"After standing on the stage,
after the debates, I made it very plain, we will not have an all-volunteer
army. And yet, this week—we will have an all-volunteer army. Let me restate
that."—Daytona Beach, Fla., Oct. 16, 2004
"The CIA laid out several
scenarios and said life could be lousy, life could be OK, life could be
better, and they were just guessing as to what the conditions might be
like."—New York, Sept. 21, 2004
"Free societies are hopeful
societies. And free societies will be allies against these hateful few who have
no conscience, who kill at the whim of a hat."—Washington, D.C., Sept. 17,
2004 (Thanks to David Stanford.)
"That's why I went to the
Congress last September and proposed fundamental—supplemental funding, which is
money for armor and body parts and ammunition and fuel."—Erie, Pa., Sept.
4, 2004
"Too many good docs are
getting out of the business. Too many OB/GYN's aren't able to practice their
love with women all across the country."—Sept. 6, 2004, Poplar Bluff, Mo.
"They've seen me make
decisions, they've seen me under trying times, they've seen me weep, they've
seen me laugh, they've seen me hug. And they know who I am, and I believe
they're comfortable with the fact that they know I'm not going to shift principles
or shift positions based upon polls and focus groups." —Interview with USA
Today, Aug. 27, 2004
"I didn't join the
International Criminal Court because I don't want to put our troops in the
hands of prosecutors from other nations. Look, if somebody has done some wrong
in our military, we'll take care of it. We got plenty of capability of dealing
with justice."—Niceville, Fla., Aug. 10, 2004
"So community colleges are
accessible, they're available, they're affordable, and their curriculums don't
get stuck. In other words, if there's a need for a certain kind of worker, I
presume your curriculums evolved over time."—Niceville, Fla., Aug. 10,
2004
"Tribal sovereignty means
that, it's sovereign. You're a—you've been given sovereignty, and you're viewed
as a sovereign entity. And, therefore, the relationship between the federal
government and tribes is one between sovereign entities."—Washington,
D.C., Aug. 6, 2004
"Secondly, the tactics of
our—as you know, we don't have relationships with Iran. I mean, that's—ever
since the late '70s, we have no contacts with them, and we've totally
sanctioned them. In other words, there's no sanctions—you can't—we're out of
sanctions."—Annandale, Va., Aug. 9, 2004
"I mean, if you've ever been
a governor of a state, you understand the vast potential of broadband
technology, you understand how hard it is to make sure that physics, for
example, is taught in every classroom in the state. It's difficult to do. It's,
like, cost-prohibitive."—Washington, D.C., June 24, 2004 (Thanks to Michael
Shively.)
"Our enemies are innovative
and resourceful, and so are we. They never stop thinking about new ways to harm
our country and our people, and neither do we."—Washington, D.C., Aug. 5,
2004 (Thanks to Alicia Butler.)
"And I am an optimistic person.
I guess if you want to try to find something to be pessimistic about, you can
find it, no matter how hard you look, you know?"—Washington, D.C., June
15, 2004 (Thanks to Robert Irwin.)
"[A] free Iraq is essential
to our respective securities."—Washington, D.C., June 1, 2004
"I want to thank my friend,
Sen. Bill Frist, for joining us today. … He married a Texas girl, I want you to
know. (Laughter.) Karyn is with us. A West Texas girl, just like
me."—Nashville, Tenn., May 27, 2004
"I'm honored to shake the
hand of a brave Iraqi citizen who had his hand cut off by Saddam
Hussein."—Washington, D.C., May 25, 2004
"This has been tough weeks in
that country."—Washington, D.C., April 13, 2004 (Thanks to David
Huddleston.)
"[B]y the way, we rank 10th
amongst the industrialized world in broadband technology and its availability.
That's not good enough for America. Tenth is 10 spots too low as far as I'm
concerned."—Minneapolis, Minn., April 26, 2004
"My job is to, like, think
beyond the immediate."—Washington, D.C., April 21, 2004
"This is historic
times."—New York, N.Y., April 20, 2004
"Obviously, I pray every day
there's less casualty."—Fort Hood, Texas, April 11, 2004 (Thanks to Pat
Gallagher.)
"Recession means that
people's incomes, at the employer level, are going down, basically, relative to
costs, people are getting laid off."—Washington, D.C., Feb. 19, 2004
(Thanks to Garry Trudeau.)
"God loves you, and I love
you. And you can count on both of us as a powerful message that people who
wonder about their future can hear."—Los Angeles, Calif., March 3, 2004
(Thanks to Tanny Bear.)
"The march to war affected
the people's confidence. It's hard to make investment. See, if you're a small
business owner or a large business owner and you're thinking about investing,
you've got to be optimistic when you invest. Except when you're marching to
war, it's not a very optimistic thought, is it? In other words, it's the
opposite of optimistic when you're thinking you're going to war."
—Springfield, Mo., Feb. 9, 2004 (Thanks to Garry Trudeau.)
"See, one of the interesting
things in the Oval Office—I love to bring people into the Oval Office—right
around the corner from here—and say, this is where I office, but I want you to
know the office is always bigger than the person."—Washington, D.C., Jan.
29, 2004 (Thanks to Michael Shively.)
"More Muslims have died at
the hands of killers than—I say more Muslims—a lot of Muslims have died—I don't
know the exact count—at Istanbul. Look at these different places around the
world where there's been tremendous death and destruction because killers
kill."—Washington, D.C., Jan. 29, 2004 (Thanks to Michael Shively.)
"In an economic recession,
I'd rather that in order to get out of this recession, that the people be
spending their money, not the government trying to figure out how to spend the
people's money."—Tampa, Fla., Feb. 16, 2004
"King Abdullah of Jordan, the
King of Morocco, I mean, there's a series of places—Qatar, Oman—I mean, places
that are developing—Bahrain—they're all developing the habits of free
societies."—Washington, D.C., Jan. 29, 2004
"But the true strength of
America is found in the hearts and souls of people like Travis, people who are
willing to love their neighbor, just like they would like to love
themselves."—Springfield, Mo., Feb. 9, 2004 (Thanks to George Dupper.)
"My views are one that speaks
to freedom."—Washington, D.C., Jan. 29, 2004
"In my judgment, when the
United States says there will be serious consequences, and if there isn't
serious consequences, it creates adverse consequences."
"There is no such thing
necessarily in a dictatorial regime of iron-clad absolutely solid
evidence. The evidence I had was the best possible evidence that he had a
weapon."
"The recession started upon
my arrival. t could have been—some say February, some say March, some
speculate maybe earlier it started—but nevertheless, it happened as we showed
up here. The attacks on our country affected our economy. Corporate scandals
affected the confidence of people and therefore affected the economy. My
decision on Iraq, this kind of march to war, affected the economy."—Meet
the Press, Feb. 8, 2004
"I was a prisoner too, but
for bad reasons."—To Argentine President Nestor Kirchner, on being told
that all but one of the Argentine delegates to a summit meeting were imprisoned
during the military dictatorship, Monterrey, Mexico, Jan. 13, 2004
"[T]he illiteracy level of
our children are appalling."—Washington, D.C., Jan. 23, 2004 (Thanks to
Lewell Gunter.)
"Just remember it's the birds
that's supposed to suffer, not the hunter."—Advising quail hunter and New
Mexico Sen. Pete Domenici, Roswell, N.M., Jan. 22, 2004
"One of the most meaningful
things that's happened to me since I've been the governor—the
president—governor—president. Oops. Ex-governor. I went to Bethesda Naval
Hospital to give a fellow a Purple Heart, and at the same moment I watched
him—get a Purple Heart for action in Iraq—and at that same—right after I gave
him the Purple Heart, he was sworn in as a citizen of the United States—a
Mexican citizen, now a United States citizen."—Washington, D.C., Jan. 9,
2004
"I want to thank the
astronauts who are with us, the courageous spacial entrepreneurs who set such a
wonderful example for the young of our country."—Washington, D.C., Jan.
