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Skriven 2006-07-17 23:33:40 av Whitehouse Press (1:3634/12.0)
Ärende: Press Release (0607179) for Mon, 2006 Jul 17
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Vice President's Remarks at a Rally for the Iowa Air and Army National
Guard
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For Immediate Release
Office of the Vice President
July 17, 2006

Vice President's Remarks at a Rally for the Iowa Air and Army National
Guard
Camp Dodge
Johnston, Iowa



1:10 P.M. CDT

THE VICE PRESIDENT: Thank you very much. It's good to be here, and I'm
honored to stand with the men and women of the National Guard -- Americans
at their best -- and the pride of the state of Iowa.

Each year, hundreds of thousands of military personnel and civilian law
enforcement officials come to this place for the tools and training they
need to serve the nation and to protect their fellow Americans. This is one
of the nation's vital training posts, a place of accomplishment and
distinction, and it's been in steady service to America for nearly 100
years. So I'm delighted to pay this visit, and I appreciate the warm
welcome to Camp Dodge, Iowa. (Applause.)

Let me thank General Dardis for the kind words of introduction, and all of
those who have arranged to help us be here today. I also want to recognize
Governor Vilsack, and the mayors of nearly 40 Iowa communities and other
elected officials who've joined us. Thank you all for being here.

I'm honored to share the platform with the 16 members of the Iowa National
Guard-Joint Forces Headquarters, who have provided advanced combat training
to soldiers of the Afghan National Army. These Iowans did a fine job -- and
they are just back home after 14 months in Afghanistan. Gentlemen, welcome
home. (Applause.)

All of us have come to Camp Dodge today because of our tremendous respect
for the citizen soldiers of our country. For my part, I've had the
privilege to work with National Guard personnel over the years, not just as
Vice President but also as Secretary of Defense when our nation was
fighting the Gulf War. I'm here to say how much we admire your service and
your achievements and to say thank you for what you do for all of us. From
homeland security, to swift and effective action after the Gulf Coast
hurricanes last fall, to service in the Middle East and the Balkans, you've
made a tremendous difference for the nation. And I bring gratitude and good
wishes to all of you from the President of the United States, George W.
Bush. (Applause.)

Each one of you follows in a long tradition of service. And you carry
unique responsibilities as members of the National Guard. You serve in a
time of urgent duties for this country, a period of history that has
brought many alerts, mobilizations, call-ups, and deployments. And like
generations that came before, you've more than met the challenge. Guardsmen
and women lead busy lives and careers on your own, but you've made the
commitment to be ready when your fellow citizens need you. The National
Guard is "Always Ready, Always There" for Iowa, and for America -- and
that's a legacy to be proud of.

I also want to note that the Guard has recruited and retained outstanding
personnel from throughout the state. It comes as no surprise that the Iowa
Army National Guard is a leader in strength readiness. And the Iowa
National Guard stands at above 100 percent of assigned strength, with a
retention rate of 98 percent. Congratulations. (Applause.)

Part of the reason for the Guard's great strength is the network of support
that exists all across Iowa. That network includes employers, large and
small, who provide everything from time off, to health benefits, to job
security for workers who get called up for Guard or Reserve assignments.
Thanks to the understanding and generosity of these employers, many men and
women are able to answer the call and focus on their duties. So these
patriotic employers deserve the gratitude of us all. (Applause.)

The support network also includes civic groups and community leaders --
and, above all, families. Service in uniform is very often a family
commitment, with many sacrifices that are shared by wives, husbands and
children. One group in this state recently received the Defense
Department's top award for Reserve and Guard Family Readiness Groups -- so
I want to congratulate "Keepers of the Flame" from Carroll, Iowa. And I
think we owe a round of applause to all the National Guard family members
who are here with us today. (Applause.)

As we meet today, the 133rd Infantry -- the Ironman battalion -- and the
194th Field Artillery battalion -- both from Camp Dodge -- are serving in
Iraq. Others from the 1034th Combat Sustainment Support Battalion will be
on their way soon. All told, in the months since our country was attacked
September the 11th, the Iowa National Guard has mobilized and deployed over
8,500 soldiers and airmen -- more than at any other time in modern history.
Your duties in the war on terror have been many, and varied, and often
dangerous. And the record you've amassed is superb.

