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Skriven 2004-11-01 23:33:18 av Whitehouse Press (1:3634/12.0)
Ärende: Press Release (0411011) for Mon, 2004 Nov 1
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Remarks by the Vice President at a Victory 2004 Rally
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For Immediate Release
Office of the Vice President
November 1, 2004
Remarks by the Vice President at a Victory 2004 Rally
Hawaii Convention Center
Honolulu, Hawaii
11:12 P.M. HAST
AUDIENCE: Cheney! Cheney! Cheney! (Applause.)
THE VICE PRESIDENT: Well, thank you very much. I was in the neighborhood
and thought I'd stop by and say, aloha. (Laughter.)
AUDIENCE: Aloha.
THE VICE PRESIDENT: It's great to be back in Hawaii. And from the
enthusiasm I see here this evening, there's no doubt in my mind this is
Bush-Cheney country. (Applause.)
Now, it's true that Lynne has known me since I was 14, but she wouldn't go
out with me until I was 17. (Laughter.) I tell people we got married
because Dwight Eisenhower got elected President of the United States.
(Laughter.) In those days I was a youngster living in Nebraska. Dad worked
for the government. Eisenhower got elected, reorganized things, Dad got
transferred to Casper, Wyoming. And that's where I met Lynne. We grew up
together, went to high school together, and just celebrated our 40th
wedding anniversary. (Applause.) I explained to a group the other night
that if it hadn't been for Eisenhower's election victory, Lynne would have
married somebody else. (Laughter.) And she said, right, and now he'd be
Vice President of the United States. (Laughter.)
We've been here a great many times over the years, including trips with my
former bosses, President Gerald Ford and former President Bush. This is one
of the friendliest, most beautiful parts of the country, with a rich and
diverse -- (applause) -- with a rich and diverse culture. I particularly
appreciate the unique contributions native Hawaiians have made to this
state and to our nation. (Applause.) And I am honored, on the eve of this
historic election, to bring good wishes to all of Hawaii's citizens from
the President of the United States, George W. Bush. (Applause.)
Before I go on tonight, I wanted to make just one comment. I noticed today
that Senator Inouye's wife, Maggie, has been diagnosed with cancer. And I'm
sure we all want to wish her the very best in the surgery that's ahead for
her this week. (Applause.)
I am told this is the first time in history that a national candidate has
come to Hawaii so close to Election Day, and I'm proud to hold the
distinction. I'm here for a very simple reason: Hawaii is a vital state in
this election, and President Bush and I would be honored to have your vote.
(Applause.)
AUDIENCE: Four more years! Four more years! Four more years!
THE VICE PRESIDENT: The people of Hawaii understand the importance of
steady, principled, consistent leadership in the White House. That's why
this state is moving our way. And on Tuesday, I have a feeling we're going
to surprise a lot of people back on the mainland because -- (applause) --
we're going to carry Hawaii. (Applause.)
I want to thank Governor Lingle for those kind words, and for joining us
here tonight. By sending Linda to the state capital, the people of Hawaii
showed that strong, optimistic leadership is more important than party
labels. (Applause.) The President and I are grateful for Linda's support in
this campaign, and for the support of fellow Republicans across the
country. We're equally proud to count millions of Democrats and
independents among our supporters. (Applause.) It doesn't matter which
party you belong to, or who you have voted for in the past, we're asking
for your support. (Applause.) And with your help, we'll make George W. Bush
President for four more years. (Applause.)
I'm also glad Lieutenant Governor Aiona could be here tonight, as well as
your Party Chair Morioka.
AUDIENCE: Duke! Duke! Duke!
THE VICE PRESIDENT: And I want to thank everyone who has put up signs, or
made phone calls, or worked to get people to the polls. This campaign has
the greatest ground game in American political history, and I thank you for
being part of it. (Applause.)
With only a matter of hours remaining in the campaign, the choice facing
the American people could not be more clear. All right. (Laughter.) Don't
hold back. (Laughter.) This is no ordinary time for America. We've all seen
the tape of Osama bin Laden recently.
AUDIENCE: Booo!
THE VICE PRESIDENT: It's a reminder that we are engaged in a global war on
terror. This is a conflict we did not choose, but it is one that we will
win. (Applause.)
We're standing just a few miles from Pearl Harbor, the site of a sudden
attack on the U.S., on Sunday, December 7th, 1941. That day our peaceful
country found itself in a global struggle that would last four years and
would test our patience and resolve as a nation. Fortunately for us all, a
great generation of Americans was more than equal to that challenge.
