For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
December 4, 2001
President Meets with Displaced Workers in Town Hall Meeting
Remarks by the President in Town Hall Meeting
Orange County Convention Center
Orlando, Florida
THE PRESIDENT: Thank you very much. Please be
seated. Thank you all very much. I'm really happy
to visit Florida. (Applause.) The weather is
beautiful. There's a lot of interesting things to do
here. I recommend people from outside of Florida to come and
take a look at Florida. (Applause.) It's a nice
place to visit and a great place to live -- one reason why is because
you've got a great Governor. (Applause.)
I'm not very objective. (Laughter.) I also --
I'm proud to be traveling today with two members of my
Cabinet. First, somebody who made a living and raised his
family right here in Orange County, and that's Mel Martinez --
(applause.) There's no better person to help promote a
significant part of the American Dream, that being home ownership, than
somebody who came to our country from a country that doesn't encourage
home ownership. Somebody whose parents had the foresight to
encourage him to be extricated from a tyrannical
society. Somebody who understood Fidel Castro doesn't trust
people to own property. And that's Mel
Martinez. We're working together to make sure home ownership
becomes a reality for any citizen in America who shares that dream,
regardless of where they live or their background.
I'm also traveling today with the Secretary of Labor, Elaine
Chao. (Applause.) And there's a lot of members of
the United States Congress who have traveled here -- homegrown
Congressman Ric Keller. (Applause.) Ander
Crenshaw is with us. Thank you for coming,
Ander. (Applause.) Congressman Mark Foley, I
appreciate it. (Applause.) Congressman John
Mica. (Applause.)
I recently worked closely with John and other Republicans and
Democrats to forge an airport security bill, which will allow the
federal government to supervise the security of our airports, to make
sure that those who travel are comfortable with the fact that we're
doing everything in our power to make air travel as safe as it can
possibly be.
Thank you, John, for your leadership on that
issue. (Applause.)
Congressman Adam Putnam -- I had to check to make sure he was old
enough, but, Adam, thank
you. (Applause.) Congressman Dave Weldon -- thank
you, Dave, for being
here. (Applause.) Congressman Cliff Stearns, from
Florida, as well. (Applause.)
And finally, I want to thank the Mayor, Glenda Hood, and all those
who helped encourage you all to come so that I can answer any questions
you may have about what's going on in the country and the world today.
Before I answer a few questions -- and I thought it was right, I
know a lot of citizens in Florida and around our country may have some
questions to the President, and I'm more than happy to answer
some. Before I do, I do want to say a few comments.
One of the other reasons I came here is to herald a program called
"Operation Paycheck." It's a program that Jeb has put in
place to help displaced workers find the training necessary to find
work. To help displaced workers around this part of the
world -- (applause) -- to help those who want to help themselves find
the training necessary to allow them to learn new skills to find work
again.
There's nothing that hurts me more than to know as we head into the
holiday season that some of our citizens and some of their families
hurt because they've been laid off as a result of 9/11. And
we have a role in the government -- in the state government, in the
federal government -- to provide immediate help as part of an economic
security package, is to provide immediate help.
And so one of the things I did was announce a grant for the State
of Florida to encourage programs like Operation Paycheck one-stop
centers for people to find help. And, today, I was pleased
to announce that grant on behalf of the federal
government. But there's more to be done. You
probably read about the fact that we're working with
Congress. And I must say, relations with Congress are a heck
of a lot better than they have been in the past, because congressmen
and senators of both parties are interested about what's doing right
for the American people.
And part of an economic security package is to make sure that we
extend unemployment insurance benefits for those who have been laid off
as a result of 9/11, and provide money -- monies to help those who have
been laid off with things such as child care or health insurance or
transportation to a community college, to enable them to learn a new
skill.
We have a role to play. And I urge the United States
Congress to stop talking and to get an economic security bill to my
desk. (Applause.) The House has acted, and for
that I'm grateful. And there's always -- the Speaker can
tell you, there's always a difference of opinion sometimes between the
House and the Senate, whether it's at the state or federal
level. But the Senate needs to get a bill, get it
reconciled, and get it to my desk, so we can say we're doing the
people's business in a way that will make you proud.
The truth of the matter is, economic security, however, the
long-term depends upon our ability to get our economy cranked up again,
so new jobs are being created. We've got to think about how
to stimulate job creation. The question that needs to be
answered is how to create more jobs. And I've laid out a
blueprint to do just that.
I think we ought to -- and help people with more money as we head
into the Christmas season, by making sure that those who file, but
didn't pay taxes get a rebate, just similar to the rebates you all have
just recently received. That will help low and
moderate-income Americans. We ought to accelerate the tax
cuts that we have in place. More money in people's pockets
mean more economic activity. (Applause.)
We ought to reform the corporate income tax system. This
current system says that as you lose money, you begin to pay more
taxes. That doesn't make any sense if we're worried about
job creation. I don't think we ought to be looking back for
a decade, but I do think we ought to reform the system as we head
forward, to make sense. And finally, I think we ought to
provide incentives for corporate America to buy more plant and
equipment. That will encourage job creation.
