    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2003, Book II)]
    [October 30, 2003]
    [Pages 1431-1435]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    [[Page 1431]]

    Remarks at a Bush-Cheney Reception in San Antonio, Texas
    October 30, 2003

        The President. Thanks for the warm welcome. It is really good to be
    home, and it's good to be with so many friends. It seems like old home
    week here. [Laughter] I want to thank you all very much for your
    friendship and your strong support. I want to thank you for your
    prayers. I want to thank you for being my friend before I became the
    President--[laughter]--and my friend after I become the President--
    [laughter]--in 2009. No, no, we--[applause].
        This is a fantastic event tonight. It not only lifts my spirits to
    be with a lot of people with whom I've served in the past and a lot of
    friends, but we're laying the foundation for what is going to be a great
    national victory in 2004. I'm loosening up--[laughter]--and I'm getting
    ready. But politics will come in its own time, because I've got a job to
    do.
        Audience member. And you're doing a great one.
        The President. Well, thank you very much. [Laughter] I'm focused on
    the people's business. I'm doing what's right for this country. I will
    continue to work to make sure this country is strong and secure,
    prosperous, and free.
        I have a regret, and that is that the First Lady is not with me tonight. She's in Tyler. We're going to
    meet up in Crawford. She is a fabulous wife, a fabulous mother, and a
    great First Lady for America.
        I want to thank the Loefflers for their friendship and their hard work. It's a
    fantastically successful event. As I look around, I see folks who hold
    high office. The chief justice of the supreme court is here, Tom
    Phillips; the attorney general is here,
    Greg Abbott; the secretary of agriculture is
    here, Susan Combs; Albert Hawkins, the commissioner of health and human services; Diane
    Rath, the workforce commissioner. I see
    Wentworth is here, the State senator; State
    Representative Jones and Edmund
    Kuempel and Ken Mercer. Thank you all for coming. It's great to see you again. I
    miss my buddies in the statehouse. I've got such fond memories of
    working with people here in the great State of Texas. It was a fantastic
    experience.
        I also want to thank my friend Mercer Reynolds from Cincinnati, Ohio, who is the national finance
    chairman for Bush-Cheney. He's doing a great job of----
        Audience member. Go Mercer!
        The President. ----laying the groundwork. Mercer brought his cousin. [Laughter] Most of all, I want to
    thank you all. Thanks a lot for coming.
        In the last 2\1/2\ years, our Nation has acted decisively to
    confront great challenges. I came to this office to solve problems
    instead of passing them on to future Presidents and future generations.
    I came to seize opportunities instead of letting them slip away. This
    administration is meeting the tests of our time.
        Terrorists declared war on the United States of America, and war is
    what they got. We've captured or killed many of the key leaders of the
    Al Qaida network, and the rest of them know we're on their trail. In
    Afghanistan and in Iraq, we gave ultimatums to terror regimes. Those
    regimes chose defiance. Those regimes are no more. Fifty million people
    in those two countries once lived under tyranny, and today they live in
    freedom.
        Two-and-a-half years ago, our military was not receiving the
    resources it needed, and morale was beginning to suffer. So we increased
    the defense budgets to meet the threats of a new era. And today, no one
    in the world can question the skill and the strength and the spirit of
    the United States military.
        Two-and-a-half years ago, we inherited an economy in recession. And
    then our

