[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2004, Book II)]
[August 11, 2004]
[Pages 1595-1612]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]
Remarks in a Discussion at Eclipse Aviation in Albuquerque, New Mexico
August 11, 2004
The President. Thank you all. Thanks for coming. I'm glad you all
are here. Thank you all for coming. It's good to be back. Please be
seated. Yes, thanks for being here today. It's good to be back----
Audience member. [Inaudible]
[[Page 1596]]
The President. Yes. [Laughter] It's good to be back in country where
people wear cowboy hats.
Thanks for your hospitality. I'm traveling our country asking for
the vote. I think you have to go out and ask people for their help and
ask people for their support. I've got a reason for running again--I'm
going to share some of that with you today. We're going to do it in a
little different way. We're going to talk about small businesses. We'll
talk about homeownership. We're going to talk about jobs and education,
all aimed to let the people know that I have a desire to make sure this
country is a stronger country and a better country for everybody--por
todos.
I want to thank my friend Pete Domenici. You got a good one in Pete Domenici. He's a United States
Senator--he's a strong leader for New Mexico. When you're with Pete, all
he talks about is New Mexico--[laughter]--occasionally works in the
United States. [Laughter] He loves this State, ever since he was a fire-
balling righthander. [Laughter] He's a wonderful man. I'm proud you're
here, Pete. Thanks for taking on a leadership role in my campaign.
I'm also proud to be traveling with John McCain. Nothing better than waking up in the country and getting
a cup of coffee and getting in the pickup truck and driving around and
looking at the cows. That's what John and I did this morning. It's a
good way to clear your mind and keep your perspective.
Yesterday, we were in the Panhandle of Florida. We ended our day in
Panama City, Florida. There was 22,000 people that came out to say
hello. It's--listen, I'm going to tell you what I'm seeing. I'm seeing
big crowds; the enthusiasm is high. We're on our way to victory.
There's two people I wish who were here who aren't. One is Heather
Wilson. I know she's out working. She's a
fantastic lady. You need to put her back in Congress. People of this
district are lucky that Heather is your Congresswoman. She's very
competent, very smart, very able person who has got a lot of respect--
who has earned a lot of respect in Washington.
And the other person who I regret is not here is Laura. [Applause] Yes, you do too. You know, she was born and
raised right around the corner. I was raised right around the corner;
she was born and raised right around the corner. We're right on the
other side of the New Mexico border. We've spent a lot of time in this
State. This is a State where we don't have to have a tour guide to
figure out how to get around. And we don't need to have somebody explain
to us how the people of New Mexico think. She's a great First Lady, a
great mother, and a wonderful wife. And she sends her best to Pete and
all our friends here in New Mexico.
I also want to thank the sheriff--the high sheriff is here, Darren
White. It's good to see you, Sheriff. I
appreciate you being here. He's sitting next to my friend John
Sanchez. John, thanks for taking a leadership
role. I want to thank Pat Lyons and Manny
Lujan, friends of mine. I appreciate so
very much Allen Weh, the chairman of this--the
chairman of the party.
I want to thank all the grassroots activists who are here.
[Applause] Yes, there you go. You're the people who are going to get
people registered to vote. That's what we're really here to talk about
in many ways, is to get people to show up to the polls. I'm confident if
we can get a lot of people to vote, we'll carry New Mexico this time--
wasn't but about 300 votes last time. [Laughter] Too many of our people
got the head cold right before the election. This time, we're going to
get them out to vote. And I want your help. And remember, there are a
lot of Democrats here who like what's going on in Washington, DC--make
sure you get those people to the polls. Make sure you get the
independents. They understand that this administration is dedicated to
keep this country safer and stronger and a better country for everybody.
[[Page 1597]]
I met Tom Hesch today. Where are you, Tom?
There he is, right there. He's a doc; he's a dentist. Guess what he
does? He provides free dental care for people who need help; that's what
he does. One of the reasons--I call him a soldier in the army of
compassion. You know why I mention Tom, is because the strength of this
country is the hearts and souls of citizens like Tom who are willing to
reach out to somebody who needs help and says, ``Can I help you, brother
or sister? What can I do to help your life?'' I'm running for 4 more
years because I want to continue to rally and encourage the soldiers in
that vast army of compassion, so that America can change one heart, one
soul, one conscience at a time.
I understand the limitations of Government. I understand that
Government is not a loving organization. [Laughter] But Government can
stand side by side with loving organizations to help improve the lives
of people from all walks of life.
Tom, I want to thank you for being here. Thank you for the example
you set.
I'm also running because I want this country of ours to be a
stronger country, and by that I mean a country in which people can
realize their dreams. And people can better realize their dreams when
our economy is strong. Now, we've been through a lot. We've been through
a lot in this country. If you really think about what we've been
through, it's amazing to say that we're strong and getting stronger.
We've been through a recession; that's when things are going backwards.
We've been through an attack. That's when things really shook up the
country. It shook our conscience. The attacks of September the 11th
affected our economy. Remember, airplanes weren't flying; Wall Street
was shut down; banks were closed. I mean, it was a terrible time for our
Nation.
We went through corporate scandals. Make no mistake about it, when
you've got a system that relies upon trust--in other words, somebody
opening up the books, and you trust in what you read--and that trust has
been violated by a corporate officer, it affected our economy. It shook
our confidence in the system. But we acted. We acted to overcome all
these obstacles. We passed tough new corporate reforms. The message
ought to be clear to everybody now that if you don't tell the truth,
we're coming after you, to keep the trust.
We acted after the enemy attacked us. I'll talk about that a little
later. We also acted to help cure the ills of a recession. I believe
that when somebody has got more money in their pocket to save or spend
or invest, it causes there to be an increase in demand for goods and
services, and when there's an increase in demand for goods and services,
somebody is going to produce the good or a service. If somebody produces
that good or a service, somebody is more likely to find a job.
My whole focus on getting out of this recession was to help the
economy grow so people can find work, and we're making progress. We've
added 1.5--nearly 1.5 million new jobs since last August. We're a strong
economy. If you look at all the major industrialized nations in the
world, we're the strongest. That's where we should be.
