[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2002, Book II)]
[August 16, 2002]
[Pages 1424-1425]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]



Remarks at a Volunteer Barbecue Lunch in Crawford, Texas
August 16, 2002

    Thank you, Mary. In case you don't know it, 
Mary is the maintenance supervisor at the Crawford Independent School 
District.

[[Page 1425]]

[Applause] That's right. And when we arrive here in Crawford, she's got 
a lot to maintain--[laughter]--because, as you can see, we travel with a 
lot of people.
    And Laura and I are here to thank you for 
helping make our stay and dealing with these large entourages go well. 
We appreciate it. We love to come to Crawford. We view it as our home. 
As you know, I bring my office with me, and you all help make the 
transition from Washington to the Crawford White House work well. And we 
understand that. We see many of you in the vans waiting for us when we 
come pulling out or meeting us at the airport there in Waco. We see a 
lot of you at the press avails. We see you when you're helping with our 
guests, our foreign dignitaries who come to visit. And all of you are 
doing a great job. So today what we'd like to do is to thank you, feed 
you--[laughter]--and photograph you. [Laughter]
    I get a lot of work done here in Crawford. You know, it's hard for 
some to maybe understand, but the decisionmaking process never ends when 
you're the President. You're constantly being briefed and brought up to 
date on this, that, or the other. And I still make decisions here. I 
just find that I can--it's a different perspective when I come here, out 
of Washington, DC, to a place like Crawford, Texas. I'm reminded of the 
great values of our beloved Texas and the values of faith and family and 
friendship that you find in places like Crawford.
    So I never quit being the President; I just have got a different 
perspective about things. I might come to the same conclusion on 
decisions that I have to make, but I make them in a different 
environment. And this is a fabulous environment in which to make 
decisions and to meet with people.
    We love it here. There's nothing better than to get up early in the 
morning and to go jogging across our ranch, see a couple of deer, talk 
to the turkeys--[laughter]--watch Barney chase them. [Laughter]
    But we want to thank you for being good neighbors. We want to thank 
you all very much from the bottom of our heart for helping make our 
transitions to--back to home as smoothly as they have gone. We want you 
to know that one of these days, we'll be joining you in the coffee shop 
on a regular basis for eating lunch. In the meantime, we've got a job to 
do, and coming here really helps us do the job that you expect us to do.
    So Laura and I thank you from the bottom of 
our heart. It's great to see you. We look forward to shaking every hand 
here and personally thanking you for all your hard work.
    May God continue to bless America, and may God bless you and your 
families.

Note: The President spoke at 11:15 a.m. at the Crawford Community 
Center. In his remarks, he referred to Mary Keltner, maintenance 
supervisor, Crawford Independent School District, who introduced the 
President.