For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
October 15, 2004
Remarks by the President at Victory 2004 Rally
Experimental Aircraft Association Building
Oshkosh, Wisconsin
4:58 P.M. CDT
THE PRESIDENT: Thank you all. (Applause.) Okay. It's great to
be back in Oshkosh. My only regret is I don't have time to drive by
Leon's. (Applause.) Laura and I are thrilled to be here. We're glad
to be back in Wisconsin. (Applause.) The enthusiasm in this state is
high. With your help -- (applause.) With your help, with your hard
work, there is no doubt in my mind we will carry Wisconsin on November
the 2nd. (Applause.)
I want to -- I am traveling with very good company today.
(Applause.) So when I asked Laura to marry me, when I asked her to
marry me, she said, okay, I will, just so long as -- so long as I never
have to give a speech. (Laughter.) I said, okay, you got a deal.
Fortunately, she didn't hold me to the deal. She's giving a lot of
speeches. The American people have come to know Laura as a
compassionate, warm, great First Lady. (Applause.)
AUDIENCE: Laura! Laura! Laura!
THE PRESIDENT: I know my running mate has been in the neighborhood
recently.
AUDIENCE: Booo! Flip-flop! Flip-flop!
THE PRESIDENT: He thought he was going over to Lambert Field.
(Laughter.) One of these days I'm going to make it to Lambeau Field
and thank the Packers for being -- setting such good examples for our
kids. I'm proud of Dick Cheney. (Applause.) Now, look, I admit it, he
doesn't have the waviest hair in the race. (Laughter.) I didn't pick
him because of his hair. I picked him because of his judgment, his
experience, his ability to get the job done for the American people.
(Applause.)
I want to thank your Congressman, Tom Petri. He's a fine man. I
appreciate you coming, Congressman. (Applause.) I see the Chairman
over there, Jim Sensenbrenner. Thanks for coming, Chairman.
(Applause.) Finely, we're proud to be here with Mark Green, Congressman
Mark Green. (Applause.) I appreciate you guys coming. You need to
vote for Tim Michels for the United States Senate. (Applause.) He
wisely married Barbara. (Laughter.) I know somebody else who made the
right choice. (Laughter.)
I really appreciate the Experimental Aircraft Association for
allowing us to use this hangar. You're famous in Oshkosh, by gosh.
(Laughter.) One reason why is your airplanes. Another reason why is
because of the good people who live here. I'm honored you all came out
to say hello. Thanks for being here. (Applause.)
I want to thank Jack Voight, the State Treasurer. I appreciate the
Speaker being here. I want to thank all the local officials. I want
to thank my friend, Rick Draper. I want to thank the grassroots
politics -- politicians, the people who are putting up the signs and
making the phone calls, the volunteers. (Applause.) I know many of
you are working hard and I thank you for that. It's takes a lot of
hard work to get this many people out. But there's more hard work to
be done. Laura and I will be campaigning alongside of you. Work hard;
we will win in November. (Applause.)
AUDIENCE: Four more years! Four more years! Four more years!
THE PRESIDENT: We're working -- we're coming from the west. We
were in Oregon this morning; then we stopped off in Iowa, and
fortunately, get to come to Wisconsin today. And one of the reasons
we're coming west to east is, you might remember, we had a debate or
two recently. (Applause.) I enjoyed those debates. (Applause.) Those
debates give us a chance to express or opinions, and they show the
stark differences between my opponent and me. See, we have different
records and we have different plans for the future.
My record is one of reforming education, lowering taxes, providing
prescription drugs for our seniors, improving homeland protections, and
waging aggressive war against the ideologues of hate. (Applause.) The
Senator's record is 20 years of out-of-the-mainstream politics,
out-of-the-mainstream votes, without many significant reforms or
results to show for it. The records are important because our country
faces many challenges, and the next President must recognize the need
to reform and to be able to achieve reform. On issue after issue, from
jobs to health care to the need to strengthen Social Security, my
opponent has failed to recognize the changing realities of today's
world and the need for fundamental reforms.
You know, in the final debate, I talked about the link between jobs
and education. (Applause.) I believe when you're talking about jobs,
you need to be talking about educating the people, so they can fill the
jobs of the 21st century. (Applause.) He said during that debate I
switched away from jobs and started talking about education. Well,
yes. Good jobs start with good education in America. (Applause.)
