[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2004, Book II)]
[September 13, 2004]
[Pages 2031-2038]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]
Remarks in Holland, Michigan
September 13, 2004
The President. Thank you all very much for coming. Nothing like a
little Dutch hospitality on the campaign trail.
I'm here to ask for your vote. That's what I'm doing today. I
believe you've got to get out amongst the people and ask for the vote.
And not only do I want your vote, I want your help. Go out and register
your friends and neighbors to vote. Don't overlook the discerning
Democrat, people like Zell Miller. And then when
you register them to vote, get them headed to the polls. Then when you
get them headed to the polls, tell them if you want a safer America, a
stronger America, a better America, put Dick Cheney and me back in office.
I wish Laura were here today. She is a great
mom, a wonderful wife. I'm going to give you some reasons to put me back
in, but perhaps the most important one of all is so that Laura is the
First Lady for 4 more years.
Audience members. Four more years! Four more years! Four more years!
The President. Listen, I'm real proud to be--I'm proud to be running
with my friend Dick Cheney. Look, I admit it, he
doesn't have the waviest hair in the race. [Laughter] I didn't pick him
because of his hair. I picked him because he's a man of good judgment,
good experience, a man who gets the job done.
I want to thank my friend Pete Hoekstra
and his wife, Diane. Hoekstra is a good one,
a fine Member of the United States Congress. I look forward to working--
he said, when we were coming in on the bus, he said, ``Remind them we
worked on the desks together.'' [Laughter] I did. They put him the head
of the Intelligence Committee. Believe me, that's a big deal. I'm
looking forward to working with him to make sure we've got the best
intelligence possible to protect our country.
I want to thank the mayor for being here. Mr. Mayor--Mayor
Al is with us today. I appreciate him
coming. Just fill the potholes, Mr. Mayor, and everything will be fine.
[Laughter] I appreciate, Mayor--tell your police force how much we
appreciate their sacrifice and service. And while you're thanking the
police, thank those firefighters, too, for their service.
And I want to thank my friend Betsy DeVos
and her father-in-law, Rich. I want to thank all the grassroots
activists who are here. Those are the people who put up the signs and
make the phone calls. Thank the local officials who are here.
I thank the Bellamy Brothers are here, my friends the Bellamy Brothers. Good to see
you guys. Thank you for coming. I want to thank the Holland Public High
marching band for coming today. Make sure you hustle back to class and
start studying. [Laughter]
Here's what I believe. I believe with your help, we will carry
Michigan and win a great victory in November. I'm looking forward to
campaigning in your State. I'm looking forward to spending a lot of time
here. I'm going to tell the people where I stand, what I believe, and
where I'm going to lead this Nation for the next 4 years.
I believe every child can learn and every school must teach. I went
to Washington to challenge the soft bigotry of low expectations, to
raise the standards, to measure
[[Page 2032]]
early and solve problems before it's too late. I went to stop this
practice of just shuffling children through the schools grade after
grade, year after year, without learning the basics. I went to make sure
Washington trusts the local people to make the right decisions for their
schools. We're closing the achievement gap in America, and we're not
turning back.
I believe we have a moral responsibility to provide our seniors with
good health care. I knew Medicare was an important program, but it
wasn't changing with the times. See, we pay $100,000 for heart surgery
but not the prescription drugs to prevent the heart surgery from being
needed in the first place. That didn't make any sense for our seniors.
It didn't make any sense for our taxpayers. We've strengthened Medicare,
and we're not turning back.
I believe in the energy, innovation, and spirit of America's workers
and farmers and small-business owners. And that's why we unleashed that
energy with the largest tax relief in a generation.
When you're out rounding up the vote, you remind your friends and
neighbors what this economy has been through. We have been through a
recession. We've been through corporate scandals. By the way, we passed
new laws, and it's now clear, abundantly clear, that we're not going to
tolerate dishonesty in the boardrooms of America. And we went through
that terror attack. And that attack hurt our economy.
But we're overcoming those obstacles. Our economy has been growing
at rates as fast as any in nearly 20 years. We're overcoming those
obstacles because we've got great workers and great farmers. We're
overcoming those obstacles because the tax relief is working.
The national unemployment rate is 5.4 percent. That is lower than
the average rate of the 1970s, the 1980s, and the 1990s. Listen, there
are some areas of our country that are still lagging behind, but we'll
continue to promote a pro-growth, pro-small-business policy, pro-
entrepreneur policy for the next 4 years so people can find a good job
here in America.
