    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2008, Book I)]
    [June 25, 2008]
    [Pages 869-874]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Remarks at the Max M. Fisher National Republican Leadership Award Dinner
    in Livonia, Michigan
    June 25, 2008

        The President. Thank you. Please be seated. Thanks for the----
        Audience member. We love you! [Laughter]
        The President. Thank you for the warm welcome. I'm fresh in from
    Washington, bringing greetings from First Lady Laura Bush, who's done a fabulous job. And I'm so pleased to be
    back in Michigan. I've spent some quality time in your State. I've
    enjoyed it every time I've come. I remember--you know, we've got a lot
    of fond memories here, such as the time when the Republican Party
    nominated a really good guy to be the Vice
    Presidential candidate with Ronald Reagan. That would be the first
    President George Bush.
        You might remember, that was in Detroit. And I remember the night--
    the time that Ronald Reagan reminisced about that evening. As he told
    the story, a friend of his was watching the convention proceedings in a
    hotel lounge in California. And he was on the stage and my dad was on the stage and all the supporters were on
    the stage. And then he heard someone

    [[Page 870]]

    ask this question: ``Who are all those people up on the podium with Max
    Fisher?'' [Laughter]
        Everybody who knew Max Fisher loved Max Fisher. He was a man of
    uncommon grace. He was a person that could speak to the folks on the
    assembly line as well as to Presidents. He is a generous soul who gave
    to his community, his country, and the city of Detroit. He was a man of
    great courage. After all, he lived some 40 miles from Ann Arbor, but
    always reminded people he went to Ohio State. [Laughter]
        I'm proud to join you in honoring Max Fisher's legacy. And if he
    were with us today, here's what he would say. He'd say, ``Stop talking
    about me and getting to work.'' And our message is, is that we're going
    to get to work. We will return the Republican Party to the majority of
    the Michigan House of Representatives. We will take control of the
    Senate, and we--House, and we will elect John McCain the next President.
        Mr. Chairman, thank you for leading the
    party. And I believe, with your hard work, John McCain is going to carry Michigan.
        Today I had the privilege of flying down on Air Force One with
    Thaddeus McCotter, United States
    Congressman. This is the town in which he was raised. This is the
    district he represents. He is a smart, capable Member of the House of
    Representatives. And you--those of you who live here are lucky to have
    him as your Congressman.
        I'm proud to be here with Attorney General Michael Cox; Mike
    Cox, who happened to marry a woman named
    Laura. [Laughter] Thanks for serving, Mike. I
    appreciate your leadership.
        I'm proud to be here with Sheriff Mike Bouchard. Mike's been a friend of mine for a long time. And I know--
    the folks he represents through law enforcement really appreciate his
    dedication and hard work.
        I appreciate State Representative Jack Hoogendyk and wife Erin. And I wish
    Jack all the best in his run for the United States Senate. Thanks for
    running; appreciate--wish you all the very best.
        I thank my friend Chuck Yob, who's the
    Republican national committeeman from Michigan. And thank you all for
    coming.
        The last time I attended this dinner, I was the Governor of Texas,
    running for President of the United States. Maybe some of you are old
    enough to remember that. [Laughter] Since then, some things have
    changed: My daughter got married, my hair is
    grayer, the entourage is bigger, and I haven't seen a traffic jam in 8
    years. [Laughter] But some things that haven't changed: the principles
    that are etched in my soul and my faith in the American people.
        Over the past 8 years, we've endured a lot together. When you think
    about what has taken place, it's been a challenging time for the
    American people. We've had a recession, high energy prices, housing
    downturn, unprecedented attack on our homeland, wars in Afghanistan and
    Iraq, and devastating natural disasters. The reason I bring that up is
    because you can't know what the future will bring, but you can bet
    there's going to be some unexpected challenges facing our country. And
    that is why the United States must elect a leader who has the experience
    and judgment necessary to handle those challenges.
        I know a lot about the Oval Office--the daily intelligence
    briefings, the unexpected challenges, and the tough decisions that can
    only be made at the President's desk. In trying times, America needs a
    President who has been tested and will not flinch. We need a President
    who will do what is right, even when it's not easy. And we need to elect
    a President who knows what it takes to defeat our enemies. And this
    year, there is only one man who has shown those kind of leadership
    qualities, and that man is John McCain.

