    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2002, Book II)]
    [October 22, 2002]
    [Pages 1853-1860]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Remarks in Downingtown, Pennsylvania
    October 22, 2002

        The President. Thank you all. Listen, thanks for coming out this
    morning. It's such an honor to be here. I appreciate--I appreciate your
    interest in our country. I appreciate your interest in our democracy. I
    want to thank you for caring about----
        Audience member. Viva Bush!
        The President. Gracias. [Laughter]
        As I was saying, I want to thank you for caring about the
    elections--the upcoming elections. It's vitally important that citizens
    all across our country take their responsibilities seriously and to show
    up to the polls. Of course, I've got a few suggestions on who those
    citizens might support, starting with right here in Pennsylvania.
        It is in Pennsylvania's interests that Jim Gerlach become the next United States Congressman. I say that
    with confidence, because he is a good, honorable man who's got a good,
    strong record. People know he's the kind of fellow who does in office
    that which he says he's going to do. He's got a track record that
    inspires confidence from people of both political parties, people who
    don't care about political parties. No, he's

    [[Page 1854]]

    the right man for this job, and I want to thank you for supporting him.
        I say ``supporting him''--thanks for showing
    up. But just showing up isn't good enough. See, I understand how you win
    elections, and that's when people such as yourself not only go to the
    polls, but you convince your neighbors to go to the polls. You go to
    your community centers, your houses of worship, your--wherever you go to
    hang out--[laughter]--your coffee shops, and you tell your neighbors
    about their responsibility. And while you're doing that, you tell your
    neighbors about Jim and others running for office.
        And while you're telling them about Jim, you
    might as well tell them about your next Governor. When you're out
    rounding up the vote, make sure you round up the vote for Mike
    Fisher and Jane Earll. I
    know something about his track record in getting votes. In the year
    2000, I was a pretty heavy lift for the ticket, I must confess, here in
    Pennsylvania. He outpolled me by not 1,000 votes, not tens of thousands
    of votes, but hundreds of thousands of votes. This is a man who can
    appeal to people of both parties, because people in Pennsylvania know he
    can get the job done.
        No, we're here to thank you for your care about America. I'm here to
    thank you for your participation in the political process. I'm here to
    ask you to turn out the vote. I'm here to ask you to do whatever it
    takes to make sure you crank up a good, healthy vote. It's important for
    our country. I'm also here to talk about how we can work together to
    make America a safer and stronger and better place.
        Before I do, I want to recognize a fine United States Senator, and
    that is Arlen Specter. I'm proud that Arlen is
    here with us today. And I'm sorry that old Rick Santorum isn't going to be here, but he's a good fellow. He's a
    good fellow, too. I appreciate these two Senators a lot.
        I'll tell you one reason I appreciate them, because they understand
    what it takes to have a good Federal judiciary. I've appointed good
    people to the bench--good, solid citizens who are not only fine lawyers
    but people who understand their job is not to serve as a legislator but
    as a judge. We've got plenty of legislators; what we need are good,
    solid, sound judges. And the record of the United States Senate is
    abysmal when it comes to confirming my judges; it is a lousy record.
        If we had more Senators like Specter and
    Santorum, we would get the judges through. We
    would have a record for which the Senate could be proud. We need to
    change the Senate for a lot of reasons, and one of them is to make sure
    we've got a good, sound Federal judiciary.
        I appreciate Governor Schweiker for being
    here. I appreciate his service to the State of Pennsylvania. He has done
    a really fine job. He has done a good job, and I'm proud of his service,
    and I know he is as well. I appreciate Mark. He's a friend. I'm honored
    you're here today, Mark, and thanks for doing what you did for the good
    folks of Pennsylvania.
        I want to thank the members--I want to thank the members here from
    the mighty Pennsylvania congressional delegation. That would be
    Greenwood, Platts, Pitts, and
    Sherwood. These fine Members of the United
    States Congress have been steady friends and strong allies, and they
    represent your State with class and distinction. Thank you all for
    coming.
        We've got another candidate on stage who--we certainly hope she
    wins. That would be Melissa Brown, running for
    the United States Congress. Melissa is running on a lot of issues. One
    issue she holds dear to her heart, as do I, is medical liability reform.
    It is a key issue. And one of the things we've got to worry about is the
    affordability of health care and the accessibility of health care. We
    want to make sure our citizens have got access to health care at
    reasonable prices. One of the reasons why prices is rising is because of
    frivolous and junk lawsuits against our medical community.

