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Skriven 2006-08-14 23:31:16 av Whitehouse Press (1:3634/12.0)
Ärende: Press Release (0608142) for Mon, 2006 Aug 14
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Mrs. Bush's Remarks at a Roskam for Congress Luncheon
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For Immediate Release
Office of the First Lady
August 14, 2006

Mrs. Bush's Remarks at a Roskam for Congress Luncheon
Medinah Banquet
Addison, Illinois



1:09 P.M. CDT

MRS. BUSH: Thank you all very, very much. Thank you for your very warm
welcome. I'm so happy to be with you here today in Illinois, and I want to
thank you, Peter, for your kind introduction. I also want to recognize how
terrific Elizabeth was. Wasn't she great? (Applause.) In the crowd, I want
to recognize Illinois Republican Party National Committeewoman, Mary Jo
Arndt, who is one of my good friends. Mary Jo. (Applause.) I think that the
Mayor of Addison is here, Mayor Larry Hartwig. Is the Mayor here? Oh, there
he is. Thank you, Mayor. (Applause.) And I also want to recognize the
Roskam children -- Gracey and Frankie and Steve and AJ that I met.
(Applause.)

You know, politics really is a family business. Everyone gets involved,
whether they want to or not. It's just a fact of life. When you love
somebody who's running for office, then you want to stand with them and you
want to be with them and help them as much as you possibly can. And when
you run for office, you know that it will affect your family, that you've
subjected your family to criticism that they might not ever hear otherwise
if you didn't have the courage to run. You know they'll hear the person
they love criticized, because that's just a fact of life in politics. And I
think it's really very, very encouraging when we see people who want to be
in politics, who are serving for all the right reasons. And certainly Peter
is one of those people, and it's particularly encouraging that his family
wants to be with him and wants to stand with him. So I want to thank you
all for that. (Applause.)

I'm delighted to be here to support Peter's campaign for the United States
Congress, and I'm delighted that each and every one of you are here, as
well. It's very important that Peter is elected to the United States
Congress.

After 31 years in the House, your great representative, Henry Hyde, leaves
big shoes to fill. But as Congressman Hyde himself has said, Peter is the
right man to fill them.

Peter will bring to Washington the principles of efficiency and
accountability that have defined his time in the State Senate, ensuring
that Illinois tax dollars are spent responsibly. Just like he told you a
second ago, he supports the idea of Presidential Line Item Veto so that we
can really eliminate unnecessary spending from the federal budget.

In Springfield, Peter has opposed tax hikes. He's authored 14 bills to
lower your state taxes, and we know that in the United States House of
Representatives, Peter Roskam will support tax cuts. And the tax cuts are
what fueled our economy. They've helped add 5.5 million new jobs since
2003, and that means 5.5 million people wake up every morning with the
dignity and the sense of purpose that comes with a job.

As your congressman, Peter will carry on the important environmental work
he's doing here in Illinois. In Wheaton, he and Elizabeth actually founded
their hometown's curbside recycling program. And in the State Senate, Peter
has sponsored legislation to increase recycling statewide and improve
energy efficiency.

President Bush and I share Peter's commitment to protect our natural
resources. You all may not actually have heard this, but in June, President
Bush designated the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands as a national monument.
This designation protects 140,000 square miles of Hawaiian waters and the
7,000 marine species that live there, and makes the Northwestern Hawaiian
Islands the largest protected marine area in the world.

And in 2003, President Bush announced the Preserve America Initiative,
which encourages communities to safeguard their natural and historical
treasures. Protecting our environment is one of the most important things
we can do for our children, and for our children's children.

Another important way we can help our young people is by steering them away
from dangerous behaviors and guiding them toward the knowledge and the
self-respect they need to build successful lives.

In his 2005 State of the Union address, President Bush announced the
Helping America's Youth Initiative, and he asked me to lead it. Helping
young people learn to make wise decisions for their lives is at the heart
of Helping America's Youth.

Since the President announced the initiative, I've traveled to many parts
of our country visiting with young people and with the adults who are so
important to their lives. I've been to schools and after-school programs.
I've visited fatherhood initiatives. I've met with mentors and Big Brothers
and Big Sisters. Last year, here, I visited CeaseFire Chicago, where Dr.
Gary Slutkin is trying to make people realize that violence is learned. If
you grow up in a violent behavior, that's what you think is normal. And we
can really let young people know that it isn't, and that we need to do
everything we can to make sure young people have the chance in every single
neighborhood in our country.

All of these visits led to a White House Conference on Helping America's
Youth last October. Since then we've had two regional conferences, one in
Indianapolis and one in Denver Friday, a week ago, where Dr. Slutkin talked
there about this anti-violence program that he has in Chicago. At the
conference, we introduced an online, interactive Community Guide. This
guide will help concerned adults learn more about the problems facing the
children in their communities, and then what their actual assets are, what
resources they have in each one of their communities to address those
problems. The guide is available at the Helping America's Youth website,
www.helpingamericasyouth.gov -- g-o-v, that is. I encourage you to look at
the website and to use the resources that you see there in your own
communities.

Senator Roskam has a long record of commitment to young people. And like he
told you, once he was a school teacher. After graduating from the
University of Illinois, Peter's first job was teaching high school history
and government in the U.S. Virgin Islands. And Peter will also tell you
that it was one of his favorite jobs, and not just because of the location,
either. (Laughter.)

In the State Senate, Peter has strengthened Illinois's education system by
supporting families and teachers. He's authored legislation that doubles
the child tax credit so that families can save more of their earnings for
their children's education. He cosponsored a bill that provides tax relief
to teachers who use their own money to purchase school supplies. And he
supports school employee background checks so that Illinois children will
be safe in their own schools.

We all know, though, that the well-being of families in Illinois and
throughout our country ultimately depends on our government's ability to
protect them -- by defeating terrorism and increasing liberty abroad. Peter
will be a champion of the men and women of the United States military.

Thanks to the men and women in uniform, Afghan women and girls can now be
educated. It's hard for us to imagine a country that would actually forbid
citizens from being educated. But now, little girls are in school all over
Afghanistan.

Recently, President Bush traveled to Baghdad to meet with the Iraqi
government, and then he hosted Prime Minister Maliki at the White House
just a couple of weeks ago. He has pledged that we'll stand with the people
of Iraq as they build their new democracy.

Peter Roskam's dedication to the people of Illinois, and his achievements,
remind us of why he must be elected to the United States Congress. Peter
understands that our country faces challenges too important to be reduced
just to politics.

President Bush has an ambitious agenda for the rest of his time in
Washington, and he takes his responsibility to the American people very
seriously.

Ending our dependence on foreign oil, reforming our immigration system,
rebuilding the Gulf Coast, and keeping our country safe from terror are not
easy tasks, but they're absolutely vital. To accomplish them, we must have
serious national conversations, conducted with civility and respect. And
Peter Roskam will be a thoughtful, positive and powerful part of that
dialogue.

This is just one reason why Peter is a wonderful leader for Illinois. When
you look through his distinguished record of public service, you'll find
many, many more.

Thank you all very, very much for coming out today to support Peter. Thank
you for your generous support for him. I urge you to redouble your efforts
between now and November to make sure Peter Roskam is elected to the United
States Congress. Thank you all very much. (Applause.)

END 1:20 P.M. CDT

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