    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2003, Book II)]
    [September 1, 2003]
    [Pages 1075-1080]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Remarks on Labor Day in Richfield, Ohio
    September 1, 2003

        Thank you all. I don't know about you, but we needed a little rain
    in Crawford. [Laughter] Send it that way, if you don't mind. [Laughter]
    Thank you so much for coming out on Labor Day. I appreciate so many
    folks enduring the rain to say hello to the President. I am thrilled you
    are here, and I'm thrilled I'm here.
        The working people of this country deserve a day off, and it looks
    like you're enjoying it. [Laughter] I want you to know that I know the
    strength of the American economy comes from hard-working men and women.
    This country prospers because of people who give their best effort every
    day to support their families, to go to work, to make America a better
    place. One man who traveled with me today, who understands this, and who
    loves his country, is Mr. Frank Hanley. I'm proud to be traveling with
    him, and I know you're proud to have him as your president.
        You know, it's interesting that it was union leaders who first
    suggested a day to honor America's workers. And I'm glad we do. And I'm
    proud to be here in Ohio with Ohio families celebrating Labor Day. I'm
    grateful to the Operating Engineers for hosting us today. This union
    represents men and women of great skill and great professional pride.
        I want you to think back to that fateful day, September the 11th,
    and what happened afterwards. It was then that the whole world saw the
    skill and commitment

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    and incredible work of the Operating Engineers who manned the heavy
    equipment to clear Ground Zero. You overcame unimaginable challenges;
    you removed the rubble in record time. You are now working to make sure
    America is prepared for any emergency, and this Nation is grateful for
    your skill and your sacrifice.
        We're also grateful to some other hard-working Americans who don't
    have the day off, the people of the United States military who are
    winning the war against terror. The war against terror goes on. It goes
    on because we love freedom, and we're not going to change, and our
    enemies hate freedom. It goes on because there are coldblooded killers
    who have hijacked a religion. It goes on because we refuse to relent.
    And the best way to protect our homeland, the best way to make sure that
    we listen to the lessons of September the 11th, 2001, the best way to do
    our solemn duty to the American people is to chase the killers down, one
    by one, and bring them to justice.
        And so on this Labor Day, when many have the day off, we thank our
    men and women who wear our uniform. We thank them and their families. We
    thank their sacrifice, and we want all to know, you make our Nation
    proud.
        I appreciate our Secretary of Labor, Elaine Chao, for her hard work and her outreach to labor leaders
    all across the country.
        I want to thank Jim Gardner, the
    general vice president and business manager of Local 18 for--he's the
    host of this event. I want to thank Jim for setting up this beautiful
    site and for the weather. [Laughter]
        I traveled today as well with Chuck Canterbury. He's the president of the Fraternal Order
    of Police. I appreciate you coming, Chuck. I want to thank those who
    wear our Nation's uniform when it comes to providing police protection
    and fire protection. We appreciate your service.
        I like to remind people that a culture of responsibility is coming
    in America. One of the reasons why is that we see every day people who
    are willing to serve something greater than themself in life. Our
    children see heroes again, because they see police men and women and
    firefighters and emergency teams and military personnel who sacrifice
    for something greater than themselves in life. And for all the officers
    who are with us today, I thank you for your line of service for America.
        I want to thank Governor Bob Taft for greeting
    me at the airport today. I appreciate so very much two United States--
    the two United States Senators from the State of Ohio who are with me
    today, and I suspect may be looking for a ride back to Washington--
    [laughter]--Senator George Voinovich and
    Senator Mike DeWine. Steve
    LaTourette and Ralph Regula, Members of the House of Representatives, are with us
    today as well, and I appreciate them coming. I mentioned Governor Taft,
    and Jennette Bradley, the Lieutenant
    Governor, is with us. Jim Trakas is with us,
    who is the Ohio State house majority leader. I want to thank all the
    local officials for coming out to say hello.
        Today I want to talk about our economy. I want people to understand
    that when somebody wants to work and can't find a job, it says we've got
    a problem in America that we're going to deal with. We want everybody in
    this country working. We want people to be able to realize their
    personal dreams by finding a job. And we've got a lot of strengths in
    this economy. One of the greatest strengths, of course, is the
    workforce. We've got the best workers in the world. We're the most
    productive workers in the entire world. Productivity is up. What
    productivity means is that we've got a lot of hard work, and we're using
    new technologies to make people more effective when it comes to the job,
    and that's important.
        You see, in 1979, it took more than 40 hours of labor to make a car,
    and now

