[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 38, Number 27 (Monday, July 8, 2002)]
[Pages 1138-1141]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Remarks at a ``Saluting Our Veterans'' Celebration in
Ripley, West Virginia

July 4, 2002

    The President. Thank you all very much. Thank you. Well, thank you, 
Shelley, and thanks for that warm welcome. I'm really proud to be in 
Jackson County, West Virginia.
    Today we mark the 226th birthday of the United States of America. 
Last year I spent my first Independence Day as your President in 
Philadelphia. This year I get to spend it in Ripley, West Virginia.
    Shelley told me about the Fourth of July celebration. She said I 
needed to come and meet the town. It looks like most of you showed up. 
[Laughter] I appreciate your hospitality. I appreciate all the hard work 
that went into making this Fourth of July celebration such a fantastic 
gathering of our fellow Americans. And thanks for having me.

[[Page 1139]]

    I want to thank Shelley Moore Capito for her friendship and her 
leadership in the Halls of Congress. I appreciate so very much one of my 
Cabinet officers, Tony Principi, who is the head of the Department of 
Veterans Affairs, for not only serving the country and serving in 
Vietnam but also agreeing to come today to Ripley to represent the 
veterans from all across our country. Thank you for being here, Tony.
    I want to thank your Governor, Governor Wise, for joining us today. 
I appreciate you being here, Bob. And I appreciate Senator Jay 
Rockefeller coming as well. Thank you both for coming.
    I had the honor of meeting the mayor of Ripley, Mayor Guthrie. Thank 
you for being here, Mr. Mayor. I appreciate your hospitality, and tell 
all the folks who work in the city here, I'd like to stay around for the 
cleanup, but--[laughter].
    Audience member. We'll let you.
    The President. I'm sure you would let me, but--[laughter]. I also 
appreciate Mayor Ritchie of Ravenswood for coming over to say hello as 
well. Thank you, Mayor. I know the attorney general of West Virginia is 
here, General McGraw. I appreciate the Secretary of State for West 
Virginia for being here. I want to thank all the members of the 
legislature. But most of all, I want to thank my fellow citizens.
    Today I had the honor and privilege of saying hello to two West 
Virginia citizens who are family members of some of West Virginia's 
finest. Earlier this year, U.S. Special Forces Sergeant Gene Vance, Jr., 
and Anissa Ann Shero lost their lives in defense of our freedom. And I 
had the privilege of kissing Gene's wife, to express our sympathies and 
our love and our prayer. And I had the privilege of doing the same with 
Anissa's dad. And I would like you all to join me in welcoming them to 
this celebration today. Thanks for coming.
    The anniversary of America's independence is a day for gratitude and 
a day for celebration. On the Fourth of July, we count our blessings, 
and there are so many to count. We're thankful for the families we love. 
We're thankful for the opportunities in America. We're thankful for our 
freedom, the freedom declared by our Founding Fathers, defended by many 
generations, and granted to each one of us by Almighty God.
    Americans know that our country did not come about by chance. Our 
Nation was first designed as a colony, serving an empire and answering 
to a king. The Founders had other things in mind. In the summer of 1776, 
they declared that these colonies are, and of right ought to be free and 
independent States.
    With a great army massed against the Americans, these were not idle 
words. ``Stepping forward to sign the Declaration,'' said Dr. Benjamin 
Rush, ``was like signing your own death warrant.'' Yet he and 55 others 
put their name on the document, pledging to the cause their lives, their 
fortunes, and their sacred honor.
    And all Americans can draw a straight line from the free lives we 
lead today to that one moment when the world changed forever. From that 
day in 1776, freedom has had a home, and freedom has had a defender.
    Unlike any other country, America came into the world with a message 
for mankind, that all are created equal, and all are meant to be free. 
There is no America race. There's only an American creed: We believe in 
the dignity and rights of every person; we believe in equal justice, 
limited government, and in the rule of law; we believe in personal 
responsibility and tolerance toward others. This creed of freedom and 
equality has lifted the lives of millions of Americans, of citizens by 
birth and citizens by choice. This creed draws our friends to us. It 
sets our enemies against us and always inspires the best that is within 
us.
    In this 226th year of our independence, we have seen that American 
patriotism is still a living faith. We love our country only more when 
she's threatened. An Air Force pilot spoke for everyone when he was 
asked if anyone on his base had a personal connection to the victims of 
September the 11th. He said, ``I think we all do. They were all 
Americans.'' Watching the events of that day, no American felt this was 
an attack on others. It was an attack on all of us--on each and every 
one of us. Every ethnic background is known and respected here in 
America. Every religious belief is practiced and protected here. Yet, in 
a moment we discovered again that we're a single people. We share the 
same

