Text 2648, 476 rader
Skriven 2006-05-17 23:34:48 av Whitehouse Press (1:3634/12.0)
Ärende: Press Release (0605176) for Wed, 2006 May 17
====================================================
===========================================================================
President Attends Republican National Committee Gala
===========================================================================

For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
May 17, 2006

President Attends Republican National Committee Gala
DAR-Constitution Hall
Washington, D.C.



6:58 P.M. EDT

THE PRESIDENT: Thank you all. Thanks for the warm welcome. Thanks for being
here at the RNC Gala. I can't thank you enough for helping our party
succeed. It's such an honor to be here. I am, first, really proud of the
Republican Party. We're a party, over the past five years, that has made a
significant difference for the American people. We have defended freedom at
home and abroad, and by doing so, we've done our duty to make this nation
safer. And we've trusted the people, and as a result, America is a stronger
and more prosperous nation. (Applause.)

I want to thank my friend, Ken Mehlman, for leading our party. (Applause.)
When I talked to him about leading the Republican Party, I said, I want to
be a party that welcomes everybody, from all walks of life -- (applause) --
a party based upon principles; a party that trusts the people; a party that
stands strong in a time of historic challenge. And Ken is doing a find job
of reaching out. Our party is strong, and it's getting stronger.
(Applause.)

Laura sends her love. (Applause.) She's a fabulous First Lady. (Applause.)
She's got to be the most patient woman in America. (Laughter.)

AUDIENCE MEMBER: She's hot.

THE PRESIDENT: Yes -- well, wait a minute. (Laughter.) Muy caliente.
(Laughter and applause.) I hope she's not watching, you know? (Laughter.)

I appreciate the members of my Cabinet who are here. Thank you all for
coming. Thanks for serving. I also want to thank my friend, Bill Frist,
Majority Leader of the United States Senate, who is here with us.
(Applause.) The Speaker is rounding up votes right now, but like Senator
Frist, the Speaker is doing a fabulous job for the American people.
(Applause.) And we intend to keep Denny Hastert Speaker of the House and
Bill Frist Majority Leader of the Senate. (Applause.) I want to thank all
the other members of the House and the Senate who are here. Thank you all
for coming.

I appreciate Jo Ann Davidson, who is the Co-Chairman of the RNC. I
appreciate her leadership and her friendship. (Applause.) I want to thank
Dwight and Martha Schar. He's the Finance Chairman for the RNC. You've done
a great job tonight. (Applause.) Appreciate you making Schar look good. I
want to thank the Gala chairs -- Sam Fox, Jack Oliver, Bob and Suzy Pence,
and Bill Paxon. I want to thank all the people who have worked to make this
such a successful event. I particularly want to thank Diamond Rio for their
fantastic singing.

We're just kind of warming up for these off-year elections. (Laughter.)
Tonight is part of the process to make sure that when our candidates take
it to the voters, they're able to do so in a way where people can hear them
loud and clear. You know, elections are all about choices. And our party is
a party that has built a vision based upon solid principle, a vision which
is inclusive, a vision which does not shy away from certain truths and
values. We're the party of the future, and our candidates will be running
against the party of the past -- (applause) -- a party that offers no new
ideas like the Republican Party, a party that can only offer opposition.
The Republican Party is the party of the future because we believe it is
our job to take on the challenges of our time and not to pass them on to
future Congresses or future generations. (Applause.)

Ours is an optimistic party. We know we don't need to fear the future
because we intend to shape the future for the American people. (Applause.)
We believe in the power of freedom, and we trust in the American people.
We're going to make our choice -- make these choices very clear to the
voters come November. And I'm confident the American people will realize
the difference between positive and negative, optimistic versus
pessimistic, and re-elect Republican majorities to the United States
Congress. (Applause.)

And I'm just getting warmed up. (Laughter.) These are historic times in
which we live, and we're in a war. We're in a war against an enemy that is
ruthless, an enemy which adheres to an ideology of hatred, a backward
ideology, an ideology that can't stand freedom. Ours is a nation that loves
freedom and will never back down.

People have a choice to make between folks who want to stay on the offense
and protect the American people and people who lose their nerve.

We learned some lessons from September the 11th, lessons that I'll never
forget. First lesson is, is that in order to protect the American people,
which is our most important job, the United States of America must stay on
the offense. (Applause.) And that's exactly what your nation is doing. We
will find the terrorists and bring them to justice before they can hurt the
American people again.

