Remarks in Taylor, Michigan

Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents, Sept 6, 2004

August 30, 2004

The President. Thank you all. Thanks for coming. You know something--Bo knows Michigan, and he just told me we're going to carry this State, and I agree. I want to thank you all for coming. It is great to be here in Taylor, Michigan.

Laura and I are thrilled to be here, home of the WNBA champs; it's the home of the NBA champs. More importantly, it's the home of really decent people, good, hardworking American citizens, and I'm proud to be in your midst. I'm here to ask for your vote.

That's what we're doing. We're traveling your important State asking for the vote. I'm here to tell you I've got some--more to do to make this country a safer place and a more hopeful place for every American. But perhaps the most important reason to put me back in is so that Laura will have 4 more years. I'm proud of her. I love her dearly. She's a great mom, a wonderful wife, and a terrific First Lady.

And I'm proud to be standing by Bo. What a great man Bo Schembechler is. He is a strong, honorable citizen of this great State. You know, a few weeks ago, when my opponent was campaigning in Ohio, he said, "There's nothing better than Buckeye football, period."

Audience members. Boo-o-o!

The President. Then he came over here to Michigan, and he said, "I just go for Buckeye football."

Audience members. Boo-o-o!

The President. It's a good thing Bo wasn't there. Then he remembered where he was, and he called an audible. [Laughter] He said that the University of Michigan was a powerhouse team. You see, I'm running against a fellow who is a Washington politician, who has taken both sides of just about every issue, and now we can add Big Ten football to that list.

I'm running with a good man in Dick Cheney, a fine man. He--I admit it, he's not the prettiest face in the race. [Laughter] But I didn't pick him for his looks. I picked him for his judgment, his experience. I picked him because he can get the job done.

I want to thank all the grassroots activists who are here, the people that are out putting up the signs and making the phone calls. Not only are we here to ask for the vote, we're here to ask for your help. I believe we have a duty in this country to vote. I believe all of us have an obligation to go to the polls. I'm asking you to register your friends and neighbors. Give them a chance to vote. And then when you get them headed to the polls--[laughter]--remind them that if they want a safer country, a stronger country, and a better country, to put Dick Cheney and me back in office.

Audience members. Four more years! Four more years! Four more years!

The President. In the past few years, we have been through a lot together, and we've accomplished a great deal. But there's only one reason to look backward at the record, and that is to determine who best to lead this Nation forward. I am here to let you know that we have a plan to make this a safer world and a more hopeful America. I'm here to ask for your vote and your help. You see, there is more to do. There is more work to be done.

We've got more to do to make our public schools the centers of excellence we all know they can be. When we came to office 3 years ago, too many of our children were being shuffled through school, grade by grade, year after year, without learning the basics. I went to Washington to challenge the soft bigotry of low expectations. We're reforming our public schools by demanding high standards, accountability, and local control of schools. My administration will challenge those schools that will not teach and will not change. We want no child left behind in America.

There is more work to be done to maintain this path to excellence. We'll make sure there's more math and science in our high school classrooms so our kids will be prepared for the jobs of the 21st century. We'll make sure technology is in our classrooms. We want a high school diploma to mean something. What I'm telling you, after 4 more years, a rising generation of Americans will have the skills and confidence necessary to realize the great dreams of the American system.

We got more to do to make sure health care is available and affordable. You might remember the old Medicare debate. Campaign after campaign, politicians came around and said, "Oh, we're going to fix Medicare." But it was called "Mediscare." People didn't want to deal with it, but the system was failing our seniors. In order to make sure our seniors have got prescription drug coverage, which they will in 2006, I led the United States Congress to strengthen Medicare, and our health care is better for the seniors of this country.

We've expanded community health centers for low-income Americans. We've created health savings accounts so families can save tax-free for their own health care needs. There's more work to be done. We'll introduce technologies into the health care to bold down costs.

Most Americans get their health care through their jobs. Most new jobs are created by small businesses, and many small businesses are having trouble affording health care. The best way to enable American families to get health care is to allow small businesses to pool resources together so they can buy insurance at the same discount big businesses can.