[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 38, Number 26 (Monday, July 1, 2002)]
[Pages 1101-1106]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Remarks at a Luncheon for Representative Connie Morella

June 28, 2002

    I hate to disagree with our distinguished honoree, but the reason 
people are here, Connie, is because they love you, they trust you, and 
like me, want you reelected to the United States Congress.
    I appreciate so very much the Morella boys for being here. That, of 
course, is Tony, the husband, Mark, the son, and Michael, the grandson, 
who led us in the Pledge of Allegiance. It's good to be here with the 
Morellas. It's clear that they love each other. They value their family. 
They understand that in family you can find strength of purpose and love 
and compassion and comfort. And I want to thank the Morella men for 
allowing Connie to serve our Nation and encouraging her to serve our 
Nation. She makes an important contribution, and therefore, you do as 
well.
    I regret that my wife wasn't here today. But I want you to know 
she's doing fine. I can't tell you how proud I am of the First Lady. She 
really wasn't interested in politics when I asked her to marry me and 
frankly didn't care for politicians, if the truth be known. [Laughter] 
But now the people of the country are figuring out why I asked her to 
marry me. She's calm and steady and a gracious lady. A lot of people 
wonder why

[[Page 1102]]

she said ``yes.'' [Laughter] But we're doing great. Many of you have 
said--some of you have said you pray for me and my family. It is the 
greatest gift you can give a President and his family, and for that, I'm 
grateful.
    I appreciate Governor Ehrlich being here today as well--[laughter]--
I meant Congressman Ehrlich. I thank Congressman Gilchrest, Wayne 
Gilchrest. There you are, Wayne. Thanks for coming. I appreciate you 
being here.
    So here's what I like about Connie: She speaks clearly. After all, 
she was an English professor. [Laughter] A lot of people think I 
probably need to spend a little quality time with her. [Laughter] But 
she's an independent soul. She's a highly intellectual person who is 
with you if she thinks you're right and is gracious enough to explain to 
you when she thinks she's wrong--when you're wrong. And I respect that a 
lot. And I hope the people of this district respect that about Connie. 
She's an incredibly thoughtful soul, with a big heart, who cares deeply 
for the constituents she represents and loves her country too.
    You know, I like to tell people, when you find somebody who's good 
and decent and honorable, you have a civic duty to make sure that that 
person remains in the Halls of Congress.
    I appreciate so very much her focus on homeland defense, and so 
should you. I mean, the defense of our homeland is an incredibly 
important part of the national life these days. And after all, Connie 
represents the National Institutes of Health and does it well, I might 
add. She understands the important role that the National Institutes of 
Health can play in fighting off bioterrorism, preparing response for our 
Nation. She's an advocate of doing what is right in the budget for the 
National Institutes of Health. For no other reason, people ought to send 
her back, because she's got a clear vision of the importance of research 
for our country.
    But as well she worked hard right after September the 11th to secure 
emergency funding for the Montgomery County's local police forces and 
emergency response teams, those who worked so hard to help rescue and 
repair lives in the wake of that tragedy.
    As you know, I've asked the Congress to think boldly about how best 
to protect the homeland. I mean, after all, we've got 100 different 
agencies involved with homeland defense. They're scattered all over 
Washington. And it seems like to me that we ought to align authority and 
responsibility under one Cabinet office, so that we can affect the 
culture of the agencies that protect the homeland as well as make sure 
that we can affect the results. And fortunately, Connie understands 
that. And she is on the House Science and Government Reform Committees, 
two important committees that will be dealing with this important 
initiative.
    I have been pleased with the response so far out of Congress. Both 
Republicans and Democrats alike understand that defending the homeland 
is not a partisan issue. It has nothing to do with political parties. It 
has everything to do with doing what's right for the American people.
    And the good news is, Connie understands that for the good of the 
country, some are going to have to give up what they call turf. You 
know, some people are going to have to say, ``Well, this--I no longer 
can have oversight on this jurisdiction.'' And that's going to be hard. 
And it's going to be difficult for some Members of the Senate and the 
House, and I understand that. But fortunately, we've got allies who 
understand the Nation comes first, and that leaving behind a legacy that 
will make it easier for future administrations and future Congress to 
deal with the true threats that face this country is more important than 
turf. And I want to appreciate Connie Morella's leadership on this 
issue.
    I appreciate so very much her strong commitment to Medicare and 
seniors who rely upon Medicare and the need for us to have prescription 
drugs in Medicare. As well I appreciate her strong commitment to making 
sure that we fulfill the promise of Social Security.
    As well I love her passion for education. We worked closely on an 
education bill that I'm convinced will make a significant difference in 
the lives of thousands of our fellow citizens. I mean, this was a good 
piece of legislation. After all, it had to be pretty good,

