    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2006, Book II)]
    [October 26, 2006]
    [Pages 1927-1933]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Remarks at a Reception for Senatorial Candidate Michael
    Bouchard in Warren, Michigan
    October 26, 2006

        Thank you all. Thanks for coming. The way to go from worst to first
    is elect Mike Bouchard to the United States Senate. I am impressed by
    Mike Bouchard's character, his decency, his compassion for the people of
    Michigan. And there's no doubt in my mind, with your hard work, he'll be
    elected to the United States Senate.

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        I thank you for coming. You know, it's an interesting year. The
    other side is dancing in the end zone, except they're on the 15-yard
    line. We got the issues on our side. We got the right candidates
    running. Mike Bouchard is going to win. And I appreciate you coming to
    support him.
        And I'm proud to be here with Pam and his
    family. I thank--you know, there's nothing better than having a
    candidate who has got a strong family. I appreciate the fact that he
    puts family first in his life. And I know what it's like to have a
    loving wife and kids that love you because I've got a loving wife. And she understands what I know: Michael Bouchard is
    the right man for this job.
        I appreciate Congressman Joe Knollenberg joining us. Congressman, I appreciate you coming. We
    got the State attorney general, Michael Cox.
    Michael, where are you? Thanks for coming, buddy. [Applause] There you
    go. He's a good man to be running with. He's a good, strong leader. I
    appreciate you coming, Mike.
        I'm proud to be here with the grassroots activists for the State of
    Michigan, the party chairman, the
    national committeewoman; the cochair of the
    Michigan Republican Party happens to Jane Abraham. I know her husband quite
    well. [Laughter] The reason I bring up the grassroots activists is, I
    want to remind you that giving money is one thing; turning out the vote
    is the other. And coming down the stretch, this good man is going to
    give it his all, but he needs you by his side. He needs people getting
    on the telephones and putting up the signs and knocking on doors and
    reminding people of Michigan, if they want good government and good
    results, Mike Bouchard is the--should be the United States Senator.
        And when he wins, we've got a lot to do together--got a lot to do
    together. One thing we're going to do together is to make sure we
    continue to develop alternative fuel for our automobiles. See, we've got
    a problem here in America. We are too dependent on foreign sources of
    oil. And the best way to diversify away from foreign sources of oil is
    to encourage renewable fuels like ethanol. We want Michigan farmers
    growing the fuel that runs our automobiles, for the sake of economic
    security and national security.
        I'm looking forward to having this good Senator vote to confirm the
    judges I nominate to the Federal bench. Make no mistake about it, one of
    the key issues in this campaign is the type of judiciary we end up
    having in America. My job is to appoint judges who will strictly
    interpret the Constitution and not use the bench from which to
    legislate. And it would be--if you believe in that philosophy, it's
    important that you have at least one United States Senator from Michigan
    who will support a conservative judiciary, and that's Senator Mike
    Bouchard.
        I mentioned his love for family. He understands what I know, that
    marriage is a fundamental institution of our civilization. Yesterday in
    New Jersey, we had another activist court issue a ruling that raises
    doubts about the institution of marriage. I believe that marriage is a
    union between a man and a woman. Mike and I believe that marriage is a
    sacred institution, that it is critical to the health of our society and
    the well-being of families, and marriage must be defended.
        Another big issue in this campaign, and one I'm looking forward to
    working with Senator Bouchard on, is taxes. You know, we believe that we
    ought to keep your taxes low because we believe you can spend your money
    better than the Government can. The Democrats believe that they can
    spend your money better than you can and, therefore, will raise your
    taxes.
        Make no mistake about it, this is a key issue in this campaign. When
    we were confronted with recession and corporate scandal and an attack on
    the United States and the war--needed to defend ourselves--and
    hurricanes and high energy prices, this

