[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 39, Number 26 (Monday, June 30, 2003)]
[Pages 803-807]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Remarks at a Bush-Cheney Reception in New York City

June 23, 2003

    Thank you all very much. It's nice to be back in this great city of 
New York City. Thank you for your warm hospitality. I'm going to come 
back. [Laughter] And I look forward to having the Republican Convention 
right here in the great city of New York.
    Thank you all so very much for your help in the campaign. You're 
laying the foundation for what will be a national victory come November 
of 2004. I'm getting loosened up. [Laughter] I'm getting ready. 
[Laughter] But I'm going to need your help. I'm going to need your help 
not only to lay the foundation at the grassroots, but I need your help 
to pass our message, our inclusive, positive, hopeful message for all 
American citizens.
    I say I'm ready--the political season will come in its own time. 
There will be plenty of time for politics. Right now I'm focused on the 
people's business in Washington, DC. We have a lot on the agenda, and we 
will continue to work hard to earn the confidence of our fellow citizens 
by keeping this Nation secure, keeping this Nation strong, keeping this 
Nation prosperous, and keeping this Nation free.
    My only regret tonight is that First Lady Laura Bush didn't come. I 
know, you drew the--you drew the short straw. [Laughter] I'm proud of 
her. I love her. She is a fabulous First Lady for America.
    I want to thank Governor George Pataki for not only being a friend 
but being a great Governor for the State of New York.
    I appreciate so very much that my Secretary of Commerce, Don Evans, 
is with us tonight. I appreciate him coming.
    I had a chance to visit with the mayor. I want to thank Michael 
Bloomberg for the job he's doing on behalf of the citizens of this great 
city, and I want to thank him for his friendship as well. He probably 
said he's going out to throw a first pitch out at the minor league park. 
I know something about throwing out pitches. [Laughter] And I would 
suggest he goes with a fastball, not his slider. [Laughter]

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    I want to thank Congressman Vito Fossella for coming as well. He's 
part of that New York delegation that's making a difference.
    I want to thank people from the statehouse who are here. The 
Lieutenant Governor, Mary Donohue, is with us today. Mary, thank you for 
coming. Senate Majority Leader Joe Bruno and Assembly Minority Leader 
Charlie Nesbitt are with us as well. Thank you for coming.
    I'm proud that my friend Mayor Jim Garner from Hempstead, New York, 
who is the new president of the U.S. Conference on Mayors, is with us. 
Thank you, Mr. Mayor.
    I want to thank my friend Rudy Giuliani for being the cochairman of 
this--[applause]. Rudy and I and his new bride traveled from the 
helicopter pad together, and it's clear, like me, he married above 
himself. [Laughter]
    It's good to see former Senator Alphonse D'Amato here. Thank you for 
coming, Alphonse. I appreciate Mr. Chairman, Sandy Treadwell, for being 
here. Sandy, thank you for your leadership and your help. And the 
chairman of the New York Conservative Party, Mike Long, is with us as 
well. Michael, thanks for coming. Most importantly, thank you all for 
being here. It means a lot. I really appreciate your help and your 
support.
    In the last 2\1/2\ years, our Nation has acted decisively to 
confront great challenges. I came to the office of the Presidency to 
solve problems, not to pass them on to future Presidents and future 
generations. I came to seize opportunities instead of letting them slip 
away, and we are meeting the tests of our time.
    Terrorists declared war on the United States of America, and war is 
what they got. We have captured or killed many key leaders of Al Qaida, 
and the rest of them know we're hot on their trail. In Afghanistan and 
Iraq, we gave ultimatums to terror regimes. Those regimes chose 
defiance, and those regimes are no more.
    Fifty million people in those two countries once lived under 
tyranny, and now they live in freedom. Two-and-a-half years ago, our 
military was not receiving the resources it needed, and morale was 
beginning to suffer. We increased the defense budget to prepare for 
threats of a new era. And today, no one in the world can question the 
skill and the strength and the spirit of the United States military.
    Two-and-a-half years ago, we inherited an economy in recession. Then 
the attacks on our country and scandals in corporate America and the war 
affected our people's confidence. But we acted. We passed tough new laws 
to hold corporate criminals to account.
    And to get our economy going again, we have twice led the Congress 
to pass historic tax relief for the American people. Here is what we 
believe and here is what we know: When Americans have more take-home pay 
to spend, to save, or to invest, the whole economy grows, so people can 
find work. We understand whose money we spend in Washington, DC. It is 
not the Government's money. It is the people's money.
    We're returning more money to the people who are raising their 
families. We're reducing taxes on dividends and capital gains to 
encourage investment. We're giving small businesses incentives to expand 
and hire new people. With all these actions we are laying the foundation 
for greater prosperity and more jobs across America, so every single 
person in this country has a chance to realize the American Dream.
    Two-and-a-half years ago, there was a lot of talk about education 
reform, but there wasn't much action. So I called for and the Congress 
passed the No Child Left Behind Act. With a solid bipartisan majority, 
we delivered the most dramatic education reforms in a generation. We're 
bringing high standards and strong accountability measures to every 
public school in America. We believe every child can learn the basics of 
reading and math, and we believe that every school in America must teach 
those basics. We are challenging the soft bigotry of low expectations. 
The days of excuse-making are over, and now we expect results in every 
classroom in America so that not one single child is left behind.
    We reorganized the Government and created a Department of Homeland 
Security to safeguard the borders and ports and to protect the American 
people. We passed trade promotion authority to open new markets for 
America's farmers and ranchers and manufacturers. We passed a budget 
agreement

