President Salutes Troops of the 10th Mountain Division
Remarks by the President to Troops and Families of the 10th Mountain Division
Division Hill
Fort Drum, New York
1:18 P.M. EDT
THE PRESIDENT: Thank you all. Thank you, General, and thank you
all for such a warm welcome. I'm honored to be here. I've been
looking forward to coming to Fort Drum.
AUDIENCE: Hooah.
THE PRESIDENT: It gives me a chance to come to one of our nation's
finest military bases.
AUDIENCE: Hooah.
THE PRESIDENT: But, more importantly, it gives me a chance to
speak to some of the finest Americans we have, our soldiers and their
families. (Cheering and applause.) I'm proud of you. You have a
vital mission, especially in this time of war. And you do it well, and
you do the mission with honor.
AUDIENCE: Hooah.
THE PRESIDENT: The 10th Mountain Division patch stands for the
skill and it stands for the power of our military. And it stands for
the best values of the United States of America.
AUDIENCE: Hooah.
THE PRESIDENT: Many of you have just returned from service abroad
and Operation Enduring Freedom.
AUDIENCE: Hooah.
THE PRESIDENT: Others have come home from duty in Kosovo or
Bosnia.
AUDIENCE: Hooah.
THE PRESIDENT: And the Sinai.
AUDIENCE: Hooah.
THE PRESIDENT: Troops from this base will be needed again in
missions yet to come.
AUDIENCE: Hooah. (Cheering.)
THE PRESIDENT: But you have the nation's gratitude for all you've
done and the nation's confidence in all you will do.
AUDIENCE: Hooah.
THE PRESIDENT: I want to thank General Huber for his service to
our country. I want to thank Judy Hagenbeck, the wife of Major General
Buster Hagenbeck, with whom I got to speak via one of these
teleconferencing apparati. (Laughter.)
I want to thank General Larry Ellis for his leadership. I want to
thank Colonel John Kelly, I want to thank Major General Ken Lopez. I
want to thank all those who wear the uniform on behalf of a mighty
nation.
AUDIENCE: Hooah. (Applause.)
THE PRESIDENT: I want to thank my friend, Governor George Pataki
of the state of New York. I appreciate you being here, Governor.
(Applause.) I want to thank the Lieutenant Governor who is here. I
appreciate members of the New York congressional delegation who have
taken time out of their schedules to come, Senator Clinton, Congressman
McHugh, Congressman Boehlert, Congressman Reynolds, Congressman Sweeney
and Congressman Walsh. (Applause.) I want to thank the state
officials who are here, I want to thank the local officials who are
here. And I want to thank the veterans who are here with us today.
AUDIENCE: Hooah. (Applause.)
THE PRESIDENT: I know Watertown, New York, is proud to call
hundreds of the veterans citizen, and the American people are so
grateful to your service.
I want to thank the family members who are here today. (Applause.)
Our country depends upon those who wear the uniform, and our country
depends upon their family members, too. I want to thank you for the
sacrifices that you make on behalf of a nation. I want to thank the
wives and the husbands and the sons and the daughters. (Applause.) We
appreciate the commitments you make to your family and to your
country. This nation is grateful to our military families.
AUDIENCE: Hooah. (Applause.)
THE PRESIDENT: This great base, the 10th Mountain Division, has a
special place in American military history. Under different names,
Fort Drum has given continuous service to the defense of our country
since the beginning of the last century. The ranks of the 10th
Mountain Division have given distinguished and at times heroic service
for six decades. This unit has produced some of the finest soldiers
ever to wear the uniform.
AUDIENCE: Hooah.
THE PRESIDENT: Including a World War II veteran, one of the great
living Americans, Senator Bob Dole.
AUDIENCE: Hooah. (Applause.)
THE PRESIDENT: This division has now been called to play a central
part in the first war of the 21st century. In the fight against
terror, you are responding as you always have in times of danger.
Because of you, and men and women like you in all branches of our
military, we will defend this nation, and we will defeat the enemies of
freedom. (Cheering and applause.)
I can't imagine what the enemy was thinking. (Laughter.) They
must have thought we were so weak, so feeble a nation that we might,
after September the 11th, file a lawsuit or two. (Laughter.) They
obviously had never been to Fort Drum. (Cheering and applause.)
THE PRESIDENT: They didn't understand what I know, the character,
and the strength, and the courage of the men and women of the United
States military. (Cheering and applause.)
