    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2003, Book II)]
    [September 30, 2003]
    [Pages 1210-1214]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Remarks at a Bush-Cheney Luncheon in Chicago, Illinois
    September 30, 2003

        Thank you all very much. Thanks for coming. Please be seated. Thanks
    for the warm welcome. I always love coming to the great city of Chicago.
    It's really one of the great cities in our country. I was here last
    summer, and I'm really happy the baseball season is still going on. It's
    exciting for the citizens of this city to know that the Cubs are still
    alive and kicking. I wish you all the best.
        Thanks for your help. And what we're doing today is laying the
    groundwork, putting down the foundation for what is going to be a great
    national victory in November of 2004. I appreciate your generosity. I
    want to thank you for your hard work. I thank you for your
    contributions, but I'm going to call on you to do more. I'm going to ask
    you to go to your coffee shops, drug stores, community centers and
    remind the people that this administration has got a message that is
    positive and hopeful and optimistic for every single American.
        I'm getting ready, and I'm loosening up. But there's a time for
    politics. This political season will come in its own time. Right now I'm
    focused on doing the people's business. I've got a job to do, and
    there's a lot on the agenda. I will continue to work hard to earn the
    confidence of every American by keeping this Nation strong and secure,
    prosperous, and free.
        I want to thank Pat Ryan and all those
    who worked hard to put this event on. It is a fantastic turnout, and I
    understand how much work goes into a successful lunch like today, and I
    really thank you a lot. I appreciate your leadership, Pat.
        I'm also honored to be introduced by the great Speaker of the House,
    Denny Hastert. He's truly one of the
    greats. I really do enjoy working with Denny. He's a no-nonsense kind of
    fellow. He looks you in the eye and tells you what he believes. And
    that's refreshing in Washington, DC, by the way. He cares a lot about
    the people of his district, the people of this State, and he loves his
    country. And like me, he married above himself. [Laughter] And I'm glad
    Jean is here with us today as well.
        Speaking about wives, I notice Laura was
    doing a little diplomacy today. [Laughter] I'm really proud of her. She
    is a fabulous woman, a great mom, a great wife, and a terrific First
    Lady for the people of this country.
        I'm honored as well that members of the Illinois congressional
    delegation are here. I want to thank them for their hard work on behalf
    of this State and for helping out at this fundraiser today. Mark Kirk;
    Phil Crane--Congressman Crane is with
    us. Judy Biggert is with us. Dan
    Manzullo is with us. John Shimkus is with us. I appreciate you all coming, and I'm honored
    to call you friend.
        We had a member--a meeting of the former Governors club behind the
    stage here. And I'm a member. It was good to see two other members. That
    would be Jim Edgar and Jim Thompson, and I'm honored they're here. I'm proud to call them
    friend.

    [[Page 1211]]

        I want to thank Bob Kjellander, who is
    the national committeeman from this State, and Mary Jo Arndt, who is the national committeewoman. I want to thank
    all the grassroots activists. I'm glad to know Mary Jo brought her
    family with her. [Laughter] I want to thank my friend Mercer
    Reynolds, who is a Cincinnati businessman
    who is my national finance chairman. But most of all, I want to thank
    you all for coming.
        The last 2\1/2\ years, our Nation has acted decisively to confront
    great challenges. I came to this office to solve problems and not pass
    them on to future Presidents and future generations. I came to seize
    opportunities and not let 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 that orchestrated the attacks on America on September
    the 11th, 2001. And the rest of them know we're on their trail. In
    Afghanistan and Iraq, we gave ultimatums to terror regimes. Those
    ultimatums chose to--those regimes chose defiance, and those regimes are
    no more. Fifty-million people in those two countries once lived under
    tyranny, and now 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 budget to prepare for 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 country was attacked, and we began a march to war. We found out
    some of our corporate citizens forgot to tell the truth--all of which
    affected the confidence of our country. But we acted. We passed tough
    laws to hold corporate criminals to account. And to get the economy
    going, we have twice led the United States Congress to pass historic tax
    relief for the American people.
        Here's what the Speaker and I know: We
    know that when Americans have more take-home pay to spend, save, or
    invest, the whole economy grows, and people are more likely to find a
    job. We understand whose money we spend in Washington, DC. We do not
    spend the Government's money. We spend the people's money. And so we're
    returning more money to American families to help them meet their needs.
    We're reducing the taxes on dividends and capital gains to encourage
    investment. We give small businesses incentives to expand and hire new
    people. With all these actions, we're laying the foundations for greater
    prosperity and economic vitality and more jobs across America, so that
    every single one of our citizens is able to realize the great promise of
    America.
        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
    Congress passed the No Child Left Behind Act. With a solid bipartisan
    majority, we delivered the most dramatic education reforms in a
    generation. We're bringing high standards and strong accountability to
    every public school in America. See, we believe every child can learn
    the basics of reading and math. That's what we believe. And we expect
    every school to teach the basics of reading and math.
        We are challenging the soft bigotry of low expectations. In return
    for Federal money, we expect results. The days of excuse-making are
    over. We want every child to learn to read and write and add and
    subtract, so that not one single child is left behind in America.
        We reorganized the Government and created the Department of Homeland
    Security to safeguard our borders and ports and to make the American
    people more secure. We passed trade promotion authority to open up new
    markets for Illinois' ranchers and farmers and manufacturers

