[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 42, Number 5 (Monday, February 6, 2006)]
[Pages 145-152]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Address Before a Joint Session of the Congress on the State of the Union

January 31, 2006

    Thank you all. Mr. Speaker, Vice President Cheney, Members of 
Congress, members of the Supreme Court and diplomatic corps, 
distinguished guests, and fellow citizens: Today our Nation lost a 
beloved, graceful, courageous woman who called America to its founding 
ideals and carried on a noble dream. Tonight we are comforted by the 
hope of a glad reunion with the husband who was taken so long ago, and 
we are grateful for the good life of Coretta Scott King.
    Every time I'm invited to this rostrum, I'm humbled by the privilege 
and mindful of the history we've seen together. We have gathered under 
this Capitol dome in moments of national mourning and national 
achievement. We have served America through one of the most 
consequential periods of our history, and it has been my honor to serve 
with you.
    In a system of two parties, two chambers, and two elected branches, 
there will always be differences and debate. But even tough debates can 
be conducted in a civil tone, and our differences cannot be allowed to 
harden into anger. To confront the great issues before us, we must act 
in a spirit of goodwill and respect for one another--and I will do my 
part. Tonight the state of our Union is strong, and together we will 
make it stronger.
    In this decisive year, you and I will make choices that determine 
both the future and the character of our country. We will choose to act 
confidently in pursuing the enemies of freedom, or retreat from our 
duties in the hope of an easier life. We will choose to build our 
prosperity by leading the world economy, or shut ourselves off from 
trade and opportunity. In a complex and challenging time, the road of 
isolationism and protectionism may seem broad and inviting, yet it ends 
in danger and decline. The only way to protect our people, the only way 
to secure the peace, the only way to control our destiny is by our

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leadership. So the United States of America will continue to lead.
    Abroad, our Nation is committed to an historic, long-term goal: We 
seek the end of tyranny in our world. Some dismiss that goal as 
misguided idealism. In reality, the future security of America depends 
on it. On September the 11th, 2001, we found that problems originating 
in a failed and oppressive state 7,000 miles away could bring murder and 
destruction to our country. Dictatorships shelter terrorists, and feed 
resentment and radicalism, and seek weapons of mass destruction. 
Democracies replace resentment with hope, respect the rights of their 
citizens and their neighbors, and join the fight against terror. Every 
step toward freedom in the world makes our country safer, so we will act 
boldly in freedom's cause.
    Far from being a hopeless dream, the advance of freedom is the great 
story of our time. In 1945, there were about two dozen lonely 
democracies in the world. Today, there are 122. And we're writing a new 
chapter in the story of self-government--with women lining up to vote in 
Afghanistan, and millions of Iraqis marking their liberty with purple 
ink, and men and women from Lebanon to Egypt debating the rights of 
individuals and the necessity of freedom. At the start of 2006, more 
than half the people of our world live in democratic nations. And we do 
not forget the other half--in places like Syria and Burma, Zimbabwe, 
North Korea, and Iran--because the demands of justice and the peace of 
this world require their freedom as well.
    No one can deny the success of freedom, but some men rage and fight 
against it. And one of the main sources of reaction and opposition is 
radical Islam--the perversion by a few of a noble faith into an ideology 
of terror and death. Terrorists like bin Laden are serious about mass 
murder, and all of us must take their declared intentions seriously. 
They seek to impose a heartless system of totalitarian control 
throughout the Middle East and arm themselves with weapons of mass 
murder.
    Their aim is to seize power in Iraq and use it as a safe haven to 
launch attacks against America and the world. Lacking the military 
strength to challenge us directly, the terrorists have chosen the weapon 
of fear. When they murder children at a school in Beslan or blow up 
commuters in London or behead a bound captive, the terrorists hope these 
horrors will break our will, allowing the violent to inherit the Earth. 
But they have miscalculated: We love our freedom, and we will fight to 
keep it.
    In a time of testing, we cannot find security by abandoning our 
commitments and retreating within our borders. If we were to leave these 
vicious attackers alone, they would not leave us alone. They would 
simply move the battlefield to our own shores. There is no peace in 
retreat, and there is no honor in retreat. By allowing radical Islam to 
work its will, by leaving an assaulted world to fend for itself, we 
would signal to all that we no longer believe in our own ideals or even 
in our own courage. But our enemies and our friends can be certain: The 
United States will not retreat from the world, and we will never 
surrender to evil.
