For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
January 8, 2004
Remarks by the President at Bush-Cheney 2004 Luncheon
Knoxville Convention Center
Knoxville, Tennessee
12:55 P.M. EST
THE PRESIDENT: Thank you all. Thanks for coming. Thank you all
very much. Thanks for the warm welcome. It's glad -- I'm glad to be
in the land of the orange and white. (Applause.) UT -- kind of sounds
like home. (Laughter.) Really appreciate coming back to Knoxville.
I'm so thrilled that so many came out to support the Bush-Cheney
ticket. As you might recall, we had pretty good success here in the
year 2000. (Applause.) Because of today, we're laying the foundation
for what is going to be even better success in Tennessee in 2004.
We're on our way to a national victory in November of 2004.
(Applause.)
I'm loosening up -- (laughter) -- and I'm getting ready. But there
will be plenty of time for politics, because I've got a job to do on
behalf of every citizen of this country. I'm focused on the people's
business in Washington, D.C. My administration will continue to work
hard to earn the confidence of all Americans, by keeping this nation
secure and strong and prosperous and free. (Applause.)
I'm honored you invited me here today. I know I wasn't your first
choice. (Laughter.) Laura was tied up. (Laughter.) She's a fabulous
First Lady. I'm a lucky man that she said, yes, when I said, will you
marry me? (Applause.) She really sends her best and her love. She's
-- I'm really proud of her.
I also want to thank my friend, Lamar Alexander, for doing such a
fine job in the United States Senate on behalf of the great people of
Tennessee. He brings such class and dignity to public office. You've
known that when he was your governor. He's now doing it again as the
senator. As is the other senator from the great state of Tennessee,
Senator Bill Frist, the Majority Leader of the United States Senate.
You've done a great job of sending two fine people to the Senate.
(Applause.)
I'm honored that members of the congressional delegation from
Tennessee have joined us today, starting with your own home-grown Jimmy
Duncan. I appreciate you, Jimmy. I got off Air Force One and the
first thing he said was, this is my district. (Laughter.)
I want to thank Congressman Zach Wamp for joining us today. Thank
you for being here, Zach. (Applause.) Congressman Bill Jenkins is
with us today. Congressman, thank you for coming. (Applause.) I see
you got a seat in the back. (Laughter.) And Congresswoman Marsha
Blackburn is with us today. Marsha, thank you for being here.
(Applause.)
I'm honored that members of the statehouse have come. It's always
a good sign when the state senators and state legislators are coming.
After all, all good politics is local politics. I want to thank Ben
Atchley, he's the Republican leader in the state senate, for joining us
today. (Applause.) Beth Harwell, who is the Chairman of the Tennessee
Republican Party, is with us. I want to thank you for coming, too,
Beth.
I'm so honored that many of you all took time to make this event a
successful event. Jim Haslam is event co-chairman. Big Jim, I thank
you for your friendship and I appreciate -- (applause.) I also
appreciate Jimmy for being the event co-chairman. And I appreciate the
fact that the Mayor is with us today, as well. (Applause.)
I want to thank my friend, Mercer Reynolds. He's from Cincinnati,
Ohio. He's the national finance chairman of Bush-Cheney. He's working
hard to make sure that this campaign is well-funded. When the campaign
starts we want to be ready to go. And thanks to the people in this
room, and thanks to people around the country, when the campaign gets
started we are going to be ready to go.
I appreciate David Kustoff who is the state chairman. His job is
to rally the grassroots. And so, for those of you who are involved in
grassroots politics here in Tennessee, I want to thank you for what
you're going to do. I want to thank you for the signs you're going to
put up. I want to thank you for the phone calls you're going to make.
I'm want to thank you for joining us as we turn out the vote to make
sure this good state turns out in significant numbers. And as you're
turning out that vote I want you to remind them, in the last three
years our nation has acted decisively to confront great challenges. I
came to this office to solve problems, not to pass them on to future
presidents and future generations. (Applause.)