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    country was attacked. And then we had some scandals in corporate
    America, and war. All those affected the people's confidence, but I
    acted. We passed tough new laws in Washington, DC, to hold the corporate
    criminals to account.
        And to get the economy going again, I have twice led the United
    States Congress to pass historic tax relief for the American people.
    When Americans have more take-home pay to spend, to save, or invest, the
    whole economy grows, and people are more likely to find a job. So we're
    returning more money to the people to help them raise their families.
    We're reducing taxes on dividends and capital gains to encourage
    investment. We're giving small businesses incentives to hire new people.
    With all these actions, this administration has laid the foundation for
    greater prosperity and more jobs across America so that every single one
    of our citizens can realize the American Dream.
        Two-and-a-half years ago, there was a lot of talk about education
    reform, but there wasn't much action. So I acted. I called for and the
    Congress passed the No Child Left Behind Act. With a solid bipartisan
    majority, we delivered the most dramatic education reforms at the
    Federal level in a generation. In return for Federal money, we expect
    public schools to teach children how to read and write and add and
    subtract, because we believe every child can learn to read and write and
    add and subtract. This administration is challenging the soft bigotry of
    low expectations. The days of excuse-making are over. We expect results
    in every single classroom so that not one single child in America is
    left behind.
        We reorganized our Government and created the Department of Homeland
    Security to better safeguard our borders and ports and to protect the
    American people. We passed trade promotion authority to open up new
    markets for Texas farmers and ranchers and entrepreneurs. We passed much
    needed budget agreements to bring spending discipline to Washington, DC.
    On issue after issue, this administration has acted on principle, kept
    its word, and made progress for the American people.
        The Congress gets credit for these achievements. I've got a great
    relationship with Speaker Denny Hastert
    and Majority Leader Bill Frist. We're working
    hard to focus on results and to get rid of the needless politics that
    dominates the Nation's Capital. We're doing the work for the people. And
    those are the kind of people I've asked to join this administration. I
    put together a fantastic, diverse group of people to serve the American
    people. We've had no finer Vice President than Dick Cheney. Mother may have a second
    opinion. [Laughter]
        In 2\1/2\ years, we have done a lot. We have come far, but our work
    is only beginning. I've set great goals worthy of a great nation. First,
    America is committed to expanding the realm of freedom and peace for our
    own security and for the benefit of the world. And second, in our own
    country, we must work for a society of prosperity and compassion so that
    every single citizen, every citizen, has a chance to work and to succeed
    and realize the great promise of our land.
        It is clear that the future of freedom and peace depend on the
    actions of America. This Nation is freedom's home. We are freedom's
    defender. We welcome this charge of history, and we are keeping it.
        The war on terror continues. The enemies of freedom are not idle,
    and neither are we. This country will not rest. We will not tire. We
    will not stop until this danger to civilization is removed.
        We are confronting that danger in Iraq, where Saddam
    Hussein holdouts and foreign terrorists are
    desperately trying to throw Iraq into chaos by attacking coalition
    forces and international aid workers and innocent Iraqis. They know that
    the advance of freedom in Iraq would be a major defeat in the cause of
    terror. This collection of killers is trying to shake the will of
    America

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    and the civilized world, and this country will not be intimidated.
        We are aggressively striking the terrorists in Iraq, defeating them
    there so we will not have to face them in our own country. We're calling
    other nations to help Iraq to build a free country, which will make the
    world more secure. We're standing with the Iraqi people as they assume
    more of their own defense and move toward self-government. These aren't
    easy tasks, but they're essential tasks. We will finish what we have
    begun, and we will win this essential victory in the war on terror.
        Our greatest security comes from the advance of human liberty,
    because free nations do not support terror, free nations do not attack
    their neighbors, free nations do not threaten the world with weapons of
    mass terror. Americans believe that freedom is the deepest need and hope
    of every human heart. And I believe that freedom is the right of every
    person, and I believe that freedom is the future of every nation.
        America also understands that unprecedented influence brings
    tremendous responsibilities. We have duties in the world, and when we
    see disease and starvation and hopeless poverty, we will not turn away.
    This great, strong Nation is leading the world. On the continent of
    Africa, America is now committed to bringing the healing power of
    medicine to millions of men and women and children now suffering with
    AIDS. This great land is doing incredibly important work of human
    rescue.
        We've got challenges here at home as well, and our actions will
    prove that we're equal to the challenges. We had some good news today on
    the economy. But let me tell you this, so long as anybody who wants to
    work can't find a job, means that I must continue to create the
    conditions for economic vitality and growth, to make sure the great
    entrepreneurial spirit of America is alive and well in every corner of
    this country.
        We have a duty to keep our commitment to America's seniors by
    strengthening and modernizing Medicare. Congress has taken historic
    action to improve the lives of older Americans. For the first time since
    the creation of Medicare, the House and Senate passed reforms to
    increase the choices for seniors and provide coverage for prescription
    drugs. The next step is for both Houses to reconcile their differences
    and get a bill to my desk soon. We owe it to America's seniors, and we
    owe a modern Medicare system to those of us who are going to be
    America's seniors.
        For the sake of our health care system, we need to cut down on the
    frivolous lawsuits which increase the cost of medicine. I appreciate the
    reforms that Governor Perry and the legislature
    did here in Texas. We recognize that people who have been harmed by a
    bad doc deserve their day in court, yet the system should not reward
    lawyers who are simply fishing for a rich settlement. Because frivolous
    lawsuits drive up the cost of health care, they affect the Federal
    budget. Medical liability reform is a national issue which requires a
    national solution. We proposed good law to the House and Senate. The
    House of Representatives passed a good bill. The bill is stuck in the
    United States Senate. I'm proud to report, our two United States
    Senators, the
    Senators from Texas, are on the right side of the issue. Those who have
    held up this important piece of legislation in the United States Senate
    must recognize that not one single person has ever been healed by a
    frivolous lawsuit.
        I have a responsibility as the President to make sure the judicial
    system runs well, and I have met that duty. I have nominated superb men
    and women for the Federal courts, people who will interpret the law, not
    legislate from the bench. Some Members are trying to keep my nominees,
    people like Priscilla Owen, off the
    bench by blocking up-or-down votes. Every judicial nominee deserves a
    fair hearing and an up-or-down vote on the Senate floor. It is time for
    some of the Members of the United

