[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2004, Book III)]
[October 9, 2004]
[Pages 2429-2436]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]



Remarks in Waterloo, Iowa
October 9, 2004

    The President. Thank you all for coming.
    Audience members. Four more years! Four more years! Four more years!
    The President. Thank you all for being here. What a beautiful day 
here in the great State of Iowa. Thanks for coming out to say hello. 
It's good to be in the home of tall corn, good tractors, and great 
people. You know, I remember coming to Waterloo quite a few times 
before--one or two times before, in the 2000 campaign. And it's always 
good to be back. The crowds are bigger, and so is the entourage. 
[Laughter]
    You know, we're getting closer to voting time here, and I'm here to 
ask for your vote, and I'm here to ask for your help.

[[Page 2430]]

There's no doubt in my mind, with your help, we'll carry Iowa and win a 
great victory in November.
    Some other people were voting today around the world. As we meet 
here this morning, a really great thing is happening in Afghanistan. The 
people of that country, who just 3 years ago were suffering under the 
brutal regime of the Taliban, are going to the polls to vote for 
President. Think about that. Just 3 years ago, women were being executed 
in the sports stadium. Today they're voting for a leader of a free 
country. A 19-year-old woman, an Afghan 
refugee who fled her homeland during its civil war, became the very 
first voter. Here is what she said. She said, ``I cannot explain my 
feelings, just how happy I am. I would never have thought I would be 
able to vote in this election.'' Amazing, isn't it? Freedom is 
beautiful.
    And today is an appropriate day for Americans to remember and thank 
the men and women of our Armed Forces who liberated Afghanistan.
    And earlier today I had the opportunity to call and congratulate my 
friend the Prime Minister of Australia, who won his election as well. 
Australia is a great ally in the war on terror, and John Howard is the right man to lead that country.
    As you can see, I'm keeping pretty good company today. So I said, 
``Laura, will you marry me?'' She said, ``Fine, 
just so long as I never have to give a speech.'' [Laughter] I said, 
``Okay, you've got a deal.'' Fortunately, she didn't hold me to that 
promise. When she speaks, the American people know they're looking at 
someone who has got great compassion, a great heart. She's a wonderful 
First Lady.
    I'm proud of my runningmate, Dick Cheney. He 
did a fine job in the debate the other night. I admit, he didn't have 
the waviest hair in the race. [Laughter] I didn't pick him because of 
his hair. [Laughter] I picked him because of his judgment, his 
experience. He's getting the job done for the American people.
    Before I came up here, I had the privilege of saying hello to 
Jay and Patrick Grassley; that would be the son and grandson of a really fine 
United States Senator. I told him the 
other day in Des Moines that we've got a big yard there at the White 
House. [Laughter] If he's looking for something to do--[laughter]--bring 
those mowers over. [Laughter]
    I appreciate Congressman Jim Nussle for his 
leadership. He's a fine, fine, fine leader.
    I appreciate Mayor Tim Hurley of 
Waterloo, Iowa. I appreciate you coming, Mr. Mayor. Now, I understand 
the mayor didn't ask me for any advice, but I'm going to give him some. 
[Laughter] Fill the potholes. [Laughter] I'm honored you're here, Mr. 
Mayor. Thank you for your service.
    I want to thank all the other State and local officials. I want to 
thank the people who are running for office. I want to thank Dave 
Roederer, who is the Bush-Cheney State 
campaign chairman. I want to thank Leon Mosley. 
I want to thank the grassroots activists who are here. I want to thank 
the people who are putting up the signs and making the phone calls, 
doing the hard work to turn out this vote. I want to thank the Sonny 
Burgess Band for being here. I'm honored you 
all are here. Appreciate you coming.
    We had a great debate last night. It highlighted some of the 
fundamental differences on issues from jobs to taxes to health care to 
our national security. Much as he tried to 
obscure it, on issue after issue my opponent showed why he earned the 
ranking of the most liberal Member of the United States Senate. Several 
of the statements last night simply don't pass the credibility test.
    With a straight face, he said, ``I have 
only had one position on Iraq.'' [Laughter] I could barely contain 
myself. [Laughter] He must think we've been on another planet. 
[Laughter] In the spring of 2003, as I ordered the invasion of Iraq, 
Senator Kerry said, ``It was the right decision.'' Now he says, ``It's 
the wrong war,'' and he tries

