    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2007, Book I)]
    [May 13, 2007]
    [Pages 576-579]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Remarks at America's 400th Anniversary Celebration in Williamsburg,
    Virginia
    May 13, 2007

        Thank you all. Thank you, Justice O'Connor. Laura and I are really happy to
    join you today. This State is known as the Mother of Presidents, which
    reminds me, I needed to call my mother today.
    [Laughter] I wish all mothers around our country a happy Mother's Day.
    And if you haven't called your mother, you better start dialing here
    after this ceremony.
        We're honored to be in Jamestown on this historic day. We appreciate
    the opportunity to tour the beautiful grounds here. I would urge our
    fellow citizens to come here to see the fantastic history that's on

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    display. I think you'll be amazed at how our country got started. And I
    want to thank all the good folks, who are working to preserve the past,
    for your hard work. And I appreciate the fact that you spent a lot of
    time educating our fellow citizens.
        Jamestown was the first permanent English settlement in America; it
    predated the Mayflower Compact by 13 years. This is a very proud State,
    and some people down here like to point out that the pilgrims ended up
    at Plymouth Rock by mistake. [Laughter] They were looking for Virginia--
    [laughter]--they just missed the sign. [Laughter]
        As we celebrate the 400th anniversary of Jamestown to honor the
    beginnings of our democracy, it is a chance to renew our commitment to
    help others around the world realize the great blessings of liberty. And
    so Laura and I are proud to join you.
    Justice, it's good to see you. There's
    no finer American than Sandra Day O'Connor, and I'm proud to share the
    podium with her.
        We're also proud to be with Governor Tim Kaine and Anne Holton. I'm proud to call
    them friends, and I hope, Ms. Kaine, that the
    Governor recognized Mother's Day. Glad you're here. I want to thank
    Secretary Dirk Kempthorne of the Department
    of the Interior, Michael Griffin, the
    Administrator of NASA, Members of the United States Congress, members of
    the statehouse, including the Lieutenant Governor. I appreciate the attorney general being here. I thank the speaker for joining us. Most of all, thank you for coming.
        I thank the members of the Jamestown 400th Commemoration Commission.
    Those are all the good folks who worked hard to get this celebration in
    order. I appreciate the members of the Association for the Preservation
    of Virginia Antiquities. Laura and I saw members
    of the Association for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities digging
    in dirt. [Laughter] It just so happened we wandered up, and they found
    some artifacts. [Laughter] I appreciate members of the Jamestown 2007
    Steering Committee.
        The story of Jamestown will always have a special place in American
    history. It's the story of a great migration from the Old World to the
    New. It is a story of hardship overcome by resolve. It's a story of the
    Tidewater settlement that laid the foundation of our great democracy.
        That story began on a dock near London in December of 1606. More
    than 100 English colonists set sail for a new life across the ocean in
    Virginia. They had dreams of paradise that were sustained during their
    long months at sea by their strong spirit. And then they got here, and a
    far different reality awaited them.
        On May 13, 1607, 400 years today, they docked their ships on a
    marshy riverbank. Being loyal subjects, they named the site after their
    King, and that's how Jamestown was born. Today we celebrate that moment
    as a great milestone in our history, yet the colonists who experienced
    those first years had little reason to celebrate.
        Their search for gold soon gave way to a desperate search for food.
    An uneasy peace with the Native Americans broke into open hostilities.
    The hope for a better life turned into a longing for the comforts of
    home. One settler wrote: ``There were never Englishmen left in a foreign
    country in such misery as we were in the new discovered Virginia.''
        Looking back, 400 years later, it is easy to forget how close
    Jamestown came to failure. The low point came after the terrible winter
    of 1610. The survivors boarded their ships. They were prepared to
    abandon the settlement, and only the last-minute arrival of new settlers
    and new provisions saved Jamestown. Back in London, one court official
    summed up the situation this way: ``This is an unlucky beginning. I pray
    God the end may prove happier.''
        Well, the prayers were answered; Jamestown survived. It became a
    testament to the power of perseverance and determination. Despite many
    dangers, more ships full