    [[Page 1855]]

        Everybody ought to have access to the courts, and that's vital.
    People ought to be able to take their claims to the court of law. But
    the problem is, the scales of justice have tipped way too far one
    direction. There are too many lawsuits which prevent good people from
    getting their cases heard. There are too many lawsuits which are driving
    up the cost of medicine. There are too many lawsuits which are driving
    good doctors out of the practice of medicine. We need medical liability
    reform.
        I appreciate you running, Melissa, and I
    wish you all the best. I want to thank Alan Novak
    and Bob Asher and all the good folks who are
    the grassroots activists here in Pennsylvania. I appreciate your care
    and your concern for our country.
        Today, unfortunately, you draw--you drew the short straw.
    Laura is somewhere else. [Laughter] She sends her
    best. She's doing great, by the way. She is--I'm really proud of her.
        Audience member. We love Laura!
        The President. Yes, so do I. [Laughter] Thanks for saying that.
    People now have figured out why I asked her to
    marry me. A lot of people are wondering why she said yes. [Laughter] But
    she's a great First Lady. I love her dearly. I'm proud of her. And I
    want to thank you for your concern for her too.
        I'm concerned about making America a stronger and safer and better
    place; that's what I'm concerned about. I'm concerned about making sure
    that we meet some important goals. One of the most important goals of
    all is to make sure every child in America gets a good education. It's
    an incredibly important goal. That's one of the priorities of Jim
    Gerlach. He understands that's an important goal
    and priority if we want our country to be hopeful and strong.
        We passed good legislation. The legislation challenges what I call
    the soft bigotry of low expectations. See, Jim
    understands this philosophy. These Members of Congress do as well, as
    does Arlen Specter. He knows that in order for
    us to have a hopeful society, we must as a society set high standards.
    We've got to believe every child can learn. It doesn't matter where they
    go to school. It doesn't matter if their parents speak English as a
    first language. It matters that we believe every child can learn.
        We believe in local control of schools. See, we trust the people in
    Pennsylvania more than we trust the folks in Washington, DC, to chart
    the path to excellence. We believe you ought to work with your Governors
    and your school boards to make sure that children get the right
    curriculum and the right basic education in order to succeed. That's why
    we believe you've got to trust parents and teachers. We believe in
    promoting the basics when it comes to subjects such as reading. That's
    what we believe.
        But we also believe this: If every child can learn, therefore we
    want to know whether every child is learning, all across our country. So
    therefore, in return for the largest increase in Federal expenditures
    for education--that was last year--Pennsylvania received $1.7 billion
    from the Federal Government--the largest amount of dollars spent, we're
    now, for the first time, asking the question, ``Is the money being
    wisely spent?'' For the first time, we're beginning to--we're saying,
    ``Show us whether or not the children of any State, children who are in
    the districts that receive this money, whether or not they can read and
    write and add and subtract.'' We want to know, because we believe every
    child can learn. We believe that every child in America has the
    potential, and we want to see whether or not they're learning.
        And if--and if they are, if standards are being met, if our vision
    that every child can learn is successful, we'll praise the teachers. And
    for those of you who teach, thanks for taking on such a noble cause and
    working in a noble profession. But as a society, to make sure no child
    gets left behind, we must be willing to challenge failure, to challenge
    the status quo. When