There's more to do--there's more to do. We're going to talk about
the entrepreneurial spirit. See, I don't think the role of Government is
to create wealth. I believe the role of Government is to create an
environment in which the entrepreneurial spirit can soar and is strong,
where the strong businesses--you know what that means? You see, in order
to keep jobs here at home, that means we better have the best
environment for job creation in the world. We want jobs to be here in
New Mexico and in Texas and all around the country, like we all do. That
means this has got to be the best place to be an employer, which means
good tax policy; it means we've got to do something about all these
lawsuits, which are threatening the job creators.
[[Page 1598]]
We've got to do something on health care costs. I'll tell you what
we can do on health care costs. We can take care of our seniors with
good Medicare law, which we've done. We can have more community health
centers in urban New Mexico and rural New Mexico and the tribal areas of
New Mexico to help poor citizens get primary care and take the pressure
off our emergency rooms. We can have associated health care--I mean
associated health plans, which will allow small businesses to pool risk
across jurisdictional boundaries so they can have the same purchasing
power as large companies do and, therefore, better afford insurance for
their employees.
We can continue to promote health savings accounts, which allow
individuals and small businesses to put money aside for workers and/or
yourself on a tax-free basis, which will help control costs. We can
spread new technologies, electronic records for patients, to help wring
out the inefficiencies which now exist in the medical system.
And you know what else we need to do in order to make sure health
care is available and affordable? Medical liability reform. These
lawsuits are making--I'm telling you, the frivolous lawsuits are running
up the cost of health care, and they're driving doctors out of business,
and they're hurting our hospitals. And I don't think you can be pro-
patient and pro-doctor and pro-trial-lawyer at the same time. I think
you have to choose. My opponent has made his
choice, and he put him on the ticket.
[Laughter] I made my choice. We're standing with the patients and the
doctors and the small-business owners.
In order to make sure jobs stay here and the economy is strong, we
need good trade policy. Let me tell you something about trade. Our
economy has been open for goods from overseas. You know why? If you're a
customer and you have more choices, you're going to get a better product
at a better price. That's how the economy works. The more choices you
have as a customer, the more likely it is you're going to get a product
that you want at higher quality and better price.
And so Presidents before me from both parties have said let's help
the customers of America--the consumers--you. In return, though, other
countries have not opened their markets to our products like we have
opened our markets to theirs. Good public policy and good trade policy
says to places like China and elsewhere, ``Open up your markets. Ours
are open. You open up yours.'' We can compete with anybody, anytime,
anyplace, so long as the rules are fair.
I'm going to talk--I'm going to ask Rudy Gonzalez to stand up. Rudy is a small-business owner. One of the
things that--one of the things I love to do is talk to small-business
owners, people who have started their own business. Isn't that a
fantastic thing to be able to say? Rudy owns his own business. And he
started it himself, which is really good. It means that something is
going right in the society where people are willing to risk capital to
start their own business.
Part of our tax relief plan was aimed directly at the Rudys, the
small businesses of the world, because 90 percent of the small
businesses are Subchapter S or sole proprietorships. That's legalese for
they pay tax at the individual income-tax rate, not corporate tax rate.
And so when you hear us saying we're--reduce the income tax, the
individual income taxes, think about Rudy.
Think about his business.
Rudy, when did you start your company?
Rudy Gonzalez. Well, Mr. President, first
of all, thank you for inviting me. I started my company back in 1997.
And I'm a first-generation Hispanic. My parents were born in Mexico.
They came over to this country because, just like you, Mr. President,
they have three fundamental values: a belief in a higher power; a belief
in the family as the best institution to secure our future; and a belief
that if you work hard and
[[Page 1599]]
you apply yourself, in the United States you can get anywhere you want
to be.
The President. That's great. Fe, familia, y esperanza--fe, familia,
y esperanza. Exactly right. What does your business do? In case somebody
might be listening. [Laughter]
[At this point, Mr. Gonzalez made brief remarks.]
The President. Actually, let me stop you for a minute. I appreciate
the credit. No, you did it, see. They wouldn't be giving you a contract
if you couldn't do the job. You've got to be able to do the job. And if
you can't do the job, then you shouldn't be given the contract. But you
can do the job. You're good at what you do. Thanks for the credit. I
don't deserve it, you do.
Let me ask you this question: How many people have you hired this
year?
Mr. Gonzalez. Well, I'd like to go back a
little bit. When I started off--you were right, I started by myself in
1997. Today, we have approximately 65 employees. This year--we've grown
every single year since 2001. This year, we added 20 new employees.
The President. That's good. Let me stop you there. Let me stop you.
A lot of the job growth is happening because companies like
Rudy are expanding their job base. Most new
jobs in America are created by small-business owners. It's important for
the American people to understand that. And so you're seeing Rudy hires
20 here, and somebody else hires 20 there, and it begins to add up.
People are working in the small-business sector. That's why we've got to
make sure small businesses have got affordable health care. And that's
why we've got to make sure tax policy does not harm small businesses.
Are you making investments this year?
Mr. Gonzalez. Yes, sir, I sure am.
The President. What will you be buying? [Laughter] Just in case
there's a seller here. [Laughter]
Mr. Gonzalez. You can talk to my friend
Ken over there because this year, he sold us four vehicles.
The President. Okay. [Laughter] The only reason I ask is that people
have got to understand when you hear the tax relief encouraged
investment, investment means you're purchasing something, and somebody
has to make that which you purchase and sell that which you purchase.
And that's how the economy works. There's a million decisionmakers, or
more than that, like Rudy who are out saying
the Tax Code encourages me to buy something, and as that purchasing
takes place, it adds economic vitality and growth.
Rudy is an S corp. That means he pays tax
at the individual income-tax rate. And so when you hear my opponent
talking about taxing the rich--that means running up the rate, the high
rates--he's really taxing small businesses. See, they put out $2.2
trillion of new spending promises. He hasn't even got to September yet,
by the way. [Laughter] And he says he's going to pay for it by taxing
the rich. That means that S corps that are doing okay are going to pay
higher taxes. We don't need to be taking money out of the small-business
coffers as this economy is beginning to grow. If most new jobs are
created by small businesses, and most small businesses are Subchapter S
or sole proprietorships, it makes no sense to run up the taxes on these
people as this economy is beginning to grow.
You know what else I think? You know what else I think when they say
``tax the rich''? Most rich people are able to avoid taxes, and if you
can't raise enough money from taxing the rich, guess who pays the taxes?
Audience members. [Inaudible]
The President. Yes, you do. But we're not going to let him. That's what this campaign is about, to make sure we've
got good tax policy.