[[Page 2431]]

to tell us he's had only one position. He can run, but he cannot hide.
    With another straight face, he tried to 
tell Americans that when it comes to health care, his health care plan, 
and I quote, ``The Government has nothing to do with it.'' Eight out of 
ten people who get health care under Senator Kerry's plan would be 
placed on a Government program. He can run, but he cannot hide.
    And then Senator Kerry was asked to look 
into the camera and promise he would not raise taxes for anyone who 
earns less than $200,000 a year. The problem is, to keep that promise he 
would have to break almost all of his other ones. [Laughter] His plan to 
raise taxes on the top two income brackets would raise between $600 
billion by our estimates and $800 billion by his. But his health care 
plan alone costs 1.2 trillion. See, you can't have it both ways. To pay 
for big spending programs he's outlined during his campaign, he will 
have to raise your taxes. He can run, but he cannot hide.
    You know, after listening to the litany of complaints and the dour 
pessimism, it took all I could do not to make a bad face. [Laughter] 
Much of what my opponent said last night is 
contradicted by his own records. Twenty years of votes have earned him 
the ``most liberal'' label.
    I have a different record and a very different philosophy. I am a 
compassionate conservative. As your President, I have worked to make 
America more hopeful and more secure. I have led our country with 
principle and resolve, and that is how I will lead this Nation for 4 
more years.
    Audience members. Four more years! Four more years! Four more years!
    The President. I'm looking forward to the campaign coming down the 
stretch. I like to get out with the people. I like to tell the people 
what I believe and where I stand. I believe every child can learn and 
every school must teach. I went to Washington, DC, to challenge the soft 
bigotry of low expectations. We've raised standards. We're measuring 
early, to solve problems before it's too late. We're ending the old 
practice of just shuffling students through school whether they can read 
and write and add and subtract. And we're making progress. We're closing 
an achievement gap in America, and we're not going to go back to the old 
days of failure and mediocrity.
    I believe we have a moral responsibility to honor our seniors with 
good health care. I went to Washington to solve problems, not to pass 
them on to future Presidents and future generations. We had a problem in 
Medicare. Medicine was changing, but Medicare wasn't. For example, 
Medicare would pay tens of thousands of dollars for heart surgery but 
wouldn't pay a dime for the prescription drugs that would prevent the 
heart surgery in the first place. We worked together with Republicans 
and Democrats; I worked with Chuck Grassley to make sure Iowa's rural hospitals got help in the 
Medicare program. We've strengthened and modernized Medicare for our 
seniors. Beginning in 2006, all seniors can get prescription drug 
coverage. We're helping our seniors, and we're not turning back.
    I believe in the energy, innovation, and spirit of America's workers 
and small-business owners and farmers. And that's why we unleashed that 
energy with the largest tax relief in a generation.
    When you're out gathering up the vote, when you're out convincing 
people to come our way, remind them what we have been through. The stock 
market was in serious decline 6 months before Dick Cheney and I took office. It was an indication of a recession 
that was coming, and we went through that recession. Then we had some 
corporate scandals which affected our economy. We passed tough laws. 
It's now abundantly clear that we will not tolerate dishonesty in the 
boardrooms of America. And then we got attacked, and that attack cost us 
about a million jobs in the 3 months following September the 11th, 2001.
    But we acted. We put tax relief in place. And now our economy has 
been growing

[[Page 2432]]

