    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2002, Book II)]
    [August 23, 2002]
    [Pages 1467-1470]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    [[Page 1467]]

    Remarks to the Hispanic Community in Santa Ana, California
    August 23, 2002

        Thank you all. Thank you all very much. Gosh, thanks for coming
    today. It's my honor to be back in California--such a vibrant and
    exciting State. I am thrilled to be here in Santa Ana, and this is a
    vibrant city. And one reason why is because it's got such an energetic,
    visionary mayor. And Mr. Mayor, I
    appreciate--and I appreciate your hospitality. And I want to thank
    Laura, the first lady of this city.
        I know something about marrying people named Laura. [Laughter] We
    both married above ourselves, Mr. Mayor.
    [Laughter] So, I want to thank you, and I want to thank your city
    council for hosting us here. And I want to thank very much the--I want
    to thank the fine folks at this beautiful facility for welcoming us.
    It's a magnificent asset for this community and for this county and for
    this State.
        It's a thrill to be here to talk about some of the priorities for
    our Nation. We've got some big priorities, and we've got some big jobs
    to do. But there's no doubt in my mind we can achieve our objectives,
    because we're America, and we're full of Americans--people bold and
    courageous and strong.
        But before I do so, I want to talk about two Members of the Congress
    who have joined us, two fine Americans and good, solid citizens and
    friends of mine: That would be Chris Cox and
    Ed Royce. Thank you both for coming.
        Rosario Marin--she's a former mayor in a
    little--couple of cities away from here. She's now the Treasurer of the
    United States of America. And I appreciate you coming, Rosario.
        I like to always say hello to the high sheriff. In this case, we've
    got two high sheriffs--one I appreciate so much, Mike Carona. He's done a fine job. We saw him on TV the other
    day announcing an important arrest, saying he's going to help do
    everything he can to make neighborhoods safe. Sheriff, you did a fine
    job. And I also want to thank my friend Lee Baca for being here as well. Good to see you, Lee.
        Everybody has got to have a good lawyer these days. [Laughter] And
    I've got one of the best, and he is here with his family, vacationing in
    Orange County. He came over from Washington, DC. He knows a good place
    to travel to when he sees one. And his name is Al Gonzales, and I want to thank my friend and lawyer, Al
    Gonzales, for being here.
        And finally, I want to thank Francisco Paret for being here. He's a member of the President's
    Commission on Educational Excellence for Hispanic Americans. And that's
    a commission we take very seriously. We take it seriously because we
    understand every child in America must be educated in order for this
    country to realize its full promise. I don't mean a few children; I mean
    every single child.
        And you've got your superintendent of schools
    here, a good, young leader. He told me the district is 92 percent
    Hispanic. My attitude is, so what? That means when you succeed, you've
    done such a great job for America. That's his attitude. You see, some
    would say, ``Ninety-two percent Hispanic, that's an impossible
    district.'' Some believe certain children can't learn. I don't believe
    that, and neither does the superintendent of schools.
        You see, we start with the premise that every child can learn--every
    child can learn. We set high standards because we believe that every
    child has got the capacity to learn. You see, if you set low standards
    in society, you know what you're going to get? You're going to get low
    results. You have standards so low that you've got these school
    districts that are going to quit on certain kids. And guess who gets
    quit on

    [[Page 1468]]