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allegiance. We live under the same flag. When you strike one America--
when you strike one American, you strike us all.
    In the moments after September the 11th, Americans turned 
instinctively to the flag we share. The flag was lowered to half-staff 
in days of mourning, raised in respect over Ground Zero, hung in 
defiance from the wall of the Pentagon, carried with special pride at 
the Olympic Games, carefully folded at military gravesides and given to 
families. The American people, when we pledge our allegiance to the 
flag, feel renewed respect and love for all it represents. And no 
authority of Government can ever prevent an American from pledging 
allegiance to this ``one Nation under God.''
    More than ever in the lifetimes of most Americans, the flag stands 
for a truly unified country. We've been united in our grief, and we are 
united in our resolve to protect our people and to defeat the enemies of 
the United States of America.
    Sixty years ago, after the attack on Pearl Harbor, General George C. 
Marshall declared that ``before the Sun sets on this terrible struggle, 
our flag will be recognized throughout the world as a symbol of freedom, 
on the one hand, and of overwhelming power on the other.'' This is our 
purpose again today. Once again, history has called America to use our 
overwhelming power in the defense of freedom, and we'll do just that.
    In Afghanistan we defeated the Taliban regime, but that was just the 
first step. The liberation of that country was the beginning of the long 
and unrelenting struggle we have entered. America is a patient and 
determined country. We're working with our allies. We'll use every tool 
of diplomacy and law enforcement. We're organizing to protect the 
homeland against further attack, and we will take the battle to the 
enemy, wherever he hides and wherever he plans and wherever he dwells.
    The greatest asset we have in this conflict is the military of the 
United States of America. At this hour, more than 60,000 American troops 
are deployed around the world in the war against terror. Many of you 
here today have family members serving in the military. Wherever they 
are stationed, this Nation is depending on them, and you just need to be 
proud of them.
    Thousands of our men and women in uniform were born in other 
countries and now spend each day in honorable service to their adopted 
land. Many of them are still waiting for the chance to become American 
citizens because of the waiting period for citizenship. These men and 
women love our country. They show it in their daily devotion to duty. 
Out of respect for their brave service in this time of war, I have 
signed an Executive order allowing them an immediate opportunity to 
petition for citizenship in the United States of America.
    America has always depended on the courage and character of our 
people in the military. We're honored today by the presence of some of 
West Virginia's most distinguished citizens, veterans of American Armed 
Forces. These men and women served in different places, at different 
times, but all were ready when their country needed them, ready to 
sacrifice, to fight, and if necessary, to die for the sake of others. 
That's the highest form of citizenship. Whether the veterans here served 
in peacetime or in the worst battles, you have the Nation's gratitude 
and the respect of your fellow Americans. On this Fourth of July, it is 
my privilege to thank you for your service to your country.
    Veterans know better than anyone that love for country is shown in 
works. A spirit of service is alive and strong in America today. Our 
response to tragedy and sudden national challenges has revealed the 
courage, and it has revealed the kindness of the American people. As we 
fight a war abroad, here at home Americans are answering the call of 
service, giving their time and energy to causes greater than self-
interest. This Nation is confronting a terrible evil, and we are 
overcoming evil with good.
    There is much in modern America that the founding generation might 
not understand. Yet, they would recognize the Stars and Stripes, and 
they would know qualities of character that still define our country. 
They would take great pride, as I do, in the decent, responsible, caring 
citizens who are the true strength of our country. I am certain as well 
that, if they could survey this country of ours,

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they would join us all in giving thanks for all that we have.
    A year after independence was declared, the Second Continental 
Congress set the design of our Nation's flag. The stars on blue were to 
represent a new constellation, the different world our young Nation had 
begun to create. Today, as much as ever before, America bears the hope 
of the world. Yet, from the day of our founding, America's own great 
hope has never been in ourselves alone. The Founders humbly sought the 
wisdom and the blessing of Divine Providence.
    May we always live by that same trust, and may God continue to watch 
over the United States of America. God bless, and God bless America.

Note: The President spoke at 10 a.m. at Courthouse Square. In his 
remarks, he referred to Gov. Bob Wise, Attorney General Darrel V. 
McGraw, Jr., and Secretary of State Joe Manchin III of West Virginia; 
Mayor Roy Guthrie of Ripley, WV; Mayor W.S. Ritchie of Ravenswood, WV; 
Lisa Vance, widow of Sgt. Gene Vance, Jr., USA; and Clyde Shuttlesworth, 
father of Staff Sgt. Anissa Ann Shero, USAF.