[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 39, Number 38 (Monday, September 22, 2003)]
[Pages 1219-1225]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Remarks at the Detroit Edison Monroe Plant in Monroe, Michigan

September 15, 2003

    Thank you all. Please be seated, unless you don't have a seat. 
[Laughter] Thanks for the warm welcome. I appreciate the chance to come 
to this vital facility to meet the workers who make it go, meet the 
planners who keep it modern, and meet some of the people who benefit 
from the electricity that's generated out of here.
    I come knowing our Nation faces some great challenges. The biggest 
challenge we face is the security of our people. We've got to make sure 
that America is secure from the enemies which hate us. And we've got to 
make America secure by having an economy that grows so people can find 
work.
    On the first front, to make sure America is secure, we're making 
good progress. The 2 years from September the 11th--we got hit. We got 
hit by people who cannot stand what America believes in. We love 
freedom, and we're not going to change. And they probably won't either. 
Therapy won't work with this bunch. [Laughter]

[[Page 1220]]

    So we will bring people to justice. It doesn't matter how long it 
takes. America and many of our friends will find those who would harm 
the American people and bring them to justice. The only way to win the 
war on terror is to stay on the offensive. We can do a lot of things 
here at home. We can support our first responders. We can make sure our 
law enforcement agencies talk to each other. We can make sure our ports 
are more secure, our borders are reasonable about understanding who is 
coming in and why they're coming in. But the best way to make sure the 
homeland is secure is to hunt these killers down one by one and bring 
them to justice, which the United States of America will do.
    As part of making sure America is secure, I laid out a doctrine that 
said, ``If you harbor a terrorist, if you feed a terrorist, if you hide 
a terrorist, you're just as guilty as the terrorists. To provide money 
to terrorists, you're guilty, and we will hold you account.'' And the 
Taliban found out what we meant.
    We gave an ultimatum to Mr. Saddam Hussein. We said, ``Get rid of 
your weapons.'' He ignored not only the United States but the civilized 
world. That regime is no more. And one thing is for certain: No 
terrorist organization will ever get a weapon of mass destruction from 
Mr. Saddam Hussein.
    Our Nation is more secure. The world is becoming more free and, 
therefore, more peaceful. This Nation yearns for peace, but we 
understand the nature of the enemy. For those of you who have got 
relatives in the United States military, I want to thank you, for a 
grateful nation. And you thank them, on behalf of the Commander in Chief 
and the people of this country, for the sacrifices they are willing to 
make on behalf of the rest of us.
    Economic security is on my mind. I'm sure the numbers are beginning 
to look better, but there's still people looking for work. My attitude 
is, so long as somebody is looking for work, then we've got to continue 
to try to create the conditions necessary for job growth. We want our 
people working. We want the moms and dads to be able to make a living, 
to be able to put food on the table for their children.
    National security means economic security for every single citizen. 
And one of the lessons we learned a while ago was that a reliable, 
affordable electrical power is essential for economic growth in America. 
It's an essential part of an economic plan. If you're interested in 
creating jobs, you'd better have energy. You're not going to have an 
economy grow without reliable sources of energy.
    Lights went out last month--you know that. [Laughter] It might have 
been good for candle sales, but it certainly wasn't good for--job 
growth. It recognizes that we've got an issue with our electricity grid, 
and we need to modernize it. We need to make sure it works in the 
future. The first thing we're going to do is find out what went wrong 
and address the problem. Secretary of Energy Spence Abraham, right here, 
from the State of Michigan, is leading that investigation. We want the 
facts. We'll put the spotlight of truth on the facts, and then we'll 
deal with it. But also, it's clear that the power grid needs an 
overhaul. It needs to be modernized. As we go into an exciting new 
period of American history, we want the most modern electricity grid for 
our people.
    When I first got in in Washington, I put out a plan, a national 
energy strategy. I felt like we needed an energy strategy for the 
country. If energy is an issue, first of all you need a strategy and a 
plan. And we laid one out. And part of that plan modernizes--called for 
the modernization of the electricity grid. We need more investment. We 
need research and development to make sure we're--as we invest new 
technologies, they're the latest and best for the people of this 
country. We also want to make sure voluntary reliability standards for 
utilities are now mandatory reliability standards. When somebody says 
they're going to be reliable, we don't want it to be maybe reliable or 
perhaps reliable. We want mandatory reliability standards, so people can 
count on the deliver--to have their electricity delivered.
    This is part of the plan I announced, as well as we've got to make 
sure that the energy we use, we have the best technologies to make sure 
we burn it as clean as we can. That's why I have a strong initiative for 
clean coal technology. We want to make sure we encourage conservation. 
But the truth of the