When it comes to health care, once again the other night, he said
with a straight face, that his health care plan was not a government
plan. I could barely contain myself. Twenty-two million new people
would enroll on a government program under his plan. That would be the
largest increase in government health care ever.
AUDIENCE: Booo!
AUDIENCE MEMBER: Who pays for it?
THE PRESIDENT: Yes. Eighty percent of the newly insured for his
plan would be placed on a government program like Medicaid. That's not
the way to handle health care in America.
AUDIENCE: Booo!
THE PRESIDENT: He said, well, his plan would help small
businesses. Yet when you look at his plan, just like some of these
analysts have done, they concluded that Senator Kerry's plan would be
an overpriced albatross, which would saddle small businesses with 225
new mandates.
AUDIENCE: Booo!
THE PRESIDENT: I have a different view -- health care must be
available and affordable and portable to help small businesses, and we
don't need to saddle them with a bunch of government rules.
(Applause.)
Finally, talking about change, we need to do something about Social
Security. And yet in the debate, my opponent said, if later on, after
a period of time, we fine that Social Security is in trouble -- well,
then he'll call a meeting of experts. (Laughter.) Social Security is
fine for our seniors. You might remember the 2000 campaign here in
Wisconsin, when they said if George W. gets elected, the seniors won't
get their checks. Do you remember that?
AUDIENCE: Yes!
THE PRESIDENT: Well, the seniors got their checks. (Applause.)
And the seniors will continue to get their checks. (Applause.)
But we have trouble for our children and our grandchildren when it
comes to Social Security. I think we need to think differently from
the status quo. Youngsters ought to be able to take some of their own
payroll taxes and set up a personal savings account, an account they
call their own. (Applause.) It is the President's job to confront
problems, not to pass them on to future generations and future
Presidents. (Applause.)
The last few years, the American people have got to know me. They
know my blunt way of speaking. (Applause.) I get that from my
mother. (Laughter.) They know I sometimes mangle the English
language. (Laughter.) I get that from my father. (Laughter.)
Americans also know I tell you exactly what I'm going to do, and I keep
my word. (Applause.)
When I came into office, the stock market had been in serious
decline for six months, and the economy was headed into a recession.
To help families and to get this economy going again, I pledged to
reduce taxes. I kept my word. (Applause.) The recession was one of
the shallowest in American history. Over the last three years, our
economy has grown at the fastest rate of any major industrialized
nation. The home ownership rate in America is at an all-time high
incomes are up. (Applause.) Farm incomes are up. The past 13 months
we've added 1.9 million new jobs. The unemployment rate across America
is 5.4 percent. That's lower than the average of the 1970s, the 1980s
and the 1990s. (Applause.) The unemployment rate in the great state
of Wisconsin is 4.8 percent. (Applause.)
This economy is moving forward, and we have more work to do. To
keep this economy strong, I'll continue to stand behind our farmers,
like our dairy farmers. (Applause.) I signed a good farm bill. It's
a farm bill that promoted conservation on our farms and ranches. It's
a farm bill that recognizes that by opening up markets, our farmers can
make a good living. We want to be selling Wisconsin products all
around the world. (Applause.)
I'll continue to promote good agricultural policy. I'll work with
Congress to renew the Milk Income Loss contract, the milk program,
which is vital to Wisconsin's dairy farmers. We'll also make sure
America is the best place in the world to do business. If you want
jobs here in America, it's got to be the best place in the world to do
business. That means less regulations on our job creators.
(Applause.)
We've got to do something about the junk lawsuits that are
threatening the job creators in America. To keep jobs here, we need an
energy plan. The Congress needs to pass the plan I sent up there a
couple of years ago. It is a plan that encourages conservation. It's
a plan that encourages the use of renewables like ethanol and
biodiesel. It encourages clean coal technology. It encourages
increased domestic production in environmentally friendly ways. To
keep jobs here in America, we must be less dependent on foreign sources
of energy. (Applause.)