I believe a President--I believe it's a job of a President to
confront problems, not pass them on to future Presidents and future
generations. I believe the most solemn duty of the American President is
to protect the American people. If America shows uncertainty and
weakness in this decade, the world will drift toward tragedy. This is
not going to happen on my watch.
Audience members. Four more years! Four more years! Four more years!
The President. I am running for President with a clear and positive
plan to build a safer world and a more hopeful America. I am running
with a compassionate conservative philosophy that Government should help
people improve their lives, not try to run their lives. I believe this
Nation wants steady, consistent, principled leadership, and that's why,
with your help, we're going to win a great national victory in November.
Listen, I understand the world we live in today is a changing world.
Think about what happened in the workplace. Years ago, our fathers and
grandfathers worked for one job, one company. They had one pension plan,
one health care plan. Today, people change careers and change jobs
often, and the most startling change of all is that women now work not
only in the house but outside the house.
We have a changing world. And yet, the fundamental systems haven't
changed. The Tax Code, health coverage, pension plans, worker training
were created for the world of yesterday, not tomorrow. So over the next
4 years we're going to transform these systems so that all citizens are
equipped, prepared, and thus truly free to be able to make their own
choices and to be able to realize the great promise of this country.
Listen, any hopeful society has got to be one in which the economy
is growing, and I've laid out a plan to make sure that this economy of
ours continues to grow. To keep jobs here in America, America
[[Page 2033]]
must be the best place in the world to do business. That means less
regulations and less lawsuits on our small-business owners.
Listen, to keep jobs here in America, we need an energy plan. I
submitted a plan to the United States Congress, and it's stuck in there.
It's a plan that encourages conservation, encourages the use of
renewables, encourages clean coal technology, encourages the use of
technology to make sure we explore for hydrocarbons in environmentally
friendly ways. But it's a plan that recognizes to keep jobs here, we
need to be less dependent on foreign sources of energy. To keep jobs
here, we've got to be wise about how we use our natural resources,
including water. And that starts with keeping the Great Lakes water in
the Great Lakes Basin.
See, earlier this year, my opponent said a
decision about Great Lakes water diversion would be a delicate balancing
act.
Audience members. Boo-o-o!
The President. That kind of sounds like him, doesn't it? My position
is clear: My administration will never allow the diversion of Great
Lakes water.
Listen, to keep jobs here, we've got to make sure we open up foreign
markets to our products. See, if we open up our market, it's good for
you we do. See, the economy works this way: If you have more choices in
the marketplace, you're likely to get the product you want at a better
price and higher quality. So what I'm telling the places like China is,
``You treat us the way we treat you.'' And the reason I'm saying that is
I know we can compete with anybody, anytime, anywhere if the rules are
fair.
To create jobs here in America, to make sure this economy continues
to grow, we've got to be wise about how we spend your money, and we've
got to keep your taxes low. Taxes are an issue in this campaign. I'm
running against a fellow who's promised at least
$2 trillion in new money so far.
Audience members. Boo-o-o!
The President. And we haven't even gotten in the stretch run yet. So
they said to him the other day, ``Well, how are
you going to pay for them?'' And he said, ``That's easy. Just tax the
rich.''
Audience members. Boo-o-o!
The President. We've heard that before, haven't we? First of all,
you can't raise enough money by taxing the rich to cover his $2.2
trillion of new spending. There is a tax gap. Guess what he's thinking?
Guess who he thinks is going to fill the tax gap
when he can't make it with the rich? Yes.
Let me tell you what else--you've heard that ``I'm going the tax the
rich'' before, haven't you? That's why the rich hire accountants and
lawyers so you get stuck with the bill. But we're not going to let
him tax you. We're going to win in November.
Let me tell you something else we've got to do about this Tax Code:
We've got to change it. It's a complicated mess. It's full of special-
interest loopholes. In a new term, I'm going to bring the Republicans
and Democrats together to simplify the Tax Code, to make the Tax Code
more fair. We want more people working than spending time--than the time
they have to spend on filling out all these forms. Do you realize
Americans spend about 6 billion hours a year on Federal taxes? That's
one complicated code that needs to be fixed and will be fixed.
In a changing world, we've got to recognize we've got to help our
workers gain the skills necessary to fill the jobs of the 21st century.
