For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
August 6, 2004
President's Remarks at Stratham, New Hampshire, Picnic
Bittersweet Farm
Stratham, New Hampshire
1:07 P.M. EDT
THE PRESIDENT: Thanks for coming. Listen, there's no better way
to spend a Friday afternoon than at a picnic in New Hampshire. Thanks
for coming. Gosh, what a fine gathering. Thanks for coming. I'm
thrilled to be here.
I'm here to ask for your vote. (Applause.) I'm back in your
important state, one more time, saying I've got something to do on
behalf of your country. I'd like your vote and I'd like your help.
(Applause.) We won New Hampshire last time, we're going to win it this
time. We're on our way to a great victory in November. (Applause.)
I'm sorry Laura is not here.
THE AUDIENCE: Awww!
THE PRESIDENT: That's generally the reaction: why didn't you send
her, instead of yourself? (Laughter.) But what a great First Lady she
is. (Applause.) She is a wonderful mother, a wonderful wife. She's
doing a wonderful job for the American people. I'm going to give you
some reasons to put me back in office, but perhaps the most important
one of all is so that Laura has four more years as the First Lady.
(Applause.)
We're working our way up the coast here. Brother Jeb's son, George
P., who spent a lot of time here in New Hampshire, is getting married
tomorrow.
AUDIENCE MEMBER: Oh.
THE PRESIDENT: Yes, so we're having a little family wedding. My
brother, Marvin, is with me today. I can't wait to say -- see old
number 41. (Applause.) You might remember him. He's got a lot of
friends in New Hampshire. (Applause.) And mother, of course, will be
there. (Applause.) She can't wait for me to arrive so she can tell me
what to do. (Laughter.) I'm still listening, too.
I want to thank Doug Scamman and Stella Scamman for their beautiful
hospitality. Thanks for opening up your farm. (Applause.) What a
beautiful place. You know, the amazing thing about the Scammans is,
they're both candidates for the State House. They're not running
against each other, that's the good news. Otherwise Stella would win.
(Laughter.) But I appreciate Doug, a onetime Speaker of the House,
going back into office. It's such a good example for somebody willing
to serve. And I appreciate Stella serving, as well. I wish them all
the best in their race. If they want my help, they can have it. If it
helps me not to be for them, I'll try there, too. I just want them to
win.
But I do appreciate their hospitality. I love families, and this
is a great farm family. I say, every day is Earth Day when you own a
piece of the land. (Applause.) These people are taking care of their
property, and you can see it when you look around at what a beautiful
spot.
I appreciate my friend, Judd Gregg. (Applause.) You know, he is
an amazing senator. He gets the work done. He is a serious-minded guy
who I find a lot of fun to be around. He is a --
AUDIENCE MEMBER: Six more years.
THE PRESIDENT: That's right, six more years, you need to put him
back up there. (Laughter and applause.) You're lucky to have had him
representing you, you really are. He's a good, sound man, as is
Sununu, Jr. John Sununu is doing a great job, as well. (Applause.) I
enjoy working with the two United States senators from New Hampshire.
I appreciate your governor, Craig Benson, being here. I'm honored
that he has agreed to serve. (Applause.) He's a good fellow, as is
Congressman Jeb Bradley, running for the United States Congress.
(Applause.) We've got to make sure you put him back in. And I know
his mother, Helen, is here. That's good, Jeb, you listen to your
mother, too. (Laughter.)
And then my friend, Charlie Bass, is with us today, he's a
congressman -- the other congressman from New Hampshire who's doing a
great job for the people of this state. (Applause.) I'm proud they're
here. It's good to see my friend, Ruth Griffin, and "Wiz" Wieczorek.
These are people I've known for -- you might remember, I was knocking
on doors here a while ago -- like, four years ago. (Laughter.) And I
met a lot of good folks in New Hampshire, people that I've never
forgotten. The Scammans, for example, hosted a deal for Laura and me
here. It's kind of like old home week, and it's very nostalgic for us
to come back and -- for me to come back and look around and see many of
the folks that worked so hard in 2000. I appreciate you staying with
it.
