[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 39, Number 21 (Monday, May 26, 2003)]
[Pages 640-643]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Remarks at the 2003 President's Dinner

May 21, 2003

    Thank you all. Thanks for the warm welcome. It's always nice to have 
a nice quiet dinner with a few friends. [Laughter] Can't tell you how 
much we appreciate you coming, though.
    First I want to thank my friend George Allen for putting together 
this fine event. I want to thank all those who've helped. I particularly 
want to thank all of you all for coming from all across the great 
country. Thank you for your support. It makes a huge difference to our 
``Grand Party.'' Your participation in the process makes a great 
difference to our great country.

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    All of us who serve this country have important responsibilities. 
You've got responsibilities at home to love your children with all your 
heart and all your soul. You've got responsibilities in your communities 
to love a neighbor like you'd like to be loved yourself. If you're a CEO 
in corporate America, you have a responsibility to tell the truth to 
your employees and shareholders. And we have responsibilities here in 
Washington, DC, to work together to keep this Nation strong and secure 
and prosperous and hopeful, and we accept that responsibility.
    I appreciate so very much the Speaker of the House, Denny Hastert. 
He is such a good Speaker. We want to keep him as the Speaker. And the 
same goes for the majority leader in the United States Senate, Senator 
Bill Frist. It is a joy to work with these two fabulous Americans.
    I'm also honored to be on the--sharing the stage with the Senate 
dinner chairman, Senator Orrin Hatch from Utah; the chairman of the 
National Republican Campaign Committee from the State of New York, 
Congressman Tom Reynolds; the House dinner chairman, Congressman Dave 
Camp from Michigan. I want to thank all the Senators and Members of the 
House of Representatives who are here. America is fortunate to have 
you--your service on behalf of all of us.
    I want to thank the members of the Cabinet who are here. I want to 
thank the Oak Ridge Boys for sharing their beautiful voices. Most of 
all, I want to thank you all for supporting us and what we're doing for 
the country.
    For the last 2\1/2\ years, this country has faced incredible 
challenges, and those challenges brought out the best in America. The 
testing of America has revealed the spirit of America. The world has 
seen that we are courageous, resolute, tough when we have to be, and a 
compassionate people. The world has seen the strength and the idealism 
of the United States military. Thanks to the skill and courage of our 
troops and the technology of our military, the world has seen that the 
guilty have more to fear from the United States of America.
    Thanks to the skill and bravery of our troops and coalition forces, 
because the guilty can no longer hide behind the innocent, the world 
will be a more peaceful place. The terrorists will have fewer places to 
hide. Tyrants will no longer be free to enslave their people. Freedom 
has arrived in far corners of the Earth.
    Every friend of this country and every enemy of this country can be 
certain America will always work to keep the peace, and we will always 
keep our word.
    We're working hard to change the tone in Washington, DC, and I 
believe we have. We've raised the debate to focus on results and 
progress, and we're achieving great results for the American people. One 
reason we're able to do so is because I put together a fabulous team. To 
the Cabinet members here, I want to thank you for your service. But I do 
want to mention one member of my team that is not with us tonight but is 
doing a fabulous job for America, and that's the finest Vice President 
our Nation has ever known, Vice President Dick Cheney.
    Now, my mother may have a different point of view--[laughter]--but I 
got the mike. [Laughter]
    The Vice President and members of the Cabinet and everybody else who 
works for me is resolved to keep the vow we made to restore honor and 
dignity to the office of the President of the United States.
    And I'm proud of the United States Congress. The Congress is focused 
on results, and they have delivered tremendous results for the American 
people: Major tax cuts so the working people can keep more of their own 
money; education reform; Homeland Security Department to better secure 
America; trade legislation. No, this Congress, instead of endless 
bickering and needless partisanship, has focused on what's--doing right 
for the American people. And I'm proud of what you all have done.
    We've come a long way in 2\1/2\ years, but we've got a lot more work 
to do. We've got a lot to do. First, America is committed to expanding 
the realm of freedom and peace for our own security and for the benefit 
of the world. And second, in our own country we must work for a society 
of prosperity and compassion, so that every citizen has a chance to work 
and succeed and realize the

