    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2002, Book I)]
    [January 24, 2002]
    [Pages 110-115]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Remarks to United States Mayors and County Officials
    January 24, 2002

        Welcome to the White House. It's a privilege for me and for
    Tom to be with the country's most accountable
    elected officials--[laughter]--the mayors, los alcaldes.
        We always used to say, you know, the government that's closest to
    the people is that which governs best. You know firsthand. You know what
    it's like to get the call to make sure the streets are paved or the
    garbage is picked up. You're what I call practical. [Laughter] The
    farther you get away from the local governments, we get a little
    theoretical. But there's nothing like being a mayor to be a problem-
    solver.

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        And as you know, we've got a new problem to solve here, and that's
    the security of our homeland. And I'm so pleased that you all are here
    to give me a chance to discuss how we're going to work together to solve
    this common national problem, which is the security of our people.
        It's your police forces, your emergency medical teams, your
    firefighters who are responsible for the first response on any terrorist
    attack and are responsible for saving lives. I say ``terrorist attack''
    because we're still under attack. They still want to come after us.
    These are evil people that are relentless in their desire to hurt those
    who love freedom. And since we're the bastion of freedom, the beacon of
    freedom, we're their target. And we're going to respond, and we're going
    to deal with it by working together.
        I want to thank--when you go back to your communities, you make sure
    that you thank your police chiefs and your fire chiefs and your
    emergency medical teams, not only on behalf of the President but the
    entire country. These good folks put their lives at risk; they work
    incredibly hard and long hours; and they deserve the praise and love of
    our Nation.
        There obviously is a role for the Federal Government, and I'll
    discuss parts of our homeland security strategy in a little bit. But in
    order to make sure that our homeland is secure for a long time, we as a
    nation must be patient enough and resolved enough to hunt down the
    killers and the terrorists wherever they try to hide and bring them to
    justice. And that's exactly what this country is going to do.
        I say ``patient enough'' because sometimes there is a certain sense
    of anxiety that creeps into the national dialog. Some folks are trying
    to rush the scorecard, I guess, is a way to put it. We've made huge
    progress in 4\1/2\ months. I mean, we've done a lot, thanks to a great
    military, by the way. And there's a lot of moms and dads and wives and
    husbands and children who also need to be thanked for their sacrifice.
        But in the first theater to rout out terror, we have done a lot.
    We've totally destroyed the government and routed out the government
    that thought they could hide the terrorists. You see, there used to be,
    I guess, a school of thought around the world that it's okay to hide a
    terrorist; you weren't considered a terrorist. We changed that. We said,
    ``If you hide a terrorist, or you feed a terrorist, or you coddle a
    terrorist, you're just as guilty as the terrorists, and we will hold you
    accountable,'' as the Taliban has found out.
        We have liberated people. I'm so proud of our military and this
    great Nation and our coalition--we've got a strong coalition--of going
    into Afghanistan and freeing women and children. It was a fantastic
    moment in United States history, to be able to liberate people that were
    so oppressed that they probably thought they had no future. And yet, we
    came. We came to achieve an objective--the objective was to hold a
    government accountable for harboring a terrorist--and, in so doing,
    became liberators. It's a proud moment for the country.
        And now we're chasing down people in the first theater who, on the
    one hand, are willing to commit others to suicide, and they themselves
    hide in caves. And they think they can hide, and they may be able to
    hide today, but we'll get them. We're going to get them running, and
    when they run, we'll bring them to justice.
        I'm plenty patient. I have no preconceived notion about how long
    this should take, and neither do the American people. What the American
    people expect is a determined, relentless effort. And that's exactly
    what we're going to--that's exactly how we're going to behave.
        And so while we're after them overseas, there's a lot to do at home.
    That's what I want to discuss today, that this is a two-front war.
    Overseas we're fighting, and at home we're fighting. We're fighting to