14, 2004
"And if you're interested in
the quality of education and you're paying attention to what you hear at Laclede,
why don't you volunteer? Why don't you mentor a child how to read?"—St.
Louis, Mo., Jan. 5, 2004
"So thank you for reminding
me about the importance of being a good mom and a great volunteer as
well."—St. Louis, Jan. 5, 2004
"I want to remind you all that
in order to fight and win the war, it requires an expenditure of money that is
commiserate with keeping a promise to our troops to make sure that they're
well-paid, well-trained, well-equipped."
"See, without the tax relief package, there would have been a deficit, but
there wouldn't have been the commiserate—not 'commiserate'—the kick to our
economy that occurred as a result of the tax relief."
"[T]he best way to find these terrorists who hide in holes is to get
people coming forth to describe the location of the hole, is to give clues and
data."
"Justice was being delivered to a man who defied that gift from the
Almighty to the people of Iraq."—Washington, D.C., Dec. 15, 2003
"[A]s you know, these are
open forums, you're able to come and listen to what I have to
say."—Washington, D.C., Oct. 28, 2003
"The ambassador and the
general were briefing me on the—the vast majority of Iraqis want to live in a
peaceful, free world. And we will find these people and we will bring them to
justice."—Washington, D.C., Oct. 27, 2003 (Thanks to Robert Hack.)
"[W]hether they be Christian,
Jew, or Muslim, or Hindu, people have heard the universal call to love a
neighbor just like they'd like to be called
themselves."—Washington, Oct. 8, 2003 (Thanks to George Dupper.)
"See, free nations are
peaceful nations. Free nations don't attack each other. Free nations don't
develop weapons of mass destruction."—Milwaukee, Wis., Oct. 3, 2003
"[W]e've had leaks out of the
administrative branch, had leaks out of the legislative branch, and out of the
executive branch and the legislative branch, and I've spoken out consistently
against them, and I want to know who the leakers are."—Chicago, Sept.
30, 2003
"Washington is a town where
there's all kinds of allegations. You've heard much of the allegations. And if
people have got solid information, please come forward with it. And that would
be people inside the information who are the so-called anonymous sources, or
people outside the information—outside the administration."—Chicago, Sept.
30, 2003 (Thanks to Andy Bowers.)
"[T]hat's just the nature of
democracy. Sometimes pure politics enters into the rhetoric."—Crawford,
Texas, Aug. 8, 2003 (Thanks to Inigo Thomas.)
"I glance at the headlines
just to kind of get a flavor for what's moving. I rarely read the stories, and
get briefed by people who are probably read the news
themselves."—Washington, D.C., Sept. 21, 2003
"I'm so pleased to be able to
say hello to Bill Scranton. He's one of the great Pennsylvania political
families."—Drexel Hill, Penn., Sept. 15, 2003 (Thanks to Michael Shively.)
"We had a good Cabinet
meeting, talked about a lot of issues. Secretary of State and Defense brought
us up to date about our desires to spread freedom and peace around the
world."—Washington, D.C., Aug. 1, 2003 (Thanks to Tanny Bear.)
"Security is the essential
roadblock to achieving the road map to peace."—Washington, D.C., July 25,
2003
"Our country puts $1 billion
a year up to help feed the hungry. And we're by far the most generous nation in
the world when it comes to that, and I'm proud to report that. This isn't a
contest of who's the most generous. I'm just telling you as an aside. We're
generous. We shouldn't be bragging about it. But we are. We're very
generous."—Washington, D.C., July 16, 2003
"It's very interesting when
you think about it, the slaves who left here to go to America, because of their
steadfast and their religion and their belief in freedom, helped change
America."—Dakar, Senegal, July 8, 2003 (Thanks to Michael Shively.)
"My answer is bring them
on."—On Iraqi militants attacking U.S. forces, Washington, D.C., July 3,
2003
"You've also got to measure
in order to begin to effect change that's just more—when there's more than
talk, there's just actual—a paradigm shift."—Washington, D.C., July 1,
2003 (Thanks to Michael Shively.)
"I urge the leaders in Europe
and around the world to take swift, decisive action against terror groups such
as Hamas, to cut off their funding, and to support—cut funding and support, as
the United States has done."—Washington, D.C., June 25, 2003
"Iran would be dangerous if
they have a nuclear weapon."—Washington, D.C., June 18, 2003
"Now, there are some who
would like to rewrite history—revisionist historians is what I like to call
them."—Elizabeth, N.J., June 16, 2003
"I am determined to keep the
process on the road to peace."—Washington, D.C., June 10, 2003 (Thanks to
Tanny Bear.)
"The true strength of America
happens when a neighbor loves a neighbor just like they'd like to be loved
themselves."—Elizabeth, N.J., June 16, 2003
"We are making steadfast
progress."—Washington, D.C., June 9, 2003 (Thanks to Michael Shively.)
"I'm the master of low
expectations."—Aboard Air Force One, June 4, 2003
"I'm also not very
analytical. You know I don't spend a lot of time thinking about myself, about
why I do things."—Aboard Air Force One, June 4, 2003
"I recently met with the
finance minister of the Palestinian Authority, was very impressed by his grasp
of finances."—Washington, D.C., May 29, 2003
"Oftentimes, we live in a
processed world—you know, people focus on the process and not
results."—Washington, D.C., May 29, 2003
"I've got very good relations
with President Mubarak and Crown Prince Abdallah and the King of Jordan, Gulf
Coast countries."—Washington, D.C., May 29, 2003
"All up and down the
different aspects of our society, we had meaningful discussions. Not only in
the Cabinet Room, but prior to this and after this day, our secretaries,
respective secretaries, will continue to interact to create the conditions
necessary for prosperity to reign."—Washington, D.C., May 19, 2003
"First, let me make it very
clear, poor people aren't necessarily killers. Just because you happen to be
not rich doesn't mean you're willing to kill."—Washington, D.C., May 19,
2003
"We ended the rule of one of
history's worst tyrants, and in so doing, we not only freed the American
people, we made our own people more secure."—Crawford, Texas, May 3, 2003
(Thanks to Tony Marciniec.)
"We've had a great weekend
here in the Land of the Enchanted."—Albuquerque, N.M., May 12, 2003 (New
Mexico's state nickname is "Land of Enchantment.")
"We've got hundreds of sites
to exploit, looking for the chemical and biological weapons that we know Saddam
Hussein had prior to our entrance into Iraq."—Santa Clara, Calif., May 2,
2003 (Thanks to Michael Shively.)
"I think war is a dangerous
place."—Washington, D.C., May 7, 2003
"I don't bring God into my
life to—to, you know, kind of be a political person."—Interview with Tom
Brokaw aboard Air Force One, April 24, 2003
"You're free. And freedom is
beautiful. And, you know, it'll take time to restore chaos and order—order out
of chaos. But we will."—Washington, D.C., April 13, 2003
"Perhaps one way will be, if
we use military force, in the post-Saddam Iraq the U.N. will definitely need to
have a role. And that way it can begin to get its legs, legs of responsibility
back."—the Azores, Portugal, March 16, 2003
"I know there's a lot of
young ladies who are growing up wondering whether or not they can be champs.
And they see the championship teams from USC and University of Portland here,
girls who worked hard to get to where they are, and they're wondering about the
example they're setting. What is life choices about?"—Washington, D.C.,
Feb. 24, 2003
"Now, we talked to Joan
Hanover. She and her husband, George, were visiting with us. They are near
retirement—retiring—in the process of retiring, meaning they're very smart,
active, capable people who are retirement age and are
retiring."—Alexandria, Va., Feb. 12, 2003 (Thanks to Dennis Doubleday.)