Jobs are changing. Sometimes the skill sets aren't. That's why I'm such
a big believer in the community college system around America. I also
understand that most new jobs are filled by people with at least 2 years
of college. Yet, only one in four of our students gets there. That's why
in high schools we'll fund early intervention programs to help students
at risk. We must place a new focus on math and science. Over time, we
will require a
[[Page 2034]]
rigorous exam before graduation. By raising performance standards in
high school, by expanding Pell grants for low- and middle-income
families, we will help more Americans start their career with a college
diploma.
Times have changed. We've got to do more to make sure health care is
available and affordable. More than half of the uninsured in America are
small-business employees and their families. Small businesses are having
trouble affording health care. In order to help the families who work
for these companies, we must allow small firms to join together so they
can purchase insurance at the discounts available to big companies.
We want people owning and managing their own health plans, and
that's why I believe we ought to expand health savings accounts. I want
to expand community health centers so poor people can find good health
care all across America, particularly in our poor counties.
I know in order to make sure we've got good docs practicing
medicine, to make sure health care is affordable, we need to stop these
junk lawsuits. You cannot be pro-doctor, pro-patient, pro-hospital, and
pro-trial-lawyer at the same time. You have to choose. My
opponent made his choice, and he put him on the ticket.
Audience members. Boo-o-o!
The President. I made my choice. I'm for medical liability reform--
now.
Our plan to improve the quality of health care is practical. It's a
commonsense plan to make health care more accessible, more affordable,
and to keep the good docs practicing medicine. I believe that health
care decisions should be made by doctors and patients, not by
Washington, DC, bureaucrats.
We have a difference of opinion in this campaign. I'm running
against a fellow who's put out a health care plan
that is massive. It is complicated. It is a blueprint to have the
Government control your health care.
Audience members. Boo-o-o!
The President. And he can't pay for his plan.
Today there's an independent study out that says his health care plan
today would cost taxpayers 1.5 trillion new dollars.
Audience members. Boo-o-o!
The President. No, that's just the kind of plan you would expect
from a Senator from Massachusetts.
In a new term, I'll continue to promote an ownership society in
America. In changing times, ownership can bring stability to your lives.
One of the great statistics of the modern--of the last couple of years,
is the homeownership rate is at an alltime high in America. We've got a
plan to continue homeownership in America. I love the fact, when people
from all walks of life can open up their door where they're living and
say, ``Welcome to my home. Welcome to my piece of property.''
We need to--listen. On Social Security, we need to--I want the
younger workers here to listen carefully to this debate on Social
Security. If you're on Social Security today, nothing is going to
change. I do not care what the DC politicians will tell you. Nobody is
going to take away your benefits. And if you're a baby boomer, you're in
pretty good shape when it comes to Social Security.
But we need to worry about our children and grandchildren when it
comes to the Social Security system. I think we need to think
differently when it comes to our children and grandchildren. I think we
ought to allow young workers to put aside some of their own tax money in
a personal savings account, to make sure Social Security fulfills the
promise.
If you listen carefully to the rhetoric in this campaign, I'm
running against a fellow who wants to expand Government. We want to
expand opportunity for every single citizen of this country.
I also recognize, in the world of change, some things do not change.
The values we try to live by do not change, courage and
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compassion, reverence and integrity. In times of change, we'll support
the institutions that gives our lives direction and purpose, our
families, our schools, our religious congregations. We stand for a
culture of life in which every person counts and every being matters. We
stand for marriage and family, which are the foundations of 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 America responds to the
continuing danger of terrorism. Since the terrible morning of September
the 11th, 2001, we have fought the terrorists across the Earth, not for
pride, not for power, but because the lives of our citizens are at
stake. Our strategy is clear. We're defending the homeland, transforming
our military, and strengthening our intelligence services. We're staying
on the offensive. We are striking the terrorists abroad so we do not
have to face them here at home.
Audience members. Four more years! Four more years! Four more years!
The President. We will work to advance liberty in the broader Middle
East and throughout the world, and we will prevail. Our strategy is
succeeding. Four years ago, 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 pursuing nuclear
weapons; Iraq was a gathering threat; and Al Qaida was largely
unchallenged as it planned attacks.
Because we acted, because we led, the Government of a free
Afghanistan is fighting terror; Pakistan is capturing terrorists; Saudi
is making raids and arrests; Libya is dismantling its weapons programs;
the army of Iraq is fighting for freedom; and more than three-quarters
of Al Qaida's known leadership has been brought to justice.
We have led. Many have joined, and America and the world are safer.