(Applause.) They pulled together in freedom's cause, threw back aggression
in a two-front war, and aided the rise of democracy in Europe and the
Pacific.
Three years ago, America faced another sudden attack. And like other
generations of Americans, we found that history had unexpected duties in
store for us. September 11th, 2001 made clear the great challenge of our
time. And since that morning, we have seen the brutal acts of terrorists
around the world -? from a nightclub in Bali, to trains in Madrid, to a
school in Beslan, Russia. Against this kind of determined, organized,
ruthless enemy, America requires an aggressive strategy -? not merely to
prosecute a series of crimes, but to fight and win a global campaign
against the terrorist network. (Applause.) If the killers of 9/11 thought
we had lost the will to defend our freedom, they did not know America. And
they did not know George W. Bush. (Applause.)
Under the President's leadership, we have reached around the world to
capture and kill thousands of al Qaeda. In Afghanistan, the camps where
terrorists trained to kill Americans have been shut down, and the Taliban
driven from power. (Applause.) In Iraq, we dealt with a gathering threat,
and removed the regime of Saddam Hussein. (Applause.) Nineteen months ago,
he controlled the lives of 25 million people. Tonight, he sits in jail.
(Applause.)
Because of President Bush's determination in the war on terror, leaders
around the world are getting the message. Just five days after Saddam
Hussein was captured, Moammar Ghadafi in Libya agreed to abandon his
nuclear weapons program and turn the materials over to the United States.
(Applause.)
AUDIENCE MEMBER: (Inaudible.)
THE VICE PRESIDENT: Not on your life. (Laughter.)
The biggest danger we face today is having nuclear weapons technology fall
into the hands of terrorists. The President is working with many countries
in a global effort to end trade and transfer of these deadly technologies.
The most important result thus far is that the black-market network that
supplied nuclear weapons technology to Libya, as well as to Iran and North
Korea, has been shut down. And the world is much safer as a result.
(Applause.)
Having liberated 50 million people, we are now supporting the efforts of
the Afghan and Iraqi people to establish representative government. In
Afghanistan 10 million people registered to vote, nearly half of them
women. (Applause.) Elections were held three weeks ago, the first in the
5,000-year history of that country. (Applause.) In January, the people of
Iraq will vote, as well. And we will be safer as a result. One the lessons
that history teaches is that institutions of self-government turn the
energies of people away from violence to the peaceful work of building
better lives. Freedom is the best antidote to terrorism. (Applause.)
In all our efforts we have been aided by dozens of countries around the
world. This April, I traveled to Japan and Korea to thank the leaders in
those countries for their vital contributions in Iraq and other fronts in
the war on terror. America's relations with Japan and Korea have never been
stronger. And we're grateful as well for the friendship and support of
other Asian allies. We will always seek international support for
international efforts, but as President Bush has made very clear, there is
a difference between leading a coalition of many nations and submitting to
the objections of a few. (Applause.) We will never seek a permission slip
to defend the United States of America. (Applause.)
The clearest, most important difference in this campaign is simple to
state: President Bush understands the war on terror and has a strategy for
winning it. Senator Kerry does not. (Applause.)
All doubt on the matter was removed recently when Senator Kerry said that
he wanted to lead America back to the place where we were ?- to a time when
terrorism was, in his word, a "nuisance."
AUDIENCE: Booo!
THE VICE PRESIDENT: When I read that, I thought to myself: When was
terrorism only a nuisance? Was it a nuisance four years ago, when the USS
Cole was attacked and nearly sunk and we lost 17 sailors?
AUDIENCE: No!
THE VICE PRESIDENT: Was it a nuisance six years ago when they attacked
simultaneously two of our embassies in East Africa and killed hundreds?
AUDIENCE: No!
THE VICE PRESIDENT: Was terrorism just a nuisance 11 years ago, when the
World Trade Center was first bombed?
AUDIENCE: No!
THE VICE PRESIDENT: Or 16 years ago, when Pan Am 103 was blown out of the
skies over Lockerbie Scotland?
AUDIENCE: No!
THE VICE PRESIDENT: Or 21 years ago, when a suicide bomber in a truck
loaded with explosives drove into a barracks in Beirut and killed 241
American servicemen?
AUDIENCE: No!
