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Skriven 2005-05-13 23:34:32 av Whitehouse Press (1:3634/12.0)
Ärende: Press Release (0505131) for Fri, 2005 May 13
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Vice President's Remarks at Auburn University Commencement
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For Immediate Release
May 13, 2005

Vice President's Remarks at Auburn University Commencement
Beard Eves Memorial Coliseum
Auburn, Alabama



10:41 A.M. CDT

THE VICE PRESIDENT: Thank you. (Applause.) Well, thank you very much,
Governor. Thank you for your kind introduction and for your service to the
people of Alabama. We miss you in Congress, but I'm sure you don't miss us.
(Laughter.)

President Richardson, trustees, deans, distinguished guests, faculty and
staff, alumni, families, and members of the class of 2005, my thanks to all
of you for the warm welcome this morning. I've been looking forward to
visiting Auburn University, and to sharing this happy occasion with the
graduating seniors. It's a tremendous honor to be here. And I bring
congratulations to each and every one of you from our President, George W.
Bush.

On graduation day I also want to congratulate the men and women who devote
their professional lives to making this institution a place of excellence
and achievement -- the outstanding faculty of Auburn University. And I want
to join the graduates in saying thanks to the people who did so much to
make this day possible, the ones who rooted for you, believed in you,
prayed for you, and paid for you -- the parents of the class of 2005.
(Applause.)

I know you'll always carry with you the Auburn spirit, and fond memories of
your time here. You'll remember the Cater Hall call-outs; the Tiger Walk;
the flight of the Eagle; and the music of the fight song played every day
at noon. You'll remember many challenges as well -- hard work in the
classroom, long nights in the lab or library, and all those hours spent
circling the campus, looking for a place to park. (Laughter.) You'll
remember those special places -- Samford Hall, Jordan-Hare Stadium, the
Concourse, Toomer's Corner, the Supper Club. (Applause.) And you'll
remember your senior year, for the many fine achievements in academics,
research, and athletics, and for a football record of 13 and 0 which sounds
a lot like a national champion to me. (Applause.)

War Eagle.

AUDIENCE: War Eagle!

THE VICE PRESIDENT: In addition, to those of you receiving your bachelor's
degrees this morning, I'm told we have many men and women who have earned
graduate degrees -- including a number who have earned their PhDs Their
presence here reminds me that I was once a PhD candidate myself, and met
all the requirements except for the dissertation. I had trouble coming up
with a topic.

And your final day at Auburn, I imagine you're experiencing a mix of
emotions. There is excitement at setting a high goal and reaching it -- and
then moving forward to new adventures. There is also, perhaps, a bit of
sadness at leaving behind this university, and this very special time in
your lives. But you will always remain part of the Auburn family, and as
the years pass, this university will always give you reason to be proud. In
fact, I've been assured that by next year's May commencement, Auburn will
be 150 years old, and 26 and 0. (Laughter.)

You're graduating this morning from one of our nation's great universities.
This beautiful place in the hills of east Alabama, with its long history
and 12 fine schools and colleges, has had a far-reaching influence on the
life of the state and country; and generations of Auburn graduates have
gone on to lives of great accomplishment in Alabama, and beyond.

I especially want to recognize the tradition of service to community and
country that is fostered here. Members of the Auburn family have
contributed to the defense of this nation in law enforcement, intelligence,
and the armed services. These include many current or former members of the
military, from personnel now on active duty in the Middle East; all the way
up to the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Dick Myers. As we
gather for this ceremony, we are thinking of the men and women in our armed
forces, and we are tremendously proud of their brave service to the United
States. (Applause.)

After putting in these years of hard effort as students at Auburn,
something tells me you're probably not up for another lecture before you
leave, so I'll keep it short. I know that it's the custom for graduation
speakers to draw from their experiences and share some of the lessons
they've learned along the way. So as you begin this new chapter in life,
let me offer a few thoughts of my own.

There is one very practical lesson that comes immediately to mind. As you
might have heard, six months ago I was reelected Vice President of the
United States. And we appreciated having the Auburn University Marching
Band at our Inauguration. But you may recall how I got started on this
journey. It was during the campaign in the year 2000, when then-Governor
Bush of Texas called to ask if I would help him find a running mate to be
his Vice President. The lesson I want to share with you is this: If you
ever get asked to head up an important search committee, say yes.
(Laughter.)

That decision five years ago set me on a path that I was not expecting to
take. I was certain my time in public office had passed. And looking back,
there seems to be a pattern in my life -- the unexpected turns, the
opportunities that come suddenly and change one's plans overnight.