"Columbia carried in
its payroll classroom experiments from some of our students in
America."—Bethesda, Md., Feb. 3, 2003
"And, most importantly, Alma
Powell, secretary of Colin Powell, is with us."—Washington, D.C., Jan. 30,
2003
"The war on terror involves
Saddam Hussein because of the nature of Saddam Hussein, the history of Saddam
Hussein, and his willingness to terrorize himself."—Grand Rapids, Mich.,
Jan. 29, 2003
"When Iraq is liberated, you
will be treated, tried, and persecuted as a war criminal."—Washington,
D.C., Jan. 22, 2003 (Thanks to Chad Conwell.)
"Many of the punditry—of
course, not you (laughter)—but other punditry were quick to say, no one is
going to follow the United States of America."—Washington, D.C., Jan. 21,
2003
"One year ago today, the time
for excuse-making has come to an end."—Washington, D.C., Jan. 8, 2003
"I think the American
people—I hope the American–I don't think, let me—I hope the American people
trust me."—Washington, D.C., Dec. 18, 2002
"The goals for this country
are peace in the world. And the goals for this country are a compassionate
American for every single citizen. That compassion is found in the hearts and
souls of the American citizens."—Washington, D.C., Dec. 19, 2002 (Thanks
to Michael Shively.)
"There's only one person who
hugs the mothers and the widows, the wives and the kids upon the death of their
loved one. Others hug but having committed the troops, I've got an additional
responsibility to hug and that's me and I know what it's
like."—Washington, D.C., Dec. 11, 2002
"In other words, I don't
think people ought to be compelled to make the decision which they think is
best for their family."—Washington, D.C., Dec. 11, 2002 (Thanks to
Stephanie Nichols.)
"Sometimes, Washington is one
of these towns where the person—people who think they've got the sharp elbow is
the most effective person." —New Orleans, Dec. 3, 2002 (Thanks to Michael
Shively.)
"The law I sign today directs
new funds and new focus to the task of collecting vital intelligence on
terrorist threats and on weapons of mass production."—Washington, D.C.,
Nov. 27, 2002
"These people don't have
tanks. They don't have ships. They hide in caves. They send suiciders
out."—Speaking about terrorists, Portsmouth, N.H., Nov. 1, 2002
"I know something about being
a government. And you've got a good one."—Stumping for Gov. Mike Huckabee,
Bentonville, Ark., Nov. 4, 2002
"I need to be able to move
the right people to the right place at the right time to protect you, and I'm
not going to accept a lousy bill out of the United Nations Senate."—South
Bend, Ind., Oct. 31, 2002
"John Thune has got a
common-sense vision for good forest policy. I look forward to working with him
in the United Nations Senate to preserve these national heritages."
"Any time we've got any kind
of inkling that somebody is thinking about doing something to an American and
something to our homeland, you've just got to know we're moving on it, to
protect the United Nations Constitution, and at the same time, we're protecting
you."—Aberdeen, S.D., same day (Thanks to George Dupper.)
"Let me tell you my thoughts
about tax relief. When your economy is kind of ooching along, it's important to
let people have more of their own money."—Boston, Oct. 4, 2002
"I was proud the other day
when both Republicans and Democrats stood with me in the Rose Garden to
announce their support for a clear statement of purpose: you disarm, or we
will."—Speaking about Saddam Hussein, Manchester, N.H., Oct. 5, 2002
(Thanks to George Dupper.)
"You see, the Senate wants to
take away some of the powers of the administrative branch."—Washington,
D.C., Sept. 19, 2002
"We need an energy bill that
encourages consumption."—Trenton, N.J., Sept. 23, 2002
"People say, how can I help
on this war against terror? How can I fight evil? You can do so by mentoring a
child; by going into a shut-in's house and say I love you."—Washington,
D.C., Sept. 19, 2002
"I'm plowed of the leadership
of Chuck Grassley and Greg Ganske and Jim Leach."—Davenport, Iowa, Sept.
16, 2002
"There's an old saying in
Tennessee—I know it's in Texas, probably in Tennessee—that says, fool me once,
shame on—shame on you. Fool me—you can't get fooled again."—Nashville,
Tenn., Sept. 17, 2002
"There's no doubt in my mind
that we should allow the world worst leaders to hold America hostage, to
threaten our peace, to threaten our friends and allies with the world's worst
weapons."—South Bend, Ind., Sept. 5, 2002
"If you don't have any
ambitions, the minimum-wage job isn't going to get you to where you want to
get, for example. In other words, what is your ambitions? And oh, by the way,
if that is your ambition, here's what it's going to take to achieve
it."—Speech to students in Little Rock, Ark., Aug. 29, 2002 (Thanks to
George Dupper.)
"See, we love—we love
freedom. That's what they didn't understand. They hate things; we love things.
They act out of hatred; we don't seek revenge, we seek justice out of
love."—Oklahoma City, Aug. 29, 2002
"There's no cave deep enough
for America, or dark enough to hide."—Oklahoma City, Aug. 29, 2002
(Thanks to Michael Shively.)
"President Musharraf, he's
still tight with us on the war against terror, and that's what I
appreciate. He's a—he understands that we've got to keep al-Qaida on the
run, and that by keeping him on the run, it's more likely we will bring him to
justice."—Ruch, Ore., Aug. 22, 2002 (Thanks to Scott Miller.)
"I'm a patient man. And when
I say I'm a patient man, I mean I'm a patient man."
"Nothing he [Saddam Hussein]
has done has convinced me—I'm confident the Secretary of Defense—that he is the
kind of fellow that is willing to forgo weapons of mass destruction, is willing
to be a peaceful neighbor, that is—will honor the people—the Iraqi people of
all stripes, will—values human life. He hasn't convinced me, nor has he
convinced my administration."—Crawford, Texas, Aug. 21, 2002
"I'm thrilled to be here in
the bread basket of America because it gives me a chance to remind our fellow
citizens that we have an advantage here in America—we can feed
ourselves."—Stockton, Calif., Aug. 23, 2002 (Thanks to Christopher Baird.)
"There's no bigger task than
protecting the homeland of our country."
"The federal government and
the state government must not fear programs who change lives, but must welcome
those faith-based programs for the embetterment of mankind."—Stockton,
Calif., Aug. 23, 2002 (Thanks to George Dupper.)
"I love the idea of a school in
which people come to get educated and stay in the state in which they're
educated."
"There may be some tough
times here in America. But this country has gone through tough times before,
and we're going to do it again."
"I promise you I will listen
to what has been said here, even though I wasn't here."
"I can assure you that, even
though I won't be sitting through every single moment of the seminars, nor will
the vice president, we will look at the summaries."
"Tommy [Thompson, Health and
Human Services secretary,] is a good listener, and he's a pretty good actor,
too."
"The trial lawyers are very
politically powerful. … But here in Texas we took them on and got some good
medical—medical malpractice.""I firmly believe the death tax is good
for people from all walks of life all throughout our society."
—Waco, Texas, Aug. 13, 2002
"There was no malfeance
involved. This was an honest disagreement about accounting procedures. ...
There was no malfeance, no attempt to hide anything."—White House press
conference, Washington, D.C., July 8, 2002
"I also understand how tender
the free enterprise system can be."—White House press conference,
Washington, D.C., July 9, 2002
"Over 75 percent of white
Americans own their home, and less than 50 percent of Hispanos and African
Americans don't own their home. And that's a gap, that's a homeownership gap.