[[Page 1221]]

matter is, we need to become less dependent on foreign sources of 
energy, For the sake of economic security.
    We lead the world in new technologies when it comes to energy, and 
we not only can find new ways of producing energy and make sure we do so 
in an efficient way, we can make sure we do so in a clean way. You know 
right here what I'm talking about, at this plant. We lead the world in 
technologies to make the production of energy cleaner. And so therefore, 
I'm confident in predicting to the American people, not only can we 
promote job security and increase jobs, but we can do so in way that 
protects our environment. And I believe we have a duty to do so. I 
believe a responsible nation is one that protects the environment.
    Yet the Government sometimes doesn't help. And that's what I'm here 
to discuss--[laughter]--those moments when the Government doesn't help, 
when the Government stands in the way. For example, powerplants are 
discouraged from doing routine maintenance because of Government 
regulations. And by ``routine maintenance,'' I mean replacing wornout 
boiler tubes or boiler fans. And all that does is, it makes the plant 
less reliable, less efficient, and not as environmentally friendly as it 
should be. So I changed those regulations--my administration did. And 
I'm here to explain why we did, in a way that I hope the American people 
can understand.
    Before I begin, I do want to thank Tony Earley for that 
introduction. I just had a great tour of your facility, Tony, by Paul--
Paul Fessler. He said to make sure I didn't bring up the Michigan-Notre 
Dame game. [Laughter] So I won't bring it up. [Laughter]
    I'm traveling today with Marianne Horinko, who is the Acting 
Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency. She's a good, 
commonsense lady. She's smart. She's capable. She understands that we 
can grow our economy and protect the environment at the same time. It's 
not one or the other; it's both. When we talk about environmental policy 
in this Bush administration, we not only talk about clean air; we talk 
about jobs. And I believe we can do both, and so does Marianne. I want 
to thank you for your service.
    I thank Paul for the tour, and I was joined on the tour by Mike 
Smith, who is a senior union committeeman, Local 223. I appreciate Mike 
taking me around and introducing me to some of the fellow workers in the 
plants. At least the ones I met, morale seemed high. People enjoy 
working here. You're providing a service. For all the workers who work 
here, I want you to know you're providing an important service. You're 
creating the conditions so people can find a job. You're working hard to 
make sure somebody can turn on a light switch, and they can realize the 
comforts of modern life. Thanks for what you do.
    I'm also traveling today with Members of the United States Congress, 
Congresswoman Candice Miller and Congressman Fred Upton. I want to thank 
you all for coming. I appreciate you being here. We've got the secretary 
of state, Terri Lynn Land, with us, the attorney general, Mike Cox, the 
speaker of the house, Rick Johnson, members of the--all working hard at 
the State level. I'm glad they are here too. And finally, Mayor Al is 
with us, the mayor of Monroe. Al Cappuccilli is here. Thank you, Mayor, 
for being with us. You must be filling the potholes--[laughter]--picking 
up the garbage--[laughter]--that's the way to go.
    Today when I landed, I met Claire Jennings. Let me describe right 
quick--[applause]--it sounds like they know you, Claire. [Laughter] One 
of the things I try to do when I come to communities is to herald those 
folks who are volunteering their own time to make the world a better 
place. It's amazing the people I've been able to meet in our country. 
We've got all kinds of people from all walks of life taking time out to 
mentor a child or to take care of a--somebody who is lonely, to help 
heal a broken heart, surround somebody who hurts with love. It's really 
the strength of our country. I'm proud of our military. I intend to keep 
our military strong. But the strength of the country is the heart and 
souls of our citizens. It's the willingness of people to lend a helping 
hand. What Claire has done is, she decided to enhance the wildlife 
growth around this plant. She decided to make this important facility a 
wildlife refuge as well.