    [[Page 1856]]

    we find children in schools which won't teach and won't change, we must
    have the courage as a society to demand something different for our
    children. No child should be left behind in America.
        I look forward to welcoming yet another ally in this vision from the
    State of Pennsylvania, and that ally will be Jim Gerlach.
        I also know I will have an ally when it comes to dealing with your
    money. You know, one of the interesting things sometimes you hear in the
    debate in Washington--they're talking about the Government's money:
    ``Well, the Government spent this money; the Government spent that
    money.'' No, no; it's not the Government's money; it's the people's
    money.
        Anytime somebody is looking for a job and can't find work means
    we've got a problem. So long as there are people trying to put bread on
    the table for their families and they can't find work, we've got to do
    everything we can to increase the job base.
        Therefore, it's important to send people to Congress who understand
    jobs, understand the role of Government is not to create wealth but an
    environment in which the small business can grow to be a big business,
    in which the entrepreneurial flourish--entrepreneurial spirit can
    flourish in America.
        When times are slow or when the economy is bumping along, one of the
    ways to make sure that the job base is invigorated is to let people keep
    more of their own money. See, when you keep more of your own money,
    you're likely to demand a good or a service. And when you demand a good
    or a service in this marketplace, somebody is likely to produce the good
    or a service. And when somebody produces the good or a service, somebody
    is more likely to find work. The tax relief plan came at exactly the
    right time for our country's economy.
        Over the next 10 years, the tax relief plan means there will be $58
    billion more in Pennsylvania citizens' pockets over 10 years. That's
    your money. You get to decide what to do with the money. You get to
    decide how to spend it. There will be $7 billion in child tax credit
    savings. There will be $3 billion as the marriage penalty begins to get
    reduced.
        By the way, the marriage penalty is a bad tax. The code ought to
    encourage marriage, not discourage marriage. That's a savings of $68
    billion more money in your pockets if the tax cuts were permanent. But
    they're not permanent. Senate rules have it that the tax cuts won't be
    permanent. That's why this is an issue in this campaign. In order for
    small businesses to plan, in order to make sure a horrible tax, the
    death tax--I say horrible; it's bad on small businesses; it's bad on
    farmers; it's bad on ranchers. If you're worried about urban sprawl, you
    ought to be for the permanent repeal of the death tax, so people aren't
    forced to sell their properties because the Federal Government--
    [applause]. For the good of our economy, for the good of job creation,
    for the good of a stimulative package--we need to make sure the tax cuts
    are permanent.
        I mean, there's a lot of things we can work on together. We need an
    energy bill which encourages conservation and renewables but also makes
    us less dependent on foreign sources of crude oil. We need a terrorism
    insurance package that will get our hardhats back to work. No, there's a
    lot Congress can do to make sure that the jobs picture improves for
    everybody, all across America. I look forward to working with
    Jim in the United States Congress to make sure
    that people who want to find work are able to do so, all across the
    country.
        And as we work to make America a stronger place economically, we've
    also got to work to make it a safer place. And I say that because so
    long as we love freedom--and we love freedom--there's going to be an
    enemy which hates America. It's hard to explain to your youngsters why
    somebody would hate us. But you've just got to tell them there are some
    who have

    [[Page 1857]]

