    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2005, Book II)]
    [September 21, 2005]
    [Pages 1462-1469]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Remarks at the Republican Jewish Coalition 20th Anniversary Luncheon
    September 21, 2005

        Thank you all. Please be seated. Thank you. Thanks for the warm
    welcome. Thank you. Thanks for the warm welcome. I'm honored to join you
    in celebrating the 20th anniversary of the Republican Jewish Coalition.
    The RJC has been a powerful voice for the values of limited government,
    free enterprise, and a strong national defense. I want to thank you for
    your patriotism. I want to thank you to the devotion to our country.
    Because of your efforts, I really believe America is a stronger and
    better place.
        I'm particularly pleased to be invited to help pay tribute to one of
    the founders of this organization, Max Fisher. He was a trusted adviser
    to many Presidents, starting with Ike. He has been a friend of my
    family's. I was honored to count him as a wise counselor. I'm honored to
    know his wife, Marjorie, who is with us
    today. Max Fisher was a man of generosity and accomplishment, a
    patriotic American, a friend of Israel, and a champion for peace. And
    he's going to be greatly missed.

        As well, we mourn the passing of a great hero for freedom, Simon
    Wiesenthal. Simon Wiesenthal was a survivor
    and a witness, who served--who seared the horror of the Holocaust in the
    collective memory of the world. He's one of these leaders that refused
    to back down. He spoke with clarity. He insisted that we remember the
    lessons of the crime. He insisted that we remember that hatred prepares
    the way for

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    violence, and the failure to expose and confront intolerance can lead to
    atrocities beyond imagining. As we saw in the recent desecration of the
    synagogues in Gaza, the ancient hatred of anti-Semitism still burns in
    the hearts of men. And the best way we can honor Simon Wiesenthal's
    memory is to expose and confront anti-Semitism wherever it is found. By
    condemning this hatred at home and abroad, we stand with the victims of
    the Shoah and declare to the world: Never again.
        I want to thank my friend Sam Fox. I appreciate
    your friendship, you and Marilyn. I want to
    thank you for your leadership. I want to thank Matt Brooks. A smattering of applause out there for old Matty.
    [Laughter]
        I see some of the members of my administration here. I thank you all
    for coming. Don't linger too long. Get back to work. [Laughter] I
    appreciate the Members of the United States Congress who are with us. I
    see Senators and Congressmen--thank you all for coming.
        I know we got--we've got some statehouse folks here. I think my
    friend Haley Barbour is here. He was looking
    for a meal--he told me that on the plane yesterday. [Laughter] Anyway,
    he's doing a fine job as the Governor of Mississippi. Governor
    Romney is here with us today. I appreciate him
    being here. Lieutenant Governor Michael Steele is with us--Michael--from Maryland. Thank you for coming.
    Lieutenant Governor Brian Dubie from Vermont
    is with us. Brian, thank you for being here.
        How about your master of ceremonies? Good to see you, Ari. Thanks
    for coming. How's the kid? Huh? Good. Good man and a good friend, Ari
    Fleischer.
        I want to thank my friend Lew Eisenberg for being one of the cochairmen of the luncheon--and
    Elliott Broidy. I appreciate you all taking
    this assignment on.
        You're honoring good people today. Bernie
    Marcus--I appreciate the spirit of your corporation, Bernie--or your
    cooperation--your corporation during these tough times. It's remarkable.
    And I want to thank you for the outpouring of compassion you and your
    folks have shown. Shelly Adelson,
    congratulations, Shelly. It's good to see you. And of course, the man
    who is doing a fantastic job at the RNC, Ken Mehlman.
        I appreciate the fact that the Israeli Ambassador to the United
    States is with us today. He's a good man--Danny Ayalon. Good to see you, Danny.
        When I first came here, I looked around, I thought it might have
    been the ex-ambassadors club. [Laughter] Former Ambassadors
    Bernstein, Price,
    and Sembler are with us. Thank you all for
    serving our Nation, proud you're here.
        We are a strong and resilient nation. I've seen that strength, and
    I've seen that resiliency firsthand. One of the things that I hope you
    take comfort in knowing is that throughout our history, we've been
    challenged a lot, and every time we've been challenged, we have emerged
    a stronger and better nation. There is no challenge of man or nature
    that our citizens cannot overcome.
        And we're facing some challenges these days. At this moment, our
    fellow citizens along the gulf coast are recovering from one of the
    worst natural disasters in this country's history. Hurricane Katrina
    caused immense destruction. You cannot imagine what that countryside
    looks like down there. This storm swept away homes. It destroyed entire
    communities. It uprooted lives. And today, we've got another hurricane
    headed for Texas and Louisiana. I spoke to the Governor, Perry. I spoke to Governor Blanco yesterday about the preparations being made for
    this storm. Federal, State, and local governments are coordinating their
    efforts to get ready. Mandatory evacuations have been ordered for New
    Orleans and Galveston. I urge the citizens to listen carefully to the
    instructions provided by State and local authorities, and