On the day of my own graduation from the University of Wyoming, I had no
ambitions for public office. If you'd asked me at the time what I planned
on doing, I could have described in some detail what my next 10 years would
be like. First there would have been graduate school, then wrapping up that
PhD, and down the road, with some luck, a faculty position at a university.

In the short version, it all worked out very differently. Within a few
years, my wife, Lynne, and I were living in Washington, D.C., beginning a
journey in government and public lives that neither of us ever imagined. We
count ourselves fortunate that things turned out the way they did, and as
you begin your careers I want to encourage all the members of this class to
consider public service. Participating in government, at any level, carries
its own challenges and sacrifices, but the country needs capable men and
women to make that choice. And if you ever hear the call to serve, I hope
you, too, will say yes.

Many of you will leave Auburn today with definite plans of your own. And
setting a plan for your life can be a good thing -- it keeps you focused on
the future, and gives you a standard for measuring your progress. Yet I'll
wager 10 years from now, many of you will find yourselves following a very
different course, all because of an opportunity that came out of the blue.

Be on watch for those certain moments, and certain people, that come along
and point you in a new direction. I think, for example, of the first time I
met my friend and colleague Don Rumsfeld. It was back in the 1960s, when he
was a congressman and I was interviewing for a fellowship on Capitol Hill.
Congressman Rumsfeld agreed to talk to me about the possibility of going to
work for him, but things didn't go all that smoothly, and in about 15
minutes, I found myself back out in the hallway. Don's impression of me was
that I was kind of a detached, impractical, academic type. And I thought he
was a brash young politician with a cocky attitude. And we were both right.
(Laughter.)

We didn't click that day, but a few months down the road it was Don
Rumsfeld who noticed my work and offered me a position in the executive
branch. And later on, when Gerald Ford became President and made Rumsfeld
his Chief of Staff, it was once again Don who gave me a position of great
responsibility in the White House. Standing here today, I can promise that
there will be people like this in your own life -- who keep an eye on you,
and reward your efforts, and help bring out your strengths. Sometimes
others know better than we do just what our talents are, and how we can
best use them. For all the plans we make in life, sometimes life has other
plans for us.

Those of us who've been around a while can also recall a few times when
life took an unexpected turn, not always in a positive direction. As I
mentioned a moment ago, I received my undergraduate degree from the
University of Wyoming. My college experience, though, began at a place
called Yale -- but I didn't finish there. Actually, instead, I dropped out
after a few semesters. Actually, dropped out isn't quite accurate.
(Laughter.) Was "asked to leave" would be more like it. (Laughter.) Twice.
(Laughter.) And the second time around, they said, don't come back.
(Laughter.)

You, too, may face some disappointing turns of your own -- times when you
fall short, knowing you could have done better. And when that happens,
don't give up or let your doubts get the best of you. I have met some very
successful people in my day -- men and women of talent and character who
have risen to the top of their fields. And it's the rare one who hasn't had
a taste of failure, or a false start along the way. Setbacks in life can
stop you dead in your tracks, or they can inspire you forward. Either way,
you will look back on them as turning points. They are crucial days in your
life, when you see the starkest kind of choice, and you know that it
belongs to you alone.

One of the things I love most about our country is that we have such
opportunities. There are places in the world where failure is final, and
one early misstep will decide your fate forever. But America is still the
country of the second chance. Most of us end up needing one. And when
you're gone on to accomplish something, we can be that much more grateful.

Gratitude, in general, is a good habit to get into. It is usually a correct
appraisal of our situation. Most of us are able to succeed and rise in the
world because someone helped out along the way -- whether it was a
memorable teacher, or a boss who handed us a great opportunity, or the
person who took a chance and gave us the first big break in our career. A
grateful heart is an honest understanding of all that we have been given,
and all that is expected in return.

There is always the temptation to forget this -- to carry ourselves with an
air of entitlement, as if good things come to us by right. They rarely do.
And life has a way of working out better when we don't take things for
granted, when we have a long memory of what others have given us, when we
look for the blessings, great and small, that come with every day we're
alive on this Earth.

For all of you, this day in the Coliseum at Auburn will forever stand out
-- as a marker of gifts well used, aspirations fulfilled, and hard work
rewarded. It's been my privilege to share it with you and your families.
And once again, my congratulations to you all. Good luck and Godspeed to
the Auburn University Class of 2005. (Applause.)

END 10:54 A.M. CDT
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