Remarks at a fundraising dinner for senatorial candidate James M. Talent in St. Louis, Missouri

Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents, March 25, 2002

And I believe--and I firmly believe that when the United States leads, we have a chance to achieve long-lasting peace. I believe out of this evil will come some incredible good. I believe that by leading this coalition in a firm way, that we will be able to achieve peace in parts of the world that never dreamt they would ever see peace. I believe that.

And not only that, I believe that out of this evil will come some incredible good at home. I believe that the evil ones have unleashed the great compassion of America at home. I'm oftentimes asked, "How do I help in the war against terror?" People all the time are asking here in America, "What can I do?" And my answer is this: If you want to fight terror, love a neighbor just like you'd like to be loved yourself; if you want to stand up to terror and evil, be a part of the great compassion of America; reach out to a fellow citizen in need; mentor a child; walk across the street and say to a shut-in, "I love you. What can I do to help?" You see, it is the momentum, the gathering momentum of millions of acts of kindness and decency, which will allow this great Nation to stand squarely in the face of evil, and there's no doubt in my mind that we can achieve that.

The great strength of America is not in our military--although that's pretty good, pretty strong these days. [Laughter] It is not in the Government. It is in the hearts and souls of the American people.

And so I call upon you all here in St. Louis, in the great State of Missouri, to make an extra effort to help somebody in need. I'm passionate about the understanding that we must unleash faith in our society, not a particular faith but faith to help change hearts. And so one of the initiatives that I'm looking forward to working with Jim on, and others here, is a faith-based initiative that understands out of our churches and synagogues and mosques come that compassionate help that will define the face of America. And our Government-we must not fear faith; we must welcome faith as we deal with the intangible problems that confront every neighborhood in the country of America, the problems of hopelessness--the problems of addiction and hopelessness.

When we fight abroad, we must also fight at home, to make sure the American promise extends its reach throughout every neighborhood in our society, and in this country, we can achieve that.

We've got to understand, it's not vast programs that save people's lives; it is saving people's lives one soul at a time that makes a difference in each of us. Each of us in America can make that difference. I also believe out of this incredible evil, that our culture is beginning to change, from one that has said, if it feels good, just go ahead and do it, and if you've got a problem, blame somebody else, to a culture which says, each of us are responsible for the decisions we make in life.

That culture begins with moms and dads loving their children with all their heart and all their soul. That culture begins by understanding that materialism is shallow and empty and that to have a full life, you've got to love your neighbor like you'd like to be loved yourself. That's a culture that extends to corporate America as well. Corporate America has a responsibility to its citizens and a responsibility to make sure all the assets and liabilities are completely disclosed on one's balance sheet.