For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
October 23, 2004
President's Remarks in Lakeland, Florida
Ty Cobb Field
Lakeland, Florida
11:55 A.M. EDT
THE PRESIDENT: Thank you all for coming. (Applause.)
AUDIENCE: Four more years! Four more years! Four more years!
THE PRESIDENT: Thank you all for coming today. Laura and I are so
honored that so many came out to say hello. We really appreciate it.
It is a beautiful day to be campaigning in the great state of Florida.
(Applause.) Of course, according to your Governor, every day is a
beautiful day in Florida. (Applause.)
I'm here to ask for your vote and I'm here to ask for your help.
(Applause.) We're close to voting time. As a matter of fact, in your
state, voting time is already here. Please go to your friends and
neighbors, people from all parties -- don't overlook discerning
Democrats -- (laughter) -- people like Zell Miller. (Applause.) They
want a better country, too. Tell them we have a duty in this country
to vote. Tell them we have an obligation in a free society to go to
the polls. And when you get them headed to the polls, remind them, if
they want a safer America and a stronger America and a better America,
to put me and Dick Cheney back in office. (Applause.)
I think it's important to go around this country telling people
what you're going to do. I'm here to tell you why I think you need to
put me in office for four more years. But perhaps the most important
reason of all is so that Laura is the First Lady for four more years.
(Applause.)
AUDIENCE: Laura! Laura! Laura! (Applause.)
THE PRESIDENT: I'm sure some of you all will appreciate this,
when I tell you that Laura and I knew each other in the 7th grade in
San Jacinto Junior High, in Midland, Texas. We became reacquainted.
She was a public school librarian at the time. I said, will you marry
me? She said, fine, so long as you make me a promise. I said, what is
it? She said, I never want to have to give a political speech.
(Laughter.) I said, okay, you got a deal. Fortunately, she didn't
hold me to that deal. She is giving a lot of speeches, and when she
speaks the American people see a compassionate, warm, strong First
Lady. (Applause.)
I'm proud of my running mate, Dick Cheney. He's doing a great
job. (Applause.) I see some others out here who are follically
challenged. (Laughter.) See, I admit he doesn't have the waviest hair
in the race. (Laughter.) You'll be pleased to hear I didn't pick him
because of his hairdo. (Laughter.) I picked him because he can get
the job done. I picked him because of his judgment; I picked him
because of his experience. (Applause.)
I'm proud to be traveling with my brother. Jeb Bush is a great
Governor for Florida. (Applause.) He's led with conviction. You
know, one thing about him, you don't have to worry about where he
stands. In other words, he's not one of these politicians who is going
to take a poll or run a focus group, trying to figure out what to tell
you. He stands on principles. That's how we were raised.
(Applause.) You stand for what you believe. And Jeb showed great
courage and compassion during the times of these storms. I came over
to try to lend a hand and show the people of this important state that
the federal government cared, people around the country cared for you.
But I was incredibly impressed by two things -- one, Jeb's leadership,
and two, the great compassion of the people of Florida. (Applause.)
I'm proud to be up here with Adam Putnam. (Applause.) I call him
Red, you call him, Congressman. (Laughter.) We went over and saw some
orange growers the other day, and it was my honor to be in that citrus
grove, telling the orange growers of this part of the state, we're
going to help them get their feet back on the ground. (Applause.)
I want to thank -- listen, while you're out there voting -- voting
for me and Dick Cheney, make sure you vote for Mel Martinez for the
United States Senate. (Applause.) He'll be a fine United States
Senator, no doubt in my mind. I want to thank Lieutenant Governor,
Tony Jennings, for being here. I want to thank the State Senate
Majority Whip. I want to thank all the local and state officials who
are here. I want to thank Trini Triggs for performing for you all.
I want to thank the grassroots activists, the people putting up the
signs, the people making the phone calls, the people who have
encouraged this rally. I want to thank you for what you've done. I
want to thank you for what you're going to do. With your help, we will
carry Florida and win a great victory in November. (Applause.)
We just got 10 days to go in the campaign. Who's counting?
(Applause.) The voters have a clear choice between two very different
candidates with dramatically different approaches and records. You
know where I stand. (Applause.) And sometimes, you even know where my
opponent stands. (Applause.) We both have records. We both have
records.
AUDIENCE: Flip-flop! Flip-flop! Flip-flop!