And we've got to do something about it."—Cleveland, Ohio, July 1, 2002
"Whether you're here by
birth, or whether you're in America by choice, you contribute to the vitality
of our life. And for that, we are grateful."—Washington, D.C., May
17, 2002
"I'd rather have them
sacrificing on behalf of our nation than, you know, endless hours of testimony
on congressional hill."—National Security Agency, Fort Meade, Maryland,
June 4, 2002
"We're working with
Chancellor Schröder on what's called 10-plus-10-over-10: $10 billion from the
U.S.,$10 billion from other members of the G7 over a 10-year period, to help
Russia securitize the dismantling—the dismantled nuclear
warheads."—Berlin, Germany, May 23, 2002
"Do you have blacks,
too?"—To Brazilian President Fernando Cardoso, Washington, D.C., Nov. 8,
2001
"This is a nation that loves
our freedom, loves our country."—Washington, D.C, May 17, 2002
"The public education system
in America is one of the most important foundations of our democracy. After
all, it is where children from all over America learn to be responsible
citizens, and learn to have the skills necessary to take advantage of our
fantastic opportunistic society."—Santa Clara, Calif., May 1, 2002
"After all, a week ago, there
were—Yasser Arafat was boarded up in his building in Ramallah, a building full
of, evidently, German peace protestors and all kinds of people. They're now
out. He's now free to show leadership, to lead the world."—Washington,
D.C., May 2, 2002 (Thanks to M. Bateman.)
"This foreign policy stuff is
a little frustrating."—as quoted by the New York Daily News,
April 23, 2002
"I want to thank the dozens
of welfare to work stories, the actual examples of people who made the firm and
solemn commitment to work hard to embetter themselves."—Washington, D.C.,
April 18, 2002 (Thanks to George Dupper.)
"And so, in my State of the—my
State of the Union—or state—my speech to the nation, whatever you want to call
it, speech to the nation—I asked Americans to give 4,000 years—4,000 hours over
the next—the rest of your life—of service to America. That's what I asked—4,000
hours." —Bridgeport, Conn., April 9, 2002
"It would be a mistake for
the United States Senate to allow any kind of human cloning to come out of that
chamber."—Washington, D.C., April 10, 2002
"For a century and a half
now, America and Japan have formed one of the great and enduring alliances of
modern times."—Tokyo, Japan, Feb. 18, 2002
"We've tripled the amount of
money—I believe it's from $50 million up to $195 million available."—Lima,
Peru, March 23, 2002
"We've got pockets of
persistent poverty in our society, which I refuse to declare defeat—I mean, I
refuse to allow them to continue on. And so one of the things that we're
trying to do is to encourage a faith-based initiative to spread its wings all
across America, to be able to capture this great compassionate
spirit."—O'Fallon, Mo., Mar. 18, 2002
"There's nothing more deep
than recognizing Israel's right to exist. That's the most deep thought of all.
... I can't think of anything more deep than that right."—Washington,
D.C., March 13, 2002
"I understand that the unrest
in the Middle East creates unrest throughout the region."—Washington,
D.C., March 13, 2002
"The suicide bombings have
increased. There's too many of them."—Albuquerque, N.M., Aug. 15, 2001
"Brie and
cheese."—Taunting a reporter who recently spent time on the West Coast,
Crawford, Texas, Aug. 23, 2001
"You'll hear people say it's
racist to test. Folks, it's racist not to test. Because guess who gets shuffled
through the system oftentimes? Children whose parents don't speak English as a
first language, inner-city kids. It's so much easier to quit on somebody than
to remediate."—Referring to his education bill, Independence, Mo., Aug.
21, 2001 (Thanks to Julie Reagan.)
"One of the interesting
initiatives we've taken in Washington, D.C., is we've got these vampire-busting
devices. A vampire is a—a cell deal you can plug in the wall to charge your
cell phone."—Denver, Aug. 14, 2001
"There's a lot of people in
the Middle East who are desirous to get into the Mitchell process. And—but
first things first. The—these terrorist acts and, you know, the responses have
got to end in order for us to get the framework—the groundwork—not framework,
the groundwork to discuss a framework for peace, to lay the—all
right."—Referring to former Sen. George Mitchell's report on Middle East
peace, Crawford, Texas, Aug. 13, 2001 (Thanks to Michael Shively.)
"My administration has been
calling upon all the leaders in the—in the Middle East to do everything they
can to stop the violence, to tell the different parties involved that peace
will never happen."—Crawford, Texas, Aug, 13, 2001 (Thanks to Michael
Shively.)
"You saw the president
yesterday. I thought he was very forward-leaning, as they say in diplomatic
nuanced circles."—Referring to his meeting with Russian President Vladimir
Putin, Rome, July 23, 2001 (Thanks to Alex Hernandez.)
''I know what I believe. I will
continue to articulate what I believe and what I believe—I believe what I
believe is right."—Rome, July 22, 2001
"I can't tell you what it's
like to be in Europe, for example, to be talking about the greatness of
America. But the true greatness of America are the people."—Visiting the
Jefferson Memorial, Washington, D.C., July 2, 2001
"Well, it's an unimaginable
honor to be the president during the Fourth of July of this country. It
means what these words say, for starters. The great inalienable rights of
our country. We're blessed with such values in America. And I—it's—I'm a
proud man to be the nation based upon such wonderful values."—Visiting the
Jefferson Memorial, Washington, D.C., July 2, 2001
"I want to thank you for
coming to the White House to give me an opportunity to urge you to work with
these five senators and three congressmen, to work hard to get this trade
promotion authority moving. The power that be, well most of the power that be,
sits right here."—Washington, D.C., June 18, 2001
"We spent a lot of time
talking about Africa, as we should. Africa is a nation that suffers from
incredible disease."—Gothenburg, Sweden, June 14, 2001
"I haven't had a chance to
talk, but I'm confident we'll get a bill that I can live with if we
don't."—Referring to the McCain-Kennedy patients' bill of rights,
Brussels, Belgium, June 13, 2001
"Can't living with the bill
means it won't become law."—Referring to the McCain-Kennedy patients' bill
of rights, Brussels, Belgium, June 13, 2001
"Russia is no longer our
enemy and therefore we shouldn't be locked into a Cold War mentality that says
we keep the peace by blowing each other up. In my attitude, that's old, that's
tired, that's stale."—Des Moines, Iowa, June 8, 2001
"Anyway, I'm so thankful, and
so gracious—I'm gracious that my brother Jeb is concerned about the hemisphere
as well."—Miami, Fla., June 4, 2001
"It's important for young men
and women who look at the Nebraska champs to understand that quality of
life is more than just blocking shots."—Remarks to the University of Nebraska
women's volleyball team, the 2001 national champions, Washington, D.C., May 31,
2001
"Our nation must come
together to unite."—Tampa, Fla., June 4, 2001
"So on behalf of a well-oiled
unit of people who came together to serve something greater than themselves,
congratulations."—Remarks to the University of Nebraska women's volleyball
team, the 2001 national champions, Washington, D.C., May 31, 2001
"If a person doesn't have the
capacity that we all want that person to have, I suspect hope is in the far
distant future, if at all."—Remarks to the Hispanic Scholarship Fund
Institute, Washington, D.C., May 22, 2001
"Thirdly, the explorationists
are willing to only move equipment during the winter, which means they'll be on
ice roads, and remove the equipment as the ice begins to melt, so that the
fragile tundra is protected."—Conestoga, Pa., May 18, 2001
"Presidents, whether things
are good or bad, get the blame. I understand that."—Washington, D.C., May
11, 2001 (Thanks to Jay Schlossberg.)
"For every fatal shooting,
there were roughly three non-fatal shootings. And, folks, this is unacceptable
in America. It's just unacceptable. And we're going to do something about
it."—Philadelphia, May 14, 2001 (Thanks to John Brooks.)
"There's no question that the
minute I got elected, the storm clouds on the horizon were getting nearly
directly overhead."—Washington, D.C., May 11, 2001
"But I also made it clear to
[Vladimir Putin] that it's important to think beyond the old days of when we
had the concept that if we blew each other up, the world would be
safe."—Washington, D.C., May 1, 2001 (Thanks to Gene Mosher.)