    America rejects the false comfort of isolationism. We are the nation 
that saved liberty in Europe and liberated death camps and helped raise 
up democracies and faced down an evil empire. Once again, we accept the 
call of history to deliver the oppressed and move this world toward 
peace. We remain on the offensive against terror networks. We have 
killed or captured many of their leaders--and for the others, their day 
will come.
    We remain on the offensive in Afghanistan, where a fine President 
and a National Assembly are fighting terror while building the 
institutions of a new democracy. We're on the offensive in Iraq with a 
clear plan for victory.
    First, we're helping Iraqis build an inclusive government, so that 
old resentments will be eased and the insurgency will be marginalized. 
Second, we're continuing reconstruction efforts and helping the Iraqi 
Government to fight corruption and build a modern economy, so all Iraqis 
can experience the benefits of freedom. And third, we're striking 
terrorist targets while we train Iraqi forces that are increasingly 
capable of defeating the enemy. Iraqis are showing their courage every 
day, and we are proud to be their allies in the cause of freedom.

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    Our work in Iraq is difficult because our enemy is brutal. But that 
brutality has not stopped the dramatic progress of a new democracy. In 
less than 3 years, the nation has gone from dictatorship to liberation, 
to sovereignty, to a Constitution, to national elections. At the same 
time, our coalition has been relentless in shutting off terrorist 
infiltration, clearing out insurgent strongholds, and turning over 
territory to Iraqi security forces. I am confident in our plan for 
victory; I am confident in the will of the Iraqi people; I am confident 
in the skill and spirit of our military. Fellow citizens, we are in this 
fight to win, and we are winning.
    The road of victory is the road that will take our troops home. As 
we make progress on the ground and Iraqi forces increasingly take the 
lead, we should be able to further decrease our troop levels. But those 
decisions will be made by our military commanders, not by politicians in 
Washington, DC.
    Our coalition has learned from our experience in Iraq. We've 
adjusted our military tactics and changed our approach to 
reconstruction. Along the way, we have benefitted from responsible 
criticism and counsel offered by Members of Congress of both parties. In 
the coming year, I will continue to reach out and seek your good advice. 
Yet there is a difference between responsible criticism that aims for 
success and defeatism that refuses to acknowledge anything but failure. 
Hindsight alone is not wisdom, and second-guessing is not a strategy.
    With so much in the balance, those of us in public office have a 
duty to speak with candor. A sudden withdrawal of our forces from Iraq 
would abandon our Iraqi allies to death and prison, would put men like 
bin Laden and Zarqawi in charge of a strategic country, and show that a 
pledge from America means little. Members of Congress, however we feel 
about the decisions and debates of the past, our Nation has only one 
option: We must keep our word, defeat our enemies, and stand behind the 
American military in this vital mission.
    Our men and women in uniform are making sacrifices and showing a 
sense of duty stronger than all fear. They know what it's like to fight 
house to house in a maze of streets, to wear heavy gear in the desert 
heat, to see a comrade killed by a roadside bomb. And those who know the 
costs also know the stakes. Marine Staff Sergeant Dan Clay was killed 
last month fighting in Fallujah. He left behind a letter to his family, 
but his words could just as well be addressed to every American. Here is 
what Dan wrote: ``I know what honor is--it has been an honor to protect 
and serve all of you. I faced death with the secure knowledge that you 
would not have to. Never falter. Don't hesitate to honor and support 
those of us who have the honor of protecting that which is worth 
protecting.''
    Staff Sergeant Dan Clay's wife, Lisa, and his mom and dad, Sara Jo 
and Bud, are with us this evening. Welcome.
    Our Nation is grateful to the fallen, who live in the memory of our 
country. We're grateful to all who volunteer to wear our Nation's 
uniform. And as we honor our brave troops, let us never forget the 
sacrifices of America's military families.
    Our offensive against terror involves more than military action. 
Ultimately, the only way to defeat the terrorists is to defeat their 
dark vision of hatred and fear by offering the hopeful alternative of 
political freedom and peaceful change. So the United States of America 
supports democratic reform across the broader Middle East. Elections are 
vital, but they are only the beginning. Raising up a democracy requires 
the rule of law and protection of minorities and strong, accountable 
institutions that last longer than a single vote.