This war came upon us suddenly. The response has placed great
demands on our military. Yet at every point in the chain of command,
you were prepared for the orders that came.
As Major General Hagenbeck has put it, when this division was
called in September to deploy, nobody ever asked, are you ready; it was
assumed. And as the enemy found out, you were ready. (Cheering and
applause.)
Within days, you stepped forward to guard against further attacks
on the homeland. Within weeks, soldiers from Fort Drum were guarding
bases in Uzbekistan and moving in to defeat a brutal regime in
Afghanistan.
AUDIENCE: Hooah.
THE PRESIDENT: You fought beside our allies in cold and rugged
terrain, against trained and resourceful killers. You met the enemy
half a world away, in his own element, yet the terrorists discovered no
bunker could protect them.
AUDIENCE: Hooah.
THE PRESIDENT: Darkness couldn't conceal them.
AUDIENCE: Hooah.
THE PRESIDENT: And there was no cave deep enough to save them.
AUDIENCE: Hooah. (Cheering and applause.)
THE PRESIDENT: The 10th Mountain Division cleared over 100 caves
used by al Qaeda, seized more than 500 stockpiles of enemy ammunition,
patrolled over 500 miles of border trails to block fleeing enemy,
helped build or repair tent hospitals and deliver over a million pounds
of food. In the Afghan campaign, more than 150 soldiers of the 10th
Mountain Division were decorated for their noble actions, including one
lieutenant colonel who calmly inspired his troops during 18 hours of
grenade attacks and withering small arms fire.
When the 10th Mountain Division first arrived in Afghanistan, the
Taliban was in power. When some of you left, the Taliban was in ruins
and the Afghan people were liberated. (Cheering and applause.)
For some of you, this may seem like a long war, particularly ones
who have had loved ones overseas. But we've been at it for only 10
months. We have a great deal to show for our efforts. Our country
leads a mighty coalition of civilized nations, joined in facing a
common threat, a real threat to humanity. We're uncovering terrorist
cells all across the world, disrupting plots against us. We're seizing
terrorist assets and keeping terrorists themselves on the run.
So far, more than thousands of terrorists have been captured, and
thousands others like several in the Philippines just weeks ago weren't
that lucky.
AUDIENCE: Hooah.
THE PRESIDENT: One by one, they were meeting their fate, a fate
they chose for themselves. Around the world, terrorists are learning
that the justice of the United States of America cannot and will not be
escaped.
AUDIENCE: Hooah. (Applause.)
THE PRESIDENT: Some members of our coalition need America's aid
and advice, and they're receiving it. Other nations need help training
their armies to fight terror, and we're providing that. Some parts of
the world, there will be no substitute for direct action by the United
States. That is when we will send you, our military, to win the
battles that only you can win.
AUDIENCE: Hooah. (Applause.)
THE PRESIDENT: At this moment, around 60,000 Americans are
deployed around the world in the war against terror. We've given great
responsibilities to them and to you. And those of us in Washington
have great responsibilities of our own. We must never cut corners when
it comes to our national security. We owe our military every weapon
you need, every dollar it takes to fight and to win this war.
AUDIENCE: Hooah. (Applause.)
THE PRESIDENT: We're making progress, and I appreciate the fact
that Congress has stood behind me. I appreciate the support I've
received in Congress. I've been able to rely on leaders of both
political parties.
Earlier this year, I proposed the largest increase in military
spending since Ronald Reagan was the President.
AUDIENCE: Hooah. (Applause.)
THE PRESIDENT: I did so because our troops must be well trained,
well equipped, and well paid in order to fight and win this war.
(Cheering and applause.)
We're investing in our military so we can deploy swift and agile
forces -- anyplace, any time they're needed. We're building precision
weapons that can spare the lives of American soldiers, and lives of
innocent civilians in foreign lands.
We will multiply every advantage -- every possible advantage so
that we're prepared for any enemy. Any enemy of freedom.
AUDIENCE MEMBER: Let's get Saddam. (Cheering and applause.)
THE PRESIDENT: In March of this year, I asked Congress to put
defense appropriations at the beginning of the legislative line, not
the end. I asked them to stop playing that old trick, "we'll hold
defense last."
AUDIENCE: Hooah.
THE PRESIDENT: I think it needs to be first.
AUDIENCE: Hooah.