We've got work to do. There's a reason I'm running for office. I
want this country to be safer, stronger and better for the American
people. (Applause.)
I want to thank all the state folks who are here, the elected
officials. I want to thank Cheryl McGuiness, the widow of American
Flight 11 pilot. Cheryl is a woman of deep faith who has taken on, you
know, an incredible burden on that day of September the 11th, and has
dealt with it in such a strong fashion that she shines in her courage
and strength. We love you, Cheryl, thank you for being here.
(Applause.)
I want to thank Jayne Millerick and Nancy Merrill and my old buddy,
Tom Rath, for being in charge of the grassroots organization. These
are the people who put up the signs, people who do all the heavy
lifting in a political campaign. I want to thank you for what you're
doing. (Applause.) I want to thank you for what you're going to do.
It's really important we turn the vote out. And I'm counting on you.
I'm counting on your help. (Applause.)
Every incumbent who comes to ask for the vote has got to answer one
sensible question of: Why? Why should the people put me back in
office for four more years? In the past few years -- in the past few
years we've been through a lot together and we have accomplished a
lot. (Applause.) But the only reason to look backward is to best tell
who to lead us forward. (Applause.)
And that's what I'm here to tell you, we've got more to do for our
country. I'm running for a reason. I want to make our country the
best country it can be by improving jobs and improving our schools. I
will continue to fight the war against terror. But you've got to know
I'm going to continue to push for the peace. (Applause.) I'm going to
continue to make this world a more peaceful place. (Applause.)
We have done a lot. I'm here to ask for your help, because there's
more to do. I'm running with a good Vice President, a really good Vice
President. (Applause.) I admit, he's not the prettiest face on the
ticket. (Laughter.) I'm sure Lynne got a little upset with me when
she hears me say that. I didn't pick him for his looks. (Laughter.)
I picked him because he's a man of sound judgment and great experience
and a man who can do the job. (Applause.)
Dick Cheney and I understand we have more to do for our country to
achieve big goals and big objectives. We've got more to do to make our
public schools the centers of excellence we all know they can be, so
that no child is left behind in America. When we came to office
three-and-a-half years ago -- remember back -- too many kids were
getting shuffled from grade to grade, year after year, without learning
the basics. So we challenged what I've called the soft bigotry of low
expectations. We're raising the bar. (Applause.) We believe every
child can learn to read and write and add and subtract, and we expect
every child to learn the basics.
So we believe in accountability, we believe in empowering parents,
we believe in local control of schools. And today, children across
America are showing real progress in reading and math. When it comes
to improving our public schools, we're turning the corner, and we're
not turning back. (Applause.)
We've got more to do. See, the jobs of the future will require
greater knowledge and higher-level skills. And so we've got to reform
our high schools to make sure a high school diploma means something.
We want to make sure math and science education are spread throughout
our schools to give our kids the skills necessary to compete. We'll
use the Internet to bring high-level training into classrooms. What
I'm telling you is, is that after four more years, a rising generation
will have more skills and more confidence so they can realize the great
promise of our country. (Applause.)
We've got more to do to make quality health care available and
affordable. Remember, when we came to office, too many older Americans
had trouble with prescription drugs and Medicare didn't pay for them.
You might remember previous campaigns, where you heard, time in and
time out, oh, don't worry, I'll do something about Medicare, and
nothing happened. We got the job done. (Applause.)
More than 4 million seniors have signed up for drug discount cards
that provide real savings. You need to sign up if you're eligible. It
will make a difference for you. Beginning in 2006, all seniors on
Medicare will be able to choose a plan that suits their needs, and will
give -- and that gives them prescription drug coverage.
To help people have access to quality care, we've expanded
community health centers for low-income Americans. We want those
citizens getting health care in these centers, not in emergency rooms.
We've created health savings accounts, so families can save tax free
for their own health care needs.
Let me -- hear this -- when it comes to giving Americans more
choices about health care and making health care more affordable, we're
moving forward, and we're not going backwards. (Applause.)
