    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2004, Book II)]
    [September 17, 2004]
    [Pages 2093-2101]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Remarks at a Victory 2004 Reception
    September 17, 2004

        The President. Thank you all for coming. I want to thank you all for
    coming. Thanks for being here.
        Al, thanks for your hard work. I appreciate your gathering up a
    little help here, as we're coming down the stretch. [Laughter]
        I feel great about the election. I want to thank you for your help.
    We're making good progress. I want to thank you all here. I know we've
    got a lot of Latinos here. Gracias por su apoyo.
        Audience member. [Inaudible]
        The President. Si. Vamos a ganar, con su apoyo. Thank you all for
    coming.
        You know, Laura and I are traveling our
    country a lot, and it's exciting to get out amongst the people. It
    really is. I'm enjoying it. The crowds are big. The enthusiasm is high.
    Came off a bus trip in Minnesota yesterday, which was very successful;
    heading down to North Carolina today. [Applause] Yes. My energy level is
    high. My vision is clear, and we're going to win.
        So I said to Laura--so when I asked Laura to
    marry me, she said, ``Fine, just so long as I don't have to give any
    political speeches.'' [Laughter] I said, ``Okay, you won't have to give
    any.'' Fortunately, she didn't hold me to the promise. [Laughter] You
    know, in New York City the people got to see Laura. You know, there's a
    lot of pressure on, and she gave a great speech. She's a compassionate,
    decent soul. She's a wonderful mother, a great wife. I'm telling the
    people around the country that the reason to put me back in is so Laura

    [[Page 2094]]

    will have 4 more years. [Laughter] I'm really proud of her. She's in
    West Virginia and South Carolina and Pennsylvania today. So she sends
    her best.
        Dick Cheney is doing a great job. I'm proud
    to be running with him. I like to remind people that he doesn't have the
    waviest hair in the race. [Laughter] And then I tell them I didn't pick
    him because of his hairdo. [Laughter] I picked him because he's a man of
    great judgment, sound experience, and a person getting the job done for
    the American people.
         I also want to thank Suzanne Lord. Al gets
    the credit; Suzanne probably did all the work. But thank you. Thanks for
    being here. I want to thank my friend Mercer Reynolds, who is the Victory 2004 national finance chairman.
    This is a Victory Committee fundraiser. This is--the money goes to help
    turn out the vote in key States. It's really important. And Mercer has
    done a great job. He was the finance chairman for Bush-Cheney, did such
    a fine job that we deputized him to do the Victory Committee. And I
    appreciate my friend's hard work.
        I want to thank my friend Raul Romero.
    [Applause] Yes. Donde esta, Raul? Alli. It's good to see you, friend.
    Thanks for bringing so many of your friends here. I'm honored to have
    your continued support. Raul is a Tejano. I know him well from Texas.
    He's a good friend, and you got to count on your friends in politics,
    you know. If you don't have any friends, you're not going anywhere in
    politics. [Laughter] And I, fortunately, have got a lot of friends, many
    here in people like Raul. I appreciate you coming.
        I want to thank my friend Jim Langdon. He's a Texan, too. I appreciate him being here, and his
    hard work. I want to thank Julie Finley, Dick
    Hug and Lois, and Shelly
    Kamins and Lynne. Thank you all for putting this good group together, and
    thank you all for coming.
        I'm telling the people where I stand, what I believe, and where I'm
    going to lead. That's what I'm doing and will continue to do so. I tell
    people that I believe every child can learn and every school must teach.
    And I came to Washington to challenge what I call the soft bigotry of
    low expectations. And we've done so, by raising the standards in
    schools, by measuring early so we can solve problems before it's too
    late, by spending extra Federal money but, in return, insisting upon
    results. And there is an achievement gap in America that is narrowing,
    and we're not going to turn back to the old days of public schools.
        I tell people that I believe we have a moral responsibility to
    provide good health care for our seniors. I came to Washington to fix
    problems. We had a problem in Medicare. Medicine was modernizing.
    Medicare wasn't. People say, ``What do you mean by that?'' Well, I'll
    tell you what I mean. It means that we can pay $100,000 for heart
    surgery but not one dime for the prescription drugs that would prevent
    the heart surgery from being needed in the first place. That didn't make
    any sense. We have strengthened and modernized Medicare, and we're not
    going to go back to the old days.
        I tell people that I believe in the energy and innovation of
    America's workers and farmers and ranchers and entrepreneurs, and that's
    why we unleashed the energy with large tax cuts. And they're working.
        Our economy is--I remind people on the campaign trail that we've
    been through a lot. The economy of our country has been through a
    recession. We've been through corporate scandals. That hurt. Those
    corporate scandals hurt. It shook the confidence of the investor class.
    It shook the confidence of the consumers. I also tell them that we
    passed tough laws that now make it abundantly clear we're not going to
    tolerate dishonesty in the boardrooms of America.
        We've overcome the attacks. That attack of September the 11th cost
    us about a million jobs in the 3 months after September the 11th. I say
    we're overcoming it because