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that is helping to maintain spending discipline in Washington, DC. On 
issue after issue, this administration has acted on principle, has kept 
its word, and has made progress on behalf of the American people.
    The United States Congress has shared in these great achievements. 
And I do want to thank the Members of the Congress who have worked hard 
on behalf of the people. We'll continue to work together, work together 
to change the tone in Washington, DC, by focusing on results. That's 
been the nature of the folks that I've asked to serve the United States 
of America. I've assembled a fantastic Cabinet and an administration, 
people who understand their job is to represent all of America. There 
has been no greater Vice President for the United States of America than 
Dick Cheney. Mother might have a second opinion. [Laughter]
    In 2\1/2\ years, we have come far, but our work is only beginning. 
We have great goals worthy of this great Nation. First, America is 
committed to expanding the realm of freedom and peace. And secondly, 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 
great promise of America.
    It is clear that the future of peace and freedom depend on the 
actions of America. This Nation is freedom's home and freedom's 
defender. We welcome this charge of history, and we are keeping it. Our 
war on terror continues. The enemies of freedom are not idle, and 
neither are we. This country will not rest; we will not tire; and we 
will not stop until this danger to civilization is removed.
    Yet, our national interests 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, and free nations do not 
threaten the world with weapons of mass terror.
    Americans 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. When we have--we have duties in this world. 
And when we see disease and starvation and hopelessness and poverty, 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 now suffering from AIDS. This great land is leading the 
world in the important work of human rescue.
    We face challenges at home, and our actions prove that we're equal 
to those challenges. I will continue to work hard on our economy until 
everybody who wants to work and can't find a job today can find work.
    We have a duty to keep our commitment to America's seniors by 
strengthening and modernizing Medicare so they have more choices and 
better access to prescription drugs. The time has arrived for Congress 
to pass Medicare reform, and that reform must give seniors good options 
that meet their needs. Members of Congress and their staffs get a choice 
of health plans. Seniors ought to have the same kind of choices, 
including the choice to keep their Medicare coverage the way it is. If 
choice is good enough for Members of the United States Congress, it is 
good enough for the seniors in America.
    And for the sake of our health care system, we need to stop the 
frivolous lawsuits which increase the cost of medicine. People who have 
been harmed by a bad doctor deserve their day in court. Yet, the system 
should not reward lawyers who are simply fishing for rich settlements. 
Because frivolous lawsuits drive up the cost of health care, at the 
Federal level, liability reform is a national issue that requires a 
national solution. Our fellow citizens must understand that no one has 
ever been healed by a frivolous lawsuit. We need medical liability 
reform today.
    I have a responsibility as President to make sure the judicial 
system runs well, and I have met that duty. I have nominated superb men 
and women for the Federal courts, people who will interpret the law, not 
legislate from the bench. Some Members of the Senate are trying to keep 
my nominees off the bench by blocking up-or-down votes. Every judicial 
nominee deserves a fair hearing and an up-or-down vote on the Senate 
floor. It is time

