[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 40, Number 33 (Monday, August 16, 2004)]
[Pages 1561-1567]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Remarks in Phoenix, Arizona

August 11, 2004

    The President. Thank you all for coming. So yesterday, there we were 
in a bus in northern Florida, and old John McCain said, ``Wait until you 
get to Phoenix.'' He's right.

    I'm working hard to ask for your vote. I'm here to let you know 
there is more to do to make America a safer place, a stronger place, and 
a better place. I'm here to ask for your help. We won Arizona last time; 
we're going to win it this time. And we're going to win a great national 
victory.

    Thank you all for coming. I only wish that Laura were here to see 
this crowd. She is a remarkable woman. She is a great wife, a fantastic 
mother. I'm going to give you some reasons tonight to put me back in, 
but perhaps the most important reason of all is so that Laura has 4 more 
years.

    I'm proud to be running with Dick Cheney. Now look, I admit it, he's 
not the prettiest face in the race. [Laughter] I didn't pick him for 
that reason. I picked him because of his judgment, his experience. I 
picked him because he can do the job.

    I'm proud to be traveling with a great American and a fine citizen 
of this State, a person who served his Nation with distinction and 
honor--John McCain. I want to thank his wife, Cindy, for joining us as 
well. She's a class act, good lady.

    I also want to thank my friend Jon Kyl, the other Senator from this 
State. You got two fine United States Senators from Arizona.
    I want to thank my friends from the congressional delegation, Renzi, 
Franks, Shadegg, J.D. Hayworth, Jeff Flake, for their leadership.

[[Page 1562]]

    I'm proud that Secretary of State Jan Brewer is here. I want to 
thank Jan for coming, and State Treasurer David Petersen. Listen, thank 
you all for coming.
    I want to thank the grassroots activists who are here. I want to 
thank my friend Luis Gonzalez and his great wife, Christine. I know my 
friends the Lehmans are here. I'm glad they're here. Old Tom Lehman, I 
could use a putting lesson. [Laughter] I don't have much time to 
practice these days; I'm out working.
    See, I'm asking for your help to register voters. You've got a lot 
of new people moving in this State, and they, like you, have a duty in a 
democracy to vote and to participate. We're asking for people to do a 
little extra work to register our fellow citizens and urge them to go to 
the polls. And when you get them headed to the polls, you might just 
tell them America will be better off with Bush-Cheney in the White 
House.
    The past few years--in the past few years, Americans have been 
through a lot together, a whole lot, and we've accomplished a great 
deal. But there's only one reason to look backward at the record, and 
that is to determine who best to lead us forward. I'm running--I'm 
asking for your vote because so much is at stake. We have much more to 
do, much more to do to move this country forward and make it a better 
place.
    We've got more to do to make our public schools the centers of 
excellence we all know they can be so that no child is left behind in 
America. When we came to office 3\1/2\ years ago, too many of our 
children were being just shuffled from grade to grade, year after year, 
without learning the basics. So we challenged the soft bigotry of low 
expectations. We raised the sights of everybody. We believe in 
accountability. We believe in local control of schools. We believe in 
challenging schools that refuse to change and refuse to teach.
    And we're making progress. We're closing that achievement gap here 
in America. More of our children are learning to read and write and add 
and subtract, and there's more to do. We want our high school diplomas 
to mean something. We need to make sure our children are educated for 
the jobs of the 21st century, so we need to concentrate on science and 
math. We need to bring technology into classrooms in America. What I'm 
telling you is, after 4 more years, a rising generation will have the 
hope and the skills necessary to succeed in this world.
    We have got more work to do to make sure health care is available 
and affordable. We addressed the issue of our seniors square on. You 
might remember that political campaign after political campaign, our 
seniors were promised a stronger Medicare system. We got the job done. 
Our seniors now have the ability to choose a plan that meets their 
needs, and there will be coverage for prescription drugs for our 
seniors. We're doing more to make sure health care is available and 
affordable. We're expanding community health centers for low-income 
Americans. We're providing health savings accounts so American families 
can save tax-free to meet their own health care needs.
    In order to make sure American families have got health care, we 
must allow small employers to join together to be able to purchase 
insurance at discounts that big companies are able to do. We'll harness 
technology to reduce costs and prevent mistakes. We'll expand research 
and seek new cures. And to make sure you've got affordable health care, 
we need to end the frivolous lawsuits that are harming our docs and 
harming our patients.
    You cannot be pro-patient, pro-doctor, and pro-trial-lawyer at the 
same time. You have to choose. My opponent made his choice, and he put 
him on the ticket.
    Audience members. Boo-o-o!
    The President. I made my choice. I am for medical liability reform 
now. In all we do to improve health care here in this country, we will 
make sure the health care decisions are made by doctors and patients, 
not by Washington, DC, bureaucrats.
    We got more to do to make sure this economy is stronger. We've been 
through a lot. We've been through a recession; we've been through 
corporate scandals; we've been through the terror attacks. Yet we've 
overcome these obstacles. We've overcome these obstacles because we've 
got great workers in America. We've overcome these obstacles because the 
entrepreneurial spirit is strong and the small-business sector of our 
economy