    [[Page 2095]]

    our economy is growing at rates as fast as any in nearly 20 years. The
    national--we've added 1.7 million new jobs since August of '03. The
    national unemployment rate is 5.4 percent, which is below the average of
    the 1970s, 1980s, and the 1990s.
        I tell the people that my most solemn duty is to protect the
    American people, and that if America shows any uncertainty and weakness
    in this decade, the world will drift toward tragedy. It's not going to
    happen on my watch.
        I'm running with a compassionate conservative philosophy that
    Government should help people improve their lives, not try to run their
    lives. And from what I hear and what I see, the American people want a
    consistent, steady, principled leader. And that's why, with your help,
    we're going to win.
        I understand the world in which we live is changing. It's very
    important for me to explain that to the American people, that we are now
    part of a changing world and the role of Government is to change the
    fundamental systems of Government to help people. The changing world
    occurs because we've got women in the workplace today. Fifty years ago,
    women were at home. The changing world occurs because people change jobs
    or careers often in a lifetime. Fifty years ago, people only had one job
    and one career. And yet, the fundamental institutions of Government, our
    health care, our pension plans, worker training programs, or the Tax
    Code, hasn't changed. They were designed for the days of yesterday. I
    believe they need to be designed for tomorrow, and so I will do so over
    the next 4 years.
        A hopeful society is one in which Government systems help people
    realize their dreams. A hopeful society is also one that has a growing
    economy. It's an issue in this campaign, is who's got a vision to make
    sure this economic recovery is sustained economic growth.
        In order to make sure jobs are here in America, America must be the
    best place in the world to do business. That means less regulations. It
    means tort reform, legal reform for our small businesses and all
    businesses, for that matter.
        We need to get an energy plan to my desk. I proposed a comprehensive
    energy plan to the United States Congress. It's stuck. It's a plan that
    encourages conservation, encourages the use of renewables like ethanol
    and biodiesel. It's got a very important electricity title that
    modernizes the--help modernize the electricity grid. It says we'll
    explore for natural gas in environmentally friendly ways and use coal
    technology--clean coal technology so we can use abundant resources at
    home. I'm telling the people if we want jobs here, we must become less
    dependent on foreign sources of energy.
        In order to keep jobs here, we've got to have wise trade policy. We
    open up our markets for goods from overseas, and it's good for the
    consumers we do so. If you're a consumer for a product and you have more
    choices, you're likely to get the product you want at a better price and
    better quality. And what I'm telling the American people is, over the
    next 4 years I will continue to insist others treat us the way we treat
    them. I will continue to remind China that they must open up their
    markets to our products. And I say so because I know we can compete with
    anybody, anytime, anywhere, so long as the rules are fair.
        To make sure the economy continues to grow, we'll be wise about how
    we spend the money, the people's money. And to make sure the economy
    grows, we've got to keep your taxes low. And taxes are an issue in this
    campaign. My opponent has proposed at least $2.2
    trillion in new Federal spending--so far--[laughter]--and we've still
    got the month of October to go. [Laughter]
        So they asked him, ``How are you going to pay
    for it?'' He said, ``Oh, it's simple, just tax the rich.'' Well, first,
    you can't raise enough money by taxing the rich to pay for $2.2 trillion
    in new spending. So there's