We ought to ask the question in Washington, what does it take to
create more jobs, so hardworking Americans can be able to put food on
the table? That's what we ought to be
asking. (Applause.)
Two other points I want to make before I answer your questions --
is there's no question, as well, that in order to make sure our economy
recovers and people are able to find work, we've got to do everything
we can to prevent the enemy from hitting us again. We've got
to be diligent. (Applause.) And so we're
following every hint, every lead, every possibility within the confines
of the Constitution.
My job is to provide security for the American
people. My job is to make sure that we use the assets at our
disposal to ferret out those who might hurt America and to bring them
to justice. (Applause.)
We can protect our homeland by beefing up law enforcement, by
encouraging the FBI to focus on prevention, by working closely with
local authorities -- and we're doing that. But in the
long-term, the best way to make sure America is safe is to find those
who would commit terror against America, no matter where they run or
where they hide, and bring them to justice. And that's
exactly what we're doing. (Applause.)
For those of you who are the parents or the spouse or the brother
or sister of a member of our military, who may not be home during the
holiday season, first, I want to thank you for your sacrifice, but let
you know that the cause is just. And I know you're as proud
as I am of how our military is fighting the war on
terror. (Applause.)
We rescued humanitarian aid workers. We're, slowly, but
surely, demolishing the government that felt comfortable in housing and
abetting and feeding and hiding those who committed murder in
America. And, slowly, but surely, we're tightening the net
on Osama bin Laden and al Qaeda. (Applause.)
They think they can run, and we'll tire. They think they
can hide, and we will tire. But they have sorely
misunderstood America. They don't understand our will and
our determination. This great land is united to bring freedom to the
world. We will bring them to justice, and we will
prevail. (Applause.)
And so I'm honored that such a huge crowd would turn
out. I want to thank you all for coming. I look
forward the answering your questions. I want to thank you
for your prayers, thank you for your love for the
country. And now, if you've got any questions, I'm here to
answer them.
Yes, sir.
Q Thank you, Mr. President. Since the September
11th tragedy, many Americans with college degrees, including myself,
have been laid off. What are some of the things you're doing
to help people like me, who have been out of work for the past few
months?
THE PRESIDENT: Well, first of all, there's a lot of
money spent from the federal level to help -- to help with
reeducation. And one of the programs that I just mentioned
is the use of federal monies to empower state governments to provide
opportunities for reeducation.
I just went by a center today. I sat next to a TWA
pilot, highly skilled, college-educated man who got laid off as a
pilot. His dream is to go back to a local community college,
become reeducated to become a computer programmer. In other
words, the idea is to mate those with skills with jobs that actually
exist.
The problem with the kind of federal approach and only federal
approach is, is that we may encourage you to become trained in a job
that doesn't exist. And so the real thing is, is there money
available for job training. Is there money available from
the federal government to say to Governor Bush of Florida, here is some
dough; set up a system that will actually match people with skills and
jobs that exist.
There are jobs in Florida. And the fundamental question
is, how do we encourage those with skills, to funnel those with skills
into those jobs.
Secondly, I do believe we ought to extend the amount of time one
can receive unemployment insurance benefits. I think that's
important. And I also believe that we need to have what's
called national emergency grants, which are basically federal
expenditures to states to allow people to help, for example, make
health care payments.
And one of the things I worry about and I'm deeply concerned about
is somebody who has had a good health care plan is no longer able to
afford health care. And so we ought to help people be able
to afford those premiums and those benefits until they're able to get
back to work.
The long-term, though, is -- I keep repeating it is -- let's
stimulate job growth. The best thing for you to be able to
find a job is for there to be more jobs available. And I
believe -- I believe we're on the verge of doing just
that. I mean, we've got great tax policy in place.
We cut taxes this year; we've got taxes cut for the next years
coming, which will stimulate economic growth. Alan Greenspan
has got monetary policy in such a shape that interest rates are
low. Energy prices are reasonable. And so, we've
got the framework for growth. And, by the way, the same
entrepreneurial spirit that existed in America prior to September 11th
still exists today. They can't take that away from
us. (Applause.)
Q Mr. President, we appreciate you coming to the community
and putting a great spotlight on the tourism industry. For
the past 16 years, I own a small transportation company here, 10 of
which I operate at the Orlando International Airport. Due to
the slowdown in the economy, and certainly the events of September
11th, I was forced to close my doors, putting 252 employees out of
work, not to mention their families and others who support my
business.
We have taken advantage of some of the programs you've put into
place, such as the SBA disaster loan plan. We've been
monitoring that, and found out that the application is bogged down in
the bureaucracy of the system. What can you do to help us,
as small business, speed that process, as our window is closing rapidly
on us? Thank you for your answer.