We had a second lesson learned on September the 11th, and that is, if we
find somebody harboring a terrorist, they're just as guilty as the
terrorists. And when I said that, I meant what I said. When your President
speaks, he must speak clearly and mean what he says, and when I said that
if you harbor a terrorist, you're as guilty as the terrorists, the Taliban
didn't take me seriously. But we acted. We upheld doctrine to protect the
American people, and because of our actions, 25 million people are no
longer in the clutches of one of the most barbaric regimes in the history
of mankind. (Applause.)

A serious lesson of September the 11th is that we must take threats
seriously before they come to hurt us. And I saw a threat. And members of
both political parties saw a threat in Iraq. Iraq was run by a dictator who
was killing his own people, who had used weapons of mass destruction,
invaded his neighbors, was shooting at our aircraft, harbored terrorists.
The world is better off without Saddam Hussein in power. (Applause.)

We have a plan for victory in Iraq. There's a political track taking place.
I know it seems like a decade ago, but it wasn't all that long ago that 12
million people defied car bombers and assassins and terrorists and said
loud and clear, we want to be free. Democracy is on the march in Iraq, and
the United States of America will help these brave people achieve their
objective. (Applause.)

A new government is being formed in that country, made up of a Kurd and a
Shia and a Sunni, people who are brave and dedicated, people who understand
that the people of their country desires to be free. It shouldn't surprise
us that they want to be free, because we firmly understand that the desire
to be free is in every human heart. There is an Almighty, and one of the
greatest gifts of the Almighty is freedom, and the United States of America
will never forget that lesson. (Applause.)

It's tough work. It's tough work to help a young country go from tyranny to
democracy. But it's worth it. Free countries are peaceful countries. Free
countries will lay the foundation of peace for our children and
grandchildren.

The enemy cannot defeat us in Iraq, and they can't defeat us anywhere else
in the world. The only way we can be defeated is if we lose our nerve, and
the Republican Party will not lose its nerve. (Applause.)

We understand the power of freedom to transform our world. I want to remind
you that this nation lost thousands and thousands of young men and women
during World War II and World War I, and yet today, the continent of Europe
is whole, free and at peace. Why? Because democracies do not war.

One of the interesting lessons of history comes home to me every time I
meet with my friend the Prime Minister of Japan. Prime Minister Koizumi is
a good friend. Sixty years ago the United States was embroiled in a
terrible war with Japan. My predecessor Harry Truman had the wisdom,
however, to recognize the power of freedom to transform societies. Today I
sit down at the table with the Prime Minister of a former enemy and talk
about how to keep the peace in North Korea. They've committed troops in
Iraq because he understands democracy can make the world a better place.

Something happened between the time World War II ended and George W. was
able to sit down with Prime Minister Koizumi, and what happened was, Japan
assumed a Japanese-style democracy. One of these days, an American
President will be sitting down with a duly elected leader from Iraq talking
about keeping the peace, and a generation of Americans will be better off
for it. (Applause.)

Our party has worked hard to protect the American people. It's our most
important duty. And we passed the Patriot Act. You might remember the
debates of the Patriot Act. Senator Harry Reid, Democrat of the Senate,
boasted, "he killed the Patriot Act." Because the Republican Party stood
strong, our law enforcement have the tools necessary to protect the
American people.

There's a lot of debate in Washington, D.C., about connecting the dots. My
job is to protect you. My job is to defend the civil liberties of the
American people. My job is to act within the confines of the Constitution
and the law. And that's precisely what I'm doing when it comes to making
sure we understand the intent of the enemy. Let me tell you this: If al
Qaeda is making phone calls in the United States, we need to know why.
We're not going to sit around and wait for another attack. (Applause.)

These are historic times, and I'm proud to be working with Republican
members of the Senate and the House who are making sure we do our duty, and
that's to defend the American people. And we're doing our duty here at
home, as well. We've got clear choices when it comes to our economy. People
are going to be able to choose between a party that's going to keep your
taxes low to keep the economy growing, and a party that's going to run your
taxes up. It's a stark choice, and I'm going to keep talking about it,
because we've got a record to run on. This economy of ours is strong, and
it's getting stronger. And the amazing thing is, we've overcome incredible
obstacles.

Think about the history of this economy. We've been through a recession and
corporate scandals and an attack on the United States of America and high
energy prices. And we've been through natural disasters. And yet this
economy is roaring along. And we intend to keep it that way.