[[Page 1103]]

since Senator Edward Kennedy and I traveled around the country signing 
the bill. [Laughter] I know people in the Crawford coffee shop are 
wondering, ``What the heck's he doing? That guy gets up there and--
must've drank the water or something.'' [Laughter] But nevertheless, 
it's a good piece of legislation, and Connie poured her heart and soul 
into making sure it's good.
    Let me explain it right quick. It says we ought to have high 
standards for every child in America, not just a few children, not just 
children from one demographic group but every child. We ought to believe 
in our heart that every child can learn. She understands and I 
understand that if you set low standards, you're going to get lousy 
results. If you believe certain children can't learn, guess what's going 
to happen? Certain children won't learn. And so we started kind of 
trying to change the mentality of public education by insisting on the 
fact that every child can learn.
    And then we said something unique. We said, ``If you receive Federal 
money, you've got to measure to see whether or not the children are 
learning.'' See, if you've got high standards and high expectations, you 
want to know. If you've got low standards and low expectations, you 
don't care. But if you've got high standards, you want to know. And so 
for the first time, the Federal Government says, ``The State of 
Maryland, you get to measure to show us whether or not children are 
reading and writing and adding and subtracting.''
    And you see, if they are, then we'll praise the teachers and praise 
the plans and herald the curriculum that's working. But if not, we 
expect something else to happen. We expect there to be a change. We 
expect for people to say, ``Wait a minute. This is unsatisfactory to 
allow certain children to learn and other children not to learn.'' You 
see, the idea of measuring and holding people accountable is to save 
lives; it's to enforce this belief that every child can learn; it's to 
make sure we have the highest of high standards.
    And finally, in the bill, we say we trust the people of Maryland to 
chart the path to excellence. We understand that trying to run the 
public schools out of Washington isn't going to work. We believe in 
local control of schools. And I appreciate Connie's commitment to 
education reform.
    And finally, she has been a champion of the strong economy. We need 
to make sure that above all else here domestically, people can find 
work. You know, this is a town where people love to talk about 
statistics. Here's my attitude about the workforce: If somebody's 
looking for work who wants to work and can't find work, we've got a 
problem. We've got to continue to work to expand the job base.
    I appreciate the Members of Congress here who supported the tax 
relief plan last year. It made sense to let people keep their own money, 
because when people keep their own money, they get to spend their own 
money.
    And we'll continue to work to open up markets for products 
manufactured right here in Connie's district, so that we can sell 
overseas. You see, fearful people build walls around America. Confident 
people open--tear them down and open up markets. And I'm confident that 
the entrepreneurs in the State of Maryland and all across the country 
can compete if given a level playing field. And Connie understands that, 
and I want to--I appreciate her support for trade measures that the 
Congress has been working on.
    I'm a little concerned about--I'm not concerned about the 
fundamentals of our economy. I think they're very strong. I think we've 
got the right fiscal policy in place, the right monetary policy--seems 
like it's good. People are concerned, however, about whether or not the 
balance sheets of corporate America are open, whether or not the numbers 
are real.
    Let me tell you how strongly I feel about this: I believe if 
somebody is running a corporation, if somebody has got responsibilities 
to shareholders and employees, they have the responsibility to be above 
board at all times, to be frank and honest with all numbers.
    We can have all kinds of rules, and we will. I laid out some 
initiatives in March of this year that will hold people accountable. And 
our Justice Department will hold people accountable. But corporate 
America has got to understand there's a higher calling than trying to 
fudge the numbers--trying to slip a billion here or a billion there and 
may hope

