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President's Remarks at Victory 2004 Rally in St. Cloud, Minnesota

Dick Putz Field

St. Cloud, Minnesota 9:47 A.M. CDT THE PRESIDENT: Thank you all. (Applause.) Thank you all forcoming. I'm honored to be here in St. Cloud. I understand I am the --(applause.) I understand I am the first sitting President --(applause.) I am glad I came, and the other Presidents missed a lot.(Applause.) Thanks for coming out today. It's such an honor to behere. I really want to thank you for being here. A little early inthe morning, I know. (Laughter.) It seems like I provided a prettygood excuse for some kids to miss school. (Applause.) Don't make ahabit of it. (Laughter.) I'll tell you what I'm doing. We're taking a bus trip across yourbeautiful state. I'm asking for the vote. That's what I'm doingtoday. I'm here to tell you in St. Cloud, I want your vote.(Applause.) And I'm asking for your help. I know we've got a lot ofpeople working hard here to register voters. Keep doing it. See, wehave a duty in this country to participate in the elections, is what Ibelieve we have. And I'm asking you to find people and register themto vote. And when you're registering people to vote, don't overlookdiscerning Democrats, people like Zell Miller. (Applause.) And thenwhen you get people registered to vote, head them to the polls. Andwhen you get them headed to the polls, tell them, if they want a saferAmerica, a stronger America, a better America, to put me and DickCheney back in office. (Applause.) So I told Laura I was going to St. Cloud. She said, telleverybody, "Hi.". (Applause.) I wish she were here. I know -- I loveLaura, too. (Laughter.) She is a great mother, a wonderful wife. Youknow, when I married her, or asked her to marry me, she was a publicschool librarian in Texas. She said, fine, I'll marry you, just, Idon't want to give any political speeches. I said, okay, you won'thave to give any speeches. Fortunately, she didn't hold me to thatpromise. (Laughter.) She is a great speaker, because she is acompassionate, decent soul. I'm going to give you some reasons to putme back in today, but perhaps the most important one of all is so thatLaura is First Lady for four more years. (Applause.) I'm proud of my running mate, Dick Cheney. Admittedly, he doesn'thave the waviest hair in the race. (Laughter.) I didn't pick himbecause of his hair. I picked him because he's a man of greatexperience, sound judgment, and he's a man who can get the job done.(Applause.) I appreciate working with Mark Kennedy. He's a fine member of theUnited States Congress. He's a good fellow. (Applause.) Every time Isee him, he says, "Don't forget those Minnesota farmers." (Applause.)As you can tell by some ag prices, we haven't. I appreciate your governor, Tim Pawlenty. He's a fine man, too.(Applause.) I'm honored. Norman Coleman is not with us, but I tellyou, he's a good one for the United States Senate. I'm proud to workwith him. (Applause.) I want to thank all the other state and localofficials who are here. I want to thank John Stone. I appreciate hiscountry music songs he sings. I'm honored that he has joined ustoday. I want to thank my friend, Lieutenant Colonel Joe Repya. He runsthe veterans program for this campaign. First of all, I want to thankall the veterans who are here. I appreciate your strong support.(Applause.) And I want to thank my friend, Joe, for his leadership.He's scheduled to deploy to Iraq soon, and of course, Joe, you'll be inour prayers, and we appreciate your service. I know Coach John is with us today, the great coach from St. John'sUniversity. (Applause.) We had him to the White House a while ago,and it was such an honor to receive such a class act. He is awonderful man. He's got a great family. He lifts everybody'sspirits. And I'm proud to have him on my team. Coach John, thanks forcoming. (Applause.) I want to thank the grassroots activists. Those are the people whoput up the signs and make the phone calls and turn out the vote. Ican't thank you enough for what you have done. And I'm going to thankyou for what you're going to do, and that is, keep working, because I'mgoing to be working right alongside of you. I want to win. And I knowwe are going to win. (Applause.) I like getting out with the people. I like to get out and tellpeople where I stand, what I believe and where I'm going to lead thisnation for the next four years. I believe every child can learn, andevery school must teach. I went to Washington to challenge the softbigotry of low expectations. I thought it was wrong to shufflechildren through the schools, grade after grade, year after year,without teaching the basics. So we increased federal help, but we alsoare now measuring. And we're measuring so we can determine problemsearly before they're too late. (Drop in feed) -- schools. We'reclosing an achievement gap in America, and we are not turning back.