To keep jobs here, we've got to reject economic isolationism and
open up markets. We've opened up our markets for products from
overseas, and it's good for you as a consumer. If you've got more to
choose from in the marketplace, you're likely to get that which you
want at a better price and higher quality. That's how the market
works. That's why I'm saying to places like China, you treat us the
way we treat you; you open up your markets. See, we can compete with
anybody, anytime, anywhere, so long as the rules are fair. (Applause.)
To create jobs here and to keep this economy growing, we've got to
be wise about how we spend your money, and we've got to keep your taxes
low. (Applause.) Now, my opponent has his own history on the
economy.
AUDIENCE: Booo!
THE PRESIDENT: In 20 years as a senator from Massachusetts, he has
built the record of -- a senator from Massachusetts. (Laughter and
applause.) He has voted to raise taxes 98 times.
AUDIENCE: Booo!
THE PRESIDENT: That's in 20 years. That's nearly five times a
year. I'd call that a pattern. (Laughter.) See, he can run from his
record, but he cannot hide. (Applause.) Now he's promising not to
raise taxes for anyone who earns less than $200,000 a year. The
problem is, to keep that promise, he'd have to break all of his other
ones. (Laughter.) You see, he's proposed $2.2 trillion in new federal
spending -- that's with a "T." And yet he says he's going to raise it
by taxing the rich. That only raises between $600 billion and $800
billion. And so you can see there's a tax gap. (Laughter.) Guess who
usually fills the tax gap?
AUDIENCE: We do!
THE PRESIDENT: Yes. Let me say one other thing about this
business about taxing the rich. The rich hire lawyers and accountants
for a reason -- to stick you with the tab. We're not going to let him
tax you. We're going to carry Wisconsin and win a great victory.
(Applause.)
AUDIENCE: Four more years! Four more years! Four more years!
THE PRESIDENT: When I came into office, our public schools had
been waiting for decades for hopeful reform. Too many of our children
were being shuffled through, grade after grade, year after year,
without learning the basics. I pledged to restore accountability in
our schools and end the soft bigotry of low expectations. (Applause.)
And I kept my word. (Applause.) The No Child Left Behind Act is
working. Our children are making sustained gains in reading and math.
We're closing achievement gaps all around this country. We're making
progress for our families. We will leave no child behind. (Applause.)
There is more work to do. We'll fund early intervention programs
in our high schools to help at-risk students. We'll place a new focus
on math and science. Over time, we'll require a rigorous exam before
graduation. By raising performance in our high schools and by
expanding Pell grants for low- and middle-income families, we will help
more Americans start their careers with a college diploma. (Applause.)
My opponent has a history on education issues -- a history of doing
almost nothing. The Senator's pledged to weaken the No Child Left
Behind Act.
AUDIENCE: Booo!
THE PRESIDENT: He's proposed diluting the accountability standards
and looking at measures like teacher attendance to judge whether
students are learning.
AUDIENCE: Booo!
THE PRESIDENT: We must have high standards. We must have high
accountability measures. We must not undermine what we have passed.
We have worked to move beyond the old days of mediocrity and excuses,
and we're not going to go back. (Applause.)
When I came into office, we had a problem with Medicare. Medicine
was changing, Medicare wasn't. Take, for example this: Medicare would
pay hundreds -- nearly $100,000 for a heart surgery, but would not pay
one dime for the prescription drugs that could prevent the heart
surgery from being needed in the first place. Think about that. It's
not right for our seniors, it's certainly not right for our taxpayers.
I pledged to bring Republicans and Democrats together to strengthen and
modernize Medicare for our seniors, and I kept my word. (Applause.)
Seniors are already getting discounts on their medicines. Rural
doctors and rural hospitals are being treated more fairly. And
beginning in 2006, all seniors will be able to get prescription drug
coverage in Medicare. (Applause.)
We're moving forward on health care, and there's more to do. We
need to make sure health care is affordable and available for all our
people. We need a safety net for those with the greatest needs. I'm a
big believer in community health centers where the poor and the
indigent can get good primary and preventative care. We'd much rather
them getting care in a community health center than an emergency room
of a local hospital. (Applause.)
We'll do more to make sure poor children are fully subscribed in
our programs for low-income families. Most of the uninsured here in
America work for small businesses. Small businesses are having trouble
affording health care. In order to help our small businesses and help
their workers and their families, small businesses ought to be able to
pool together to be able to -- so they can buy insurance at the same
discounts big businesses are able to do. (Applause.) We'll expand
health savings accounts so workers and small businesses are able to pay
lower premiums, and people can save tax-free in a health care account
they call their own.
