For Immediate Release
Office of the First Lady
September 17, 2004
Remarks by First Lady Laura Bush at Bush-Cheney '04 Rally in Charleston, West Virginia
Charleston Civic Center Charleston, West Virginia
9:58 A.M. EDT
MRS. BUSH: Thank you all very, very much. Thanks so much for
being here with me today. I really appreciate it.
Thank you, Congressman Capito. Thank you for your leadership in
the United States Congress and for your friendship. And I want to
remind all of you, when you're working for President Bush, don't forget
to reelect Shelley Moore Capito to the United States Congress.
(Applause.) Thanks also to State Senator Steve Harrison for being here
with me. (Applause.)
And to the Flinn Elementary School girls who led the Pledge of
Allegiance. I think some of those girls are probably Girl Scouts or
Brownies. My mother was my Girl Scout leader and George's mother,
Barbara Bush, was his Cub Scout leader. And, in fact, some say that's
when her hair turned white. (Laughter.)
Special thanks to each one of you, to all the volunteers who are
working hard to ensure President Bush leads this country for four more
years. Thank you all. (Applause.)
I know that I speak on behalf of all the people of West Virginia
and all Americans when we say that we're thinking about the people of
the Gulf Coast states who are suffering the effects of Hurricane Ivan.
Our thoughts and our prayers especially go to those families who lost a
loved one. The federal government is working closely with all the
state governments to provide them with whatever they need. And many
Americans are checking with the Red Cross to see if they can help. So
I just want to encourage you -- today is a very good day to give a
donation to the Red Cross. We can find comfort in knowing that, in
times of tragedy, Americans always united to help each other.
(Applause.)
And I'm so happy to be here today to talk to you about why it's so
important to reelect President Bush. I've watched as my husband has
led this country with strength and conviction through some of the most
difficult struggles of our generation. He has taken decisive action to
lead us out of recession with the largest tax relief in a generation.
(Applause.)
Thanks to my husband's commitment to tax relief, America has added
1.7 million jobs since last August, and that's more jobs than Germany,
Japan, England, Canada and France combined. (Applause.)
The unemployment rate here in West Virginia has fallen to 5.1
percent, and to 5.4 percent nationally. (Applause.) And today, more
families than ever before -- and I think this is such an encouraging
statistic -- own their own homes. In fact, we have the highest home
ownership rate in our history. And for the first time, more than half
of all minority families own their own homes. (Applause.)
And thanks to the No Child Left Behind Act, our schools are
improving with higher standards, accountability and the most federal
funding for elementary and secondary education. And I've watched as my
husband has made the tough decisions that have helped safeguard our
children from terror and have helped liberate millions of people from
tyranny.
Last week in Ohio, I visited a woman business owner who summed up
the President's success this way. She said, "President Bush was born
for such a time as this. He never waivers when it comes to doing the
right thing. It makes me feel so secure to know that our leader has
such a love for our country." (Applause.)
At our convention in New York, President Bush outlined his agenda
for a new term. Helping families face the challenges of our changing
world is at the heart of the President's plan. Just think about the
differences in our society today and with our parents' and
grandparents' generation. Today, in most families, both parents are
working full time outside the home. Two-thirds of all mothers now work
outside the home. And more single parents are doing double duty
alone.
More entrepreneurs are starting their own business while workers
are changing jobs several times during their careers rather than going
to work for a company and staying there for their whole career. And
more people are going back to school to keep up with our changing
economy. We're also living longer.
The President believes that government should help people improve
their lives, not try to run them. (Applause.)
We know that all opportunity starts with education. We want our
children to go to the best schools and we want them to learn the skills
they need to be successful in life. And we want our students in high
schools to be well prepared to go on to the job market or to go on to
college.
President Bush knows that we need to strengthen math and science
education in high schools and broaden Internet learning so that young
people can compete in our new technology-driven world. For workers who
want to go back to school to learn new skills, or even to start a new
career, the President wants to work with community colleges to make
career training available to all Americans. And because higher
education is a dream for so many people, he'll make Pell grants
available -- more Pell grants available so that many more Americans can
earn a college diploma. (Applause.)
And when these graduates enter the work force, I'm proud to say
that a lot of them will go to work for a woman boss. (Applause.) Ten
million women own their own business in America, and this sisterhood
just keeps growing.
In August, I was in Grafton, Wisconsin, where I met Carol Schneider
at her company. Over 30 years ago, Carol started a business in her
neighbor's back bedroom, complete with $500 and a barking dog.
(Laughter.) It wasn't easy to expand her business, especially when she
was going to community college during the day, working full time and
raising three children. But Carol refused to give up, and today she
manages 100 employees in 14 offices, and she leads a company worth $36
million.