Audience members. Four more years! Four more years! Four more years!
The President. All right, Rudy. Go ahead.
[[Page 1600]]
[Mr. Gonzalez made further remarks.]
The President. Fabulous. See, that's what he's talking about. The tax relief encouraged him to make
this investment.
Good job, Rudy. Thanks for coming.
Appreciate it. Thanks. Good job.
We've got another entrepreneur with us, Vern Raburn. He is the--so here's a guy who said, ``I can build a
better airplane.'' That's what you call a grand vision. [Laughter]
Why don't you tell the folks about your company.
[Vern Raburn made brief remarks.]
The President. McCain and I will fly the
first one. [Laughter] So how's it going? I mean, this is--this is----
Mr. Raburn. Things are going great.
The President. You've hired since I saw you last, 4 years ago, how
many?
Mr. Raburn. Well, 4 years ago, at this time,
we had about 18 employees. We have 342 employees now.
The President. That's good. And like what skill level is required--
skill level of the worker?
Mr. Raburn. Skill levels--we have very high
skill level. Most of our workforce today are engineers, manufacturing
folks, white-collar workers. In fact, our average salary of each of our
employees is about twice that of the average family income in New
Mexico.
The President. Yes, let me stop you there. One of the real
challenges we have in our country to make sure jobs stay here is to
educate people, is to make sure the education system works. You just
heard what--it's a new business, new business. He says that we pay twice as much as the average income,
but we require high-level skills. You know what that says to me? It says
to me that we've got to make sure No Child Left Behind works. We've got
to make sure we keep raising the bar, make sure the young kids can read
and write and add and subtract early, before it's too late. We've got to
make sure our community colleges are able to train workers for the jobs
of the 21st century, so that Eclipse can find a workforce necessary to
make this company fly.
So when are we going to see the first unit take off?
Mr. Raburn. Well, we'll be flying again late
this year, and we expect to have the aircraft certified in early '06,
March of '06. Today we've got orders for about 2,200 airplanes, about
$2.5 billion in back--[applause].
The President. That's good.
Mr. Raburn. Good problem.
The President. Yes. Well, Vern's pulling to
make sure this economy stays strong. Any of them overseas?
Mr. Raburn. A lot of those are overseas.
The President. Let me tell you something. See, if we get into a mode
where we become economic isolationists, he won't
be able to sell these airplanes overseas. We don't need trade wars. He
wants to be able to sell this product overseas without having to compete
with government bureaucracies and unnecessary tariffs and restrictions.
That's why we believe in fair trade and open trade.
You got workers here who are going to be working because you've got
planes being sold overseas. So when you hear them talk about trade, you
need to be thinking about jobs. Jobs exist when you're able to trade
overseas. You've got some farmers in this State, don't you? [Laughter]
Yes, the farm economy is strong around the country. You know why?
Because not only are we feeding our own people, we're feeding other
people. Other people are eating our corn and our soybeans and our wheat,
because we're opening up markets--still working to get that New Mexico
cattle around the world. Open up markets for the Mexican cattlemen--and
Texas cattlemen too, I want you to know. [Laughter]
So what else? What else is on your mind, Vern? You get the chance to tell the President something.
[Laughter] By the way, I guarantee he's a big believer in tort reform.
[[Page 1601]]
[Laughter] A lot of airline companies, a lot of manufacturers in the
past got shut down because of all kinds of lawsuits. And these
lawsuits--we want good justice in America, but when the trial bar
converts the law into a legal lottery, it begins to affect jobs. You
just got to know that. It's one thing to have justice; it's another
thing to go overboard with justice, because people start to lose work. I
don't know what your opinion is----
Mr. Raburn. I agree. [Laughter]
The President. Yes. See, you'd think I was a lawyer. I'm not.
[Mr. Raburn made further remarks.]
The President. Yes, that's strong. See, this is a vibrant company.
And I'm excited to be here. I want to thank you for inviting us.
He's got a newly-hired employee named Vernon
Oliver. Where's Vern? There he is. Hi, Vern.
Welcome. So what happens to you? So how do you end up here in the
airplane manufacturing world?
[Vernon Oliver made brief remarks.]
The President. What Vernon is telling you
is, is that since 9/11, things have changed. People are getting their
confidence; jobs are coming back; and in his case, he had the skill
levels necessary to fill the jobs.
Yesterday, we were in Florida, and we talked to some people that
needed to go back to community colleges, but we were happy to help them
go back to community colleges. There's all kinds of plans, trade
adjustment assistance, and NAFTA-related job loss. People who then can
get a scholarship or get direct grants to go back and retrain for the
jobs which actually exist. This fellow didn't need to be retrained.
He just showed up, and they wanted him. And he
saved $3,000 in taxes last year. And he's going to save $3,000 this
year.
Remember, we not only reduced income taxes on everybody who pays
taxes, but we helped people with children by raising the child credit to
$1,000; and we reduced the marriage penalty; we created a 10-percent
bracket. In other words, we said we're going to help families. And this
family right here has got $3,000 in relief--I think that's right--you
probably can say, ``Mind your own business, Mr. President.'' [Laughter]
Mr. Oliver. No, sir. [Laughter]
The President. But if the tax relief is not made permanent,
his taxes go up by $1,200. See, I believe
Government can set priorities and fund our priorities and that after the
priorities are funded the people can spend that money better than the
Government can spend it. That's what I believe. And I like the fact that
Vernon's got $3,000 additional of his own money in his pocket. It's his
money to begin with, of course, and so he has it.
Well, thanks for coming, Vernon.
And Guy is with you as well, Guy Hoisington. All right. He's a newly hired guy. Tell us, Guy.
[Guy Hoisington made brief remarks.]
The President. Here's a guy who tried out
the promised land for a while--that would be Texas--[laughter]--changed
his mind, came home to the other--to the enchanted land, and is working
because the entrepreneurial spirit is strong. He's able to more realize
his dream, which is to raise your family here. So the job of government
is to help when needed. The tax relief helps his family. I suspect it
helped him move. I think it--I know it helps him raise his family.
Mr. Oliver. Yes, Vern helped me move, too.
The President. He helped? That's good.
[Laughter] You must be good at what you do.
Mr. Oliver. Yes, sir.
The President. That's good. That's real good. [Laughter] But the
point is--that what I'm trying to tell you is, is that when the
entrepreneurial spirit is strong, when people like Vern feel comfortable
about taking a risk and expanding and growing, people can find work.