You know, right after the attacks came, right after I got elected and then
the attacks, I worked with the United States Congress to pass a pro-growth
economic policy. It was based on a principle that is profound and works,
and that is when the American people have more of their own money to save,
invest and spend, the economy grows. The pro-growth tax cuts we passed are
working. The United States economy grew last year at 3.5 percent. That's
faster than any major industrialized nation in the world. Since 2003, we've
created 5.2 million new jobs. The national unemployment rate is 4.7
percent. (Applause.) Real, after-tax income is 8 percent for Americans
[sic] since 2001. That means, on average, Americans have an income that is
more than $2,300 this year than it was at the beginning of 2001, adjusting
for inflation. Consumer confidence has been at its highest point in nearly
four years. Productivity is high. Manufacturing activity is up. People are
owning homes. More minority own a home than ever before in our nation's
history. This economy is strong, and we're going to keep it strong for the
American people. (Applause.)

I want to remind you, when we cut taxes on American families, we cut taxes
on everybody who pays taxes. We cut taxes on the small businesses of
America, we cut taxes on dividends, we cut taxes on capital gains. We've
put the death tax on the road to extinction. (Applause.)

And that stands in stark contrast to the Democrat Party. Here in
Washington, D.C., most congressional Democrats voted against cutting income
tax rates. Most voted against a bill that provided tax relief for married
couples. Most voted against a bill that doubled the child credit. Most
Democrats voted against a bill to put the death tax on the road to
extinction. In 2003, most congressional Democrats voted against cutting
taxes on dividends and capital gains. They continue to block our efforts to
make the tax cuts permanent. If we want to keep this economy roaring and
strong, we have got to make the tax cuts permanent. (Applause.)

The elections this year offer the American people a clear choice: If you
want to send more of your paycheck to Washington, D.C., vote Democrat.
(Laughter.) If you want to keep more of your paycheck for your family, vote
Republican. (Applause.)

We're also going to cut the deficit in half by 2009. (Applause.) You know,
there's a myth in Washington, D.C. that says we can cut the deficit by
raising your taxes. When you're out there, helping people get elected, you
might remind people, that's not the way Washington works. Sure, they'll
raise your taxes, but they're going to figure out new ways to spend your
money. The best way to cut that deficit is to keep pro-growth economic
policies in place by keeping your taxes low, and be wise about how we spend
your money.

Let me make sure you've got the record about what's taken place in
Washington, D.C. over the last couple of years. We've cut the rate of
growth on non-security discretionary spending. That's discretionary
spending other than for the military and the homeland security.

Last year we had a cut in that discretionary spending. I proposed another
budget to do so. The Democrats don't like that idea. They're trying to
figure out new ways to spend your money. But the best way to cut that
deficit in half is for the United States Congress to join with this
administration, set priorities and be wise about how we spend your money.

I sent a supplemental up to the United States Congress recently to make
sure our troops what they have they need [sic] to be able to do their jobs,
and to make sure we provide important emergency relief for Katrina. The
number was $92.2 billion. And if the United States Congress sends me a bill
that includes non-emergency measures that exceed the number I've put out
there, I will veto it. (Applause.)

Monday night I gave a speech of real importance for this country. The
Republican Party needs to lead on this issue of immigration. The
immigration system is not working, and we need to do something about it
now. America can be a lawful society and a welcoming society, and we don't
have to choose between the two.

And so I talked about a five-point plan to make this country's immigration
system work. And the first part of the plan is for the United States of
America to secure its borders. (Applause.) I understand something about
borders -- you might recall I was the Governor of the great state of Texas.
(Applause.) We've got a long border with Mexico. I'm very aware of the
issue. I know how important it is to secure the borders.

I also know how important it is to treat people with dignity. (Applause.)
We've increased funding for border security by 66 percent since I've been
the President. We've expanded our Border Patrol from about 9,000 to 12,000
agents. Our Border Patrol folks are doing good work, under difficult
circumstances. Over the past five years, we have caught and returned 6
million people trying to come into our country.

But our border is not yet secure, and there's more work to be done. And
that's what I explained to the American people the other night. And so
we're going to increase the Border Patrol agents by another 6,000 by the
year 2008. And at the same time, we're going to make sure that we put the
most modern technology on our border to make sure our Border Patrol agents
can do the job.