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    economy was able to withstand those challenges because we cut the taxes.
    See, if you have more money in your pocket to save, invest, or spend,
    this economy grows.
        Oh, you heard all the rhetoric during those tax debates. For those
    people who are undecided in this campaign, you might want to look up the
    words of the respective candidates when it came to cutting taxes. You
    might want to make sure you understand the record of people who are
    running in this race for the United States Senate when it comes to
    taxes. You might remember, the Democrats said that tax cuts were not the
    solution for an economy that was slipping into recession. Truth is, the
    tax cuts have helped make America's economy the fastest growing of any
    major industrialized nation.
        The Democrats said the tax cuts would lead to a jobless recovery.
    You might remember that rhetoric. The truth is that our economy has
    added jobs for 37 months in a row, and since August of 2003, our economy
    has created more than 6.6 million new jobs. Oh, the Democrats said the
    tax cuts would cause the deficit to explode. Well, the truth is that the
    tax cuts led to economic growth, and that growth has helped send tax
    revenues soaring. As a result, we cut the deficit in half 3 years ahead
    of schedule.
        And now the Democrats are telling you they're going to win on
    election day. But the truth is, if their electoral predictions are as
    reliable as their economic predictions--[laughter]--November 7th is
    going to be a good day for Michigan because Mike Bouchard is going to
    win the United States Senate.
        One of the reasons why we're going to hold the Senate and hold the
    House on election day is because the Democrats are determined to raise
    the taxes on the people that work in this country. Oh, I know, they're
    not going to admit it out loud, but I want to remind you of what the top
    Democrat leader in the House said recently. She
    said, ``We love tax cuts.'' Given her record, she must be a secret
    admirer. [Laughter]
        It's just not the so-called tax cuts for the rich that she opposes. When we cut taxes for everyone who pays income
    taxes, she and her House colleagues, as well as Members of the United
    States Senate, voted against that tax cut. When we reduced the marriage
    penalty, she and her colleagues in Washington, DC, voted against it.
    When we cut the taxes on small business, she and her colleagues voted
    against it. When we lowered taxes for families with children, she and
    her colleagues voted against it. When we reduced the taxes on capital
    gains and dividends, she and her colleagues in Washington, DC, voted
    against it. When we put the death tax on the road to extinction, she and
    her colleagues in Washington, DC, voted against it. Time and time again,
    when she had an opportunity to show her love for tax cuts--[laughter]--
    she voted no. If this is the Democrats' idea of love--[laughter]--I
    wouldn't want to see what hate looks like. [Laughter]
        No, taxes are a big issue--big issue. Oh, you'll hear them try to
    obscure the deal by saying, ``We're just--only going to tax the rich
    people.'' I want you to tell your fellow citizens who have yet to make
    up their mind that in 1992, they campaigned on, ``We're going to give
    you a middle class tax cut.'' And when they had the power and the
    capacity to make the decisions about taxes in the White House and in the
    Congress, we had the largest--one of the largest tax increases--
    increases--in American history. Their record is clear. They can run, but
    they can't hide. If the people of Michigan want low taxes, you vote for
    Mike Bouchard as United States Senator.
        I want to talk about taxes just a little bit more. [Laughter] See, I
    know how important they are for this economy of ours. I know how
    important they are for small businesses. I know how important it is for
    our farmers and ranchers to get tax cuts.

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    I know how important it is for people who are working for a living to be
    able to have more money in your pocket so you can make the decisions for
    your family. I know how important it is to keep taxes low. I've seen it
    work. We've got a record that we can run on.
        You know, the way it works is, is that these tax cuts we passed are
    set to expire, so, therefore, they have to be renewed by Congress or
    made permanent. So recently they asked the head man on the Ways and
    Means Committee in the House of
    Representatives--he would be the head man, see, he's the ranking member
    on the Ways and Means Committee--they asked him about which tax cuts he
    would extend--the ones that maybe help the family with children, or the
    ones that get rid of the marriage penalty. He asked that--he couldn't
    think of one of those tax cuts that he would extend. In other words, by
    not extending, he's raising your taxes. See, they try to hide behind the
    language.
        I don't know if your opponent is
    trying to hide behind the language, but I doubt that she's going to be
    there to make sure these tax cuts we passed stay intact. I want to tell
    you what that means. It means that if the child tax credit were cut in
    half, if these tax cuts aren't extended, if you're having breakfast with
    your family and you got one kid, your taxes go up $500, if they get
    control. Imagine having lunch with four children and the tax cuts don't
    get extended. That mother and father can rest assured that the Democrats
    will have caused their taxes to go up by 500 times four. That would be
    $2,000. That may not seem like a lot to the big spenders in Washington,
    DC, but it's a lot to the people who work for a living. If you want to
    keep your taxes low, you vote for Mike Bouchard for the United States
    Senate.
        Mike mentioned an issue that's on my mind a lot. As a matter of
    fact, every day I think about how best to protect the American people,
    because that is the most important responsibility of your Government. I
    wish I didn't have to say that, but as your Commander in Chief and as
    the person responsible for rallying the Federal Government to use all
    assets to protect you, I've got to speak plainly to the American people.
    An enemy still lurks; a dangerous enemy still exists, which will use any
    means they can to attack us again. And therefore, we must use every
    means we have at our disposal to protect you. The most important job I
    have, and the most important job this United States Senator will have,
    is to make sure that we do everything in our power to protect the
    American people.
        See, we face an enemy that knows no bounds of decency. They're
    ideologues, but they're ideologues of hate. They have taken a great
    religion and have twisted it to their evil intentions. They want to
    establish a caliphate, a governing structure, from Spain to Indonesia,
    in which they're able to impose their dark vision on decent men and
    women. They want safe haven from which to launch attack against America
    again. They would like the wealth so they can develop weapons of mass
    destruction to use against us.
        You cannot negotiate with these people. You cannot reason with these
    people. The best way to attack--the best way to defend America is to go
    on the attack, stay on the attack, and bring the people to justice
    before they hurt us again.
        And Michigan needs a United States Senator who understands the
    stakes of the world in which we live, and that Senator will be Mike
    Bouchard. We need a Senator up there who understands this is a global
    war fought on a variety of fronts. One of the lessons of September the
    11th is we must stay on the offense. Look, it's hard to plan, plot, and
    attack if you're running or hiding in a cave. And you got to know, we
    got immense pressure on those who would do harm to the United States.
        The other lesson--another lesson is, is that when we see a threat
    overseas, we must take that threat seriously. America cannot wait to
    respond after we've been