[[Page 1563]]

is flourishing. We've overcome these obstacles because we've got great 
ranchers and farmers. And we've overcome these obstacles because we 
delivered well-timed tax relief to the American people. Because we 
acted, our economy has grown at a rate as fast as any in nearly 20 
years. Because we acted, we've added nearly 1.5 million jobs over the 
past year. Because we acted, Arizona's unemployment rate is at 4.7 
percent.
    We're making progress. We're not turning back. So long as anybody is 
looking for work, we're going to keep working to make sure there's a job 
available for them. There is more work to do to keep jobs here in 
America and to keep this job base growing; we need to become less 
dependent on foreign sources of energy. We need to reduce the 
regulations on our employers in America. We need real, meaningful tort 
reform in America to keep jobs here. In order to keep jobs here at home, 
we need to be opening up markets for Arizona products. We must not 
become economic isolationists in America. We must be confident--you see, 
we can compete with anybody, anytime, anywhere, so long as the playing 
field is level. In order to be keeping jobs here in America, we've got 
to make sure our workers are trained for the jobs of the 21st century. 
That's why I'm such a strong backer of the community college system, not 
only here in Arizona but all across our country. In order to make sure 
we keep jobs here, we've got to be wise about how we spend your money, 
and we've got to keep your taxes low.
    We're working together to protect our residents and forests across 
the West from catastrophic wildfires. Listen, I understand you're in a 
severe drought. Water is a precious commodity. And as a result of the 
drought you're in, our national treasures are--forest fires--are 
vulnerable. That's why I worked with John McCain and Jon Kyl to pass a 
bipartisan bill called Healthy Forests Restoration Act.
    I understand the West. I understand the issues of the West. Some 
people took a different view of that Healthy Forests legislation. Back 
in October, my opponent told us Healthy Forests would let people chop 
down mountainsides of old-growth trees. When I signed the bill, he said 
we're taking a chainsaw to public forests. I understand the West. I 
understand the issues you face out here. Yet, when he came out West to 
campaign, he turned that position around. Now he says he likes a lot of 
the parts of the law. I guess it's not only the wildfires that shift 
with the wind. [Laughter]
    I'm running for 4 more years to keep our Nation's economy the 
strongest in the industrialized world. I'm running so our small 
businesses are vibrant. I'm running so our farmers and ranchers are 
healthy, and I'm running so people can find good-paying jobs.
    We have more to do to wage and win the war against terror. America's 
future depends on our willingness to lead in the world. If America shows 
uncertainty or weakness in this decade, the world will drift toward 
tragedy. This will not happen on my watch.
    Audience members. Four more years! Four more years! Four more years!
    The President. The world changed on that terrible September morning, 
and since that day, we've changed the world. Before September the 11th, 
Afghanistan served as the home base of Al Qaida, which trained and 
deployed thousands of killers and set up cells in nations around the 
world, including our own. Because we acted, because we acted with our 
friends, Afghanistan is a rising democracy. Afghanistan is an ally in 
the war on terror. Young girls now go to school for the first time in 
Afghanistan, and America and the world are safer.
    Before September the 11th, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia weren't joining 
us in the war on terror. Today they are. Today, Pakistan and Saudi 
Arabia are allies in the war on terror. They're after Al Qaida. America 
and the world are safer.
    Because of our leadership, we're changing the world. Before 
September the 11th, Libya was spending millions to acquire weapons of 
mass destruction. Today, because America and our allies have sent a 
clear message and a strong message, the leader of Libya has abandoned 
his pursuit of weapons of mass destruction, and America and the world 
are safer.
    Before September the 11th, the ruler of Iraq was a sworn enemy of 
America. He was defying the world. You might remember he was firing 
weapons at American pilots who

