[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 38, Number 46 (Monday, November 18, 2002)]
[Pages 2024-2028]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Remarks Following a Visit to District of Columbia Metropolitan Police 
Department Headquarters

November 12, 2002

    Thanks a lot. I want you to note, the Mayor said I made him a senior 
adviser. [Laughter] Mr. Mayor, you're doing a great job for the city of 
Washington, DC. I'm honored that I'm living in your neighborhood. And as 
I told a lot of the folks who I had the honor of meeting just a while 
ago at the Emergency Operations Center, I feel safe living here. And so 
does my family. And so do a lot of families, thanks to the dedication 
and hard work of people on the frontline of making sure that this city 
is buttoned up, dealing with the threats we face. I'm here to thank you 
all for your hard work.
    I'm here as well to tell all the first-responders across the 
District as well as around the country how much our country is grateful 
for your service, your dedication, and remind you that we have not only 
a duty to prepare for emergencies, we have a duty in this country to 
prevent them from happening in the first place.

[[Page 2025]]

    It's a new charge. It's a new charge because we learned on that 
fateful day that America is now a battlefield. It used to be that oceans 
would protect us. We didn't have to take certain threats seriously. We 
could say, ``Well, we can deal if we want to deal with them.'' But we 
learned a tough lesson, that the old ways are gone, that the enemy can 
strike us here at home, and we all have new responsibilities. And I'm 
confident we can meet those responsibilities because I understand the 
nature of the people who wear the uniform all across America, fine, 
dedicated, honorable public servants who are willing to serve something 
greater than themselves. So, thank you for what you do.
    And the Federal Government has got a job as well. Our job--our 
Government's greatest responsibility is to protect the American people. 
That's our most important job, and this requires Congress to create a 
new Department of Homeland Security so we can better do our job. I think 
this work can be done soon. The Congress is coming back for a brief 
period of time, and in that period of time, they can get the job done. 
If they put their mind to it, they can get a job done on behalf of the 
American people. And I urge them to do so.
    I'm honored to be here with Eleanor Holmes Norton. Thank you for 
coming, Madam Congresswoman. I appreciate your service.
    I appreciate being up here with Tom Ridge, my buddy who was a 
Governor. I said, ``Look, we've got a new issue we've got to deal with 
here in America. We've got to do everything we can to protect the 
homeland, so you need to leave Pennsylvania and come and join us.'' And 
fortunately, he did, and he is doing a fabulous job inside the White 
House of laying the groundwork for what I hope will soon be a Department 
of Homeland Security. And I appreciate you coming, Tom.
    Mr. Mayor, thanks again. Margret Kellems, it's good to have met you. 
It's an honor to be in the presence of the Deputy Mayor, as well.
    I'm impressed with Chief Ramsey. I don't know if this helps you or 
hurts you, Chief. [Laughter] He does a fine job. I got to know him at 
the inauguration, and I've been watching him ever since. This is a city 
with a lot of complex issues. It's a city where a lot of people come to 
exercise their right as Americans, and we appreciate that. And I'm proud 
that this city is able to allow people to express themselves and, at the 
same time, maintain order. Mr. Chief, you and your troops do a fabulous 
job here.
    I want to thank Chief Adrian Thompson for coming as well. I 
appreciate you being here, Chief. This is--the fire and emergency teams 
have got just as an important role to play as our police officers do.
    I want to thank Peter LaPorte, who is the director of the 
Washington, DC, Emergency Management Agency, for coming. I appreciate 
Jim Buford, who is the acting director of the Washington, DC, Department 
of Health. I want to thank Linda Cropp for coming as well.
    On September the 11th, 2001, our Nation was confronted by a new kind 
of war. See, we're at war. This is a war. This isn't a single isolated 
incident. We are now in the first war of the 21st century, and it's a 
different kind of war than we're used to. I explained part of the 
difference is the fact that the battlefield is now here at home. It's 
also a war where the enemy doesn't show up with airplanes that they own 
or tanks or ships. These are suiciders. These are coldblooded killers. 
That's all they are. The new kind of war has now placed our police and 
firefighters and rescue workers on the frontlines. You're already on the 
frontlines. Now you got another line. There's another front to do our 
duty to the American people.
    For the courageous individuals on September the 11th, it was a day 
of great loss. But it was also a grave--day of great--great honor. It 
reminded the American people of the sacrifices that the people who wear 
the uniform go through on a daily basis and the risks that you take 
every day.
    We still weep and mourn for those who lost lives to save others. But 
we also recognize there's a renewal in America of appreciation for what 
you do. The entire Nation appreciated the calm determination, the steady 
hand, the ability to respond under severe circumstances. And like our 
military, which is also on the front line of the war against terror, you 
deserve all the tools and