I came to seize opportunities instead of letting them slip away.
My administration is meeting the tests of our time. (Applause.)
Terrorists declared war on the United States of America, and war is
what they got. We've captured or killed many of the key leaders of the
al Qaeda network, and the rest of them know we're on their trail. In
Afghanistan and in Iraq, we gave ultimatums to terror regimes. Those
regimes chose defiance, and those regimes are no more. (Applause.)
Fifty million people in those two countries once lived under tyranny,
and now they live in freedom. (Applause.)
Three years ago, our military was not receiving the resources it
needed, and morale was beginning to suffer. So we increased the
defense budgets to prepare for the threats of a new era. And today, no
one in the world can question the skill and the strength and the spirit
of the United States military. (Applause.)
Three years ago, the economy was in trouble and a recession was
beginning. And then we had attacks on our country, and corporate
scandals and war, which all affected the people's confidence. But this
administration acted. We passed tough new laws to hold corporate
criminals to account. And to get the economy going again, I have twice
led the United States Congress to pass historic tax relief for the
American people. (Applause.)
We understand that when Americans have more take-home pay to spend,
to save, or invest, the whole economy grows, and people are more likely
to find a job. So we're returning more money -- money to people to
help them raise their families. We're reducing taxes on dividends and
capital gains to encourage investment. We've given small businesses
incentives to expand and to hire new people. With all these actions,
we are laying the foundation for greater prosperity and more jobs
across America so that every single person in this country has a chance
to realize the American Dream.
Today, the American economy is strong, and it is getting stronger.
(Applause.) The figures for the third quarter of 2003 show that the
economy grew at an annual rate of 8.2 percent, the fastest pace in
nearly 20 years. Productivity is high; business investment is rising;
housing construction is increasing. We've added over 300,000 new jobs
in the last four months. The tax relief we passed is working.
(Applause.)
Three years ago there was a lot of talk about education reform, but
there wasn't much action. So I acted. I called for, and the Congress
passed, the No Child Left Behind Act. With a solid bipartisan
majority, we delivered the most dramatic education reforms in a
generation. We're spending more money at the federal level, but we're
finally asking the question, are you teaching the children how to read
and write and add and subtract. This administration is challenging the
soft bigotry of low expectations because we believe that every child
can learn, and we expect every school to teach. The days of
excuse-making are over. No child should be left behind in America.
(Applause.)
We reorganized the government and created the Department of
Homeland Security to better safeguard the borders and ports of our
country and to better protect the American people. We passed trade
promotion authority to open up new markets for Tennessee's farmers and
ranchers and entrepreneurs and manufacturers. We passed budget
agreements that is helping to maintain much-needed spending discipline
in Washington, D.C.
And last month, we completed the greatest advance in health care
coverage for America's seniors since the founding of Medicare. The new
Medicare law, that I pushed for and signed, will give older Americans
the option of a prescription drug benefit and more control over their
health care, so that they can receive the modern health care that they
deserve. (Applause.)
On issue after issue, this administration has acted on principle,
has kept its word, and has made great progress for the American
people. A lot of credit belongs to the members of the United States
Senate and the United States Congress. I enjoy working with Majority
Leader Bill Frist. You know as well as I do he's plenty capable,
plenty competent, and a very decent man. I enjoy working with Speaker
Denny Hastert, who shares the same characteristics as Bill Frist, an
honorable, decent man.
We're working hard to change the tone in Washington, D.C. There's
too much back-biting, endless politics, name-calling. The best way to
change the tone is to focus on the people's business and to focus on
results. And that's what we're doing with the Congress. Our record
has been a good record. And those are the kind of people I've asked to
join my administration. I put together a fantastic team of people,
people from all walks of life to serve our country, people who have
come to the Nation's Capital not to represent their own special
interests, but to represent the greatest country on the face of the
Earth. There's been no finer Vice President than Dick Cheney.
(Applause.) Mother may have a second opinion. (Laughter.)