Most people get their health care coverage through their
businesses. Most new jobs are created by small businesses today. And
many small businesses, too often, cannot afford to provide health
coverage. So to help our families get health coverage, we must allow
small employers to join together to be able to purchase insurance at
the discounts available to big companies. (Applause.)
Let me tell you what else we need to do to make sure you've got
affordable health care and available health care. We need to get rid
of these frivolous and junk lawsuits. (Applause.) You can't be
pro-patient and pro-doctor and pro-trial lawyer at the same time.
(Applause.) You have to choose. My opponent made his choice, and he
put him on the ticket. (Laughter.) I made my choice -- I'm standing
with the docs and the patients. I strongly support medical liability
reform. (Applause.)
Listen, we're going to harness technology to reduce costs and
prevent mistakes. We'll expand research to seek new cures for terrible
disease. In all we do to improve health care in America, we will make
sure the health decisions are made by doctors and patients, not by
bureaucrats in Washington, D.C.
There's more work to do to make this economy stronger. Remember
what we've been through. We've been through a lot. We've been through
a recession, we've been through corporate scandals, we've been through
a terrorist attack. But we've overcome these obstacles, because our
workers are great, because our farmers are really good at what they
do. We've overcome these obstacles because the entrepreneurial spirit
is strong. And we've overcome these obstacles because of well-timed
tax cuts.
THE AUDIENCE: Four more years! Four more years! Four more
years!
THE PRESIDENT: Listen, we didn't pick winners or losers when it
came to tax relief. We felt that if you're paying federal income taxes
you ought to get relief. (Applause.) It's the only fair way to do
it. And so families with children got relief. We provided relief for
married couples. You know, we've got a tax code that says there is a
marriage penalty.
THE AUDIENCE: Booo!
THE PRESIDENT: No, that's not -- we ought to be encouraging
marriage, not penalizing marriage. (Applause.)
We helped our small business owners. That tax relief helped small
business owners. And this time, the check was really in the mail.
(Laughter.)
Our economy has been through a lot. Today's employment report
shows our economy is continuing to move forward. And it reminds us
that we're in a changing economy and we've got more to do. I'm not
going to be satisfied until everybody who wants to work can find a
job. I'm running because I understand how to take a strong economy and
make it stronger. I say we have a strong economy and it's getting
stronger or -- the economy since last summer has grown at a rate as
fast as any in nearly 20 years. (Applause.)
In the last year we've added about 1.5 million new jobs. The
unemployment rate is down to 5.5 percent. (Applause.) Here in New
Hampshire, your unemployment rate is 3.9 percent. (Applause.) Listen,
when it comes to creating jobs for American workers, in places like New
Hampshire you've proved that we're moving Americans forward and we're
not turning back. (Applause.)
Let me tell you what else we need to do. We need to make sure our
regulations are reasonable on our employers. I know some of you file
out -- file a lot of paperwork. I can't promise anybody in government
has ever read it. (Laughter.) We need tort reform if we want to keep
our jobs in America. We need a fair and balanced legal system. If we
want to keep our jobs in America, we need an energy policy that is
wise, that encourages conservation, that encourages renewable sources
of energy, that encourages exploration in environmentally friendly
ways. To keep jobs here we need to become less dependent on foreign
sources of energy. (Applause.)
To keep jobs here in America, we need reasonable trade policy.
See, here's what I believe. I believe America's workers, farmers,
manufacturers and entrepreneurs can compete with anybody, anytime,
anywhere, so long as the playing field is level. (Applause.) We're
going to be opening up markets for the good people of New Hampshire.
We want you selling New Hampshire goods not only in the United States
of America, but all around the world. (Applause.) And my
administration will give you a chance to compete in a fair way.
(Applause.)
In order to make sure we keep jobs here, we've got to be wise about
how we spend your money. We've got to set priorities and not overspend
it. You know how to start? The best way to start with understanding
fiscal responsibility in Washington is to understand we're not spending
the government's money. You listen closely to the rhetoric of these
campaigns, you hear, well, we're going to spend the government's
money. That's not what I think. I know whose money we spend. We
spend the people's money. (Applause.)