(Applause.) I believe we have a moral responsibility to honor our seniors withgood health care. I went to Washington to fix problems, not pass themon to future Presidents. (Applause.) Medicare needed to bestrengthened. People say, what do you mean by that. I'll tell youwhat I mean. Medicare would pay $100,000 or so for heart surgery, butit would not pay for the prescription drugs necessary to prevent theheart surgery from not being needed. It didn't make any sense, did it,not to pay drugs that would stop the heart surgery from being needed,and yet pay for the heart surgery? I worked with Republicans and Democrats; we're modernizingMedicare. Prescription drugs will be available for our seniors. Andwe're not turning back. (Applause.) I believe in the energy and innovation, the spirit of our farmers,workers, small business owners. And that's why we unleashed thatenergy with the largest tax relief in a generation. (Applause.)Listen, when you're out gathering the vote, remind people what we havebeen through. We have been through a recession. We've been throughcorporate scandals, and that affected economic growth, by the way. Andsecondly, we passed laws, tough laws -- it's now abundantly clear toeverybody in America, we're not going to tolerate dishonesty in theboardrooms of America. (Applause.) And the attacks on September the11th hurt us. They hurt our economy. But our economy is strong andit's getting stronger. We're overcoming these obstacles. You tell folks out there that our economy is growing at rates asfast as any in nearly 20 years, that we've added 1.7 million new jobssince August of last year, that the national unemployment rate is 5.4percent, below the average rate of the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s.(Applause.) The unemployment rate in your great state is 4.4 percent.(Applause.) This economy is strengthening, and we're not turningback. I believe the most solemn duty of the American President is toprotect the American people. If America shows uncertainty and weaknessin this decade, the world will drift toward tragedy. This isn't goingto happen on my watch. (Applause.) I'm running for President with aclear and positive plan to build a safer world and a more hopefulAmerica. I'm running with a compassionate conservative philosophy thatgovernment should help people improve their lives, not try to run theirlives. (Applause.) I believe this nation wants steady, consistent,principled leadership. And that is why, with your help, we're going tocarry Minnesota and win a great victory in November. (Applause.) Listen, the world in which we live is changing. Think about howmuch it's changed since our dads and granddads' generations startedworking. I mean, it used to be the man worked outside the home, andone job, one career, had one pension plan, one health care account.Today people oftentimes change jobs and careers. The most fundamentalshift in the work force has been women work both inside the home andoutside the home now. And yet, the fundamental systems of ourgovernment have not changed. See, the tax code and health coverage andpension plans and worker training were created for yesterday, nottomorrow. In a new term, I will work to transform these systems, sothat all our citizens are equipped, prepared, and thus truly free tomake your own choices, so you can pursue the great promise of ourcountry. Any hopeful society requires a growing economy. And I've got aplan to keep this economy moving forward. To create more jobs inAmerica, America must be the best place in the world to do business.(Applause.) We need to reduce the burden of regulation on smallbusiness owners if we want to keep this economy growing. (Applause.)We need to stop junk lawsuits if we want to keep this economy growing.(Applause.) To make sure this country's economy is strong and people can findwork at home, Congress needs to pass my energy plan. It's a plan thatencourages conservation, it's a plan that uses biodiesel and ethanol.It's a plan that says we can burn our coal cleaner and explore fornatural resources in an environmentally friendly way. But it's a planthat understands that in order to keep America's economy strong, wemust be less dependent on foreign sources of energy. (Applause.) To keep this economy strong, we've got to have good agriculturepolicy. I worked to phase out the death tax, so families can passtheir farm from one generation to the next. (Applause.) We're workingwith our farmers and ranchers on the conservation reserve program, sowe can improve land, protect wildlife and help our farmers. We've gota dairy policy that treats all people equally across this country. And to make sure our farm economy is strong, we're going tocontinue to open up markets around the world. See, here's the issuewhen it comes to trade -- we've opened up our markets for foreigngoods, and it's good for you to do so. If you're a consumer, and youhave more choices, you're likely to get that which you want at a betterprice and higher quality, with more products available. And so what I'm telling you is, is that we're going to continue tosay to countries like China: You treat us the way we treat you. See,we can compete with anybody, anytime, anywhere, so long as the rulesare fair. (Applause.) In order to make sure this economy grows, we've got to be wiseabout how we spend your money and keep your taxes low. (Applause.)Taxes are an issue in this campaign. See, they're an issue because I'mrunning against a fellow who has already promised over $2 trillion ofnew federal spending. AUDIENCE: Booo! THE PRESIDENT: And so they said, how are you going to pay forit? And he said, well, that's easy, I'm just going to tax the rich.We've heard that before, haven't we? (Laughter.) First of all, youcan't raise enough money by taxing the rich to pay for $2.2 trillionworth of new programs. There's a tax gap. Guess who's going to getstuck if he has his way? The other thing about the