at rates as fast as any in nearly 20 years. The recession was one of the 
shallowest in American history. The unemployment rate in America is at 
5.4 percent, lower than the average of the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s. The 
unemployment rate in Iowa is 4.5 percent. The farm economy is strong 
here in the State of Iowa. More people own a home than ever before in 
the United States of America. We're moving forward to a more hopeful 
country, and we're not going to turn back.
    I believe the most solemn duty of the American President is to 
protect the American people. If America shows uncertainty or weakness in 
this decade, the world will drift toward tragedy. This will not happen 
on my watch. I'm running for President with a clear and positive plan to 
build a safer world and a more hopeful America. I'm running with a 
compassionate conservative philosophy that Government should help people 
improve their lives, not try to run their lives. And with your help, 
we're going to win.
    Any hopeful society has a growing economy, and I've got a plan to 
keep our economy moving forward. To make sure jobs are here, to make 
sure people can find work, America must be the best place in the world 
to do business. To keep jobs here, we need to reduce the burden of 
regulations on our business creators and job creators. To create jobs, 
we got to stop these junk lawsuits that are threatening the small 
businesses which are creating most new jobs in America.
    To create jobs, Congress needs to pass my energy plan. My plan 
encourages conservation. It encourages the use of renewables like 
ethanol and biodiesel. It encourages new technologies. It encourages 
clean coal technology. What I'm telling you is, to keep jobs here we 
must become less dependent on foreign sources of energy.
    To keep jobs here, we got to reject economic isolationism and open 
up markets around the world for U.S. products, for Iowa farm products. I 
like it when I hear people around the world are eating Iowa corn or Iowa 
soybeans. See, I believe that we can compete with anybody, anywhere, 
anytime, so long as the rules are fair. And that's why I'm telling 
countries like China, ``You treat us the way we treat you.''
    To create jobs, we got to be wise about we spend your money. We're 
going to keep your taxes low. You heard the language last night, ``All 
I'm going to do is tax the rich.'' We've heard that before in American 
politics. You know what that means, ``tax the rich.'' The rich hire 
lawyers and accountants for a reason: to stick you with the tab. We're 
not going to let him tax you. We're going to 
win in November.
    I'll tell you something else about the Tax Code: It's a complicated 
mess. It is a million pages long. Americans spend 6 billion hours a year 
working on their tax returns. In a new term, I'm going to bring people 
together and simplify this Tax Code and make it more fair for you.
    Most new jobs are filled by people with at least 2 years of college. 
That's what happens in a changing world. Yet only one in four of our 
students gets there. That's why in our high schools, we'll fund early 
intervention programs to help at-risk students. We'll place a new focus 
on math and science. Over time, we'll require a rigorous examination. By 
raising performance in our high schools and expanding Pell grants for 
low- and middle-income families, we'll help more Americans start their 
career with a college diploma.
    I'm a big believer in the community college system in America. I 
believe the community colleges can be used wisely to make sure our 
workers gain the skills necessary to fill the jobs of the 21st century.
    In this time of change, we also need to reform our health care 
system. We had a spirited debate last night on health care. The 
differences are clear. When it comes to health care, my opponent wants Government to dictate. I want you to decide. I 
want you to be the decisionmaker. So we have a plan to make sure health 
care is

[[Page 2433]]

available and affordable. I believe in community health centers, places 
where the poor and indigent can get care. I believe every poor county in 
America ought to have a community health center. I know we got to make 
sure our programs for low-income children are fully subscribed, to make 
sure America's health care system works.
    But we've got to do more to make sure health care is affordable as 
well. Listen, most of the uninsured work for small businesses. Small 
businesses are having trouble affording health care. To more enable 
people to be able to afford health care, we ought to allow small 
businesses to pool risk, to join together across jurisdictional 
boundaries so they can buy insurance at the same discounts that big 
businesses can do.
    To make sure health care is affordable, we've got to expand health 
savings accounts, so workers and small businesses are able to save on 
premiums and people can save tax-free for a health care plan they call 
their own. To make sure health care is available and affordable, we've 
got to do something about these junk lawsuits that are running up the 
costs of health care and running good docs out of practice. You can't be 
pro-patient, pro-doctor, and pro-trial-lawyer at the same time. You have 
to choose. My opponent made his choice, and he 
put a trial lawyer on the ticket. I made my 
choice. I am for medical liability reform--now. In all we do to improve 
health care, this administration will make sure the health decisions are 
made by patients and doctors, not by officials in Washington, DC.
    In a time of change, some things don't change. Those are the values 
we try to live by, courage and compassion and reverence and integrity. 
In changing times, we'll support the institutions that give our lives 
direction and purpose, our families, our schools, our religious 
congregations. We stand for 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. We 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 that terrible morning, 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. We're 
transforming our military. I will make sure the All-Volunteer Army 
remains the All-Volunteer Army. We're reforming and strengthening our 
intelligence. We're staying on the offensive. We're striking the 
terrorists abroad so we do not have to face them here at home. We will 
work to advance liberty in the broader Middle East and around the world, 
because we understand free societies are peaceful societies. And we'll 
prevail.
    Our strategy is succeeding. Think about the world as it was about 
3\1/2\ 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 secretly pursuing nuclear 
weapons. Iraq was a dangerous place and a gathering threat. Al Qaida was 
largely unchallenged as it planned attacks.
    Because we led, Afghanistan is fighting terror and held a 
Presidential election today; Pakistan is capturing terrorist leaders; 
Saudi Arabia is making raids and arrests; Libya is dismantling its 
weapons programs; the army of a free Iraq is fighting for freedom; and 
more than three-quarters of Al Qaida's key members and associates have 
been brought to justice. We have led. Many have joined. And America and 
the world are safer.
    The 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. We knew he 
harbored terrorists. We knew he hated America. We knew he had a long 
history of pursuing and even using