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    follow them. We hope and pray that Hurricane Rita will not be a
    devastating storm, but we got to be ready for the worst.
        The scenes we witnessed in the past 3 weeks in Alabama and
    Mississippi and Louisiana have touched our hearts and have moved this
    Nation to action. I'm not talking about just government; I'm talking
    about the whole country. There has been an amazing outpouring of support
    all across America, and it's sent a clear message to the victims of
    Hurricane Katrina: This Nation cares about you. You're not alone.
        I made a pledge to the people of Alabama and Mississippi and
    Louisiana that we're going to stay as long as it takes. We'll do our job
    to help you recover. People need to hear that loud and clear. And I
    outlined our strategy for reconstruction on the gulf coast. It rests on
    three commitments.
        First, we're going to help meet the immediate needs of those whose
    lives were turned upside down. You got to understand thousands of people
    had to leave their homes and left all their possessions behind and went
    to shelters all throughout America. We have a duty to help them. So far
    we've mailed checks to 600,000--600,000 evacuee families to help them
    pay for food and clothing and other essentials. We helped them register
    for other aid that will be available because of laws on the books.
        Second, we're going to help the citizens get their lives back
    together. We've got housing assistance going to evacuees. We understand
    they can't live forever in shelters. We've got a strategy to help them
    go from shelter to apartment, or shelter to home. We've sent doctors and
    nurses to the region to help.
        You know, an amazing thing that's happened is a lot of States have
    accepted the families--the kids of these families into their schools.
    What a fantastic gesture of compassion and decency. In our own State of
    Texas, school district after school district has said, ``If you have a
    child that's school age, bring them to us. We'll help educate them.''
    The Federal Government has an obligation to reimburse those school
    districts, and I'm going to work with Congress to make sure we fulfill
    that obligation.
        And third, we're going to help ensure that the communities emerge
    stronger and better. The storm caused huge suffering, as I told you, but
    it's an opportunity to bring new life to neighborhoods that were
    suffering before the storm. So I've proposed some interesting ideas, and
    I want the United States Congress to listen carefully to these ideas.
        First, I believe we ought to create Gulf Opportunity Zones up and
    down the devastated areas to provide tax incentives and tax breaks to
    get business and jobs back in that area as quickly as possible. If you
    want to grow something, you shouldn't tax it. If you want to encourage
    small-business growth, we ought to incent it to grow in that part of the
    world. Somebody said the other day, ``Well, that's a tax break.'' That
    region is going to have zero income anyway. There's nothing there, in
    many parts of it. It makes sense to provide economic incentive, create
    economic incentives for jobs to exist. We want people heading back there
    for good, decent, good-paying jobs.
        I've proposed Worker Recovery Accounts to help evacuees be prepared
    for the jobs that are going to exist in that part of the world. Listen,
    there's going to be a construction boom down there. We want people from
    that part of the world being prepared to take on those jobs. And so
    these Worker Recovery Accounts will help with job training.
        I believe in urban homesteading. That says we're going to identify
    Federal property and provide lots for low-income citizens that they'll
    have for free, so long as they build a house on there with a mortgage or
    with the help of a charitable group like Habitat for Humanity.
        We've got a fantastic chance as we rebuild. See, when those streets
    are open, we want them to be lined with businesses, including businesses
    owned by minorities.