In order to make sure health care is available and affordable, we
will do something about the junk lawsuits that are running up the cost
to your health care. (Applause.) To make sure health care works,
we've got to do something about the lawsuits that cause the federal
government's tab to go up. You see, doctors practice what's called
defensive medicine because of all the lawsuits. It costs our
government about $28 billion a year. It costs our economy $60 billion
to $100 billion a year.
I don't think you can be pro-doctor, pro-patient, and pro-plaintiff
attorney at the same time. (Applause.) You have to choose. My
opponent made his choice, and he put a personal injury lawyer on the
ticket.
AUDIENCE: Booo!
THE PRESIDENT: I made my choice. I'm standing with the doctors
and the patients. I am for medical liability reform now. (Applause.)
In all we do to reform health care, this administration will make sure
the decisions are made by doctors and patients, not by officials in
Washington, D.C. (Applause.)
You know, there's an old saying here -- no one ever washes a rental
car. (Laughter.) A lot of wisdom in that statement. (Laughter.)
When you own something, you care about it. When you own something, you
have a vital stake in the future of your country. That's why I will
continue to promote an ownership society in America. (Applause.) We
want our younger workers to be able to own a piece of the Social
Security system so it will be available for them when they retire. We
want more people owning their own business. Every time somebody starts
a small business in America, they are achieving a piece of the American
Dream. (Applause.)
We will continue to expand ownership to every corner of our
country. I've told you home ownership rates are at an all-time high.
We want more people opening up the door where they live, saying,
welcome to my home; welcome to my piece of property. (Applause.)
On issue after issue, from Medicare without choices to schools with
less accountability to higher taxes, my opponent takes the side of more
centralized government. There's a word for that attitude -- it's
called liberalism.
AUDIENCE: Booo!
THE PRESIDENT: He dismisses that as a label. He must have seen it
differently when he told a newspaper, I'm a liberal and I'm proud of
it. (Laughter.) A nonpartisan journal did a study that named him the
most liberal member of the United States Senate. And that's going a
long way with that bunch. (Laughter.)
I have a different record and a different view and a different
philosophy. I don't believe in big government and I don't believe in
indifferent government. I'm what you would call a compassionate
conservative. (Applause.) I believe in policies that empower people
to improve their lives. I don't believe in policies that try to run
people's lives. (Applause.) I trust the people. My opponent trusts
the government.
AUDIENCE: Booo!
THE PRESIDENT: We've done everything we can to help people, stand
beside people, to help them have a future of dignity and independence.
And that's how I'll continue to lead our nation for four more years.
(Applause.)
AUDIENCE: Four more years! Four more years! Four more years!
THE PRESIDENT: In this time of change, there's some things that do
not change -- the values we try to live by: reverence and integrity,
courage and compassion. In a time of change, we all must support the
institutions that give our lives direction and purpose: our families,
our schools, and our religious congregations. (Applause.) We stand
for a culture of life in which every person matters and every being --
(applause.) We stand for marriage and family, which are the
foundations of our society. (Applause.) We stand for the appointment
of federal judges who know the difference between personal opinion and
the strict interpretation of the law. (Applause.)
My opponent's words on these issues are a little muddy, but his
record is plenty clear. He says he supports the institution of
marriage, but he voted against the Defense of Marriage Act. He voted
against the ban on partial birth abortions.
AUDIENCE: Boooo!
THE PRESIDENT: One time on his campaign he called himself the
candidate of conservative values, but he described the Reagan years as
a period of moral darkness.
AUDIENCE: Booo!
THE PRESIDENT: There is a mainstream in American politics, and my
opponent sits on the far left bank. (Applause.) He can run, but he
cannot hide. (Applause.)
This election will also determine how America responds to the
continuing danger of terrorism. The most solemn duty of the American
President is to protect the American people. (Applause.) If America
shows uncertainty or weakness in this decade, the world will drift
toward tragedy. This will not happen on my watch. (Applause.)
