For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
March 4, 2004
Remarks by the President at Bush-Cheney 2004 Luncheon
Santa Clara Convention Center
Santa Clara, California
1:00 P.M. PST
THE PRESIDENT: Thanks a lot. Thanks for coming. Thanks for the
warm welcome. It is great to be back. (Applause.) I appreciate it.
Thanks. Be seated, please. Thanks for the warm welcome. It is great
to be back in Santa Clara. Such a beautiful part of our country, isn't
it? It's a wonderful day.
I have had a great trip here to California. I was in Los Angeles
yesterday, and Bakersfield this morning. I don't know if you know
that, but in 1949 we called that home. I was quick to remind the
people in Bakersfield I'd called it home. (Laughter.)
Had a chance to spend some quality time with your Governor
yesterday. (Applause.) I know you were a little bit disappointed,
like I was, that "Terminator 3" didn't win any Oscars. (Laughter.)
But Arnold has had a pretty good year. By electing Governor
Schwarzenegger, the voters of California have shown that no party can
take California for granted. (Applause.) The Vice President and I are
going to be spending some quality time here this coming year.
(Applause.) With your continued help, California is going to be an
important part of a nationwide victory in November 2004. (Applause.)
Speaking about the Vice President, I made a really good pick when I
asked Dick Cheney to serve by my side. He is a fabulous Vice President
for our country. (Applause.) Mother may have a second opinion.
(Laughter.)
I'm sorry Laura is not with me. She is in Texas. She was visiting
her mother in Midland, Texas, where both of us were raised. She's on
her way to Crawford; after I give this speech, I'm on my way to
Crawford. She sends her best greetings to our friends here in the Bay
Area. I tell you, Laura is a great First Lady. I'm a fortunate man
that she is -- agreed to marry me, and I love her dearly. (Applause.)
I want to thank Brad for his friendship and leadership here in the
state of California; and my friend, Gerry Parsky, who is the state
campaign chairman. I, too, want to thank Katie Boyd and Gregory
Slayton for their hard work; and thank my friend, Mercer Reynolds, from
Cincinnati, Ohio, who is the national finance chairman of Bush-Cheney
'04. Good people working hard to make sure that we're well-funded.
And we will be.
I appreciate Bill Jones, the next United States senator from the
state of California, with us today. (Applause.) The next United
States senator from the state of South Dakota is with us today,
Congressman John Thune. Thank you for coming, John. (Applause.)
I want to thank all the grassroots activists who are here, the
people who are going to make the phone calls and put up the signs and
turn out the vote. I want to thank you in advance for what you're
going to do. It's important. (Applause.)
Last Tuesday night I placed a call to Senator Kerry. I told him I
was looking forward to a spirited campaign and I congratulated him on
his victory. It's going to be an interesting debate on the issues. My
opponent has spent two decades in Washington and he's built up quite a
record. In fact, Senator Kerry has been in Washington long enough to
take both sides on just about every issue. (Laughter and applause.)
Voters have a clear choice between keeping the tax relief that is
moving this economy forward or putting the burden of higher taxes back
on the American people. They have a clear choice between an America
that leads the world with strength and confidence, or an America that
is uncertain in the face of danger.
I look forward to setting these alternatives squarely before the
American people. I look forward to this campaign. We have a great
record. We've achieved a lot during the last three years. And most
important, we have a positive vision for the years ahead, a positive
vision for winning the war against terror and extending peace and
freedom throughout the world, a positive vision for creating jobs and
promoting opportunity and compassion here at home. I will leave no
doubt where I stand. We look forward to winning on the 2nd of
November.
The last three years have brought serious challenges, and we have
given serious answers. We came to office with the stock market in
decline and an economy headed into recession, delivered historic tax
relief, and now our economy is the fastest growing of any major
industrialized nation. (Applause.)
We had to confront corporate crimes that cost people their jobs and
their savings. So we passed strong corporate reforms and made it
abundantly clear that we will not tolerate dishonesty in the boardrooms
of America. (Applause.)