During their tour in Iraq, I've been told members of one Iowa unit logged
nearly 800,000 miles in convoy escorts, cleared more than 16,000 miles of
roadway, and detected and disarmed many hundreds of improvised explosive
devices. And it is clear that in the process, they greatly enhanced the
combat effectiveness of our forces, and without question saved many lives.
So we're grateful to the 224th Engineer Battalion. (Applause.)

We're grateful to the Hawkeyes of the 132nd Fighter Wing, in Des Moines.
This unit, which flew combat air patrol here at home after 9/11, deployed
to the Middle East in the spring of 2005. In just 47 days, you flew nearly
as many hours as a unit normally flies during an entire year. You did a
great job, and kept a fully-mission capable rate of 85 percent.
Congratulations. (Applause.)

We're grateful to the other units that have served in Iraq -- the 767th
Firefighters, the 1088th Personnel Service Detachment, the 135th Mobile
Public Affairs Detachment, the 2168th Transportation Company, and the 194th
Infantry Detachment. Members of these units operated at high standards of
performance, results, and readiness -- very often in desert temperatures
and on long shifts.

We're grateful to another group of Iowans who recently completed a
deployment to Afghanistan -- Task Force 168. Don't hold back. (Laughter and
applause.) You provided security, escort, quick reaction forces, and vital
assistance during the first full elections in the 5,000-year history of
that country. Members of Task Force 168 even put together an agricultural
project, showing Afghan farmers that the best way to grow corn is not by
scattering seeds, but by planting in rows. In this way, you showed them how
to improve yields dramatically. So what is true at home is true everywhere
else. Even in an ancient country, on the other side of the world, if you
want good advice for raising corn, ask a guy from a Iowa. (Applause.)

The men and women who wear this nation's uniform have reminded people
everywhere of America's purposes. For the sake of our own security, and
that of our friends, we've undertaken a lot of serious work in this world.
Yet when we use our military, it's not to conquer, but to liberate. And
after we throw back tyrants, we stand by our friends to ensure that
democratic institutions can take hold, and to help build the freedom that
leads to peace in the long run. By their openness, their decency, and their
kindness to others in thousands of interactions every day, our men and
women in uniform are building bonds of friendship between the U.S. and the
nations we've liberated.

Five years ago Iraq and Afghanistan were both in the grip of violent,
merciless regimes. Now they have democratically elected governments, the
dictators are gone, and 50 million people are awakening to a future of hope
and freedom. Americans who return home from that part of the world can be
proud of their service for the rest of their lives. (Applause.)

We maintain forces in Afghanistan and Iraq because we're a nation that
keeps its word, and because we understand what is at stake in that part of
the world. The terrorists understand it, as well. The terrorists know that
as freedom takes hold, the ideologies of hatred and resentment will weaken,
and the advance of free institutions in the broader Middle East will
produce a safer world for our children and grandchildren. The war on terror
is a battle for the future of civilization. It's a battle worth fighting.
It's a battle we're going to win. (Applause.)

The terrorists have made Iraq the central front in this war. And we wage
this fight with good allies at our side, including an Iraqi Security Force
growing in size, ability, and effectiveness. We'll continue to train the
Iraqi forces so they can defend their own country and make it a source of
stability in a troubled part of the world. As always, decisions about
American troop levels will be driven by the conditions on the ground and
the judgment of our military commanders -- not by artificial timelines set
by politicians in Washington, D.C. (Applause.)

Although we've been in the struggle against terrorism for nearly five years
now, the terrorists were actually at war with us long before 2001. And they
were the ones on the offensive. And they grew bolder in their belief that
if they killed Americans, they could change American policy. In Beirut in
1983, terrorists killed 241 Americans in a suicide truck bombing. Following
that attack, the U.S. withdrew from Beirut. Time and time again, for the
remainder of the 20th century, the terrorists hit America and America did
not hit back hard enough. In 1993 we had the killing of American soldiers
in Mogadishu, and then the bombing at the first World Trade Center in New
York. We had murders at the Saudi National Guard Training Center in Riyadh
in 1995; the killings at Khobar Towers in 1996; the attack on two of our
embassies in East Africa in 1998; and the attack on the USS Cole in 2000.
The terrorists came to believe that they could strike America and American
targets without paying any price.

