness and compassion which show the world the
    true worth of the greatest country on the face of the Earth.
        Thank you for helping John Cornyn. May God bless you all.

    Note: The President spoke at 12:15 p.m. in the Landmark Ballroom at the
    Hyatt Regency Hotel. In his remarks, he referred to former Gov. William
    P. Clements, Jr., of Texas and his wife, Rita; Greg Abbott, candidate
    for Texas attorney general; Justice Wallace Jefferson, Texas Supreme
    Court; Chief Justice Michael Schneider, Texas First Court of Appeals;
    Jeb Hensarling, candidate for Texas House of Representatives; Charles R.
    Matthews, commissioner, Texas Railroad Commission; Tom Craddick, Texas
    State representative; and Charles W. Pickering, Sr., nominee for U.S.
    Circuit Judge for the Fifth Circuit.