THE PRESIDENT: Well, thank you
all very much for that warm welcome. I'm glad to be in the midst of
patriots, people who love their country and people willing to work hard
to help our fellow Americans who may be in need.
First, I want to thank Elaine Chao for her
leadership. I knew I picked a good one when I picked her to
become the Secretary of Labor, and she's proven me
right. (Applause.) And my old governor buddy is
doing a pretty good job, too. (Applause.) I
appreciate the hard work of our Cabinet during this
period. Like the country, we're united. We know
we've got a job to do.
The evildoers struck, but they may have
hurt our buildings, and they are obviously affecting some family lives
in such a profound and sad way. But they will not touch the soul of
America. They cannot dim our spirit. (Applause.)
We've got a job to do, all of
us. And I'm here to thank you in the Department of Labor for
your hard work, your concern for your fellow Americans. All
of us, from the President all the way throughout our government, must
be diligent and strong and unwavering in our determination and our
dedication to win the war on terrorism.
I've got a job to do, and that's to
explain to the American people the truth. And the truth is
that we're now facing a new threat for freedom; that on September 11th,
war was declared on the United States, not by a religious group, not by
one country versus another, but by people motivated by
evil. And I'm going to make it clear to the world what I
made clear to America, that this great country will not let evil
stand. (Applause.)
The attack on our land roused a might
nation. We've never been united like we have been -- as we
are today. And we're examining a lot of things. We're
examining, as moms and dads, what it means to be a
parent. There are many Americans on bended knee from all
different religions, praying to an almighty God. We're a
nation united in our conviction that we must find those evildoers and
bring them to justice. We seek not revenge in America, we
seek justice. (Applause.)
Americans understand that this is a
different type of campaign; it's a different type of struggle to defeat
an enemy that's sometimes hard to see, and sometimes hard to
find. But what the enemy has found out is we're a determined
people, and we're patient, and we will do what it takes to bring them
to justice.
We built a vast coalition of nations from
all around the world to join us -- nations which understand that what
happened in New York and Washington could happen to them, as
well. They understand it's now time to unite to defeat
evil. Each nation comes with a different set of capabilities
and a different set of -- a different willingness to help. America
says, we don't care how you help, just help. Either you're
for us, or you're against us. (Applause.)
And the progress to date has been
positive, really positive. We've got nations around the
world willing to join us in cutting off the money of the evil
ones. Our attitude is, if they can't fund evil deeds,
they're not going to be able to affect freedom. And so we're
talking to countries and banks and financial institutions, and saying
either you're with us, or against us: cut off their money.
We're applying diplomatic pressure from
around the world. I promise you this: I will
enforce the doctrine that says that if you house a terrorist, you're
just as guilty as the terrorists themselves. (Applause.)
This is our calling. This is our nation's time to lead the
world, and we're going to do that. And we must do so in a
bold and strong, and determined fashion. We will not waver.
I fully understand, as I said to Congress,
there will be times when people feel a sense of normalcy -- and I hope
that happens sooner rather than later -- and that September 11th may be
a distant memory to some. But not to me, and not to this
nation. Now is the time -- now is the time to root out evil
so that our children and grandchildren can live with freedom as the
beacon all around the world.
The evildoers cost America a lot of
lives. And for the two here in the Labor Department, I say,
we will get justice, and we grieve with you -- two good folks who
suffer as a result of September the 11th. I can't tell you
how many people are praying for you and praying for the victims all
across America; people you can't even imagine, can't even -- will never
know are on bended knee.
And they've also changed a lot of lives,
these evil actions. It's clear, as a result of today's new
unemployment claims, that the attack of September the 11th sent a shock
wave throughout our economy. And we need to do something
about it. And I'm going to lead the Congress in a way that
provides the help and stimulus necessary for there to be economic
growth.
It is not time to worry about partisan
politics here in America. It is time for our government to
continue to work together -- to say, we hear the cries of those who
have been laid off; we worry about the shock waves throughout our
economy, and instead of talking, we're going to do something about it.
And we've started. We have
started. There are $40 billion of tax rebates that have been
disbursed over the last months. That should help our
economy. The Congress came together and passed $15 billion
in emergency help for airlines, and $40 billion in supplemental
spending that will help New York rebuild herself, and will be a part of
a means for enhancing our economic growth.
But there's more to do. Now is
not the time to be timid, it's the time to be wise. It's
also the time to act. And that's why yesterday the Secretary
of Treasury and I both said that we need to have more stimulus
available. We need for there to be more tax cuts.