    The great people of Egypt have voted in a multiparty Presidential 
election, and now their Government should open paths of peaceful 
opposition that will reduce the appeal of radicalism. The Palestinian 
people have voted in elections, and now the leaders of Hamas must 
recognize Israel, disarm, reject terrorism, and work for lasting peace. 
Saudi Arabia has taken the first steps of reform; now it can offer its 
people a better future by pressing forward with those efforts. 
Democracies in the Middle East will not look like our own because they 
will reflect the traditions of their own citizens. Yet liberty is the 
future of every nation in the Middle East because liberty is the right 
and hope of all humanity.
    The same is true of Iran, a nation now held hostage by a small 
clerical elite that is

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isolating and repressing its people. The regime in that country sponsors 
terrorists in the Palestinian territories and in Lebanon, and that must 
come to an end. The Iranian Government is defying the world with its 
nuclear ambitions, and the nations of the world must not permit the 
Iranian regime to gain nuclear weapons. America will continue to rally 
the world to confront these threats.
    Tonight let me speak directly to the citizens of Iran: America 
respects you, and we respect your country. We respect your right to 
choose your own future and win your own freedom. And our Nation hopes 
one day to be the closest of friends with a free and democratic Iran.
    To overcome dangers in our world, we must also take the offensive by 
encouraging economic progress and fighting disease and spreading hope in 
hopeless lands. Isolationism would not only tie our hands in fighting 
enemies, it would keep us from helping our friends in desperate need. We 
show compassion abroad because Americans believe in the God-given 
dignity and worth of a villager with HIV/AIDS or an infant with malaria 
or a refugee fleeing genocide or a young girl sold into slavery. We also 
show compassion abroad because regions overwhelmed by poverty, 
corruption, and despair are sources of terrorism and organized crime and 
human trafficking and the drug trade.
    In recent years, you and I have taken unprecedented action to fight 
AIDS and malaria, expand the education of girls, and reward developing 
nations that are moving forward with economic and political reform. For 
people everywhere, the United States is a partner for a better life. 
Shortchanging these efforts would increase the suffering and chaos of 
our world, undercut our long-term security, and dull the conscience of 
our country. I urge Members of Congress to serve the interests of 
America by showing the compassion of America.
    Our country must also remain on the offensive against terrorism here 
at home. The enemy has not lost the desire or capability to attack us. 
Fortunately, this Nation has superb professionals in law enforcement, 
intelligence, the military, and homeland security. These men and women 
are dedicating their lives, protecting us all, and they deserve our 
support and our thanks. They also deserve the same tools they already 
use to fight drug trafficking and organized crime, so I ask you to 
reauthorize the PATRIOT Act.
    It is said that prior to the attacks of September the 11th, our 
Government failed to connect the dots of the conspiracy. We now know 
that two of the hijackers in the United States placed telephone calls to 
Al Qaida operatives overseas. But we did not know about their plans 
until it was too late. So to prevent another attack--based on authority 
given to me by the Constitution and by statute--I have authorized a 
terrorist surveillance program to aggressively pursue the international 
communications of suspected Al Qaida operatives and affiliates to and 
from America. Previous Presidents have used the same constitutional 
authority I have, and Federal courts have approved the use of that 
authority. Appropriate Members of Congress have been kept informed. The 
terrorist surveillance program has helped prevent terrorist attacks. It 
remains essential to the security of America. If there are people inside 
our country who are talking with Al Qaida, we want to know about it, 
because we will not sit back and wait to be hit again.
    In all these areas--from the disruption of terror networks, to 
victory in Iraq, to the spread of freedom and hope in troubled regions--
we need the support of our friends and allies. To draw that support, we 
must always be clear in our principles and willing to act. The only 
alternative to American leadership is a dramatically more dangerous and 
anxious world. Yet we also choose to lead because it is a privilege to 
serve the values that gave us birth. American leaders--from Roosevelt to 
Truman to Kennedy to Reagan--rejected isolation and retreat, because 
they knew that America is always more secure when freedom is on the 
march.
    Our own generation is in a long war against a determined enemy, a 
war that will be fought by Presidents of both parties, who will need 
steady bipartisan support from the Congress. And tonight I ask for 
yours. Together, let us protect our country, support the men and women 
who defend us, and lead this world toward freedom.
    Here at home, America also has a great opportunity: We will build 
the prosperity of

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our country by strengthening our economic leadership in the world.