[[Page 2026]]

resources to do your work. This country is going to support you because 
we now understand the stakes.
    Since September the 11th, every level of government has taken 
important steps to better prepare against terrorism. We've now been 
notified. We understand that history has called us into action. There 
should be no doubt in anybody's mind the nature of the enemy. There 
should be no doubt in anybody's mind that we must do everything we can 
to protect the homeland.
    For the first time ever, customs agents are now at overseas ports 
inspecting containers before they come close to the United States. In 
other words, we're adjusting to the new world we're in. We've put more 
marshals now on airplanes. Everybody's aware of that. We've stepped up 
security at our powerplants and our ports and, as importantly, at our 
border crossings. We need to know who's coming into the country, what 
they're bringing into the country, and if they're leaving when they say 
they're going to leave. We need to know that for the sake of the 
homeland.
    We've deployed detection equipment to look for weapons of mass 
destruction. Whoever would have thought that this country needed to use 
technologies to prevent people from smuggling in weapons of mass 
destruction? But we needed to have that technology in place, so we can 
better protect the American people. There's a real threat that somebody 
might smuggle in one of these weapons that would create incredible havoc 
here at home. So we're on alert. We're stockpiling enough small pox 
vaccine for every man, woman, and child in America.
    The U.S. PATRIOT Act has helped us detect and disrupt terrorist 
activity in this country. What I'm telling you there is, anytime we get 
a hint that somebody is thinking about doing something to America, we're 
moving on it. Anytime we get an inkling that somebody is planning to 
hurt the American people, to take innocent life, we're using every tool 
we can to disrupt and deny. And we're doing that at the local level and 
at the State level and at the Federal level. That's what the American 
people expect, and that's what's going to happen.
    We act decisively in the clearest areas of vulnerability. We're 
moving. And this is only the beginning of our effort to protect our 
country from a global threat. The threats to the homeland are growing 
threats. These people aren't going away anytime soon. And so the need 
for action is important.
    And one of my jobs is to make sure nobody gets complacent. One of my 
jobs is to remind people of the stark realities that we face. See, every 
morning I go into that great Oval Office and read threats to our 
country--every morning. As a matter of fact, there hasn't a morning that 
hasn't gone by that I haven't saw--seen or read threats. Some of them 
are blowhards, but we take every one of them seriously. It's the new 
reality.
    The Congress is in session today, and the House and the Senate have 
pressing responsibilities to work with us for our security. And I'm 
confident they'll meet those responsibilities. And the single most 
important business before Congress is the creation of a Department of 
Homeland Security. Certain Members of the Senate and the House have got 
all kinds of agendas they'd like to discuss; the single most important 
one is to get this bill done.
    The importance of the Homeland Security means that we'll be able to 
better coordinate and organize and that there be clear lines of 
authority. One reason this department works so well and one reason the 
center we just saw works well is, there's great coordination with clear 
lines of authority. And that's important. That's what you do here in 
Washington, and that's what we ought to do at the Federal level as well 
in this new Department.
    The responsibility for protecting the homeland here in Washington, 
at least at the Federal level, is spread out among more than 100 
different organizations, and not one organization has the primary 
responsibility. Each agency operates separately, sometimes completely 
unaware of what others are doing. The result is duplication that we 
cannot afford and inefficiencies which create problems. So I set out to 
do something about it, for the good of the country. And that is to call 
for a single Cabinet-level Department of Government, staffed by 
dedicated professionals who wake up every single day with

[[Page 2027]]