That's what we want
[[Page 1602]]
in America. We want people to find work. We want people to be
comfortable with their lives as best as they can.
You know, we can't make you decide to be somebody, but we can help
you. We can help educate your children, to make sure they're educated.
We can provide tax relief so that you're more comfortable and confident
in tough times and also to help this economy grow. That's what we're
talking about. We're talking about the proper role of Government. We're
talking about how to make sure Government stands side by side with moms
and dads and entrepreneurs and workers.
One of the--one of my goals is to continue to push an ownership
society in America. First-generation American says, ``I own my own
business.'' I just think those are wonderful words. I like the idea of
health accounts where people own them and manage them so that the
principal decisionmakers for health care are doctors and patients, not
bureaucrats.
I see some younger faces here, and Social Security--the solvency of
Social Security is an issue for future generations. McCain, Domenici,
and I are in good shape--[laughter]--at least our age group. But when
you start looking at younger workers, down there in the thirties and
twenties, there's a question of whether or not Social Security is going
to be around. And therefore, we need to explore with Congress the idea
of personal savings accounts for younger workers--their option--so
Social Security exists.
And finally, one of the great promises of this country is
homeownership. There's something--the homeownership rate in America is
at an alltime high. More minorities are owning their homes than ever
before. In other words, we got more people opening their door and
saying, ``Welcome to my home.'' Those are magical words, aren't they? I
think a healthy society is one in which people own something. If you own
something, you have a stake in the future of your country.
Today we've got Debra and Arnold
Reano. Thank you all for coming. I'm honored
you're here. First of all, I want you to know Debra's birthday is today.
Happy birthday. Arnold whispered in my ear when we were coming out.
Secondly, see the beautiful jewelry she's wearing and he's wearing--they
made it. They're artisans. That's a tradition of New Mexico, where
people are really skilled at making beautiful jewelry. Thanks for mine.
I told Debra that I'm going to play like I bought it for Laura. [Laughter] No, I'm not. No, I wouldn't do that. Because
she's probably watching on C-SPAN. [Laughter]
You all just bought a home.
[Mr. Reano made brief remarks.]
The President. What he's talking about is the Indian Home Loan
Guarantee Program, which is a way to encourage homeownership in tribal
areas. And it's working. That's what we want, isn't it? Doesn't it make
sense to have public policy aimed at helping people own their own home?
I can't think of a better use of resources. It's working.
[Mr. Reano made further remarks.]
The President. By the way, this couple saved $3,200 in Federal
income taxes last year. Tax relief helps all kinds of people.
Good. Listen, I appreciate you coming. I asked them to come--we
asked them to come because homeownership is valid for everybody. We want
people owning their own home all across the country--every corner of
America, we want people to put out that welcome mat, ``Welcome to my
home.'' And it's happening. I think one of the most positive things
that's happening in the country is there's more minority small-business
owners in America and more people from all walks of life owning their
own home.
Thank you all for coming. It's good to see your girls too--beautiful
girls.
One way to make sure the economy continues to grow is to keep the
country safe.
[[Page 1603]]
That's a charge we've been given. Nobody wants to be a war President,
but an enemy which had been planning for a long time struck us. And we
must never forget the lessons of that day. I'm going to give you three
quick lessons. As fellow citizens, it's important to know--for you to
know that I know the stakes and that I know the realities of the world
in which we live.
Lesson one is there's an enemy out there which hates us because of
what we believe. And you cannot negotiate with them. You cannot talk
sense into them. It's hard for the American conscience to understand the
nature of these people, but they behead people because they know we've
got hearts and we know we weep. They know we value human life and human
dignity. And they're trying to shake our will. And the only way to deal
with these folks is to bring them to justice.
Second lesson, which we'll do this year and we'll do over the next 4
years--we must bring them to justice in places where they hide and plot
so we do not have to face them here at home. That's the reality of the
world, is that this is a different kind of enemy--a different kind of
enemy. These are people that will hide in caves, and they will seek safe
haven. Their ideal situation is where they can find a weak government
that fears them or likes them and lets them hide and lets them burrow in
the--in their countryside or in their cities.
And so, the second lesson is that we need to send clear messages,
strong messages to countries around the world that say if you harbor a
terrorist--in other words, if you provide safe haven for these people,
if you allow them to arm up and plot and plan and train, you will be
held to account just like the terrorists will be.
And that explains our Afghanistan policy. And that explains why we
took action we did in Afghanistan. We said to the Taliban, ``Get rid of
these people. Turn them over, or face consequences.'' And by the way, if
America says something, it must be easy to understand, and you must mean
it. In order--if we're uncertain or if we doublespeak, the world will
drift toward tragedy. That's the reality of the world in which we live.
It's a lesson that we must remember.
By the way, on Afghanistan, it is--there's still hard work there.
But think about what's happened in a very quick period of time. Think
about this. There is going to be a Presidential election in a country
that was ruled by this barbaric regime, so barbaric that many young
girls never got to go to school and their mothers were publicly whipped.
That's barbaric. And now they're going to have a Presidential election.
Over 8 million people are registered to vote. And here I'm going around
the country saying, ``Please register to vote, and vote''--these people,
when given a chance, are showing up in big numbers, in spite of the fact
that some of these thugs are trying to stop them from going to the
ballot box.
I was in Cleveland, Ohio, kicking off the International Children's
Game, and standing in front of me was the Afghan girls soccer team. I'm
telling you, I wish--it was--there wasn't a dry eye in my house. It's
unbelievable to think that in a very short period of time, people are
liberated. Free countries are peaceful countries. The world is better
off, and America is more safe. The third lesson of--because Afghanistan
is free.
The third lesson is, when we see a threat, we must take it seriously
before it fully materializes. That's a serious lesson of September the
11th. You see, it's a different kind of war--it's a different kind of
war. We cannot hope for the best anymore. In the old days, we could,
because we thought oceans would protect us. It wasn't all that long ago
that we thought we were safe from harm's way. And all of a sudden, on
that fateful day, the world changed. And these lessons are serious
lessons, because we're talking about the most solemn duty
[[Page 1604]]
of a government, and it's to protect the people. We must take threats
seriously.
And so, that begins to explain to you why I made the decision I
made. Senators McCain and Domenici came to the same conclusion I did, that Saddam
Hussein was a threat. And I want you to
remember, he was a threat because he behaved like a threat. He had used
weapons of mass destruction on his own people. He had terrorist ties.