THE PRESIDENT: Well, first get your card, and find out
why your case is bogged down in bureaucracy. I can't stand
bureaucracy. (Applause.) I appreciate the
hardworking people who work for the federal government. I
appreciate people who care enough to work for the government to make
people's -- to do their job. I like that. But
what I don't like is systems that get so cumbersome that those who are
trying to help you don't get the product out.
I put a good man as the head of the SBA, and I believe that he's
doing everything he can to make sure that applications don't get stuck
in a system; that hardworking federal employees are able to match their
desires to help you with the ability to do so.
So to answer your question, I need to know your case, and I'm going
to send a man right out here to ask you. Where's
Logan? (Applause.)
Q First of all, I'd like to thank you for being here today,
Mr. President Bush. My name is Adam Hallsman, (phonetic) and
I'm a 7th grader at Shelley Boon Middle School (phonetic) in Haines
City, Florida. I'd like to know what the children and the
small -- and the young people in America, how can they help the
economy?
THE PRESIDENT: Listen to your
mother. (Applause.) I'm still listening to
mine. (Laughter and applause.)
I'll tell you what you can do; I'll tell you how you can help the
economy: Study hard, learn a skill, have ambition, make the
right choices in life so that when you get old enough, you're a
productive citizen. That's the absolute best thing you can
do. (Applause.)
But there are other things you can do. I see women of
cover here, and I want to thank you for coming from the Muslim
community here in America. (Applause.) Right
after the attacks, I went to a mosque to send the signal that the war
against terror had nothing to do with the Muslim faith. It
has everything to do with evil, evil people. What you can do
to help America beyond the economy, is to remind people that regardless
of our religious beliefs, we're all, first and foremost,
Americans. (Applause.)
And you know what else you can do? You can find somebody
in need, and give them a hand. (Applause.) I'm
worried about the fact that charitable giving in America has dropped
off as a result of 9/11. It didn't drop off because of 9/11,
it dropped off because a lot of people gave money to help the victims,
which is great. But there's an aftermath to the attacks that
we've got to worry about. There are still people in America
who hurt. They were hurting before September 11th; they hurt
today.
And one of the things you can do as a 7th grader, and all of us can
do, is remember that, and give of time and money to help fellow
Americans in need. I can't think of any way better to make
sure our country remains strong in the aftermath of the terrorist
attack, is to help, is to ask the question: What can I
do? Is to not only honor the values of America, but honor
the values of a good neighborhood, which is neighbor helping neighbor
in need.
Q Good afternoon, Mr. President. First of all, it
is an honor to be here with you, and we want to thank you for your
godly leadership in serving this
country. (Applause.) My name is Irma Yapur
(phonetic. And my question today is in regards, also, to
small business and self-employment. As many Americans are
losing their corporate jobs and are going into business for themselves,
is the government planning to provide assistance to the self-employed
in small business who do not have the tangible collateral and
livelihood to support a loan approval?
THE PRESIDENT: Well, we do. We've got an SBA
whose job it is to encourage entrepreneurial
growth. Evidently, it may be somewhat bound in paperwork,
unnecessary paperwork
requirements. (Laughter.) It's good to get out of
Washington to get the real story -- (laughter and applause) -- but the
job -- but that's what the SBA is for. It's to encourage --
and you're bogged down in paperwork, as well, I take
it? Okay. My man, Logan -- (laughter.)
Look, the government can never guarantee success in the private
sector. That's not what happens in a system based upon free
enterprise. We can help people. But there are no
guarantees about business. We're a risk and reward oriented
society. And so the best thing we can do is help you to get
your business started -- but it's up to you to have a good product;
it's up to you to understand the market; and it's up to you to fashion
a game plan that will work, and what we can do is help there and there
all kinds of ways to do that. (Applause.)
Q The first one is a thank you, from all of our employees and
many people who have worked. When the taxpayer rebates came,
for many of them they said they don't know what they would have done if
it hadn't been for those. So very much a sincere thank you
for that. (Applause.)
THE PRESIDENT: Thank you very much.
Q The second one is a question. What are we doing
right now to assist our allies in Israel during their time of terrorist
attacks?
THE PRESIDENT: Yes. The question is about
Israel. I had the Prime Minister of Israel in my office on
Sunday. He was coming Monday, but decided to come sooner
because of the attacks. And I commiserated with him, because
a lot of innocent people had been killed or hurt as a result of
terrorist activity.
The terrorist attacks on Israel -- first of all, Israel has got no
better friend than the United States, as far as I'm
concerned. (Applause.) Israel is a
democracy. We share a lot of values with
Israel. I have a dream. I can't think of anything
better than to have a dream for peace, for Israel. I think
the Israeli people want to have peace.
But we learned in such a vivid way that there are elements in the
Middle East who hate the thought of peace, and will be willing to use
terror to derail any type of peace process. And so the
spotlight now flashes on the Middle East in a terrible way,
obviously. But it also reminds people around the world that
if we want peace, that it's important for those advocates of peace to
help rout out terror and to bring it to justice. It is
incumbent upon Mr. Arafat now to respond forcefully, to rout out those
who killed. It's incumbent upon other friends and allies of
ours around the world to help bring those terrorists to justice if we
want peace in the Middle East, which I do. We've got to
bring the terrorists to justice. (Applause.)