[[Page 1564]]

were enforcing the world's sanctions. He had pursued and he had used 
weapons of mass destruction. He harbored terrorists. He invaded his 
neighbors. He subsidized the families of suicide bombers. He had 
murdered tens of thousands of his own citizens. He was a source of great 
instability in the world's most volatile region.
    We saw a threat. We looked at the intelligence, and we saw a threat. 
And as we did so, we remembered a vital lesson of September the 11th, 
and that lesson is we must take threats seriously, before they fully 
materialize.
    I knew it was important on this vital matter to work with the United 
States Congress. So I went to the Congress and said Saddam Hussein's a 
threat. The Congress looked at the same intelligence, and members of 
both political parties, including my opponent, agreed that Saddam 
Hussein was a threat. And then we went to the United Nations
    Audience members. Boo-o-o!
    The President. And the United Nations looked at the intelligence and 
concluded that Saddam Hussein was a threat. And they passed a resolution 
that said ``Disclose, disarm, or face serious consequences.'' As he had 
for over a decade, Saddam Hussein defied the free world. As a matter of 
fact, when we sent inspectors in--or the world sent inspectors in, he 
systematically deceived the inspectors. And so I had a choice to make. 
My choice was do I forget the lessons of September the 11th----
    Audience members. No-o-o!
    The President. ----and hope for the best----
    Audience members. No-o-o!
    The President. ----and trust the word and deeds of a madman, or do I 
take action to defend America. I will defend America every time.
    Even though we have not found the stockpiles we expected to find, we 
do know that Saddam had the capability to make weapons of mass 
destruction, and he could have passed that capability on to our enemies. 
That was a risk we could not afford to take. Knowing what I know today, 
I would have taken the same action. And America and the world are safer 
because Saddam Hussein sits in a prison cell.
    Now, almost 2 years after he voted for the war in Iraq and almost 
220 days after switching positions to declare himself the antiwar 
candidate, my opponent has found a new nuance. He now agrees it was the 
right decision to go into Iraq. After months of questioning my motives 
and even my credibility, Senator Kerry now agrees with me that even 
though we have not found the stockpiles of weapons that we all believed 
were there, knowing everything we know today, he would have voted to go 
into Iraq and remove Saddam Hussein from power. I want to thank my 
opponent for clearing that up. But just remember, there are 83 days left 
in the campaign--time enough to change his mind again.
    I'm running for 4 more years because I know we must continue to work 
with our friends and allies to aggressively pursue the terrorists and 
the foreign fighters in places like Iraq and Afghanistan and elsewhere. 
See, you cannot talk sense to these people. You cannot negotiate with 
these people. We must engage the enemy around the world so we do not 
have to face them here at home.
    During the next 4 years, America will continue to lead the world 
with confidence and moral clarity. We put together a strong coalition to 
help us defeat terror. Listen, we've got nearly 60 nations involved with 
the Proliferation Security Initiative. Nearly 40 nations are involved in 
Afghanistan. Some 30 nations are involved in Iraq. I'll continue to 
build our alliances and work with our friends for the sake of peace, but 
I will never turn over America's national security decisions to leaders 
of other countries.
    America and the world are safer. We're heading to peace because our 
commitments are kept by the men and women of our military. I want to 
thank the veterans who are here for setting such a great example to the 
men and women of our military. I've had the privilege of meeting with 
those who defend our country and sacrifice for our security. I've seen 
their great decency and their unselfish courage. Ladies and gentlemen, 
the cause of freedom and peace is in really good hands. And anytime--and 
our troops deserve the full support of the United States Government.
    Last September, while our troops were in combat in Afghanistan and 
Iraq, I proposed