There was terrorist organizations in and out of Iraq over time. He had
defied the world, I think 17 resolutions. In other words, imagine a
world saying, ``Okay, we're only going to tell you one more time.''
[Laughter] ``This is the 16th time we're going to tell you. Cough them
up, get rid of your ability to make weapons, get rid of what you even
have, or face serious consequences.'' And if you say it 17 times and
nothing happens, pretty soon you embolden somebody whose instincts were
dark and dim.
This is a person who tortured his own people. There were mass
graves. He invaded his neighbors. We had been
to war with him before. He was shooting at our pilots that were
enforcing--he was a threat. And so I went to the Congress and said to
the Congress, ``Gosh, we've got a threat here, and the world has
changed.'' By far the vast majority of Members of Congress--from both
political parties--they took a good look at the intelligence. They
looked at what I was looking at. We all came to the same conclusion,
including my opponent. He looked at that
intelligence--[applause].
And then the U.N. looked at it and said, again, ``Disclose, disarm,
or face serious consequences.'' And they said, but--the world said we
work in diplomacy then, which is wise to do. And they said, ``Gosh,
let's let the inspectors work.'' So, okay. It seems to make sense,
doesn't it, let the inspectors in. But guess what? They were being
deceived, systematically deceived by Saddam Hussein. He wasn't--he was doing all kinds of things to prevent
them from finding out the truth.
So I had a choice; Tony Blair had a choice;
Silvio Berlusconi had a choice; Aleksander
Kwasniewski had a choice; John
Howard had a choice. And that is, hope for the
best, forget the lessons of September the 11th, trust a madman, or take
action to defend our country. You've just got to know, folks, given that
choice, I will defend us every time.
Audience members. Four more years! Four more years! Four more years!
The President. Thank you all. A couple other points I want to make--
let me make a couple of points, and I'll answer some questions if you
have some.
First, when we put troops in harm's way, they will have our
Government's support. A lot of folks in this town--you got relatives in
the military; you've been in the military yourself. This is a--this is
what I believe. This is what Pete believes. This is what John believes.
We believe--and a lot of others in Washington do too. That's why I asked
for an $87 billion supplemental last September to make sure our troops
had what they needed: spare parts, body armor, fuel, support. A
difference in this campaign is that my opponent
voted against the supplemental funding.
Audience members. Boo-o-o!
The President. He has said on the TV shows,
before the vote came up, there's no excuse for not supporting the
troops. And then when he was asked why he didn't ask for it, he said,
well, he actually did vote for it, right before he voted against it.
[Laughter] It's--and then he said it was a complicated matter. There's
nothing complicated about supporting our troops in combat. They need--
the troops need our support.
I want to make two other points, and then I'll answer questions. The
other day, he was asked on a--by a TV reporter or
a newspaper reporter, what about the troops? And he said he's going to
substantially reduce the number of troops six
[[Page 1605]]
months after he's the President. Now, let me--listen, we all want the
mission to be completed as quickly as possible. But we want the mission
to be completed.
Secondly, the mission is not going to be completed as quickly as
possible if the enemy thinks that we're going to be removing a
substantial number of troops in six months. Thirdly, the person--the
people that should be making the recommendations as to whether or not
the mission is nearly completed so that we can relieve troops are the
commanders on the ground. That's who ought to be making the
recommendations. I know what I'm doing when it comes to winning this
war. And I'm not going to be sending mixed signals.
Now, the other thing I want to tell you about is, when people say,
``What is--what are you trying to accomplish, what is America trying to
accomplish,'' what we're going to accomplish is a free society in the
heart of a part of the world where people are desperate for freedom.
See, this is a historic moment in world history, I think, because
freedom has got the capacity to change people's lives in a positive way.
America stands for peace, and we understand that the best way to achieve
peace is to spread freedom, because free societies listen to the hopes
and aspirations of their people. The best way to defeat resentment is to
spread freedom and hope. You can't have a hopeful society if you've got
tyranny looming over you. You can't have a hopeful society if you're not
allowed to express your opinion or worship freely.
So that's what you're seeing. We're seeing the short-term actions of
our Government are to protect us. That's why we're using force, to
protect us. The long-term solution is to spread liberty.
I was having dinner with Koizumi, who
is the Prime Minister of Japan, and we were talking about how to keep
the peace in North Korea. Think about what--think about that for a
second, the American President and the Prime Minister of Japan, former
enemies--countries were former enemies. Maybe some of you here in the
audience were fighting the Japanese in World War II. His dad was, and my
dad was, and I bet a lot of other dads were
as well. And here we are now, sitting down at the same table, talking
about peace with a former--and you know why I was able to do so and
other Presidents were able to do so, is because after World War II, we
believed so strongly in liberty that we worked with the Japanese to
develop a society that was self-governing, that believed that--based
upon the principles of human dignity and human rights and human freedom.
Now, there were skeptics who said, ``No, it's too hard to work.
We've been at it for too long. This country can't self-govern.'' But
fortunately, predecessors believed so strongly in the ability of liberty
to change the habits of citizens for the good that they stuck to their
guns, and now I'm talking to Koizumi about the peace. Someday, an
American President is going to sit down with an elected Iraqi leader and
they're going to say, ``Thank God old Bush, McCain, and Domenici believed in
freedom. Thank God the American people listen to the skeptics, rejected
pessimistic thought, and said, `Let's complete the mission.' ''
Freedom is going to change the world. Freedom--and you know what
else freedom does? It validates what we believe in our hearts. Freedom
is not America's gift to the world; freedom is the Almighty God's gift
to each man and woman in this world.
Let me--[applause]--thank you all. Let me answer some questions
while we've got time. Thanks for giving me a chance to talk. Now, I'll
give you a chance to answer some questions. We're here for a little bit,
and then John and I are heading west. We're
going out to Phoenix, and then I'm off to Nevada, California, Oregon,
Washington, and Iowa. I want to win. I'm willing to work.
[[Page 1606]]
All right, who's got a question? You've got one?
Support for the President/Stem Cell Research
Q. First I want to make a prediction.
The President. Okay, thank you.
Q. President Bush is going to win by a landslide.
The President. Okay, we can leave it there if you like.
Q. Number two----
The President. How about we work as if it's going to be close.