    hijacked a great religion. These people don't value life like we do in
    America. See, we say every life matters; everybody's precious; everybody
    counts.
        That's not how our enemy thinks. They're nothing but a bunch of
    coldblooded killers. They hate freedom; they hate countries which
    embrace freedom; and therefore, they hate us since we're the beacon for
    freedom. We love our freedoms, and we will not change.
        Times have changed in America. Times have changed after September
    the 11th. It used to be we thought oceans would protect us. A lot of us
    growing up said, ``We don't have to really worry about some of the
    conflicts overseas. We may be involved, we may not be involved, because
    we're protected, we're isolated from the harsh realities of some of the
    killings that were taking place on different continents, so we could
    pick and choose.'' We don't have any choice in this new war, see. We
    learned that the enemy has taken the battlefield to our very own
    country. My most important job is to protect America. My most important
    job is to do everything we possibly can to protect innocent life from a
    group of killers.
        That's why I've started and stimulated a discussion on Iraq. I
    wanted the American people to know that there's a new reality which we
    face, a reality that oceans no longer protect us, the reality that this
    person in Iraq has killed his own people with
    weapons of mass destruction, a reality that he has invaded countries,
    the reality that he has stiffed the United Nations for 11 years. Sixteen
    different resolutions have been passed calling on this man to disarm.
    Sixteen times he's ignored world mandates. These are the realities we
    face, and we must deal with it.
        I appreciate the Members of the Senate; I appreciate the Members of
    the House of Representatives for voting overwhelmingly to send with one
    voice this message--that Saddam Hussein must
    disarm, that the world for the sake of peace, for the sake of peace here
    at home, for the sake of peace in the Middle East, for the sake of world
    peace--Saddam Hussein must do what he promised.
        For the sake of having an international body which is effective, the
    United Nations must make the resolve, must be resolved to deal with this
    person, must resolve itself to be something
    more than the League of Nations, must resolve itself to be more than
    just a debating society, must resolve itself to help keep international
    peace.
        It's an important time in our history to determine whether or not
    we're going to be a nation which is willing to work with others to keep
    the peace. The answer is, you bet. But if they won't--the United Nations
    can't make its mind up--if Saddam Hussein
    won't disarm, we will lead a coalition to disarm him for the sake of
    peace.
        These are the new realities we face in America, the serious
    realities that we must deal with for the sake of our children, for the
    sake of our children's children. The new reality here at home is to do
    everything we can to protect the American people from a possible attack.
        I want to thank you for training a good man named Tom Ridge to be the first Adviser on Homeland Security. He's doing
    a very good job. I know you're proud of him, and so am I. Our friend has
    not let us down. One of the things he advised me, along with others in
    my administration, was that the best way to protect the American people
    in the long run is to set up a Department of Homeland Security.
        Let me explain to you why. First of all, you've got to know that
    there's a lot of good people working a lot of long hours to do
    everything we can to disrupt, deny any enemy. If we get a hint that
    somebody's thinking about doing something to us--moving, trying to do
    something to us--we are moving. We're absolutely on alert. We're doing
    everything we can to protect the American people.
        I appreciate that the House of Representatives moved incredibly
    quickly on a

    [[Page 1858]]

    Department of Homeland Security. They passed a really good measure. It
    gives us a chance with the homeland security to take over 100 agencies
    involved with defending the homeland and putting many of their functions
    under one Department, so that the number one priority of these agencies
    and/or the good people working in these agencies is your protection.
        One way to make sure we focus the attention of a scattered group of
    agencies is to have one agency, so that if need be, cultures can change;
    if need be, there can be a direct focus. The Senate can't get the job
    done. They've yet to get the job done. I want to thank Senator
    Specter's leadership on this issue. He's
    deeply concerned about the protection of the homeland. He and I have had
    some quality discussions on this issue.
        But let me tell you what the problem is in the Senate, from my
    perspective--that the Senate has said, ``We will give you a Department
    of Homeland Security, but you've got to pay a price. And the price is,
    is that we'll roll back an important authority that every President
    since John F. Kennedy has had.'' And that authority says that I have the
    ability to suspend certain labor rules for the sake of national
    security. For the sake of security--securing the country, we won't have
    labor rules get in the way of the President being able to do whatever it
    takes to protect America.
        We've got a border which we must enforce. We need to know who's
    coming into America, what they're bringing into America, and if they're
    leaving when they say they're going to leave America. It's an important
    function of the Federal Government. Except there's three different
    agencies down there--three agencies full of really fine people. You've
    got your Customs, your INS, and your Border Patrol. Sometimes they have
    different strategies per sector along the border. They're wearing
    different uniforms. They've got different cultures. They all share in
    the responsibility of protecting our border. For the sake of homeland
    security, this administration and future administrations must have the
    ability to put the right people at the right place at the right time to
    protect America.
        We asked customs agents to wear a radiological detection device to
    determine whether or not weapons of mass destruction were coming into
    America. It made sense to us. If you're worried about weapons of mass
    destruction, wear one of these devices. The head of the working group
    there said, ``No, we're not going to have this on a mandatory basis.''
    For the sake of national security, that work rule ought to be suspended.
        Now, they got it finally resolved. It took 4 months of discussions
    to determine whether or not customs agents ought to be wearing a
    radiological detection device. Look, work rules are important. The right
    to people to organize is very important. But for the sake of national
    security, the Senate will not take away one of the most precious
    authorities Presidents since John F. Kennedy has had.
        I know this: I wouldn't have to worry about Jim Gerlach's vote on this issue. I know where he would stand. The best
    way to secure America, however, is to hunt the enemy down, one person at
    a time, and bring them to justice. The best way to protect America is to
    find these killers where they try to hide and bring them to justice,
    which exactly is what the United States of America is going to do.
        And we're making good progress. We're making good progress.
    Sometimes it's hard to tell it, because this is not the kind of war that
    we're used to. You used to--could count territories seized or tanks
    destroyed or airplanes knocked out of the sky and say, ``Gosh, we're
    making progress. The fleet has been damaged; therefore, we're making
    progress.'' These are killers who hide in caves and send youngsters to
    their suicidal deaths. That's who we're trying to find. They kind of
    ooch around the dark corners of the world and look out, peep