language, "taxing the rich," is the richhire lawyers and accountants for a reason, so you get stuck with thetab. We're not going to let him tax you. We're going to win inNovember. (Applause.) AUDIENCE: Four more years! Four more years! Four more years! THE PRESIDENT: This tax code of ours -- we need to change the taxcode of ours. It's a complicated mess. It's full of all kinds ofspecial interest loopholes. You realize the tax code is over a millionwords long. That's why Americans spend about 6 billion hours annuallytrying to fill out the tax returns. Listen, we need to simplify thetax code. To keep this economy growing, we need to simplify the taxcode. To treat our citizens fairly, we need to simplify the tax code.In a new term, I'm going to bring Republicans and Democrats together tochange the tax code for the good. (Applause.) A changing world is one in which the jobs -- the nature of the jobschange. See, look at your own community. Look at the health careindustry -- it's changing, the workforce. But oftentimes our workersdon't have the skills necessary to fill the jobs of the 21st century.In order to keep jobs here at home, we've got to help our workers gainthe skills they need to fill the jobs. That's why I'm such a bigbacker in the community college system. I believe we ought to makecommunity colleges more accessible for worker training programs, and wewill do so. I also recognize most new jobs are filled with people with at leasttwo years of college. Yet only one in four of our students getsthere. That's why I believe we ought to fund early interventionprograms at our high schools to help at-risk students. I know we needto emphasize math and science in our high schools. Over time we willrequire a rigorous exam before graduation from our high schools. Byraising performance in our high schools and expanding Pell grants forlow and middle-income families, we will help more Americans start theircareer with a college diploma. (Applause.) In a time of change, we've got to also reform our health caresystems. Health care costs are rising rapidly, they're burdening oureconomy, they're leaving too many people uninsured. I have acommon-sense, practical plan to make high-quality health care moreaffordable and more accessible. When it comes to health care, we havea difference of opinion -- and it's a big difference of opinion in thiscampaign. My opponent wants government to dictate. I want you todecide when it comes to health care. (Applause.) More than half of the Americans who are currently uninsured aresmall business employees and their families. I want to change law toallow small firms to pool together so they can purchase insurance atthe same discounts that big companies can purchase insurance.(Applause.) My opponent opposes this plan. He calls it association healthplans, and he opposes them. He says that health plans such at these,association health plans, would hurt consumers. No, what hurtsconsumers is not having health insurance. What hurts consumers issmall businesses don't have the same advantages that big businesseshave. Under my plan the same laws that protect workers at largecompanies will protect consumers at small companies. It is time tostop the excuses. It is time to act to give more Americans qualityhealth insurance coverage. (Applause.) We need to expand tax-free health savings accounts. These areimportant for our consumers. These are tax-free way to save for yourown health care needs. Small businesses will be given tax credits thatencourage them to put money into health savings accounts for theiremployees. We want more people to have their health savings accounts.So they make decisions based on the advice of their doctor -- notsomebody working at a distant HMO. In order to make sure health careis available and affordable, we need to expand community health centersall across our country. These are places where the indigent and poorcan find preventative care, and primary care help. In order to makesure health care is available and affordable, we're going to spreadhealth information technology throughout our society. In order to make sure health care is available and affordable, weneed to do something about the junk lawsuits that are running good docsout of business and running up the costs of health care. (Applause.)I hear from people everywhere I go about the problems of the junklawsuits. I hear from OB/GYNs how hard it is to practice theirprofession. I hear from pregnant women who are worried about the factthey can't find a good doc. See, I don't think you can be pro-doctorand pro-patient and pro-trial lawyer at the same time. (Laughter.) Ithink you have to choose. My opponent has made his choice and he put atrial lawyer on the ticket. I made my choice: I am for medicalliability reform -- now. (Applause.) See, I think the problem in this campaign that my opponent has isthat it's a plan that is massive and it's big and it puts thegovernment in control of health care. And you can tell it's massive bythe price tag. This week an independent group estimated the cost ofSenator Kerry's plan would be $1.5 trillion -- that's trillion with aT. (Laughter.) And that's big even for a senator from Massachusetts.