[[Page 1104]]

nobody notices--that you have a responsibility in this country to always 
be above board. We expect high standards in our schools; we expect high 
standards in corporate America as well. And I intend to enforce the law 
to make sure that there are high standards.
    It is important for our fellow citizens to understand that the 
foundation for economic growth is strong in America; that our free 
enterprise system is strong, vibrant; that there's a lot of 
entrepreneurship that takes place across the country. And it's important 
for our fellow citizens to understand that, by far, the vast majority of 
our leaders in the business community are honest and upright people. 
That's important for them to hear. Just as important for them to hear, 
when we catch people doing wrong, there will be consequences for those 
who have done wrong.
    So I feel good about our work on the economy. But we won't tire 
until we kind of boost the confidence of the country and, at the same 
time, work to continue to expand the job base so people can find work. 
And Connie Morella has been an advocate for this kind of approach, and I 
appreciate her leadership in the Congress.
    One issue that affects our economy besides the competence and 
corporate profits, which are improving, is also the American people and 
the investors are worried about another attack on America. And as you 
know, we're doing everything we can here at home to button up the 
homeland.
    Connie Morella's a huge supporter of the Federal workers, those who 
work hard to help America. And I've got to tell you, people are working 
overtime on behalf of our citizens. I'm proud of the effort people put 
in. Listen, we're running down every hint. If we get any kind of hint 
that somebody's thinking about doing something to this country, we're on 
it--``we'' being hard-working Federal employees like the FBI. People 
analyze data; there's a lot of people in this town who spend a lot of 
time on the--now the number one mission of the country, which is to 
protect our homeland. And I'm proud of their efforts.
    But the surest way to protect the homeland, the best way to make 
sure that America is safe and secure, is to hunt the killers down one by 
one and bring them to justice, which is precisely what we're going to 
do.
    And we're after them--we're after them. Sometimes you might not know 
it. After all, this is a different kind of war. This war doesn't have 
the old troop movements of the past, where you could watch lines of 
infantry march here or squadrons of airplanes fly there. We're facing a 
shadowy bunch of killers, and that's all they are, coldblooded killers 
who hide in caves and send youngsters to their death, who meld into big 
cities, you know, hide in the buildings hoping nobody knows they're 
there. And so it takes a while to achieve the battlefield victories, 
because we've got to change our mind set about what it means to achieve 
a battlefield victory. Battlefield victories come one person at a time 
in this war.
    So I'm pleased to report, as I did the other day when I spoke to the 
Nation, that we've got about 2,400 of them so far. These are hardcore 
killers and their supporters and money raisers, part of their army. And 
it's not just America; it's our friends and allies who are--like the 
courageous leader of the Philippines, Gloria Arroyo, who we believe 
brought to justice the guy who was running this Abu Sayyaf group who 
managed to kidnap at least two Americans, the Burnhams, and the husband 
died unfortunately on the rescue attempt. But these people need to be 
got, and we've got our friends and allies getting them. And that's what 
we're going to spend our time doing in this administration.
    We made great progress in Afghanistan, obviously. I mean, we've 
still got a lot of work there, no question about it, because we want to 
leave behind a legacy of--that's safe and stable and secure. And there's 
still a lot of people there, kind of in caves and moving around, that 
eventually we're going to bring to justice.
    But you've got to tell your sons and daughters that this great 
Nation went into that country not as conquerors but as liberators. In 
the midst of all the talk about war, it's important to reassure our 
youngsters that we don't seek revenge, we seek justice, and that this 
compassionate Nation want to help people, that we believe in freedom. 
When people attack our freedoms, we'll respond.

