    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2006, Book I)]
    [June 16, 2006]
    [Pages 1157-1162]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Remarks at a Reception for Congressional Candidate Heather
    Wilson in Albuquerque, New Mexico
    June 16, 2006

        Thank you very much. Thanks for coming. It's great to be back in New
    Mexico again. It just seemed like I was here the other day. [Laughter]
    This time I've come because I cannot tell you how important it is to
    reelect Heather Wilson to the United States Congress.
        I have spent enough time in Washington, DC, to be able to
    distinguish between the real, genuine person and those who are

    [[Page 1158]]

    just up there to mark time. Heather Wilson is honest; she is capable.
    She has gone to Washington, DC, to do a job on behalf of the citizens of
    New Mexico, and she deserves to be reelected to the United States
    Congress.
        And I thank you for helping her. This has been a successful event.
    So I want to thank the organizers and the phone callers and the people
    that encouraged you to come, and then I want to thank you for being
    here. When you find somebody who is a decent soul willing to sacrifice
    time with her family, willing to travel the long distances between New
    Mexico and Washington, DC, willing to do the hard work on behalf of the
    citizens of Albuquerque and the surrounding area, you need to support
    her. And I want to thank you for supporting her.
        When Heather tells you something, she means it. And you don't have
    to worry about her disgracing the office of the United States Congress.
    You know, I like strong women. [Laughter] I was raised by one; I married one; and I hope
    we're raising two.
    [Laughter] And sometimes a strong woman--sometimes they--they all
    listen, and sometimes they do what you ask them to do, and sometimes
    they don't. [Laughter] See, Heather Wilson is an independent soul.
    That's what you want from a person from this district. You want somebody
    who is strong in her beliefs, strong in her convictions, but strong,
    first and foremost, to the people of this district. The way I like to
    describe her is: She's compassionate; she's smart; she's independent-
    minded; and she can get the job done. And that's why she needs to go
    back to the United States Congress.
        Laura sends her best. In the photo line, the
    guy said, ``Where's Laura?'' It didn't hurt my feelings, you know.
    [Laughter] Kind of like, you know, ``How come you're here and she's
    not?'' [Laughter] But Laura knows talent and strength of character when
    she sees it; Heather Wilson is one of her favorite people in Washington,
    DC. And she sends her love to Heather and sends her thanks to you all
    for helping this fine lady get reelected to the United States Congress.
        By the way, I lucked out when she said yes.
    [Laughter] We were raised, as you know, right across the border, so I
    have a pretty good feeling about the values and the thinking of the
    people of New Mexico. And so does Laura. And there's no doubt in her
    mind and my mind that Heather Wilson is the right person to represent
    you in the United States Congress. And again, I want to thank you. I
    forgot to ask you to do one thing, though, and that is thanks for giving
    of your hard-earned money; make sure that you turn out the vote coming
    down the stretch.
        She's going to win. No doubt in my mind, she's going to win. I want
    to thank her family, Jay, Joshua, and Caitlin. I was telling
    Joshua and Caitlin coming over--I spent some quality time with Heather
    on Air Force One; it's amazing what people do to get on Air Force One,
    by the way. [Laughter] I said to Joshua and Caitlin, ``I know a lot
    about you.'' They kind of looked at me like, you know, ``Huh?''
    [Laughter] I said, ``That's all your mother talked about for half the
    leg.'' [Laughter] I love a person who values her family, who places her
    family at the center of her life. We need people in the United States
    Congress who understand the importance of family in our society. Heather
    Wilson not only talks about family, she acts on her love of her family.
    And I want to thank Jay and Josh and Caitlin for being here today. And
    thank you for supporting your mom and your wife for her hard work doing
    the job.
        I want to thank Allen Weh--[applause]--yes,
    he's a good fellow. I want to thank the grassroots activists who are
    here. I want to thank those of you who, a lot of time, don't get credit
    for making phone calls--there's one right there--[laughter]--and people
    who put up the signs and go to the rallies and stuff the envelopes, the
    people who really turn out to be the wind