"Whatever it took to help
Taiwan defend theirself."—On how far we'd be willing to go to defend
Taiwan, Good Morning America, April 25, 2001
"First, we would not accept a
treaty that would not have been ratified, nor a treaty that I thought made sense
for the country."—On the Kyoto accord in an interview with the Washington
Post, April 24, 2001
"It's very important for
folks to understand that when there's more trade, there's more
commerce."—Quebec City, Canada, April 21, 2001
"Neither in French nor in
English nor in Mexican."—Declining to answer reporters' questions at the
Summit of the Americas, Quebec City, Canada, April 21, 2001
"We must have the attitude
that every child in America—regardless of where they're raised or how they're
born—can learn."—New Britain, Conn., April 18, 2001 (Thanks to Eric
Beerbohm.)
"It is time to set aside the
old partisan bickering and finger-pointing and name-calling that comes from
freeing parents to make different choices for their children."—Remarks on
"parental empowerment in education," Washington, D.C., April 12, 2001
(Thanks to J.R. Taylor.)
I think we're making progress. We
understand where the power of this country lay. It lays in the hearts and souls
of Americans. It must lay in our pocketbooks. It lays in the willingness for
people to work hard. But as importantly, it lays in the fact that we've got
citizens from all walks of life, all political parties, that are willing to
say, I want to love my neighbor. I want to make somebody's life just a little
bit better."—Concord Middle School, Concord, N.C., April 11, 2001
"This administration is doing
everything we can to end the stalemate in an efficient way. We're making the
right decisions to bring the solution to an end."—Washington, D.C., April
10, 2001
"The Senate needs to leave
enough money in the proposed budget to not only reduce all marginal rates, but
to eliminate the death tax, so that people who build up assets are able to
transfer them from one generation to the next, regardless of a person's
race."—Washington, D.C., April 5, 2001
"It would be helpful if we
opened up ANWR (Arctic National Wildlife Refuge). I think it's a mistake not
to. And I would urge you all to travel up there and take a look at it, and you
can make the determination as to how beautiful that country is."—Press
conference, Washington, D.C., March 29, 2001
"I've coined new words, like,
misunderstanding and Hispanically."—Radio-Television Correspondents
Association dinner, Washington, D.C., March 29, 2001
"And we need a full affront
on an energy crisis that is real in California and looms for other parts of our
country if we don't move quickly."—Press conference, Washington, D.C.,
March 29, 2001
"I assured the prime
minister, my administration will work hard to lay the foundation of peace in
the Middle—to work with our nations in the Middle East, give peace a chance.
Secondly, I told him that our nation will not try to force peace, that we'll
facilitate peace and that we will work with those responsible for a
peace."—Photo opportunity with Ariel Sharon, Washington, D.C., March 20,
2001 (Thanks to Scott Beber.)
"There are some monuments
where the land is so widespread, they just encompass as much as possible. And
the integral part of the—the precious part, so to speak—I guess all land is
precious, but the part that the people uniformly would not want to spoil, will
not be despoiled. But there are parts of the monument lands where we can
explore without affecting the overall environment."—Media round table,
Washington, D.C. March 13, 2001
"A lot of times in the
rhetoric, people forget the facts. And the facts are that thousands of small
businesses—Hispanically owned or otherwise—pay taxes at the highest marginal
rate."—to the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce; Washington, D.C., March 19,
2001
"But the true threats to
stability and peace are these nations that are not very transparent, that hide
behind the—that don't let people in to take a look and see what they're up to.
They're very kind of authoritarian regimes. The true threat is whether or not
one of these people decide, peak of anger, try to hold us hostage, ourselves;
the Israelis, for example, to whom we'll defend, offer our defenses; the South
Koreans."—Media roundtable, Washington, D.C., March 13, 2001 (Thanks to
Peter Sagal)
"I do think we need for a
troop to be able to house his family. That's an important part of building
morale in the military."—Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida, March 12, 2001
"I suspect that had my dad
not been president, he'd be asking the same questions: How'd your meeting go
with so-and-so? … How did you feel when you stood up in front of the people for
the State of the Union Address—state of the budget address, whatever you call
it."—Interview with the Washington Post, March 9, 2001
"I think there is some
methodology in my travels." —Washington, D.C., March 5, 2001
"I'm also honored to be here
with the speaker of the House—just happens to be from the state of Illinois.
I'd like to describe the speaker as a trustworthy man. He's the kind of fellow
who says when he gives you his word he means it. Sometimes that doesn't happen
all the time in the political process."—Chicago, March 6, 2001 (Thanks to
Gary Belkin.)
"Ann and I will carry out
this equivocal message to the world: Markets must be open."—Swearing-in
ceremony for Secretary of Agriculture Ann Veneman, Washington, D.C., March 2,
2001
"Of all states that
understands local control of schools, Iowa is such a state."—Council
Bluffs, Iowa, Feb. 28, 2001 (Thanks to Peter Sagal)
"Those of us who spent time
in the agricultural sector and in the heartland, we understand how unfair the
death penalty is."—Omaha, Neb., Feb. 28, 2001
"My pan plays down an
unprecedented amount of our national debt."—Budget address to Congress,
Feb. 27, 2001
"The budget caps were busted,
mightily so. And we are reviewing with people like Judd Gregg from New
Hampshire and others some budgetary reform measures that will reinstate—you
know, possibly reinstate budgetary discipline. But the caps no longer—the caps,
I guess they're there. But they didn't mean much."—Washington, D.C., Feb.
5, 2001 (Thanks to Ehren Meditz)
"I have said that the
sanction regime is like Swiss cheese—that meant that they weren't very
effective."—White House press conference, Washington, D.C., Feb. 22, 2001
"You teach a child to read,
and he or her will be able to pass a literacy test.''—Townsend, Tenn., Feb. 21,
2001
"Home is important. It's
important to have a home."—Crawford, Texas, Feb. 18, 2001
"One reason I like to
highlight reading is, reading is the beginnings of the ability to be a good
student. And if you can't read, it's going to be hard to realize dreams; it's
going to be hard to go to college. So when your teachers say, read—you ought to
listen to her."—Nalle Elementary School, Washington, D.C., Feb 9, 2001
"It's good to see so many
friends here in the Rose Garden. This is our first event in this beautiful
spot, and it's appropriate we talk about policy that will affect people's lives
in a positive way in such a beautiful, beautiful part of our national—really,
our national park system, my guess is you would want to call
it."—Washington, D.C., Feb. 8, 2001
"We're concerned about AIDS
inside our White House—make no mistake about it."—Washington, D.C., Feb.
7, 2001
"I appreciate that question
because I, in the state of Texas, had heard a lot of discussion about a
faith-based initiative eroding the important bridge between church and
state."—Question and answer session with the press, Jan. 29, 2001 (Thanks
to Tim Santry.)
"I confirmed to the prime
minister that we appreciate our friendship."—After meeting with Prime
Minister Jean Chrétien of Canada, Feb. 5, 2001
"There's no such thing as
legacies. At least, there is a legacy, but I'll never see it."—To Catholic
leaders at the White House, Jan. 31, 2001
"I am mindful not only of
preserving executive powers for myself, but for predecessors as
well."—Washington, D.C., Jan. 29, 2001
"My pro-life position is I
believe there's life. It's not necessarily based in religion. I think there's a
life there, therefore the notion of life, liberty and pursuit of
happiness."—Quoted in the San Francisco Chronicle, Jan. 23, 2001
"Then I went for a run with
the other dog and just walked. And I started thinking about a lot of things. I
was able to—I can't remember what it was. Oh, the inaugural speech, started
thinking through that."—Pre-inaugural interview with U.S. News &
World Report, Jan. 22, 2001 issue
"Redefining the role of the
United States from enablers to keep the peace to enablers to keep the peace
from peacekeepers is going to be an assignment."—Interview with the New
York Times, Jan. 14, 2001 (Thanks to Rachael Contorer.)