THE PRESIDENT: We both have records. I'm proudly running on
mine. (Applause.) And the Senator is running from his. And there's a
reason why. There is a mainstream in American politics, and Senator
John Kerry sits on the far left bank. I'm a compassionate conservative,
and proudly so. At a time when our country has much to accomplish and
much more to do, I offer a record of reform and results, and my
opponent offers a long list of out of the mainstream votes.
This election comes down to five clear choices for American
families, five choices on issues of great consequence: your family's
security, your family's budget, your quality of life, your retirement,
and the bedrock values that are so critical to our families and our
future. (Applause.)
The first choice is the most important because it concerns the
security of your family. All progress on any other issue depends on
the safety of our citizens. This will be the first presidential
election since September the 11th, 2001. Americans will go to the
polls in a time of war and ongoing threats any unlike we have seen
before [sic]. The terrorists who killed thousands are still dangerous,
and they are determined to strike again. The outcome of this election
will set the direction of the war against terrorism.
I believe the most solemn duty of the American President, the most
solemn duty, is to protect the American people. (Applause.) If
America shows uncertainty or weakness, the world will drift toward
tragedy. This will not happen on my watch. (Applause.)
Since that terrible morning, September the 11th, 2001, we've fought
the terrorists across the Earth -- not for power, but because the lives
of our citizens are at stake. Our strategy is clear. We're
strengthening the homeland; we're reforming our intelligence services;
we are transforming our all-volunteer army -- we will not have a
draft. (Applause.) We are staying on the offensive against these
terrorists. (Applause.) We are relentless and we are determined, and
our strategy is paying off. More than three-quarters of al Qaeda's key
members and associates have been brought to justice, and the rest of
them know we're on their trail. (Applause.)
My opponent has a different approach. He says that September the
11th -- quote -- "didn't change me much at all." End quote.
AUDIENCE: Booo!
THE PRESIDENT: And that's pretty clear. He considers the war on
terror primarily a law enforcement and intelligence-gathering
operation.
AUDIENCE: Booo!
THE PRESIDENT: His top foreign policy advisor questioned it is
even a war at all, saying it's just like a metaphor, like the war on
poverty. Anyone who thinks we're fighting a metaphor does not
understand the enemy we face. (Applause.) You cannot win a war if you
-- if you are not convinced we are even in one. Senator Kerry also
misunderstands our battle against insurgents and terrorists in Iraq.
After voting to authorize force against Saddam Hussein, after calling
it the right decision when I sent troops into Iraq, the Senator now
calls it the wrong war.
AUDIENCE: Booo!
THE PRESIDENT: The Senator used to recognize that Saddam Hussein
was a gathering threat who hated America. After all, he said so. He
used to recognize that Saddam was a state sponsor of terror with a
history of pursuing and even using weapons of mass destruction. After
all, he said so. He used to understand that Saddam was a major source
of instability in the Middle East. After all, he said so. And when he
voted to authorize force, the Senator must have recognized the
nightmare scenario that terrorists might somehow gain access to weapons
of mass destruction. Senator Kerry seems to have forgotten all of that
as his position has evolved during the course of this campaign. You
might call it election amnesia. (Laughter.) I know then and I know
now that the world and America are safer with Saddam Hussein sitting in
a prison cell. (Applause.)
Senator Kerry now calls Iraq a diversion. But the case of just one
terrorist shows how wrong his thinking is. A man named Zarqawi is
responsible for the car bombs and beheading Americans in Iraq. He ran
a terrorist training camp in Afghanistan until coalition troops
arrived. (Applause.) He then ran to Iraq, where he's fighting today.
He supports and swore allegiance to Osama bin Laden. If Zarqawi and
his associates were not busy fighting American forces and Iraqi forces
in Iraq, what does my opponent think he'd be doing -- a peaceful
businessman somewhere? Leading a benevolence campaign? (Laughter.)
Of course not. Our troops will defeat them there so we do not have to
face them in our own cities. (Applause.)
The choice in this election could not be clearer when it comes to
the security of our families. You cannot lead our nation to decisive
victory on which the security of every American family depends if you
do not see the true dangers of a post-September the 11th world. My
opponent has a September 10th point of view. You might remember at his
convention he declared that his strategy would be to respond to attacks
after America is hit.
AUDIENCE: Booo!
THE PRESIDENT: That would be too late. In our debates, he said we
can defend America only if we pass a global test.
AUDIENCE: Booo!