[[Page 1222]]

    And it worked. It's a beautiful setting. It's a wonderful--she's 
done a wonderful job, as have coworkers, in making sure the 800 acres 
here at the Monroe plant is spectacular to look at. And it will leave 
behind something like a legacy for future generations. So Claire, I want 
to thank you for setting a good example. I'm glad you brought your 
daughter too.
    I said as plainly as I could that I believe we can grow our economy 
and protect the quality of our air at the same time. And we made 
progress doing just that. Let me give you a statistic or two. Our 
economy has grown 164 percent in three decades. That's pretty good 
growth. And yet, according to a report that the EPA is releasing today, 
air pollution from six major pollutants is down by 48 percent during 
that period of time. So you nearly double your economy, and yet 
pollution is down by nearly 50 percent.
    That should say to people that we can grow our economy, that we can 
work to create the conditions for job growth, and that we can be good 
stewards of the air that we breathe. And this plant is a good example of 
that achievement. Since 1974, the power generated from here has 
increased by 22 percent. You've created more power so more people can 
live a decent life. And yet, the particulate matter emissions have 
fallen by 80--81 percent. You're good stewards of the quality of the air 
as well. You work hard in this plant to put energy on the grid, and at 
the same time, you're protecting the environment.
    There's reason for this progress, and it's because our Nation made a 
commitment. Starting in the Clean Air Act of 1970, we set high goals. We 
said, ``This is a national priority. Let's work together to achieve 
these priorities.'' And we are working together. This administration, my 
administration strongly supports the Clean Air Act, and I believe that 
by combining the ethic of good stewardship--in other words, convince 
people that it's an important goal--and the spirit of innovation, we 
will improve the quality of our air even further, and, at the same time, 
make sure people can find a job.
    There is more to do, and so I want to talk about three ideas that--
three commonsense steps that I put out to help us meet the new air 
quality standards and further improve quality of life. I hope you find 
that they make sense. They certainly do to me. They're commonsense ways 
to deal with our environment.
    First, we're going after the pollution that comes from diesel 
vehicles. We worked with the energy companies and the agricultural 
concerns and the manufacturers; we worked with environment groups; we 
worked with union groups to come up with a commonsense policy. And we 
did. We developed one, and it's now being implemented. Oil companies 
will lower the sulphur in diesel fuel. We'll enforce new emission limits 
on diesel truck engines. And we're going to put forward new rules that 
will control pollution from off-road vehicles like heavy construction 
equipment. The stakeholders came; we developed good policy. Everybody is 
on board, and now we're headed toward a cleaner--cleaner quality air for 
all Americans.
    Secondly, I proposed what's called Clear Skies legislation. Again, 
you heard the CEO talk about this legislation. Clear Skies legislation 
will help cut powerplant emissions without affecting job growth and/or 
jobs at this plant. We're interested in reducing the nitrogen oxide, 
sulphur dioxide in mercury, coming out of the powerplants around 
America. We've put forth a plan; we brought people in a room; we 
discussed it with them. The stakeholders agreed; union workers--union 
leaders have agreed; utilities have agreed; manufacturing companies have 
agreed to a plan that will reduce those three key pollutants by 70 
percent over a reasonable period of time.
    We've got an interesting approach. It's been tried in the past. It's 
a cap-and-trade system. We put mandatory caps on emissions. It's a 
little different look than maybe you're used to. Instead of the 
Government telling utilities where and how to cut pollution, we will 
work with them to create a cap, how much to cut and when we expect it 
cut by, but you figure out how. You're a lot better in figuring out the 
how than people in Washington, DC.
    Each year, each facility will need a permit for each ton of 
pollution it emits. Companies that are able to reduce their pollution 
below the amount can sell the surplus to others that need more time to 
meet the national goal