This progress involved careful diplomacy, clear moral purpose, and some
tough decisions. And the toughest came on Iraq. We knew Saddam
Hussein's record of aggression and support
for terror. We knew his long history of pursuing, even using, weapons of
mass destruction. And we know that after September the 11th, our country
must think differently. We must take threats seriously before they fully
materialize.
In Saddam Hussein, we saw a threat. I
went to the United States Congress, and members of both political
parties, including my opponent, looked at the
same intelligence, remembered the same history, and recognized Saddam
Hussein was a threat. They voted the authorization of force. They said,
``Go ahead and use force if you need to. He's a threat.''
Before the Commander in Chief commits troops into harm's way, we
must have tried all alternatives. That's why I went to the United
Nations. I was hopeful that diplomacy could deal with this threat. I was
hopeful diplomacy would work. The United Nations looked at the same
intelligence I did. They remembered the same history we remembered and
voted 15 to nothing to say to Saddam Hussein,
``Disclose, disarm, or face serious consequences.''
The world spoke, but as he had for over a
decade, he ignored the resolutions of the United Nations. He wasn't
about to listen to the demands of the free world. As a matter of fact,
when the U.N. sent inspectors in to find the truth, he systematically
deceived them. So at this point, I have a choice to make. I have a
decision to make, a decision that only comes to the Oval Office, a
decision no President wants to make but must be prepared to make, and
that is: Do I trust the word of a madman, forget the lessons of
September the 11th, or take action to defend this country? Given that
choice, I will defend America every time.
Audience members. Four more years! Four more years! Four more years!
[[Page 2036]]
Audience members. U.S.A.! U.S.A.! U.S.A.!
The President. Because we acted to defend ourself, more than 50
million people are now free. That makes the world more peaceful. Think
about Afghanistan. It wasn't all that long ago that young girls weren't
allowed to go to school, and their mothers got whipped in the public
square because they didn't toe the line of the Taliban. These people
were barbaric people. They had hijacked a good religion and converted it
into an ideology of hate. Today, in Afghanistan, more than 10 million
people, 40 percent of whom are women, have registered to vote in the
upcoming Presidential election.
Despite ongoing acts of violence, Iraq now has a strong Prime
Minister, a National Council, and national
elections are scheduled in January. We're standing with the people in
those countries, because when America gives its word, America must keep
its word. And by standing with them, we're also serving a vital and
historic cause that will make our country safer. See, free societies in
the Middle East will be hopeful societies which no longer feed
resentments or breed violence for export. Free governments in the Middle
East will fight terrorists instead of harboring them, and that helps us
keep us safe.
So our mission in Afghanistan and Iraq is clear: We will help the
new leaders train their police and their armies, so the people of
Afghanistan and Iraq can do the hard work of defending freedom. We will
help them move toward elections. We'll get them on the path of stability
and democracy as quickly as possible, and then our troops will come home
with the honor they have earned.
We've got a great United States military, people like Lance Corporal
Russell Bullock, who's with us today. I've
had the honor of meeting people like Russell, men and women who wear our
uniform. I've seen their great decency and unselfish courage. I want to
thank the veterans who are with us today for having set such a great
example.
And I believe the Government has a commitment, has an obligation to
those who wear our uniform. They must have all the resources they need
to complete their missions. That's why a year ago I went to the United
States Congress and proposed $87 billion of supplemental funding to
support our troops in combat in both Iraq and Afghanistan. It was a very
important piece of legislation. As a matter of fact, most Members of the
United States Congress understood its importance. We had great
bipartisan support for this request, so strong that only 12 Members of
the United States Senate voted against it, 2 of whom are my
opponent and his runningmate.
Audience members. Boo-o-o!
The President. When you're out gathering the vote, when you're out
convincing people to go to the polls, remind them that only four United
States Senators voted to authorize the use of force and then voted
against funding our troops, and two of those four are my opponent and his runningmate.
Audience members. Boo-o-o!
The President. They said, ``Why did you do that?'' And he said, ``Well, I actually did vote for the $87 billion,
before I voted against it.'' Now, I know Holland, Michigan, well enough
to know not many people talk like that around here. [Laughter] And they
kept pressing him. They kept pressing him. He said he was proud of his
own--he finally just said, ``The whole thing is a complicated matter.''
There is nothing complicated about supporting our troops in combat.