"The California crunch really
is the result of not enough power-generating plants and then not enough power
to power the power of generating plants."—Interview with the New York
Times, Jan. 14, 2001
"I'm hopeful. I know there is
a lot of ambition in Washington, obviously. But I hope the ambitious realize
that they are more likely to succeed with success as opposed to
failure."—Interview with the Associated Press, Jan. 18, 2001 (Thanks
to M. Bateman.)
"If he's—the inference is
that somehow he thinks slavery is a—is a noble institution I would—I would
strongly reject that assumption—that John Ashcroft is a open-minded, inclusive
person."—NBC Nightly News With Tom Brokaw, Jan. 14, 2001
"She's just trying to make
sure Anthony gets a good meal—Antonio."—On Laura Bush inviting Justice
Antonin Scalia to dinner at the White House. NBC Nightly News With
Tom Brokaw, Jan. 14, 2001
"I want it to be said that
the Bush administration was a results-oriented administration, because I
believe the results of focusing our attention and energy on teaching children
to read and having an education system that's responsive to the child and to
the parents, as opposed to mired in a system that refuses to change, will make
America what we want it to be—a literate country and a hopefuller
country."—Washington, D.C., Jan. 11, 2001
"I would have to ask the
questioner. I haven't had a chance to ask the questioners the question they've
been questioning. On the other hand, I firmly believe she'll be a fine
secretary of labor. And I've got confidence in Linda Chavez. She is a—she'll
bring an interesting perspective to the Labor Department."—Austin, Texas,
Jan. 8, 2001
"I do remain confident in
Linda. She'll make a fine labor secretary. From what I've read in the press
accounts, she's perfectly qualified."—Austin, Texas, Jan. 8, 2001
"I mean, these good folks are
revolutionizing how businesses conduct their business. And, like them, I am
very optimistic about our position in the world and about its influence on the
United States. We're concerned about the short-term economic news, but long-term
I'm optimistic. And so, I hope investors, you know—secondly, I hope investors
hold investments for periods of time—that I've always found the best
investments are those that you salt away based on economics."—Austin,
Texas, Jan. 4, 2001
"The person who runs FEMA is
someone who must have the trust of the president. Because the person who runs
FEMA is the first voice, often times, of someone whose life has been turned
upside down hears from."—Austin, Texas, Jan. 4, 2001
"She is a member of a labor
union at one point."—Announcing his nomination of Linda Chavez as
secretary of labor. Austin, Texas, Jan. 2, 2001
"Natural gas is hemispheric.
I like to call it hemispheric in nature because it is a product that we can
find in our neighborhoods."—Austin, Texas, Dec. 20, 2000
"I also have picked a
secretary for Housing and Human Development. Mel Martinez from the state of
Florida."—Austin, Texas, Dec. 20, 2000
"Let me put it to you this
way, I am not a revengeful person."— Interview with Time magazine
in the Dec. 25, 2000, issue.
"I am mindful of the
difference between the executive branch and the legislative branch. I assured
all four of these leaders that I know the difference, and that difference is
they pass the laws and I execute them."—Washington, D.C., Dec. 18, 2000
"The great thing about
America is everybody should vote."—Austin, Texas, Dec. 8, 2000
"Dick Cheney and I do not
want this nation to be in a recession. We want anybody who can find work to be
able to find work."—60 Minutes II, Dec. 5, 2000
"I knew it might put him in
an awkward position that we had a discussion before finality has finally
happened in this presidential race."
—Describing a phone call to Sen. John Breaux. Crawford, Texas, Dec. 2, 2000
"As far as the legal hassling
and wrangling and posturing in Florida, I would suggest you talk to our team in
Florida led by Jim Baker."—Crawford, Texas, Nov. 30, 2000
"The legislature's job is to
write law. It's the executive branch's job to interpret law."—Austin,
Texas, Nov. 22, 2000
"They misunderestimated
me."—Bentonville, Ark., Nov. 6, 2000
"Think about that. Two
hundred and eighty-five new or expanded programs, $2 trillion more in new
spending, and not one new bureaucrat to file out the forms or answer the
phones?"—Minneapolis, Nov. 1, 2000
"They want the federal
government controlling Social Security like it's some kind of federal
program."—St. Charles, Mo., Nov. 2, 2000
"They said, 'You know, this
issue doesn't seem to resignate with the people.' And I said, you know
something? Whether it resignates or not doesn't matter to me, because I stand
for doing what's the right thing, and what the right thing is hearing the
voices of people who work."—Portland, Ore., Oct. 31, 2000
"Anyway, after we go out and
work our hearts out, after you go out and help us turn out the vote, after
we've convinced the good Americans to vote, and while they're at it, pull that
old George W. lever, if I'm the one, when I put my hand on the Bible, when I
put my hand on the Bible, that day when they swear us in, when I put my hand on
the Bible, I will swear to not—to uphold the laws of the land."—Toledo,
Ohio, Oct. 27, 2000
"It's your money. You paid
for it."—LaCrosse, Wis., Oct. 18, 2000
"That's a chapter, the last
chapter of the 20th, 20th, the 21st century
that most of us would rather forget. The last chapter of the 20th
century. This is the first chapter of the 21st century. "—On
the Lewinsky scandal, Arlington Heights, Ill., Oct. 24, 2000
"It's important for us to
explain to our nation that life is important. It's not only life of babies, but
it's life of children living in, you know, the dark dungeons of the
Internet."—Arlington Heights, Ill., Oct. 24, 2000
"I don't want nations feeling
like that they can bully ourselves and our allies. I want to have a ballistic
defense system so that we can make the world more peaceful, and at the same
time I want to reduce our own nuclear capacities to the level commiserate with
keeping the peace."—Des Moines, Iowa, Oct. 23, 2000
"Families is where our nation
finds hope, where wings take dream."—LaCrosse, Wis., Oct. 18, 2000
"If I'm the president, we're
going to have emergency-room care, we're going to have gag orders."
"Drug therapies are replacing
a lot of medicines as we used to know it."
"It's one thing about
insurance, that's a Washington term."
"I think we ought to raise
the age at which juveniles can have a gun."
"Mr. Vice President, in all
due respect, it is—I'm not sure 80 percent of the people get the death tax. I
know this: 100 percent will get it if I'm the president."
"Quotas are bad for America.
It's not the way America is all about."
"If affirmative action means
what I just described, what I'm for, then I'm for it."—St. Louis, Mo.,
October 18, 2000
"Our priorities is our
faith."—Greensboro, N.C., Oct. 10, 2000
"I mean, there needs to be a
wholesale effort against racial profiling, which is illiterate
children."—Second presidential debate, Oct. 11, 2000 (Thanks to Leonard
Williams.)
"It's going to require
numerous IRA agents."—On Gore's tax plan, Greensboro, N.C., Oct. 10, 2000
"I think if you know what you
believe, it makes it a lot easier to answer questions. I can't answer your
question."—In response to a question about whether he wished he could take
back any of his answers in the first debate. Reynoldsburg, Ohio, Oct. 4, 2000
(Thanks to Peter Feld.)
"I would have my secretary of
treasury be in touch with the financial centers, not only here but at
home."—Boston, Oct. 3, 2000 (Thanks to M. Bateman.)