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great promise of the United States of America.
    Across the world it has never been more clear that the future of 
freedom and peace depend on the actions of the United States. This 
Nation is freedom's home and defender. We welcome this charge of 
history, and we will keep it.
    As we saw again last week in Saudi Arabia and in Morocco, the war on 
terror continues. Our work is not done. The enemies of freedom are not 
idle, and neither are we. This country will not rest. We will not tire. 
We will not stop until the danger to civilization is removed.
    Our national interest involves more than eliminating aggressive 
threats to our safety. Our greatest security comes from the advance of 
human liberty, because free nations do not support terror. Free nations 
do not attack their neighbors. Free nations do not threaten the world 
with weapons of mass murder. As Americans, we believe that freedom is 
the deepest need and hope of every human heart. And we believe that 
freedom is the right of every person and the future of every nation.
    America also understands that unprecedented influence brings 
tremendous responsibilities. We have duties in the world. When we see 
disease, starvation, and hopeless poverty, we cannot and we will not 
turn away. On the continent of Africa, America is now committed to 
bringing the healing power of medicine to millions of men and women and 
children who suffer from AIDS.
    I want to thank the United States Congress. I want to thank the 
House, once again, for voting for the package today to make sure that 
the great compassion of America is felt in some of the most hopeless 
corners of the world. I want to thank Henry Hyde and Dick Lugar and Bill 
Frist, who guided this important legislation through both Houses, a 
piece of legislation which I look so forward to signing next week before 
I go overseas. And when I go overseas, I will remind our partners in 
Europe about our great heart, our great compassion, and call upon them 
to join us in this great work.
    We have challenges at home, and there's not doubt in my mind we are 
equal to those challenges. Our most urgent mission in the months ahead 
is to strengthen this economy, to create the conditions for job growth, 
and to provide economic security and opportunity for all our American 
citizens. Prosperity is the result of hard work and the dreams of the 
American people. The role of Government is not to create wealth but the 
environment in which work and entrepreneurship pay off.
    Republican Members of the House and Senate understand that. Each 
body has now passed additional tax relief to leave more money into the 
hands of the American people. See, we understand this: The money we talk 
about in Washington, DC, is not the Government's money. The money we 
talk about in Washington, DC, is the people's money.
    Chairman Thomas in the House and Chairman Grassley in the Senate are 
working hard to reconcile any differences, and I'm confident they'll be 
able to do so and get a package to my desk that I can sign into law. The 
Members of the House and the Senate are results-oriented people. When 
they see a problem, they act. We want everybody in America who wants to 
work to be able to find a job.
    Economic security also depends on a good education for every child. 
I came to Washington with a deep desire to pass fundamental reforms in 
education, to bring high standards, accountability, regular testing to 
every public school in America. With a solid bipartisan majority, we 
passed the No Child Left Behind Act. This is a good start, but it's only 
a start. And now we're working with Governors and chief school officers 
of every State to make reform a reality. Every child can learn the 
basics of reading and math, and every school must teach those basics. 
The days of excuse-making are over, and now we expect results in every 
classroom, so that not one single child in America is left behind.
    We can use our past success as a model for meeting other priorities 
currently before the Congress. Members of the Congress are working with 
us now to strengthen and modernize Medicare, to give seniors more health 
care choices and access to prescription drugs. All of us on the Federal 
payroll get a choice in health care plans. Seniors ought to have the 
same choices. If choice is good enough

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for Federal workers, it is good enough for the seniors in America.
    Together, we've been working to cut down on frivolous lawsuits and 
pass meaningful medical liability reform. People who have been 
mistreated by doctors deserve a day in court. Yet the system should not 
reward lawyers fishing for large settlements. The medical liability 
issue is a national problem that requires a national solution. The House 
has passed a good bill, and the Senate should follow suit.
    I also continue to work with the Congress to pass a comprehensive 
energy plan to lessen our dependence on foreign oil.
    We must also advance our agenda of compassionate conservatism. We 
have a responsibility to apply the best, most innovative ideas to the 
task of helping our fellow citizens in need. We must continue to work 
for meaningful, real welfare reform, to bring work and dignity into the 
lives of more and more Americans. The Congress should finish work on a 
faith-based bill to support the armies of compassion, for mentoring 
children and caring for the homeless and offering hope to the addicted.
    I appreciate the hard work of Orrin Hatch and Bill Frist to make 
sure that our judiciary functions properly. I have submitted superb 
nominations to our Federal courts. The confirmation process in the 
United States Senate should be about justice, not about empty politics.
    We have a full agenda for America, and a clear and optimistic vision 
for our future. We believe in an ownership society. We want Americans to 
own their own health plan. We want Americans to be able to start their 
own businesses. We want more families to own homes. We want people to be 
owning a piece of their retirement, so that every person has the dignity 
and independence that come from ownership, assets and property that they 
can call their own.
    We also have a vision for a responsibility society. We're changing 
the culture in this country, from one that has said, ``If it feels good, 
just go ahead and do it,'' and ``If you've got a problem, blame somebody 
else.'' The culture is shifting to one in which people know they're 
accountable for what they do, they're responsible for children they 
bring into the world; a culture which says, ``You have a responsibility 
to help a neighbor in need.''
    We can see the culture of service and responsibility is rising 
around us in America. We started what's called USA Freedom Corps, where 
response has been fantastic. Our fellow citizens from all walks of life, 
all political parties, have joined in making sure that people who hurt 
receive the love and affection they need. Our faith-based charities are 
strong and vibrant in America. We've got people who are willing to 
sacrifice on behalf of others, those who wear the uniform, the police 
and the firefighters. We've got people who are now serving in their 
communities and being held up as examples--positive examples--so that 
children can learn the meaning, the real meaning of hero. No, America's 
culture is changing and changing to the better.
    It is such an honor to be the President of a great country. Our 
Nation has faced mighty challenges over 2\1/2\ years. We've been endured 
terrorist attacks, yet we have grown stronger. We've led the world in 
the fight against terrorism. We freed a great people from a ruthless 
dictator and eliminated the threat posed to world peace.
    We met every challenge, and we will meet every challenge that comes, 
because this is the greatest country on the face of the Earth. And the 
reason it is, is because of the great strength and compassion of the 
American people.
    It is such an honor to be here. May God bless you all, and may God 
bless America.

Note: The President spoke at 7:20 p.m. at the Washington Convention 
Center. In his remarks, he referred to Senator George Allen of Virginia, 
chairman, National Republican Senatorial Committee; and entertainers the 
Oak Ridge Boys, who sang the national anthem.