[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 39, Number 44 (Monday, November 3, 2003)]
[Pages 1490-1494]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Remarks at the Dedication of the Oak Cliff Bible Fellowship Youth 
Education Center in Dallas, Texas

October 29, 2003

    The President. Thank you all.
    Audience members. USA! USA! USA!
    The President. Thank you all.
    Audience members. USA! USA! USA!
    The President. Zip it. [Laughter] Thank you all for coming. It's 
great to be home. I'm glad to be with people who are transforming a 
community one heart and one soul at a time. That's what's taking place 
here, and that's why I'm here.
    I want to thank you all for supporting Project Turn Around. I want 
to thank you for supporting with your resources, with your time, and 
with your prayers. I want to thank my friend Tony Evans for his 
leadership. He's what I like to call a social entrepreneur. We've got 
business entrepreneurs, and this country has got social entrepreneurs--
those are people who use their wits and their talents as change agents, 
as positive change agents.
    You can hear Tony on 500 radio stations. You can read 20 of his 
books. You can listen to his powerful sermons on Sunday. He is a busy 
man, and one of the advantages of being President is he'll take my phone 
call. [Laughter] And I'm glad he does. I appreciate his advice, and he's 
got good, sound advice. I appreciate his friendship; he is a loyal 
friend. And I appreciate his prayers. The greatest gift American people 
can give a President and his family is prayer, and I want to thank you 
for that.
    Tony and I married well. [Laughter] I'm so honored to be with Lois 
Evans. Thank you very much for your hospitality. And the Evans family, 
Chrystal and Priscilla as well as Anthony, Jr. Anthony, Jr. was telling 
me--actually, he's a modest guy, so his dad was telling me--[laughter]--
that he just got back from cutting a record with Michael W. Smith. I 
think that's what he said, kind of like that. Well, he was with Michael 
W. Smith. [Laughter] We'll see if the record happens or not. [Laughter]
    Some of my greatest memories was living in Austin, Texas, and 
showing up for work at the Capitol. Two members of the legislative 
branch are here, people who I remember fondly, people who I miss. 
Senator Royce West and Representative Helen Giddings are with us.
    I want you to know that I'm aware that Reverend E.K. Bailey passed, 
and I send our deepest sympathies to his family and to his congregation. 
He was a great leader here in the great State of Texas.
    I bring up a preacher because I want to thank all the preachers who 
are here, the pastors, those who shepherd. One pastor who is not here is 
my friend Jack Graham from Prestonwood Baptist. I bring that up because 
social entrepreneurs find out ways to leverage resources in a proper 
way. And what Tony Evans has done with Pastor Jack Graham is to start an 
urban-suburban partnership. It's an opportunity for suburban churches to 
participate in salvaging lives and making lives better in neighborhoods 
where most members of the congregation will never go. It's a chance for 
urban and suburban churches to work on racial reconciliation. Social 
entrepreneurs think about ways to make societies a better place. And I 
want to thank Tony and I appreciate Jack for having a vision about how 
to--about how to make America a better place, one neighborhood at a 
time.
    A President must set great goals worthy of a great nation. We're a 
great nation. Therefore, a President must set big goals. I set a goal 
for this country to make the world more peaceful by spreading freedom. 
Freedom is not America's gift to the world; freedom is God's gift to 
each and every individual in the world.
    I set a great goal here at home. I want the American Dream, the 
great hope of our country, to extend in every neighborhood in our 
country. I want every single person in this land to feel welcome and 
wanted and

[[Page 1491]]

