At the end of his Cabinet meeting January 28, President Bush briefly outlined for reporters what he intended to say in his State of the Union address before the Congress later in the day.

THE PRESIDENT: Thank you for coming. I'm going to make a quick statement, and then I will ask you all to leave without any questions.

Q: With questions?

THE PRESIDENT: Without questions. I appreciate your understanding.

First, I want to welcome Tom Ridge, newly confirmed member of my Cabinet. I appreciate the Senate moving quickly. I asked the Senate to move quickly on the nomination of John Snow, as well. He's having his hearing today. They'll find that John is a very capable, smart person who will do a fine job as the Secretary of Treasury. I look forward to having him join us here at this table.

Tonight, I'm going in front of our nation to talk about the great challenges that face our country, but no doubt that we'll be able to handle those challenges because we are a great country. I'll talk about our deep desire for peace -- peace not only here at home, but peace in troubled regions of the world. I'll talk about our plan to spread prosperity throughout America. I'll talk about the need to have a health care system that is modern and sensitive to the needs of our senior.

I'll talk about a lot of issues, but as I do so, I'm going to remind the American people that solutions to some of the seemingly intractable problems lay in the hearts and souls of our fellow citizens; that not only are we a strong nation, I will say, but that we're a compassionate nation and when we find hurt and people who need healing, that our fellow citizens can provide the love necessary to help a citizen realize the full potential of this country.

I look forward to giving this speech. It is a moment where I will rally the American people to some great causes, and remind them that we'll accomplish those causes together.

Thank you, all.