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    and entrepreneurs. We passed budget agreements--and Mr. Speaker, thank
    you for working on those--to bring much needed spending discipline to
    Washington, DC. On issue after issue, this administration has acted on
    principle. We have kept our word, and we have made progress for the
    American people.
        We have done a lot, and the Congress deserves a lot of the credit.
    We have set out goals. We have met those goals, thanks in large part to
    the leadership of Speaker Denny Hastert.
    He and Senator Bill Frist are great leaders of
    the United States Congress. They work closely with the administration.
    They've got one thing in mind. They want to work with us to get rid of
    this needless partisan bickering that dominates the Washington, DC,
    landscape and the zero-sum politics of Washington. And we can do that by
    not only working to change the tone in Washington but by focusing on
    results, by saying, ``Here's what we're going to do,'' and then go out
    and do it. Speaker Hastert, you are a great leader of the House of
    Representatives of the United States.
        I've asked good people to join my administration, people who are as
    well working to change the tone in Washington, good, solid citizens who
    are there to serve something greater than themselves, good people like
    Don Rumsfeld, who was educated right here
    in this part of the--of our country. Now, I've got a strong team, solid
    Americans from all walks of life. Our country has had no finer Vice
    President than Dick Cheney. Mother may have a different opinion. [Laughter]
        Now, we've done a lot in 2\1/2\ years. We've come far, but our work
    is only beginning. I have 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 citizen has a chance to work and to succeed
    and to realize the American Dream. It is clear that the future of
    freedom and peace depend on the actions of America. This Nation is
    freedom's home, and we are freedom's defender. We welcome this charge of
    history, and we are keeping it.
        Our war on terror continues. The enemies of freedom, those who hate
    America, are not idle, and neither are we. This country will not rest.
    We will not tire, and we will not stop until this danger to civilization
    is removed.
        We're confronting that danger in Iraq, where Saddam holdouts and foreign terrorists are desperately trying
    to throw Iraq into chaos by attacking coalition forces and 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 and the civilized world. But America
    will not be intimidated.
        Aggressively striking the terrorists in Iraq, we're defeating them
    there so we don't have to face them in our own country. We call on other
    nations to help build a free Iraq. We stand with the Iraqi people as
    they assume more of their own defense and move towards self-government.
    These aren't easy tasks, but they are essential tasks. We will finish
    what we have begun, and we will win this essential victory in the war on
    terror.
        Yet 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 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.
    On the continent of Africa, America