We cannot let a few -- we cannot let a few prevent the many from
achieving a dream which is lasting peace in the Middle
East. I hope that happens. I hope it happens for
the sake of Israel. I hope it happens for the sake of the
Palestinians, who suffer because of the lack of job opportunity, and
killing, and war. I hope it happens. But first
things first. We must rid the world of terror.
Q Thank you, President Bush. It's great to have
you here in the state of Florida. I work at the airport at
the Hyatt Hotel. And I'm worried -- I have, luckily, kept my
job, but now we're getting our hours cut and stuff. And
they're trying to do the best that they can, and I'm in jeopardy of
losing my benefits. Now, I'm a single mother of three kids,
and I can't be without benefits, like health insurance, per se.
THE PRESIDENT: Right. Well, I think that one
of the things that we need to work on during the next session is how to
make sure that the working uninsured have benefits. I
proposed a plan through the tax credit system to provide just that --
to make sure that you don't lose your benefits if this were to happen.
Of course, the key thing -- again, I keep harking back to this --
is, we've got to grow our economy; is we've got to put a stimulus --
security package -- a stimulus package in place that encourages job
growth.
Now, the government did act quickly when it came to your
industry. After all, we provided a significant amount of
loans and grants for the airline industry to make sure the airplanes,
which were directly hit by the attacks, continue to fly.
And I hope that the measures we have put in place -- financial measures
plus the security measures -- will convince the American people to get
on airplanes and come down to Florida so that your hotel has got
customers. (Applause.)
Q Mr. President, I'm an educator for the Orange County Public
School System. And, first of all, I'd like to thank you very
much for your ethics and integrity, because that's what we're all about
-- (applause.)
THE PRESIDENT: Thank you.
Q I'd like to share that I am very appreciative of the focus
that you and the First Lady have brought to your administration on
reading instruction. And we were very happy when that took
place. And we can also appreciate the fact that since 9/11,
your energy and your focus has been diverted to issues that are to
protect our country, and we thank you very much for that.
But the reality is that 9/11 has also impacted
education. We are about to experience one of the biggest
cuts that we have experiences in many years here in Florida, and we're
very concerned about our children and about our teachers and their
future, as well. And I would just like to hear from you
where you are today with education, in terms of your focus and energy.
THE PRESIDENT: You bet. Thank you very
much. I appreciate that question. Education needs
to be the number one priority of any state. I'm convinced
it's the number one priority of this Governor here. I
believe that there needs to be a clear role for local people, state
people, and a limited role for the federal government, because I do not
believe one size fits all when it comes to educating
children. (Applause.)
Now, having said that, I do believe that the federal government has
got responsibilities for providing funds for disadvantaged and for
beefing up reading programs around the country. So one of
the things that we're going to do is to work with Jeb and other states
on enhancing reading programs. There's no question about it,
that if a child can't read, all the rest of the subjects are basically
irrelevant. Reading is the absolute gateway to knowledge,
and therefore what needs to be done is a comprehensive national reading
agenda.
To answer your question, it's about to happen when the Congress
passes the education reform bill and the education bill, the funding
mechanism necessary for education. But education is a
priority not only here, but as my good wife reminded everybody on the
radio, it's got to be a priority around the world. There is
no excuse for the Taliban government to have treated women and young
girls the way they have, and not educated
people. (Applause.)
Education is a domestic priority. No question about it,
it's a domestic priority. And we're increasing education
spending at the federal government to help local
districts. But we also have got to remind people around the
world, if we want peace in the world, other nations must do a better
job of treating people with respect by making sure that they are
educated, as well.
Speaking about education, you go to school, don't
you? Let's hear your question.
Q Hi. My name is Ashley -- I just wanted to -- I
don't have a comment, but I have a question. Actually, I
don't have a question, I have a comment.
THE PRESIDENT: Okay. (Laughter.)
Q You've been doing a good job for the United
States. Can you shake my hand?
THE PRESIDENT: Yes. I will in a
minute. Oh, you want to do it right
now? (Applause.) I'll do better; I'll give you a
kiss. (Applause.) You're a sweet
girl. Thank you.
Q Thank you very much for coming to Florida. We
love you.
THE PRESIDENT: Thanks. (Applause.)
Q And God bless you. This area is so dependent on
tourism. Sine 9/11, as you know, everyone knows it's so
bad. Is there anything that the government is doing to
attract other industry into our area and to other areas that are so
dependent on this?
THE PRESIDENT: I think -- I would actually get Governor
Bush to answer that question. (Laughter.) I'm
afraid to share the mike with him; he might never give it up,
though. (Laughter and applause.) Absolutely,
there is a diversification program. There is. And
Jeb is wise enough to understand that this part of the world needs to
be diversified. And tourism will always be an integral part
of the Central Florida economy. But there is a lot of
interesting diversification going on here.