    [[Page 1159]]

    at the candidate's back. And you're going to make the difference coming
    down the stretch for Heather. So thank you in advance for what you're
    fixing to do.
        We're dealing with some big issues. We really are. These are
    historic times. And one of the reasons I feel so strongly that Heather
    needs to be reelected is, she understands the stakes of the world in
    which we live. See, we need people who see the world the way it is, not
    the way we would hope it would be. And the world we live in is a
    dangerous world because there's still enemies that would like to strike
    the United States of America.
        We need clear-eyed realists in Washington, DC. Heather Wilson is a
    clear-eyed realist. She brings a lot of experience to the job. By the
    way, she's on the Intelligence Committee; I'm probably not supposed to
    talk about it. [Laughter] The reason she's on it is because she's a
    clear-eyed realist. It's a very, very important job. She helps make sure
    this country has the best intelligence possible. And the reason that's
    important is because our most important job, the most important priority
    of the President and the Congress, is to protect the American people.
    And the best way to protect the American people is to stay on the
    offense and bring the killers to justice so they don't hurt the American
    people again.
        And in order to stay on the offense, we've got to have good
    intelligence, and we've got to have smart, capable people helping this
    Government find these terrorists. In order to protect the American
    people, I need people in the United States Congress who understand the
    importance of supporting the men and women who wear the uniform of the
    United States of America, and Heather Wilson understands that.
        We're fighting a global war on terror. Now, I know most of the
    attention is focused on Iraq, but I want to remind you, that is just a
    battlefield in the global war on terror. It's a part of the war on
    terror. I need people in the United States Congress like Heather, who
    understands that the war on terror is not just Iraq but it's
    Afghanistan, and it's places where people plan and plot their attacks on
    the United States of America.
        I just came back from Baghdad. It's a remarkable experience to,
    first and foremost, meet the leaders of a new Government, people that
    are in office because 12 million people are able to vote because we
    threw out a tyrant that was so brutal and so
    ruthless that--not only to kill his own people by the thousands, that he
    invaded his neighbors, that he threatened the United States of America,
    that he harbored terrorists. And now they have a chance to vote, and
    they did, and now there's a Government formed under one of the most
    modern constitutions ever written in the Middle East. And it was
    refreshing to see these people that are anxious to fulfill the will of
    the people of Iraq.
        And it's hard work. But I went to take the measure of the
    person. I went to say this to him: ``It's up
    to you; here's your chance; here's your chance to succeed; here's your
    chance to liberate people; here's your chance to make history; here's
    your chance to spread the peace; here's your chance to help us fight
    those who want to destroy your hopes and aspirations.'' And I also told
    him this, that ``When the United States of America gives a commitment,
    we will keep our word. We will not cut and run.'' It's important to have
    people in the United States Congress who understand the stakes of the
    fight in Iraq and complete the mission. And Heather Wilson is such a
    person.
        We're going to succeed in Iraq. We will succeed. And when we do,
    they will be an ally in the war on terror, and they'll be an example for
    others to see. You see, I base a lot of my decisions upon this belief:
    There is an Almighty, and one of the great gifts of the Almighty to men
    and women from all faiths and all walks of life is freedom. Freedom is
    universal. Freedom

    [[Page 1160]]

