Text 4080, 144 rader
Skriven 2007-02-19 23:31:06 av Whitehouse Press (1:3634/12.0)
Ärende: Press Release (070219) for Mon, 2007 Feb 19
===================================================

===========================================================================
President Bush Visits Mount Vernon, Honors President Washington's 275th
Birthday on President's Day
===========================================================================

For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
February 19, 2007

President Bush Visits Mount Vernon, Honors President Washington's 275th
Birthday on President's Day
Mansion -- Mount Vernon Estate Mount Vernon, Virginia

President's Remarks

˙˙˙˙˙ 275th Anniversary of the Birth of George Washington ˙˙˙˙˙ George
Washington Biography

10:04 A.M. EST

THE PRESIDENT: Thank you all for coming. Laura and I are honored to be with
you in this historic place, on this special anniversary. I feel right at
home here. After all, this is the home of the first George W. (Laughter.) I
thank President Washington for welcoming us today. He doesn't look a day
over 275 years old. (Laughter.)

We're really glad you're here. I look out and see a lot of the kids who are
here today. (Applause.) When I was your age, I was a little fellow from
Midland, Texas -- (laughter and applause) -- and my grandmother brought me
here. And then Laura and I brought our daughters here. And the reason I
bring this up, this is a good place for Americans to come and bring your
families. And we welcome you here today.

You know, we're celebrating around the country President's Day, but the
folks that work here call it Washington's birthday. (Applause.) We've been
celebrating this holiday for more than two centuries, and this morning we
continue this tradition by honoring a man who was our first President, the
father of our country, and a champion of liberty.

I appreciate Gay Gaines and the -- Regent of Mount Vernon Ladies
Association. I appreciate Jim Rees, who is the Executive Director. I thank
Togo West, who is the Chairman of the Mount Vernon Advisory Committee. I
appreciate the military who have joined us. General, thank you for being
here today with us. I thank the members who work hard to make sure Mount
Vernon is preserved for the future, and I thank all of you all for being
here.

You know, George Washington was born about 80 miles down the river from
Mount Vernon in the year 1732. As a young man, he went West, and explored
the frontier, and it changed his life. As he grew older, he became
convinced that America had a great westward destiny as a nation of free
people, independent of the empires of Europe. George Washington became the
central figure in our nation's struggle for independence. At age 43, he
took command of the Continental Army. At age 51, he was a triumphant hero
of the war. And at age 57, he was the obvious and only choice to be the
first President of the United States.

With the advantage of hindsight, it is easy to take George Washington's
successes for granted and to assume that all those events were destined to
unfold as they did. Well, the truth is far different. America's path to
freedom was long and it was hard. And the outcome was really never certain.
Honoring George Washington's life requires us to remember the many
challenges that he overcame, and the fact that American history would have
turned out very differently without his steady leadership.

On the field of battle, Washington's forces were facing a mighty empire,
and the odds against them were overwhelming. The ragged Continental Army
lost more battles than it won, suffered waves of desertions, and stood on
the brink of disaster many times. Yet George Washington's calm hand and
determination kept the cause of independence and the principles of our
Declaration alive.

He rallied his troops to brilliant victories at Trenton and Princeton. He
guided them through the terrible winter at Valley Forge. And he marched
them to Virginia for the war's final battle at Yorktown. In the end,
General Washington understood that the Revolutionary War was a test of
wills, and his will was unbreakable.

After winning the war, Washington did what victorious leaders rarely did at
the time. He voluntarily gave up power. Many would have gladly made George
Washington the king of America. Yet all he wanted to do was return here to
Mount Vernon, and to be with his loving wife, Martha. As he wrote with
satisfaction to his friend Lafayette, "I am become a private citizen on the
banks of the Potomac, and under the shadow of my own vine and my own fig
tree."

George Washington's retirement did not last long. In the years after the
Revolution, America's freedom was still far from secure. There were
uprisings and revolts. States argued over their borders. And under the
Articles of Confederation, the federal government was virtually powerless.
With the United States in crisis, George Washington was called back to
public life to preside over a Convention of the States. And the result was
the United States Constitution and a new executive office called the
presidency.

When the American people chose Washington for the role, he reluctantly
accepted. He wrote a friend, "My movement to the chair of government will
be accompanied by feelings not unlike those of a culprit who is going to
the place of his execution." George Washington accepted the presidency
because the office needed him, not because he needed the office.

As President, George Washington understood that his decisions would shape
the future of our young nation and set precedent. He formed the first
Cabinet, appointed the first judges, and issued the first veto. He also
helped oversee the construction of a new federal city between the northern
and southern states. The nation's new capital would take his name, and
George Washington hoped it would inspire Americans to put the welfare of
their nation above sectional loyalties.

This son of Virginia had come to see himself first and foremost as an
American, and he urged his fellow citizens to do the same. More than two
centuries later, the story of George Washington continues to bring
Americans together. Every year, about a million people visit Mount Vernon
to learn about this good man's life. We find the best of America in his
spirit, and our highest hopes for ourselves in his character. His honesty
and courage have become the stuff of legend. Children are taught to revere
his name, and leaders to look to him for strength in uncertain times.

George Washington's long struggle for freedom has also inspired generations
of Americans to stand for freedom in their own time. Today, we're fighting
a new war to defend our liberty and our people and our way of life. And as
we work to advance the cause of freedom around the world, we remember that
the father of our country believed that the freedoms we secured in our
revolution were not meant for Americans alone. He once wrote, "My best
wishes are irresistibly excited whensoever in any country I see an
oppressed nation unfurl the banners of freedom."

President Washington believed that the success of our democracy would also
depend on the virtue of our citizens. In his farewell address to the
American people, he said, "Morality is a necessary spring of popular
government." Over the centuries, America has succeeded because we have
always tried to maintain the decency and the honor of our first President.

His example guided us in his time; it guides us in our time, and it will
guide us for all time. Thank you for coming, and may God bless. (Applause.)

END 10:13 A.M. EST

===========================================================================
Return to this article at:
http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2007/02/20070219.html

 * Origin: (1:3634/12)