Remarks in Wheeling, West Virginia

Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents, Sept 6, 2004

August 29, 2004

The President. Thank you all. Thank you all for coming. And thanks for having me. I am thrilled to be back here in the Mountain State. You may have noticed I'm spending some quality time here. You know why? Because we're going to carry West Virginia again.

I'm here to thank you for your help. I'm here to ask for your vote. I'm here to encourage you to go the extra mile to get people to show up at the polls. Most of all, I want to thank you for coming out on a Sunday afternoon. I appreciate you all coming out and taking time away--or bringing your families here. It means a lot to me. I really appreciate it.

You know, I was in your neighborhood a while ago. I was at the new Cabela's. The place has hired over a couple thousand jobs, creating a couple thousand jobs there. I'm there because I'm a hunter and I like to fish. I understand a lot of people in these parts like to fish. A couple of you like to hunt. I just don't get to do enough of it. I'm hunting for votes.

There's a lot of differences in this campaign. You know, one of the most notable differences came up the other day when my opponent said, "Well, you can find the heart and soul of America in Hollywood."

Audience members. Boo-o-o!

The President. Yes. I think you find the heart and soul of America right here in Wheeling, West Virginia.

I gave Laura a kiss goodbye today and said, "I'm heading to Wheeling." She said, "Well, I'm working on my speech." [Laughter] I said, "Well, make it a good one, will you?" [Laughter] I didn't need to say that. Of course it's going to be a good one. Laura is a great First Lady, a wonderful morn, and a great wife. I'm really proud of her--I'm really proud of her. Today I'm going to give you some reasons why I think you ought to put me back into office. Perhaps the most important one of all is for Laura to be the First Lady for 4 more years.

Rick mentioned my runningmate. I'm real proud of Dick Cheney. He's a great, solid man. I admit he's not the prettiest face in the race. [Laughter] I picked him because of his judgment, his experience, and his ability to get the job done.

I thank Rick, Rick Casini, for being here. I'm proud of his leadership. As he told you, he's a union shop steward, he's a leader of men and women. He's--he represents the hard-working people of the steel industry here in this part of the country. It means a lot to me that he stands up and endorses my candidacy. See, I believe our message is good for Republicans. I believe our message is good for Democrats, and I believe our message is good for independents.

I appreciate the steelworkers who are standing behind me, standing with me. When I make up my mind on issues, I don't say, "Well, you know, oh, so-and-so might benefit, but they didn't vote for me." That's not how I do things. I make up my mind based upon what I think is right.

And I appreciate--I want to thank my friend Congresswoman Shelley Moore Capito for joining us today, a fine Member of the United States Congress. I want to thank the Wheeling Park High School Marching Band for being here today. I'll try to keep my speech short, so you can get back home and do your homework for tomorrow. [Laughter] No? Okay.

I want to thank all the grassroots activists who are here. Kathy Fortunato is with us today. And I want to thank all of--here's what a grassroots activist does: You put up signs; you make the phone calls; you register people to vote. See, we have a duty in our country to register people to vote and to vote. And therefore, I'm asking you, as a supporter, to go out amongst your friends and neighbors and remind your friends and neighbors to register. Tell them that in America our system functions because people participate. You might remind them of this amazing statistic, that in Afghanistan, after 3 short years of their liberation, over 10 million people have registered to vote. They're getting a whiff of liberty in Afghanistan, that sweet smell of freedom. And here in America, we must remind people to participate. See, that liberty functions because people show up. And when you get them registered, don't ignore Democrats. You heard Rick--[laughter]--don't worry about--don't overlook discerning independents. And then, when you get them registered and you get them headed to the poll, remind them, if they want a safer country, a stronger country, a better country, put us back into office.

We have been through a lot together in the last few years, and we have accomplished a lot. We have done a lot. But there's only one reason to look back at the record, and that is to determine who best to lead us forward. I'm traveling your important State to let you know that even though we have done a lot, there's more work to do, that I've got more to accomplish with your help, that I want to make sure our schools realize their full potential so every child--every child-has a chance to realize the great promise of America.

We're working with our local folks to make sure that excellence is in every classroom. See, I believe in local control of schools. We're spending more money at the Federal level to help you out here. But we're changing things, because now we're beginning to ask the question, can a child read and write and add and subtract, see. That's what we're beginning to ask, because we believe every child can learn to read, and we expect every child to read. And when we find the schools that are teaching, we'll praise their teachers. But this administration will challenge the status quo. We will make sure that schools that do not teach and will not change get the message that every child should learn to read in America.