THE PRESIDENT: I'm not making that up. He was standing right
there when he said it. I work with our friends and allies. We will
strengthen our coalitions. But I will never turn over America's
national security decisions to leaders of other countries. (Applause.)
I saw some of our troops coming in. I want to thank them for their
service. (Applause.) I want to thank the veterans who are here for
having set such a great example for those who wear the uniform. I want
to thank our military families who are here for supporting our troops,
fighting for freedom and security. (Applause.) And I want to assure
you your loved ones will have the full support of our government.
That's why I went to Congress and asked for $87 billion of
supplemental funding. This was money to support our troops in harm's
way. When you're out gathering up the vote, I want you to remind your
fellow citizens of this startling statistic: There were four members
in the United States Senate, only four out of 100, that voted to
authorize the use of force, and then voted against funding for our
troops in harm's way. And four of those -- two of those four were my
opponent and his running mate.
AUDIENCE: Booo!
THE PRESIDENT: They asked him about that vote. He said, I
actually did vote for the $87 billion right before I voted against it.
You know -- I bet you don't hear many people talking like that around
the coffee shops here. They pressed him even further, and he finally
just threw up his hands. He said, the whole thing is a complicated
matter. My fellow Americans, there is nothing complicated about
supporting our troops in combat. (Applause.)
And to protect America, we will lead the cause of freedom. I
believe in the transformational power of liberty. I want the
youngsters here to understand what has taken place in a short period of
time. Afghanistan was once ruled by the Taliban. Young girls couldn't
go to school. If their mothers didn't toe the ideological line of the
haters, they'd be whipped in the public squares and sometime shot in
the stadiums. Because we acted in our own self-defense, millions of
Afghan citizens went to the polls to vote for the President, and the
first voter was a 19-year-old woman. (Applause.) Freedom is on the
march. Freedom is precious. Freedom is powerful. And we're better
off for it. (Applause.)
Iraq will have presidential elections in January. Think how far
that country has come from the days of torture chambers and the
brutality of Saddam Hussein. Fifty million people now live in freedom
because we acted to secure ourselves. We're more secure. The world is
better off as freedom is on the march. I believe everybody yearns to
be free in this world. 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.)
The second clear choice in this election concerns -- concerns your
family budget, your wallet. When I ran for President four years ago, I
pledged to lower taxes for American families. I have kept my word.
(Applause.) We raised the child credit, we reduced the marriage
penalty. The tax code ought to encourage marriage, not penalize
marriage. (Applause.) We created a 10-percent bracket to help working
families. We reduced income taxes for everybody who pays taxes. We're
helping our small business owners. And as a result of these policies,
real after-tax income, the money in your pocket, is up by about 10
percent since I got into office. (Applause.)
Think about what this economy has been through. Tell your friends
and neighbors what we have overcome. Six months prior to my arrival
the stock market was in serious decline, indicating the recession that
came. Then we had some corporate scandals. And then we got attacked,
and those attacks cost us about a million jobs in the three months
after September the 11th. Our economic policies are working. They've
led us back to growth. Our economy is growing at rates as fast as any
in nearly 20 years. We've added more than 1.9 million new jobs since
August of 2003. The unemployment rate is 5.4 percent, lower than the
average of the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s. (Applause.) Farm income is
up. Home ownership rates are at an all-time high. The unemployment
rate in Florida is 4.5 percent. We're moving forward, and we're not
going to go back to old days. (Applause.)
My opponent has very different plans for your budget. He intends
to take a big chunk out of it.
AUDIENCE: Booo!
THE PRESIDENT: When I proposed the tax relief to help our families
and get this economy going again, he voted against the higher child tax
credit, he voted against marriage penalty relief, he voted against
lower taxes, he voted against to help small businesses. If he had had
his way, the average middle-class family in America would have been
paying $2,000 more in federal income taxes.
AUDIENCE: Booo!
THE PRESIDENT: It's part of a pattern. The Senator has voted 10
times to raise gasoline taxes since he's been in the Senate. And all
told, during his 20 years in the United States Senate, my opponent has
voted 98 times to raise taxes.
AUDIENCE: Booo!
THE PRESIDENT: Think about that. That's about five times every
year he served. When a senator does something that often, he must
really enjoy it. (Laughter.) During this campaign, he's made a lot of
big promises. As a matter of fact, he's promised about $2.2 trillion
in new spending. That's with a "T." (Laughter.) That's a lot even for
a senator from Massachusetts. (Laughter.)