In order to make sure jobs stay here, we're going to keep your
taxes low. (Applause.) This campaign is just getting started and the
other fellow has already promised over $2 trillion of new programs.
Imagine what's going to be coming down the stretch. (Laughter.) And
the problem is, he hasn't told us how he's going to pay for it. But,
given his record, I bet we can figure out how he's going to pay for
it. (Applause.) He's going to raise your taxes. But we're not going
to let him. (Applause.)
THE AUDIENCE: No! (Applause.)
THE PRESIDENT: I'll tell you what else we've got to do to make
sure jobs stay here, is to make sure our workers have the skills
necessary to fill the jobs of the 21st century. We're going to offer
American workers a lifetime of learning. We're going to make sure our
community colleges are accessible and affordable, so people who need to
can be retrained for the jobs which will exist. Listen, education is
crucial to making sure the jobs stay here at home.
I'll tell you what else we're going to do. We're going to make
sure American families keep more of something they do not have enough
of, and that's time -- time to coach your kids. I want to thank the
football coaches, the youth football coaches who are here today. I
told the coaches, I said, thanks for passing on values to our
children. I want to thank those of you who work with the kids in the
community here. (Applause.) Thanks for being good moms and dads. I
want to thank the 4-H Clubs that were here, doing good work to help
others. (Applause.)
See, I'm going to work with Senator Gregg, he's proposed
legislation to allow workers to have flex-time. That means they can
adjust their schedules to meet their needs, so they can do their duty
as a mom or a dad or as a community activist. Senator Gregg makes good
sense in his legislation, I strongly embrace it. Government needs to
stand side by side with the families of America. (Applause.)
I'm running for four more years because I want this economy to be
stronger. I want our farm economy stronger. I want the
entrepreneurial spirit stronger. I want there to be higher and better
paying jobs. I'm running for four more years to continue to work for a
pro-growth, pro-entrepreneur, pro-small business economic agenda that
is good for America. (Applause.)
We have more to do to wage and win the war on terror. America's
future depends on our willingness to lead in this world. If America
shows uncertainty and weakness in this decade, the world will drift
toward tragedy. This will not happen on my watch. (Applause.)
The world changed on a terrible September morning. And since that
day we have changed the world. Before September the 11th, Afghanistan
served as the home base of al Qaeda, which trained and deployed
thousands of killers to set up terror cells around the world, including
our country. Today, Afghanistan is a rising democracy. (Applause.)
Afghanistan is an ally in the war against these thugs. (Applause.)
Many young girls now go to school in Afghanistan for the first time.
(Applause.) Afghanistan is becoming free, and America and the world
are safer for it. (Applause.)
Before September the 11th, Pakistan was a safe transit point for
terrorists. Today, Pakistan is an ally in the war against terror.
(Applause.) Pakistani forces are aggressively to helping -- round up
al Qaeda and their friends and associates, and America and the world
are safer. (Applause.)
In Saudi Arabia, before September the 11th, terrorists were raising
money and they were recruiting and they were operating with little
opposition. Today, the Saudi government is taking the fight to al
Qaeda and America and the world are safer. (Applause.)
Before September the 11th, Libya was spending millions to acquire
weapons of mass destruction. Today, because America and our allies
have sent a strong and clear message, the leader of Libya has abandoned
his pursuit of weapons of mass destruction and America and the world
are safer. (Applause.)
Before September the 11th, the ruler of Iraq was a sworn enemy of
America. He was defying the world. He was firing weapons at American
pilots which were enforcing the world's sanctions. He had pursued and
he had used weapons of mass destruction. He harbored terrorists. He
invaded his neighbors. He subsidized families of suicide bombers. He
had murdered tens of thousands of his own citizens. He was a source of
great instability in the world's most volatile region. He was a
threat.
After September the 11th, we looked at all the threats of the world
in a new light. I want you to remember a lesson of September the 11th
was that we must take threats seriously, before they fully
materialize. (Applause.) The September the 11th Commission concluded
our institutions of government had failed to imagine the horror of that
day. After September the 11th, we could not fail to imagine that a
brutal tyrant, who hated America, who had ties to terror, who had used
weapons of mass destruction might use those weapons or share his
capabilities with enemies.