In three years, we've done a lot. We have come far. But our work
is only beginning. I've set great goals worthy of this great nation.
First, America is committed to expanding the realm of freedom and peace
for our own security and for the benefit of the world. And second, in
our own country, we will work for a society that is prosperous and
compassionate so every citizen has a chance to work and to succeed and
to realize the great promise of our country. It is clear that the
future of freedom and peace depend on the actions of America. This
nation is freedom's home and freedom's defender. We welcome this
charge of history, and we are keeping it.
The war on terror continues. The enemy is not idle, and neither
are we. We will not tire, we will not stop, until this danger to
civilization is removed. (Applause.) We are confronting that danger
in Iraq, where all people can be certain that they will never again
have to fear the rule of Saddam Hussein. (Applause.) He started last
year in a palace, he ended this year in a prison. The Baathist
holdouts largely responsible for the current violence now know there
will be no return to the corrupt power and privilege they once held.
All Iraqis who have taken the side of freedom have taken the winning
side.
We still face terrorists who would rather go on killing the
innocent than accept the rise of liberty in the Middle East. And there
is a reason why. They know that the advance of freedom in Iraq will be
a major defeat for the cause of terror. This collection of killers is
trying to shake the will of America. America will never be intimidated
by a bunch of thugs and assassins. (Applause.)
We're aggressively after them in Iraq, defeating them there so we
will never have to face them in our own country. Other nations are
helping, because they understand a free Iraq will make the world more
secure. We're standing with the Iraqi people as they assume more of
their defense and move toward self-government. These are not easy
tasks, but they are essential tasks. We will finish what we have
begun. We will win this essential victory in the war on terror.
(Applause.)
We're working to oppose proliferation of weapons around the world.
Last month, after talks with the United States and Great Britain, Libya
voluntarily committed to disclose and dismantle all its weapons of mass
destruction programs. Leaders around the world now know weapons of
mass destruction do not bring influence or prestige, they bring
isolation and unwelcome consequences. And nations who abandon the
pursuit of these weapons will find an open path to better relations
with the United States of America.
Yet our greatest security comes from the advance of freedom, from
the advance of human liberty. Because free nations do not support
terror; free nations do not attack their neighbors; free nations do not
threaten the world with weapons of mass terror. Americans believe that
freedom is the deepest need and hope of every human heart. I believe
that freedom is the future of every nation. And we understand that
freedom is not America's gift to the world; freedom is the almighty
God's gift to every man and woman in this world. (Applause.)
America also understands that unprecedented influence brings
tremendous responsibilities. We have duties in the world. When we see
disease and starvation and hopeless poverty, we will not turn away. On
the continent of Africa, America is now committed to bringing the
healing power of medicine to millions of men and women and children now
suffering with AIDS. This powerful, strong and compassionate land is
leading the entire world on this incredibly important work of human
rescue.
We face challenges here at home, as well. We'll be equal to those
challenges. This administration will continue to push a pro-growth,
pro-entrepreneur economic agenda so that people who want to work and
can't find a job today will be able to find that job.
And for the sake of our health care system, we need to cut down on
the frivolous lawsuits which increase the cost of medicine. People who
have been harmed by a bad doc deserve their day in court. Yet the
system should not reward lawyers who are simply fishing for a rich
settlement. (Applause.) Frivolous lawsuits drive up the cost of
health care and they, therefore, affect the federal budget.
Medical liability reform is a national issue that requires a
national solution. I sent a bill over to the House, and the House of
Representatives passed a good bill to reform the system. The bill is
stuck in the Senate. I look forward to working with Senator Frist and
Senator Alexander to convince reluctant senators to act on behalf of
all the people in America and get a good medical liability bill to my
desk. Some members of the Senate must understand that no one in
America has ever been healed by a frivolous lawsuit. (Applause.)
I have a responsibility as your President to make sure the judicial
system runs well, and I have met that duty. I have nominated superb
men and women to the federal courts, people who will interpret the law,
not legislate from the bench. Some of the members of the Senate are
trying to keep my nominees off the bench by blocking up or down votes.