[[Page 1565]]

supplemental funding to support them in their missions. This money was 
going to--this money did provide body armor and vital equipment, hazard 
pay, health benefits, ammunition, fuel, and spare parts for our 
military. In the Senate, only a small, out-of-the-mainstream minority of 
12 Senators voted against that funding. Two of those twelve Senators are 
my opponent and his runningmate.
    Audience members. Boo-o-o!
    The President. My opponent tried to explain his vote this way: ``I 
actually did vote for the $87 billion, before I voted against it.'' End 
quote. And then he went on to say that he was proud he and his 
runningmate voted against it, and then he went on to say, at another 
time, the funding issue is a complicated matter. There is nothing 
complicated about supporting our troops in combat.
    In the long run, our security is not guaranteed by force alone. We 
must work to change the conditions that give rise to terror: poverty and 
hopelessness and resentment. I see a lady holding a sign there that 
says, ``My son is in Iraq.'' I want you to know, ma'am, that your son is 
performing a duty that is changing the world. A free and peaceful Iraq 
and a free and peaceful Afghanistan will be powerful examples to their 
neighbors. These parts--people in these parts of the world are desperate 
for freedom. In Iraq and Afghanistan, there are now strong leaders who 
understand the power of free societies. And we understand the power of 
freedom in America. We know that free societies do not export terror. We 
know that in free societies, leaders listen to the hopes and aspirations 
of their people.
    By serving the ideal of liberty, we are bringing hope to others, and 
that makes our country more secure. By serving the ideal of liberty, 
we're making the world more peaceful. By serving the ideal of liberty, 
we're serving the ideals of our country. Freedom is not America's gift 
to the world; freedom is the Almighty God's gift to each man and woman 
in this world.
    I'm running for 4 more years because I know we've got a lot of work 
to do to protect us. Enemies who hate us are still plotting to harm us. 
My opponent says that going to war with the terrorists is actually 
improving their recruiting efforts. His logic is upside-down, and it 
shows a dangerous misunderstanding of the enemy we face. During the 
1990s, terrorists were recruiting and training for war with us, long 
before America went to war with them. They don't need an excuse for 
their hatred. It's wrong to blame America for the anger and the evil of 
those killers. You don't create terrorists by defending yourself and 
fighting back; you defeat the terrorists by fighting back.
    Listen, the September--the 9/11 Commission wrote a good report, and 
it said that because of the actions we've taken since September the 
11th, our homeland is safer, but we're not yet safe. I agree with that 
conclusion. There's more work to do. Beginning immediately after 
September the 11th, we started the hard process of reform. We created 
the new Department of Homeland Security. We passed the PATRIOT Act, 
which is vital; it is necessary to give our law enforcement the tools 
necessary to disrupt terrorist activity. We're integrating intelligence 
and law enforcement better than ever before.
    We're taking up a lot of those recommendations. We've got to do a 
better job of securing our ports and borders and training our first-
responders and dramatically improving our intelligence-gathering 
capabilities. I called on Congress to create the position of National 
Intelligence Director so that one person is in charge of coordinating 
our intelligence efforts overseas and here at home. There's a lot of 
really good people working hard to defend the American people, and I'm 
proud of their efforts.
    Now, reforms are never easy in Washington. It takes on--it requires 
taking on the entrenched interests, those who are happy with the status 
quo. It's not enough to advocate reform; you have to be able to get it 
done. When it came to reforming our public schools, we're getting the 
job done. When it comes to giving our health care reforms to our 
families, with more access and more choices, we're getting the job done. 
When it comes to creating jobs in America, we're getting the job done. 
When it comes to defending America and spreading the peace, we're 
getting the job done. And when it