    [[Page 1859]]

    out around the corner--in the meantime, send these suicide squads. It
    doesn't require a lot of equipment. It doesn't require a lot of money,
    although we're doing everything we can to cut off their money. But we're
    making progress.
        One reason we're making progress is the doctrine that says, ``Either
    you're with us, or you're with the enemy''--it still stands. That
    doctrine is firm. Our coalition partners understand the stakes. This
    bombing in Indonesia reminded everybody how dangerous these people can
    be. They don't care about innocent life. They could care less. It
    doesn't bother them in the least that innocent citizens lose their life.
    What bothers them, though, is that the United States and our friends and
    allies are on the hunt. And we're going to stay on the hunt. We're going
    to get them running, and we're going to keep them running until we bring
    them to justice.
        Slowly but surely, we're finding them. Slowly but surely, we're
    hunting them down, one person at a time. We've probably hauled in or
    arrested, whatever you want to call it, a couple of thousand. Like
    number weren't as lucky. The point is, is that when you combine it all,
    we've made a fairly good size dent into the Al Qaida terrorist network.
    The other day a guy named bin al-Shibh
    popped his head up. He's no longer a problem for the United States of
    America.
        It takes awhile. It's going to take awhile. It's just the realities
    of the 21st century. The new kind of war is going to require a patience
    and determination by this great Nation. See, we remember. We not only
    remember what took place; we also understand the stakes. We understand
    our responsibilities. We understand our duty to not only people who live
    in this country, but because every life matters, we understand our duty
    elsewhere. And that is to defend freedom. Slowly but surely, we're going
    to defend, and we're going to defeat this enemy.
        And it doesn't matter how long it takes, my fellow Americans. It
    just doesn't matter, as far as I'm concerned. There is not a calendar on
    my desk that says, well, such-and-such a date, it's time to haul them
    home; it's time to quit. That's not how we think in America. Tomorrow
    I'm going to sign a defense appropriations bill, one of the largest
    increase--the largest increase since Ronald Reagan was the President,
    for two reasons--two reasons. I want to share with you why I asked for
    this increase.
        I want to thank the Senate; I want to thank the House for passing
    that bill. We're going to send two messages. One, anytime we put our
    troops into harm's way, they deserve the best pay, the best training,
    and the best possible equipment. That's the very least we owe them and
    their loved ones. And for those of you who have got loved ones in the
    military, our military has my complete confidence. There's no finer
    group of men and women who wear the uniform than the uniform of the
    United States of America.
        And the second message we send, it doesn't matter how long it takes,
    this country is in for the long haul, that we believe in freedom, that
    we understand obligations, that we understand that some in the world may
    blink, but we're not blinking. We know that history has called us into
    action, and we're going to do everything we can to defend America and to
    defend the freedoms which we hold dear.
        There's no question in my mind we're going to succeed. I want you to
    know how I feel. I'm an optimist about the future. I'm an optimist
    because I know this--that if we remain tough and if we're strong and we
    continue to speak clearly about that which matters in life, if we hold
    dear the values of freedom, if we fight terror--we can achieve peace. We
    can achieve peace not only for America; we can achieve peace in parts of
    the world where some have quit on peace. We can achieve peace in the
    Middle East, can achieve peace in South Asia.

