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President Bush in New York onsite of the worst terrorist attack in American history;President encourages emergency crews 14 September 2001
PRESIDENT BUSH ORDERS UNITED STATES MILITARY TO BEGIN STRIKES AGAINST AL QAEDA TERRORIST TRAINING CAMPS AND MILITARY INSTALLATIONS OF TALIBAN REGIME IN AFGHANISTAN: PLEDGES AIR DROPS OF FOOD AND MEDICINE TO THE OPPRESSED PEOPLES IN AREA
Office of the Press Secretary
October 7, 2001
Presidential Address to the Nation
The Treaty Room
For immediate release
1:00 P.M. EDT
THE PRESIDENT: Good afternoon. On my orders, the United States military has begun strikes against al Qaeda terrorist training camps and military installations of the Taliban regime in Afghanistan. These carefully targeted actions are designed to disrupt the use of Afghanistan as a terrorist base of operations, and to attack the military capability of the Taliban regime.
We are joined in this operation by our staunch friend, Great Britain. Other close friends, including Canada, Australia, Germany and France, have pledged forces as the operation unfolds. More than 40 countries in the Middle East, Africa, Europe and across Asia have granted air transit or landing rights. Many more have shared intelligence. We are supported by the collective will of the world.
More than two weeks ago, I gave Taliban leaders a series of clear and specific demands: Close terrorist training camps; hand over leaders of the al Qaeda network; and return all foreign nationals, including American citizens, unjustly detained in your country. None of these demands were met. And now the Taliban will pay a price. By destroying camps and disrupting communications, we will make it more difficult for the terror network to train new recruits and coordinate their evil plans.
Initially, the terrorists may burrow deeper into caves and other entrenched hiding places. Our military action is also designed to clear the way for sustained, comprehensive and relentless operations to drive them out and bring them to justice.
At the same time, the oppressed people of Afghanistan will know the generosity of America and our allies. As we strike military targets, we'll also drop food, medicine and supplies to the starving and suffering men and women and children of Afghanistan.
The United States of America is a friend to the Afghan people, and we are the friends of almost a billion worldwide who practice the Islamic faith. The United States of America is an enemy of those who aid terrorists and of the barbaric criminals who profane a great religion by committing murder in its name.
This military action is a part of our campaign against terrorism, another front in a war that has already been joined through diplomacy, intelligence, the freezing of financial assets and the arrests of known terrorists by law enforcement agents in 38 countries. Given the nature and reach of our enemies, we will win this conflict by the patient accumulation of successes, by meeting a series of challenges with determination and will and purpose.
Today we focus on Afghanistan, but the battle is broader. Every nation has a choice to make. In this conflict, there is no neutral ground. If any government sponsors the outlaws and killers of innocents, they have become outlaws and murderers, themselves. And they will take that lonely path at their own peril.
I'm speaking to you today from the Treaty Room of the White House, a place where American Presidents have worked for peace. We're a peaceful nation. Yet, as we have learned, so suddenly and so tragically, there can be no peace in a world of sudden terror. In the face of today's new threat, the only way to pursue peace is to pursue those who threaten it.
We did not ask for this mission, but we will fulfill it. The name of today's military operation is Enduring Freedom. We defend not only our precious freedoms, but also the freedom of people everywhere to live and raise their children free from fear.
I know many Americans feel fear today. And our government is taking strong precautions. All law enforcement and intelligence agencies are working aggressively around America, around the world and around the clock. At my request, many governors have activated the National Guard to strengthen airport security. We have called up Reserves to reinforce our military capability and strengthen the protection of our homeland.
In the months ahead, our patience will be one of our strengths -- patience with the long waits that will result from tighter security; patience and understanding that it will take time to achieve our goals; patience in all the sacrifices that may come.
Today, those sacrifices are being made by members of our Armed Forces who now defend us so far from home, and by their proud and worried families. A Commander-in-Chief sends America's sons and daughters into a battle in a foreign land only after the greatest care and a lot of prayer. We ask a lot of those who wear our uniform. We ask them to leave their loved ones, to travel great distances, to risk injury, even to be prepared to make the ultimate sacrifice of their lives. They are dedicated, they are honorable; they represent the best of our country. And we are grateful.