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    is now committed to bringing the healing power, the healing power of
    medicine, to millions of men and women and children now suffering with
    AIDS. This great land, this great strong and compassionate Nation, is
    leading the world in this incredibly important work of human rescue.
        We face challenges at home as well. The Speaker knows that, and I know it. And our actions will prove
    equal to those tasks. So long as anybody in America who wants to work is
    looking for a job, I will work hard to make the conditions for economic
    growth positive and strong. I want our people working in America.
        We have other duties as well. We have a duty to keep our commitment
    to America's seniors by strengthening and modernizing Medicare. Congress
    took historic action to improve the lives of older Americans. For the
    first time since the creation of Medicare, the House and the Senate have
    passed reforms to increase the choices for our seniors and to provide
    coverage for prescription drugs. The next step is for both Houses to
    reconcile their differences, to iron out the details, and get a bill to
    my desk. The sooner they finish the job, the sooner we can say we have
    done our duty to America's seniors.
        And for the sake of our health care system, we need to cut down on
    the frivolous lawsuits which increase the cost of medicine. 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 rich settlements.
    Frivolous lawsuits drive up the cost of health care, and therefore, they
    affect the Federal budget. Medical liability reform is a national issue
    which requires a national solution. And so I proposed a good bill, and I
    worked with the Speaker on it. We passed a good bill out of the House of
    Representatives, but the bill is stuck in the Senate. And the Senate
    must act on behalf of the American people. Those Senators must
    understand that no one has ever been healed by a frivolous lawsuit.
        I have a responsibility to make sure the judicial system runs well,
    and I have met that duty. I've nominated superb men and women for our
    Federal courts, people who interpret the law, not legislate from the
    bench. Some Members of the Senate are trying to keep my nominees 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 States Senate to stop playing politics
    with American justice.
        Congress needs to complete work on a comprehensive energy plan. The
    Speaker knows this, and Mr. Speaker, I appreciate your leadership on
    this issue. As we learned a while ago, we need to modernize our
    electricity grid. [Laughter] We need to bring it up to the standards of
    the 21st century. We need to make sure that the delivery of electricity
    is not a voluntary act. It's a--requires mandatory reliability
    standards. We need to make sure we do a better job of using our
    technologies to conserve more energy. We need to develop alternative
    sources to foreign oil. We need clean coal technology. One of the things
    we need to do is, for economic security and national security, to become
    less dependent on foreign sources of energy.
        Our strong and prosperous Nation must also be a compassionate
    nation. I will continue to advance our agenda of compassionate
    conservatism, applying the most innovative ideas to the task of helping
    our fellow citizens in need. There are millions of men and women who
    want to end their dependence on government, 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 communities and their country. And both Houses
    should finally reach agreement on my Faith-Based Initiative to support
    the armies of compassion which exist all around

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    our country, that are mentoring our children, that are caring for the
    homeless, that offer hope to addicted. This great Nation should not fear
    faith, should not fear those who rely upon faith as their motivation to
    provide help to those who hurt. We need to welcome faith in our society.
        A compassionate society must promote opportunity for all, including
    the independence and dignity that come from ownership. See, this
    administration will constantly strive to promote an ownership society in
    America. We want more people owning their own home. We want people
    owning and managing their health care accounts. We want people owning
    and managing their own retirement accounts. We want more people owning a
    small business, because we understand 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. We're changing the culture
    of America from one that has said, ``If it feels good, just go ahead and
    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 in life. If you are fortunate enough to be a mom or a
    dad, you're responsible for loving your child. If you're concerned 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
    ourselves.
        We can see the culture of service and responsibility growing around
    us here in America. You know, 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 really strong. People want
    to serve. People want to be involved in their community. Our faith-based
    and charities are strong, providing the much needed healing to those who
    need help.
        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. In these challenging times, the world has seen
    the resolve and the courage of America. And 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're 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 to every corner of America. This is the work that history
    has set before us, and we welcome it. And we know that for our country
    and for our cause, the best days lie ahead.
        May God bless you all.

    Note: The President spoke at 12:30 p.m. at the Sheraton Chicago Hotel
    and Towers. In his remarks, he referred to Patrick G. Ryan, luncheon
    chairman; Jean Hastert, wife of Speaker of the House of Representatives
    J. Dennis Hastert; former Gov. Jim Edgar and former Gov. James R.
    Thompson of Illinois; Robert Kjellander, Illinois national committeeman,
    and Mary Jo Arndt, Illinois national committeewoman, Republican National
    Committee; Mercer Reynolds, national finance chairman, Bush-Cheney '04,
    Inc.; and former President Saddam Hussein of Iraq.