Now, the federal government's role is not to tell states how to
diversify their economies; the federal government's role is to provide
an overall picture for economic vitality and growth. Our job
is to think about how best to grow the entire national economy and let
states figure out, and local districts and communities figure out how
to diversify.
One of the interesting battles we've got going in Congress is
trade. We need to be able to trade freely, it seems like to
me, in the world. We've got the best farmers in the world in
the United States -- the best farmers. It seems like it
makes sense to open up other people's markets so we can sell our
products around the world. (Applause.)
Now, that is the place where the federal government, it seems like
to me, has got to address job growth and diversification through large
national issues. I'm sure the Congress -- these congressmen
understand the value of free trade. I look forward to
working with them when it comes to trade promotion authority, if it
ever makes it to my desk. But it requires wise governors and
local officials to understand the opportunities through
diversification. And I believe you've got a good Governor --
I keep hating to tout the guy too much, because they'll think I'm not
very objective. But, I'm not. (Laughter.)
Yes, ma'am.
Q Hi. President Bush, we'd like to thank you for
coming here today. And just to help you out with her
question about -- I wanted to tap our Governor on about, because we do
have a program for people that -- I'm self-employed and I don't make a
lot of money, but we do have a program in this state for people like
ourselves, who we can buy insurance through the state for our children,
in case you lose your job. So I wanted to tap our Governor
on that --
THE PRESIDENT: It's the CHIPS program.
Q No, it's Florida Healthy Kids here.
THE PRESIDENT: Same thing.
Q Right. (Laughter.) She said she don't
qualify, but if you lost your job, you would.
THE PRESIDENT: All right.
Yes, sir.
Q First of all, thank you. Second of all, I work
in a Hard Rock Hotel here in Orlando, and we love to have people come
through our doors, just as every hotel and every theme park here
does. My question is for the federal government -- not just
for Orlando, but for everywhere -- what is being done to encourage
travel? I've seen a few commercials, not just within the
country, but abroad, what a great place to come --
THE PRESIDENT: Well, there's a marketing plan
commercials, not just within the country, but abroad. We're
a great place to come, and --
THE PRESIDENT: Well, there's a marketing
plan. One of the things -- if you noticed how I started off
my talk here -- I've got a rather large microphone these days, and I've
been encouraging people to travel. I think the best thing we
can do in America to -- first of all, you can't make people do what
they don't want to do. I mean, if they're not interested in
traveling, they're not going to travel. On the other hand,
if they're worried about security on airplanes, we can do something
about that.
That's why we've rallied guard troops all across the country in
airports. Until we have the new security plan in place,
we're putting guards in place. And we've sped up the
training and placement of air marshals on airplanes. I want
the American people to know that if you want to travel, and if that's
your desire, if you're planning to do this in your budget and you've
been thinking about it, air travel is getting safer and safer and
safer. And that's the best thing the federal government can
do.
Now, we can -- we're not going to, you know, pick one part of the
region over another. I don't think that's the role of the
federal government. But -- and therefore, that's why Jeb and
other states, my old state of Texas, for example, is trying to
encourage, always trying to compete for people who want to travel to
come to our respective states. But the federal government
can help by making sure things are more secure, and people feel
safe. That's really our fundamental responsibility right
now, is the safety of the American people.
I know a lot of people have got some concerns about how safe we can
make the country, and if we're doing -- are we doing things within the
Constitution. I want to talk about a couple of things to put
your mind at ease. I'll ask myself a
question: Why are you having the opportunity to have a
military tribunal?
Now, I want you to remember that we are at war. The
United States of America is under attack. And at war, the
President needs to have the capacity to protect the national security
interests and the safety of the American people. (Applause.)
And so, I asked: What are all my options as your
Commander in Chief? What are the options to protect
America? What do I need to know about what might occur to
make sure that I can come in front of the folks in Orlando, Florida,
and say we're doing everything in our power, or we have every option in
our power to keep you safe?
Well, one of those scenarios is military tribunals. No
one has been tried in a military tribunal, except I, by executive
order, provided myself with the option of having a military tribunal,
which will be used for -- no American citizen will go to a military
tribunal. They would only be used for those who aren't
American citizens.
And let me give you one example of why it may be necessary, why it
may be necessary to use such a tribunal. What happens if, in
the course of this war, that we apprehend or capture an enemy and we
want to bring him to justice? In the course of bringing him
to justice, what if the information necessary to bring him to justice
would compromise our capacity to keep America safe?
In a court of law, there would be all kinds of questions that might
compromise our ability to gather incredibly important intelligence to
prevent the next attack from happening to America. It seems
like to me that the President of the United States ought to have the
option to protect the national security interests of the country, and
therefore, protect America from further attack. (Applause.)