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    attacked. One of the lessons of that fateful day is we must do
    everything in our power to protect you before there's an attack. I saw a
    threat in Iraq. Getting rid of Saddam Hussein
    has made the United States safer and the world better off.
        And now our job is to complete the mission, and that is to help Iraq
    become a government--a country that can govern itself, sustain itself,
    defend itself, a country that will be an ally in the war against these
    extremists that want to harm us. And the stakes are high. It's important
    that we succeed. It's important that we understand there's an enemy that
    will kill innocent life so they can get their images on our TV screens,
    because they believe it's just a matter of time before we leave before
    the job is done.
        If we were to listen to the Democrats in Washington, DC, who say,
    ``Let's have a fixed date of withdrawal''--by the way, that's code word
    for saying, leave before the job is done--we would turn over this
    important country to radicals and extremists who would plot and plan and
    attack.
        I want you to think about a world in which violent forms of
    extremists battle for power, a Middle East in which moderate governments
    have been toppled, a Middle East in which these extremists get ahold of
    oil and energy and enable--to enable them to blackmail the United
    States. Imagine the message: ``If you don't abandon your relationship
    with Israel,'' for example, ``we'll run the price of oil up to--if you
    don't retreat to allow us to continue to expand our caliphate or
    governing structure, we'll run the oil up.'' Imagine Iran with a nuclear
    weapon 20 or 30 years from now. People would look back at this period of
    time and say, ``What happened to them? How come they couldn't see the
    threats to a generation of Americans who are growing up? Why weren't
    they able to see the dangers that persisted?''
        I see the dangers. I understand the stakes. Victory in Iraq is
    essential for the security of the United States of America. We will
    change our plans; we will adjust our tactics; but we will support our
    military. We will support this young democracy, and we will win in Iraq.
        And there's a fundamental difference of opinion. You listen to the
    rhetoric of the leaders of the Democrat Party. They have a different
    view than I do about whether or not this is a global war on terror. They
    have a different view about how aggressive the United States should be
    in pursuing enemies overseas so we do not have to face them here at
    home.
        I want you to listen to what the--one of the leaders in Washington, DC, said this past Sunday. She said--a
    Democrat leader in a nationally televised interview--she said, ``It is
    not right to say that, quote, `Iraq is part of the war on terror.' '' In
    other words, they don't believe Iraq is a part of the war on terror.
    They believe it is a separate theater of some kind. I'm not sure what
    they believe. This is a global war we're--fight. You can't win a war if
    you don't believe we're in a war. And therefore, we need leaders in
    Washington, DC, who understand the stakes.
        And her position on Iraq would come as news to Usama bin Laden, who has proclaimed that the ``third world war is
    raging in Iraq.'' Her position would come as news to the number-two man
    of Al Qaida, Mr. Zawahiri, who has called
    the struggle in Iraq ``the place for the greatest battle.'' Her position
    on Iraq would come as news to the terrorists from Syria, Saudi Arabia,
    Egypt, Sudan, Lybia, Yemen, and other countries who have come to Iraq to
    fight America and the coalition forces. Her position would come as news
    to the people of Iraq who have lost loved ones as a result of terrorist
    bombings and beheadings and brutal acts of terror. Her position would
    come as news to those brave men and women who wear the uniform of the
    United States of America who are risking their lives every day to
    protect the American people.