    [[Page 871]]

        And a President McCain is going to need
    allies on Capitol Hill. That means we need to put the House and the
    Senate back where they belong, in Republican hands. And a President
    McCain will need people he can work with in this State on behalf of the
    people of Michigan, and that needs--means we need to put the Michigan
    House of Representatives where it belongs, back into Republican hands.
        And I want to thank you all for helping make that reality come true.
    Thanks for your hard work that you're going to do, and thanks for your
    contributions that will help make this party vibrant and competitive
    coming down the stretch. After all, the campaign season really hasn't
    begun. It may seem like it's begun to you, but it really hasn't, because
    the main campaign is going to be in the fall. And that's the time most
    Americans are going to take measures of the candidates, and they're
    going to be wondering about what they believe for the future. And when
    the people start paying attention, and when they start looking at the
    philosophical differences, they're going to find that there's a wide
    chasm. There really are fundamental differences between what Republicans
    believe and what Democrats believe.
        On the issues that matter most, from taxes and spending to
    confirming good judges and building a culture of life to protecting our
    people and winning the war on terror, the American people are going to
    have a very clear choice. When they get in that voting booth on election
    day, when they think about what really matters to them, they're going to
    vote Republican. They're going to vote Republican for Congress, they're
    going to vote Republican for the Michigan statehouse, and they're going
    to vote Republican for President of the United States.
        This November, the American people are going to have a clear choice
    when it comes to taxes and spending. Republicans believe that American
    families can spend their own money far better than the government can.
    We've worked hard to restrain spending in Washington. We delivered the
    largest tax cuts since Ronald Reagan was the President. We cut taxes for
    married couples. We don't think you ought to penalize marriage in the
    Tax Code. We cut taxes for families with children. We cut taxes for
    small businesses. We cut taxes for capital gains and dividends. We put
    the death tax on the road to extinction. We eliminated income taxes to
    nearly 5 million families in the lowest tax bracket, and as a result,
    the American people have more of their own money in their pocket, and
    that is the way it should be.
        Now, our opponents have a different view on taxes, as you well know
    here in Michigan. After all, you've seen the Democrats propose and pass
    millions of dollars in new taxes. And if they increase their numbers in
    Lansing, we all know that that tax burden is likely to continue to grow.
        And in Washington, the Democratically controlled Congress refuses to
    make the tax relief we passed permanent. When the tax relief expires,
    every income tax rate in America will grow--go up. The marriage penalty
    will return in full force. The child tax credit will be cut in half, and
    taxes on capital gains and dividends will increase significantly. The
    death tax will return to life. A typical family of four with an income
    of $40,000 will face a tax crease [increase] * of more than $2,000. At a
    time when our citizens are struggling with high food prices and high gas
    prices and economic uncertainty, the last thing we need is a tax
    increase. That is why we must elect Republicans to the Congress and John
    McCain to the Presidency to make the tax relief
    permanent.
    ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
        * White House correction.
    ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
        Now, there's a reason why the Democrats want to raise taxes. It's
    because they need more of your money to increase--to pay for all the new
    spending they have in mind. This is a well-thought-out plan

    [[Page 872]]

    on their part. You've seen this on the Federal level. When the Democrats
    campaigned for Congress in 2006, they promised fiscal responsibility.
    And since they took office, they've been acting like teenagers with a
    new credit card. [Laughter]
        When those bills to increase spending and raise taxes reach my desk,
    I answer them with my favorite veto pen, and the famous words of Elvis
    Presley: ``Return to Sender.'' [Laughter]
        And one area where the Democrats in Congress has failed to lead is
    on energy policy, and that's becoming more and more apparent to the
    American people. You know, I know that you're concerned about rising
    gasoline prices, and so am I. I've repeatedly proposed ways to boost
    America's domestic oil supply, and the Democrats have rejected virtually
    all of them.
        It puts them in an interesting position. They say they want lower
    prices at the pump, but they're against measures that would actually do
    that. You might say, when it comes to energy policy, the Democrats in
    Congress are running on empty.
        This November, the American people have a clear choice when it comes
    to confirming good judges and building a culture of life. Republicans
    aspire to build a society where every human being is welcomed in life
    and protected in law. We funded crisis pregnancy centers and supported
    parental notification laws. We outlawed the cruel practice of partial-
    birth abortion, and we defended this good law all the way to the Supreme
    Court, and we won.
        And that victory shows how important it is to put good judges on the
    bench. Republicans have made it--they made it clear what our view is
    about the judiciary, the role of our courts in our democracy. We believe
    that judges should strictly interpret the law and not legislate from the
    bench. We need more judges like Justice Sam Alito and Chief Justice John Roberts.
        Our opponents see things differently. There's no clearer
    illustration of the differences than this: The Democrats' chosen
    candidate for President voted against both
    these good men. And our candidate for President,
    John McCain, voted for them.
        And we recently received a fresh reminder of the importance of the
    courts. A bare majority of five Supreme Court Justices overturned a
    bipartisan law that Congress passed and I signed to deliver justice to
    the detainees at Guantanamo Bay. With this decision, hardened terrorists
    now enjoy the same legal rights previously reserved for Americans.
        This is precisely the kind of judicial activism that frustrates the
    American people. And the best way to change it is to put Republicans
    back in charge of the United States Senate and John McCain in the White House.
        And the best way to keep judges in Michigan from substituting their
    own political views for the clear principles of the Constitution is to
    elect more judges like Cliff Taylor on
    the Michigan Supreme Court.
        This November, the American people are going to have a clear choice
    when it comes to protecting our country and winning the war on terror.
    Republicans believe that our most solemn duty is to protect the American
    people. And since September the 11th, 2001, we have worked day and night
    to stop another attack on our homeland.
        At home, we've strengthened our defenses, we've reformed our
    intelligence community, and we've launched a new program to monitor
    terrorist communications. Around the world, we have gone on the offense
    against the terrorists and advanced freedom as the great alternative to
    their ideology of hatred and violence. In a time of war, we need a
    Commander in Chief who understands that we must defeat the enemy
    overseas so we do not have to face them here at home, and that man is
    John McCain.
        In Afghanistan, we destroyed Al Qaida training camps and removed the
    Taliban from power. And today, we're helping a democratic society take
    root and ensuring