And so they continued to wage those attacks -- making the world less safe
and eventually striking the United States here at home on 9/11. That day
changed everything -- and the United States will never go back to the false
comforts of the world before 9/11. Terrorist attacks are not caused by the
use of strength. They are invited by the perception of weakness. And this
nation made a decision: We will engage these enemies -- facing them far
from home, so we do not have to face them on the streets of our own cities.
(Applause.)

That effort includes a home front -- and the home front is every bit as
important as the battlefields overseas. We are facing enemies who hate us,
who hate our country, and hate the liberties for which we stand. They dwell
in the shadows, wear no uniform, and are determined to harm as many
innocent Americans as they can. That is why President Bush told Congress
after 9/11 that our country would "direct every resource at our command --
every means of diplomacy, every tool of intelligence, every instrument of
law enforcement, every financial influence, and every necessary weapon of
war -- to the disruption and the defeat of the global terror network." The
Congress backed him up in full, authorizing the President to defeat an
enemy that had already slipped into our country and waged an attack that
killed 3,000 of our people.

The President also signed the Patriot Act, which is helping us disrupt
terrorist activity, break up terror cells within the United States, and
protect the lives of Americans. Another vital step the President took in
the days after 9/11 was to authorize the National Security Agency to
intercept a certain category of terrorist-linked international
communications. There are no communications more important to the safety of
the United States than those related to al Qaeda that have one end in the
United States. If you'll recall, the report of the 9/11 Commission focused
criticism on our inability to uncover links between terrorists at home and
terrorists abroad. The authorization the President made after September
11th helped address that problem in a manner that is fully consistent with
the constitutional responsibilities and the legal authority of the
President and with the civil liberties of the American people.

Ladies and gentlemen, every day the President of the United States makes
decisions based on the intelligence briefings he receives. The information
in those briefings is critical to assessing risk, to allocating security
assets inside the homeland and far beyond. Throughout our military,
intelligence has a daily, in fact, hourly, influence on the movement of
ships, fighter and bomber missions, and orders given to those commands at
the tip of the spear. Gathering the best information, getting it into the
hands of the war fighter, means that our work is more effective, our
maneuvers are more safe, and our nation is more secure. As people who know
first-hand what this war really involves, you can be certain of this: the
President will not relent in tracking the enemies of the United States with
every legitimate tool at his command. This is not a war we can win on the
defensive. Our only option against these enemies is to monitor them, to
find them, to fight them, and to destroy them. (Applause.)

I'm afraid that, as we get farther away from September the 11th, 2001,
there is a temptation to let up in the fight against terror. We're all
grateful that the nation has gone four years and 10 months without another
9/11. Obviously, no one can guarantee that we won't be hit again. But
getting through these years of wartime without an additional attack on the
homeland took a lot more than just luck. We've been protected by sensible
policy decisions by the President, by decisive action at home and abroad,
and by round-the-clock efforts on the part of people in the armed services,
law enforcement, intelligence, and homeland security. The enemy that struck
on 9/11 is fractured and weakened, yet still lethal, still determined to
hit us again. We've never had a fight like this -- and we have a lot more
to do before it's finished. Either we are serious about fighting this war
or we are not. And the enemies of America need to know: We are serious, and
we will not let down our guard. (Applause.)

Americans know about the heroism displayed every day in the fight against
terror. Many Iowans, including a good number here today, have been
decorated for acts of bravery and superior performance. And some families
in this state have also had to say a last farewell to loved ones who gave
the last full measure of devotion to this country. In time of loss, our
nation is united in respect and sorrow for these families. They need to
know that their loved ones served in a noble and a necessary cause, and
their sacrifice has made our nation and the world more secure. We will
honor their memory forever. (Applause.)

By defending ourselves, and by standing with our friends abroad, the United
States of America is meeting its responsibilities as freedom's home and
defender. And those who serve are showing a watching world the character of
the United States of America. As one general recently put it, "The National
Guard brings the face of all America to the theater." And to see the face
of America is to understand that we are a tremendous force for good in our
world. We're a nation founded on the ideals of liberty, equality, and
justice. We uphold those ideals at home, and we defend those ideals where
they are threatened. Standing here today, in the great American Heartland,
I want to thank each and every one of you for the vital work you do, for
your daily example of skill, and perseverance, and honor. It's a privilege
to be in your company. You've made your fellow citizens extremely proud.
You've reflected enormous credit on Camp Dodge, on the State of Iowa, and
on the United States of America.

Thank you. (Applause.)

END 1:30 P.M. CDT
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