    [[Page 2096]]

    a tax gap, and guess who's going to get to fill the tax gap? You are,
    yes.
        And secondly, we've heard the rhetoric before, ``tax the rich.'' The
    rich hire lawyers and accountants so that the middle class gets stuck
    with the bill. We're not going to let him tax
    anybody, because we're going to win in November.
        I'm serious about fixing the Tax Code. It's a complicated mess. And
    I'm going to bring Republicans and Democrats together to make the code
    more simple and more fair. In order to make sure jobs stay here and to
    make sure this economy grows, we need to spend less time filling out tax
    forms and more time in constructive work. And so I'm serious about
    fixing this Tax Code, and the people want me to help fix the Tax Code.
        You know, one of the interesting challenges we face here in this
    country during changing times is to make sure the workers have the skill
    sets necessary to fill the jobs of the 21st century. You know, I'm going
    down to North Carolina today, and I've met textile workers who lost
    their job but who are able to go back to a community college and gain
    the skills necessary to become employed in the health care sector, for
    example. Because of some education, because they're able to enhance
    their skills and enhance their productivity, they're able to find higher
    paying jobs in the jobs of the 21st century. So one of the real
    challenges for us is to make sure that the worker training programs are
    relevant and actually fulfill the need of making--of matching skills
    with people who want to work.
        And as well we've got to do something about our high schools,
    because most new jobs in a changing world require 2 years of college,
    yet only one in four of our students gets there, which means we better
    have good remedial education, good intervention programs for at-risk
    students in high school. We've got to make sure we emphasize math and
    science. You know, as the No Child Left Behind Act gains steam and--and
    over time we'll require a rigorous exam before graduation from high
    school. See, by raising standards in high school and by increasing Pell
    grants for low- and middle-income families, it will mean more Americans
    are able to start their career with a college degree.
        Health care is an issue in this campaign. I see Vin Weber there. He
    and I spent a little time yesterday in Minnesota, where I was explaining
    our health care vision. It's a commonsense, practical plan to make high-
    quality health care more affordable and more accessible, and we have a
    difference in opinion in this campaign. I mean, it's a clear difference
    on health care. My opponent wants Government to
    dictate the health care decisions. I want you to decide the health care
    decisions.
        Here are some of the practical, commonsensical ideas that I'm
    talking about on the campaign trail. More than half of the working
    uninsured work for small businesses. Small businesses are having trouble
    affording insurance. One reason why is because they're in the
    marketplace alone. I think small businesses ought to be allowed to pool
    risk across jurisdictional boundaries so they can purchase insurance at
    the rates big companies get to purchase insurance. My opponent disagrees with that. Those are called association health
    plans, and they make a lot of sense.
        Another way to help people with their health insurance is to expand
    health savings accounts, tax-free health savings accounts. These make a
    lot of sense because it enables a patient and a doc to interface. It
    lets a person control his own money. It means a person can take that
    health savings account from one job to the next. Remember, people are
    changing jobs and careers during the course of a lifetime here in
    America today.
        I've got a plan to help small businesses better afford health
    savings accounts for their working uninsured. We're going to allow low-
    income Americans to have a tax credit that they can apply to a health
    savings account. Health savings accounts are

    [[Page 2097]]