The Commander in Chief must have clear vision and mean what he says
when he speaks. When it comes to Iraq, my opponent has more different
positions than all his colleagues in the Senate combined. Senator
Kerry once said, ``It would be naive, to the
point of grave danger, not
[[Page 2037]]
to believe that left to his own devices Saddam Hussein will provoke, misjudge, or stumble into a future, more
dangerous confrontation with the civilized world.'' Then, in 2002 he
voted for the war, but then voted against funding for our troops. When
the heat got on in his Democrat primary, he declared himself the antiwar
candidate. Then, later--earlier this summer he said he would have still
voted to go to war even knowing everything we know today. Then, about 10
days ago he adopted the language of his one-time rival, Howard Dean,
saying it was ``the wrong war at the wrong time,'' even though he said
earlier it was the right decision and he supported it.
Here's the latest wrinkle--I'm trying to figure out what he
believes. He said we're spending too much money in Iraq, even though he
earlier criticized me for not spending enough. One thing about his
position is clear. If he had had his way, Saddam
Hussein would still be in power and would be
a threat to our security and peace in the world.
Listen, I want to thank our friends and neighbors--friends and
allies for their contributions. I've spent a lot of time doing that. I
appreciate the fact--we've got nearly 40 nations involved in
Afghanistan, some 30 nations involved in Iraq helping us to spread
freedom and peace. But I will never--as I build coalitions over the next
4 years, as I continue to work with friends and neighbors, I will never
turn over America's national security decisions to leaders of other
countries.
I believe in the transformational power of liberty. I believe the
wisest use of American strength is freedom.
I like to share stories of my time with different leaders around the
world, and one of them is--one of the leaders I admire a lot is Prime
Minister Koizumi of Japan. Think about
that--one of the people with whom I have good relations is the leader of
a country that my dad was at war with. Your dads or granddads, husbands,
grandfathers were at war with them. We had a bloody war with Japan, a
violent war.
So World War II was over, after we had won. My predecessor Harry
Truman and other Americans believed that liberty could transform enemies
into allies. They stood the line. There was a lot of skepticism during
those times. But they stood strong for the values that we believe in.
And as a result of helping Japan become a democracy, today I sit down at
the table with Prime Minister Koizumi
talking about the peace, talking about how to make the world a more
hopeful place, talking about working together to spread the peace we all
yearn for. Someday, an American President will be sitting down with a
duly elected leader of Iraq talking about the peace. And our children
and grandchildren will be able to grow up in a much better world.
I believe that millions in the Middle East want to be free. I
believe women in the Middle East long for a day of their freedom. I
believe that if given the chance, they will embrace the most honorable
form of government ever devised by man. I believe these things, because
I understand freedom is not America's gift to the world; freedom is the
Almighty God's gift to each man and woman in this world.
This young century will be liberty's century. By promoting freedom
at home and freedom abroad, we'll build a safer world and a more hopeful
America. By reforming our systems of government, we'll help more
Americans realize their dreams. We'll spread ownership and opportunity
to every corner of this country. We'll pass the enduring values of our
country on to a new generation. We'll continue to make the world a more
free and, therefore, a more peaceful place.
For all Americans, these years in our history will stand apart.
There are quiet times in the life of a nation when little is expected of
its leaders. This isn't one of those times. It's a time that requires
firm resolve, clear vision, and a deep faith in the values that make us
a great nation.
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None of us will ever forget that week when one era ended and another
began. On September the 14th, 2001, I stood in the ruins of the Twin
Towers. It's a day I'll never forget. There were workers in hardhats
there yelling at the top of their lungs, ``Whatever it takes.'' I
remember trying to console the people coming out of the rubble. A guy
looked me in the eye, bloodshot eyes, and he said, ``You do not let me
down.'' Ever since that day, I've woken up--I wake up every morning,
ever since that day, thinking about how better to protect our country. I
will never relent in defending America, whatever it takes.
Four years ago, as I traveled this great country and your wonderful
State asking for the vote, I made a pledge. I said that if you gave me a
chance to serve, I would uphold the dignity and the honor of the office
to which I had been elected. With your help, with your hard work, I will
do so for 4 more years.
God bless. Thank you all for coming. Thank you all.
Note: The President spoke at 1:21 p.m. at the Ottawa County Fairgrounds.
In his remarks, he referred to Senator Zell Miller of Georgia, who made
the keynote address at the 2004 Republican National Convention; Mayor
Albert H. McGeehan of Holland, MI; Diane Hoekstra, wife of
Representative Hoekstra; Betsy DeVos, chairman, Michigan Republican
Party; entertainers the Bellamy Brothers; Prime Minister Ayad Allawi of
the Iraqi Interim Government; former Democratic Presidential candidate
Howard Dean; and Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi of Japan.