Georgia mortgage quote

April 1, 2004

Thank you all very much. Thanks for the warm welcome. Whew! [Laughter] Go 'ahead and have a seat. Thank you. I am honored you all are here. I appreciate such a warm welcome. It's good to be with so many friends from the NRCC. By ensuring that we have a Republican majority in the House, you're helping our confident and hopeful agenda; that's what you're doing. You've had great success in the last couple of years. And all of us who represent the people are grateful for your hard work.

As a former House candidate--[laughter]--I have tremendous respect for anybody who runs for the Congress. My campaign back in 1978 in the 19th Congressional District didn't turn out the way I hoped. As a matter of fact, walking in here, I saw the guy who beat me. [Laughter] There he is. [Laughter] I had a great time, though. It was really an interesting campaign. I was campaigning right after Laura and I got married, so it was like an extended honeymoon. [Laughter] We learned a lot about each other as we drove across west Texas. Laura likes to say I even convinced her to vote for me. [Laughter] Unfortunately, I didn't convince enough people. [Laughter] I put my political career on hold for about 15 years, but I like to think things worked out all right.

This year, I'm looking forward to campaigning with a man who did win in his race for the Congress in i978 and five times after that. Dick Cheney was a fine United States Congressman from Wyoming. He was by far the best Congressman from Wyoming. [Laughter] Dick Cheney is the finest Vice President our Nation has ever had, and I'm proud to have him on the ticket with me. When Dick came to Congress, the House held 277 Democrats and only 158 Republicans. Things are a lot different today, and the country is better off for it.

Thanks to your generosity and hard work, we have a strong Republican majority. And with your help, we intend to increase the Republican majority in 2004. Mr. Speaker, I can't tell you what a joy it is to work with you. Denny Hastert is solid as a rock. He's a man of his word. He's a kind and decent person. He's a man of enormous accomplishment. Denny Hastert needs to remain the Speaker of the House of Representatives for the good of the country.

I wasn't Denny's first choice to speak here; Laura was. [Laughter] Mr. Speaker, she sends her love to you and to 'all our friends out here. By the way, Laura is a fabulous First Lady for our country.

I appreciate Congressman Tom Reynolds, the chairman of the NRCC. Thank you, Tommy, for your good work. The chairman of the spring dinner is Congressman Jerry Lewis from California. Jerry, you did a fabulous job. Thank you, sir.

I'm proud of the job my fellow Texan is doing as the majority leader of the House of Representatives, Tom DeLay. He's a great majority leader. We enjoy working with the whip, Roy Blunt from Missouri, who is doing a good job of counting those votes.

I see the conference chair is with us tonight, Congresswoman Deborah Pryce from Ohio. Thank you for coming. The vice chair, Jack Kingston from Georgia, is with us tonight. Jack, thank you. The conference secretary, Congressman John Doolittle from California; Congressman Chris Cox, the policy chair from California, is with us as well. Thank you, Chris.

And finally, the only other Congressman I'm going to mention tonight is my friend from Texas. He's about as fine a Congress- man as you'll find. I'm proud to call him friend, and that's Congressman Ralph Hall.

I appreciate Angela Pregano-Knight for sharing her talents tonight, singing the national anthem. What a beautiful person, and with a great voice. And finally, Timmy Kelly is here with us. And Timmy, thanks for singing "God Bless America," and I'm glad you're here. Thanks for bringing your morn and dad with you as well.

I finally got an opponent. [Laughter] He's an experienced Senator. He's built up quite a record. He's been here in Washington so long, he's taken both sides of just about every issue. [Laughter] Senator Kerry voted for the PATRIOT Act, for NAFTA, for the No Child Left Behind Act, and for the use of force in Iraq. Now he opposes the PATRIOT Act, NAFTA, the No Child Left Behind Act, and the liberation of Iraq. He's been on both sides of many big issues. If he could find a third side, I'd imagine he'd take that one too. [Laughter] Someone asked my opponent why he had voted against the $87 billion funding bill to help our troops in Iraq. Here's what he said: "I actually did vote for the $87 billion, before I voted against it.'" [Laughter] End of quote. [Laughter] Sure clears things up, doesn't it? [Laughter]

What is going to be clear is that the voters have a clear choice this year. It's a choice between keeping the tax relief that the Congress passed, tax rebel that is moving this economy forward, or putting the burden of higher taxes back on the American people. It is a choice between an America that leads the world with strength and confidence or an America that is uncertain in the face of danger. And I look forward to making these choices clear to the American people.

I'm ready for this campaign. I'll remind the people that working with the United States Congress, under Speaker Hastert's leadership, we've achieved great things in the past 3 years. I'll also remind them that we have a positive vision, a hopeful vision, an optimistic vision for the years ahead; a positive vision for winning the war on terror and extending peace and freedom throughout the world; a positive vision for creating jobs and promoting opportunity and compassion here at home. We will leave no doubt where we stand, and we will win on November the 2d of this year.

The last 3 years have brought serious challenges, and working with the Congress, we've given serious answers.

When we came to office, the stock market was in decline and the economy was headed into a recession. But we acted. We worked together. We delivered historic tax relief, and now our economy is the fastest growing of any major industrialized nation in the world.

We had to confront corporate crimes that cost people their jobs and their savings, so we worked with the United States Congress and passed strong corporate reforms and made it clear that we will not tolerate dishonesty in the boardrooms of America.

We saw war and grief arrive on a quiet September morning, so we pursued the terrorist enemy across the world. We've captured or killed many key leaders of the Al Qaida network, and the rest will learn there is no cave or hole deep enough to hide from American justice.

Working with the Congress, we confronted the dangers of state-sponsored terror and the spread of weapons of mass destruction. So we ended two of the most violent and dangerous regimes on Earth. We freed over 50 million people, and once again America is proud to lead the armies of liberation.

When the Vice President and I came to Washington, we found a military that was underfunded and underappreciated, so we worked with this Congress and this leadership to give our military the resources and respect they deserve. And today, no one can question the skill and the strength and the spirit of the United States military.

It is the President's job to confront problems, not pass them on to future Presidents and future generations. A President needs to step up and make the hard decisions and keep his commitments, and that is how I will continue to lead our great country.

Great events will turn on this election. The man who sits in the Oval Office and the man who is the Speaker of the House will set the course of the war on terror and the direction of our economy. Security and the prosperity of America are at stake. The other side hasn't offered much in the way of strategies to win the war or policies to expand our economy. So far, all we hear is partisan anger, loud words. Anger is not an agenda for the future of America. We'll take on the big issues with optimism and resolve and determination, and we will make it clear that we stand ready to lead this Nation for 4 more years.

A big issue for every family in America is the Federal tax burden. Because of the leadership of Denny Hastert and Members of the United States Congress, we passed the largest tax relief since Ronald Reagan was the President. We have left more money in the hands that earned it. By spending and investing and helping create new jobs, American people have used their money far better than the Federal Government would have.