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    When those houses are rebuilt, we want more owners and less renters.
    When reconstruction is complete, we ought to look back at Hurricane
    Katrina and say that this country grew not only in prosperity but in
    character as well.
        There's a Federal role to play, and we'll play it. We'll do our
    duty. But there's also a State role and a local role. I believe as the
    vision of New Orleans emerges, it ought to be planned by people from New
    Orleans. And as the vision of that gulf coast of Mississippi emerges, it
    ought to be planned by the people in Mississippi. And we're going to
    help them. We'll help them make right choices. But we've got to remember
    that perhaps the greatest engine for change and growth will be the
    private sector. So as Congress thinks through its strategy, let's
    encourage the private sector to come in and help build those jobs and
    rebuild those lives.
        We'll make sure your money is spent wisely. We're going to make sure
    we make tough choices and set priorities here in Washington, DC. And
    we're going to make sure that the money is spent honestly by sending a
    team of inspector generals down there to review all expenditures. That's
    what the people of this country expect, and that's exactly what we're
    going to do.
        The American people have got a role to play in this effort. And
    since this storm, our Nation's armies of compassions have rallied and
    have come to the aid of people who are in desperate need of help. Our
    charities and houses of worship and idealistic men and women across this
    country have opened up their homes, their wallets, and their hearts.
    There's been an amazing, amazing outpouring of help. And the Jewish
    community of this country has been on the forefront of the efforts.
        At Tulane University, the director of the Chabad, Rabbi
    Rivkin, brought teams of students to New
    Orleans and southern Mississippi and other communities hit by the storm.
    He called in folks to help. He didn't say, ``Head away from the storm
    area.'' He said, ``Let's take it right to the middle of the storm area
    to help people.'' They helped rescue stranded people. They distributed
    bottled water and self-heating kosher meals. They cleaned up and helped
    salvage homes. They provided spiritual support for those who lost loved
    ones. And one of those rescued from New Orleans put it this way: In the
    days after Katrina hit, ``Chabad saved lives.''

        Rabbi Stanton Zamek of the temple Beth
    Shalom Synagogue in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, helped an African American
    couple displaced by the storm track down their daughter in Maryland.
    When Rabbi Zamek called the daughter, he told her, ``We have your
    parents.'' She screamed out, ``Thank you, Jesus.'' [Laughter] He didn't
    have the heart to tell her, she was thanking the wrong rabbi. [Laughter]

        Jewish organizations have thus far raised $17 million to help the
    victims of Katrina. Our citizens are answering the call of the Prophet
    Isaiah: ``If you give what you have to the hungry, and fill the needs of
    those who suffer, then your light will rise in the darkness, and your
    darkness will be like the brightest time of day.'' People are hearing
    that call all across the country. And there's more work to be done. I
    urge you to continue to pay attention to the folks down there by
    contributing to the Red Cross or the Salvation Army or the United Jewish
    Communities or B'nai B'rith International or the American Jewish
    Committee.

        It's important. We got a lot of work to do. But when it's all said
    and done, people are going to realize that this country can respond to
    crises and help a neighbor in need. This country has got enormous heart
    and enormous compassion. After it's all said and done, because of the
    compassionate outpouring of our people, the country's heart, collective
    heart, is going to be stronger and better.