[Laughter]
Q. Number two, I respect your position on human life and your demand
for abortion. I respect it.
The President. Thank you.
Q. And I thank you every moment. You're the top President when it
comes to us speaking out for life. Thank you.
The President. Thank you, sir. Thank you.
Yes, sir--thank you, sir. I hope you're a good prognosticator.
[Laughter]
Q. First, I agree with him. I hope we see you in a landslide.
The President. Let's just win the thing. [Laughter] Let's just win
it. Thank you, though.
Q. First of all, let me say it's an honor to speak to you. It's an
honor every day when I get to pray for you as President.
The President. Thank you, sir. I appreciate that.
Q. I just--I wanted to say that. I wanted to agree with him--your
stand for life, for stem cells. We do not need to be doing research with
fetal stem cells. And I appreciate that. Could I ask you two more
questions?
The President. Sure, go ahead. Ask them.
Q. Real short.
The President. Okay. You haven't asked one yet. But go ahead.
[Laughter]
Q. Can I introduce my mother and mother-in-law who are new citizens
to this country?
The President. That's a very interesting move by the guy. [Laughter]
He's got the President standing here, and he wants me to meet the
mother-in-law. [Laughter] Strong move. Absolutely. And the mother--yes.
Fantastic. Is this the mom-in-law?
Q. This is my mother-in-law.
The President. Where are you from, mom-in-law?
Q. Okinawa.
The President. Fantastic. New citizen?
Q. Yes.
The President. This year?
Q. Two years.
The President. Two years ago. So this is your first Presidential
election?
Q. Yes.
The President. Okay. Welcome--welcome. There's a long tradition in
America that you only vote for the person who looks you in the eye and
asks. Just kidding. And where's mom? Oh, hi, mom. Strong move. That's
very good, yes. Are you listening to your mother?
Q. I do.
The President. I listen to mine too. In my case, I don't have much
choice. In my case.
Let me talk about stem cells real quick. There had been no research
on stem cells prior to my arrival. I said that stem cell lines which had
already existed prior to a certain date ought to be allowed to receive
Federal money to research, and from that point forward, that we ought to
make sure we deal with science and ethics in a very balanced way. And so
we're just beginning to understand embryonic stem cell research. We're
also, by the way, spending research dollars on adult stem cell research,
and we're also spending it on fetal tissue.
And so, what we're--what I'm saying to you is, is that I think my
administration has struck a proper balance between science and ethics. I
think we have done a very good job about exploring that which is
possible without stepping over a line that we may come to regret later
on. And so I assembled a panel of experts, ethicists,
[[Page 1607]]
to help me better understand this very vital issue.
Listen, we--I'm sure you've heard from folks with juvenile--got a
child with juvenile diabetes. I certainly have. And I care deeply about
the families who are wondering whether or not we can do more to help
solve their child's problems. It's sad, and I know these Senators have
heard from those with juvenile diabetes. And the policies I made were,
on the one hand, trying to help as best as we can move science forward
and, at the same time, keep an ethical balance so that we promote a
culture of life. And the decision I made, in my judgment, is the right
decision. And it's one that respects the value of life and, on the other
hand, is one that says, hopefully science can use these existing stem
cell lines, of which I think there's going to be 23 which are viable and
vibrant, and they're just beginning to look at them to help come up with
cures that we all want to have happen--we all want--we want human--we
want these young kids with--that have been affected by juvenile diabetes
to better survive. That's what we want. But thank you for bringing up
the subject.
Any--yes, sir, here's a man right here. First of all, he's one of
my--he's cheering really loud. [Laughter] Thank you.
Opportunities for the Disabled
Q. Thank you, President Bush, and I just want to say it's a honor to
speak to you today. And you probably already touched on this question,
but seeing as I'm a disabled person myself--I'm 20 years old and going
to college in the great State of--well, I live in the great State of New
Mexico, but I also go to college in the great State of Texas. [Laughter]
And I'm----
The President. Where you going, by the way? Excuse me for
interrupting, but where are you going?
Q. McMurray University in Abilene.
The President. Oh, yes. Abilene, Texas.
Q. Yes, sir. And my current major is political science, and I'm just
curious----
The President. I better give you some counseling before it's too
late. No, go ahead. [Laughter]
Q. How can we, as a team--and I understand people ask you for help,
but how can we, as a team, be ensured that other people that are
disabled can be a part of the big business or small business, to help
bring jobs for the people of this country?
The President. Yes, absolutely. I appreciate that very much. One of
the great advances of our era is technology. There's fantastic
technological opportunities for the visually-impaired to be able to have
a computer that speaks to them. I don't know if you've been involved
with that or not. You have?
Q. Yes, sir, I have a--it's called a braille note, and it has a
braille display. And I also have a thing on my computer--it's called
Jaws for Windows--that gets on and reads the screen to me whenever I get
on the Internet.
The President. See, that's coming. So one thing we can do is help
members of our community who need this kind of program. We can help them
with financial aid to buy them. I mean, this is equally as important as
going to college, is to have the opportunity--listen, the role of
Government is to help people help themselves. And we're talking about
helping this guy with--we're helping him realize his dreams. There are
touch computers where, if you're disabled without the ability--and you
can't use your hands, there are new computers and new ability to be able
to turn a computer on and log on and surf the Net, and that technology
is now more available.
What I'm telling you is, to answer your question, is to make sure
technologies are more readily available and we help people afford them
as they come on the market. And it's going to change people's lives for
the better. Again, we want everybody to be able to participate in this
experience called America. And we want people to be able to realize
their dreams, no matter their condition, or no matter whether they're
[[Page 1608]]
first generation or 800th generation--18th or how ever many generations
there have been, and that's what we want.
So I appreciate your question, sir. Thank you.
Q. And I just want to say thank you so much, and I'm really proud of
what you're doing and what America's doing, because--and I want to thank
my mom and my parents, because I'm the only blind people--or blind
person in my family, and I'm excited to graduate and go to college and
be part of that small business.
The President. Congratulations.
Let's see, all right, man in a cowboy hat. Yes, we've got to try the
cowboy hat. You're next.
Support for the President/Veterans Benefits
Q. Hello, Mr. President.
The President. Yes, sir.
Q. I'm a retired Navy, 20 years. I flew the S-3, the same that you
came aboard in the Lincoln.
The President. Yes, sir.