    here in America--children whose parents don't speak English as a first
    language, for example. Those are the easiest kids to quit on. Or how
    about inner-city African American kids? They're easy to quit on.
        For the sake of America, for the sake of our future, we must first
    and foremost understand every child can learn, and devise systems to
    make sure they do. That's why at the Federal level, we're spending
    plenty of money; but we're also saying: ``We trust you all to chart the
    path to excellence. One size doesn't fit all when it comes to running
    the public schools.'' But we're also saying: ``Since we believe every
    child can learn, why don't you show us? Why don't you measure? You see,
    why don't you tell America or your community or your State whether or
    not your children are learning to read and write and add and subtract?''
    And if they are, there will be plenty of praise. But you measure also to
    make sure that if children are failing, you catch the problems early,
    before it's too late. No child in America should be left behind. Every
    child, no matter his or her background, deserves a positive, solid,
    excellent education.
        And we've got to do a better job. And we've got to face the facts
    that too many of our Latino youngsters aren't learning to read early
    enough. And that's a problem. If you can't read by the fourth grade,
    you're not going to be able to read by the eighth grade. And if you
    can't read by the eighth grade, you can't read in high school. It's a
    problem, and we've got to take it head on. That's why I want to make
    sure that we measure. That's why I want to make sure we challenge a
    system that sometimes has got standards so low. It's what I call the
    soft bigotry of low expectations. So one of the things we've done in the
    No Child Left Behind is said, ``Let's start with first things first.
    Let's make sure children can read, children from all backgrounds.''
        Here in California, our new law provides a 50-percent increase to
    help students from non-English-speaking homes learn to read. And that's
    important. No child should be left behind.
        And so today, the Department of Education--I'm going to report to
    you, the Department of Education has awarded California a $133 million
    reading grant. And that's to make sure every child can read by the third
    grade. That's what that's for. I don't mean just a few. I don't mean
    those from the nice, fancy school districts. I mean every single child.
        And one of the reasons why California is one of the first States to
    receive the grant is because California is using research-based
    instruction to teach reading. Your State, probably because your
    superintendent insists on it, has asked the question, ``What works?''--
    not what sounds good, not what feels good, but what actually works. How
    do you teach kids to read? And that's what you're doing in this State,
    and I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart for doing that. And
    we've got a little money to make sure it works and make sure that we
    focus on every child.
        I don't care for the fact that a lot of the youngsters, the Latino
    youngsters, don't go to college. It's not a good statistic for America.
    Less than 10 percent go on to higher education. We must--we must work to
    encourage participation at all levels of education. But we must make it
    clear to our youngsters from all walks of life, but particularly
    Hispanic youngsters, that going to college is essential to being able to
    fully realize the American Dream.
        All of us must set that clear goal for everybody, but we also must
    help. And that's why we've increased Pell grant funding by more than
    $2.5 billion from last year's budget to this year's budget. There's a
    way to help, and we need to help through good scholarship programs like
    Pell grants.
        I also want to note--want you to know that we're focusing on what
    they call the Latino-serving higher institutions. For the fiscal year
    2003 budget, I've asked for more

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    money to go to support colleges which provide 600,000 Latino students
    nationwide with educational opportunities. It's an increase of 30
    percent.
        My point is, is that we've got to make sure that education is
    affordable and accessible. And we've got to set the goals. We've got to
    make people understand what is possible here in America. But first
    things first. We've got to make sure every child learns to read and no
    child is left behind.
        The White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for Hispanic
    Americans is launching what we call the ``Yes I Can'' national awareness
    campaign. And it's aimed at encouraging Latino students to obtain a
    college education. They called together citizens from around the
    country, they put together this initiative, this plan, this way to
    convince people that higher education is essential.
        Parents can click onto a bilingual web site called yesican.gov--
    yesican.gov--to learn about college costs, financial aid, and what their
    children should be asking their guidance counselor about college. In
    other words, it's a go-by, it's a help, it's a way to encourage people
    and help people understand that they--that sending their children to
    college here in America is a way forward.
        And finally, about education, I know it's an important part of life
    for many students in our border communities in Mexico and Canada to
    attend school here in the United States. There's a lot of transborder
    crossing on a daily basis, to take advantage of our great educational
    opportunities. That's what we want, by the way. We shouldn't try to
    restrict people. It's good for our colleges, and it's good for the
    Mexican citizens and the Canadian citizens. And so we're going to expand
    eligibility for student visas, to ensure that part-time commuter
    students can continue to study here in America.
        You know, education is the pathway to success, and there's just
    example after example of people who came here with nothing except a
    dream or a hope and love and got a good education and succeeded. That's
    what America is about. That's what I love about our country. That's the
    hope. That's what distinguishes us from many other countries, that we
    welcome people from all walks of life. We proudly call you an American.
    We don't say, ``Show us your birth certificate, how you're born, where
    you're born.'' You're American, and we love you for being in America. We
    welcomed you to this country.
        And, you know, I've got a shining example right there in Washington
    I want to share a story with you about, because it's a--we've got a
    little problem up there with this particular fellow. His name is Miguel
    Estrada. He's a young guy. He came to our
    country as a teenager. He barely spoke English. He had trouble with the
    language because he didn't spend any time learning the language. And he
    got here, and he worked hard--the result of a good brain, brilliant
    mind. He now has argued 15 cases before the United States Supreme Court.
        I've named him to a high bench, but the
    Senate won't give him a hearing. Here's a kid who comes to our country,
    works hard, learns the language. He's a brilliant jurist. He can't even
    get a hearing. I nominated him over a year and a half ago. I want this
    man to serve as a bright example of what is possible in America. He'll
    be a great judge, and the Senate needs to act.
        Making sure every child is educated is part of making sure America
    is a secure country and a hopeful country. We've also got to do some
    other work to make sure we're secure and hopeful. I want to thank the
    law enforcement officers who are here today. You've got a big job. Our
    job at the Federal Government is to put a strategy in place that will
    make our first-responders more effective. It's not only law enforcement;
    firefighters and EMS.
        And we're doing just that. I've actually tried to create a new
    Department of Homeland Security, to put agencies under one roof, to make
    sure that the number one priority of the Federal Government is

