    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2003, Book I)]
    [May 9, 2003]
    [Pages 457-461]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Commencement Address at the University of South Carolina in Columbia,
    South Carolina
    May 9, 2003

        Thank you all very much. Thank you all. President Sorensen and Governor Sanford,
    members of the South Carolina congressional delegation and State
    officials, members of the faculty, trustees, the families, distinguished
    guests, and members of the Class 2003, thank you for the warm welcome to
    this great State and to this fine university. I'm honored to be with you
    on graduation day as you all become proud alumni of the University of
    South Carolina.
        I work every day with a distinguished graduate of USC, and I brought
    him along this afternoon, White House Chief of Staff Andrew Card  Jr. of the Class of 1971.
        Andy  Jr. is a superb public servant and
    an honorable man. His loyalty to this university runs deep, and
    sometimes he gets carried away. [Laughter] I don't mind the chicken
    finger Wednesdays at the White House. [Laughter] I don't even mind his
    shag dancing in the West Wing. [Laughter] But it's a little much when
    Andy shows up on the day of the Clemson game dressed as ``Cocky.''
    [Laughter]
        I am so thankful for the invitation to be the speaker this
    afternoon. When I arrived, I heard an old boy standing outside. He said,
    ``We're honored to have the President speaking with us today. It's
    almost as good as last year when Lou Holtz was the
    speaker.'' [Laughter]
        Today marks a great achievement for this graduating class. You've
    put your talents to good use; you're seeing the rewards of your hard
    work. Congratulations to each one of you.
        I also congratulate the men and women who gave their best to this
    and every class, the fine professors of the University of South
    Carolina. And I join the graduates in thanking the people whose love and
    sacrifice made this day possible, the parents of the graduates of the
    Class of 2003.
        Forty-six years ago, Senator John F. Kennedy came to this campus to
    address the graduating class of 1957. He spoke of the great problems of
    that time, including, he said, ``untangling the strife-ridden, hate-
    ridden Middle East.'' In the decades since, that strife and hate
    sometimes seemed like a distant tragedy having little to do with
    America.
        After September the 11th, 2001, your generation and our whole
    country knows

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    better. In an age of global terror and weapons of mass destruction, what
    happens in the Middle East greatly matters to America. The bitterness of
    that region can bring violence and suffering to our own cities. The
    advance of freedom and peace in the Middle East would drain this
    bitterness and increase our own security.
        So today I want to discuss with you a great goal for this Nation. We
    will use our influence and idealism to replace old hatreds with new
    hopes across the Middle East. A time of historic opportunity has
    arrived. A dictator in Iraq has been removed
    from power. The terrorists of that region are now seeing their fate--the
    short, unhappy life of the fugitive. Reformers in the Middle East are
    gaining influence, and the momentum of freedom is growing. We have
    reached a moment of tremendous promise, and the United States will seize
    this moment for the sake of peace.
        The future of peace requires the defeat of terror. So America and a
    large coalition of nations are waging a global and unrelenting war
    against the terrorists, and we are winning.
        In the battle of Afghanistan, we destroyed one of the most
    oppressive regimes on Earth, and we destroyed many of the terrorists it
    harbored. Across six continents, America and our friends and allies have
    been hunting down the terrorists one by one and bringing them to
    justice.
        And in the battle of Iraq, we faced a regime that aided terrorists,
    armed itself with weapons of mass destruction to threaten the peace, and
    persecuted its own people. And today, that regime is no more.
        During these 20 months, the world has seen the resolve of the
    American people. And the world has seen the power and the skill and the
    bravery of American Armed Forces. Our men and women in uniform have
    acted with courage and decency, in the proudest traditions of this
    Nation. And our Nation is grateful. And for those of you who are going
    into the ROTC, you will be entering a military that will remain second
    to none.
        Our Nation is strong. Our greatest strength is that we serve the
    cause of liberty. We support the advance of freedom in the Middle East
    because it is our founding principle and because it is in our national
    interest. The hateful ideology of terrorism is shaped and nurtured and
    protected by oppressive regimes. Free nations, in contrast, encourage
    creativity and tolerance and enterprise. And in those free nations, the
    appeal of extremism withers away.
        Free governments do not build weapons of mass destruction for the
    purpose of mass terror. Over time, the expansion of liberty throughout
    the world is the best guarantee of security throughout the world.
    Freedom is the way to peace.
        Some believe that democracy in the Middle East is unlikely, if not
    impossible. They argue that the people of the Middle East have little
    desire for freedom or self-government. These same arguments have been
    heard before in other times, about other people. After World War II,
    many doubted that Germany and Japan, with their histories of autocratic
    rule and aggressive armies, could ever function as free and peaceful
    societies. In the cold war we were told that imperial communism was
    permanent and the Iron Curtain was there to stay.
        In each of these cases--in Germany, in Japan, in Eastern Europe, and
    in Russia--the skeptics doubted; then history replied. Every milestone
    of liberty over the last 60 years was declared impossible until the very
    moment it happened. The history of the modern world offers a lesson for
    the skeptics: Do not bet against the success of freedom.
        Freedom has advanced because the desire for liberty and justice is
    found in every human heart. And the men and women of the Muslim world,
    one-fifth of all humanity, share this hope of liberty. Freedom has
    advanced because it is a way to lift