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        You know, something we--I've been thinking a lot about how America
    has responded, and it's clear to me that Americans value human life and
    value every person as important. And that stands in stark contrast, by
    the way, to the terrorists we have to deal with. You see, we look at the
    destruction caused by Katrina, and our hearts break. They're the kind of
    people who look at Katrina and wish they had caused it. We're in a war
    against these people. It's a war on terror. These are evil men who
    target the suffering. They killed 3,000 people on September the 11th,
    2001. And they've continued to kill. See, sometimes we forget about the
    evil deeds of these people. They've killed in Madrid and Istanbul and
    Baghdad and Bali and London and Sharm el-Sheikh and Jerusalem and Tel
    Aviv. Around the world, they continue to kill.
        They have a strategy. They want to achieve certain objectives. They
    want to break our will. They want the United States of America and other
    freedom-loving nations to retreat from the world. Why? Because they want
    safe haven. They want to topple government. Just think Taliban in
    Afghanistan. That's their vision. And we can't let them do that.
        We have a solemn duty as a United States Government to protect the
    American people from harm. We have a solemn duty to remember there are
    generations coming behind us. We have a solemn duty to stay on the
    offense against these people, to defeat them in other lands so we don't
    have to face them here at home. And we have a solemn duty to lay the
    foundation of peace for generations to come.
        Iraq is the central battlefront in the war on terror. It's not the
    only place we're fighting the terrorists, but it's the central front
    right now. You see, the terrorists want to turn that country into what
    Afghanistan was. Imagine a place like Iraq, where they've got safe haven
    to plot and train. That's what they want. That's why they're pouring in
    there. That's why they're going into the country. That's why they're
    trying to create instability. They got a powerful weapon--these car
    bombs that end up on our TV screens. They got the capacity to affect our
    conscience because we value every life. Every person matters to the
    United States--people of the United States of America. It doesn't matter
    whether it's a--living in Iraq or right here at home, we care deeply.
    And they know that. And they're trying to get us out of there, is what
    they're trying to do, for a strategic objective. They want to be able to
    continue their war against freedom-loving people, with Iraq as a base.
        We've got our own strategy. We've got a strategy for victory. Our
    troops--we've got incredibly brave troops--are hunting these people down
    and bringing them to justice. We're training the Iraqis so they can
    fight--take the fight to the enemy alongside of us. Our motto is this--
    it's important for you to understand--as Iraqis stand up, we stand down.
    That means as they become more and more capable, it's up to them to take
    the fight to the enemy, with our help. It's up to them to be on the
    frontlines of dealing with these people.
        We're also going to defeat the enemy because they have no vision for
    the future that's positive. You can't be successful in convincing people
    to follow you if your vision is so dark and so dim as that of the
    terrorists. They have nothing to offer except violence.
        We've got something to offer, and that's freedom. And freedom is
    powerful. I believe this. At the heart of my belief is, one, there's an
    Almighty; and two, that freedom is a gift from the Almighty God to each
    man and woman in this world. That's what I believe. Freedom is not
    exclusively American. Freedom is universal. And last January, the people
    of Iraq showed the universality of that freedom. Now, it seems like a
    decade ago, doesn't it, since those 8\1/2\ million people went to vote,
    but it wasn't all that long ago. And a lot of people around the world
    didn't

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    believe that there was this great desire to be free. And yet, 8\1/2\
    million people showed up to the polls. They said, ``We want to be free.
    We want something other than the dark vision of these coldblooded
    killers, people who kill our children and kill police and kill aid
    workers and try to kill coalition forces.''
        And now the people have come together in difficult circumstances and
    written a constitution, and it's a good constitution. It's a
    constitution written with compromise, not with guns. It's a constitution
    where they're trying to overcome years of brutality because of a tyrant.
    And then the people are going to go to the polls again and vote for a
    government. No matter how many car bombs there are, these terrorists
    cannot stop the march of freedom in Iraq.
        But that march of freedom is not contained to Iraq only. I don't
    know if you paid attention to it the other day, this past weekend, but
    the Afghan people went to the polls again. They had a successful
    Presidential election. Now they voted for the parliament. It's amazing
    progress in a country that not all that long ago was a safe haven for
    Usama bin Laden and his plotters, that
    plotted the September the 11th attacks.
        But freedom isn't--the march of freedom isn't contained in
    Afghanistan alone. We saw the march of freedom take place in Lebanon,
    Kyrgyzstan, Ukraine, and Georgia. These examples of freedom are
    inspiring others. Freedom is universal. People want to live in freedom,
    and the more the world becomes free, those who live in darkness will
    demand the light of freedom. And as freedom advances, we're laying the
    foundation of peace for our children and our grandchildren. [Applause]
    Thank you all. Thank you. Thank you.
        This isn't easy work. I see the Members of Congress are still here,
    halfway through the speech. [Laughter] I want to remind you it's not
    easy, what we're doing, but it's necessary. It's the calling of our
    time. It's an opportunity to say, ``We've done our duty.'' It's an
    opportunity to say, ``We made this country safer, and we made the world
    better.''
        I got a partner in peace in Ariel Sharon.
    I've been impressed by his leadership. Sam mentioned
    the time when the RJC flew four Governors--and I happened
    to be one--to the Holy Land. And we went to a briefing by the Government
    of Israel then, and one of the Cabinet members was Ariel Sharon. And
    after the briefing, he introduced himself. He said, ``Would you like to
    go on a helicopter ride and take a look at the West Bank?'' I said,
    ``Are you flying?'' No--[laughter]--I said, ``You bet.''
        It's interesting how history works, isn't it? In 1998, fall of 1998,
    the future President of the United States and the future Prime Minister
    of Israel were flying across the--across that
    country, with him describing to me how to keep Israel secure. A couple
    of lessons I took away from there is, one, you know, how tiny the
    country is. You know, a guy from Texas, we got a lot of space there.
    There's not a lot of space there. How vulnerable Israel can be. I also
    came away with the strong impression about how strong the people there
    not only want to defend themselves, but how much they love democracy,
    that democracy is a critical part of their existence.
        Ariel Sharon has shown great leadership,
    and he made a tough and courageous decision. He decided to withdraw from
    Gaza. I'll never forget when he came and told me that. My immediate
    reaction was, ``This is a bold step for peace, Mr. Prime Minister, and I
    support you.'' He saw it, and I think I did, too, at the time, that such
    a decision would really force the world to recognize that only true
    peace will come when we defeat terrorism and establish democracy.
        And so now there's an opportunity, and the opportunity rests with
    the Palestinian people to show that they can govern themselves in a
    peaceful way. The policy of this Government is to streamline the
    security