So they said, how are you going to pay for it? He said, oh, we'll
just tax the rich. We've heard that before, haven't we? By running up
the top two brackets, guess who he's taxing -- he's taxing job
creators. Seventy percent of new jobs are created by small businesses
in America. Most small businesses pay tax at the individual income tax
level. It's a bad idea to tax the job creators in this country.
(Applause.)
Raising the top two brackets will raise between $600 billion and
$800 billion, so, as you can tell, there's a tax gap. There's a
difference between what he has promised and what he can deliver. Now,
you know who gets to fill that tax gap, don't you? I'll tell you one
other thing about taxing the rich -- the rich, during tax time, hire
lawyers and accountants for a reason, to slip the tab and to stick you
with the bill. We're not going to let him tax you. We're going to
carry Florida and win a great victory on November the 2nd. (Applause.)
AUDIENCE: Four more years! Four more years! Four more years!
THE PRESIDENT: The third clear choice in this election involves
the quality of life for our families. A good education and quality
health care are important for a successful life. When I ran for
President four years ago, I promised to end and to challenge the soft
bigotry of low expectations in our schools. I kept my word -- passed
the No Child Left Behind Act, which is a great piece of legislation.
It brings high standards to our classrooms and makes our schools
accountable to our parents. We're seeing progress. Math and reading
scores are rising. We are closing an achievement gap all across
America. We will build on these reforms. We'll extend them to our
high school so that no child is left behind in America. (Applause.)
We'll continue to improve life -- the life of our families by
making health care more affordable and accessible. We'll expand health
savings accounts so small businesses can cover their workers and more
families are able to get health care accounts they can manage and call
their own. We'll create association health plans so small businesses
can join together and buy insurance at the discounts that big companies
are able to do. We will help our families in need by expanding
community health centers. We'll make sure every child eligible is
enrolled in our government's low-income health insurance program. And
we'll help patients and doctors everywhere by doing something about
these frivolous lawsuits that are running up the cost of health care
and running good doctors out of practice. (Applause.)
I met too many OB/GYNs that are having trouble making ends meet,
and so they're quitting the practice. I met too many women who are
driving miles to get the good health care they need for themselves and
their child. And this isn't right for America. You can't be pro-trial
lawyer and pro-doctor and pro-patient at the same time. You have to
pick. My opponent made his pick. He put a personal injury trial
lawyer on the ticket. I stand for medical liability reform now.
(Applause.)
Senator Kerry has a different point of view on our schools and
health care system. Listen, he voted for the No Child Left Behind Act,
but now he wants to weaken the accountability standards. He has
proposed including measures like teacher attendance to judge whether
students can read or write or add and subtract. He voted against
health savings accounts. He opposes association health plans that will
help our small businesses. He voted 10 times against medical liability
reform.
AUDIENCE: Booo!
THE PRESIDENT: He can run from his record, but he cannot hide.
(Applause.)
Now he's proposing a big government health care plan that would
cause eight million families to lose private coverage they get at work
and have to go on a government plan. Eighty percent of the people who
get coverage under his proposal would be enrolled in a government
plan. In one of our debates, he said with a straight face that when it
comes to his health care plan -- and I quote -- "The government has
nothing to do with it." I could barely contain myself when I heard
that. (Laughter.) The government has a lot to do with it. His plan
would move America down the road to federal control of health care, and
that's the wrong road for American families. He can run from his
record, but he cannot hide. (Applause.)
In all we do to improve health care, we will make sure decisions
are made by doctors and patients, not by officials in Washington, D.C.
(Applause.)
Fourth clear choice in this election involves your retirement. Our
nation has made a solemn commitment to America's seniors on Social
Security and Medicare. When I ran for President four years ago, I
promised to keep that commitment and improve Medicare by adding
prescription drug coverage. I have kept my word. (Applause.) You
know, leaders in both political parties have talked about Medicare for
years, for years. We got the job done. Seniors are now getting
discounts on medicine with drug discount cards. Low-income seniors are
getting $600 on their card this year and $600 next year. And beginning
in 2006, all seniors will be able to get prescription drug coverage
under Medicare. (Applause.)