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        And her position that the war on terror--see, she went on to say
    it's only in Afghanistan--her position that the war on terror should be
    fought only in Afghanistan would come as news to the citizens of London
    and Madrid and Amman and Bali and Beslan and Riyadh and Istanbul and
    Casablanca and other cities where the terrorists have murdered innocent
    men, women, and children.
        We need people in Washington, DC, who understand the stakes of the
    world in which we live. Our most important duty is to protect you. And
    the best way to protect the American people is to confront the enemy
    overseas so we do not have to face them here at home. And the best way
    to confront the enemy is to be clear-eyed and understand that if we were
    to leave Iraq before the job is done, the enemy would follow us right
    here to the United States of America. We will fight; we will win in
    Iraq.
        We got a lot of assets at our disposal. We got the finest military
    that has ever existed, and we need a United States Senator who will
    support them. And when I say support them, I mean give them all the
    tools necessary so they can do their job. This Government owes these
    young men and women and their families all the support necessary, and
    I'm confident that Senator Mike Bouchard will help me provide that
    support.
        But we've got another asset, and that's the power of liberty. I like
    to tell the story--as a matter of fact, I'm going to tell it as many
    times as people will listen--[laughter]--about my trip to Elvis's place.
    [Laughter] I went down there, as you might recall, with the then sitting
    Prime Minister of Japan, who no longer
    holds the office, Prime Minister Koizumi. He's a friend of mine. We went
    down there. I'd never been, thought it would be fun to go. He wanted to
    go a lot. [Laughter] He was an Elvis fan.
        But I also wanted to tell a story. And here's the story. My
    dad, like many of your--who got relatives
    here, many of you whose relatives did the same thing, who are--you're
    here; the relatives probably aren't--[laughter]--joined the Navy to
    fight the Japanese. You know the kind of people I'm talking about. He's
    an 18-year-old kid; the Japanese had attacked America. They killed more
    people on 9/11 than were killed at Pearl Harbor. And yet he went, just
    like the kids who are signing up today. We've got unbelievable men and
    women who are saying, ``I understand the stakes, and I want to go defend
    my country''--as volunteers. That's what happened in World War II. And
    it was a bloody war, and a lot of people lost their lives. It was a
    tough, tough fight.
        I find it to be really interesting that the son of this Navy
    pilot is on Air Force One flying down to
    Memphis, Tennessee, with the Prime Minister of the former enemy, talking about peace, talking
    about the fact that this country of Japan has sent 1,000 troops into
    Iraq, because the--Prime Minister Koizumi and I understand that we're
    involved in an ideological struggle between decent people who want to
    live in peace and radicals and extremists who will battle democracy in
    order to be able to impose their will.
        We talked about North Korea and the fact that not only the North
    Korea--man trying to get him a nuclear weapon and
    how destabilizing that would be, but we mourned the fact that thousands
    starve inside that country. We talked about HIV/AIDS on the continent of
    Africa and our understanding that to whom much is given, much is
    required, and that this great country, I assured him, would continue to
    take the lead in providing antiretroviral drugs to help save lives. And
    we talked about helping Afghanistan build up its democracy.
        Isn't it amazing? My dad fought the
    Japanese, and I'm talking about keeping the peace. Something happened
    between World War II and today, and what happened was, Japan adopted a
    Japanese-style democracy. Democracies yield the peace.

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    Liberty has got the capacity to transform an enemy into an ally. Liberty
    has got the capacity to transform regions of hopelessness to regions of
    light and hope.
        Someday an American President will be sitting down with duly elected
    leaders from the Middle East talking about keeping the peace, and our
    children and grandchildren will be better off for it.
        God bless.

    Note: The President spoke at 6:03 p.m. at the Mabry Banquet and
    Convention Center. In his remarks, he referred to Saulius Anuzis,
    chairman, and Holly Hughes, national committeewoman, Michigan Republican
    Party; former Secretary of Energy Spencer Abraham; former President
    Saddam Hussein of Iraq; Usama bin Laden, leader of the Al Qaida
    terrorist organization; and Chairman Kim Jong Il of North Korea.