We saw war and grief arrive on a quiet September morning. So we
pursued the terrorist enemy across the world, captured or killed many
of the key leaders of the al Qaeda network, and the rest of them will
learn there is no cave or hole deep enough to hide from American
justice. (Applause.)
We confronted the dangers of state-sponsored terror and the spread
of weapons of mass destruction. So we ended two of the most violent
and dangerous regimes on Earth. We freed over 50 million people. And
once again, America is proud to lead the armies of liberation.
(Applause.)
When Dick Cheney and I came to Washington, we found a military that
was underfunded and underappreciated. So we gave our military the
resources and respect they deserve. And today, no one can question the
skill and the strength and the spirit of the United States military.
(Applause.)
We came to office, and people in Washington were used to gridlock,
and old problems were used to score points. Old problems were
politicized and debated, and then just passed on from year to year.
But we came for a purpose. We came to get some things done for the
people. We passed major reforms to raise the standards in public
schools. We passed reforms for Medicare to give prescription drugs and
choices to senior citizens. We chose to lead, and we produced results
for the American people. (Applause.)
It is the President's job to confront problems, not to pass them on
to future presidents and future generations. (Applause.) A president
needs to step up and make the hard decisions and keep his commitments,
and that is how I will continue to lead our country. (Applause.)
Great events will turn on this election. The man who sits in the
Oval Office will set the course of the war on terror and the direction
of our economy. The security and prosperity of America are at stake.
My opponent has not offered much in the way of strategies to win the
war, or policies to expand our economy. So far all we hear from that
side is a lot of old bitterness and partisan anger. Anger is not an
agenda for the future of America. We're taking on the big issues with
optimism and resolve and determination. I stand ready to lead this
nation for four more years. (Applause.)
The big issue for every family in America is the federal tax
burden. With the largest tax relief since Ronald Reagan was President,
we have left more money in the hands that earned it. By spending and
investing and helping to create new jobs, the American people have used
their money far better than the government would have. (Applause.)
Because we acted, our economy is growing stronger. The economy
grew in the second half of 2003 at one of the fastest rates in nearly
20 years. Productivity is high; business investment is rising;
interest rates and inflation are low; home ownership is at the highest
rate ever; manufacturing is increasing; we've added 366,000 new jobs
over the past five months. The tax relief we passed is working.
(Applause.)
My opponent has plans for those tax cuts. He wants to take them
away. He would use that money to expand the federal government. I
have a better idea: To keep this economy growing and to create jobs,
the tax cuts must be permanent. (Applause.)
We must do more to keep the economy growing. We need to maintain
fiscal discipline in our nation's capital. We need to protect business
owners and employees from frivolous lawsuits and needless regulation.
We need to control the health -- the cost of health care by passing
medical liability reform at the national level. (Applause.)
We need to open up markets for California's entrepreneurs and
farmers and ranchers and manufacturers. We need to pass sound energy
legislation to modernize the electricity system and to make America
less dependent on foreign sources of energy. (Applause.)
My opponent has talked about job creation, but he's against every
one of these job-creating measures. Empty talk about jobs and economic
isolationism won't get anyone hired. (Applause.)
This economy of ours is going through a time of change and
challenge. We're helping people to gain the skills and security to
make a good living, and to look forward to a good retirement. All
skills start with education. I worked with Congress to pass a really
good piece of legislation, the No Child Left Behind Act. (Applause.)
This good law is challenging the soft bigotry of low expectations. In
return for increased federal dollars, particularly for Title I
students, we demanded that every public school in America show us
whether or not each child is learning to read and write and add and
subtract. We have done so because we refuse to accept mediocrity. We
expect the best, so that not one single child is left behind in
America. (Applause.)
We're doing more. We have plans to help high school students who
fall behind in reading and math. We've got a sound strategy to help
our community colleges to train workers for the industries that are
creating the new jobs for our economy. Education is the gateway to a
hopeful future; this administration understands the gate must be open
to all Americans.