And until those 6,000 agents are up and running, I think it's very
important for us to help our Border Patrol by providing 6,000 Guard troops.
It's really important that we help the men and women in our Border Patrol
do their job, so the American people know that we're using manpower,
technology and equipment to do our duty to protect the border of the United
States of America. (Applause.)

We're ending a policy called "catch and release." Eighty-five percent of
the folks coming across are from Mexico, and they're sent back within 24
hours. But a lot of people are coming from other countries. The problem
with that is, we haven't had enough bed space. So they come in, and a
Border Patrol agent finds them, and they say, why don't you check back for
your court date. (Laughter.) A lot of them aren't checking back for the
court date. (Laughter.) So I'm going to work with Congress to expand the
number of detention beds, speed up the deportation process, make sure
countries know that we're very serious about them taking the people that we
catch trying to come into our country illegally. We're going to end catch
and release. (Applause.)

Secondly, to secure this border, you have got to understand there are
people coming to work -- they want to put food on the table for their
families, and they'll do -- they'll go to unbelievable means to come here.
They walk across our deserts in the 100 degree heat; they get stuffed in
the back of an 18 wheeler to come. They want to come and work. In order to
secure this border, we must have an orderly way for people to come on a
temporary basis who are doing jobs Americans aren't doing.

We must have a rational plan, that says, if you're going to come and work,
you're allowed to do so, on a temporary basis -- you've got to pass a
criminal background check, but you ought to be able to come in an orderly
way, so you're not having to sneak across. In order to enforce this border,
we want people coming to work, jobs Americans aren't doing, on a temporary
basis, in a legal way. (Applause.)

Secondly -- thirdly, in order to make this plan work, we got to make sure
our employers are held to account. It's illegal for somebody to employ
somebody here illegally. (Applause.) But the problem we face is that
there's a lot of document fraud. See, people are showing up with IDs that
an employer can't verify. So in order to make sure we secure our border and
do our duty and treat people with dignity, we need to develop a
tamper-proof ID card that uses biometrics, and that way, an employer will
know whether or not they're hiring somebody who's illegally here, and when
the word gets out, you've got to have a tamper-proof card, and you don't
have one, it's likely you're not going to come to the United States at all.

Fourthly, you got to understand in this country there's a lot of people who
have been here for a long time -- decent, hard-working, honorable people. I
oppose amnesty, and the United States Congress ought to oppose amnesty.
Amnesty would be harmful for those who have waited in line to become a
citizen legally, and amnesty would encourage others to come in the hopes
that they, too, would become automatically a citizen. In this debate, we
must make sure we distinguish between those who have been here for a while
and those who are newly arrived. For those who are newly arrived, they've
got to get a temporary worker card, finish out their time and go back home.

But for those who have been here for a while, it is unrealistic to deport
them. What is realistic is to say, pay a fine, learn the English language,
prove that you've been working here for a while, and get in line, but the
back of the line, not the front of the line. (Applause.)

And fifthly, to make sure we have an immigration system that upholds our
values and speaks to the decency of America, we must help people assimilate
into our country, and the best way to assimilate is to help folks learn to
speak the English language. (Applause.)

When you learn to speak the English language, and you're a hard worker,
you're likely to go from somebody who's picking crops to owning a grocery,
somebody who's cleaning offices to working in an office. You know, one of
the great things about America is we have been a welcoming society. People
come to this country because they want to realize the great American Dream.
They want to be able to say, I'm putting food on the table for my family, I
want to own my own home. Every immigrant who comes and works hard lifts the
spirit of this country. We're a land of immigrants, and we're better for
it. We always got to have confidence in our ability to be one nation under
God. (Applause.)

Ours is a party that recognizes we're too dependent on oil, and we intend
to do something about it.

AUDIENCE MEMBER: All right! (Laughter.)

THE PRESIDENT: I signed a good energy bill, supported by the Republicans.
The bill encourages conservation, encourages exploration for oil and gas in
environmentally-friendly ways so we become less dependent on foreign
sources of oil. And it's a bill that encourages alternative sources of
energy. I firmly believe it makes sense for us to encourage use of ethanol.
We want our farmers growing energy and not trying to buy energy from parts
of the world that don't like us. (Applause.)

We're on our way for breakthroughs for automobiles that will be able to
drive the first 40 miles on electricity without using a drop of gasoline.
The party of Lincoln has been active about spending your money on research
and development to find new ways to power automobiles, to find better ways
to burn coal, to be able to use solar energy. My point to you is, we
understand as a Republican Party that it's in our economic interests, in
our national interests, national security interests, to get off our
addiction to foreign oil. (Applause.)