To all the men and women in our military -- every sailor, every soldier, every airman, every coastguardsman, every Marine -- I say this: Your mission is defined; your objectives are clear; your goal is just. You have my full confidence, and you will have every tool you need to carry out your duty.
I recently received a touching letter that says a lot about the state of America in these difficult times -- a letter from a 4th-grade girl, with a father in the military: "As much as I don't want my Dad to fight," she wrote, "I'm willing to give him to you."
This is a precious gift, the greatest she could give. This young girl knows what America is all about. Since September 11, an entire generation of young Americans has gained new understanding of the value of freedom, and its cost in duty and in sacrifice.
The battle is now joined on many fronts. We will not waver; we will not tire; we will not falter; and we will not fail. Peace and freedom will prevail.
Thank you. May God continue to bless America.
END 1:07 P.M, EDT
October 4, 2001
PRESIDENT FOX REAFFIRMS COMMITTMENT TO U.S.
The Colonnade
11:45 A.M. EDT
PRESIDENT BUSH: It is my honor to welcome my friend back to the White House. It wasn't all that long ago that we were standing out here for the opening ceremony of the first and only state dinner I've had since I've been the President. He came as a friend then, and he's come back as a loyal friend to the United States.
September 11th really changed America. President Fox understood that right off the bat. One of the first calls I got was from Vicente Fox. He called expressing his deep condolences to the American people. He was very kind to me. He wished me well. President Fox understands that an attack on America affects Mexico in a significant way. After all, there are millions of Mexican Americans and Mexican nationals living in America; men and women who saw a land they love attacked; men and women who have united around a great cause of defending freedom.
In this country we don't ask the question, what is your religion or where are you from. We ask the question, are you united to defend freedom. And there are millions of Mexican Americans who understand that call. So when the President said, we stand with you, he is not only saying, we stand with the United States government, he's saying, we stand with millions of people living in our country, as well.
President Fox and I had a great discussion about ways we can continue to cooperate. We need to cooperate on security matters along our border, which we are. We need to continue working on other agenda items that we have been working on, and we will.
Obviously, our nation is now focused on the incidents of September 11th. But I assured him our relationship will go forward, that we'll work on the issues that we had discussed the last time we were here. I talked to my friend about our economy. It has been affected significantly by the actions of September the 11th. But I assured him that we will take an aggressive role at the federal level to try to spur economic growth, which is very important, since we've got a significant amount of trade between our nations.
In sum, I'm so glad he came back. It's comforting to know that our friend to the south is going to be a friend in good times and in tough times.
So, Mr. President, welcome back. Thank you for coming.
PRESIDENT FOX: Thank you. And thank you, President, for the opportunity to be back here again; the opportunity to express very clearly, loudly, our sorrow, our solidarity with your government, with the American people, with the victims and all those who suffered under these attacks. But also, the opportunity to reaffirm our commitments.
We are a friend, we are neighbors, we are partners, and we want to make very clear that this means commitment all the way, and that we will keep our commitments. And we are working on an everyday basis, either in the border, either in customs, either in migration, either -- on each of the subjects that have to do with security. We will be side by side in your efforts to defeat terrorism in the world and wherever it is.
We will be coordinating, participating, collaborating on our side with our resources that we have at hand. And we know of your efforts not only to meet this challenge, we know the efforts also to keep America moving. And that's something that we very proudly see, that this nation does not know about defeat; on the contrary. But it's working to come back to be the leader, to be that strong spirit and economy that is an example for all of us.
And we're working in the same direction. We know that in economic terms, things are interactive; as well, as we buy a lot of products, services from the United States, we sell a lot of products to the United States, being one of the largest trading two economies in the world. And through working in that direction, we can also contribute to overcoming this situation.