(Laughter.) The only possible way for him to pay for this plan is totax you. The other problem is that it expands the government. See, I'mgoing to give you an example. His plan will crowd out private healthinsurance, giving businesses an incentive to drop the health care plansthey currently provide. That's the reality of expanding Medicaidcoverage. A recent study showed that the plan would cause 8 millionlow to moderate income workers to lose private health coverage theycurrently get at work and be placed on Medicaid. Now, here's theproblem with that: Medicaid is a government program. And when thegovernment is in charge, bureaucrats make the decisions, deciding whatdoctors you can see and what health services are covered. That's theexact opposite of what we believe. I believe that when we reform andstrengthen health care, the health decisions must be made by doctorsand patients, not by bureaucrats in Washington, D.C. (Applause.) In changing times, it helps to promote -- it helps families topromote ownership. If you own something, it brings stability in yourlife. During my administration, the home ownership rates in Americaare at an all-time high. More and more people are owning their ownhome. It's a fantastically hopeful sign for our country when peopleare opening the front door where they live saying, welcome to my house,welcome to my piece of property. (Applause.) Over the next years,we'll continue to expand ownership to every corner of America to helpour families bring stability in times of change. And we've got to understand our retirement systems need to bestrengthened. If you're a Social Security recipient, nothing is goingto change. I don't care how hot the political rhetoric gets, you'resafe. Nothing changes. There's ample money in the Social Securitytrust to take care of you. For baby boomers like me, there's money inthe trust to take care of us. But we need to think about our childrenand our grandchildren when it comes to Social Security. And I believe,in order to strengthen Social Security for the young, they must beallowed to take some of their tax money and set up a personal account,a personal savings account that strengthens Social Security, a personalsavings account they call their own, and a personal savings accountthat government cannot take away. (Applause.) Listen, we have a difference of philosophy in this campaign. It'sa clear difference. My opponent's programs will expand government.Our programs will expand opportunity. And I believe that is necessarybecause I trust the American people. I trust the American people tomake the right decision with their own money. I trust the Americanpeople to make the right decisions about schools. I trust the Americanpeople to make the right decisions about their health care plans. Itrust the American people, and the government must do so, as well.(Applause.) There are some things in this world that aren't going to change.In changing times, values matter. (Applause.) The values we try tolive by -- courage, compassion, reverence and integrity -- will providestability in changing times. In changing times we'll support theinstitutions that give our lives direction and purpose -- our families,our schools, our religious congregations. We stand for a culture oflife in which every person matters and every being counts.(Applause.) We stand for marriage and family, which are thefoundations of our society. (Applause.) We stand for the appointmentof federal judges who know the difference between personal opinion andthe strict interpretation of the law. (Applause.) This election will also determine how America responds to thecontinuing danger of terrorism. Since the terrible morning ofSeptember the 11th, 2001, we fought the terrorists across the Earth --not for pride, not for power, but because the lives of our citizens areat stake. Our strategy is clear -- we're defending the homeland, we'retransforming our military, we're strengthening the intelligenceservices. We're staying on the offensive. We're striking theterrorists abroad, so we do not have to face them here at home.(Applause.) We'll work to advance liberty around the world, in the broaderMiddle East and elsewhere, and we'll prevail. We will prevail. Ourstrategy is succeeding, it's succeeding. Four years ago, Afghanistanwas the home base of al Qaeda, Pakistan was a transit point forterrorists, Saudi Arabia was fertile ground for fund-raising for theterrorists, Libya was pursuing -- secretly pursuing nuclear weapons,Iraq was a gathering threat, al Qaeda was largely unchallenged as itplanned attacks. Because we acted, because we led, the government of a freeAfghanistan is fighting terror, Pakistan is capturing terroristleaders, Saudi Arabia is making raids and arrests, Libya is dismantlingits weapons programs, the army of a free Iraq is fighting for freedom,and more than three-quarters of al Qaeda's key leaders and associateshave been brought to justice. (Applause.) We have led, many havejoined, and America and the world are safer. (Applause.) This progress involved careful diplomacy, clear moral purpose, andsome tough decisions. And the toughest came on Iraq. We knew SaddamHussein's record of aggression, and his support for terror. We knewhis long history of pursuing and even using weapons of massdestruction. We knew he was the sworn enemy of America, and we knewthat after September the 11th our country must think differently. Wemust take threats seriously, before they fully materialize.