[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 38, Number 7 (Monday, February 18, 2002)]
[Pages 237-239]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Remarks Following the Swearing-In of Gaddi H. Vasquez as Director of the 
Peace Corps

February 15, 2002

    Thank you very much. Welcome to the White House.
    When America was attacked on September the 11th, they thought our 
country would splinter into fear and selfishness. They thought we'd fall 
apart. They thought we didn't have any fiber or character. Instead, 
we've seen extraordinary acts of courage and compassion and a renewed 
dedication to service. A spirit of sacrifice and service gave birth to 
the Peace Corps more than 40 years ago. We needed the Peace Corps then, 
and we need the Peace Corps today.
    My administration strongly supports the Peace Corps, and we're 
increasing our commitment to it. That starts by finding somebody who can 
serve ably as the Director. I have found such a man. I was honored to 
swear Gaddi in, in the Oval Office--or watch his swearing-in today in 
the Oval Office, and I know he'll do a superb job in leading this 
important organization.
    Thank you for leaving your beloved California. Thank you for your 
sacrifice. And welcome to an administration that wants to do right by 
the Peace Corps.
    I also want to thank Elaine for your sacrifice, as well. I know it's 
hard to pull up your family and head east, but it's the right thing to 
do. It's the right thing to do to serve your country. And I'm so honored 
both of you all have come. And Jason, thank you for being here, as well, 
to support your dad.
    I want to thank the first Peace Corps Director, who joined us today. 
I can't thank you enough, Sargent Shriver, for taking time out of your 
busy schedule to show up here to see this good man assume this important 
office. We're honored with your presence. We appreciate your service to 
the country, and thank you for coming.
    And we've got another former Director here today, too, a lady who 
serves in my Cabinet as the Secretary of Labor. She's doing a fabulous 
job there, just like she did for the Peace Corps, and that's Elaine 
Chao. Thank you for coming, Elaine.
    And Gaddi was such a big draw that he got another member of my 
Cabinet here, the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, Mel 
Martinez. Thanks for coming, Mel. I appreciate your being here.
    Two Members of the United States House of Representatives have 
joined us: Gaddi's Congressman, Chris Cox--thank you for coming, Chris; 
I appreciate you being here--and a former volunteer, Tom Petri from 
Wisconsin. Thank you for coming.
    We hear from a lot of Members of Congress about the importance of 
the Peace Corps but no more clear voice about that than Chris Dodd, the 
Senator from Connecticut. I look forward to working with Chris to 
implement our mutual vision for making sure the Peace Corps fulfills its 
mission and hope.
    And speaking about that, I want to thank all the people who work at 
the Peace Corps, those who work there now, those who have been 
volunteers in the past, are current volunteers. We're honored that you 
serve our Nation, and you're welcome here in the White House, and thank 
you for coming.
    And finally, I think it's a great tribute to the Peace Corps that 
we've got a lot of members from the ambassadorial corps who are here. I 
want to thank you all for coming and taking your time. You understand 
the importance of the Peace Corps, and your presence here is a 
confirmation of its importance. And so we welcome you. Thank you for 
coming.
    For more than 40 years, the Peace Corps has sent Americans to serve 
their country by serving the world. America has a new kind of force 
today. I mean, we're not only a great country, a great economic engine, 
and obviously a great military, we're a great idea. The greatness of the 
country is in the values we believe in, freedom and hope and 
opportunity. We're a nation founded on just valuable principles. And the 
power of the idea cannot and will not be stopped at our borders.
    The Peace Corps volunteers carry the American idea with them. They 
don't carry our culture; they carry universal values and principles that 
are so incredibly important for all of mankind. Peace Corps volunteers 
contribute in unaccountable ways to the countries to which they're 
assigned. They not only

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teach reading, English language skills; they introduce new business and 
farming methods, help spark economic development, promote training and 
modern technology, help fight the spread of HIV/AIDS and infectious 
diseases. They make an incredibly important contribution to our fellow 
mankind.
    You know, because we come from a society where women can be leaders, 
where people speak and worship freely, where the difference is a source 
of our strength, not a cause of war, a Peace Corps volunteer in the very 
life they live helps spread important values. Just the fact that 
somebody comes from a country that is so open, that in itself is an 
incredibly positive influence on the world.
    You know, the war has thrust upon us an enemy who hates every good--
everything the Peace Corps stands for. We long for peace in America. 
We've got to remember, we're fighting an enemy that really can't stand 
the values spread by the Peace Corps, which means that the Peace Corps 
must be reinvigorated. The Peace Corps, itself, stands for what we fight 
for. And if we weren't to understand the role, if we were to shrink in 
our obligations, if we were not to allow the Peace Corps to expand, we 
would be doing exactly what the terrorists want us to do. And we're not 
going to let them cause us to abandon what we hold dear.
    I have called for twice as many Peace Corps volunteers over the next 
5 years, to return the Peace Corps to the strength it had in the 
midsixties. Those new volunteers will be heading out to new 
destinations. They'll be returning to the republics of central Asia. And 
within 3 weeks, a team will leave for Afghanistan, to address how the 
Peace Corps can assist that country in reconstruction. The Peace Corps 
is committed to returning to Peru and to sending volunteers to East 
Timor, which will soon become the first country to gain independence in 
the 21st century. The Peace Corps will also explore ways to assist the 
governments of Azerbaijan, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Botswana, and Chad, and 
Swaziland. And during my upcoming trip to Asia, I will explore with 
Chinese officials the possibility of an expansion of the Peace Corps 
program into China.
    And when these volunteers return home, they can also help educate 
Americans about the countries in which they serve. My administration has 
created what's called the USA Freedom Corps, to encourage citizens to 
give at least 2 years of their life to service to their country. And the 
Peace Corps is a vital part of this effort.
    For Americans looking for service opportunities at home or abroad, 
they can find those opportunities in the USA Freedom Corps. If you're 
interested in the Peace Corps, get on the Web--on your computer and dial 
up the USA Freedom Corps Web page, which is usafreedomcorps.gov, or just 
pick up your telephone and dial 877-USA-CORPS. If you want to know about 
the opportunities the Peace Corps offers, call that number or get on the 
Web page. And we will help you serve our fellow mankind.
    You know, when President Kennedy, Sargent Shriver's brother-in-law, 
signed an Executive order more than 40 years ago providing for the 
establishing of the Peace Corps, he spoke about a nation of men and 
women anxious to sacrifice their energies and time and toil to the cause 
of world peace and human progress. That mission hasn't changed. As a 
matter of fact, today the mission is needed more than ever.
    I look forward to working with the Members of Congress to strengthen 
the Peace Corps, to reassert its independence, and to create new 
opportunities in other nations, as well as the ones I mentioned--new 
opportunities in Muslim nations for us to spread the good story about 
the values, the universal values, we hold so dear.
    I believe Americans are still willing to sacrifice for causes 
greater than themselves. And the Peace Corps offers such a fantastic 
opportunity to do so. Gaddi Vasquez understands this, as well. And so 
it's with pleasure I introduce the newly sworn-in Director of the Peace 
Corps to the American people.
    May God bless you all.

Note: The President spoke at 2:12 p.m. in Presidential Hall in the 
Dwight D. Eisenhower Executive Office Building. In his remarks, he 
referred to Elaine Vasquez, wife of Gaddi H. Vasquez, and their son 
Jason Vasquez.

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