[[Page 1223]]

and the national standard. In other words, there's an incentive system 
built into it. The system makes it worthwhile for companies to invest 
earlier in controls and therefore pollute less. It ensures that high 
standards are met in a commonsense way that is cost-effective and saves 
jobs. And under the legislation, communities that have had trouble 
meeting air quality standards will finally have a clear and a more 
effective method to get them help.
    I'm going to be talking about this tomorrow at the White House. I'll 
be doing it in Washington because I expect Congress to act. Instead of 
playing politics with environmental legislation, we need to come 
together and do what's right for American workers and American families. 
Clear Skies is good, sound legislation and needs to be passed.
    Finally, I want to speak to one other matter. It's called New Source 
Review. We need to fix those and have--we're in the process of fixing 
what they call New Source Review regulations. After I explain it, I 
think it will make sense as to why we're doing it.
    The old regulations, let me start off by telling you, undermined our 
goals for protecting the environment and growing the economy. The old 
regulations on the book made it difficult to either protect the economy 
or--protect the environment or grow the economy. Therefore, I wanted to 
get rid of them. I'm interested in job creation and clean air, and I 
believe we can do both.
    One of the things we've got to do is encourage companies to invest 
in new technologies, convince utilities to modernize their equipment, so 
they can produce more energy and pollute less. In other words, as 
technologies come on, we want to encourage companies to make investment 
in those technologies. Yet old regulations, the ones we're changing, 
actually discourage companies from even making routine repairs and 
replacing old equipment. That's the reality. Regulations intended to 
enhance air quality made it really difficult for companies to do that 
which is necessary to not only produce more energy but to do it in a 
cleaner way.
    Powerplants and companies wanted to make one change they could 
afford. The regulators could come in and order them to change 
everything, making every change a massive multiyear battle. That's the 
reality here at Monroe plant. The people who are trying to modernize 
this plant and do their job on behalf of the people of Michigan found 
out that the regulations were so complex that they could be interpreted 
any different way. And that's what happened. And when you have complex 
regulations that are open for interpretation, guess what happens? The 
lawyers come in. [Laughter] And then you have litigation, and then 
things grind to a standstill.
    So a lot of planners and people who were charged with providing 
electricity and to protect the air decided not to do anything. They 
didn't want to have to fight through the bureaucracy or fight through 
the endless lawsuits. And when that happens, fewer powerplants are 
upgraded. They become old and tired, which means people start losing 
their jobs, which means our economy is not robust so people can find 
work if they're looking for work, which means some cases, energy costs 
are higher than they should be.
    And so we decided to do something about it--I did. It's been in the 
process for a while, and I decided to move, particularly when I heard 
stories like this one here at Monroe. In 1999, Detroit Edison made a 
decision to upgrade the turbine steam generators here. That's a vital 
decision. For the men and women who work at that plant, you understand, 
when I say ``vital decision,'' that it is a vital decision. The company 
wanted to give more efficient--wanted this plant to have new, efficient 
blades on the turbines, which will allow more electricity to be 
generated with the same amount of coal without causing emission 
increases. It seems like a commonsense policy. If I were running this 
plant, I would want to modernize it so we could produce more energy for 
the same amount of input and continue doing a good job of protecting the 
quality of the air. That's the kind of corporate behavior that I 
appreciate.
    Yet when the company took the plan to the EPA, the first thing that 
happened is they had to wait a year for an answer. [Laughter] They said, 
``We've got a good way to do something, but please tell us if we can 
move forward.'' And the answer wasn't forthcoming. And when the answer 
did come back, it was so complicated, because the rules

