[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2004, Book III)]
[October 16, 2004]
[Pages 2542-2543]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]



The President's Radio Address
October 16, 2004

    Good morning. Over the past 4 years, I have brought a 
straightforward approach to the Presidency. I tell you what I'm going to 
do, and I keep my word. When I came into office 4 years ago, the economy 
was sliding into recession. Then terrorist attacks cost our Nation 
nearly a million jobs in 3 months. To help families and to get this 
economy growing again, I pledged to reduce taxes, and I kept my word. 
Now the results are clear. Over the last 3 years, America's economy has 
grown at the fastest rate of any major industrialized nation. The 
homeownership rate is at an alltime high, and we have added more than 
1.9 million new jobs in the past 13 months.
    My opponent has a different approach. Over 
the last 20 years, he has voted to raise taxes 98 times. Now he is 
promising over $2.2 trillion in new spending, and paying for it would 
require broad tax increases on small businesses and the middle class. I 
have a better plan. I will continue to be wise with taxpayers' money, 
and I will keep your taxes low.
    When I came into office, too many of our children were shuffled 
through school without learning the basics. I pledged to restore 
accountability and end the soft bigotry of low expectations, and I kept 
my word. Now our children are making sustained progress in reading and 
math, and we are closing the achievement gap for minority students.
    My opponent has pledged to weaken the No 
Child Left Behind Act. His proposals would undermine the accountability 
we worked so hard to pass. I have a better plan. We will keep demanding 
results for all our children, and we will leave no child behind.
    When I came into office, Medicare wasn't paying for the prescription 
drugs that can reduce health costs and save a lot of lives. I pledged to 
strengthen and modernize Medicare for our seniors, and I kept my word. 
Now seniors are saving money with drug discount cards. And in 2006, all 
seniors will be able to get prescription drug coverage.
    On health care, my opponent has a history 
of opposing needed reforms. He voted against the Medicare bill even 
though it was supported by the AARP and other seniors groups. He has 
voted 10 times against medical liability reform, and now his health care 
proposal calls for bigger, more intrusive Government. Eight out of ten 
people who get health care under his plan would be placed on a 
Government program. I have a better plan. I will protect doctors and 
patients from junk lawsuits, help employees in small businesses afford 
health coverage, make sure every poor county has a community health 
center. And I will make sure health decisions are always made by 
patients and doctors, not by officials in Washington, DC.
    In this time of change, some things do not change. Those are the 
values we try to live by, courage and compassion, reverence and 
integrity. I stand for a culture

[[Page 2543]]

of life in which every person matters and every being counts. I stand 
for marriage and family, which are the foundations of our society. I 
stand for the appointment of Federal judges who know the difference 
between personal opinion and the strict interpretation of the law.
    My opponent says he supports the 
institution of marriage, but he voted against the Defense of Marriage 
Act, which Congress passed by an overwhelming majority and my 
predecessor into law. My opponent has 
voted against sensible bipartisan measures like parental notification 
laws. He voted against the ban on partial-birth abortion.
    On issues that are vital to this Nation's future, all Americans know 
where I stand. I'm a compassionate conservative. I believe in policies 
that empower people to improve their lives, not try to run their lives. 
I believe in helping men and women find the skills and tools to prosper 
in a changing world. I have worked to help all Americans build a future 
of dignity and independence. And that is how I will continue to lead 
this Nation for 4 more years.
    Thank you for listening.

Note: The address was recorded at 10:45 a.m. on October 15 at the 
Jacksonville Inn in Jacksonville, OR, for broadcast at 10:06 a.m. on 
October 16. The transcript was made available by the Office of the Press 
Secretary on October 15 but was embargoed for release until the 
broadcast. The Office of the Press Secretary also released a Spanish 
language transcript of this address.