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    forces so there's only one authority with security forces, and that's
    the authority that campaigned based upon a peace platform. The policy of
    this Government is to help entrepreneurship flourish, to help small
    businesses start. The Arab world needs to help right now. They need to
    step in and help the peaceful democratic forces within the Palestinian--
    within Gaza to thwart those whose stated objective is the destruction of
    Israel.
        The United States of America is firmly committed to defending the
    security and the well-being of our ally Israel. And we'll work with our
    friends in the region and throughout the world to achieve the peace that
    all want. My hope is that someday, there will be two democratic states,
    Israel and Palestine, living side by side in peace.
        These are historic times, and they're challenging, but I've got to
    tell you, I've got great hope, too, for the future. You know, in our
    response to terror and tragedy, we have seen how great suffering can
    awaken an even greater love, and we've been reminded there is no evil
    from which our Creator cannot draw forth greater good. You know, the
    attacks of September the 11th really causes us to be more determined
    than ever to defend our way of life. And it also gave us an opportunity
    to advance the cause of freedom that were previously unthinkable. And
    out of the horror of Katrina is going to come a rebirth for parts of our
    country that will mean people down there will be able to live with
    greater hope and prosperity--the hope of prosperity--than ever before.
        It's such an honor to be the President of a country that not only
    deals with our adversity but is able to create good out of the adversity
    we face. And the reason why we're able to is we've got a indomitable
    spirit, and we've got a land full of people that are incredibly generous
    and strong and compassionate. And I appreciate being in a room full of
    such people.
        I want to thank you for your friendship. Thank you for the love of
    America. May God bless you all.

    Note: The President spoke at 12 noon in the Andrew W. Mellon Auditorium.
    In his remarks, he referred to Sam Fox, national chairman, and his wife,
    Marilyn, Matthew Brooks, executive director, and Lewis M. Eisenberg and
    Elliott Broidy, members of the board of directors, Republican Jewish
    Coalition; Gov. Mitt Romney of Massachusetts; former White House Press
    Secretary Ari Fleischer; event honorees Bernard Marcus, co-founder, The
    Home Depot, Inc., Sheldon G. Adelson, chairman of the board, Las Vegas
    Sands Corp., and Kenneth B. Mehlman, chair, Republican National
    Committee; former U.S. Ambassador to Denmark Stuart A. Bernstein; former
    U.S. Ambassador to Mauritius, Seychelles, and Comoros John Price; former
    U.S. Ambassador to Italy Melvin Sembler; Gov. Rick Perry of Texas; Gov.
    Kathleen Babineaux Blanco of Louisiana; Rabbi Yochanan Rivkin, director,
    Tulane University Chabad Jewish Student Center; former President Saddam
    Hussein of Iraq; Usama Bin Laden, leader of the Al Qaida terrorist
    organization; and Prime Minister Ariel Sharon of Israel.

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