    a practical way of helping reduce the cost of medicine and making sure
    people have got insurance.
        We're going to continue to expand community health centers. I think
    they make sense, because community health centers are places where the
    indigent and the poor can get primary care and preventative care without
    having to go to an emergency room of a hospital. I told the people, when
    I was running, we were going to renovate or expand 1,600 clinics. I'm
    meeting that goal. The goal in a second term is going to be every poor
    county in America have a community health center.
        A big issue in the campaign is medical liability reform. People are
    now beginning to understand what these junk lawsuits mean for their
    health care. The junk lawsuits are running up the cost of health care,
    and more and more citizens understand that. And junk lawsuits are
    running good docs out of the practice of medicine. If the goal is to
    make health care more available and affordable, this country needs
    medical liability reform--now.
        I'm looking forward to the health care debate. My opponent's plan is a massive, big-Government plan. And you can tell
    by the size of the price tag it's massive, and it's big. [Laughter] They
    estimated the cost of his health care plan to be $1.5 trillion. That's
    with a ``T.'' [Laughter] And that's a lot, even for a Senator from
    Massachusetts. [Laughter]
        He wants to expand Medicaid. By expanding
    Medicaid, you're crowding out families from small businesses, from
    private health plans in small businesses. In other words, you're moving
    people from the private sector to the public sector. And what's wrong
    with that is that all of a sudden you have Government officials deciding
    what coverage you get, and you have Government officials deciding
    decisions for you. His plan is the exact opposite of what we believe. We
    believe when it comes to health care decisions, they ought to be made by
    doctors and patients, not by bureaucrats here in the Nation's Capital.
        I've spent a lot of time talking about ownership in the campaign. I
    believe ownership helps bring stability in changing times. During my
    administration, the homeownership rate is at an alltime high in America.
    We want more people owning their own home. It's a fantastic statistic.
        We're working hard to make sure more Latinos own their own home and
    people from all walks of life own their own home. I can't think of
    anything more important than promoting ownership throughout America. I
    love the fact somebody opens up the door where they're living and says,
    ``Welcome to my home. Welcome to my piece of property.''
        And I think in order to make sure the retirement system, Social
    Security works well for a younger generation, we've got to incorporate
    ownership into Social Security. I tell the people where I go that if
    you're on Social Security, you don't have to worry about the Government
    fulfilling its promise. Now, I know there's going to be political
    rhetoric trying to say something different than that, but it's not a
    fact. Social Security trust is solvent when it comes to those who've
    retired. Finally--frankly, the Social Security Trust is in pretty good
    shape for baby boomers.
        But we've got to worry about the youngsters, our kids and our
    grandchildren, when it comes to the solvency of the Social Security
    system. That's why I believe younger workers ought to be able to take
    some of their own money, set aside a personal savings account that will
    help Social Security fulfill its promise, a private account that they
    can call their own, a private account they can pass on to the next
    generation and a private account that Government can't take away.
        I also spend time out there reminding people that in a changing
    world some things don't change: The values we try to live by, courage
    and compassion, and reverence and integrity; the institutions that

    [[Page 2098]]

    are fundamental to our lives, our families, our schools, our religious
    congregations.
        We believe in a culture of life in which every person matters and
    every being counts. We stand for marriage and family, which are the
    foundations of our society. And I stand for the appointment of Federal
    judges who know the difference between personal opinion and the strict
    interpretation of the law.
        This election will also determine how our country responds to the
    continuing danger of terrorism. Since September the 11th, 2001, we've
    fought the terrorists across the Earth, not for pride, not for power,
    but because the lives of our citizens are at stake. It's very important
    for me to continue to lay out our strategy. We've got to lay out our
    strategy. We've got a clear strategy. We'll continue to defend the
    homeland. We'll transform our military to meet the threats of the 21st
    century. We'll strengthen our intelligence services. We will stay on the
    offensive. It is best to strike the terrorists elsewhere, so we do not
    have to face them here at home. And we will continue to spread freedom
    and peace, and we're going to prevail.
        Our strategy is working. When you're out gathering up the vote,
    remind people about what life was like 3 years ago, compared to today.
    Maybe this will help you: Afghanistan was the home base of Al Qaida;
    Pakistan was a transit point for terrorist groups; Saudi Arabia was
    fertile ground for terrorist fundraising; Libya was secretly pursuing
    nuclear weapons; Iraq was a gathering threat, headed by a sworn enemy of
    the United States; Al Qaida was largely unchallenged as it planned its
    attacks.
        Because we acted, Afghanistan is fighting terror; Pakistan is making
    raids and arrests; Libya is dismantling its weapons programs; Saudi
    Arabia is after Al Qaida; the army of a free Iraq is fighting for
    freedom; and more than three-quarters of Al Qaida key members and
    associates have been brought to justice.
        America and the world are safer. This progress involves careful
    diplomacy, clear moral purpose, and some tough decisions. And the
    toughest came on Iraq. I knew Saddam Hussein's record of aggression and his ties to terror. When
    people say, ``What ties to terror,'' remind them about Abu Nidal, the
    killer of Leon Klinghoffer, and his organization, or Zarqawi--
    he's the person who beheads people,
    trying to shake our conscience and shake our will; he was in and out of
    Baghdad, as were some of his cohorts--or the fact that Saddam Hussein
    paid the families of suicide bombers. He had a history of using weapons
    of mass destruction. It's important for the President and the country to
    always remember one of the lessons of September the 11th is that we must
    take threats seriously before they fully materialize.
        My administration saw a threat in Saddam Hussein. I went to the Congress. They looked at the same
    intelligence I looked at, remembered the same history I remembered, came
    to the same conclusion we came to: Saddam Hussein was a threat. And
    Members of Congress authorized the use of force. My opponent looked at very same intelligence I looked at and, having
    looked at it, concluded that Saddam Hussein was a threat and voted yes
    when it came time to authorize the use of force.
        Before the Commander in Chief commits the troops into harm's way, he
    must try all options before the military. I was hoping diplomacy would
    work, so I went to the United Nations. And the United Nations looked at
    the same intelligence we did and remembered the same history we
    remembered and concluded, with a 15-to-nothing vote in the U.N. Security
    Council, that Saddam Hussein must disclose,
    disarm, or face serious consequences. I believe when international
    bodies speak, they must mean what they say. I believe when the President
    speaks, he must mean what he says.
        Saddam Hussein wasn't about to listen to
    another U.N. resolution. We hoped he