My opponent voted against the Medicare bill that included
prescription drug coverage, even though it was supported by the AARP
and other seniors groups. Later he said -- quote -- "If I am
President, we're going to repeal that phony bill." A little later on,
he said, no, I don't want to repeat it. Kind of sounds familiar. As
your President for the next four years, I will defend the reforms we
have worked so hard to pass, and keep the promise of Medicare for our
senior citizens. (Applause.)
And we will keep the promise of Social Security for our seniors,
and we'll strengthen Social Security for generations to come. Every
election, desperate politicians try to scare our seniors about Social
Security. It is predictable. And it's beginning to happen again. I
want you to tell your friends and neighbors about what happened in the
2000 campaign. They said if George W. gets elected, our seniors will
not get their checks. Now, you might remember that. Well, tell them
George W. did get elected and our seniors did get their checks.
(Applause.) And our seniors will continue to get their checks. And
baby boomers like me are in pretty good shape when it comes to Social
Security trust. But we need to think about our children and our
grandchildren. We need to make sure that when they retire, there's a
Social Security system available to meet their needs. And that is why
I believe younger workers ought to be allowed to take some of their own
money and put it in a personal account. It will earn a better rate of
return -- a personal account they call their own, a personal account
the government cannot take away. (Applause.)
My opponent is taking a different approach. He talks about
protecting Social Security. He's the only candidate in this race that
voted to tax Social Security benefits eight times.
AUDIENCE: Booo!
THE PRESIDENT: He can run but he cannot hide. (Applause.) And
when it comes to the next generation, he has offered no reform. The
job of a President is confront problems, not to pass them on to future
Presidents and future generations. In a new term, I'll bring
Republicans and Democrats together to make sure Social Security is
around when a younger generation of America needs it. (Applause.)
The fifth clear choice in this election is on the values that are
so critical to keeping America's families strong. And my opponent and
I are miles apart. I believe marriage is a sacred institution.
(Applause.) Marriage is a pillar of our civilization, and I will always
defend it. This is not a partisan issue. When Congress passed the
Defense of Marriage Act, defining marriage as the union of a man and a
woman, the vast -- the vast majority of Democrats supported it, and my
predecessor, President Bill Clinton, signed it into law. Senator Kerry
was part of an out-of-the-mainstream minority that voted against the
Defense of Marriage Act.
AUDIENCE: Booo!
THE PRESIDENT: I believe that reasonable people can find common
ground on the most difficult of issues. Republicans and Democrats and
many citizens on both sides of the life issue came together and agreed
we should ban the brutal practice of partial birth abortion.
(Applause.) Senator Kerry was part of an out-of-the-mainstream
minority that voted against the ban.
AUDIENCE: Booo!
THE PRESIDENT: He voted against parental notification laws.
AUDIENCE: Booo!
THE PRESIDENT: He voted against the Unborn Victims of Violence
Act.
AUDIENCE: Booo!
THE PRESIDENT: I'll continue to reach out to Americans of every
belief and move this good-hearted nation toward a culture of life.
(Applause.)
My opponent has said that the heart and soul of America can be
found in Hollywood.
AUDIENCE: Booo!
THE PRESIDENT: I understand most American families do not look to
Hollywood as a source of values. (Applause.) The heart and soul of
America is found in communities like Lakeland, Florida. (Applause.)
All of these choices make this one of the most important elections
in our history. The security and prosperity of our country, the health
and education of our families, the retirement of our seniors, and the
direction of our culture are all at stake. And this decision is in the
best of hands, because the decision rests with the American people.
I can't tell you how optimistic I am about the future of this
country. I see a better day for everybody. You know, one of my
favorite quotes was written by a fellow Texan named Tom Lea. He said,
"Sarah and I live on the east side of the mountain. It's the sunrise
side, not the sunset side. It is the side to see the day that is
coming, not the side to see the day that is gone." My opponent has
spent much of this campaign talking about the day that is gone. I see
the day that is coming. (Applause.)
We've been lot -- we've been through a lot together in the last
nearly four years. Because we've done the hard work of climbing the
mountain we can see the valley below. (Applause.) We'll protect our
families and build their prosperity, and defend our deepest values.
We'll spread freedom in the world, and the peace we all want.
Four years ago, when I traveled your state asking for the vote, I
pledged to restore honor and dignity to the office to which I had been
elected. With your help, I will do so for four more years.
(Applause.) God bless. Thank you all. (Applause.) Thank you all. On
to victory! (Applause.)
END 12:28 P.m. EDT
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