[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 44, Number 11 (Monday, March 24, 2008)]
[Pages 391-393]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Remarks at a Saint Patrick's Day Shamrock Presentation Ceremony With 
Prime Minister Bertie Ahern of Ireland

March 17, 2008

    Taoiseach, thanks. Small island; huge impact on the United States of 
America. [Laughter] Laura and I are glad you're here. We welcome you 
back to the White House on this Saint Patrick's Day. I can't think of a 
better way to celebrate it than with the Taoiseach. Thanks for the bowl 
of shamrocks. As you said, this is the eighth time I had the honor of 
receiving this from you. And I want to thank you for your friendship--
your personal friendship--and all you've done to strengthen the deep and 
lasting bond between our two nations.
    Also proud to be here with John O'Donoghue, the Speaker of the Dail. 
Welcome. Members of my Cabinet who are here, thank you for coming. 
Members of the United States Senate and the United States Congress 
who've joined us, we're glad you're here. And I know the Taoiseach is 
glad you're here too. [Laughter] He was asking me, ``Are you in 
session?'' I said, ``No, they're out of town.'' He said, ``Well, you 
must be feeling better about that.'' [Laughter] We'll be having lunch 
with you soon.
    How about members of the fire department of New York's Emerald 
Society? I

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thank you for coming. They proudly carry the title ``New York's 
bravest,'' and rightly so.
    And finally, I will be introducing soon Ronan Tynan to entertain us 
a little bit. He is a wonderful representative of your country. He's a 
dear friend of the Bush family, and we're so thankful he is here with us 
today.
    You know, Taoiseach, you were awfully diplomatic to talk about the 
fact that the architect came back to rebuild the White House after 1814. 
What, of course, you didn't say was why the White House needed to be 
rebuilt in the first place. [Laughter] And so I'm proud to welcome the 
Ambassador from Great Britain, our dear friend. [Laughter] Thanks for 
coming.
    I don't know if you know this, but America held its first Saint 
Patrick's Day celebration in Boston in the year 1737. I don't think you 
were there, Congressman, but--[laughter]--shortly thereafter. [Laughter] 
Nearly 40 years later, in the midst of the Revolution, at least 9 of the 
56 signatures on the Declaration of Independence were inked by Irish 
hands.
    We've had a long relationship, Taoiseach. Our history has been one 
where the United States and Ireland have made liberty our common cause, 
and both of our nations are richer for it. Our partnership is based upon 
principles, and it's also based upon people. Ireland founded itself--
found itself in the grip of poverty and famine in the 19th century, and 
millions of Irish came here to our soil. They were drawn here by a 
promise that success would be attainable to all those who were willing 
to work hard. And that's certainly what happened.
    It's an interesting poster that somebody brought to my attention 
that said this: ``In the United States, an industrious youth may follow 
any occupation without being looked down upon, and he may rationally 
expect to raise himself in the world by his labor.'' You know, 
occasionally, people did look down, but not anymore, because Irish have 
been unbelievably productive people for the United States of America. 
They've made a huge contribution. They've become an essential thread in 
the American fabric.
    And that's what we celebrate on Saint Patrick's Day. Our countries 
are more than just partners; we are family, Taoiseach. And today, more 
than 35 million Americans claim Irish ancestry. America is richer for 
every Murphy, Kelly, and O'Sullivan. I should have said McCain, but--
[laughter]. Well, I just did. [Laughter] After all this history 
together, the United States and the Republic of Ireland continue to 
stand side by side in firm friendship. We were friends in the past; 
we're friends today; and, Taoiseach, I am confident, after my time in 
office, the next President will be friends with Ireland. We are 
cooperating to build prosperous economies and--with vibrant trade and 
sound investment between our countries.
    I want to congratulate the Taoiseach. He was very generous in his 
praise about America's role, previous administration's role, hopefully 
our role in helping Northern Ireland have a peaceful future. But, 
Taoiseach, the truth of the matter is, I said on TV in there that you've 
had a steady hand, and you've been supportive. And I do want to applaud 
those who are here who've shown great courage, who've been able to put 
together--put beside--behind them a terrible past and focused on a 
hopeful future. And it was my huge honor, Martin, to welcome you and Dr. 
Paisley to the Oval Office. It was an historic moment for me, 
personally. And it was really, really positive.
    But I came away with the impression that obviously the United States 
needs to help, and we will. But nothing will happen without clear 
conviction and determination by the folks who live in Northern Ireland. 
And there's more work to be done, Taoiseach. As you said, the devolution 
of policing is important, and we support that. But we can also help by 
sending a clear signal that we're interested in investment 
opportunities. And so the Northern Ireland investment conference in May 
will be held. And I want to repeat what I told the Taoiseach, is that we 
will send a high-level delegation to not only send a signal that we 
support the efforts of the folks in Northern Ireland, but we expect our 
folks to be able to find good investment opportunities--for the good of 
both.
    And so, Taoiseach, I, like you, marvel at the success that's taken 
place since my short time as President and know full well that more 
progress can and will be made.

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    You know, there's an old Irish proverb that says: ``There is no 
strength without unity.'' And so on this Saint Patrick's Day, we can all 
take pride in the way that the United States and Ireland have come 
together to enrich each other in the world.
    My last time as President to have a Saint Patrick's Day with you, 
Taoiseach. Perhaps when we join the ex-leaders club, we'll sit back and 
put our feet up--[laughter]--and talk about the good old times. In the 
meantime, I know you're going to sprint to the finish, as am I, for the 
good of our countries.
    Thank you for coming. God bless the people of Ireland and the United 
States. And now I welcome Ronan Tynan.

Note: The President spoke at 11:30 a.m. in the East Room at the White 
House. In his remarks, he referred to Chairman of the Dail Eireann John 
O'Donoghue of Ireland; FDNY Emerald Society Pipes and Drums, who 
performed prior to the remarks; the United Kingdom's Ambassador to the 
U.S. Sir Nigel E. Sheinwald; and First Minister Ian R.K. Paisley and 
Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness of Northern Ireland. The 
transcript released by the Office of the Press Secretary also included 
the remarks of Prime Minister Ahern.