    is not owned just by people in the United States of America, it's
    universal; all people desire to be free. And free societies turn out to
    be peaceful societies. Free societies figure out ways to keep the peace.
    And so, in our fight against the terrorists, not only will we bring them
    to justice and stay on the hunt to protect the American people, but at
    the same time, we will act on the universal principle of freedom and
    help others become free.
        People say, ``What do you mean by that, Mr. President?'' Well, I'll
    give you an example. Two weeks from today, I'll be meeting with the
    Prime Minister of Japan, Prime Minister
    Koizumi. He's coming. We'll have a visit in Washington, DC. It turns out
    he's an Elvis fan, so he and I are then going to go to Graceland.
    [Laughter] Think about that, though. Think about the American President
    traveling to Graceland--[laughter]--with the Prime Minister of Japan.
    Let me ask you something--60 years ago, would you have thought that
    would be possible? [Laughter] Think about it.
        See, my dad and, I bet, your relatives
    too--some of you had relatives who fought the Japanese. They were the
    sworn enemy of the United States of America in a bloody, bloody
    conflict. And 60 years later, I'll be sitting down at the table with the
    Prime Minister talking about North Korea,
    how to keep the peace there. I'll be talking about the fact that their
    country has contributed 1,000 troops to help this young democracy in the
    heart of the Middle East. He understands that freedom can help change a
    neighborhood that's been full of hatred.
        What happened? What happened was Japan adopted a Japanese-style
    democracy. They had a different form of government. They became--they
    adopted a different style of governing themselves. Democracies have the
    capacity to convert enemies into allies. And what's happening today is
    we're after the terrorists not only by staying on the hunt, but we're
    after them with an ideology of hope, an ideology of light, an ideology
    that recognizes human rights and human dignity. And one of these days,
    somebody is going to be sitting down--a duly-elected leader from Iraq
    sitting down at the table with a future U.S. President talking about how
    to keep the peace. We're laying the foundation of peace for generations
    to come, and Heather Wilson understands the stakes.
        Our economy is strong. And one of the reasons it's strong is because
    we put policies in place that recognize that if you have more money in
    your pocket to save, invest, or spend, this economy is going to grow.
    See, there's a philosophical debate in Washington, DC: Who best can
    spend your money? [Laughter] We like--Heather and I like for you to
    spend your own money. We believe if you have more money in your pocket,
    the economy--[applause]. We believe if you're a small-business owner and
    you got more money in your treasury, your more likely to hire somebody.
    That's what we believe.
        The other crowd believes they need to run up your taxes, because
    they think they can spend your money better than you can. You might
    remember, we've had some tough economic times in this country. We had a
    recession, a stock market correction, corporate scandals, an attack on
    the United States of America, two wars to defend ourselves, major
    natural disasters, and high energy prices--and yet this economy is going
    strong. And we intend to keep it strong. [Applause]
        And the reason it's strong is because we cut the taxes. We let you
    keep more of your own money. Now, you'll hear them in Washington say,
    ``Well, what we need to do is balance the budget by raising the taxes.''
    That's not the way Washington works; it's just not the way. It may sound
    attractive to some here in Albuquerque, ``Oh, we'll just tax a certain
    number of people, and we'll balance the budget that way.'' No, the way
    Washington works is, they will raise your taxes, and they will figure
    out

    [[Page 1161]]