    [[Page 1860]]

        No, the United States has got an opportunity to lead the world
    toward peace. The enemy hit us. They didn't know who they were hitting.
    They probably thought we'd file a lawsuit or two. [Laughter] They don't
    understand America. They don't understand our people. They don't
    understand our courage. They don't understand our drive. They don't
    understand that we long for peace, but we're tough enough to achieve the
    peace if we have to be. That's what they don't know.
        And what they didn't also understand is that here at home, the evil
    done to us is going to lead to a better America--is going to lead to a
    better America. Now, Government can help--Government can help have a
    better America. We have a good education system. We're working hard to
    achieve that.
        We need to make sure our medical systems are modern. Listen,
    medicine has changed; Medicare hasn't. Medicine has evolved; Medicare is
    essentially stuck in the past. For the sake of our seniors, for the sake
    of a better life--we need to modernize Medicare and make sure there's a
    prescription drug benefit for our seniors.
        We need to make sure, as we rewrite the welfare laws, as
    Jim can tell you, it's important to make sure
    that work is the cornerstone of welfare policy. People find dignity in
    work, and therefore we can make America a better life by helping people
    find work and be trained for work and be qualified for work.
        But Government is limited in its capacity to make America a better
    place. We can hand out money, but what Government cannot do is put hope
    in people's hearts or a sense of purpose in people's lives. This is done
    when a fellow American puts their arm around somebody in need and says
    ``I love you.'' That's how that is done.
        America is going to be a better country after the evil done to us,
    because we understand that in order to change America, we can do so, one
    person, one soul, one conscience at a time, by loving somebody just like
    we'd like to be loved ourselves. Out of the evil done to America is
    going to come incredible good, because this Nation's strength lies not
    in the halls of our Government but in the hearts and souls of the
    American citizens.
        A lot of good folks took a step back after that fateful day and
    said, ``What is my life all about?'' Moms and dads say, ``We're lucky
    enough to be a mother or a dad. I'm going to remind my child every
    single day I love them.'' A lot of good folks said, ``I want to help the
    community in which I live be a better place.''
        No, the enemy hit us, but in so doing, they aroused an American
    spirit that understands that being a patriot is somebody more than just
    putting your hand over your heart. Being a patriot is serving a cause
    greater than yourself. Being a patriot is helping those who hurt find
    solace, those who are hungry find food, those who yearn for love find
    love.
        No, the enemy hit us, but they didn't know who they were hitting.
    There's no question in my mind that we can achieve peace. There's no
    question in my mind that we will be a better country, because this is
    the finest country, full of the greatest people on the face of the
    Earth.
        Thank you for coming. May God bless, and may God bless America.

    Note: The President spoke at 10:45 a.m. at the United Sports Training
    Center. In his remarks, he referred to Jim Gerlach, candidate for
    Pennsylvania's 6th Congressional District; gubernatorial candidate Mike
    Fisher; Jane M. Earll, candidate for Lieutenant Governor; Melissa Brown,
    candidate for Pennsylvania's 13th Congressional District; Gov. Mark
    Schweiker of Pennsylvania; Alan P. Novak, State chairman, and Robert
    Asher, national committeeman, Republican State Committee of
    Pennsylvania; President Saddam Hussein of Iraq; and Ramzi bin al-Shibh,
    an Al Qaida operative suspected of helping to plan the September 11,
    2001, terrorist attacks, who was captured in Karachi, Pakistan.