    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2004, Book I)]
    [January 1, 2004]
    [Pages iii-xiii]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Public Papers of the President, 2004, Book I

    [[Page iii]]

           P U B L I C   P A P E R S   O F   T H E   P R E S I D E N T S

                                    O F  T H E

                             U N I T E D   S T A T E S

        [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]

    [[Page iv]]

               [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]

                                Published by the

                         Office of the Federal Register

                  National Archives and Records Administration

     For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing
                                     Office

       Internet: bookstore.gpo.gov  Phone: (202) 512-1800
                           Fax: (202) 512-2250

                  Mail: Stop SSOP, Washington, DC 20401

    [[Page v]]

                                    Foreword

        This volume collects my speeches and papers from the first 6 months
    of 2004. During this period, my Administration worked to address many
    key domestic priorities. I urged the Congress to adopt policies that
    would make health care more affordable and accessible; give Americans
    the skills needed for the jobs of the 21st century; reduce high energy
    prices; and protect job creators from frivolous lawsuits. In January, I
    outlined my vision for immigration reform and border security, including
    a temporary worker program that would decrease pressure on our borders
    by legally matching willing foreign workers with willing employers for
    jobs Americans are not doing.

        We also acted to reflect the compassionate spirit and values of
    America. To turn the tide against HIV/AIDS in our country, I announced
    new funding to deliver life-saving drugs to people in America living
    with HIV/AIDS. In April, I signed into law the Unborn Victims of
    Violence Act, which extended the protection of Federal law to unborn
    children who are harmed or killed in crimes against their mothers. And
    in May, we dedicated a national historic site in Topeka, Kansas, to
    commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Supreme Court's decision in
    Brown v. Board of Education, which outlawed segregation in America's
    public schools.

        These months also brought solemn reminders of the sacrifices made
    during the past century to protect our liberty. In May, we dedicated the
    World War II Memorial in Washington, D.C., honoring a generation of
    Americans who gave so much to ensure freedom's triumph. In June, I
    traveled to France to attend ceremonies marking the 60th anniversary of
    the D-Day invasion, when free nations came together to reclaim Europe
    from Nazi tyranny. That same month, America mourned the passing of one
    of freedom's greatest champions: President Ronald Reagan, whose
    steadfast leadership helped the free world to win the Cold War.

        As we honored the legacy of freedom's past defenders, we also worked
    to protect and spread freedom's blessings in our own time. Thanks to the
    support of the United States and our Coalition partners and the
    sacrifices of our men and women in uniform, Afghanistan and Iraq
    continued their remarkable journeys toward freedom and democracy. At the
    beginning of 2004, Afghanistan adopted a new constitution that provided
    a framework for national elections later in the year. In early March,
    the Iraqi Governing Council approved a Transitional Administrative Law
    that laid the foundation for democratic elections and a new
    constitution. This document included a bill of rights that was
    uprecedented in the Arab world--providing essential freedoms and rights
    to all Iraqis regardless of gender, religion, or ethnic origin. And on
    June 28th, the Coalition Provisional Authority transferred sovereignty
    back to the Iraqi people.

    [[Page vi]]

        In the midst of all this progress, we were also reminded that
    freedom's enemies remained evil and ruthless. On the morning of March
    11th, members of a terrorist cell in Spain exploded bombs on commuter
    trains in Madrid, killing nearly 200 people and injuring more than
    1,500. In Iraq, illegal militias and remnants of the old regime, joined
    by foreign terrorists, tried to take by force the power they could not
    gain by the ballot. Terrorists brutally murdered innocent civilians and
    committed other acts of unspeakable savagery in Iraq, hoping to shake
    the will of our Coalition and convince us to abandon the Iraqi people.

        I vowed that America would never retreat in the face of thugs and
    assassins, because any concession or retreat on our part would only
    embolden the terrorist enemy and invite more bloodshed. As I told the
    American people in April: ``The defeat of violence and terror in Iraq is
    vital to the defeat of violence and terror elsewhere; and vital,
    therefore, to the safety of the American people. Now is the time, and
    Iraq is the place, in which the enemies of the civilized world are
    testing the will of the civilized world. We must not waver.''

        In a speech in Istanbul in late June, I declared that just as the
    defense of freedom in the 20th century had brought peace to Europe, the
    defense of freedom in the 21st century would bring peace to the broader
    Middle East. ``The historic achivement of democracy in the broader
    Middle East will be a victory shared by all,'' I said--and I recognized
    that ``this transformation is one of the great and difficult tasks of
    history.'' Yet ``by our own patience and hard effort, and with
    confidence in the peoples of the Middle East, we will finish the work
    that history has given us.''

                              B

    [[Page vii]]

                                     Preface

        This book contains the papers and speeches of the 43d President of
    the United States that were issued by the Office of the Press Secretary
    during the period January 1-June 30, 2004. The material has been
    compiled and published by the Office of the Federal Register, National
    Archives and Records Administration.

        The material is presented in chronological order, and the dates
    shown in the headings are the dates of the documents or events. In
    instances when the release date differs from the date of the document
    itself, that fact is shown in the textnote. Every effort has been made
    to ensure accuracy: Remarks are checked against a tape recording, and
    signed documents are checked against the original. Textnotes and cross
    references have been provided by the editors for purposes of
    identification or clarity. At the request of the Office of the Press
    Secretary, the Bush property known as Prairie Chapel Ranch in Crawford,
    Texas, is referred to simply as the Bush Ranch. Speeches were delivered
    in Washington, DC, unless indicated. The times noted are local times.
    All materials that are printed full-text in the book have been indexed
    in the subject and name indexes, and listed in the document categories
    list.