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    share information--or working to share information to make sure that all
    law enforcement agencies are knitted up, that we do a better job of
    alerting people, giving people a heads-up that something might be going
    on in the neighborhood and please help.
        Our people are alert. The shoe man, the shoe bomber, Reid, he found out how alert Americans can be when he
    showed up on the airplane, and all of a sudden people noticed something
    was odd. And they turned him in, and now he's in prison. That's what
    we're doing. But there's more to do, and I want to discuss that with you
    today. We're counting on you, and I'm about to tell you that we're going
    to make resources available so that we can work together.
        I want to thank Tom for taking on a tough
    assignment. I appreciate you bringing one mayor who thought you did a
    good job as Governor. [Laughter] I'm really proud of Tom's efforts. He
    understands local government; he understands State Government. He
    believes in cooperative efforts. He's an open-minded fellow. I hope
    you've found that he's willing to listen, willing to listen to good
    ideas. He's not an it's-got-to-be-invented-here guy. He believes that if
    there's a good idea, it doesn't matter who brought it up, Republican or
    Democrat; we'll put it in place. So I'm real proud of your efforts, Tom,
    and thanks for your hard work.
        Mel Martinez is here. He will have spent
    a lot of quality time with you all on housing issues. I appreciate your
    service, Mel. I appreciate your--[applause].
        A man who worked with me a lot in Texas, who now runs FEMA, who is
    a--who has made sure the agency is responsive to emergencies, who will
    eventually, soon, play a big effort in making sure this national
    strategy for homeland defense is effected in a way that helps you do
    your job, and that's Joe Allbaugh. Thank you
    for coming.
        I appreciate all the county officials, all the city officials, all
    who helped make sure that we work together in good fashion. I
    particularly want to thank the head of the mayors. I am a little
    disappointed in Mayor Morial. I went down to
    Antoine's the other day in New Orleans to eat a meal. I was hoping I
    could invite him and he would pay. [Laughter] But the intelligence-
    gathering system in New Orleans works well, so he went to Mexico.
    [Laughter] But nevertheless, Mr. Mayor, I appreciate your service. I
    love your town, and thanks for being here today, sir.
        I'm going to the Congress next Tuesday night to deliver a State of
    the Union Address, and I will lay out the priorities of our Government.
    You heard one of our first priorities: That's to fight and win this war.
        The second priority of our Government, a priority which will be
    reflected in my budget, is making sure we protect the people at home,
    homeland defense. And therefore, I'll be calling on Congress to pass a
    funding increase for homeland defense of 38--an additional $38 billion.
    This is double the pre-September 11th numbers. Thirty-eight billion is
    the total request--double over 2002. It's the beginning of a homeland
    defense initiative which is going to last throughout my administration.
        It's the beginning of a cooperative effort. It shows and recognizes
    that in the first minutes or hours after an attack, are the most hopeful
    minutes for saving lives--first minutes, immediately. And therefore,
    we've got to understand and remember the important role of first-
    responders. It became vivid, obviously, on September the 11th.
        One of the most poignant stories I remember is when some going into
    the danger wrote their Social Security numbers on their arms. It reminds
    all of us about how dangerous the job is and about how some are willing
    to sacrifice for others. We saw that firsthand throughout the September
    the 11th timeframe.
        We saw people drive an airplane into the ground to save others. I
    think America

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    is now becoming to appreciate the definition of sacrifice, sacrifice for
    freedom, sacrifice for human life. That's something our first-responders
    have known for a long time, and it's important for America to recognize
    that contribution they make.
        And so, what we must do in the country is remember that the attacks
    on September the 11th were not just attacks on New York or the Pentagon,
    were attacks on all of America, and treat those attacks such. It is a
    national threat, and therefore, obviously, it's a Federal
    responsibility. And so the 2003 budget proposes $3.5 billion in Federal
    aid to State and local first-responders. That is a 1,000-percent
    increase over what our Government has spent. It's necessary money. It's
    part of the $38 billion budget I'm going to be asking for for homeland
    security. It's absolutely necessary that we spend the money and that we
    spend it correctly.
        And therefore, in order to make sure that there is a strategy, one
    that you understand, one that the Governors understand, one that the
    folks in Washington understand, I'm going to ask the Federal Emergency
    Management Agency to be the lead agency on coordinating efforts with the
    local governments.
        It is the right agency to choose. They understand local disaster and
    the local emergency. They understand--and have responded in the past,
    not only in this administration but in other administrations--the need
    to work closely with mayors to make sure that we effect good policy.
    Plus, I trust Allbaugh. I've seen him work
    before. He's a good man. It doesn't matter whether Daley calls him or whether a Texan calls him; he's going to
    answer the phone. [Laughter] He's not one of these political, partisan
    guys. He's here to serve the country for the right reason, and so this
    is the right way to go. And if you have any problem with him, call me.
    [Laughter]
        Part of our task is to recognize there's 36,000 local jurisdictions
    all around the country. And how do we make sure there are some
    standards? How do we make sure, you know, that the fire hydrant hookup
    works in one city and can go across the region and fit another city? How
    do we make sure information flows properly? How do we make sure there's
    mutual aid agreements in the neighborhoods? How do we make sure that the
    communications equipment and the rescue equipment is compatible not only
    within a State but nationwide?
        Those are the tasks ahead, and that's part of the challenge we face.
    But I'm confident that, if we work with you, we can meet the challenge.
    There's no question in my mind that given the right impetus and the
    right focus, the right communications, and the right money, we can make
    it work.
        We have no choice. We're all charged. We find ourself in a moment of
    history where we, as leaders, must respond. And we will--and we will
    respond. It is--sometimes you get to pick your moments, and sometimes
    you don't. [Laughter] And we're here now in the middle of a war, and I
    want to thank you all for understanding the call. And we're not going to
    blink as a nation, and I know you won't blink as mayors. You accept your
    responsibility, and I accept mine. And as a result of working together,
    the Nation will be better off. We've got a lot of work to do, but that's
    how I got elected. And it starts with cooperation, and I can assure you,
    this Government is willing to cooperate.
        I also understand a good homeland defense means our cities are
    vibrant and strong. I want to work with you on brownfields legislation--
    on implementing brownfields. I signed legislation; now it's time to get
    after it. And it's going to help the cities around America that we clean
    up the brownfields. I want to thank the Republicans and Democrats up
    here who worked on this initiative. We finally got something passed that
    will enable cities to revitalize tracts of land that had been abandoned,
    that now can be productive parts of your property tax base.