    new ways to spend your money. The best way to balance the budget is to
    set priorities when it comes to spending the people's money, to be
    strong on those priorities, and to keep progrowth economic policies in
    place so we get more tax revenues coming into the Treasury because this
    economy is growing. That's how you balance the budget.
        Make no mistake about it, if the other bunch gets in control of the
    Congress, you'll be paying higher taxes. And that's why we're going to
    win this November. People understand they're taxed enough. What they
    want is fiscal sanity in Washington, DC. That's what they want.
        You know something? One of the things that we're going to run on as
    a party and Heather can really run on is, she's delivered. Take
    Medicare, for example. That's a program--it's an important program. It
    was signed by Lyndon Baines Johnson in 1965. It's really an important
    deal. The Federal Government has made a commitment to help our elderly
    when it comes to health care. And our attitude is, if you make a
    commitment, you want to make sure you have a modern health care system.
    There's no need to make a commitment and have a lousy health care
    system. And Medicare had done a lot of good work, but it was getting
    old, and it needed to be reformed. Medicine was changing, but Medicare
    wasn't.
        And so we got together and decided we're going to do something on
    behalf of the seniors. We're going to fulfill our promise to the seniors
    of the United States of America. The other bunch had been talking about
    it, year after year. We did--we got something done. What we did is, we
    provided prescription drugs as an integral part of Medicare.
        People say, why was that important? Well, I'll give you one reason.
    Medicare would pay for heart surgery but would not pay one dime for the
    prescription drugs that could prevent the heart surgery from being
    needed in the first place. Medicine had been modernizing; Medicare had
    not. And thanks to the leadership of Heather Wilson, I was able to sign
    a modern Medicare bill. And if you're a poor senior in Albuquerque, New
    Mexico, this Government is going to help you with your prescription
    drugs. And the days of you having to choose between medicine and food
    are over, thanks to Heather Wilson.
        I could keep talking all day long about her--[laughter]--but I might
    miss my dinner with Laura. [Laughter] But I do
    want to talk about her love of the young people. You might remember, she
    served in the cabinet here as the Secretary of Children, Youth, and
    Family. She was--she said, ``Look, I want to serve my State by helping
    young people, helping the disadvantaged.'' In other words, she's got a
    good heart.
        And she took that heart to Washington and helped us pass the No
    Child Left Behind Act. Let me tell you something about the No Child Left
    Behind Act. It said, we're going to increase money, particularly for
    poor students. I think that's a good use of money. I really do. But
    instead of just accepting mediocrity in our schools, we said, ``We're
    going to challenge the soft bigotry of low expectations.'' Here's the
    truth. In some schools, it's just as easy to pass somebody who looks
    hard to educate along. ``If you're at such-and-such an age, you're
    supposed to be here; we'll just move you there.''
        See, Heather and I believe every child can learn, no matter if
    you're--how you were raised, no matter your heritage. We believe you can
    learn to read. You know, if your mom and dad don't speak English as
    their primary language, we still believe you can learn. And not only we
    believe you can learn, we expect the school to teach you to learn.
    That's what we want. We expect the schools to teach you how to read and
    write and add and subtract.
        And so we worked to raise the standards and said to States, ``You
    measure, because we want to know.'' We want to know early,

    [[Page 1162]]

    before it's too late. The No Child Left Behind Act that Heather was a
    strong supporter of has helped change America for the better. It says,
    if we find a child struggling with reading early, we're going to make
    sure there's extra money to help that child, because we don't want one
    child left behind in America.
        There is an achievement gap in America. There really is. When you
    look at the fourth grade results, there's a--the Anglo students are
    here, and Latino students are here, and the African American--that's not
    right. That's not what this country is all about. This country is about
    equal opportunity. This country is about making sure every child, no
    matter what her--his or her background is, gets a great education. And
    the No Child Left Behind Act is challenging mediocrity, and it's
    challenging failure, and that achievement gap is closing. And Heather
    Wilson gets credit for being a strong supporter of good schools in New
    Mexico.
        You know, there's a lot of problems that rise--rise up for a State
    like New Mexico. You've got very important labs, and these labs make a
    difference for the United States of America. But it's not a given the
    labs will be there. You need people in the Congress that understand how
    to get things done.
        It seems like to me the people of this district would want somebody
    to be able to pick up the phone and call the President of the United
    States and have the President of the United States answer the phone. I'm
    close to Heather, you know. As I told you, she's independent. But that
    doesn't mean I don't hold her in the highest--highest regard and deep
    respect, which I do. I love her integrity. And when she calls me on the
    phone, I answer. And guess what--guess what she's generally talking
    about? The people of this congressional district. She loves of the
    people of this district. She's serving the people of this district. And
    I urge the people of this district, for their own sake, for their own
    good, and for the good of the United States of America, to send Heather
    Wilson back to the United States Congress.
        Thanks for coming. God bless.

    Note: The President spoke at 4:40 p.m. at the Hyatt Regency Albuquerque.
    In his remarks, he referred to Allen Weh, chairman, Republican Party of
    New Mexico; Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki and former President Saddam
    Hussein of Iraq; and Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi of Japan.