[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 41, Number 3 (Monday, January 24, 2005)]
[Pages 76-77]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Remarks at the Inaugural Luncheon

January 20, 2005

    Mr. Speaker, thank you, sir. Senator Trent Lott, thanks for being 
such a great organizer. This part of this day has gone incredibly well, 
and I appreciate your hard work. Senator Dodd, Senator Frist, other 
distinguished Members of the Congress, and some who aren't quite so 
distinguished--[laughter]--it's an honor to be here.
    I really want to thank you for your hospitality. Laura and I are 
grateful for your gifts and grateful for your wonderful hospitality.

[[Page 77]]

What a day, and what a special lunch. We really appreciate you having 
us.
    I appreciate the Justices of the Supreme Court being here. I want 
you to know how touched I was that Chief Justice came to administer the 
oath. That was an incredibly moving part of the ceremony.
    I want to thank the members of my Cabinet who are here. I appreciate 
General Myers, who is here. And I want to thank all my friends from 
Texas who have come. I'm surprised that some were able to penetrate the 
security. [Laughter] But I appreciate you coming.
    I'm really proud of Dick Cheney, my Vice President. He is a fabulous 
man, a man of sound judgment and great character, and I'm honored to 
serve with you, Dick.
    I want to thank President Carter and Mrs. Carter for coming and 
President Clinton and Senator Clinton for joining us today. It means a 
lot that both former Presidents were here. I thank you very much for 
the--for your presence.
    I'm also really happy that another former President is with us; that 
would be my dad. Thanks for coming--and Mother. [Laughter] I appreciate 
Barbara and Jenna. I love them dearly. I thank them for joining the 
campaign trail. It was the--like the camping trip I promised to take 
them on and never did. [Laughter]
    I want to thank my brothers and sisters. They have meant a lot to 
me. Their unconditional love is an important part of keeping perspective 
here in the Nation's Capital.
    I am impressed by this Inaugural ceremony. It is a magnificent 
event. I think any President who has ever been through one is able to 
step back and say, ``What an impressive moment, not in my life but in 
the life of the country.'' It reminds us that we serve a cause larger 
than ourself. We have one country, one Constitution, and one future that 
binds us.
    As leaders, we have a common duty to achieve results for the people, 
regardless of our political parties. There's important work to be done, 
and I look forward to working with Members of both Houses and both 
parties to achieve that job.
    We have a solemn duty to protect our people and to win the war on 
terror, and we will. We have other vital duties, and we will strive to 
achieve results on behalf of the people. I'm eager for the work. I'm 
looking forward to it, and I hope you are as well. I'm looking forward 
to putting my heart and soul into this job for 4 more years. Together, 
we can make this great Nation of ours a safer place and a freer place 
and a better place for all our fellow citizens.
    May God bless you all, and may God continue to bless our great land.

Note: The President spoke at 2:19 p.m. in Statuary Hall at the Capitol. 
In his remarks, he referred to Gen. Richard B. Myers, USAF, Chairman, 
Joint Chiefs of Staff. Prior to the President's remarks, Senator Trent 
Lott, chairman, Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies, 
introduced the President and presented him and Vice President Dick 
Cheney with engraved crystal hurricane lamps and official photos of the 
Inaugural swearing-in ceremony, and Representative J. Dennis Hastert, 
committee member, presented them with flags flown over the U.S. Capitol.