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        I want to work with you to support homeownership for low-income
    Americans. I love the idea of somebody owning something, somebody owning
    their own home. I can't think of anything more powerful to help
    revitalize neighborhoods than to encourage homeownership. And we'll work
    with you on that.
        I want to work with you to strengthen the community-based drug
    prevention and effective drug treatment programs. I believe that the
    best--I know we've got to do a better job of suppressing demand for
    drugs. But I also understand that the most effective programs are
    community-based programs. You've seen them. You've helped make them
    vital in your communities, and we want to work with you to do just that.
        I have not given up on my Faith-Based Initiative. Many of you
    understand the power of faith-based programs in your communities, church
    programs, programs out of synagogues and mosques. I believe so strongly
    in the power of faith. I believe strongly that we must unleash the
    armies of compassion in every city in America to provide hope for people
    where hope doesn't exist. And I want to work with you to do just that. I
    think we can get a bill out of Congress.
        I bring up matters of the spirit because the enemy doesn't
    understand who they hit. They first thought they were hitting somebody,
    a nation which was soft, a nation which wouldn't--oh, we might respond,
    but we wouldn't mean it. It would be kind of a slap-on-the-wrist
    response. They didn't understand that when you attack America and you
    murder innocent people, we're coming after you with full force and fury
    of a great nation and our allies.
        They didn't understand our fiber, our character, our values. And
    that's one of the interesting developments in our country, is that
    people, as you know better than me, have said, ``We better assess our
    values as a result of what went on.'' And people all across the country
    are doing just that. It's a moment that we must seize. Those of us in
    leadership position must understand that there are a lot of Americans
    who are asking what they can do to help. I like to put it in as plain
    terms as I can: If you want to fight evil, do some good.
        If you want to show the world that we're not going to stand evil,
    let's make sure we love somebody, mentor a child. Let's get involved in
    the school systems in our local communities. Let's rally around those
    who want to help a neighbor in need. Let's seize the moment, seize the
    initiative, seize the chance to rally the armies of compassion, so that
    people feel love and decency in their lives, so that shut-ins know
    somebody cares, so lonely children who may have a parent in prison know
    somebody loves them.
        This is the opportunity. I look forward to working with you to rally
    the country, to not only not let--to not only fight evil but to stamp in
    place a compassion, a decency, and a goodness that will stand the test
    of time. It's a challenge we face, and I know it's a challenge we can
    meet.
        Thank you all for coming.

    Note: The President spoke at 9:35 a.m. in the East Room at the White
    House. In his remarks, he referred to Director of Homeland Security Tom
    Ridge; Richard C. Reid, a passenger on American Airlines Flight AA63 who
    allegedly tried to ignite an explosive device in his shoe while en route
    from Paris to Miami on December 22, 2001; Mayor Marc H. Morial of New
    Orleans, LA, president, U.S. Conference of Mayors; and Mayor Richard M.
    Daley of Chicago, IL.

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