You've probably read about the interviews that are taking
place. There are countries that we're certain of where
people who come from those countries are likely to commit a terrorist
act against America. And they're here on our
soil. certain citizens from those countries on our
soil. We're a free country. They're here because
we're a great country. And we've got liberties that we'll
protect. But we're asking those who are here as guests,
enjoying our freedom, to voluntarily participate in helping us
understand how best to protect the country.
Nobody is being forced into an interview. People are
being -- why don't you help us? Why don't those of you who
are guests in our country help us make the land more
secure? It's in your interests, and it's certainly in our
interests. If you know somebody, or know something, help
us.
We're in the business now of gathering as much information as we
possibly can gather, and we're acting on that
information. People are detained in America under material
witness claims. It's against the law, by the way, to publish
the name of those people, before they get up in front of a grand
jury. We've got people that we've pulled aside because of
who they may or may not know, and it turns out they violated their
immigration status. It turns out as we're looking for leads,
we've found people who have actually committed other crime.
All of them in America are entitled to a lawyer. All of
them in America are entitled to make phone calls. We're the
freest society in the world. That's what America is all
about. And at the same time, we're doing what's necessary to
protect the people at home. (Applause.)
Q How are you doing, Mr. President?
THE PRESIDENT: Pretty darn good. (Laughter.)
Q Thanks for coming to Florida and talking to
us. You've given billions of dollars to the airline
industry, to try to help get them stimulated and get them
going. Are you going to do any kind of grants or any type of
benefits for the hospitality industry, as we're struggling to get by?
THE PRESIDENT: Well, part of the key is, is that the
first industry deeply affected after 9/11 was the airline
industry. And without an airline industry there is no
hospitality -- oh, there may be a hospitality industry, certainly not
as vibrant a hospitality industry as we would like.
It is the first major industry affected. And so our
strategy was to make sure that we provide the industry that actually
affects hospitality directly the means necessary to stay in
business. To me, that seemed like the most important initial
leg of a strategy. And in the meantime, we're trying to help
those workers who have been affected within the hospitality industry.
I am hopeful that as a result of an airline stimulus package, or
airline security package, as well as a safety package and an economic
stimulus package, this economy will come back, people will have the
money necessary to travel, people will feel safe to travel, and the
hospitality industry to recover.
But to answer your question directly, no, the answer is that the
first step, and we think the primary step, needed to be what we've
already done.
Q Mr. President, what about tax incentives --
THE PRESIDENT: Tax incentives for
travel? That hasn't made it to my radar screen
yet. (Laughter.)
Yes, sir.
Q (inaudible) -- And my wife and my mother-in-law and
friends, they're in the tourism industry. Yes, my family has
been very well affected by 9/11. But I have a question about
the youth. Is there anything that you or your brother,
Governor Bush, can do to give the youth the drive and will to look for
a better future? Because it seems like a lot of them don't
-- it seems as if they don't have anything to lose, so they don't have
anything to drive for.
THE PRESIDENT: I can think of a couple of
things. One is to remind moms and dads of America that no
matter what you're doing during the day job, your most important job
you'll ever have is to love your children, is to tell your children you
love them. (Applause.)
Secondly, it goes to this lady's point right here, is to make sure
that every child in America is well-educated, starting with every child
learning to read. There's nothing like an education to
provide hope for people.
Part of the reason why people are discouraged is because they lose
hope. They say, well, this society isn't meant for
me. A hopeful society is an educated society. And
so we've got to make sure we get it right, we have an education -- a
focus on education, understanding that education is the gateway to such
great freedom and opportunity.
And, finally, one of my initiatives that I'm most proud of that
passed the House of Representatives and I think will have a significant
impact in America is to rally one of the great strengths of our
country, and that is the faith-based initiatives and faith-based
programs which exist all across the country. (Applause.)
I want to talk about one. I want to talk about a
couple. First of all, governments shouldn't worry about
faith. We ought to welcome faith. We ought to
understand that -- (applause) -- we ought to welcome those programs
that exist, because somebody will say, what can I do, what can I do to
help a neighbor in need. What can I do. And it's
not a particular faith I'm talking about.
I'm talking about the Muslim faith, I'm talking about Judaism, and
I'm talking about Christianity. No, the faith doesn't have a
lock on a certain religion. I'm talking about people who
have heard a call. And there all kinds of program all around
America based upon faith. And many of them have asked the
question: What can I do to surround a child with
love? What can I do to make sure that a child has got --
somebody has got their arm them saying, somebody loves you.
There's a lot of children who have no love in their
life. Imagine what it would be like growing up in America,
how tough it would be if your mom or your dad were in
prison. How tough is that? The degree of
difficulty for success is incredibly hard for a person. And
we've got a program that we hope to get out of Congress -- the House
passed it -- get it out of the Senate -- that says, we want to fund,
make monies available for mentoring programs, faith-based or not, but
mentoring programs, the sole purpose of which will be to take a son or
a daughter of a person in prison and encourage some loving soul to say,
I love you; America is meant for you; this country belongs to you, get
educated and go after it with all your heart and all your soul.