Every judicial nominee deserves a fair hearing and an up or down vote
on the Senate floor. It is time for some members of the United States
Senate to stop playing politics with American justice. (Applause.)
The Congress needs to get an energy bill to my desk. This nation
must be more energy-efficient. We must conserve our resources. We
must do a better job of protecting the quality of the air in places
like Knoxville, Tennessee. But for the sake of economic security and
for the sake of national security, we must become less dependent on
foreign sources of energy. (Applause.)
A strong and prosperous nation must also be a compassionate
nation. I will continue to advance our agenda of compassionate
conservatism. This means we'll apply the best and most innovative
ideas to the task of helping our fellow citizens in need. There's
still millions of men and women who want to end their dependence on the
government and become independent through hard work. We must build on
the success of welfare reform, to bring more work and, therefore,
dignity into the lives of our fellow citizens who are still dependent
upon the government.
With the help of Congress, we're working to ensure that more
Americans can serve their communities and their country through citizen
service programs. I urge both Houses of the United States Congress to
pass my faith-based initiative, which will help empower the armies of
compassion that are mentoring our children and caring for the homeless
and offering hope to the addicted.
One of the great strengths of our country is that we're a nation of
many faiths -- Christian, Jewish and Muslim faiths. Out of that faith
comes the deep desire for many of our citizens to heed the universal
call to help a neighbor who hurts. The federal government should never
fear the influence of faith-based programs. We ought to welcome
faith-based programs into helping solve some of the intractable
problems of our society.
A compassionate society is one, also, that must promote opportunity
for all, including the independence and dignity that come from
ownership. This administration understands the power of owning
something in our society. We'll constantly strive to promote an
ownership society. Listen, we have a minority homeownership gap in
America. I proposed plans to the Congress to help close that gap. We
want more people owning their own home. We want people owning and
managing their own health care accounts and their own retirement
accounts. We want more people owning their own small businesses. And
that's why developing the entrepreneurial spirit and keeping it strong
is so important. You see, we understand that when a person owns
something, he or she has a vital stake in the future of our country.
In a compassionate society, people respect one another. They
respect each other's religious beliefs and political opinions. When
people take responsibility for the decisions they make in life. See,
the culture of America is changing, from one that has said, if it feels
good, do it, and if you've got a problem, blame somebody else, to a
culture in which each of us understands that we're responsible for the
decisions we make in life. If you're fortunate enough to be a mother
or a father, you're responsible for loving your child with all your
heart. If you're worried about the quality of the education in
Knoxville, Tennessee, you're responsible for doing something about it.
If you're a CEO in corporate America, you are responsible for telling
the truth to your shareholders and employees. (Applause.)
And in the new responsibility society, each of us is responsible
for loving our neighbor just like we'd like to be loved ourself. We
can see that culture -- (applause) -- the culture of service is strong
in America. You know, I started the USA Freedom Corps right after
September the 11th, to encourage our fellow citizens to extend a
compassionate hand to a neighbor in need. And the response has been
fantastic. People from all walks of life are serving our nation.
They're helping people who hurt. Our neighborhood healers are vibrant
and strong. Faith-based and charitable organizations thrive in our
country. Policemen and firefighters and people who wear our nation's
uniform remind us what it means to sacrifice for something greater than
ourself.
Once again, the children of America believe in heroes because they
see them every day. In these challenging times, the world has seen the
resolve and the courage of America. And I have been privileged to see
the compassion and the character of the American people.
All the tests of the last three years have come to the right
nation. We're a strong country, and we use that strength to defend the
peace. We're an optimistic country, confident in ourselves and in
ideals bigger than ourselves. Abroad, we seek to lift whole nations by
spreading freedom. At home, we seek to lift up lives by spreading
opportunity to every corner of America. This is the work that history
has set before us. We welcome it, and know that for our country, the
best days lie ahead.
May God bless you all. (Applause.)
END 1:27 P.M. EST
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