    Our economy is healthy and vigorous and growing faster than other 
major industrialized nations. In the last 2\1/2\ years, America has 
created 4.6 million new jobs--more than Japan and the European Union 
combined. Even in the face of higher energy prices and natural 
disasters, the American people have turned in an economic performance 
that is the envy of the world.
    The American economy is preeminent, but we cannot afford to be 
complacent. In a dynamic world economy, we are seeing new competitors 
like China and India, and this creates uncertainty, which makes it 
easier to feed people's fears. So we're seeing some old temptations 
return. Protectionists want to escape competition, pretending that we 
can keep our high standard of living while walling off our economy. 
Others say that the government needs to take a larger role in directing 
the economy, centralizing more power in Washington and increasing taxes. 
We hear claims that immigrants are somehow bad for the economy--even 
though this economy could not function without them. All these are forms 
of economic retreat, and they lead in the same direction, toward a 
stagnant and second-rate economy.
    Tonight I will set out a better path: An agenda for a nation that 
competes with confidence; an agenda that will raise standards of living 
and generate new jobs. Americans should not fear our economic future 
because we intend to shape it.
    Keeping America competitive begins with keeping our economy growing. 
And our economy grows when Americans have more of their own money to 
spend, save, and invest. In the last 5 years, the tax relief you passed 
has left $880 billion in the hands of American workers, investors, small 
businesses, and families. And they have used it to help produce more 
than 4 years of uninterrupted economic growth. Yet the tax relief is set 
to expire in the next few years. If we do nothing, American families 
will face a massive tax increase they do not expect and will not 
welcome. Because America needs more than a temporary expansion, we need 
more than temporary tax relief. I urge the Congress to act responsibly 
and make the tax cuts permanent.
    Keeping America competitive requires us to be good stewards of tax 
dollars. Every year of my Presidency, we've reduced the growth of 
nonsecurity discretionary spending, and last year you passed bills that 
cut this spending. This year my budget will cut it again, and reduce or 
eliminate more than 140 programs that are performing poorly or not 
fulfilling essential priorities. By passing these reforms, we will save 
the American taxpayer another $14 billion next year and stay on track to 
cut the deficit in half by 2009.
    I am pleased that Members of Congress are working on earmark reform, 
because the Federal budget has too many special interest projects. And 
we can tackle this problem together, if you pass the line-item veto.
    We must also confront the larger challenge of mandatory spending, or 
entitlements. This year, the first of about 78 million baby boomers turn 
60, including two of my Dad's favorite people--me and President Clinton. 
[Laughter] This milestone is more than a personal crisis--[laughter]--it 
is a national challenge. The retirement of the baby boom generation will 
put unprecedented strains on the Federal Government. By 2030, spending 
for Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid alone will be almost 60 
percent of the entire Federal budget. And that will present future 
Congresses with impossible choices--staggering tax increases, immense 
deficits, or deep cuts in every category of spending. Congress did not 
act last year on my proposal to save Social Security, yet the rising 
cost of entitlements is a problem that is not going away. And every year 
we fail to act, the situation gets worse.
    So tonight I ask you to join me in creating a commission to examine 
the full impact of baby boom retirements on Social Security, Medicare, 
and Medicaid. This commission should include Members of Congress of both 
parties, and offer bipartisan solutions. We need to put aside partisan 
politics and work together and get this problem solved.
    Keeping America competitive requires us to open more markets for all 
that Americans make and grow. One out of every five factory jobs in 
America is related to global trade, and

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we want people everywhere to buy American. With open markets and a level 
playing field, no one can outproduce or outcompete the American worker.
    Keeping America competitive requires an immigration system that 
upholds our laws, reflects our values, and serves the interests of our 
economy. Our Nation needs orderly and secure borders. To meet this goal, 
we must have stronger immigration enforcement and border protection. And 
we must have a rational, humane guest worker program that rejects 
amnesty, allows temporary jobs for people who seek them legally, and 
reduces smuggling and crime at the border.
    Keeping America competitive requires affordable health care. Our 
Government has a responsibility to provide health care for the poor and 
the elderly, and we are meeting that responsibility. For all Americans, 
we must confront the rising cost of care, strengthen the doctor-patient 
relationship, and help people afford the insurance coverage they need.
    We will make wider use of electronic records and other health 
information technology, to help control costs and reduce dangerous 
medical errors. We will strengthen health savings accounts, making sure 
individuals and small-business employees can buy insurance with the same 
advantages that people working for big businesses now get. We will do 
more to make this coverage portable, so workers can switch jobs without 
having to worry about losing their health insurance. And because 
lawsuits are driving many good doctors out of practice, leaving women in 
nearly 1,500 American counties without a single ob-gyn, I ask the 
Congress to pass medical liability reform this year.