THE VICE PRESIDENT: My friends, there never was a time when terrorism was
just a nuisance. There never can be a time when terrorism is just a
nuisance. Our goal is not to reduce terror to some acceptable level. Our
goal is to defeat terror -? and with George W. Bush as President, that is
exactly what we will do. (Applause.)
During this campaign, we've heard a lot of bold talk from Senator Kerry,
but it cannot disguise a 30-year record of coming down on the wrong side of
virtually every major national security issue. He first ran for Congress
advocating the idea that we should deploy American troops only under the
authority of the United Nations.
AUDIENCE: Booo!
THE VICE PRESIDENT: He ran for the Senate on the platform that we should
dismantle most of the major weapons systems that Ronald Reagan used to keep
the peace and win the Cold War.
AUDIENCE: Booo!
THE VICE PRESIDENT: In 1991, when Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait and stood
poised to dominate the Persian Gulf, John Kerry voted against Operation
Desert Storm.
AUDIENCE: Booo!
THE VICE PRESIDENT: In the first debate, this year, Senator Kerry said
America had to meet some kind of "global test" before we could take
military action.
AUDIENCE: Booo!
THE VICE PRESIDENT: The President and I know better than that. We know that
it is not our job to conduct international opinion polls. Our job is to
defend America. (Applause.)
Now, in the closing days of this campaign, John Kerry is running around
talking tough. He's trying every which way to cover up his record of
weakness on national defense. But he can't do it. It won't work. As we like
to say in Wyoming, you can put all the lipstick you want on a pig, but at
the end of the day it's still a pig. (Applause.)
That's one of my favorite lines. (Laughter.) You want to hear it again?
AUDIENCE: Yes!
THE VICE PRESIDENT: As we say in Wyoming -- (laughter) -- you can put all
the lipstick you want on a pig, but at the end of the day it's still a pig.
(Applause.) This is a great crowd. (Applause.) All right.
AUDIENCE: Cheney! Cheney! Cheney! (Applause.)
THE VICE PRESIDENT: Mercy. These are not times for leaders who shift with
the political winds; or who fail to understand the nature of the struggle
we're in. Our troops, our allies, and our adversaries must know where
America stands. The President of the United States must be clear and
consistent. In his years in Washington, John Kerry has been one of a
hundred votes in the United States Senate ?- and fortunately on matters of
national security, his views rarely prevailed. But the presidency is an
entirely different proposition. A senator can be wrong for 20 years,
without consequence to the nation. But a President -? a President ?- always
casts the deciding vote. And in this time of challenge, America needs ?-
and America has -? a President we can count on to get it right. (Applause.)
Our success in the war on terror is made possible by the men and women of
the United States military. (Applause.) President Bush knows that our
dedicated servicemen and women represent the very best of the United States
of America. (Applause.) I want to thank the troops, the civilian personnel
who support them, their families, and the veterans with us here today for
all they have done for all of us. (Applause.)
Senator Kerry takes a different view when it comes to supporting our
military.
AUDIENCE: Booo!
THE VICE PRESIDENT: He voted in favor -- he voted -- control yourselves.
(Laughter.) He voted in favor of using force against Saddam Hussein, but
then during the primary season when it came time to vote for funds that
would provide our men and women with body armor, ammunition, jet fuel, and
spare parts they needed, Senator Kerry voted "no."
AUDIENCE: Booo!
THE VICE PRESIDENT: He offered a ridiculous explanation, which frankly I
think will go down in the history of American politics. He said, and I
quote, "I actually voted for the $87 billion before I voted against it."
AUDIENCE: Flip-flop! Flip-flop! Flip-flop!
THE VICE PRESIDENT: If you guys don't behave, the President will never let
me come back again. (Laughter.) But the real reason Senator Kerry turned
his back on the troops was what he saw in the polls. Howard Dean was the
antiwar candidate and Dean was surging ahead in the polls, and so John
Kerry, in order to advance himself in the Democratic primary, turned his
back on our troops.
AUDIENCE: Booo!
THE VICE PRESIDENT: He said his vote was "complicated," but, my friends,
supporting American troops in combat should never be a complicated matter.
(Applause.)
John Kerry turned to the polls again just a few days ago. Right after the
bin Laden tape was released, the Kerry campaign took a poll to see what his
response should be. He put his finger in the air to see which way the wind
was blowing. George Bush doesn't need a poll to know where he stands in the
war on terror. (Applause.) He's a man of courage and conviction who knows
how to lead America during a time of war. And we need him for four more
years.
