    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2006, Book II)]
    [August 30, 2006]
    [Pages 1573-1574]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Remarks at Cotham's in the City and an Exchange With Reporters in Little
    Rock, Arkansas
    August 30, 2006

        The President. Asa recommended I come in
    and get some fried chocolate chip pie, so I did. I'm looking forward to
    eating it. It's a pleasure to be here with you. I've known Asa for a
    long time. He's the kind of fellow who can set an agenda and then
    achieve the results necessary to get the job done. I've seen him first
    hand in Washington. He's a fellow I called upon to help us get the
    Homeland Security Department up and running. And so I want to thank you
    for having me come here.
        Asa Hutchinson. Thank you, Mr. President.
        The President. I'm proud to call you friend, and thanks for the
    advice.
        Mr. Hutchinson. You can't beat the fried
    pie here at Cotham's in Little Rock.
        The President. Well, I'm looking forward to eating it. When you get
    to 60, you've got to be a little careful about what you eat. But
    nevertheless, I'm going to give it a shot, on the recommendation of my
    friends. Anyway, it's good to be back here in Little Rock. This is a
    good town. I've come here a lot, as candidate and as President. I
    appreciate my friends here; I appreciate the values of the people that
    live in this State. I hope to be back soon. Anyway----
        Mr. Hutchinson. Mr. President, we're glad
    to have you. It's been a great visit. Thanks for helping us out. And we
    welcome you back anytime. And thank you for your leadership.
        The President. Thank you, sir. We'll see you all in Tennessee.

    President's Upcoming Speeches/War on Terror

        Q. Sir, do you think your new series of speeches are going to have
    an impact on midterm elections?
        The President. My series of speeches, they're not political
    speeches. They're speeches about the future of this country, and they're
    speeches to make it clear that if we retreat before the job is done,
    this Nation would become even more in jeopardy.
        These are important times, and I seriously hope people wouldn't
    politicize these issues that I'm going to talk about. We have a duty in
    this country to defeat terrorists. That's why we'll stay on the offense
    and bring them to justice before they hurt us, and that's why we'll work
    to spread liberty in order to spread the peace.
        Anyway, thank you all.

    Note: The President spoke at 2 p.m. Participating in the event was
    gubernatorial candidate Asa Hutchinson of Arkansas. A tape was not
    available for verification of the content of these remarks.

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