    Keeping America competitive requires affordable energy. And here we 
have a serious problem: America is addicted to oil, which is often 
imported from unstable parts of the world. The best way to break this 
addiction is through technology. Since 2001, we have spent nearly $10 
billion to develop cleaner, cheaper, and more reliable alternative 
energy sources. And we are on the threshold of incredible advances.
    So tonight I announce the Advanced Energy Initiative--a 22-percent 
increase in clean-energy research--at the Department of Energy, to push 
for breakthroughs in two vital areas. To change how we power our homes 
and offices, we will invest more in zero-emission coal-fired plants, 
revolutionary solar and wind technologies, and clean, safe nuclear 
energy.
    We must also change how we power our automobiles. We will increase 
our research in better batteries for hybrid and electric cars and in 
pollution-free cars that run on hydrogen. We'll also fund additional 
research in cutting-edge methods of producing ethanol, not just from 
corn but from wood chips and stalks or switch grass. Our goal is to make 
this new kind of ethanol practical and competitive within 6 years.
    Breakthroughs on this and other new technologies will help us reach 
another great goal: To replace more than 75 percent of our oil imports 
from the Middle East by 2025. By applying the talent and technology of 
America, this country can dramatically improve our environment, move 
beyond a petroleum-based economy, and make our dependence on Middle 
Eastern oil a thing of the past.
    And to keep America competitive, one commitment is necessary above 
all: We must continue to lead the world in human talent and creativity. 
Our greatest advantage in the world has always been our educated, hard-
working, ambitious people. And we're going to keep that edge. Tonight I 
announce an American Competitiveness Initiative, to encourage innovation 
throughout our economy and to give our Nation's children a firm 
grounding in math and science.
    First, I propose to double the Federal commitment to the most 
critical basic research programs in the physical sciences over the next 
10 years. This funding will support the work of America's most creative 
minds as they explore promising areas such as nanotechnology, 
supercomputing, and alternative energy sources.
    Second, I propose to make permanent the research and development tax 
credit to encourage bolder private-sector initiatives in technology. 
With more research in both the public and private sectors, we will 
improve our quality of life and ensure that America will lead the world 
in opportunity and innovation for decades to come.

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    Third, we need to encourage children to take more math and science, 
and to make sure those courses are rigorous enough to compete with other 
nations. We've made a good start in the early grades with the No Child 
Left Behind Act, which is raising standards and lifting test scores 
across our country. Tonight I propose to train 70,000 high school 
teachers to lead advanced-placement courses in math and science, bring 
30,000 math and science professionals to teach in classrooms, and give 
early help to students who struggle with math, so they have a better 
chance at good, high-wage jobs. If we ensure that America's children 
succeed in life, they will ensure that America succeeds in the world.
    Preparing our Nation to compete in the world is a goal that all of 
us can share. I urge you to support the American Competitiveness 
Initiative, and together we will show the world what the American people 
can achieve.
    America is a great force for freedom and prosperity. Yet our 
greatness is not measured in power or luxuries but by who we are and how 
we treat one another. So we strive to be a compassionate, decent, 
hopeful society.
    In recent years, America has become a more hopeful nation. Violent 
crime rates have fallen to their lowest levels since the 1970s. Welfare 
cases have dropped by more than half over the past decade. Drug use 
among youth is down 19 percent since 2001. There are fewer abortions in 
America than at any point in the last three decades, and the number of 
children born to teenage mothers has been falling for a dozen years in a 
row.
    These gains are evidence of a quiet transformation, a revolution of 
conscience, in which a rising generation is finding that a life of 
personal responsibility is a life of fulfillment. Government has played 
a role. Wise policies, such as welfare reform and drug education and 
support for abstinence and adoption have made a difference in the 
character of our country. And everyone here tonight, Democrat and 
Republican, has a right to be proud of this record.
    Yet many Americans, especially parents, still have deep concerns 
about the direction of our culture and the health of our most basic 
institutions. They're concerned about unethical conduct by public 
officials and discouraged by activist courts that try to redefine 
marriage. They worry about children in our society who need direction 
and love, and about fellow citizens still displaced by natural disaster, 
and about suffering caused by treatable diseases.