[[Page 1224]]

are so complicated, that Detroit Edison decided to delay part of the 
project until its experts could decipher the details of the ruling. On 
the one hand, the rules are so complex that the answer coming back was 
even more complex, evidently, because nothing happened for a while.
    Now, finally, the project is going to be complete. Detroit Edison 
decided to move forward, 5 years after it decided to begin. That's 
inefficient. That doesn't make any sense. The quicker we put modern 
equipment into our powerplants, the quicker people are going to get more 
reliable electricity. If we're interested in job creation in America, 
we'd better have the most modern facilities to make sure that 
electricity is available so people can expand their job base. And yet 
the rules didn't let that happen. The rules created too many hurdles, 
and that hurts the working people.
    And so, as I said, we decided to do something about it. We began to 
review the old rules and regulations. And we wanted to do so in a 
careful way. The EPA held five public meetings. More than 100 groups 
were represented, citizens and industry and local officials. There were 
thousands of comments. In other words, we said, ``If you've got a 
problem with the change, please bring them forward. Or you support the 
change, bring them forward.'' We wanted to hear from people, and the EPA 
did a good job of collecting data.
    In December, we issued the first set of rules to clarify and 
simplify regulations for manufacturers to do projects in an energy-
efficient way and to promote policy that would discourage pollution. And 
now we've issued new rules that will allow utility companies like this 
one right here to make routine repairs and upgrades without enormous 
costs and endless disputes. We simplified the rules. We made them easy 
to understand. We trust the people in this plant to make the right 
decisions.
    There is a lot of debate about New Source Review--the change of New 
Source Review. It makes sense to change these regulations. It makes 
sense for the workplace environment. It makes sense for the protection 
of our air. Not only do I believe that, but union leaders believe that. 
Manufacturers believe that. The utilities believe that. A bipartisan 
coalition in Congress believes it. We have done the right thing.
    Monroe plant is a living example of why we acted. The people at this 
plant wanted to put the most modern equipment, use the most modern 
technology to make sure the people of Michigan got energy at a 
reasonable and affordable price and at the same time protect the 
environment. Government policy prevented them from doing so. We have 
changed the Government policy for good of the people of this country.
    I mentioned the challenges we face, but I'm an optimist, because I 
understand America. It's been my privilege to see the character of the 
American people. We are resolute. We're plenty tough when we have to be 
tough. We're also compassionate. Ours is a resourceful nation. We set 
goals, and we work together to achieve those goals. Ours is a nation 
that, when we hear that somebody is looking for work and can't find 
work, cares about that person.
    I want to make sure this environment, economic environment of ours 
is as healthy as it can be. The American people have got to understand, 
a healthy economic environment means we'd better have energy. We'd 
better be producing that energy. There's electricity so people can 
expand their manufacturing facilities. If you've got an issue with the 
manufacturing base, you'd better make sure you've got a reliable supply 
of energy for the manufacturers, like they've got right here in 
Michigan.
    We can overcome problems. We're smart and resourceful people. We're 
also a compassionate people, people who are willing to love a neighbor 
just like we love ourselves. That's what I love most about America. I 
love the fact that there are people who hurt--I love the fact that when 
somebody is hurting in your neighborhood, you're likely to walk across 
the street and say, ``What can I do to help?'' It's a fabulous country 
we have.
    Oh yes, we've got problems, but there's no doubt in my mind, because 
of the character of the American people, we can overcome any problem 
that's in our way.
    I want to thank you all for coming out today. May God bless you, and 
may God continue to bless America.

[[Page 1225]]

Note: The President spoke at 12:40 p.m. In his remarks, he referred to 
Anthony F. Earley, Jr., chairman and chief executive officer, DTE 
Energy; Paul Fessler, director, Monroe Power Plant; Mike Smith, chief 
steward, Utility Workers Local 223, Power Generation Division; Mayor Al 
Cappuccilli of Monroe; and former President Saddam Hussein of Iraq.