(Applause.) In Saddam Hussein, we saw a threat. I went to the United StatesCongress. They looked at the same intelligence I looked at. Theyremembered the same history I remembered. And they came to theconclusion that I came to: Saddam Hussein was a threat. And theyvoted to authorize the use of force. My opponent looked at the same intelligence. And when they said,show of hands for the authorization of force, he said, yes. Before theCommander-in-Chief commits troops into harm's way, we must try alloptions. I was hoping diplomacy would work. I went to the UnitedNations. The United Nations looked at the same intelligence I lookedat. They concluded Saddam Hussein was a threat. They voted by 15 tonothing in the U.N. Security Council for Saddam Hussein to disclose,disarm or face serious consequences. I believe when bodies saysomething, they better mean it. I believe when a President speaks, hebetter mean what he says. (Applause.) Saddam Hussein ignored the demands of the free world again. As hehad for over a decade, he wasn't interested in what the free world hadto say. As a matter of fact, he systematically deceived inspectorsthat were sent into his country. So I have a choice to make at thispoint in time, diplomacy isn't working. Do I forget the lessons ofSeptember the 11th and trust a madman, or do I take action to defendthis country? Given that choice, I will defend America every time.(Applause.) Because we acted to defend ourselves, because we acted in our selfinterest, more than 50 million people in Iraq and Afghanistan are nowfree. (Applause.) Fifty million people. You know, it wasn't all thatlong ago in Afghanistan where young girls won't allowed to go to schoolbecause the Taliban was so backward and so barbaric that they wouldn'tallow for education for young kids; that their mothers were taken tothe public square and whipped sometimes in sports stadiums and killed,because they wouldn't toe their line. Today, over 10 million citizens -- three short years after theTaliban has been removed -- 10 million citizens, 41 percent of whom arewomen, have registered to vote in the upcoming presidential elections.(Applause.) It's unbelievable. In Iraq, there's ongoing acts of violence. This country is headedtoward democracy. There's a strong Prime Minister in place. They havea national council. And national elections are scheduled for January.It wasn't all that long ago that Saddam Hussein was in power with historture chambers and mass graves. And today, this country is headedtowards elections. Freedom is on the march. And that helps us in America because freesocieties don't export terror. Free societies are hopeful societies,which leads to peace. Free societies will join us in fighting theterrorists, instead of harboring them. No, we're standing with thepeople of Afghanistan and Iraq -- it's not only in our self-interest todo so, but when America gives its word, America will keep its wordunder my administration. (Applause.) Our mission is clear in Afghanistan and Iraq. We'll help these newleaders to train their armies so citizens of Afghanistan and Iraq cando the hard work of protecting their people against a few who would tryto destroy the hopes of the many. We'll help them get theirelections. We'll get them on the path of stability and democracy asquickly as possible, and then our troops will return home with thehonor they have earned. (Applause.) We've got a great military. I'm incredibly proud of the men andwomen who wear our nation's uniform. I've traveled around our country,at bases here; and I've been overseas and seen them at bases overseas,I'm telling you these troops are fantastic. They are people of greatcourage and decency. The cause of freedom is in really good hands.(Applause.) And they deserve the full support of our government. I made acommitment that we'll give the troops that which they need in order tocomplete their missions. That's why last September I went to theCongress and asked for $87 billion in funding for body armor, and spareparts, ammunition, fuel -- supplies needed for troops in combat in bothAfghanistan and in Iraq. And we received great support for thatrequest. Matter of fact, the support was so strong that only 12members of the United States Senate voted against the funding request-- two of whom are my opponent and his running mate. AUDIENCE: Booo! THE PRESIDENT: When you're out gathering the vote, when you're outgathering the vote, remind your fellow citizens that only four UnitedStates senators voted to authorize the use of force and then votedagainst funding our troops -- only four -- two of whom are my opponentand his running mate. They asked him, said, why did you do that vote?He said, well, I actually did vote for the $87 billion right before Ivoted against it. (Laughter.) Yes. I don't know here on the townsquare of St. Cloud whether many people talk that way. (Laughter.) Idoubt it. They then said -- well, he's -- kept pressing. He said he's proudof the vote. And he -- finally, he just said, it's a complicatedmatter. That's nothing complicated about supporting our troops incombat. (Applause.) Knowing what I know today, even though we haven't found thestockpiles of weapons we thought were there, I'd have still made thesame decision. America and the world are safer with Saddam Husseinsitting in a prison cell. (Applause.) I would have made the samedecision because he had the capability of making weapons and he couldhave passed that capability on to an enemy. I would have made thatsame decision because I'll never forget the lessons of September the11th, 2001. (Applause.) Now, during the course of this campaign, the fellow I'm runningagainst has probably had about eight positions on Iraq -- for the warbut wouldn't provide the funding; then he was the anti-war candidate;then he said, knowing everything we know today, I'd have done -- didthe same thing; then he said, well, we're spending too much money --that's after he said we weren't spending enough money. (Laughter.)And so yesterday in a radio interview, he tried to clear things up. Hesaid, there were no circumstances -- none -- under which we should havegone to war. Although he said, his own vote to go to war was the rightvote, and it was right to hold Saddam Hussein accountable.