"I know the human being and
fish can coexist peacefully."—Saginaw, Mich., Sept. 29, 2000
"I will have a foreign-handed
foreign policy."—Redwood, Calif., Sept. 27, 2000
"One of the common
denominators I have found is that expectations rise above that which is
expected."—Los Angeles, Sept. 27, 2000
"It is clear our nation is reliant
upon big foreign oil. More and more of our imports come from
overseas."—Beaverton, Ore., Sep. 25, 2000
"Well, that's going to be up
to the pundits and the people to make up their mind. I'll tell you what is a
president for him, for example, talking about my record in the state of Texas.
I mean, he's willing to say anything in order to convince people that I haven't
had a good record in Texas."—MSNBC, Sept. 20, 2000 (Thanks to Gregory H.
Monberg.)
"I am a person who recognizes
the fallacy of humans."—Oprah, Sept. 19, 2000
"A tax cut is really one of
the anecdotes to coming out of an economic illness."—The Edge With
Paula Zahn, Sept. 18, 2000
"The woman who knew that I
had dyslexia—I never interviewed her."—Orange, Calif., Sept. 15, 2000
"The best way to relieve
families from time is to let them keep some of their own
money."—Westminster, Calif., Sept. 13, 2000
"They have miscalculated me
as a leader."—Ibid.
"I don't think we need to be
subliminable about the differences between our views on prescription
drugs."—Orlando, Fla., Sept. 12, 2000
"This is what I'm good at. I
like meeting people, my fellow citizens, I like interfacing with
them."—Outside Pittsburgh, Sept. 8, 2000
"That's Washington. That's
the place where you find people getting ready to jump out of the foxholes
before the first shot is fired."—Westland, Mich., Sept. 8, 2000
"Listen, Al Gore is a very
tough opponent. He is the incumbent. He
represents the incumbency. And a
challenger is somebody who generally
comes from the pack and wins, if
you're going to win. And that's where
I'm coming from."—Detroit,
Sept. 7, 2000 (Thanks to Michael Butler, Houston, Texas.)
"We'll let our friends be the
peacekeepers and the great country called America will be the
pacemakers."—Houston, Texas, Sept. 6, 2000
"We don't believe in planners
and deciders making the decisions on behalf of Americans."—Scranton, Pa.,
Sept. 6, 2000
"I regret that a private
comment I made to the vice presidential candidate made it through the public
airways."—Allentown, Pa., Sept. 5, 2000.
"The point is, this is a way
to help inoculate me about what has come and is coming."--on his anti-Gore
ad, in an interview with the New York Times, Sept. 2, 2000
"As governor of Texas, I have
set high standards for our public schools, and I have met those
standards."--CNN online chat, Aug. 30, 2000
"Well, I think if you say
you're going to do something and don't do it, that's
trustworthiness."--Ibid.
"I don't know whether I'm
going to win or not. I think I am. I do know I'm ready for the job. And, if
not, that's just the way it goes."—Des Moines, Iowa, Aug. 21, 2000
''This campaign not only hears the
voices of the entrepreneurs and the farmers and the entrepreneurs, we hear the
voices of those struggling to get ahead."—Ibid.
"We cannot let terrorists and
rogue nations hold this nation hostile or hold our allies hostile.''—Ibid.
"I have a different vision of
leadership. A leadership is someone who brings people together."—Bartlett,
Tenn., Aug. 18, 2000 (Thanks to Tarja Black.)
"I think he needs to stand up
and say if he thought the president were wrong on policy and issues, he ought
to say where."—Interview with the Associated Press, Aug. 11, 2000 (Thanks
to Ryan Rhodes.)
"I want you to know that
farmers are not going to be secondary thoughts to a Bush administration. They
will be in the forethought of our thinking."—Salinas, Calif., Aug. 10,
2000 (Thanks to Kris Sester.)
"And if he continues that,
I'm going to tell the nation what I think about him as a human being and a
person."—President George H.W. Bush, on the Today show, Aug. 1,
2000
"You might want to comment on
that, Honorable."--To New Jersey's secretary of state, the Hon. DeForest
Soaries Jr., as quoted by Dana Milbank in the Washington Post, July
15, 2000
"This case has had full
analyzation and has been looked at a lot. I understand the emotionality of
death penalty cases."--Seattle Post-Intelligencer, June 23, 2000
(Thanks to Johnny Green.)
"States should have the right
to enact reasonable laws and restrictions particularly to end the inhumane
practice of ending a life that otherwise could live."—Cleveland, June 29,
2000 (Thanks to Douglas Basford.)
"Unfairly but truthfully, our
party has been tagged as being against things. Anti-immigrant, for example. And
we're not a party of anti-immigrants. Quite the opposite. We're a party that
welcomes people."—Cleveland, July 1, 2000 (Thanks to M. Bateman.)
"The fundamental question is,
'Will I be a successful president when it comes to foreign policy?' I will be,
but until I'm the president, it's going to be hard for me to verify that I
think I'll be more effective."—In Wayne, Mich., as quoted by Katharine Q.
Seelye in the New York Times, June 28, 2000
"The only things that I can
tell you is that every case I have reviewed I have been comfortable with the
innocence or guilt of the person that I've looked at. I do not believe we've
put a guilty ... I mean innocent person to death in the state of Texas." All
Things Considered, NPR, June 16, 2000 (Thanks to Andy Nouraee.)
"I'm gonna talk about the
ideal world, Chris. I've read—I understand reality. If you're asking me as the
president, would I understand reality, I do."—On abortion, Hardball,
MSNBC; May 31, 2000
"There's not going to be
enough people in the system to take advantage of people like me."—On the
coming Social Security crisis; Wilton, Conn.; June 9, 2000 (Thanks to Andy
Mais.)
"I think anybody who doesn't
think I'm smart enough to handle the job is underestimating."—U.S.
News & World Report, April 3, 2000 (Thanks to Alfred Stanley, Austin,
Texas.)
Bush: "First of all, Cinco de
Mayo is not the independence day. That's dieciséis de Septiembre, and
..."
Matthews: "What's that in
English?"
Bush: "Fifteenth of
September." (Dieciséis de Septiembre = Sept. 16)
—Hardball, MSNBC, May 31,
2000 (Thanks to numerous readers.)
"Actually, I—this may sound a
little West Texan to you, but I like it. When I'm talking about—when I'm
talking about myself, and when he's talking about myself, all of us are talking
about me."—Ibid.
"This is a world that is much
more uncertain than the past. In the past we were certain, we were certain it
was us versus the Russians in the past. We were certain, and therefore we had
huge nuclear arsenals aimed at each other to keep the peace. That's what we
were certain of. ... You see, even though it's an uncertain world, we're
certain of some things. We're certain that even though the 'evil empire' may
have passed, evil still remains. We're certain there are people that can't
stand what America stands for. ... We're certain there are madmen in this
world, and there's terror, and there's missiles and I'm certain of this, too:
I'm certain to maintain the peace, we better have a military of high morale,
and I'm certain that under this administration, morale in the military is
dangerously low."—Albuquerque, N.M., the Washington Post, May 31,
2000
"He has certainly earned a
reputation as a fantastic mayor, because the results speak for themselves. I
mean, New York's a safer place for him to be."—On Rudy Giuliani, The
Edge With Paula Zahn, May 18, 2000 (Thanks to Peter Goldman.)
"The fact that he relies on
facts—says things that are not factual—are going to undermine his
campaign."—New York Times, March 4, 2000 (Thanks to Garry
Trudeau.)
"I think we agree, the past
is over."—On his meeting with John McCain, Dallas Morning News,
May 10, 2000
"It's clearly a budget. It's
got a lot of numbers in it."--Reuters, May 5, 2000 (Thanks to Allison
Fansler.)
GOV. BUSH: Because the picture on
the newspaper. It just seems so un-American to me, the picture of the guy
storming the house with a scared little boy there. I talked to my little
brother, Jeb—I haven't told this to many people. But he's the governor of—I shouldn't
call him my little brother--my brother, Jeb, the great governor of Texas.
JIM LEHRER: Florida.