    [[Page 1077]]

    it takes 18 hours. We're productive. Our workers are really productive
    in America. Higher productivity not only means we can produce better
    products, but it means our people are better off. The more productive
    you are, the better off our workers are. You see, it's better to operate
    a backhoe than it is a shovel. That's what we mean by productivity.
    Higher productivity means that workers earn more, and it means it takes
    less time for workers to earn the money to buy the things they need.
        In 1908, the average factory worker had to labor for more than 2
    years to buy a Model T--more than 2 years of work to buy a car. Today,
    you can buy a family vehicle for about 7 months of salary. The higher
    the productivity rates, the better it is for American workers. We're a
    productive nation because of the good, hard-working Americans, and
    that's what we're here to celebrate today.
        You know, I also want you to focus on what we have overcome. I mean,
    we're a strong nation. We've got great foundations for growth, and we've
    overcome a lot as a country over the last couple of years. In early
    2000, the stock market started to decline. That affects you. It affects
    your savings. It affects your pension accounts. It was a forerunner of
    the recession that came. First quarter of 2001, we were in recession,
    but we acted to come out of that recession. We acted with tax relief,
    and it created big noise and big debate in Washington. But here's what I
    believe, and here's what I know: When you've got more money in your
    pocket, it means you're going to spend or save and invest. And when you
    spend and save or invest, somebody is going to produce a product for you
    to be able to spend your money on. When somebody produces a product,
    it's more likely somebody is going to be able to find a job. Tax relief
    was needed to stem the recession.
        They tell me it was a shallow recession. It was a shallow recession
    because of the tax relief. Some say, ``Well, maybe the recession should
    have been deeper.'' That bothers me when people say that. You see, a
    deeper recession would have meant more families would have been out of
    work. I'm interested in solving problems quickly. I want more people
    working.
        No, we did the right thing with tax relief, and we were beginning to
    pull out when the terrorists hit us. And they struck us hard. Cost our
    American economy about $80 billion. The attack of September the 11th had
    a high price tag to it. That's the equivalent of wiping out about one-
    fifth of Ohio's economy. But we acted. Not only did we go on the
    offensive with a mighty and skilled military; we did some things to keep
    our people back at work.
        And one of the things that the Operating Engineers know we did--and
    I want to thank Frank for working with us--is that we fought for
    terrorism reinsurance to make sure big construction projects stayed on
    schedule. We worked to preserve thousands of jobs for America's
    construction workers, because we want people working in America. We want
    people to put food on the table. We want moms and dads to be able to do
    their duty as a mom or a dad.
        And so we began to recover from the terrorist attacks, and then we
    found out some of the citizens, some of the corporate CEOs, forgot what
    it means to be a responsible American. They forgot to do their duty.
    They didn't tell the truth to their shareholders and their employees. So
    we acted. We passed two new tough laws. And now the message is clear: If
    you don't tell the truth, there is going to be serious consequences. We
    expect the best out of corporate America.
        Yet the economy was still bumping along. We hadn't recovered from
    all the challenges, and so we passed tax relief again. I called upon
    Congress to pass the jobs-and-growth package, and we lowered taxes once
    again to create jobs. When you reduce taxes, people have more money. And
    I'm going to remind you of what we did. If