See, we saw a threat. We looked at the intelligence of the day and
saw a threat. The United States Congress, members of both political
parties -- including my opponent -- looked at the same intelligence and
came to the same conclusion. (Applause.) The United Nations looked at
the intelligence and recognized Saddam was a threat. They unanimously
passed a resolution -- unanimously passed a resolution -- which said,
disclose, disarm or face serious consequences. (Applause.) After
defying the free world for 12 years, he did so again. He deceived the
weapons inspectors. And so I had a choice to make: Do I forget the
lessons of September the 11th --
THE AUDIENCE: No!
THE PRESIDENT: Do I trust a madman? Or do I take action necessary
to defend our country? Given that choice, I will defend America every
time. (Applause.)
THE AUDIENCE: Four more years! Four more years! Four more
years!
THE PRESIDENT: And because Saddam Hussein sits in a prison cell,
America and the world are safer. (Applause.)
Even though we did not find the stockpiles that we thought we would
find, we did the right thing. (Applause.) He had the capability and
he could have passed that capability on to our enemies.
Now, there are some questions that a Commander-in-Chief needs to
answer with a clear "yes" or "no." My opponent hasn't answered the
question of whether, knowing what we know now, he would have supported
going into Iraq. That's an important question and the American people
deserve a clear "yes" or "no" answer. (Applause.) I have given my
answer. We did the right thing, and the world is better off for it.
(Applause.)
Over the next four years, we'll continue to work with friends and
allies around the world to aggressively pursue the enemy in Iraq and
Afghanistan and elsewhere. See, you can't talk sense to these people.
You can't negotiate with them. You can't hope for the best with people
who take airplanes and killed thousands of our citizens. We must
engage these enemies around the world so we do not have to face them
here at home.
America will continue to lead the world with confidence and moral
clarity. We put together a strong coalition. We're working together
-- there's over 60 nations involved with the Proliferation Security
Initiative, 40 nations involved in Afghanistan, nearly 30 nations
involved in Iraq. These are good people, leading these countries. Our
friends and allies will continue to work together for the cause of
security and peace, but I will never turn America's national security
decisions over to the leaders of other countries. (Applause.)
We will keep our commitments to help Afghanistan and Iraq become
peaceful and democratic societies. This is important work, it's hard
word, to go from being brutalized by a tyrant to having confidence
enough to live in a free world. These two countries are now governed
by strong leaders. Prime Minister Allawi in Iraq, and President Karzai
in Afghanistan are strong leaders who believe in the hopes and
aspirations of their people. They want freedom, and so do the people
of their countries. More and more of their folks are stepping up and
taking responsibility. More people are becoming trained to defend
their country against those who hate freedom. And the people of those
countries can count on the United States and our coalition. See, when
we acted to protect our own security, we promised to help deliver them
from tyranny, to restore their sovereignty, and to set them on the path
of liberty. And when America gives its word, America keeps its word.
(Applause.)
In these crucial times, our commitments are kept by the men and
women of our military. (Applause.) I want to thank the 94th Military
Police Army Reserve Unit of New Hampshire for their service.
(Applause.) I've had the privilege of meeting with those who defend
our country. I've seen their unselfish courage and their great
decency. The cause of freedom is in really good hands.
And I have an obligation and our government has an obligation to
make sure those who defend us have the very best pay, training and
equipment. (Applause.) Last September, while our troops were in
combat in Afghanistan and Iraq, I proposed supplemental funding to
support them in their mission. This important legislation provided
funding for body armor and vital equipment, for hazard pay and health
benefits, for ammunition, fuel and spare parts. Only a handful of
United States senators voted against the help to our military.
THE AUDIENCE: Booo!
THE PRESIDENT: Two of those 12 senators are my opponent and his
running mate.
THE AUDIENCE: Booo!