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    of new settlers continued to set out for Jamestown. As the colony grew,
    the settlers ventured beyond the walls of their three-sided fort and
    formed a thriving community. Their industry and hard work transformed
    Jamestown from a distant English outpost into an important center for
    trade.
        And during those early years, the colonists also planted the seeds
    of American democracy, at a time when democratic institutions were rare.
    On their first night at Jamestown, six of the leading colonists held the
    first presidential election in American history. And you might be
    surprised to know that the winner was not named George--[laughter]--a
    matter of fact, his name was Edward Wingfield. I call him ``Eddie W.''
    [Laughter]
        From these humble beginnings, the pillars of a free society began to
    take hold. Private property rights encouraged ownership and free
    enterprise. The rule of law helped secure the rights of individuals. The
    creation of America's first representative assembly ensured the consent
    of the people and gave Virginians a voice in their government. It was
    said at the time that the purpose of these reforms was, quote, ``to lay
    a foundation whereon a flourishing State might, in time, by the blessing
    of Almighty God, be raised.''
        Not all people shared in these blessings. The expansion of Jamestown
    came at a terrible cost to the native tribes of the region, who lost
    their lands and their way of life. And for many Africans, the journey to
    Virginia represented the beginnings of a life of hard labor and bondage.
    Their story is a part of the story of Jamestown. It reminds us that the
    work of American democracy is to constantly renew and to extend the
    blessings of liberty.
        That work has continued throughout our history. In the 18th century,
    our Founding Fathers declared our independence and dedicated America to
    the principle that all men are created equal. In the 19th century, our
    Nation fought a terrible civil war over the meaning of those famous
    words and renewed our founding promise. In the 20th century, Americans
    defended our democratic ideals against totalitarian ideologies abroad,
    while working to ensure we lived up to our ideals here at home. As we
    begin the 21st century, we look back on our history with pride and
    rededicate ourselves to the cause of liberty.
        Today, democratic institutions are taking root in places where
    liberty was unimaginable not long ago. At the start of the 1980s, there
    were only 45 democracies on Earth. There are now more than 120
    democracies, and more people now live in freedom than ever before.
        America is proud to promote the expansion of democracy, and we must
    continue to stand with all those struggling to claim their freedom. The
    advance of freedom is the great story of our time, and new chapters are
    being written every day, from Georgia and Ukraine, to Kyrgyzstan and
    Lebanon, to Afghanistan and Iraq. From our own history, we know the path
    to democracy is long, and it's hard. There are many challenges, and
    there are setbacks along the way. Yet, we can have confidence in the
    outcome because we've seen freedom's power to transform societies
    before.
        In World War II, we fought Germany on battlefields across Europe,
    and, today, a democratic Germany is one of our strongest partners on the
    Continent. And in the Pacific, we fought a bloody war with Japan, and
    now our alliance with a democratic Japan is the linchpin for freedom and
    security in the Far East. These democracies have taken different forms
    that reflect different cultures and traditions. But our friendship with
    them reminds us that liberty is the path to lasting peace and that
    democracies are natural allies for the United States.
        Today, we have no closer ally than the nation we once fought for our
    own independence. Britain and America are united by our democratic
    heritage and by the history that began at this settlement 400 years ago.
    Last month, some of the greatest legal

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    minds in Britain and America, including Justice O'Connor and Chief Justice John Roberts, came to Jamestown to lay a plaque commemorating our
    shared respect for the rule of law and our deeply held belief in
    individual liberty.
        Over the years, these values have defined our two countries. Yet
    they are more than just American values and British values or Western
    values; they are universal values that come from a power greater than
    any man or any country. These values took root at Jamestown four
    centuries ago. They have flourished across our land, and, one day, they
    will flourish in every land.
        May God bless you, and may God bless America.

    Note: The President spoke at 12:02 p.m. at Anniversary Park. In his
    remarks, he referred to former Supreme Court Associate Justice Sandra
    Day O'Connor; Gov. Timothy M. Kaine of Virginia, his wife Anne Holton,
    and his mother Kathy Kaine; Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling and State Attorney
    General Robert F. McDonnell of Virginia; and William J. Howell, speaker,
    Virginia House of Delegates.