    As we look at these challenges, we must never give in to the belief 
that America is in decline or that our culture is doomed to unravel. The 
American people know better than that. We have proven the pessimists 
wrong before, and we will do it again.
    A hopeful society depends on courts that deliver equal justice under 
the law. The Supreme Court now has two superb new members on its bench, 
Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Sam Alito. I thank the Senate for 
confirming both of them. I will continue to nominate men and women who 
understand that judges must be servants of the law and not legislate 
from the bench.
    Today marks the official retirement of a very special American. For 
24 years of faithful service to our Nation, the United States is 
grateful to Justice Sandra Day O'Connor.
    A hopeful society has institutions of science and medicine that do 
not cut ethical corners and that recognize the matchless value of every 
life. Tonight I ask you to pass legislation to prohibit the most 
egregious abuses of medical research: Human cloning in all its forms; 
creating or implanting embryos for experiments; creating human-animal 
hybrids; and buying, selling, or patenting human embryos. Human life is 
a gift from our Creator, and that gift should never be discarded, 
devalued, or put up for sale.
    A hopeful society expects elected officials to uphold the public 
trust. Honorable people in both parties are working on reforms to 
strengthen the ethical standards of Washington. I support your efforts. 
Each of us has made a pledge to be worthy of public responsibility, and 
that is a pledge we must never forget, never dismiss, and never betray.
    As we renew the promise of our institutions, let us also show the 
character of America in our compassion and care for one another.
    A hopeful society gives special attention to children who lack 
direction and love.

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Through the Helping America's Youth Initiative, we are encouraging 
caring adults to get involved in the life of a child. And this good work 
is being led by our First Lady, Laura Bush. This year we will add 
resources to encourage young people to stay in school, so more of 
America's youth can raise their sights and achieve their dreams.
    A hopeful society comes to the aid of fellow citizens in times of 
suffering and emergency, and stays at it until they're back on their 
feet. So far the Federal Government has committed $85 billion to the 
people of the gulf coast and New Orleans. We're removing debris and 
repairing highways and rebuilding stronger levees. We're providing 
business loans and housing assistance. Yet as we meet these immediate 
needs, we must also address deeper challenges that existed before the 
storm arrived.
    In New Orleans and in other places, many of our fellow citizens have 
felt excluded from the promise of our country. The answer is not only 
temporary relief but schools that teach every child and job skills that 
bring upward mobility and more opportunities to own a home and start a 
business. As we recover from a disaster, let us also work for the day 
when all Americans are protected by justice, equal in hope, and rich in 
opportunity.
    A hopeful society acts boldly to fight diseases like HIV/AIDS, which 
can be prevented and treated and defeated. More than a million Americans 
live with HIV, and half of all AIDS cases occur among African Americans. 
I ask Congress to reform and reauthorize the Ryan White Act and provide 
new funding to States, so we end the waiting lists for AIDS medicines in 
America. We will also lead a nationwide effort, working closely with 
African American churches and faith-based groups, to deliver rapid HIV 
tests to millions, end the stigma of AIDS, and come closer to the day 
when there are no new infections in America.
    Fellow citizens, we've been called to leadership in a period of 
consequence. We've entered a great ideological conflict we did nothing 
to invite. We see great changes in science and commerce that will 
influence all our lives. Sometimes it can seem that history is turning 
in a wide arc toward an unknown shore. Yet the destination of history is 
determined by human action, and every great movement of history comes to 
a point of choosing.
    Lincoln could have accepted peace at the cost of disunity and 
continued slavery. Martin Luther King could have stopped at Birmingham 
or at Selma and achieved only half a victory over segregation. The 
United States could have accepted the permanent division of Europe and 
been complicit in the oppression of others. Today, having come far in 
our own historical journey, we must decide: Will we turn back or finish 
well?
    Before history is written down in books, it is written in courage. 
Like Americans before us, we will show that courage, and we will finish 
well. We will lead freedom's advance. We will compete and excel in the 
global economy. We will renew the defining moral commitments of this 
land. And so we move forward--optimistic about our country, faithful to 
its cause, and confident of the victories to come.
    May God bless America.

Note: The President spoke at 9:12 p.m. in the House Chamber of the 
Capitol. In his remarks, he referred to Usama bin Laden, leader of the 
Al Qaida terrorist organization; and President Hamid Karzai of 
Afghanistan. The Office of the Press Secretary also released a Spanish 
language transcript of this address.