(Laughter.) The radio interviewer concluded, I can't tell you what hesaid. (Laughter.) Let me be clear: Mixed signals are the wrongsignals to send to our troops in the field, the Iraqi people, to ourallies, and -- most of all -- to our enemies. (Applause.) It is critical -- AUDIENCE: Four more years! Four more years! Four more years! THE PRESIDENT: It is critical -- it is critical that the Presidentof the United States speaks clearly and consistently at this time ofgreat threat in the world and not change positions because ofexpediency or pressure. (Applause.) I appreciate the contributions our friends and allies have made inour efforts. We work hard to convince people to join us -- about 40nations involved in Afghanistan, and some 30 nations are involved inIraq. I speak to leaders of those countries often and thank them forthe contributions their folks have made to help us. It's in theirinterests that they work to make the world a freer place and a morepeaceful place. In the next years, I'll continue to work to buildalliances. But I will never turn over America's national securitydecisions to leaders of other countries. (Applause.) At the heart of my policy is my deep belief in the transformationalpower of liberty to change the world. The wisest use of Americanstrength is to advance freedom. I spend time with Prime MinisterKoizumi, the Prime Minister of Japan. It wasn't all that long ago thatwe were at war with Japan. If you really think about it, in the longmarch of history, it really wasn't all that long ago that Japan was asworn enemy. My dad fought against the Japanese. I'm sure your dads,granddads, loved ones did the same thing. Yet after World War II was over, my predecessor, Harry Truman,citizens of this country had great faith in the ability of liberty totransform an enemy into a friend. And so they worked with Japan tobuild a democracy. There was a lot of skeptics during then. You canunderstand why. We're trying to help an enemy grow into a democracy.People couldn't fathom that the people -- the country with whom we wereat war could conceivably be an ally. And yet, because we had greatfaith in the ability of liberty to transform countries, I today sit atthe table with Prime Minister Koizumi talking about the peace we allwant, talking about making sure this world is a more peaceful place. See, I believe that millions in the Middle East want liberty, thatin their silence, they -- they want there to be a free society. Ibelieve women in the great Middle East long to be able to realize theirhopes and aspirations in a free society. I believe in freedom. Ibelieve in the transformational power of liberty because freedom is notAmerica's gift to world, see? That's not what I'm telling you. Ibelieve in the transformational power of liberty because freedom is thealmighty God's gift to each man and women in this world. (Applause.) This young century will be liberty's century. By promoting freedomat home and abroad, we'll build a safer world, and a more hopefulAmerica. By reforming our systems of government, we will help morepeople in our country realize their dreams. We will spread ownershipand opportunity to every corner of the country. We will pass theenduring values of our country on to a new generation. We willcontinue to lead the cause of freedom and peace. For all Americans these years in our history will always standapart. There are quiet times in the life of a nation when little isexpected of its leaders. This isn't one of those times. This is atime that requires firm resolve, clear vision, and a deep faith in thevalues that make this a great nation. (Applause.) None of us -- none of us will ever forget that week when one eraended and another began. September the 14th, 2001, I stood in theruins of the Twin Towers. It's a day I'll never forget. There wereworkers in hard hats there yelling at the top of their lungs, "Whateverit takes." You know, I'm doing my best to console these -- thank thesefolks that had been in the rubble looking for a buddy. A guy grabbedme by the arm, he looked me right in the eye, and he said, "Don't letme down." Ever since that day, I wake up thinking about how to betterprotect our country. I will never relent in defending America,whatever it takes. (Applause.) Four years ago, when I traveled your beautiful state, asking forthe vote, I made a pledge that said if I -- if you gave me the chanceto serve, I would uphold the honor and the dignity of the office towhich I had been elected. With your help, with your hard work, I willdo so for four more years. (Applause.) God bless. Thank you all for coming. Thank you all for beinghere. (Applause.) Now you can tell them a sitting President came toSt. Cloud Minnesota. (Applause.) Thank you all. (Applause.) END 10:30 A.M. 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