        The Public Papers of the Presidents series was begun in 1957 in
    response to a recommendation of the National Historical Publications
    Commission. An extensive compilation of messages and papers of the
    Presidents covering the period 1789 to 1897 was assembled by James D.
    Richardson and published under congressional authority between 1896 and
    1899. Since then, various private compilations have been issued, but
    there was no uniform publication comparable to the Congressional Record
    or the United States Supreme Court Reports. Many Presidential papers
    could be found only in the form of mimeographed White House releases or
    as reported in the press. The Commission therefore recommended the
    establishment of an official series in which Presidential writings,
    addresses, and remarks of a public nature could be made available.

        The Commission's recommendation was incorporated in regulations of
    the Administrative Committee of the Federal Register, issued under
    section 6 of the Federal Register Act (44 U.S.C. 1506), which may be
    found in title 1, part 10, of the Code of Federal Regulations.

        A companion publication to the Public Papers series, the Weekly
    Compilation of Presidential Documents, was begun in 1965 to provide a
    broader range of Presidential materials on a more timely basis to meet
    the needs of the contemporary reader. Beginning with the administration
    of Jimmy Carter, the Public Papers series expanded its coverage to
    include additional material as printed in the Weekly Compilation. That
    coverage provides a listing of the President's daily schedule and
    meetings, when announced, and other items of general interest issued by
    the Office of

    [[Page viii]]

    the Press Secretary. Also included are lists of the President's
    nominations submitted to the Senate, materials released by the Office of
    the Press Secretary that are not printed full-text in the book, and
    proclamations, Executive orders, and other Presidential documents
    released by the Office of the Press Secretary and published in the
    Federal Register. This information appears in the appendixes at the end
    of the book.

        Volumes covering the administrations of Presidents Herbert Hoover,
    Harry S. Truman, Dwight D. Eisenhower, John F. Kennedy, Lyndon B.
    Johnson, Richard Nixon, Gerald R. Ford, Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan,
    George Bush, and William J. Clinton are also included in the Public
    Papers series.

        The Public Papers of the Presidents publication program is under the
    direction of Frances D. McDonald, Managing Editor, Office of the Federal
    Register. The series is produced by the Presidential and Legislative
    Publications Unit, Gwendolyn J. Henderson, Chief. The Chief Editor of
    this book was Stacey Adia Mulligan, assisted by William K. Banks,
    Loretta F. Cochran, Kathleen M. Fargey, Stephen J. Frattini, Alison M.
    Gavin, Diane Hiltabidle, Alfred Jones, Ashley Merusi, and Michael J.
    Sullivan.

        The frontispiece and photographs used in the portfolio were supplied
    by the White House Photo Office. The typography and design of the book
    were developed by the Government Printing Office under the direction of
    Bruce R. James, Public Printer.

    Raymond A. Mosley
    Director of the Federal Register

    Allen Weinstein
    Archivist of the United States

    [[Page ix]]

                                    Contents

                    Foreword . . . v

                    Preface . . . vii

                    Cabinet . . . xi

                    Public Papers of George W. Bush,
                    January 1-June 30, 2004 . . . 1

                    Appendix A
                    Digest of Other White House Announcements . . . 1157

                    Appendix B
                    Nominations Submitted to the Senate . . . 1189

                    Appendix C
                    Checklist of White House Press Releases . . . 1203

                    Appendix D
                    Presidential Documents Published in the Federal
                    Register . . . 1215

                    Subject Index . . . A-1

                    Name Index . . . B-1

                    Document Categories List . . . C-1

    [[Page xi]]

                                    Cabinet

            Secretary of State

                                              Colin L. Powell.........

            Secretary of the Treasury

                                              John Snow...............

            Secretary of Defense

                                              Donald H. Rumsfeld......

            Attorney General

                                              John Ashcroft...........

            Secretary of the Interior

                                              Gale A. Norton..........

            Secretary of Agriculture

                                              Ann M. Veneman..........

            Secretary of Commerce

                                              Donald L. Evans.........

            Secretary of Labor

                                              Elaine L. Chao..........

            Secretary of Health and Human

            Services

                                              Tommy G. Thompson.......

            Secretary of Housing and Urban

            Development

                                              Alphonso R. Jackson.....
                                              (appointed April 1).....

            Secretary of Transportation

                                              Norman Y. Mineta........

            Secretary of Energy

                                              Spencer Abraham.........

            Secretary of Education

                                              Roderick R. Paige.......

            Secretary of Veterans Affairs

                                              Anthony J. Principi.....

            Secretary of Homeland Security

                                              Tom Ridge...............

            Chief of Staff

                                              Andrew H. Card, Jr......

    [[Page xii]]

            Administrator of the Environmental

            Protection Agency

                                              Michael O. Leavitt......

            United States Trade Representative

                                              Robert B. Zoellick......

            Director of the Office of
            Management

            and Budget

                                              Joshua B. Bolten........

            Director of National Drug Control

            Policy

                                              John P. Walters.........

    [[Page xiii]]

                        Administration of George W. Bush

                                      2004