Carol credits the President's commitment to tax relief with
enabling her to open four more offices this year. Carol told me, the
economy is doing great and it's because President Bush implemented
policies that allow people to keep more of their own money and then
spend it how they choose. (Applause.)
Small business owners like Carol are some of the hardest working
people in America. And the President knows to keep this economy
moving, we've got to keep taxes low. (Applause.) Already, small
business owners have saved an average of $3,000 this year alone. And
just in case you don't know, many small business owners are either sole
proprietorships or sub-S corporations and both of these are taxed with
regular income taxes. So when you talk about tax relief, you're
talking about tax relief for small business owners. They can use this
extra money to expand their businesses and hire more people.
(Applause.)
And because many people change jobs now several times during their
careers, workers also need health care and retirement accounts that
they can take with them. We have the best health care in the world,
and my husband believes that health care should be in the hands of
patients and doctors. (Applause.)
The President is making health care insurance more accessible with
new ideas like health savings accounts. These accounts let people buy
less expensive catastrophic insurance and then save tax free for
routine medical expenses like eyeglasses or a checkup. Workers can
then take these accounts with them if they start a new job or if they
leave work to raise a family. This is health care that we own, we
manage and we keep ourselves.
Another growing crisis that is a particular concern to families and
doctors of West Virginia is medical liability reform. (Applause.)
Recently, I was in Pennsylvania where I met Erin Zezzo who learned
about junk lawsuits the hard way. Erin had a trusting relationship
with her OB-GYN, who had delivered her first two babies. Shortly into
her third pregnancy, Erin's doctor stopped delivering babies because he
couldn't afford the medical liability insurance. Erin had to find a
new doctor while she was six months pregnant.
I know there are women just like Erin right here in West Virginia.
A number of doctors and nurses are here with us today, and I'm proud to
say they're supporting President Bush. (Applause.)
All of these issues are important in our country. But as we grieve
for the families in Russia, and as we mark the third anniversary of
September 11th, I believe what's most important is my husband's work to
protect our country and to defeat terror around the world. (Applause.)
The terrible acts of September 11th showed us the threat they face,
but they also called us to the great work of promoting freedom in the
far corners of the world. President Bush and I know all of you, too,
want our men and women in uniform and their families to know how much
we appreciate their service. (Applause.)
As we do the hard work of confronting terror, we can be proud that
today 50 million more men, women and children have the chance to live
in freedom, thanks to the United States of America and our allies.
(Applause.) After years of being treated as virtual prisoners in their
homes by the Taliban, the women of Afghanistan are now able to leave
their homes without a male escort. (Applause.) And after being denied
an education, even the chance to learn to read, little girls in
Afghanistan are in school. (Applause.)
More than 10 million Afghan citizens have registered to vote in
this fall's presidential election, and more than 40 percent of that
number are women. (Applause.)
Because we acted, the people of Iraq are now free from the tyranny
of a brutal dictator. The Iraqi Interim Government is preparing for
national elections in January, even as they face violence from those
who oppose democracy. We pledge to stand with the Iraqi people during
this historic time for their nation.
And as we stand with the people of Iraq and Afghanistan, we must
remember that building a democracy takes time. Think of how long it
took us in our country, even though we were given a perfect document by
our founders. It took almost 100 years after our founders declared all
men are created equal to abolish slavery in America. And not until 84
years ago did American women get the right to vote.
Our nation has not always lived up to its ideals. Yet those ideals
have never ceased to guide us. (Applause.) We are the beneficiaries
of the works of generations before us. And it is our responsibility
now to continue that work.
President Bush knows that there is more to do to make our country
safer, stronger and more hopeful. And he will continue leading the
work to make America better, while holding true to our timeless
ideals.
So I want to encourage each one of you to talk to your neighbors
about the President's accomplishments and about his plans for our
future. Reach out to Democrats and Independents who appreciate strong
and optimistic leadership. Make sure your friends are registered to
vote, and then turn them out at the polls. Everything you do will be a
help to the President's campaign.
These are times of change for our nation, but they're also years of
promise. We have great confidence in our ability to overcome
challenges. We've gained a new appreciation of the many blessings of
America. And we've been reminded of the responsibilities we have to
the country we love.
George and I grew up in West Texas, where the sky seems endless and
so do the possibilities. My husband brings that optimism, that sense
of purpose, that certainty that a better day is before us to his job
every day. And, with your help, he'll do it for four more years.
(Applause.)
Thank you all very, very much. (Applause.) Thank you for your
friendship. And my God bless America. (Applause.)
END 10:15 A.M. EDT
|