hopeful. It's a great domestic goal. And of course, when you think about 
setting goals, you've got to think about the tactics and strategies to 
achieve a goal. It's one thing to set a goal; it's another thing to 
actually meet the goal.
    And one of the reasons I'm so thrilled to be here with Tony Evans is 
because he helped me understand how to best meet that goal. He probably 
didn't realize it at the time, but there's something about ``mysterious 
ways.'' [Laughter] We were together in Greenville, Texas, in 1996. It's 
an unusual place for, you know, a Governor and a famous pastor to meet. 
But we were there because we were worried about racial reconciliation as 
a result of some fires that had destroyed church.
    And I'll never forget his speech. It's stuck with me to this day. As 
a matter of fact, what I'm telling you is it's helped formulate policy, 
first at State level, now the Federal level, because he got up and he 
said, in speaking about programs meant to help people, welfare 
programs--he said, you know, get rid of your welfare programs, think 
differently. He said the best welfare programs are on every corner in 
America. They're open 24 hours a day. They've got a workforce that is 
guided by an ancient guidebook whose tenets have stood the test of time. 
They've got a motto over the door that says, ``Love your neighbor like 
you would like to be loved yourself.''
    Tony went on to explain why faith-based programs, programs that 
emanate out of faith institutions work so well. He told the story; maybe 
he has told it to you. If he has, I've got to repeat it because the TV 
cameras are here. [Laughter] He said he's reminded of the time when a 
fellow had a house and he got a crack on the wall. And he went and got a 
painter or a plasterer, and a fellow came and covered it up. And two 
weeks later, the crack reappeared. And so he said, ``Well, I better get 
another painter.'' And he did. And he repainted the crack. But it 
reappeared again. He finally got a wise painter who said, ``Sir, you'll 
never fix the crack until you fix the foundation.'' Project Turn Around 
fixes the foundation.
    That's what we're here to herald, programs such as Project Turn 
Around. It's got such a wonderful sense of mission. It says, ``to 
rebuild lives from the inside out.'' It's a powerful statement, isn't 
it? Really think about it--``to rebuild lives,'' that's a hopeful goal 
for our country. We want people to realize the great potential of 
America. Some lives have to be rebuilt. And it didn't say ``from the 
outside in,'' it said ``from the inside out.'' It's a faith-based 
initiative built from the inside out, not from the outside in.
    Listen to what you do through this ministry. There's a thousand 
volunteers who provide shelter and food and clothing. There's marriage 
counseling. It's vital that we have strong families in America. And they 
provide marriage counseling. Job training--somebody walks in this 
building, and they want to work. They just--there's human dignity that 
comes from work, and they can find a chance to train for jobs right here 
in Project Turn Around. Advice on starting a small business--that warms 
my heart. If you own something, you have a vital stake in the future of 
our country. There's nothing better than somebody realizing their dreams 
by starting and owning their own business. It's uniquely--not 
``uniquely,'' it's inherently American that people are able to do that 
right here. Who would think that in a church you would have a program to 
teach you how to start your own business? Social entrepreneurs think 
that way.
    Project Turn Around is a complete program. A woman can find help 
during a crisis pregnancy. There's a tenderness and a practicality to 
Project Turn Around. This program is a beacon for Dallas. And this 
program is a model for the Nation.
    We just came from the dedication of the Education and Youth Center. 
If you haven't been there yet, you need to go take a look. It's 
impressive. The brick and mortar is impressive. The architectural design 
is fantastic. What's more fantastic is what's going to take place inside 
the building.
    I'm appreciative of the idea of the Fellowship Christian Academy 
taking root and taking wing here. This is a program which challenges the 
soft bigotry of low expectations. It raises standards. It believes every 
child can learn. See, that's important in education. We must challenge 
the mediocrity of a system. We must not let people just get shuffled

[[Page 1492]]