AUDIENCE: Four more years! Four more years! Four more years!
THE VICE PRESIDENT: Our country requires strong and consistent leadership
for our actions overseas, and the same is true for our policies here at
home. When President Bush and I stood on the inaugural platform on the west
front of the Capitol and took the oath of office, our economy was sliding
into recession. Then terrorists struck on 9/11 and shook our economy once
again. The tourism sector was especially hard hit, and I know that
presented serious challenges here in Hawaii. We faced a basic decision ?-
to leave more money with families and businesses, or to take more of the
American people's hard-earned money for the federal government. President
Bush made his choice. He proposed and he delivered tax cuts for the
American people not once, not twice, but four times in four years.
(Applause.)
Every American who pays federal income taxes benefited from the Bush tax
cuts ?- and so has our economy. We've created jobs for 13 consecutive
months ?- a total of over 1.9 million new jobs during that period. Here in
Hawaii, more than 40,000 jobs in the last three years. And your
unemployment rate is the lowest in the nation. (Applause.) Mortgage rates,
and interest rates, and inflation are all low. Consumers are confident,
businesses are investing, and families are taking home more of what they
earn. In a second term, we will keep our economy moving in the right
direction by making the Bush tax cuts permanent. (Applause.)
We will also work to open more foreign markets, so consumers all over the
world can buy Hawaiian products. (Applause.)
We'll work to end lawsuit abuse because we know it's easier for America's
businesses to hire new workers if they don't have to keep hiring lawyers.
(Applause.)
We will work for medical liability reform, so that America's doctors are
able to spend their time healing patients, not fighting off frivolous
lawsuits. (Applause.)
President Bush and I will also continue to defend our society's fundamental
rights and values. We stand for the fair treatment of faith-based
charities, so they can receive support for their good works. (Applause.) We
believe that our nation is "one nation under God" and that Americans ought
to be able to say so when we pledge allegiance to the flag. (Applause.)
There shouldn't be any question about this ?- and there wouldn't be if we
had more reasonable judges on the federal bench. (Applause.) The Democrats
in the Senate have been doing everything they can -? including using the
filibuster -? to keep the President's sensible, mainstream nominees off the
bench.
AUDIENCE: Booo!
THE VICE PRESIDENT: They are hoping to wait the President out. But I've got
news for them. That's not going to happen because we are going to win this
election. (Applause.)
My friends, the differences between the President and his opponent are as
sharp as they can possibly be, and the consequences for the country are
enormous. On vital matters of national security, Senator Kerry offers a
record of weakness and a strategy of retreat. President Bush offers a
record of steady purpose and resolute action, and a strategy for victory.
(Applause.) Senator Kerry wants to empower government; President Bush will
empower the citizens of this great land. (Applause.) John Kerry seems to
think that all the wisdom is found in Washington, D.C.; George Bush trusts
the wisdom of the American people. (Applause.)
The polls in Hawaii are open at 7 a.m. on Tuesday, bright and early. I'm
asking every one of you to vote, and get your friends and neighbors to come
along. There is a lot at stake in this election. And I want to ask for your
support just as clearly as I possibly can. (Applause.)
If you want a President who will fight the terrorists on the offensive, and
never relent in protecting our country, send George W. Bush back for four
more years. (Applause.)
AUDIENCE: Four more years! Four more years! Four more years!
THE VICE PRESIDENT: If you want a President who will keep his word, and
stand behind our military 100 percent of the time, send George W. Bush back
for four more years. (Applause.)
If you want a President who will keep taxes low for families, farmers, and
entrepreneurs, send George W. Bush back for four more years. (Applause.)
If you want a President who will expand opportunities to start a business
or own a home ?- if you want to live the American dream, send George Bush
back for four more years. (Applause.)
If you want a President who will insist on accountability in the classroom
and keep parents and teachers in charge of the schools, send George W. Bush
back for four more years. (Applause.)
And if you are a Democrat and you want a President who will stand up for
America's enduring values, send George Bush back for four more years.
(Applause.)
Once again, I want to thank you for coming this evening -? this is a truly
memorable night, one Lynne and I will never forget. (Applause.) Some
candidates may take Hawaii for granted -? President Bush and I take it
seriously. We're proud to have you on the team. And together, on Tuesday,
we're going to see our cause forward to victory.
Mahalo, and good night. (Applause.)
END 11:45 P.M. HAST
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