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    you're a mom or a dad, we increased the child credit to $1,000 per
    child, and we put the checks in the mail, $400 additional per child for
    American families, so you get to decide to do with--with the money. It's
    your choice. You see, after all, in Washington, we don't spend the
    Government's money; we spend your money.
        We reduced the marriage penalty. What kind of Tax Code is it that
    discourages marriage? [Laughter] We want to encourage marriage. We gave
    incentives to small businesses so that they can hire more people. We
    reduced taxes on capital gains and dividends to protect your savings
    accounts. We want the pension plans strong. We want the 401(k)s doing
    well. We reduced all taxes. We thought it was fairer not to try to pick
    and choose winners. If you pay taxes, you deserve relief. Three million
    people are now off the tax rolls; 3.9 million households received tax
    relief.
        No, we're making a difference. And the economy is beginning to grow,
    and that's what I'm interested in. I come with an optimistic message. I
    believe there are better days ahead for people who are working and
    looking for work. Economic output is rising faster than expected. Low
    interest rates mean that families can save billions by refinancing their
    homes. I bet some of you have refinanced your homes, put a little extra
    money into your pocket. Consumer spending is on the rise. Companies are
    seeing more orders, especially orders for heavy equipment.
        No, things are getting better. But there are some things we've got
    to do to make sure the economy continues to grow. I want you to
    understand that I understand that Ohio manufacturers are hurting, that
    there's a problem with the manufacturing sector. And I understand for a
    full recovery, to make sure people can find work, that manufacturing
    must do better. And we've lost thousands of jobs in manufacturing, some
    of it because of productivity gains--in other words, people can have the
    same output with fewer people--but some of it because production moved
    overseas.
        So I told Secretary Don Evans of the
    Commerce Department, I want him to appoint an Assistant Secretary to
    focus on the needs of manufacturers, to make sure our manufacturing job
    base is strong and vibrant. In other words, any part of a good recovery
    for the State of Ohio and other manufacturing States has got to be for
    the manufacturing sector to come around. One way to make sure that we--
    the manufacturing sector does well is to send a message overseas, say,
    ``Look, we expect there to be a fair playing field when it comes to
    trade.'' See, we in America believe we can compete with anybody just so
    long as the rules are fair, and we intend to keep the rules fair.
        We have a responsibility that when somebody hurts, Government has
    got to move. And that's why we've signed extensions to the unemployment
    insurance, so people can get their feet back on the ground.
    Elaine's Department, the Department of Labor,
    passes out emergency grants for people who are hurting to cover health
    care costs and child care costs and other critical needs. And that's a
    useful role for the Government.
        I proposed to Congress a new idea to help people get back to work,
    particularly those that are--have the hardest time finding work. We call
    them reemployment accounts. I proposed spending $3.6 billion to help a
    million Americans find work. We'd write--put some money aside for
    somebody to use for daycare or retraining, to be able to move. If
    they're able to find a job in a prescribed period of time, they'd be
    able to keep the difference between what we gave them to begin with and
    what was unspent, in other words, a reemployment bonus. It's a novel
    approach to help a million Americans who are having a tough time finding
    work to find work. Reemployment accounts make sense. Congress needs to
    act.