    [[Page 2099]]

    would. We would hope he'd listen to the demands of the free world, but
    he didn't. He not only didn't listen to the United Nations Security
    Council, but when the U.N. tried to send inspectors in there, he
    systematically deceived them. So I have a choice at this point in our
    history: Do I forget the lessons of September the 11th and hope for the
    best when it comes to a madman, or take action to defend the country?
    Given the choice, I will defend this country every time.
        We didn't find the stockpiles we thought would be there, that we all
    thought would be there. But Saddam Hussein
    had the capability of making weapons, and he could have passed that
    capability on to the enemy. And that is a risk we could not afford to
    take after September the 11th, 2001. Knowing what I know today, I would
    have made the same decision. And America and the world are safer with
    Saddam Hussein sitting in a prison cell.
        Because we acted to defend ourselves, 50 million people now live in
    freedom. Afghanistan 3 years ago was run by these barbaric people. When
    they hear me talk about an ideology of hate, I'm talking about people
    like the Taliban. Young girls weren't allowed to go to school. Their
    mothers were whipped in the public square or killed in sports stadiums
    if they didn't toe the line of these backward people.
        Today, 10 million citizens, 41 percent of whom are women, have
    registered to vote in the upcoming October Presidential election. Think
    about that. It wasn't all that long ago that four women were pulled out
    of a bus and executed by some of the Taliban holdovers because they were
    trying to--I think they were registering people to vote or just
    registered to vote. And the world was, ``Oh, no, the elections won't be
    happening. It's too dangerous.'' People want to be free. And if given a
    chance, they will exercise their rights. And look what's happened in
    Afghanistan.
        Despite ongoing acts of violence in Iraq, that country has a strong
    Prime Minister; they've got a National Council;
    and they are going to have elections in January of 2005. The world is
    becoming a better place because freedom is on the march.
        We stand for free societies in the Middle East because they'll be
    hopeful societies which no longer feed resentments, the resentments that
    cause people to kill in the name of a hateful ideology. We stand for
    free governments in the Middle East because we know they'll fight
    terrorists instead of harboring them. I talk to people a lot about why
    freedom will make us more secure--that's why. Free societies are hopeful
    societies. And free societies will be allies against these hateful few
    who have no conscience, who kill at the whim of a hat--at the drop of a
    hat.
        So the mission in Afghanistan and Iraq is clear. We'll help these
    new leaders train Afghan and Iraqi citizens so they can do the hard work
    of preventing the designs of a few from stopping the hopes of the many.
    We'll help them train their police and help them train their armies so
    they can defend themselves. We'll help them have these elections. We'll
    get them on the path of stability and democracy as quickly as possible.
    And then our troops are coming home with the honor they have earned.
        We've got a great military. I'm proud to be the Commander in Chief
    of a fantastic military. It's been my honor to have met many who wear
    the Nation's uniform. These are extraordinary citizens of great courage
    and great decency, and they deserve the full support of the Federal
    Government. That's why, last September, I went to the Congress and asked
    for supplemental funding of $87 billion to support our troops in combat
    in both Iraq and Afghanistan. And this was an important request. It was
    for ammunition, spare parts, body armor. It was for fuel, hazard pay,
    health benefits. This was an important piece of legislation--so
    important, support was overwhelming in the United States Congress, so
    strong that only 12 Members of the Senate voted against it, 2 of whom