THE PRESIDENT: Here's how he tried to explain his vote: --
(laughter) -- I actually did vote for the $87 billion before I voted
against it. (Laughter.) Listen, I've spent a lot of quality time in
New Hampshire. That's not how the people of New Hampshire talk.
(Applause.) Now he's offering a different explanation. He said he's
proud of his vote, and he said: The whole thing is a complicated
matter. (Laughter.) There's nothing complicated about supporting our
troops in harm's way. (Applause.)
No, as Commander-in-Chief of these folks, I'm proud to stand with
them. I'm proud of the veterans who have served so well and set such a
great example to those who serve. (Applause.)
In the long run, our security is not guaranteed by force alone. We
must work to change the conditions that give rise to terror: poverty,
and hopelessness and resentment. See, a free and peaceful Iraq and a
free and peaceful Afghanistan will be powerful examples to their
neighbors. They live in a part of the world that is desperate for
freedom. We believe in America -- we know in America that free
societies are peaceful societies. Free societies do not export
terror. See, by serving the ideal of liberty, we're serving our own
national interests. As freedom spreads, America becomes more secure,
and the world will be more peaceful. By serving the ideal of liberty,
we're serving the deepest beliefs of our country. 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.)
I'm running for four more years to make our country more secure,
and to help spread peace throughout the world. (Applause.) And we've
got to do more to protect our country. You've read recently the
threats. They're real, because there's an enemy that still wants to
harm us. My opponent said something the other day I strongly disagree
with. He said that going to war with the terrorists is actually
improving their recruiting efforts. No, it's upside-down logic. It
shows a misunderstanding of the enemy. During the '90s, these people
were recruiting and training and preparing, long before, long before we
went to war with them. They don't need an excuse for their hatred, and
it is wrong to blame America for the anger and the evil of the
killers. (Applause.) We don't create terrorists by fighting back. We
defeat the terrorists by fighting back. (Applause.)
I agree with the conclusion of the 9/11 Commission that said the
homeland is safer because of the actions we've taken, but not yet
safe. And so we've got work to do to make this country more secure.
We'll stay on the offense, but we've got work here at home. And we've
started the process of reform. We've transformed our defenses. We've
created a new Department of Homeland Security. We passed the Patriot
Act. It's a very important piece of legislation to give law
enforcement the tools necessary to disrupt and find terrorist cells.
(Applause.)
The mission of the FBI is now focused on preventing terror. We're
integrating intelligence and law enforcement better than ever before.
We're taking action on a lot of this important commission's
recommendations. We've got more to do to better secure our ports and
borders, to train first responders. I want to thank the first
responders who are here, by the way, those are your police and
firefighters and emergency teams. (Applause.)
I called on Congress to create a position of National Intelligence
Director to dramatically improve our coordination and gathering
efforts. Listen, these reforms aren't going to be easy. It's never
easy in Washington. (Laughter.) There's a lot of entrenched
interests, a lot of people defending the status quo. It's not enough
to advocate reform -- you've got to be able to get the job done.
(Applause.) And that's what we've done in this administration.
(Applause.)
When it comes to reforming schools to provide excellent education,
we got the job done and results matter. (Applause.) When it comes to
health care reforms to give families more access and more choices,
results matter. When it comes to improving our economy and creating
quality jobs, results matter. When it comes to better securing our
homeland and spreading the peace, results matter. When it comes to
electing a President, results matter. (Applause.) This world we're in
is a --
THE AUDIENCE: Four more years! Four more years! Four more
years!
THE PRESIDENT: This is an exciting time to be an America, in many
ways. It's a changing world, and government has got to understand
that. You know, you've got workers, when most of our dads were coming
up, they worked for the same company, didn't change jobs and so the
pension plans or the health care plans were adjusted for that. Now
it's a different world. People are changing jobs, people are working
out of their homes. Oftentimes, moms and dads are both working. And
policy has got to reflect these changing times. Which means, it seems
like to me the best way to do so is to encourage an ownership society.
For example, we want people owning and managing their own health care
accounts that they can take with them, job to job, or go from job to
home. (Applause.)