    [[Page 873]]

    that Afghanistan will never again be a safe haven for terrorists
    planning an attack on America.
        And in Iraq, we removed a dangerous regime run by Saddam Hussein.
    The decision to remove Saddam Hussein was the right decision at the
    time, and it is the right decision today.
        Early last year, when the situation in Iraq was deteriorating, we
    launched what's called the surge. And since the surge, violence in Iraq
    has dropped, a lot. Civilian deaths and sectarian killings are down, and
    political and economic progress is taking place. A democracy is taking
    root where a tyrant once ruled.
        In Afghanistan, Iraq, and around the world, our men and women are
    performing with skill and honor. Some of these brave troops have come
    from Michigan. We honor their sacrifices. We are grateful to their
    families. And every single American should be proud of their noble work.
        The war on terror is the great challenge of our time. The Democratic
    Party has repeatedly shown that it would take America in the wrong
    direction, starting with the fact that many don't consider this to be a
    war at all. In their view, this is a--primarily a matter of law
    enforcement. In the war on terror, our focus should not be on
    prosecuting criminals after they have committed a crime. Our job is to
    find the terrorists and stop new attacks before they happen.
        To stop new attacks, we need to know what the terrorists are
    planning. And the best source of information about terrorist attacks is
    the terrorists themselves. After 9/11, we established a program at the
    CIA to detain and question key terrorist operatives and their leaders.
    This program has stopped new attacks on our country and has saved
    American lives. And despite these successes, Democratic leaders in
    Congress have tried to shut it down.
        To stop new attacks, we also need to deny terrorists safe haven,
    including in Iraq. And that's why we launched the surge. Yet the
    Democrats declared the surge a failure before it even began. And now
    that the surge has turned the situation around, they still call for
    retreat.
        The other side talks a lot about hope, and that sums up their Iraq
    policy pretty well: They want to retreat from Iraq and hope nothing bad
    happens. But wistful thinking is no way to fight a war and to protect
    the American people. Leaving Iraq before the job is done would endanger
    our citizens and embolden the enemies who have vowed to attack us again.
    When it comes to the war on terror, our Democratic leaders should pay
    more attention to the warnings of terrorists like Usama bin Laden and spend less time heeding the demands of
    MoveOn.org and CODEPINK.
        Over the next few months, you're going to hear a lot of talk about
    change. The Democrats say they're a party of change. Let me review the
    history of the Democratic Party. There was a time when they believed
    that low taxes were the path to growth and opportunity, but they've
    changed. There was a time when they believed in commonsense American
    values, but they have changed. There was a time when they believed that
    America should pay any price and bear any burden in the defense of
    liberty, but they have changed.
        This isn't the kind of change the American people want. Americans
    want change that makes their lives better and their country safer. And
    that requires changing the party in control of the Congress. And that
    requires having a Commander in Chief who will support our military and
    will fight and win the war against those who would do us harm, and that
    Commander in Chief will be John McCain.
        And so I thank you for coming tonight. I just want you to know that
    we've got a lot of work to do together. I don't know about you, but my
    energy is up and my spirits are high, and I'm going to finish my job
    with a sprint to the finish line.

    [[Page 874]]

        So with confidence in our vision and faith in our values, let's go
    forward together. Let's put Republicans back in control of the Congress
    and the Senate. Let's make sure Republicans run the statehouse here in
    Michigan, and let's do all we can to put John McCain in the Oval Office.
        May God bless you, and may God bless our country.

    Note: The President spoke at 5 p.m. at Laurel Manor. In his remarks, he
    referred to Saulius Anuzis, chairman, Michigan Republican Party;
    Michigan State Attorney General Michael Cox; Michael J. Bouchard,
    sheriff, Oakland County, MI; Democratic Presidential candidate Barack
    Obama; Chief Justice Clifford W. Taylor, Michigan State Supreme Court;
    and Usama bin Laden, leader of the Al Qaida terrorist organization.