Remarks to the National Association of Home Builders in Columbus, Ohio

Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents, Oct 11, 2004

The fundamental question in this campaign is how do we make the recovery lasting--to lasting prosperity? To create more jobs in America, to make sure people can find work, America must be the best place in the world to do business. That means less regulations on the entrepreneurs. To create jobs here, Congress needs to pass my energy plan. It's a plan that encourages conservation and renewable sources, but it's a plan that uses technology so we can burn coal and explore for natural gas. To make sure our economy remains strong and people can find work in America, we must become less dependent on foreign sources of energy.

To make sure this economy remains strong, we've got to reject economic isolationism. We have opened up our markets for products from overseas, and that's good for the consumer. If a person has more choices, he or she is likely to get the product they want at better quality and lower price. That's how the marketplace works. So I'm saying to other countries like China and elsewhere, "Treat us the way we treat you. Open up your markets for our farmers, ranchers, and entrepreneurs." We can compete with anybody, anytime, anywhere, so long as the rules are fair.

To make sure that jobs exist here in America people can find work, we've got to protect our small-business owners and workers from the junk lawsuits that threaten jobs across America. I don't think you can be pro-homebuilder, pro-small-business, pro-entrepreneur, and pro-trial-lawyer at the same time. I think you have to choose. My opponent made a choice. He put a trial lawyer on the ticket. I made my choice. I'm for legal reform to make sure this economy continues forward.

I've worked with Congress to create opportunity zones, which will provide extra tax relief and regulatory relief and other incentives for businesses to help our communities that have lost manufacturing and textile and other jobs to get back on their feet. We'll keep this economy growing until prosperity reaches every corner of America.

And I've set another great goal, and that's to build an ownership society, where everyone has a chance to own a home and a retirement account or health care plan and to gain a permanent stake in the American Dream. I believe expanded ownership is necessary for a lot of reasons, and one of the main reasons is because the times in which we live and work are changing dramatically.

Think about our society today compared to the society of our grandparents and parents. The workers of our parents' and grandparents' generation typically had only one job, one skill, one career, often with one company that provided health care and a pension. Today, people are changing jobs and careers quite often, and the workforce has changed. Women work inside the house and now outside the house. Yet, the fundamental systems of Government, the health care plans, the pension plans, the Tax Code, the worker training programs, were designed for yesterday, not for tomorrow.

I'm running for office to help people be able to realize their dreams by changing the fundamental systems of Government. And in times of change, I understand that ownership brings stability to our neighborhoods and security to our families. In changing times, it helps if you own something. It helps bring security to you. By paying a mortgage instead of rent, by putting money into your own retirement plan, you're storing up wealth for your family. And that nest egg grows in value, and you can pass it on to your children or your grandchildren.