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    millions out of poverty and improve their lives. Where freedom is
    denied, people live in isolation and stagnation. Where freedom is
    welcome, people in every culture can flourish. And freedom is advanced
    in our time because at crucial moments brave men and women have worked
    and sacrificed for it. And the United States has taken their side. This
    is how dissidents and political prisoners became the leaders of newly
    free countries. And this is how former enemies became loyal friends of
    the United States.
        The Middle East presents many obstacles to the advance of freedom.
    And I understand that this transformation will be difficult. Recently, a
    group of 30 Arab scholars issued a report describing a freedom deficit
    in Arab countries, citing in particular a lack of human rights and poor
    education. They also identified the social oppression of women as a
    major barrier to progress. And they are correct. No society can succeed
    and prosper while denying basic rights and opportunities to the women of
    their country.
        For all the challenges, we also see hopeful signs of change. About
    half of all the Muslim people live under democratic rule in nations from
    Turkey to Indonesia. The Governments of Bahrain and Morocco have held
    recent and free elections. And Jordan will hold elections next month.
    The people of Qatar have approved a new constitution guaranteeing basic
    freedoms. Crown Prince Abdullah and the Taliban is not the wave of
    the future. Free people, not tyrants or murderers, will set the course
    of history.
        Freedom is taking hold in Afghanistan and Iraq, countries of more
    than 50 million newly liberated people, countries building for
    themselves the institutions of self-government. And our Nation has
    special responsibilities to these countries, responsibilities we will
    keep. In Afghanistan, America and our allies are helping to build roads
    and train police and rebuild schools. This summer, at townhall meetings
    across the country, Afghans will discuss the working draft of a new
    constitution. And in the fall, a national assembly will convene to
    ratify the constitution of a free and democratic Afghanistan.
        The Afghan people face continued struggles in rebuilding their
    Government and the nation, but the days when women were beaten in the
    streets and executed on soccer fields are over.
        In Iraq, we are restoring electricity and water and providing
    medicines and supplies and removing the thugs who threaten the peace and
    order of the country. Iraqi citizens have conducted two major
    conferences to discuss their country's future and place themselves to
    the path of self-government.
        Soon, Iraqis from every ethnic group will choose members of an
    interim authority. The people of Iraq are building a free society from
    the ground up, and they are able to do so because the dictator and his regime are no more.
        America is working with governments and reformers throughout the
    Middle East. We are strengthening ties through our Middle East
    partnership initiative. As a further

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    step, Secretary Powell and Trade
    Representative Zoellick will meet with
    regional leaders in Jordan next month to discuss an agenda of economic
    and political and social progress. Progress will require increased
    trade, the engine of economic development.
        The combined GDP of all Arab countries is smaller than that of
    Spain. Their peoples have less access to the Internet than the people of
    sub-Sahara Africa. The Arab world has a great cultural tradition, but is
    largely missing out on the economic progress of our time. Across the
    globe, free markets and trade have helped defeat poverty and taught men
    and women the habits of liberty. So I propose the establishment of a
    U.S.-Middle East free trade area within a decade, to bring the Middle
    East into an expanding circle of opportunity, to provide hope for the
    people who live in that region.
        We will work with our partners to ensure that small and mid-sized
    businesses have access to capital and support efforts in the region to
    develop central laws on property rights and good business practices. By
    replacing corruption and self-dealing with free markets and fair laws,
    the people of the Middle East will grow in prosperity and freedom.
        Making the most of economic opportunities will require broader and
    better education, especially among women who have faced the greatest
    disadvantages. We will work to improve literacy among girls and women,
    building on similar efforts in Afghanistan and Morocco and Yemen. We'll
    provide resources for the translation of early reading books into Arabic
    and donate those books to primary schools in the region.
        And ultimately, both economic success and human dignity depend on
    the rule of law and honest administration of justice. So America will
    sponsor, with the Government of Bahrain, a regional forum to discuss
    judicial reforms. And I'm pleased that Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day
    O'Connor Day has agreed to help lead this
    effort.
        As trade expands and knowledge spreads to the Middle East, as women
    gain a place of equality and respect, as the rule of law takes hold, all
    peoples of that region will see a new day of justice and a new day of
    prosperity.
        For generations, one of the most tragic problems in the Middle East
    has been the conflict in the Holy Land. Yet now with a liberated Iraq,
    with new leadership for the Palestinian people, with efforts of leaders
    like President Mubarak and Crown Prince
    Abdullah, to the Middle East to call all the parties to their
    responsibilities. Secretary Powell leaves on this mission tonight. He
    carries with him my personal commitment: America will work without
    tiring to achieve two states, Israel and Palestine, living side by side
    in security and prosperity and in peace.
        You are living in an historic time for our country. When America was
    attacked 20 months ago, many thought that an age

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    of fear and terror had arrived. Yet the world has seen something very
    different. America is fighting against grave threats wherever they may
    gather.
        We're determined to help build a Middle East that grows in hope
    instead of resentment. Because of the ideals and resolve of this Nation,
    you and I will not live in an age of terror. We will live in an age of
    liberty.
        I wish each of you well in the careers and lives that await you. I
    thank you for the invitation, for the honorary degree, and for the
    privilege of sharing this proud day with the University of South
    Carolina Class of 2003.
        May God bless you, and may God continue to bless America. Thank you
    very much.

    Note: The President spoke at 3:16 p.m. in the Carolina Center. In his
    remarks, he referred to Andrew A. Sorensen, president, and Lou Holtz,
    head football coach, University of South Carolina; Gov. Mark Sanford of
    South Carolina; former President Saddam Hussein of Iraq; and President
    Hosni Mubarak of Egypt. The Office of the Press Secretary also released
    a Spanish language transcript of this address.