We're also working to promote an ownership society in America in
which more people own their own homes and build their own savings. We
want more people owning their own small businesses. We want people to
own and manage their own health care plans. We want younger workers to
own and manage their own retirement under Social Security. When people
have solid assets, this administration understands that they gain
independence and security and dignity. I believe in private property
so much, I want everybody to have some. (Applause.)
On issue after issue, the American people have a clear choice. My
opponent is against personal retirement accounts, against putting
patients in charge of Medicare, and against tax relief. He seems to be
against every idea that gives Americans more authority and more choices
and more control over their own lives. The same old Washington
mind-set -- they'll give the orders, and you'll pay the bills. I've
got news for the Washington crowd: America has gone beyond that way of
thinking, and we're not going back. The policy that this
administration is promoting trusts the people of America, to trust the
people to make the best decisions with their own money; to trust the
people to manage their own health care and their own retirement and
their own lives.
Our future also depends on America's leadership in this world. The
momentum of freedom in our time is strong, but we still face serious
challenges. Al Qaeda is wounded, but not broken. Terrorists are
testing our will in Afghanistan and Iraq. Regimes in North Korea and
Iran are challenging the peace. If America shows weakness and
uncertainty in this decade, the world will drift toward tragedy. That
is not going to happen on my watch. (Applause.)
This nation is strong and confident in the cause of freedom. No
friend or enemy today doubts the word of America. America and our
allies gave an ultimatum to the terror regime in Afghanistan. The
Taliban chose defiance; the Taliban are no longer in power.
(Applause.) America and our allies gave an ultimatum to the terror
regime in Iraq. The dictator chose defiance. Now the dictator sits in
a prison cell. (Applause.)
September the 11th, 2001 taught a lesson I have not forgotten.
America must confront threats before they fully materialize. In Iraq,
my administration looked at the intelligence information, and we saw a
threat. The Congress looked at the intelligence information, and they
saw a threat. The United Nations Security Council looked at the
intelligence information, and it saw a threat. The previous
administration and Congress looked at the intelligence, and made regime
change in Iraq the policy of our country.
In 2002, the U.N. Security Council yet again demanded a full
accounting of Saddam Hussein's weapons programs. As he had for over a
decade, Saddam Hussein refused to comply. And so I had a choice to
make, either to take the word of a madman or take action to defend
America. Faced with that choice, I will defend our country every
time. (Applause.)
My opponent admits that Saddam Hussein was a threat. He just
didn't support my decision to remove Saddam from power. Perhaps he was
hoping Saddam would lose the next Iraqi election. (Laughter.) We
showed the dictator and a watching world that America means what it
says. (Applause.)
Because our coalition acted, Saddam's torture chambers are closed.
Because we acted, Iraq's weapons programs are ended forever. Because
we acted, nations like Libya have gotten the message and renounced
their own weapons programs. Because we acted, an example of democracy
is rising at the very heart of the Middle East. Because we acted, the
world is more free, and America is more secure. (Applause.)
We still face thugs and terrorists in Iraq who would rather go on
killing the innocent than accept the advance of liberty. They know
that a free Iraq will be a major defeat in the cause of terror. This
collection of killers is trying to shake our will. They don't
understand America. America will never be intimidated by thugs or
assassins. (Applause.)
We're aggressively striking the terrorists in Iraq, defeating them
there so we won't have to face them in our own country. We're calling
on other nations to help Iraq to build a free society which will make
the whole world more peaceful and secure. We're standing with the
Iraqi people as they assume more of their own defense and move toward
self-government. These aren't easy tasks, but they're essential
tasks. We'll finish what we have begun. We will win this essential
victory in the war on terror. (Applause.)
On national security, Americans have the clearest possible choice.