    [[Page 1470]]

    to protect the homeland. And we need to do that.
        I've got to tell you we need to do that, because there are still
    coldblooded killers out there that would like to hurt America. I want
    the youngsters to know why. And the reason why is because we love
    freedom. We value each life here in America. Everybody is important.
    Every life has meaning. Every life has worth.
        And the enemy doesn't think that way. You see, they hate freedom.
    They hate the idea of people being able to worship freely. They can't
    stand the thought of Republican and Democrat actually getting along.
    [Laughter] They don't like a free press, and we do. And we uphold those
    values, and we will defend them at all cost.
        And so for the sake of our freedom, for the sake of values we hold
    dear, the best way for us to secure our homeland, other than
    reorganizing and encouraging and focusing on every lead and every hint,
    is to chase these killers down, one person at a time, and bring them to
    justice. The best way to protect America, the best way to uphold that
    which we love dear, is to get them before they get us. And that's
    precisely what this country is going to do.
        We don't seek revenge; we seek justice. We don't want to conquer
    anybody; we want to liberate people, because every life matters. Every
    person has worth. I want the youngsters here to understand that when we
    went into Afghanistan to uphold the doctrine ``If you harbor a
    terrorist, you're just as guilty as the terrorists,'' that we freed
    people. Young girls now go to school for the first time, thanks to the
    goodness of the United States of America and our friends and allies.
        No, we're on a mission. I believe out of the evil done to America
    will come some very--some incredible good. That's what I believe. I
    believe these people hit a country, and they didn't understand who they
    were hitting. And who they hit was a country that's tough and strong and
    determined, but also a country that's beginning to find its soul and its
    deep compassion.
        See, not only if we're--not only can we achieve peace, which I
    believe can happen and will happen, that we can address those pockets of
    despair and hopelessness which exist in America, one person at a time.
    My call to people in this country is that if you want to join on the war
    on terror, if you want to fight evil, love your neighbor like you'd like
    to be loved yourself.
        You see, this great country can change and will change, one heart,
    one soul, one conscience at a time. One of us can't do everything--I
    know that--but each of us can do something. And I call upon my fellow
    Americans to be that person doing something: Mentor a child, help a
    shut-in, love a neighbor just like you'd like to be loved yourself.
        No, out of the evil done to America is going to come some great
    good, because this is the greatest nation on the face of the Earth, full
    of the most decent and compassionate people.
        Thank you all for coming. God bless.

    Note: The President spoke at 3:07 p.m. in the courtyard at the Bowers
    Museum of Cultural Art. In his remarks, he referred to Mayor Miguel A.
    Pulido of Santa Ana; Michael S. Carona, sheriff-coroner, Orange County,
    CA; Leroy D. Baca, sheriff, Los Angeles County, CA; and Al Mijares,
    superintendent, Santa Ana Unified School District. He also referred to
    Public Law 107-110, the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001. The Office of
    the Press Secretary also released a Spanish language transcript of these
    remarks.