[[Page 1105]]

    I don't know what got into the minds of the enemy. They must have 
thought we were so self-absorbed and materialistic that, after September 
the 11th, all we might do is file a lawsuit or two. They don't 
understand the character of this Nation and how much we love freedom. 
And when it comes to our freedoms, we will spend the time necessary to 
defend our freedoms.
    And that's why I've submitted to Congress a significant increase in 
the defense spending, because I want our troops to have the best pay, 
the best equipment, the best training possible, and I want to send a 
message to the world that America is in this fight for freedom for the 
long pull.
    And the House of Representatives passed the defense appropriations 
bill overwhelmingly, and I want to thank both Republicans and Democrats 
for voting on that bill. And I expect the Senate to get the defense 
appropriations bill to my desk quickly, for the good of our planning for 
this war, for the good of understanding what money is going to be 
available. Instead of playing politics with the defense appropriations 
bill, they need to do what the House did and get it passed in a 
bipartisan fashion so I can sign it as quickly as possible.
    We're making great progress. Like the American people, I'm a patient 
man. And we're deliberate. I think the American people fully understand 
the new--the nature of this war. I believe history has called us into 
action. I mean, I believe history has shined the spotlight on this 
country, and people are wondering, are we going to blink, or are we 
going to lead? That's what they're wondering. And there's only one 
course, and that's lead toward freedom.
    There are some true threats that face us, beyond, obviously, this Al 
Qaida network, and you've heard me speak about them. I believe, for the 
sake of our children's future, we've got to deal with and be realistic 
about these countries which develop--harbor the desire to develop 
weapons of mass destruction. You see, we cannot let America and our 
friends and allies become blackmailed by the world's worst leaders who 
harbor the world's worst weapons. And so for the sake of our future, you 
just need to know that we'll use every tool at our disposal--every tool 
at our disposal--to make sure that our children can grow up in a free 
world.
    No, we've been given a chance to show the world what we're made out 
of, and we are. This is a fantastic nation. And I believe that out of 
the evil done to America will come some incredible good. It's hard for 
people to probably realize that, but I believe it. I believe we can 
achieve peace. I believe that if America is tough and firm and resolved, 
we can achieve peace. We can achieve peace if we speak clearly, no doubt 
of where we stand. We can achieve peace in parts of the world where 
people have no hope for peace, where people might have given up.
    No, I believe out of the evil done to America can come some 
incredible good, not only abroad, but I believe here at home too--I 
believe here at home. This country is so compassionate and decent and 
kind that out of the evil done to us can come some incredible good.
    We've got to understand in this country, in this land of plenty, 
there are pockets of despair and hopelessness and addiction. There are 
people who say, ``This American Dream has absolutely nothing to do with 
me.'' And that bothers me, and it bothers Connie, too. But you know what 
I know? I know that our society can change one heart, one soul, one 
conscience at a time. And I know there are thousands and millions of 
Americans who understand that to fight evil, you can do some good by 
loving your neighbor just like you'd like to be loved yourself.
    And it doesn't take much. It doesn't take much. It doesn't take much 
to be tolerant to your neighbor. It doesn't take much to mentor a child 
or to go into a shut-in's house and say, ``I love you,'' to deliver food 
out of your church or your mosque or your synagogue. It doesn't take 
much. It takes a commitment to something greater than yourself, is all 
it takes. It takes a desire to serve your Nation not only as a patriot 
who is willing to put his hand over his heart on the Pledge of 
Allegiance but understands that patriotism is serving that person in 
need. And that's happening in America.
    You watch. Out of the evil done to America will come some incredible 
good in this country. And you know why? Because we are the greatest 
nation on the face of the Earth. And

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it is my honor to be your President. And it's Connie's honor to be 
representing Maryland in the United States Congress.
    Thanks for coming, and God bless you all.

Note: The President spoke at 12:04 p.m. in Salon 3 at the Marriott 
Wardman Park Hotel. In his remarks, he referred to President Gloria 
Macapagal-Arroyo of the Philippines; and Abu Sabaya, a leader of the Abu 
Sayyaf terrorist group who was killed June 21 by Philippine military 
forces. Representative Morella is a candidate for reelection in 
Maryland's Eighth Congressional District.