Ours is a party that's doing something about the cost of health care. The
other ones are good about talking about it; we're actually doing something
about it. You know, we have a duty, in my judgment, to help the poor and
the elderly. That's a commitment our country has made and it's a commitment
the Republican Party is keeping. I want to remind you that for years the
Democrats have promised our seniors a stronger Medicare system. But we
delivered. You see, it didn't make any sense to have a Medicare system
where decisions were made out of Washington, D.C., and that would pay
$25,000 for an ulcer surgery but not one single dime for the prescription
drugs that would have prevented the surgery from being needed in the first
place.

And so we reformed Medicare. We said to our seniors, we trust you; we trust
you to make decisions that meets your needs. Do you realize in the state of
Florida there's over 40 different plans from which a senior can choose a
prescription drug benefit? See, Republicans believe in choice. We believe
that when you're able to make a choice in the marketplace, it helps affect
cost and quality at the same time.

You know, the Medicare drug benefit really does help our low-income
seniors. I don't know about you, but I didn't like those stories about some
of our seniors having to choose between food and medicine. We stepped up
and delivered a Medicare bill, and no longer do poor seniors in America
have to make that choice. (Applause.)

Ours is a party that understands the best health care system is when the
doctor-patient relationship is central to decision-making. That's why we're
strong believers in health savings accounts. That's why we believe in
transparency in pricing. That's why I believe in information technology.

We also understand that small businesses have trouble buying insurance so
they can afford it for their employees. And so we believe small businesses
ought to be able to pool risk across jurisdictional boundaries so they can
buy insurance at the same discount big businesses do. (Applause.)

We also fully understand that junk lawsuits are driving good doctors out of
practice and driving up the cost of medicine. (Applause.) Ours is a party
that supports medical liability reform, and when you're out there talking
to your friends, I want you to remind them that last week, Senate Democrats
defeated the opportunity for small businesses to pool risk, and once again
defeated our ability to provide medical liability reform so that health
care is available and affordable to the American citizens. (Applause.)

Finally, ours is a party that will continue to work to build a culture of
life where every human -- every human is respected. You know, I passed --
we passed and I signed a ban on partial-birth abortion. It is the right
thing to do for the American people, to recognize the value and worth of
every human being in our society. (Applause.) Ours is a party who
understands government can pass out money but it cannot put love in a
person's heart. And so we make sure that faith-based and religious
charities are treated on an equal basis when it comes to providing
compassion for those who need help.

Ours is a political party that understands we need to have people on the
bench who understand the difference between legislating and being a good
judge. (Applause.) I was proud to nominate Chief Justice John Roberts and
Justice Sam Alito, and I want to thank the United States Senate for passing
-- for confirming these two good men. (Applause.)

I've also successfully appointed 44 Courts of Appeal judges, which is about
25 percent of all the federal Appeal Court judges in our nation. I'm going
to continue working with members of the Senate to make sure my judges get a
timely hearing, and I'm going to continue nominating good, conservative
judges who will interpret the law and not legislate from the bench.
(Applause.)

Ours is a party that believes in the sanctity of marriage, and ours is a
party that believes in strong families. (Applause.) We got something to run
on. We got something other than rhetoric to run on. We're going to run on
principles and a strong record. And I'm confident, with your help, we'll
continue to maintain our majorities in the United States Senate and the
United States House, and America will be better off for it. (Applause.)

I'm looking forward to the contest. (Laughter.) I'm looking forward to
getting out there among the people again, talking about what I believe in.
I believe that because of members of the House and the Senate working with
the administration that this country is more secure. I believe we're laying
the foundation of peace; I truly believe that. I believe history is going
to look back at this time and say, thank goodness we had people in the
United States Congress and the House of Representatives, good strong
Republicans -- (applause) -- people that stay true to our values, that when
the times got tough, we didn't try to take the easy course, that we
understood that there's universal truths and we didn't back off of them,
and that we understood to keep this economy strong and America hopeful,
that government must always trust the American people.

It is a joy to be your President. I'm proud to be here with you. May God
bless you all, and may God bless our country. (Applause.)

END 7:29 P.M. EDT

===========================================================================
Return to this article at:
http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2006/05/20060517-6.html

 * Origin: (1:3634/12)