GOV. BUSH: Florida. The state of
the Florida.—The NewsHour With Jim Lehrer, April 27, 2000
"I hope we get to the bottom
of the answer. It's what I'm interested to know."—On what happened in
negotiations between the Justice Department and Elián González's Miami
relatives, as quoted by the Associated Press, April 26, 2000 (Thanks to Saul
Selzer.)
"Laura and I really don't
realize how bright our children is sometimes until we get an objective
analysis."—CNBC, April 15, 2000
"You subscribe politics to
it. I subscribe freedom to it."—Responding to a question about whether he
and Al Gore were making the Elián González case a political issue. In Palm
Beach, Fla., as quoted by the Associated Press, April 6, 2000 (Thanks to Helen
Kennedy.)
"I was raised in the West.
The wesv of Texas. It's pretty close to California. In more ways than
Washington, D.C., is close to California."—In Los Angeles as quoted by the
Los Angeles Times, April 8, 2000
"Reading is the basics for
all learning."—Announcing his "Reading First" initiative in
Reston, Va., March 28, 2000 (Thanks to Carl LaRocca.)
"We want our teachers to be trained
so they can meet the obligations, their obligations as teachers. We want them
to know how to teach the science of reading. In order to make sure there's not
this kind of federal—federal cufflink."—At Fritsche Middle School,
Milwaukee, March 30, 2000
"Other Republican candidates
may retort to personal attacks and negative ads."—Fund-raising letter from
George W. Bush, quoted in the Washington Post, March 24, 2000
"I've got a reason for
running. I talk about a larger goal, which is to call upon the best of America.
It's part of the renewal. It's reform and renewal. Part of the renewal is a set
of high standards and to remind people that the greatness of America really
does depend on neighbors helping neighbors and children finding mentors. I
worry. I'm very worried about, you know, the kid who just wonders whether
America is meant for him. I really worry about that. And uh, so, I'm running
for a reason. I'm answering this question here and the answer is, you cannot
lead America to a positive tomorrow with revenge on one's mind. Revenge is so
incredibly negative. And so to answer your question, I'm going to win because
people sense my heart, know my sense of optimism and know where I want to lead
the country. And I tease people by saying, 'A leader, you can't say, follow me
the world is going to be worse.' I'm an optimistic person. I'm an inherently
content person. I've got a great sense of where I want to lead and I'm
comfortable with why I'm running. And, you know, the call on that speech was,
beware. This is going to be a tough campaign."—Interview with the Washington
Post, March 23, 2000
"People make suggestions on
what to say all the time. I'll give you an example; I don't read what's handed
to me. People say, 'Here, here's your speech, or here's an idea for a speech.'
They're changed. Trust me."—Interview with the New York Times,
March 15, 2000
"It's evolutionary, going
from governor to president, and this is a significant step, to be able to vote
for yourself on the ballot, and I'll be able to do so next fall, I
hope."—In an interview with the Associated Press, March 8, 2000 (Thanks to
Joshua Micah Marshall.)
"It is not Reaganesque to
support a tax plan that is Clinton in nature.''—Los Angeles, Feb. 23, 2000
"I don't have to accept their
tenants. I was trying to convince those college students to accept my tenants.
And I reject any labeling me because I happened to go to the university."—Today,
Feb. 23, 2000
"I understand small business
growth. I was one."—New York Daily News, Feb. 19, 2000
"The senator has got to
understand if he's going to have—he can't have it both ways. He can't take the
high horse and then claim the low road."—To reporters in Florence, S.C.,
Feb. 17, 2000
"Really proud of it. A great
campaign. And I'm really pleased with the organization and the thousands of
South Carolinians that worked on my behalf. And I'm very gracious and
humbled."—To Cokie Roberts, This Week, Feb. 20, 2000
"I don't want to win? If that
were the case why the heck am I on the bus 16 hours a day, shaking thousands of
hands, giving hundreds of speeches, getting pillared in the press and cartoons
and still staying on message to win?"—Newsweek, Feb. 28, 2000
"I thought how proud I am to
be standing up beside my dad. Never did it occur to me that he would become the
gist for cartoonists."—ibid.
"If you're sick and tired of
the politics of cynicism and polls and principles, come and join this
campaign."—Hilton Head, S.C., Feb. 16, 2000
"How do you know if you don't
measure if you have a system that simply suckles kids through?"—Explaining
the need for educational accountability in Beaufort, S.C., Feb. 16, 2000
"We ought to make the pie
higher."—South Carolina Republican Debate, Feb. 15, 2000
"I do not agree with this
notion that somehow if I go to try to attract votes and to lead people toward a
better tomorrow somehow I get subscribed to some—some doctrine gets subscribed
to me."—Meet The Press, Feb. 13, 2000
"I've changed my style
somewhat, as you know. I'm less—I pontificate less, although it may be hard to
tell it from this show. And I'm more interacting with people."—ibid
"I think we need not only to
eliminate the tollbooth to the middle class, I think we should knock down the
tollbooth."—Nashua, N.H., as quoted by Gail Collins in the New York
Times, Feb. 1, 2000
"The most important job is
not to be governor, or first lady in my case."—Pella, Iowa, as quoted by
the San Antonio Express-News, Jan. 30, 2000
"Will the highways on the
Internet become more few?"—Concord, N.H., Jan. 29, 2000
"This is Preservation Month.
I appreciate preservation. It's what you do when you run for president. You
gotta preserve."—Speaking during "Perseverance Month" at
Fairgrounds Elementary School in Nashua, N.H. As quoted in the Los Angeles
Times, Jan. 28, 2000
"I know how hard it is for
you to put food on your family."—Greater Nashua, N.H., Chamber of
Commerce, Jan. 27, 2000
"What I am against is quotas.
I am against hard quotas, quotas they basically delineate based upon whatever.
However they delineate, quotas, I think vulcanize society. So I don't know how
that fits into what everybody else is saying, their relative positions, but
that's my position.''—Quoted by Molly Ivins, the San Francisco Chronicle,
Jan. 21, 2000 (Thanks to Toni L. Gould.)
"When I was coming up, it was
a dangerous world, and you knew exactly who they were," he said. "It
was us vs. them, and it was clear who them was. Today, we are not so sure who
the they are, but we know they're there."—Iowa Western Community College,
Jan 21, 2000
"The administration I'll
bring is a group of men and women who are focused on what's best for America,
honest men and women, decent men and women, women who will see service to our
country as a great privilege and who will not stain the house."—Des
Moines Register debate, Iowa, Jan. 15, 2000
"This is still a dangerous
world. It's a world of madmen and uncertainty and potential mential
losses."—At a South Carolina oyster roast, as quoted in the Financial
Times, Jan. 14, 2000
"We must all hear the universal
call to like your neighbor just like you like to be liked yourself."—ibid.
"Rarely is the question
asked: Is our children learning?"—Florence, S.C., Jan. 11, 2000
"Gov. Bush will not stand for
the subsidation of failure."—ibid.
"There needs to be debates,
like we're going through. There needs to be town-hall meetings. There needs to
be travel. This is a huge country."—Larry King Live, Dec. 16,
1999
"I read the
newspaper."—In answer to a question about his reading habits, New
Hampshire Republican Debate, Dec. 2, 1999
"I think it's important for
those of us in a position of responsibility to be firm in sharing our
experiences, to understand that the babies out of wedlock is a very difficult
chore for mom and baby alike. ... I believe we ought to say there is a
different alternative than the culture that is proposed by people like Miss
Wolf in society. ... And, you know, hopefully, condoms will work, but it hasn't
worked."—Meet the Press, Nov. 21, 1999
"The students at Yale came
from all different backgrounds and all parts of the country. Within months, I
knew many of them."—From A Charge To Keep, by George W. Bush,
published November 1999