Q. Four tours in Vietnam, and all I can say is thank God we finally
have a Commander in Chief.
The President. Thank you, sir.
Let me say something. You've got a lot of veterans in this State.
People have served their country in this State, and I want to thank you
for your service. And I thank you for setting such a good example for
the----
Audience member. Hooah!
The President. There you go. [Laughter] For the hooahs of the world.
But thank--[laughter]--thank you for setting such a good example for
those who wear our uniform. I'm going to the VFW Convention on Monday.
I'm looking forward to going. I've got something to say. I've got
something to say about how we've worked together to make sure we've
honored our vets with good, strong health care. I made some promises to
the VFW in 2000. I'm going to go back and remind them of the promises I
made and remind them of the promises we have kept. And that's what we
owe our veterans.
Yes, ma'am. There you go. No, I said--yes, ma'am. Sorry. [Laughter]
Audience member. [Inaudible]
The President. You bet. Crank that thing up.
Domestic Violence
Q. Mr. President, I would like to know what your administration has
done to help women and children in domestic violence situations.
The President. Well, we've said to the Justice Department, work with
States to make sure that the States have got the resources necessary to
bring people to justice. That's what States are supposed to do, supposed
to--States are supposed to pass laws that make it easier for law
enforcement to be able to do its job when it comes to domestic violence.
And when I was the Governor of Texas, we made it easier for an
abused spouse to be able to call her spouse into account without facing
retribution. We had notification laws when a spouse was released from
jail. In other words, we stood on the side of the abused person. We had
the law stand side by side with the person, as opposed to making the
environment such that many people were afraid to turn in an abusive
spouse and, two, if the abusive spouse had been punished, they were
afraid of the consequences after the spouse had been out.
This is--the truth of the matter is most good policy--or policy is
made at the State level under State laws. And what the Federal
Government can do, the Federal Government can help on grantmaking to
help States with those type of laws.
Q. And what about the Family Justice Center Initiative? Didn't you
announce that last year?
The President. The family----
Q. The pilot program--$21 million?
The President. Oh, I did, so thanks for reminding me. [Laughter] How
quickly we forget. It was a loaded question, wasn't it?
[[Page 1609]]
Let me ask you something. U.S. Marine Corps mom--is that what that
means? You have a son in the Marine Corps? I know you didn't want to ask
a question, but----
Support for Troops/All-Volunteer Military
Q. I want to thank you for all the support you have given the
military.
The President. Where is he? Hold on for a minute. Where is your son?
Q. He's in Yuma, and he's on his way to be deployed.
The President. Is he?
Q. Yes.
The President. Let me say something to the mom here. First of all,
you're going to be nervous, and I know you are, and you should be. But I
just want you to know that your son is making an historic contribution
to the peace and security of our country.
Q. Thank you.
The President. And you know what--you know the great thing about
this country? I'll tell you the great thing about the country. There's a
lot of people praying for him. Yes. I appreciate you wearing ``USMC
mom.'' That's great. He's going to be just fine, by the way.
Q. He said that he was anxious to go over there and do his job and
defend our country.
The President. Yes, that's what he's doing, and it's important for
everybody to understand that--it's important for everybody to understand
that. It's important to understand the consequences of her son's
decision, first, to join an All-Volunteer Army, and secondly, to be in a
position to go over and help freedom take hold in Iraq. That's really
what we're talking about.
On the one hand, we're defeating people that could come here to hurt
us, but we're also spreading freedom. And you know what's going to make
it work? It's when the Iraqis and the Afghan step up and say, ``I'm now
ready to defend my country.'' And that's what's happening--that's what's
happening. And the enemy sees it happening. And that's why they're
taking action. See, that's why they're blowing up innocent life. They
see what's happening. And that's why we cannot send mixed signals, and
that's why we've got to be firm in our resolve. And while we are, that's
why we've got to be thankful to the moms who raised a son who says, ``I
want to serve my country.''
I was asked the other day whether or not we ought to--some think we
ought to get rid of the All-Volunteer Army. The answer is absolutely
not. We need to keep the All-Volunteer Army. And what we need to do is
to make sure that people--there's incentive to stay in the All-Volunteer
Army, by making sure people are better paid, which we have done over the
course of four appropriations bills. Since I've been the President,
military pay is up 21 percent. We've got to make sure the housing on the
bases are better than adequate. And we've got--in other words, we've got
to win the hearts and souls not only of the soldiers but of their
families. And we're making good progress toward that. But this All-
Volunteer Army is, one, an important concept, and two, it's working.
Let's see. Yes, sir.
Q. Mr. President, thank you so much. I just returned from a 13-month
tour, Lieutenant Colonel Jackson.
The President. Thanks. Where were you?
Q. I was the deputy commander of our forces in Kosovo.
The President. Oh, fantastic. Thanks for doing that. Bondsteel?
Q. Yes, sir.
The President. I went there.
Q. I know you were there, and in fact, the education center is named
after your wife.
The President. Is it? Well, smart move.
Q. Yes, sir. Mr. President, all the forces overseas are thankful
that you are such a strong Commander in Chief, and even when I was
medevac'd out--I was injured and medevac'd out to Germany, along with
[[Page 1610]]
forces from Iraq and Afghanistan--the morale was very high, because we
knew that you were in charge and going to take care of us.
The President. Well, thank you. Thank you, sir. Let me say
something. Let me say something about medevac'ing troops. It's really
important for our citizens to know that if somebody gets hurt, they're
going to get really good treatment quickly--I mean quickly. And I know
that a lot of us have been to Bethesda--I know John has and Pete has--or
Walter Reed. These are the big hospitals in Washington, DC, that take
care of those who have been injured. These kids are coming off the
battlefield in one or two days' time. I mean, we're taking kids who have
been hurt, and we're getting them into incredibly good care quickly.
That's a--what a compassionate Government, when you think about it.
You know, there's other governments that might let their troops kind of
languish around, you know, maybe get them out of the tent somewhere,
sometime. Not America--not America. We value every life. We appreciate
the service of our troops. When I see these families in these hospitals,
I'm quick to ask them, ``Are you getting everything you need?'' I need
to know. And admittedly, sometimes the President gets the Cook's tour,
but the answer is, ``Yes, Mr. President, they're taking care of my
kid.'' And that's what families or citizens need to know about our
country, is that we are grateful for the service of those who wear our
uniform, because the world is going to be better off for it.