through because their skin happens to be black. You know, people can't 
quit on a child. No child should be left behind. This school and this 
building understands that.
    But the building across the street not only houses the school, it 
also houses a mentoring program that gathers children from 60 schools. 
Five thousand children a week are mentored. That's powerful; that is a 
powerful program.
    One of my passions--and I spoke to the Congress about this at my 
State of the Union--was to help the children whose mom or dad may be in 
prison. My hope is that--and I know that Tony understands this--the 
mentoring program for that child, those children are necessary for the 
country to be hopeful for every single citizen. What this program 
understands and what I hope other programs around the Nation understand 
is that by mentoring a child, you shape the character of a child. And 
it's a high calling in life, because that influence reaches to eternity.
    As I said, Government can hand out money--and we will, and that's an 
important aspect--but it cannot put hope in people's hearts. See, that's 
the disconnect. It can't put hope in people's lives. We must understand 
that amidst our plenty, there are people who hurt, deeply hurt. And the 
deepest needs are oftentimes found in the human heart. In order to help 
that need, people need to know they're valued and wanted. People need to 
know a higher power that is bigger than their problems.
    What the faith-based programs say, time after time after time, is 
that miracles are possible when somebody puts their arm around a 
neighbor and says, ``God loves you. I love you. And you can count on us 
both.'' Faith-based programs work. They are able to address the deepest 
needs of our heart.
    And so when I heard Tony speak at Greenville, I began to act. It 
touched my heart, what he had to say. I wanted everybody to realize the 
vast potential then of the State of Texas, now all across America. So I 
started to work on and think about faith-based programs. They're 
effective. They're so effective that it points to a new role for 
government, a new political philosophy.
    But first, let me say Government has no business funding religious 
worship or teaching. They don't want the church to be the state, and we 
don't want the state to be the church. However, our Government should 
support the good work of religious people who are changing America.
    What does that mean from a practical sense, from where I sit? What 
does that mean? It means this, that when Government gives contracts to 
provide social services, religious groups should have an equal chance to 
compete. That's what that means. And when we make decisions on public 
funding, we should not focus on the religion you practice but on the 
results you deliver.
    This has not been the attitude of government; let's be frank about 
it. The attitude of government, particularly in Washington, has said 
religious groups need not apply. That's the way it has been. We're 
missing an opportunity to help change lives and to meet a major goal in 
our country, which is everyone should realize the great vast potential 
of America.
    If you're allowed to apply for grants on that rare occasion, some 
are asked to change their board of directors, to remove the cross from 
the wall, to change the very things that make the faith-based program 
effective. And I'll give you an example of what I'm talking about. 
There's the Orange County Rescue Mission in Tustin, California. It's a 
fantastic initiative. They applied for funding from the Housing and 
Urban Development. We call it HUD. HUD said fine, but it had a few 
conditions to meet. In other words, there was access, perhaps, to 
Federal money, but let me tell you the conditions. The Rescue Mission 
had to form a secular nonprofit. They had to ban all religious 
activities from their facility. They had to rename their chapel and 
auditorium.
    It's hard to be a faith-based program when you're forbidden from 
practicing your faith. It's hard to change hearts when you can't use the 
power you've got to change the hearts. Government action like this is 
pure discrimination. And when Government discriminates against religious 
groups, it is not the groups who suffer. The real loss is felt by the 
hungry who do not get fed, by the addicts who don't get help and 
treatment, by the children who