[[Page 2434]]

weapons of mass destruction. We know that after September the 11th, we 
must take threats seriously before they come to haunt us, before they 
hurt us.
    In Saddam Hussein, we saw a threat. I 
went to the Congress. They looked at the very same intelligence I looked 
at, and they came to the same conclusion: Saddam Hussein was a threat. 
And they authorized the use of force. Some Members of the Senate want to 
forget that vote--or want you to forget it.
    Before the United States ever commits troops into harm's way, we 
must try all means to deal with a threat. I understand the consequences 
of putting troops into combat. I know what it means. And so I went to 
the United Nations in hopes that diplomacy would work. The United 
Nations looked at the issue and passed another resolution. And this 
resolution said to Saddam Hussein, 
``Disclose, disarm, or face serious consequences.'' When an 
international body speaks, it must mean what it says.
    The free world gave Saddam Hussein 
another chance, a final chance, to meet his demands. And as he had for 
over a decade, he refused the demands of the free world. He 
systematically deceived inspectors. So I had a choice to make at this 
point in time: Do I forget the lessons of September the 11th and take 
the word of a madman----
    Audience members. No-o-o!
    The President. ----or take action to defend America? Given that 
choice, I will defend our country every time.
    We did not find the stockpiles we thought were there. But I want you 
to remember what the Duelfer report said. 
It said that Saddam Hussein was gaming the 
Oil for Food Programme to get rid of sanctions. And why? Because he had 
the capability and the knowledge to rebuild his weapon programs. And the 
great danger we face in the world today is that a terrorist organization 
could end up with weapons of mass destruction. Knowing what I know 
today, I would have made the same decision. The world is safer with 
Saddam in a prison cell.
    Because we acted, freedom is on the march. We know what's happening 
in Afghanistan. And despite ongoing acts of violence, Iraq has got a 
strong Prime Minister, a National Council, and 
national elections are scheduled for January. We're standing with the 
people in Afghanistan and in Iraq because when America gives its word, 
America must keep its word. But we're doing so as well because it will 
make us safer. Free societies in the Middle East will be hopeful 
societies which no longer feed resentments and breed violence for 
export. Free governments in the Middle East will fight terrorists 
instead of harboring them, and that helps us keep the peace.
    So our mission in Afghanistan and our mission in Iraq is clear. 
We'll help those leaders train armies so the people of Afghanistan and 
Iraq can do the hard work of defending democracy. We will help them get 
on the path to 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, and I want to thank the 
veterans who are here today for having set such a great example. And I 
want to thank the military families who are here today. I want to assure 
you, we'll keep the commitment I have made to our troops that they will 
have all the resources they need to complete their missions. That's why, 
in September 2003, I went to the Congress and requested $87 billion in 
funding for body armor and spare parts, ammunition, fuel, and other 
supplies necessary for our troops in combat in both Afghanistan and in 
Iraq. It was really important funding. As a matter of fact, we received 
great bipartisan support in both the House and the Senate. As a matter 
of fact, only 12 United States Senators voted against the funding, 2 of 
whom are my opponent and his 
runningmate.
    Audience members. Boo-o-o!

[[Page 2435]]