My opponent says he approves of bold action in the world, but only if
other countries don't object. I'm all for united action, and so are
the 34 coalition partners we have in Iraq right now. Yet America must
never outsource America's national security decisions to leaders of
other countries. (Applause.)
Some are skeptical that the war on terror is really a war at all.
Here's what my opponent said. He said, the war on terror is far less
of a military operation, and far more of an intelligence-gathering, law
enforcement operation. I disagree. Our nation followed this approach
after the World Trade Center was bombed in 1993. The matter was
handled in the courts and thought by some to be settled. But the
terrorists were still training in Afghanistan. They were still
plotting in other nations. They were drawing up more ambitious plans.
After the chaos and carnage of September the 11th, it's not enough
to serve our enemies with legal papers. With those attacks, the
terrorists and their supporters declared war on the United States of
America, and war is what they got. (Applause.)
At bases across our country and the world, I have had the
privilege, the high privilege of meeting with the men and women of our
military who are defending our country and sacrificing for our
security. I've seen their great decency and unselfish courage. I can
assure you, ladies and gentlemen, the cause of freedom is in good
hands. (Applause.)
The nation is prosperous and strong. Yet we need to remember that
our greatest strength is in the hearts and souls of our citizens.
We're strong because of the values we try to live by: courage,
compassion, reverence, and integrity. We're strong because of the
institutions that help give us direction and purpose: family and
schools and religious congregations.
These values and institutions are fundamental to our lives and they
deserve the respect of our government. We stand for the fair treatment
of faith-based groups so they can receive federal support for their
works of compassion and healing. We will not stand for government
discrimination against people of faith. (Applause.)
We stand for welfare reforms that require work and strengthen
marriage which have helped millions of Americans find independence and
dignity. We will not stand for any attempt to weaken those reforms and
to send people back into lives of dependence. We stand for a culture
of life in which every person counts and every person matters. We will
not stand for the treatment of any life as a commodity to be
experimented upon or exploited or cloned.
We stand for the confirmation of judges who strictly and faithfully
interpret the law. We will not stand for judges who undermine
democracy by legislating from the bench or try to remake the culture of
America by court order. (Applause.)
We stand for a culture of responsibility in America. We're
changing the culture of this country from one that has said, if it
feels good, 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. If you're fortunate enough to be a mother
or father, you're responsible for loving your child with all your
heart. 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 have the
responsibility to tell the truth to your shareholders and your
employees. And in the responsibility society, each of us is
responsible for loving our neighbor just like we'd like to be loved
ourself.
For all Americans, these years in our history will always stand
apart. There are quiet times in the life of a nation, when little is
expected of the leaders. This is not one of those times. You and I
are living in a period when the stakes are high, the challenge is
difficult, and resolve is needed. None of us will ever forget that
week when one era ended and another began.
On September the 14th, 2001, I stood in the ruins of the Twin
Towers. I'll never forget that day. I remember the workers and the
hard-hats who were shouting, "Whatever it takes." I remember the guy
who pointed his finger at me and said, "Don't let me down." As we all
did that day, these men and women searching through the rubble took it
personally. I took it personally. I have a responsibility that goes
on. I will never relent in bringing justice to our enemies. I will
defend our country, whatever it takes. (Applause.)
In these times I've also been a witness to the character of this
nation. Not so long ago, some had their doubts about the American
character, about our capacity to meet serious challenges or to serve a
cause greater than self-interest. But Americans have given their
answer. I've seen the unselfish courage of our troops. I've seen the
heroism of Americans in the face of danger. I've seen the spirit of
service and compassion renewed in our country. We've all seen our
nation unite in common purpose when it mattered most.
We'll need all these qualities for the work ahead. We have a war
to win, and the world is counting on us to lead the cause of freedom
and peace. (Applause.) We have a duty to spread opportunity and hope
to every part of America. This is the work that history has set before
us. We welcome it. And we know that, for our country, the best days
lie ahead.
May God bless you all. (Applause.)
END 1:30 P.M. PST
|