A couple of more questions. McCain is
getting anxious. He wants to get to Phoenix--[laughter]--and so do I.
Who have we got here? Where's the little boy? This little guy? You
got all kinds of little boys. Go ahead.
Photo With the President
Q. I was wondering if I could take a picture with you.
The President. Yes. [Laughter] All right, let him through. Crawl on
underneath there. Scoot on through. Come on. Got it? Hello, Mom.
[Laughter] Got it?
Yes, go ahead.
Prayers for the President
Q. First of which, first part of comment, just know that my wife and
I are praying for you. We appreciate what you've done the 4 years you've
been in office.
The President. Thank you.
Q. Thank you for that. A question I have----
The President. I appreciate your prayers. Think about--I mean, work
on your question while I say something here. [Laughter] It's an amazing
country where people from all walks of life pray for the President. It
really is. I'm grateful. I am really grateful. Any President would be
grateful. It's one of the most sustaining aspects of my life now, to
know that people pray for me and Laura and the kids.
Go ahead.
Constitutional Amendment on Marriage
Q. The question I have--one of our concerns is, is the continued
erosion of the moral fabric of this country with the--obviously the
removal of prayer in schools, the removal of the Ten Commandments,
abortion, and now we're faced with the issue of gay marriage. And
obviously, there was an attempt to at least get it in the Constitution
among the parties in Congress, with no success. What do you plan to do
when you're reelected----
The President. Thank you.
Q. ----to abolish that attempt by the left? And my second question
is, would you mind if I got your autograph? [Laughter]
The President. We've started a bad trend here. Let me talk about
marriage, traditional marriage. First of all, I believe our society is
better off when marriage is defined as between a man and a woman. It's
my belief.
[[Page 1611]]
Secondly--hold on a second. Secondly--secondly, this is an issue
that ought to be decided by the people, not by a few judges. And that's
what's caused the issue. That's what has brought this issue to a head,
is because in a particular State, the four judges redefined the
definition of marriage. That's what happened. And my worry is, is that
that definition will be spread to other States, even though the people
of those States do not accept that definition.
And now, there's laws on the books. And what happened was, a lot of
the Senators accurately noted there's a current law on the book called
the DOMA, Defense of Marriage Act, which specifically defines marriage
as between a man or a woman and says that the actions of one State
cannot affect the behavior in another State. And I readily concede that
law is on the books, signed by my predecessor, by the way.
My worry has been that the courts will overturn that law and that we
will end up with a series of activist judges defining marriage. And so
the easiest way--not the easiest way, probably the toughest way--but the
clearest way to define marriage is to put it in the Constitution like I
suggested.
Now, let me also tell you, the constitutional process takes a long
time. It--many amendments have taken years to be passed by the Senate
and then ratified by the States. I will also explain to the American
people that the ratification process of the constitutional amendment is
an essential part of including people's opinions as to this very
delicate issue.
And finally, let me encourage everybody, as we debate this issue, to
do so with the utmost of respect. I mean, this is a issue that requires
thoughtful dialog. It's a serious issue. And it's one that--I hope we
can have a debate in a way that is uplifting and not tearing people down
on either side of the issue. And I will pledge to you, I will do my very
best to bring a thoughtful dialog on this vital issue.
And so what I'll do the next 4 years is continue to state what I
believe. I'm not going to change my beliefs just because there's been an
election. Quite the contrary. I will be telling people what I believe.
Okay, last question. You have been very patient. This is the last
one. I hope everybody understands I've got to work. [Laughter]
Support for the President/Duty To Vote
Q. President Bush, we want you to know something. This group of
ladies right here, we represent an international company--an
international AGLOW fellowship. This is women all over the world. There
is a woman over there by the name of Bernadette Martinez who is the
prayer coordinator for New Mexico. And we want you to know, we are
praying for you.
The President. Thank you.
Q. We are praying for righteous leaders in Washington and throughout
our country, because we know that it's time for America to get back to
its moral roots that our Founders put in place for us when this country
was founded. And it is time for the people in this country to realize
and to call out for righteous leaders. That is our right as God's
children. And we are doing that.
The President. Thank you.
Q. And you will be in the White House.
The President. I appreciate that. One more? Okay, hold on. Let me
tell you what else you can do. Let me tell you what else you can do.
Register people to vote. And then, right around election time, start
saying to people, we have a duty; we have a duty in a free society, no
matter what you believe; we have a duty to vote. So I appreciate your
enthusiasm and your drive. Convert it to getting people to the polls
too, which I know you will.
Okay, final question. One more, this is it. Then we got to go to
Arizona.
[[Page 1612]]
Support for the Troops
Q. Mr. President----
The President. Yes, ma'am. No more hands going up; I'm a man of my
word.
Q. And I am a persistent woman. My name is Cassandra Dennis. My
husband is Captain Dominic Dennis. He sends his hellos all the ways from
Log Base Seitz, Iraq.
The President. Good. Thank you. He's a captain--in the Army?
Q. Army National Guard.
The President. Very good.
Q. I want your prayers for him.
The President. You got it. Thank you very much. Yes. And tell you--
I'll tell you what do. You know, one of the interesting possibilities
now, because of high-tech, because of the high-tech world, is that you
can e-mail your husband, correct?
Q. We e-mail. We do instant-messaging. We've got web cams. We have
telephones.
The President. All right, why don't you do this, then? Would you do
me a favor?
Q. Yes.
The President. Would you rather e-mail him or instant-message him?
Q. I'm going to instant-message him.
The President. Instant-message him. Instant-message him this: The
Commander in Chief is grateful and incredibly proud of his service.
Thank you all. God bless. Thanks for coming.
Note: The President spoke at 1:40 p.m. at the Eclipse Aviation hangar.
In his remarks, he referred to Darren White, sheriff, Bernalillo County,
NM; John Sanchez, southwest regional chairman, Bush-Cheney '04, Inc.;
Patrick H. Lyons, New Mexico Commissioner of Public Lands; former
Representative Manuel Lujan, Jr., executive committee member, and Allen
Weh, chairman, New Mexico Republican Party; former President Saddam
Hussein of Iraq; Prime Minister Tony Blair of the United Kingdom; Prime
Minister Silvio Berlusconi of Italy; President Aleksander Kwasniewski of
Poland; and Prime Minister John Howard of Australia. He also referred to
Camp Bondsteel in Kosovo.