THE PRESIDENT: The House of Representatives responded. The Senate
is still delaying. The Senate must act, so that we can plan the war.
The Senate must act, and it must act this month, on defense
appropriations. (Cheering and applause.)
Congress has the responsibility to put first things first, and
nothing comes before the freedom and the security of the American
people.
AUDIENCE: Hooah. (Applause.)
THE PRESIDENT: As we prepare our military for action, we will
protect our military from international courts and committees with
agendas of their own.
AUDIENCE: Hooah.
THE PRESIDENT: You might have heard about a treaty that would
place American troops under the jurisdiction of something called the
International Criminal Court. The United States cooperates with many
other nations to keep the peace, but we will not submit American troops
to prosecutors and judges whose jurisdiction we do not accept.
AUDIENCE: Hooah. (Applause.)
THE PRESIDENT: Our nation expects and enforces the highest
standards of honor and conduct in our military. That's how you were
trained. That's what we expect. Every person who serves under the
American flag will answer to his or her own superiors and to military
law, not to the rulings of an unaccountable international criminal
court.
AUDIENCE: Hooah. (Applause.)
THE PRESIDENT: This new war is going to take some time. We're in
this for the long haul. After all, we defend our nation we love. We
defend the values we uphold.
We love freedom. We love freedom; we love our freedoms, and we
will defend them, no matter what the cost.
AUDIENCE: Hooah. (Applause.)
THE PRESIDENT: The work has just begun. And what we have begun,
we will finish.
AUDIENCE: Hooah.
THE PRESIDENT: In Afghanistan, coalition troops still have
critical work. And the dangers haven't passed. Elsewhere, new threats
are taking shape.
In this war, there will be times of quiet, and there will be times
of crisis; times that call for patience, and times that call for
sacrifice. As members of our military, you understand this as clearly
as anyone. You know the nature of the threat.
Terrorism is fueled by boundless hatred. Terrorism will be stopped
by a mighty nation with a strong and ready military.
AUDIENCE: Hooah. (Applause.)
THE PRESIDENT: We fight against a shadowy network that hides in
many nations, and has revealed its intention to gain, and use, weapons
of mass destruction. We're threatened by regimes that have sought
these ultimate weapons, and hide their weapons programs from the eyes
of the world.
The same regimes have shown their true nature by torturing and
butchering their own people. These tyrants and terrorists have one
thing in common: Whatever their plans and schemes, they will not be
restrained by a hint of humanity or conscience.
The enemies of America no longer need great armies to attack our
people. They require only great hatred, made more dangerous by
advanced technologies. Such enemies -- against such enemies, we cannot
sit quietly and hope for the best. To ignore this mounting danger is
to invite it.
America must act against these terrible threats before they're
fully formed.
AUDIENCE: Hooah. (Applause.)
THE PRESIDENT: We will use diplomacy when possible, and force when
necessary.
AUDIENCE: Hooah.
THE PRESIDENT: We will prepare deliberately, and act decisively.
Our commitment should be clear to all, to friend and enemy alike:
America will not leave the safety of our people and the future of peace
in the hands of a few evil and destructive men.
AUDIENCE: Hooah. (Applause.)
THE PRESIDENT: In this war, we fight against the advance of terror
and its agents. We also fight for the advance of freedom and human
dignity. We do more than oppose an ideology of violence and hatred, we
offer a vision of democracy and development that can overcome
resentment and despair in every part of the Earth.
Seldom have the ideals of freedom been under greater threat.
Seldom have the ideals of freedom had greater appeal. This nation,
this generation, you all, have been entrusted with the ideals, and with
their defense. This is a charge we bear. This is a charge we shall
keep.
AUDIENCE: Hooah. (Applause.)
THE PRESIDENT: Your duties will take you many places. In some
places, you and your fellow soldiers may be the only representatives of
justice and order. As members of our military, you will stand between
American citizens and grave danger. You will stand between
civilization and chaos. And you will stand for liberty, tolerance and
truth, the ideals of America and the hope of the entire world.
Soldiers of the 10th Mountain Division and men and women of the armed
forces, I'm honored to serve with you.
AUDIENCE: Hooah. (Applause.)
THE PRESIDENT: This is a decisive moment in the history of
freedom. As your Commander-in-Chief, I leave you this message: Be
proud, be strong, and be ready.
AUDIENCE: Hooah.
THE PRESIDENT: May God bless you, and God bless America.
(Applause.)