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    States Senate to stop playing politics with American justice.
        The Congress needs to complete work on a comprehensive energy plan.
    Two years ago, I submitted a plan to the United States Congress, a plan
    that will promote energy efficiency and conservation, that will develop
    new technologies, but will encourage exploration in an environmentally
    friendly way in our own country. For the sake of economic security and
    for the sake of national security, the Congress must act so we become
    less dependent on foreign sources of energy.
        Our strong and prosperous Nation must be a compassionate nation. I
    will continue to advance our agenda of compassionate conservatism, which
    means we will apply the best and most innovative ideas to the task of
    helping our fellow citizens in need. There are still millions of men and
    women who want to end their dependence on the Government and become
    independent through hard work. We must build on the success of welfare
    reform to bring work and dignity into the lives of more of our fellow
    citizens.
        Congress should complete the ``Citizen Service Act'' so more
    Americans can serve their community and their country. And both Houses
    should reach agreement on my Faith-Based Initiative to support the
    armies of compassion that are mentoring children, that are caring for
    the homeless, that are offering hope to the addicted. People from all
    faiths--Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Hindu--have heard a universal call.
    We must welcome that call. In order to heal the broken heart, this
    country must not fear faith. We must welcome faith in the essential
    delivery of need for people who hurt.
        A compassionate society must promote opportunity for all, including
    the independence and dignity that come from ownership. This
    administration will constantly strive to promote an ownership society in
    America. We want more people owning their own home. This Nation has a
    minority homeownership gap. I presented a plan to the United States
    Congress to close that gap. America must act. The Congress must act. We
    want more people to own and manage their own health care accounts. We
    want more people to own and manage their own retirement accounts. We
    want more people owning their own small business. We understand in this
    administration that when a person owns something, he or she has a vital
    stake in the future of our country.
        In a compassionate society, people respect one another and take
    responsibility for the decisions they make. The culture of America is
    changing from one that has said, ``If it feels good, do it,'' and ``If
    you've got a problem, blame somebody else,'' to a culture in which each
    of us understands we are responsible for the decisions we make.
        If you're fortunate enough to be a mom or a dad, you're responsible
    for loving your child with all your heart. If you're worried about the
    quality of the education in the community in which you live, you're
    responsible for doing something about it. If you're a CEO in corporate
    America, you're responsible for telling the truth to your shareholders
    and your employees.
        And in the new responsibility society, each of us is responsible for
    loving our neighbor just like we'd like to be loved ourself. The culture
    of service and responsibility is strong here in America. I started
    what's called the USA Freedom Corps to encourage Americans to extend a
    compassionate hand to a neighbor in need, and the response has been
    great. Faith-based charities and charitable programs are strong and
    vibrant. And that's important, really important, to make sure the future
    of this country is alive and well for every citizen.
        Policemen and firefighters and people who wear our Nation's uniform
    are reminding us what it means to sacrifice for something greater than
    yourself. Once again, the children of America believe in heroes, because
    they see them every day.

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        In these challenging times, the world has seen the resolve and the
    courage of America. I've been privileged to see the compassion and the
    character of the American people. All the tests of the last 2\1/2\ years
    have come to the right nation.
        We are a strong country, and we use that strength to defend the
    peace. We're an optimistic country, confident in ourselves and in ideals
    bigger than ourselves. Abroad, we seek to lift whole nations by
    spreading freedom. At home, we seek to lift up lives by spreading
    opportunity across our land. This is the work that history has set
    before us. We welcome it and know that for our country, the best days
    lie ahead.
        God bless. Thank you all. Thank you all very much.

    Note: The President spoke at 6:48 p.m. at the Marriott Rivercenter. In
    his remarks, he referred to Tom and Nancy Loeffler, event cohosts;
    Thomas R. Phillips, chief justice, Texas Supreme Court; State Attorney
    General Greg Abbott, Agriculture Commissioner Susan Combs, and Health
    and Human Services Commissioner Albert Hawkins of Texas; Diane D. Rath,
    chair and commissioner, Texas Workforce Commission; State Senator Jeff
    Wentworth and State Representatives Elizabeth Ames Jones, Edmund
    Kuempel, and Ken Mercer of Texas; Gov. Rick Perry of Texas; and
    Priscilla Owen, nominee to be U.S. Circuit Judge for the Fifth Circuit.