Since that terrible morning of September the 11th, 2001, we have
fought the terrorists across the Earth -- not for pride, not for power,
but because the lives of our citizens are at stake. Our strategy is
clear: We'll protect the homeland; we'll strengthen our intelligence;
we'll transform our all-volunteer army -- and keep it an all-volunteer
army. (Applause.) We're staying on the offensive. We will strike the
terrorists abroad so we do not have to face them here at home.
(Applause.) We will continue to spread freedom and liberty, and we
will prevail. (Applause.)
Our strategy is succeeding. Think about the world as it was some
three-and-a-half years ago. Afghanistan was the home base of al
Qaeda. Pakistan was a transit point for terrorists. Saudi Arabia was
fertile ground for terrorist fundraising. Libya was secretly pursuing
nuclear weapons. Iraq was a dangerous place and a gathering threat.
And al Qaeda was largely unchallenged as it planned attacks. Because
we acted, because the United States of America led, Afghanistan is free
and is now an ally in the war on terror. (Applause.) Pakistan is
capturing terrorist leaders; Saudi Arabia is making raids and arrests;
Libya is dismantling its weapons programs; and an army of a free Iraq
is fighting for freedom, and more than three-quarters of al Qaeda's key
members and associates have been brought to justice. (Applause.)
We are conducting a broad strategy to keep America safe. By
defending ourselves, 50 million people in Afghanistan and Iraq are now
free. Think about that. (Applause.) I want our youngsters here to
recognize they're watching incredible history unfold. (Applause.)
Take a look at Afghanistan. It wasn't all that long ago that many
young girls were not allowed to go to school. That country was run by
barbarians. They were backwards. They had an ideology based upon
hatred. Their mothers would be pulled into the public square and
whipped, some of them killed in a sports stadium because they wouldn't
toe the line of their ideology. It was a dim and dark society. But
because we acted in our self-interest, we freed the people of
Afghanistan and they had presidential elections. Thousands of people
came out to vote. (Applause.) The first voter in the presidential
elections in Afghanistan was a 19-year-old woman. Think about that.
(Applause.)
Freedom is on the march, and the world is better for it.
(Applause.) In Iraq, elections are scheduled for January. Think about
how far that society has come, from the days of torture chambers and
mass graves. See, it's in our interests, it's in our security
interests that we stand with the people of Afghanistan and Iraq. Free
societies in the Middle East will be hopeful societies, which no longer
feed resentments and breed violence for export. Free governments in
the Middle East will fight the terrorists, instead of harboring them.
And that will help us keep the peace. (Applause.)
So the mission is clear. We will help these countries train armies
and police and security forces, so the people of Afghanistan and Iraq
can do the hard work of defending their freedom and democracy. We will
help them get on the path to stability and self-government as quickly
as possible, and then our troops will come home with the honor they
have earned. (Applause.)
I am proud to be the Commander-in-Chief of a great military.
(Applause.) And it is a great military because of the character and
the decency of those who wear our nation's uniform. (Applause.) I
want to thank the veterans who are here tonight for having set such a
good example for those who wear the uniform. (Applause.) I want to
thank the military families who are here, for having made such great
sacrifices for our freedom. (Applause.) We will continue to make sure
that our military has all the resources they need to complete their
missions. (Applause.)
That is why -- that's why I went to the United States Congress and
asked for $87 billion of supplemental funding to support our troops in
combat in both Iraq and Afghanistan. (Applause.) It was a really
important request, and it received great bipartisan support. As a
matter of fact, only 12 United States Senators voted against the
funding request, two of whom are my opponent and his running mate.
AUDIENCE: Booo!
THE PRESIDENT: And when you're out there gathering up the vote,
remind people of this fact: Only four members of the United States
Senate, only four out of a hundred, voted to authorize the use of force
and then voted against funding the troops sent into harm's way, two of
whom are my opponent and his running mate.
AUDIENCE: Booo!
THE PRESIDENT: So they asked him, how could he have made that
vote? And perhaps the most quote of the 2004 campaign -- (laughter) --
he said, I actually did vote for the $87 billion before I voted against
it.
AUDIENCE: -- before I voted against it! (Laughter and applause.)
THE PRESIDENT: Now, he's given a lot of answers since then. One
of the most interesting ones is when he said, well, the whole thing was
just a complicated matter. (Laughter.) There's nothing complicated
about supporting our troops in combat. (Applause.)