So there's a lot that can be done in society. You know,
government -- government must not fear these programs that exist in
neighborhoods all around the country, based upon faith. We
must not fear. We must fear government embracing
religion. We fear state religion -- that's not what we're
for. We don't want for one government or
religion. Government will never say, this is the
religion. We're a free society for religion. But
government can embrace programs started because of faith and religion,
and encourage those programs to foster in neighborhoods all across
America. I'm passionate on the subject because I understand
the power of faith in people's lives and I understand what it can
mean. (Applause.)
Q Mr. President, early in your administration there was a lot
of discussion of drilling for oil in Alaska and the
Gulf. Now that prices are low at the pump, what are you
doing to ensure that?
THE PRESIDENT: Yes -- well, I'm trying to get an energy
plan out of Congress. (Laughter.) The House of
Representatives -- the House of Representatives passed a good energy
bill. It is stuck in the Senate. And I believe it
is in our national interests to have an energy plan, to have a strategy
to get us less dependent on foreign sources of crude
oil. (Applause.)
Part of that energy plan means that we've got to enhance
conservation. We've got to encourage technologies that will
enable us to conserve better. And we can do that with the
proper incentives. And this plan of ours that passed the
House has got incentives to encourage conservation. And
we're making great strides in our society, by the way, of
conserving. We're doing a much better job, and we can do an
even better job.
Part of it also recognizes that we need more supply. And
there are several places we can find supply. One is, I
believe that the nuclear industry is safe enough now to encourage more
nuclear power in America. I believe that is
necessary. (Applause.) I also strongly believe
that we can explore for natural gas in Alaska without damaging the
environment. And I believe that's necessary to do
that. (Applause.)
You know, when the vote came up in the House, a lot of people came
forward to work on behalf of the vote because they understood not only
did it mean energy security, it also meant jobs. I was
pleased to report that the Teamsters, for example, led by Jimmy Hoffa,
Jr., was out campaigning for -- or lobbying, or working for this bill,
because it meant jobs.
But I've got great faith in the technology and the ability of our
country, if given proper incentive, to become less dependent and more
wise about how we develop our energy sources; I truly
do. But we need a bill, and we need to get it out of the
Senate. Energy prices are low, but that doesn't mean we
shouldn't worry about our future. Because if the economies
of the world come back, we might be in a tight again, in which case
we're going to be wondering where was the energy policy that the
President was arguing for back in the year 2001.
Q Hi, Mr. President.
THE PRESIDENT: I'm not nervous as you
are. (Laughter.)
Q I wrote it out, because I thought I would be nervous, and
I'm here with my sister, Maggie and my family, and --
THE PRESIDENT: Good. Hi,
Maggie. (Laughter.)
Q And I'm Caitlin. Our family wants to help out
our country, and we think that making families strong will make our
country strong. My parents believe that eating meals
together will do that. Is it something that you did when you
were a kid, and that you and Mrs. Bush believe in?
THE PRESIDENT: I did eat with my family, so long as my
mother wasn't cooking. (Laughter.) Wait a
minute. Just kidding, Mom. (Laughter and
applause.) She was one of the great fast food cooks of all
time. (Laughter and applause.) Just kidding,
Mom. We ate a lot together. We
did. And I think it's important to do
that. That's a very interesting question.
You know, we live in a society that's a busy society. We
live in a society where it's so easy to forget the
fundamentals. But one of the really positive things that has
come out of the evil of 9/11 was that people are beginning to ask,
what's important. What's important.
I think you've touched on something really important, and that's
family. And the idea of a mom and dad prioritizing family is
all about not only enhancing the quality of life of their children, but
collectively, making America so much stronger and so much better after
the evils.
There has been -- this is an unbelievably great country we live
in. The values of America are so strong, the people are so
real, and so good. And 9/11 has brought out, in many
instances, the best in America. Part of that is the
individual -- the decisions individual families make about setting new
priorities in their lives. A lot of it has to do with
helping people in need.
I'll never forget the story of people in a Midwestern
city, when they heard me on TV talk about how distressed I
was that women of cover would not leave their homes, for fear of some
other American treating them harshly, and then Jewish citizens and
Christians alike, getting on the phone, and saying, we want to help
you. We want to take you to the neighborhood
store. This isn't the America we know.
No, the country -- this country is a fabulous
country. They thought they hurt us, the evil
ones. They have made us stronger, more real, and a better
land. (Applause.)
Q Mr. President, we thank you for coming, on behalf of the
clergy of Orlando. We're going to be having a summit this
next week, 12/12 summit, and I'm a pastor. And we want to
know what we can do -- we're praying for strategies of how we can
assist you in our government, and assist our communities.
THE PRESIDENT: First thing you can do is make sure
people of all faiths are represented at your prayer
session. It sends such a strong signal -- (applause) -- it
reminds people of the greatness of America. The evil people
we fight, they don't believe in religious freedom. They want
it their way or no way. And if you're not their way, they'll
treat you harshly. That's why, by the way, when we liberated
cities throughout Afghanistan, people lined the roads and cheered out
of joy and happiness.