In terms of pensions, you know, older guys like me are set for
Social Security, but younger workers -- younger workers needed a
different approach for Social Security. We ought to allow younger
workers to manage their own personal retirement accounts that they can
pass from one generation to the next. (Applause.)
When people tell me the number of small businesses owners in
America are increasing, that's really good news. I want people to own
something in our country. I'm going to continue to work for an
ownership society. Home ownership is at an all-time high now in
America. That's fantastic news. Isn't it wonderful to have somebody
for the first time be able to say: welcome to my home; I'm glad you're
here at my piece of property. (Applause.)
This administration understands that when you own something, you
have a vital stake in the future of our country. Now, in times of
change, some things will never change: our belief in liberty, our
belief in opportunity for every citizen, our non-negotiable demands of
human dignity. We believe in the individual values that we try to live
by: courage and compassion, reverence and integrity. We believe in
the institutions that give us direction and purpose: our families, our
schools and our religious congregations. (Applause.) These are
fundamental to our lives and they deserve the respect of government.
(Applause.)
We stand for institutions, like marriage and family, which are the
foundation of society. (Applause.) We stand for a culture of life in
which every person matters and every being counts. (Applause.) We
stand for judges who faithfully interpret the law, instead of
legislating from the bench. (Applause.) And we stand for a culture of
responsibility in our country. The culture of this country is changing
from one that has
said, if it feels good, just go ahead and do it, and, if you've got
a problem, blame somebody else -- to a culture in which each of us
understands we're responsible for the decisions we make in life.
(Applause.)
If you are fortunate enough to be a mother or a father, you're
responsible for loving your child with all your heart and all your
soul. (Applause.) If you're worried about the quality of the
education in the community in which you live, you're responsible for
doing something about it. If you're a CEO in corporate America, you're
responsible for telling the truth to your shareholders and your
employees. (Applause.)
And in a responsibility era, each of us is responsible for loving
our neighbor, just like we'd like to be loved ourselves. I'm running
for four more years to continue to rally the armies of compassion.
See, I understand government can hand out money. We do a pretty good
job of it in Washington. (Laughter.) But what government cannot do is
put hope in a person's heart or a sense of purpose in a person's life.
That's done when a loving soul puts his arm around somebody in need and
says, brother, or, sister, I love you, how can I help you. (Applause.)
Listen, we can rally the armies of compassion. The great strength
of America is the heart and soul of our people, and we can change this
blessed country one heart, one soul, one conscience at a time.
(Applause.)
For all Americans, these years in history will always stand apart.
There are quiet times in the life of a nation when little is expected
of its leaders. This isn't one of those times. It's a time that
requires firm resolve, clear vision, dedication to freedom and peace.
None of us will ever forget that week when one era ended and
another began. As Judd said, I stood in the Twin Towers on September
the 14th, 2001. It's a day I'll never forget. There were workers in
hard hats yelling at me: Whatever it takes. I remember a guy grabbing
me by the arm -- I don't know if he was a firefighter or a policeman.
I do know that he had been searching in the rubble for a loved one. He
looked at me with bloodshot eyes and said: Do not let me down.
(Applause.) These are vivid impressions I will never forget.
Obviously, he took it personally; the people searching through the
rubble took that day personally; you took it personally; I took it
personally. I have a duty that goes on. It is a solemn duty to defend
our country, which I will do, whatever it takes. (Applause.)
We have come through much together. We have done a lot of hard
work. But there's more to do. There's more to do to spread
opportunity and freedom and peace. During the next four years I will
work to make sure the American Dream shines brightly for everybody, and
that we encourage an ownership society. We will pass enduring values
of our country to the next generation. We will lead the cause of
freedom and peace. And we will prevail. (Applause.)
Four years ago, I traveled your great state. I said if you gave me
the honor of serving, I would uphold the dignity and the honor of the
office to which I had been elected. (Applause.) And with your help --
and with your help, I will do so for four more years.
May God bless you all. Thanks for coming. Thank you very much.
Thank you all. (Applause.)
END 1:52 P.M. EDT
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