Remarks in Fayetteville, North Carolina

Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents, March 18, 2002

March 15, 2002

The President. Thank you all.

Audience members. U.S.A.! U.S.A.! U.S.A.!

The President. Thank you all very much. At ease! [Laugheter] General McNeill, thank you very much. For a warrior, you're pretty darn articulate. Thank you all for such a warm welcome. It's great to be here in Gumberland County, North Carolina.

I'm also honored to be here with fine men and women who wear our uniform from Fort Bragg, North Carolina, the world's finest fighting soldiers. For generations, Fort Bragg has stood for the best in the United States military. And now, along with those stationed at Pope Air Force Base, you're playing a crucial role, a vital role, a successful role in our defense of freedom, in our war against terror. I'm proud of your service. I thank you from the bottom of our hearts.

I want to thank General Holland, Commander in Chief, Headquarters U.S. Special Operations Command. I want to thank General Brown. I want to thank all the fine men and women of the 18th Airborne Corps, the Special Forces, and the Special Operation units. It is good to be with the fine folks of the 43d Airlift Wing.

I am honored to be traveling with members of the North Carolina congressional delegation, two of whom you've just heard from, Congressman McIntyre, Congressman Hayes. Congressman Etheridge is with us today, as is my friend Elizabeth Dole. Thank you all for coming.

One week ago this coliseum was the scene of graduation ceremonies for the latest group of soldiers to have earned the right to wear the Green Beret. In doing so, they will join the ranks of some of the best and bravest citizens we have. The soldiers and sailors and airmen of the U.S. Special Operations Command are the best in the world, and the world is seeing how tough and how brave they are today.

Our Special Operations forces know the danger that awaits them. This is a dangerous battle that we face, a dangerous war. And I'm proud of the courage not only of the soldiers who volunteer for battle but for the loved ones who remain behind. Not only am I proud of our soldiers, I am proud of the wives and husbands and sons and daughters and moms and dads. And on behalf of a grateful nation, we thank you as well. We appreciate your courage and your sacrifice.

Two young men from the Special Forces were recently laid to rest, Chief Warrant Officer Stanley Harriman and Air Force Tech Sergeant John Chapman. I want their families to know that we pray with them, that we honor them, and they died in a just cause, for defending freedom, and they will not have died in vain. Because of such soldiers, a vicious regime has been toppled in Afghanistan, and an entire people have been liberated from oppression. Because of American soldiers and our brave allies and friends who have fought beside them, the Taliban is out of business.

At the beginning of this war, I made it very clear--as clear as a fellow from Texas could make it--either you're with us, or you're against us. And if you harbor a terrorist, if you feed a terrorist, if you try to hide a terrorist, you are just as guilty as the murderers who killed innocent Americans on September the 11th. And thanks to the mighty United States military, the Taliban found out exactly what I meant.

But the world has seen we are not conquerors; we're liberators. We fight for freedom, and at the same time, we have saved a people from mass starvation. We fight for freedom, but at the same time, we're clearing away minefields, rebuilding roads, and opening up hospitals. We fight for freedom, and yet, next week schools will reopen in Afghanistan, and for the first time, many young girls will go to school for the first times in their lives.

We haven't been at this struggle very long. I know it seems like a long time for those of you whose loved ones are overseas. But we've been at it for 6 months, and we've made a lot of progress. And you know what? The terrorists have now figured out they picked on the wrong people. They must have thought we were soft. They must have thought we were so materialistic that we wouldn't fight for values that we loved. They must have thought that we were so self-absorbed that the word, "sacrifice" had left the American vocabulary. And my, were they wrong.

Thousands of terrorists have been brought to justice. But I want you to know, my fellow citizens, we will not relent. We will not slow down until the threat of global terrorism has been destroyed. I have made this message clear to the American people. I have made this message clear to our vast coalition, and I've made this message clear to our enemies, and our military has delivered the message.

We have finished the first phase of our war against terror, You see, when we routed out the Taliban, we completed that phase, and now we're entering a second stage of what I think will be a long war. It's a sustained campaign, a tireless, relentless campaign, to deny sanctuary; to deny safe haven to terrorists who would threaten citizens anywhere in the world, threaten our way of life, threaten our friends, threaten our allies. These terrorists are now on the run, and we intend to keep them on the run.