Remarks to the Chamber of Commerce in Charlotte

Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents, March 4, 2002

February 27, 2002

Thank you. Only in America. [Laughter] Frances, thanks. I appreciate your story; I appreciate your courage; and I appreciate your introduction. I'm also thankful that Tommy Thompson agreed to leave the State of Wisconsin to come and help make sure that Health and Human Services was run in the right spirit, in the right, compassionate attitude, one in which we fight for Federal funds that are reasonable and realistic but understand that the true wisdom and strength of the country is at the local level.

Speaking about the local level, I want to thank the mayor and Parks. Thank you very much for being here, as well. I appreciate both you all's leadership. The innovation that takes place in this community is positive and strong, and that's why we're here, to herald a program that actually works. Sometimes they sound good on paper. They read good, but the results are short. And that's not the case in Mecklenburg County when it comes to putting people to work. So I want to thank you all for your leadership.

I had the privilege of flying down with Sue Myrick and Robin Hayes today on the airplane, two really good United States Congressmen from the State of North Carolina, people who understand that North Carolinians can best run North Carolina, and not people out of Washington, DC. So I want to thank you all for coming. And I want to thank Rodney Carroll, as well, for being here. I want to thank Carroll Gray and members of the Chamber.

A lot of times I talk about responsibility, ushering in a period of responsible behavior in America. There is such thing as corporate responsibility, corporate America not only making sure the balance sheets are real, that all assets and liabilities are exposed for shareholder and employee alike. But there's something about saying, "I'm going to do something in the community in which I live," working hard to take the extra step to employ somebody, to keep them on, to help them work through their difficulties. This is a community in which corporate North Carolina or corporate Charlotte has heard that call, and I want to thank the Chamber for being on the leading edge of encouraging corporate responsibility.

First, let me tell you that, as I said a while ago, the state of this Union is very strong. It is clear to me, when I sat in the room today, that the state of the State of North Carolina is strong and vibrant, at least in this corner of the State, if not the whole State.

But the state of our Union is strong. We are steady; we're resolved; and we are a determined nation.

You know, the enemy attacked a nation that they thought was weak, and man, did they make a mistake. They thought the United States was so materialistic, so caught up in a false Hollywood vision of America, that we would accept their attack as part of the normalcy in America, that we would do nothing about it. And they've now learned that this Nation is absolutely resolved to defend that which we hold dearest to our heart, and that's freedom--that when somebody attacks freedom, that we'll defend it with all our force and all our might. And that's what we're doing.

I think the country has laid out a clear message: First, that either you're with us, or you're against us in the fight for freedom; that either you stand beside this great Nation as part of a coalition that will defend freedom and defend civilization itself, or you're against us.

I think the message has gotten out. The world is knitted up pretty tight when it comes to bringing the Al Qaida and other killers to justice. We've had over a thousand arrests around the world, different countries, different governments that are putting these Al Qaida people behind bars. We're slowly but surely, methodically and patiently demolishing Al Qaida so they cannot hit us again.

We have made it clear that if you harbor a terrorist, if you feed a terrorist, if you train a terrorist, you're just as guilty as the terrorist. And the Taliban Government in Afghanistan found out exactly what I meant, thanks to a strong and spirited, well-motivated, well-trained United States military, a military of which I am immensely proud.

We have liberated a country. This great Nation seeks not revenge but justice, and at the same time, we're not conquerors, but we're liberators. We have liberated women and children from the clutches of one of the most barbaric regimes history has ever known.

It was my honor to welcome Mr. Karzai and his Cabinet, including a woman minister, to Washington, DC, and hear him firsthand say how anxious he is to restore Afghanistan to normalcy, where women and children, young girls are educated, just like young boys, where people are given a chance in life.

The Taliban made a terrible mistake, and they paid a dear price. And I'm grateful for the United States military for the job it's done, but more importantly, so are the average citizens of Afghanistan.

I want to tell my fellow Americans that we're still in a dangerous period when it comes to the first theater in the war against terror--dangerous because, until we complete our mission, which is to bring all Al Qaida killers to justice, that we're going to hunt them down, that we will stay on task. The good news for our United States military is that the American people are very patient, and they're resolved, just like our military is resolved.