one overriding duty, to protect the American people. That's their duty. 
That's their most important responsibility.
    The new Department will work, of course, with our State and local 
authorities to avert attacks, to plan for emergencies, and to respond. 
That's the functions of the new Department. We've got to make sure our 
first-responders are well equipped and trained and organized for their 
duties. You do a fine job here in Washington. There are some places that 
need help, and the new Department will help first-responders.
    The new Department will control our borders. I mentioned the 
border--we need to know who's coming in, we need--but there's three 
agencies on the border right now, and they're all full of fine people. 
They wear different uniforms. They have different strategies. Sometimes 
they talk; sometimes they don't. There is a better way to enforce our 
border here in America.
    It will bring together scientists who develop technologies that 
detect biological, chemical, and nuclear weapons and discover drugs and 
treatments to protect our citizens. So there will be a scientific 
component in this new Department.
    For the first time in our history, information on the threats to 
America will be gathered and analyzed, together with information on our 
vulnerabilities, in one place. We've got a lot of good people working 
hard to collect intelligence. This new agency will analyze the 
intelligence to address vulnerabilities here in America.
    Establishing the new Department will require the latest 
reorganization of the Federal--the largest reorganization of the Federal 
Government since 1940. In other words, it's not going to be easy. But I 
think Congress understands the need to do that. And I think Congress is 
willing to take the task. I want to thank very much the House of 
Representatives for passing a good bill, one that gives me the authority 
and the flexibility to work hard to defend America.
    The Senate--it got stuck in the Senate. But it looks like it's going 
to come out of the Senate, I hope. And we're working hard to bring it 
forth in a way that will enable this President and future Presidents to 
meet the needs of the United States. To meet the threats, I must be 
able--and future Presidents--must be able to move people and resources 
where they're needed and to do it quickly, without being forced to 
comply with a thick book of rules.
    The enemy moves quickly, and America must move quickly. We cannot 
have bureaucratic rules preventing this President and future Presidents 
from meeting the needs of the American people. To meet the threats to 
our country, a President must have the authority, as every President 
since John F. Kennedy has had, to waive certain rights for national 
security purposes. It makes no sense in a time of war to diminish the 
capacity of the President to be able to put the right people at the 
right time at the right place.
    This debate is often misunderstood. The rights of Federal workers 
should be and will fully be protected in the Department of Homeland 
Security. Every employee will be treated fairly and protected from 
discrimination. The men and women who work in that Department will need 
and want leadership that can act quickly and decisively, without getting 
bogged down in endless disputes. When the Department is created, we've 
got to do it right. It is our chance to do it right. And I will not give 
up national security authority at the price for creating a Department we 
badly need to secure America.
    Fortunately, I'm encouraged by the ongoing discussions. I believe we 
can get this done. I believe Congress can show the country that they can 
finish their work on a high note of achievement. That's what the people 
want. The people want us to come together and work together and do 
what's right. And I think Congress can show that's possible to do.
    Securing our homeland means not only a great--a new Department of 
Homeland Security, it means hunting these killers down one at a time. It 
means staying on task. It means holding--make sure that the doctrines 
still exist. And there's one out there that says, ``If you--you're 
either with us or with the enemy.'' That was true right after September 
the 11th, and it's very true today. We're calling on all these nations 
that love freedom to join us in an international manhunt. There's no 
cave deep enough for these people to hide in, as far as I'm concerned.

[[Page 2028]]

There's no shadow of the world dark enough for them to kind of slither 
around in. We're after them, and it's going to take a while. It can take 
a while. We're after them one person at a time. We owe that to the 
American people. We owe that to our children.
    I can't imagine what was going through their mind when they hit us. 
They must have thought we'd just file a lawsuit. They just don't 
understand America, do they? They don't understand our love for freedom. 
They don't understand that when it comes to our freedoms, it doesn't 
matter how long it takes, nor the cost, we will do our duty.
    The world's going to be more peaceful as a result of America being 
strong and resolved. Peace is going to happen. You see, the enemy hit 
us, and out of the evil done to this country is going to come some 
incredible good, a more secure America, a more peaceful world.
    People will look back--your kids and your grandkids will look back 
and say, ``You know, my dad or my mother was involved, actively involved 
in one of the most dramatic periods in our country's history.'' And I'm 
confident they'll look back and say, ``I'm proud of their service 
because America became a better place as a result of their sacrifices.''
    I'm honored you had me here. May God bless you and your families. 
May God bless your work. And may God continue to bless America. Thank 
you.

Note: The President spoke at 10:54 a.m. in the Old Council Chambers at 
One Judiciary Square, NW, following a tour of the Synchronized 
Operations Command Complex at Metropolitan Police Department 
headquarters at 300 Indiana Ave., NW. In his remarks, he referred to 
District of Columbia Mayor Anthony A. Williams, Deputy Mayor for Public 
Safety and Justice Margret Kellems, Metropolitan Police Chief Charles H. 
Ramsey, and Fire and Emergency Medical Services Interim Chief Adrian H. 
Thompson; and Linda Cropp, chairman, Council of the District of 
Columbia. The Office of the Press Secretary also released a Spanish 
language transcript of these remarks.