We have a difference of opinion when it comes to making this
country secure. And in one of our debates, Senator Kerry proposed that
this nation should pass a global test before we send our troops.
AUDIENCE: Booo!
THE PRESIDENT: You know, the problem with his global test is that
he could never pass it. (Laughter.) In 1990, the United Nations
Security Council passed a resolution supporting action to remove Saddam
Hussein from Kuwait. The international community was united, countries
throughout the world joined our coalition. Yet even after United
Nations approval, in the United States Senate, Senator Kerry voted
against the authorization of the use of force.
AUDIENCE: Booo!
THE PRESIDENT: Think about that, and think about what he said in
one of the debates, when he said it was a mistake to remove Saddam
Hussein. He said he would have tried it differently -- he would have
had another United Nations Security Council resolution. That's exactly
what Saddam Hussein would have wanted. The truth of the matter is,
Saddam would still be in power in Baghdad if Senator Kerry had his way,
and he would have been in Kuwait.
AUDIENCE: Yes!
THE PRESIDENT: And the world would be worse off. The world is
better off with Saddam sitting in a prison cell. (Applause.)
Listen, I'll continue to build strong alliances during the next
four years. Today when I was flying in from out West I had a good
visit with Tony Blair, our strong ally. (Applause.) Alliances are
important, coalitions are important. But I will never turn over
America's national security decisions to leaders of other countries.
(Applause.)
AUDIENCE: Four more years! Four more years! Four more years!
THE PRESIDENT: I believe in the transformational power of
liberty. (Applause.) I'll tell you what I mean by that. I'll use an
example. Prime Minister Koizumi of Japan is my friend. He's Laura's
friend, as well. That probably doesn't seem unusual to some, but think
about this -- it wasn't all that long ago, in the march of history,
that we were at war with Japan. They were the sworn enemy of the
United States of America. They attacked us. My dad fought against the
Japanese. I'm confident people's relatives out here went to World War
II against the Japanese. (Applause.)
And after we won that war, President Harry S. Truman believed in
the transformational power of liberty to convert an enemy into an
ally. And so they worked to build a democracy in Japan. And there
were a lot of skeptics in America then. You can imagine why -- Japan
was the enemy. How could an enemy possibly become a democracy; why do
we want to work with somebody who killed our sons; great skepticism.
But fortunately, he believed in the power of liberty to transform.
And as a result of that belief, I sit down at the table today with
Prime Minister Koizumi of Japan, talking about the peace we all want,
talking about how we can work together to confront the problems of the
world so our children can live in a more peaceful world. We will
succeed in Iraq, and someday an American President will sit down with a
duly-elected leader of Iraq, and they'll be talking about the peace in
the Middle East, and our children and our grandchildren will be better
off for it. (Applause.)
I believe that millions plead in silence for their freedom in the
Middle East. I believe women want to live in a free society.
(Applause.) I believe the moms in the Middle East want their children
to grow up in a free world. (Applause.) I believe that if given a
chance, the people of the Middle East will embrace the most honorable
form of government ever devised by man -- democracy. (Applause.) I
believe all these things because freedom is not America's gift to the
world, freedom is the almighty God's gift to each man and woman in this
world. (Applause.)
For all Americans, these years in our history will always stand
apart. There are quiet times in the life of a nation when little is
expected of its leaders. This is not one of those times. This is a
time that requires firm resolve, clear vision and a deep faith that
makes us a great nation. (Applause.)
None of us will ever forget that week when one era ended and
another began. September the 14th, 2001, I stood in the ruins of the
Twin Towers. It's a day I will never forget. There were workers in
hard hats there, yelling at me at the top of their lungs, "Whatever it
takes." I remember trying to console a fellow. He looked me in the
eye, and he said, "Do not let me down." Ever since that day I wake up
every morning thinking about how to better protect our country. I will
never relent in defending America, whatever it takes. (Applause.)
When I traveled your great state four years ago, I made a pledge
that if I had a chance to serve, I would uphold the honor and the
dignity of the office to which I had been elected. With your help,
with your hard work, I will do so for four more years. (Applause.)
God bless. Thank you all for coming. (Applause.) Thank you all.
(Applause.)
END 5:41 P.M. CDT
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