I want to remind my fellow Americans that
starting next year, there will be $70 billion additional of tax
reductions and larger child credits coming as a result of the tax
package we passed and I signed. So there's stimulus
available. (Applause.)
But I look forward to working with
Congress in the interim, between now and when those tax cuts kick in,
to do more. I think we must do more. I know we must do more
to make sure that our economy gets started. (Applause.) And
I'm going to ask Congress to ask this question: Will what I
vote for encourage economic growth? Not, will it make me
look better at home, or will it satisfy a narrow constituency, but will
my vote stimulate economic vitality and growth. That's the
question that Americans are asking when we vote on a tax reduction
package. And that's the question I will be asking.
I strongly believe we need to make sure
that consumer confidence stays high, by giving people more of their own
money back. (Applause.) We need to counter the
shock wave of the evildoer by having individual rate cuts accelerated
and by thinking about tax rebates.
Secondly, in order to make sure our
economy grows within the $60 billion to $75 billion that we've -- the
parameters of which we outlined, we need to make sure we have
investment incentives for U.S. businesses, both large and
small. (Applause.)
Not only should we make sure that the
individual consumer confidence remains high, but that we've got to
understand that by encouraging investment, it will encourage
employment. And one of the things that Elaine mentioned is
that you're a department that makes sure that people find
work. We've got to have good policy coming out of Congress
to make sure that when you work hard to help people find work, there's
a stimulus package that does so.
People say, well, why did you say that the
parameters ought to be $60 billion to $75 billion? Well,
one, we think that's the right size to encourage growth without
affecting the economy in the long-term. And secondly, I
think it makes sense to have parameters, so that Congress doesn't feel
like it has to invent a series of new programs in order to stimulate
economic growth.
We know what we need to do. And
I look forward to working with both Republicans and Democrats to get it
done. It's the right thing for the American
people. (Applause.) And there is no question that
not only should our government act to encourage economic growth, our
government ought to act to take care of people whose lives were
affected on September the 11th.
We need to move. And I've got
some ideas on how we ought to move. First, in the post-attack economy,
some workers need more help for more time. So I propose
extending the unemployment benefits by 13 weeks in states that have
been hardest hit by job losses related to the September 11th
attack. (Applause.) This emergency extension will
be paid entirely by federal dollars and should remain in place for 18
months.
And, secondly, I believe the best way to
help people meet health care needs, or job training needs, or income
support, is to fund the National Emergency Grant System by an
additional $3 billion. (Applause.) This will be
federal money that will go to states so they can distribute monies
directly to people whose lives have been affected.
I urge the Congress as they plan ways to
deal with this tragedy to look at the government programs that already
exist. We don't have time to try to invent new
programs. What we ought to do is make those programs that
exist work better. And here's two solutions to do
so. (Applause.)
And finally, I want to remind governors
and folks in the states what Tommy told me earlier today -- Tommy said
there's $11 billion available to help states provide health insurance
for low-income workers and their families to the S-chip
program. It's an important opportunity for states to expand
coverage to people whose lives have been severely affected by the
September 11th attack.
This is a way we can help. This
is a set of principles for Congress to work together to help the
American people, stimulate growth, and at the same time, take care of
the workers whose lives have been impacted by the September 11th
attack.
And that's what we must
do. Because, you see, the terrorists hope to change our way
of life. On the one hand, they hope that America would
become timid and cower in the face of their barbaric
acts. They were wrong. On the other hand, they
would hope that we'd become paralyzed and unable to act at home in
order to do what's right for the American people. They were wrong
again.
Instead they have provided interesting
opportunities for America. I told some world leaders,
through our tears we see opportunity; that we're sad and angry, but
we've got a clear vision of the world; that this is a remarkable moment
in history which our nation will seize. We'll act boldly at
home to encourage economic growth. We'll take care of people
who hurt. We will comfort those who lost lives. We'll be
compassionate as to how we deal with Afghan citizens, for example, by
making sure there's humanitarian aid.
And we'll be tough and resolute as we
unite, to make sure freedom stands, to rout out evil, to say to our
children and grandchildren, we were bold enough to act, without tiring,
so that you can live in a great land and in a peaceful
world. (Applause.)
And there's no doubt in my mind, not one
doubt in my mind, that we will fail. Failure is not a part
of our vocabulary. This great nation will lead the world and
we will be successful.
Thank you for working for the
government. Thank you for caring about our fellow
Americans. May God bless you all and your families, and may
God bless America. (Applause.)