    [[Page 2100]]

    were my opponent and his runningmate. Do you realize this? Do you
    realize that four Members of the Senate voted to authorize the use of
    force and then voted against funding the troops? Only 4 of 100, 2 of
    whom are my opponent and his
    runningmate.
        So they asked him why, and he said, ``I
    actually did vote for the $87 billion,'' right before he voted against
    it. [Laughter] And he said he was proud of the vote. And finally he just
    said, ``It's just a complicated matter.'' [Laughter] There's nothing
    complicated about supporting our troops in harm's way.
        A President must be clear, and a President must mean what he says.
    During the course of this campaign, my opponent
    has, I think, seven or maybe eight different positions on the war in
    Iraq. He was for it but didn't fund the troops. Then he became the
    antiwar candidate. Then I think it was at the edge of the Grand Canyon
    that he said, well, knowing everything we know today, he still would
    have voted for it. Then he said we're spending too much money, and he
    was on a national talk show earlier that said, we weren't spending
    enough money. And then he did a radio interview 2 days ago to try to
    clear it all up. [Laughter] And here's what he said: There were no
    circumstances--none--under which we should have gone to war, although
    his own vote to go to war is the right one, and it was right to hold
    Saddam Hussein accountable. [Laughter] Even the radio talk show guy
    said, ``I can't tell you what he said.'' [Laughter]
        Mixed signals are the wrong signals to send our troops in the field,
    to the Iraqi people, to our allies, and most of all, to our enemy.
        We've got a strong alliance, and during the next term I'll continue
    to work with our friends and allies to try to stop proliferation, to
    continue to help Afghanistan and Iraq. There are nearly 40 nations in
    Afghanistan and some 30 in Iraq. And it's important for the President to
    continue to reach out to other nations. But I will never turn over our
    national security decisions to leaders of other countries.
        I believe in the transformational power of liberty. I've spent time
    with Prime Minister Koizumi. I like to
    share this with the people of our country, this little conversation
    about Koizumi, because it helps make the point of what I mean by the
    transformational power of liberty. Koizumi, of course, runs a country
    that--with whom--with which we were at war. My dad fought against the Japanese. Your dads, relatives, loved
    ones fought against the Japanese too. Japan was the sworn enemy of the
    United States of America.
        Yet, after World War II, Harry Truman believed that liberty could
    transform societies. Fortunately, a lot of Americans agreed with him.
    I'm sure some didn't. You can imagine how hard it would be to say, after
    having lost a loved one in a war against the Japanese. They said, ``Why
    do we care? Why do we want to work to help them become a democracy?''
        But Truman did. And as a result of doing the hard work, of helping
    an enemy transform itself by becoming a democratic society, I now sit
    down at the table with the leader of Japan, talking about the peace that we all want. Think
    about that for a minute. See, liberty has the ability to take--transform
    an enemy into an ally, so we can work on the peace together.
        Someday, an American President will be sitting down with a duly
    elected leader of Iraq, talking about how to keep the peace in the
    greater Middle East, and our children and our grandchildren will be
    better off for it.
        These are historic times. This is a historic moment in history, as
    far as I'm concerned. We're helping to change the world for the better
    by spreading freedom. And it's hard work. It's hard work for a society
    to go from one that had been brutalized by a tyrant who condoned mass graves, cut off the hands of the
    guys that came to see me in the Oval Office because his currency

    [[Page 2101]]

    had been devalued. It's hard work. But it's necessary work, and it's
    work that will succeed, because I believe that freedom is the Almighty
    God's gift to each man and woman in this world.
        I tell the people, this young century is going to be liberty's
    century. By promoting freedom at home and abroad, we're going to build a
    safer world, a more hopeful America. By reforming our systems of
    Government, more Americans will be able to make their own choices and
    realize the dream that are available in this country. We'll continue to
    spread ownership and opportunity to every part of our country. We'll
    pass the values of our Nation on to a new generation, and we'll work for
    peace and freedom.
        And I want to thank you for giving me a chance to be your President.
    I'm excited about this campaign. I'm looking forward to the next days. I
    like coming down the stretch. [Laughter] And I appreciate your help.
    We'll put your good, hard work and your help to good use. We're going to
    turn out the vote, and we're going to win in November. And I'm honored
    to have you on my side. Thank you for coming. I appreciate it.

    Note: The President spoke at 12:41 p.m. at the Grand Hyatt Washington.
    In his remarks, he referred to former Representative Vin Weber of
    Minnesota; senior Al Qaida associate Abu Musab Al Zarqawi; Prime
    Minister Ayad Allawi of the Iraqi Interim Government; and Prime Minister
    Junichiro Koizumi of Japan.