[[Page 1566]]

comes to choosing a President, you better have a President who can get 
the job done.
    Audience members. Four more years! Four more years! Four more years!
    The President. We live in a time of rapid change. These are exciting 
times. One way to help American citizens during this time of change is 
to encourage an ownership society. We want people owning and controlling 
their own health care accounts. We want our Social Security system to 
work. Listen, for old people like me and McCain--[laughter]--the Social 
Security is sound enough for us. I'm worried about the younger workers. 
I'm worried about the solvency of Social Security. Therefore, I think 
younger workers ought to be allowed to have personal savings accounts 
that they can call their own.
    We want more people owning their business. I love the fact when 
somebody says to me, you know, ``I just started my own business.'' We 
want more people owning their own home. Homeownership rate is at an 
alltime high in America. What a fantastic thought to know that more and 
more Americans are opening up their front doors saying, ``Welcome to my 
home.'' You see, this administration understands that when you own 
something, you have a vital stake in the future of our country.
    In this time of change, there's some things won't change: our belief 
in liberty and opportunity and in the nonnegotiable demands of human 
dignity; the individual values we try to live by, courage and 
compassion, reverence and integrity; the institutions that give us 
direction and purpose, our families, our schools, our religious 
congregations. These values and institutions are fundamental to our 
lives, and they deserve the respect of Government.
    We stand for institutions like marriage and family, which are the 
foundation of society. We stand for a culture of life in which every 
person matters and every person counts. We stand for judges who 
faithfully interpret the law instead of legislating from the bench. We 
stand for a culture of responsibility in America. This culture of ours 
is changing from one that has said, ``If it feels good, just go ahead 
and do it,'' and ``If you got a problem, blame somebody else,'' to a 
culture in which each of us understands we are responsible for the 
decisions we make in life.
    If you're fortunate enough to be a mother or a father, you are 
responsible for loving your child with all your heart and all your soul. 
If you're worried about the quality of the education in the community in 
which you live, you are responsible for doing something about it. If 
you're a CEO in corporate America, you're responsible for telling 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.
    I'm seeking the vote because I want to continue to rally the armies 
of compassion for the next 4 years. I understand the strength of this 
country is the hearts and souls of the American people, and I know--and 
I know that by rallying the great strength of America, we can change our 
society one heart, one soul, one conscience at a time.
    For all Americans, these years in our history will stand apart. 
There are quiet times in the life of a nation when little is expected of 
its leaders. This isn't one of those times. It's a time that requires 
firm resolve, strong belief in the values that have made our country 
great.
    None of us will ever forget that week when one era ended and another 
began. As John mentioned, on September the 14th, 2001, I stood in the 
ruins of the Twin Towers. It's a day I'll never forget. There were 
workers in hardhats yelling at me, ``Whatever it takes.'' I remember--I 
remember working the ropeline, thanking people, and a fellow grabbed me. 
He had bloodshot eyes. He had been searching the rubble for somebody 
that he had worked with, and he said, ``Do not let me down.''
    He took that day personally. All the workers took it personally. I 
know you took it personally, and so do I. I have a duty that goes on. I 
wake up every morning thinking about how to best protect our country. I 
will never relent in defending America, whatever it takes.
    We've come through much together. We've done a lot of hard work. 
There's more work to be done over the next 4 years. We will spread 
ownership and opportunity to every corner of America. During the next 4

[[Page 1567]]

years, we'll pass the enduring values of our country on to another 
generation. During the next 4 years, we will continue to lead the world 
to spread freedom and peace.
    Four years ago, I traveled this great country asking for the vote. I 
made a pledge to my fellow Americans that if you honored me with this 
great responsibility, I would uphold the dignity and the honor of the 
office to which I have been elected, so help me God. And with your help, 
I will do so for the next 4 years.
    Thanks for coming. Thank you all.

Note: The President spoke at 6:22 p.m. at Arizona Veterans Memorial 
Coliseum. In his remarks, he referred to Arizona Secretary of State 
Janice K. Brewer; Arizona State Treasurer David A. Petersen; 
professional baseball player Luis Gonzalez and his wife, Christine; 
professional golfer Tom Lehman; Col. Muammar Abu Minyar al-Qadhafi, 
leader of Libya; former President Saddam Hussein of Iraq; and the 
National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States (9/11 
Commission).