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for some Members of the Senate to stop playing politics with American 
justice.
    The United States Congress needs to pass a comprehensive energy 
plan. Our Nation must promote energy efficiency and conservation and 
develop cleaner technologies. But for the sake of our national security, 
we must produce more energy at home.
    Our strong and prosperous Nation must also be a compassionate 
Nation. I will continue to advance our agenda of compassionate 
conservatism, applying the best and most innovative ideas to the task of 
helping our fellow citizens in need. There are still millions of men and 
women who want to end their dependence on Government and become 
independent through hard work. We must build on the success of welfare 
reform to bring work and dignity into the lives of more of our fellow 
citizens.
    Congress should complete the ``Citizen Service Act'' so more 
Americans can serve their communities and their country. And both Houses 
should finally reach agreement on a Faith-Based Initiative to support 
the armies of compassion that are mentoring children, caring for the 
homeless, and offering hope to the addicted.
    A compassionate society must promote opportunity for all, including 
the independence and dignity that come from ownership. This 
administration will constantly strive to produce an ownership society in 
America. We want more people to own their own homes. We want more people 
to own and control their retirement accounts. We want more small-
business owners in America, and we want people to own and manage their 
own health care plan. We understand that when somebody owns something, 
he or she has a vital stake--a vital stake--in the future of this 
country.
    In a compassionate society, people respect one another and take 
responsibility for the decisions they make. We're changing the culture 
of America from one that said, ``If it feels good, do it, and if you've 
got a problem, blame somebody else,'' to a culture in which each of us 
understands that we are responsible for the decisions we make in life.
    If you're fortunate enough to be a mother or father, you are 
responsible for the well-being of your child. If you're concerned about 
the quality of education in your community, you are responsible for 
doing something about it. If you are a CEO in America, you have a 
responsibility to tell the truth to your shareholders and your 
employees. And in a responsibility society, each of us is responsible 
for loving our neighbor just like we'd like to be loved ourselves.
    We can see the culture of service and responsibility growing around 
us here in America. I started the USA Freedom Corps to encourage 
Americans to extend a compassionate hand to a neighbor in need. And the 
response has been strong. Our faith-based charities all across the 
country are strong and vibrant, and bringing hope and healing to our 
fellow citizens. Policemen and firemen and people who wear our Nation's 
uniform are reminding us what it means to sacrifice for something 
greater than yourself. Once again the children of America believe in 
heroes, because they see them every day.
    In these challenging times, the world has seen the resolve and the 
courage of America. And I have been privileged to see the compassion and 
the character of the American people. All the tests of the last 2\1/2\ 
years have come to the right Nation. We're a strong country, and we use 
our strength to defend the peace. We're an optimistic country, confident 
in ourselves and in ideals bigger than ourselves.
    Abroad, we seek to lift whole nations by spreading freedom. At home, 
we seek to lift up lives by spreading opportunity to every corner of our 
country. This is the work that history has set before us. We welcome it. 
And we know for our country and for our cause, better days lie ahead.
    Thank you for coming. May God bless you. And may God bless America.

Note: The President spoke at 6:28 p.m. in the Imperial Ballroom at the 
Sheraton New York Hotel. In his remarks, he referred to Gov. George 
Pataki of New York; Mayor Michael Bloomberg of New York City; former 
Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani of New York City and his wife, Judith; and 
Alexander F. ``Sandy'' Treadwell, chairman, New York Republican State 
Committee.

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