Secondly, you need to pray for the good Lord to protect America,
provide a shield over our country, to prevent us from
harm. (Applause.)
Q Hi, Mr. President. I want to say, they haven't
won. I got in my car today, and I'm in the same building
with you, speaking to you. They have not won.
THE PRESIDENT: Thank you very much.
Q And would you say hello to my son Jordan, and my daughter
Patricia.
THE PRESIDENT: Jordan and who?
Q Patricia.
THE PRESIDENT: Hi, Patricia; how are you? How
old is Patricia?
Q Five, and Jordan is in 3rd grade. And Jordan has
a question, if I could give him the microphone.
THE PRESIDENT: You bet. Your mother is
relaying the Mike to you, Jordan.
Q One thing, Mr. President, is that you have no idea how much
you've done for this country. And another thing is that, how
did you feel when you heard about the terrorist
attack? (Applause.)
THE PRESIDENT: Thank you, Jordan. Well,
Jordan, you're not going to believe what state I was in when I heard
about the terrorist attack. I was in Florida. And
my Chief of Staff, Andy Card -- actually, I was in a classroom talking
about a reading program that works. I was sitting outside
the classroom waiting to go in, and I saw an airplane hit the tower --
the TV was obviously on. And I used to fly, myself, and I
said, well, there's one terrible pilot. I said, it must have
been a horrible accident.
But I was whisked off there, I didn't have much time to think about
it. And I was sitting in the classroom, and Andy Card, my
Chief of Staff, who is sitting over here, walked in and said, "A second
plane has hit the tower, America is under attack."
And, Jordan, I wasn't sure what to think at first. You
know, I grew up in a period of time where the idea of America being
under attack never entered my mind -- just like your Daddy's and
Mother's mind probably. And I started thinking hard in that
very brief period of time about what it meant to be under
attack. I knew that when I got all of the facts that we were
under attack, there would be hell to pay for attacking
America. (Applause.)
I tried to get as many facts as I could, Jordan, to make sure I
knew as I was making decisions that I knew exactly what I was basing my
decisions on. I've got a fabulous team. A
President can't possibly be President without a good
team. It starts with having a great wife, by the
way. (Applause.)
And so, I got on the phone from Air Force One, asking to find out
the facts. You've got to understand, Jordan, during this
period of time, there were all kinds of rumors floating
around. Some of them were erroneous. Obviously --
for example, there was a news report saying that the State Department
had been attacked. I needed to know what the facts
were. But I knew I needed to act. I knew that if
the nation's under attack, the role of the Commander-In-Chief is to
respond forcefully to prevent other attacks from
happening. And so, I've talked to the Secretary of Defense;
one of the first acts I did was to put our military on alert.
An interesting thing happened shortly
thereafter. Condoleezza Rice -- who was not with me but was
with the Vice President because they were in the White House compound
-- called me on Air Force One after that, and said that she had gotten
a call from Russia, from Vladimir Putin, who understood why we were
putting our troops on alert, and, therefore, wasn't going to
respond. That was an important phone
call. Because when I was coming up, and a lot of other
older-looking people here who were coming up with me -- (laughter) --
that would never have happened in the past. An alert by the
United States would have caused Russia to go on alert, which would have
created a complicated situation. But that wasn't the case.
By the way, we're heading into a new era. One of the
positive things that comes out of the evil was, we're reassessing
relationships in order to make the world more peaceful. I
believe it's important for us to have positive relations with our
former enemy and to rethink the defenses of the United States of
America. (Applause.)
At any rate, I knew I had a job to do. And I was quoted
in the press the other day as saying I haven't regretted one thing I've
decided. And that's the truth. Every decision I
made, I stand by. And I'm proud of the decisions I've
made. (Applause.)
Q Mr. President, peace and blessings be unto
you. I'm representing the Muslim community of
Orlando. And I would really like to thank you for being such
a great role model, practicing what this country believes in, the
higher ideals that this country believes in, your support to the Muslim
community in combatting racism. I am an educator, I'm a
mother, and I have a strong faith. Thank you so much for
holding these values high, and trying to wipe the stereotypes that the
Taliban has been represented of Muslim women. I am an
educator educating Muslim children in this Orlando
city. Thank you very much, Mr. President.
THE PRESIDENT: God bless, thank
you. (Applause.)
Listen, I've got a job to
do. (Laughter.) I've got to get back to my
temporary home. By the way, my address is in Washington; my
home is going to be back in Texas one of these days. But I
am -- I have got to go back. I wish I could stay and answer
questions all night, but I've got -- I'll be right there,
ma'am. He's fine. I've got to get back and go to
work.
I can't tell you what an honor it is to have been
here. I want to thank you all for your great questions, and
for your incredibly warm reception. It's a huge honor to be
the greatest -- to be the President of the greatest country in the
world.