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        We've also got to make sure that our people get the right skills.
    Listen, technology changes. I understand that. You know that. We want
    our people to be trained, to keep up with new technology, just like they
    do right here. I want to thank the Operating Engineers. I want to thank
    Frank for his leadership. I want to thank the local leaders for their
    leadership and understanding that in order for a man or woman to stay
    up, there needs to be retraining opportunities. As our economy changes,
    people need to be retrained. The Operating Engineers do a great job
    right here of helping people. That's all the worker wants, is to be
    helped, be given the skills necessary to realize his or her dreams.
        The high-growth job training initiative in this administration is
    aiming just to do that. It's a collaborative effort with community
    colleges to help team up people with the jobs that are needed, to make
    sure that the changes in our economy don't leave people behind. And
    education can help a lot, and we're going to continue to stay focused on
    education in this administration. We not only want our little ones to be
    able to read and write and add and subtract; we want to make sure the
    older ones have a chance to realize the opportunities of tomorrow as
    well. And we will.
        And finally, I want to talk about another issue right quick--or two
    other issues right quick. One of them is, this country needs an energy
    policy. If you rely upon a manufacturing base for job employment, you
    need energy. We need a policy. I've been talking about this for a couple
    of years. Congress needs to get me an energy bill. You learned firsthand
    what it means to have a--what it means to modernize the electricity
    grid, if you know what I mean. [Laughter] The grid needs to be
    modernized.
        First, we need to find out--and will find out--what went wrong, why
    you had your electricity shut down out here. But we ought to use this as
    an opportunity to modernize the system. They used to have--in the law
    they had, you know, said these electricity deliverers could have
    voluntary reliability standards. We don't need voluntary reliability
    standards. We need mandatory reliability standards. We want to make sure
    there's incentives for people to put new poles in the ground and invest.
        The energy sector has been hamstrung by old laws. We need new laws.
    And I've been calling on Congress to do this. And when they get back,
    they need to stop politicking and get a good energy plan, so that we can
    make sure the economy continues to grow.
        I'll tell you what else we need to do. We need to use our
    technologies to be able to explore for energy in environmentally
    friendly ways. For the sake of national security, for the sake of
    economic security, we need to become less dependent on foreign sources
    of energy.
        A sound energy policy makes sense. And so does good highway policy.
    We proposed some increases over the last 6 years. These highway bills
    come in 6-year increments. I proposed $30 billion more spending on
    highways over the next 6 than the last 6. We not only want to make sure
    our people can find jobs and work, like the people who are pushing these
    big equipment around, but we want people driving on better roads. We
    want to be able to deal with congestion so we can get our people moving
    around.
        There's a lot we can do. We've done a lot to lay the foundation for
    economic growth. And there's a lot we can do when Congress gets back to
    make sure that this economic recovery continues so people can find work.
    On Labor Day, we're committed to helping those who have got a job keep a
    job and committed to those who are looking for work to find a job.
    That's the commitment of this Labor Day.
        We're also committed to our freedom and to peace, and we will stay
    on the offensive to protect our freedom. And we will stay with the
    notion that the more free

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    societies are, the more peaceful they become. See, we love freedom and
    we love peace in America, and we intend to make the world a more
    peaceful place. This country will lead the world to peace.
        I really enjoy coming out and seeing people bring their kids out. I
    want to thank you for bringing them. It reminds me of one of the things
    that's happening in our country. It's a new spirit in America. There's a
    cultural change taking place, it seems like to me, and that is, we're
    getting away from the era that said, ``If it feels good, just go ahead
    and do it,'' and ``If you've got a problem, blame somebody else,'' to an
    era in which each of understands we're responsible for the decisions we
    make in life.
        If you're a mom or a dad, if you're lucky enough to be a parent,
    you're responsible for loving your child with all your heart and all
    your soul. That's your job. If you're worried about the quality of
    education in the neighborhood in which you live, then you're responsible
    for doing something about it. As I mentioned, if you happen to be a CEO
    in corporate America, you're responsible for telling the truth. You're
    responsible for treating your employees with respect. If you're an
    American in the responsibility era, you're responsible for loving a
    neighbor like you'd like to be loved yourself.
        I want to thank those of you who reach out to somebody who hurts,
    somebody in need. You see, the great strength of the country is not our
    military might or economic prowess; the great strength of the country is
    the heart and soul of the American people. Millions of acts of kindness
    and decency go on on a daily basis. Millions of acts of decency and
    kindness help define the true worth and the true strength of this great
    American country.
        And so on Labor Day, a day in which we honor the worker, let us
    honor those who work to make our society and country a more
    compassionate place by helping a neighbor in need, by doing your job as
    a citizen of the country, by being a patriotic person, which means more
    than just putting your hand over your heart. It means serving your
    country in ways large and small, all aimed at lifting up this Nation,
    all aimed at keeping us the greatest nation on the face of the Earth.
        May God bless you all, and may God continue to bless America. Thank
    you all.

    Note: The President spoke at 11:12 a.m. at the Richfield Training
    Center. In his remarks, he referred to Frank Hanley, general president,
    International Union of Operating Engineers; James H. Gardner, business
    manager, International Union of Operating Engineers Local 18; Chuck
    Canterbury, national president, Fraternal Order of Police; Gov. Bob Taft
    and Lt. Gov. Jennette Bradley of Ohio; and James Trakas, majority whip,
    Ohio State House of Representatives.