    The President. When you're out talking up this election and 
reminding people about the difference in this campaign, remind them 
there were only four United States Senators who voted to authorize the 
use of force and then voted against providing the funding for our 
troops--only four, two of whom are my opponent 
and his runningmate.
    Audience members. Boo-o-o!
    The President. You might remember his 
famous quote, ``I actually did vote for the $87 billion, before I voted 
against it.'' I don't suspect a lot of people in Waterloo, Iowa, speak 
that way. He's given a lot of explanations for that vote. One of my 
favorites is when he said, ``Well, the whole thing is a complicated 
matter.'' There's nothing complicated about supporting our troops in 
harm's way.
    On national security, my opponent has a 
record of voting against the weapons systems that helped our country win 
the cold war. He voted to cut America's intelligence budget by 7.5 
billion after 1993. And now he says he wants a ``global test'' before 
taking action to defend America's security. The problem is, Senator 
Kerry's own record shows we can never pass that test. In 1990, the 
United Nations Security Council passed a resolution supporting action to 
remove Saddam Hussein from Kuwait. The 
international community was united. Countries throughout the world 
joined our coalition. Yet in the United States Senate, after the 
Security Council resolution, Senator Kerry voted no.
    Let me tell you how I think the President ought to lead. The 
President will always work with our friends and allies. We've built 
strong coalitions. As a matter of fact, I can--I told you I 
congratulated Prime Minister John Howard today. 
But I will never allow other nations to veto America's national security 
decisions.
    In the long run, the best way to defend our security is to spread 
freedom. I believe in the transformational power of liberty. I like to 
tell people about my friend Prime Minister Koizumi of Japan. I was with him recently in the United 
Nations in New York. I said, ``By the way, I'm campaigning a lot, and 
I'm talking about you a lot on the campaign trail. Do you mind?'' He 
said, ``Not at all.'' I didn't ask him if I could tell you his favorite 
singer was Elvis, which it is. What's interesting about my meetings with 
him is that, one, we get along great, and Laura 
and I consider him a friend. But we're sitting down with the head of a 
country that was a sworn enemy of America not so long ago. My dad fought against the Japanese. I just know a lot of 
people out here's relatives fought against the Japanese. It was a bloody 
war. But after the war was over, Harry S. Truman, President of the 
United States, believed in the transformational power of liberty, 
believed that liberty could change an enemy into an ally.
    Now, there were some people in the United States at that time who 
didn't agree with that. There were skeptics and pessimists. You can 
understand why. After a war, there was bitterness about what took place. 
Some, I'm confident, were saying, ``Who cares about the enemy. We won.'' 
But fortunately, enough Americans didn't believe that way, and they 
helped Japan become a democracy. And today, I sit down with my friend 
Prime Minister Koizumi, talking about how 
to keep the peace, talking about the peace that we all want for our 
children and grandchildren.
    We'll succeed in Iraq. We've got a plan that will work. I believe 
strongly the Iraqi people want to live in a free society, and someday a 
duly elected leader of Iraq will be sitting down with the President of 
the United States, talking about how to keep the peace. And our children 
and our grandchildren will be better off for it.
    I believe that millions in the Middle East plead in silence for 
their freedom. I believe women want to grow up in a free society and 
raise their children in a free society. I believe that given a chance, 
the people in the Middle East will embrace the most honorable form of 
government ever devised

[[Page 2436]]

by man. I believe all these things because freedom is not America's gift 
to the world; freedom is the Almighty God's gift to each man and woman 
in this world.
    For all Americans, these years in our history will always stand 
apart. There are quiet times in the life of a nation when little is 
expected of its leaders. This is not one of those times. This is a time 
that requires firm resolve and clear vision and the deep faith in the 
values that make us a great nation.
    None of us will ever forget that week when one era ended and another 
began. September the 14th, 2001, I stood in the ruins of the Twin 
Towers. It's a day I'll never forget. I'll never forget the workers in 
hardhats that were yelling at me at the top of their lungs, ``Whatever 
it takes.'' I will never forget the man who had been in the rubble 
looking for a friend, who came out and grabbed me by the arm, and he 
said, ``Do not let me down.'' Ever since that day, I wake up every 
morning thinking about how to better protect our country. I will never 
relent in defending America, whatever it takes.
    You know, 4 years ago when I traveled your great State in the 
caucuses and then in the general election, I made a pledge that if you 
gave me the chance to serve, I would uphold the honor and the dignity 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 for coming. I'm honored you're here. Thank you 
all for being here.

Note: The President spoke at 11:13 a.m. at Riverfront Stadium. In his 
remarks, he referred to Prime Minister John Howard of Australia; David 
Roederer, Iowa State chair, Bush-Cheney '04, Inc.; Leon Mosley, State 
cochair, Republican Party of Iowa; entertainer Sonny Burgess; Charles 
Duelfer, Special Advisor to the Director of Central Intelligence; Prime 
Minister Ayad Allawi of the Iraqi Interim Government; and Prime Minister 
Junichiro Koizumi of Japan. He also referred to the ``Comprehensive 
Report of the Special Advisor to the DCI on Iraq's WMD,'' issued 
September 30.