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drift toward self-destruction. For the sake of so many people in need, 
this country must support the armies of compassion.
    I asked Congress to join me and pass what I called the Faith-Based 
Initiative, which would help change the culture of Washington and the 
behavior of bureaucracies. They have stalled. So I just signed an 
Executive order. The Executive order says that the Federal Government 
will have a level playing field when religious groups apply for Federal 
money. There will not be discrimination. That's what it says, pure and 
simple. Every bureaucrat in Washington who might be tempted to fall back 
to the old ways now knows exactly where I stand.
    And we've set up faith-based offices. We're trying to change the 
culture, see. We're trying to change an attitude. So we set up faith-
based offices in several important Cabinet departments. And that's 
important. This is important for people who are charged with good policy 
to have a faith-based office that will work directly with the social 
entrepreneurs of America, the Tony Evanses of the world, so they get a 
sympathetic ear and get help, not a cold shoulder.
    And there's some changes. Slowly but surely, the culture is 
changing. Just last month, the Department of Health and Human Services 
finalized regulations that helped open up three programs to greater 
competition--in other words, began to level the playing field. Programs 
in which religious faith-based programs--by the way, I'm talking about 
Christians and Jewish people and Muslims, Hindus, people of all faiths. 
See, we've all heard that call to love a neighbor.
    The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, now 
opening up for grants. The Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, 
TANF, is now opening up for grants. The Community Service Block Grant 
Program is opening up for grants from faith-based institutions. These 
are billions of dollars of money now available for new social spending.
    Let me tell you, by new social spending I mean spending dollars in a 
new way, in a way that's effective, in a way that will help change lives 
in a positive and constructive way. See, we want everybody in this 
country, every person--we want the addict; we want the single lonely 
mom; we want the child, the dyslexic child--all to feel a part of the 
future of this country.
    Last month, HUD finalized new regulations that apply to aid programs 
covering $7.6 billion so that now religious groups that build housing 
will no longer face discrimination when they seek HUD funds. That's 
important. We want churches in the middle of neighborhoods that may need 
new housing to be able to have a chance to access some money to provide 
new housing. We have a minority homeownership gap in America that needs 
to be closed. We've got a program in front of Congress to help people 
with the downpayment. HUD has got a program to help people understand 
the fine print. We're trying to simplify contracts. But in order to help 
close the homeownership gap, it seems to make sense to allow inner-city 
churches to become active builders of homes, affordable homes, so people 
can find housing in the neighborhoods in which they worship.
    Remember, I told you about the program in Orange County, the Orange 
County Rescue Mission. It has now reapplied for a contract for HUD. It 
doesn't have to force to--be forced to abide by those rules, those rules 
that make people nervous. Listen, nobody wants to apply for Federal 
grants if you think you have to change your mission. Nobody in their 
right mind is going to say, ``Look, let me--let me access some of your 
money, but I've got to change the way I think.'' It defeats the purpose.
    We're making changes of the culture in Washington, DC. It takes 
awhile, but we're working on it. And the fact that I can come here--
[applause]--and the fact that I can come here and herald this program as 
a successful program helps change the culture. There's nothing like 
success to change cultures.
    We've got some other projects here in Dallas. The Builders of Hope 
in West Dallas is a faith-based group building new homes for low-income 
families, which HUD is supporting. HHS is supporting the Faith Walk 
Center in Dallas, a program which fights drug abuse amongst young 
people. You've got to understand that sometimes, and a lot of times, the 
best way to help the addict, a person who is stuck on drugs and alcohol,

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is to change their heart. See, if you change their heart, then they 
change their behavior. I know.
    We've got initiatives I've been talking to Tony about--he knows 
about this--called the Compassion Capital Fund. Sometimes, entrepreneurs 
need startup capital, whether it be a business or the social 
entrepreneur needs startup capital. I don't think Evans needs startup 
capital. [Laughter] I think we're beyond the startup capital phase here 
at this fantastic, fantastic church. But it gives programs startup money 
and expansion money directly to the social entrepreneurs, and that's 
important. I'm calling on Congress to increase the budget to $100 
million this year; they need to triple the amount of money available for 
this program.
    And so what I'm telling you is, is that the best way to meet a 
national goal is to rally the strength of America. The strength of 
America is the people of America. And the people of America, a lot of 
people in America understand there's a higher authority than their 
Government and respond to that higher authority. All the levels of 
government--and I can only speak for the Federal Government, but I might 
be able to affect the State Government and local government by just 
speaking--[laughter]--but all levels of government, the Federal 
Government, the State of Texas and all States, the city of Dallas and 
all cities, ought not to fear programs based upon faith. All levels of 
government must understand the power of faith programs to make the 
communities and States and country in which we live a better place. It's 
the reality. This is living proof of it right here at Project Turn 
Around.
    I love our country. I love what we stand for. We're a strong nation. 
And in this world today, we need to be strong. We need to defend 
ourselves, and we will. And we need to promote the peace, and we will. 
And when we see suffering around the world, this country should not turn 
its back. We're strong, but we're incredibly compassionate as a nation. 
This proud country, America, is leading the world in incredibly 
important work, like the work of human rescue for those who are dying 
from AIDS on the continent of Africa.
    And we need to be strong at home too, strong of heart and strong of 
soul. Project Turn Around and other successful programs around our 
country show the strength, show the strength that bends down to help the 
child and the stranger and the outcast.
    I want to thank you all so very much for your welcome. I want to 
thank you for your compassion and your care. I want to thank you for 
laying those strong foundations which help those who hurt, because by 
laying that strong foundation, you're changing America one heart, one 
soul, one conscience at a time.
    God bless your work, and may God bless America.

Note: The President spoke at 6:18 p.m. In his remarks, he referred to 
Anthony T. Evans, senior pastor, Oak Cliff Bible Fellowship; and 
entertainer Michael W. Smith.