So, thanks again for giving us this opportunity. And we go back knowing that we have a lot of work to do, that we've been doing and that we will keep on doing. So, thank you, President.
PRESIDENT BUSH: Thank you, Mr. President.
END
11:51 A.M. EDT
PRESIDENT DIRECTS HUMANITARIAN AID TO AFGHANISTAN: PRESIDENT THANKS STATE DEPARTMENT
George W. Bush, President of the United States
Remarks to State Department Employees
Washington, DC
October 4, 2001
THE PRESIDENT: Thank you very much. Please be seated. Thank you all. Mr. Secretary, I'm honored you invited me back. (Laughter.) I'm glad to be back to be able to say thanks on behalf of the American people to the patriots who work for our Department of State. Thanks for your hard work. Thanks for your dedication. Thanks for your love of America.
I'm also here to announce an initiative to help the Afghan people in a time of crisis and in a time of need. America will stand strong and will oppose the sponsors of terror. And America will stand strong and help those people who are hurt by those regimes.
Mr. Secretary, I am proud of your leadership. Last time I came, I predicted you would be a great Secretary of State. You have not let me down. (Applause.) And neither have the folks who work at the State Department; not only here in Washington, but in embassies throughout the world. America is proud of your service. And America is comforted by the fact that we are united as we stand to fight terror.
We are engaged in a noble cause. And that is to say loud and clear to the evildoers that we reject you, that we will stand firm against terror, and that this great nation, along with many other nations, will defend freedom.
I want to thank those of you who have worked extra long hours to help forge this fantastic coalition that we're building, a coalition of people all around the world who understand that the evil acts could have happened to them, just like they happened to us.
People understand that now is the time to take a stand, to seize this moment, to say that out of this evil act will come good. And the State Department has helped lead the way. And I'm proud of your efforts. And I'm proud of your hard work.
After all, many of you understand the effects of terror. We had two of our embassies bombed. Your colleagues were injured and died. I mean, the State Department has been on the front line of battling terror and the front line of seeing the effects of terror. And the American people appreciate the heroism of the people who serve our country overseas.
This is a unique type of war. It's a war that is going to require us building a broad coalition of nations who will contribute, one way or the other, to make sure that we all win. Some nations may be willing to commit troops, if that's a decision that we make. Other nations will help in cutting off funding. Truth of the matter is, the first shot we fired in this war against evildoers was when the Secretary and I and the Secretary of Treasury said we're going to find their money, and we're going to starve them of their money.
We're going to find their bank accounts, and we will freeze them. We're going to talk to banks all around the world, and make it clear that if they are on our side, if they join the folks who are fighting evil, that they've got to do everything they can to cut off their funds. When we starve them of their funds, we starve them of their capacity to move against freedom.
I'm proud of the coalitions that we've built. I'm proud of the fact that the Secretary of State and the able team here at the State Department is a results-oriented group of folks.
We've said, not only join the coalition, we've said here's what we expect you to do. Here is your assignment. One of the things the American people appreciate about our administration is that we're results-oriented folks, that we expect there to be results. We expect if you're on our team, that we want your performance. And it's making a difference.
As I announced the other day, we've collectively rounded up 150 terrorists, people associated with the al Qaeda organization. Thanks to the Secretary of State's work and others' work and the work of people around the world, we've convinced those who joined our coalition to rout out terrorists, to find them, to incarcerate them, to question them, to find out what's in their mind and what their future activities may be. And we're making great progress.
This is a strong coalition. It's a strong coalition because we've got great leadership, but it's a strong coalition because we're right. Because it's a strong coalition. Because we've made it clear, this is not a war between Christianity or Judaism and Islam. As a matter of fact, the teachings of Islam make it clear that peace is important, that compassion is a part of life. This is a war between good and evil. And we have made it clear to the world that we will stand strong on the side of good, and we expect other nations to join us. (Applause.)
This is not a war between our world and their world. It is a war to save the world. And people now understand that. And I want to thank you for all your work of making that simple, yet profound, mission clear.
We have no compassion for terrorists in this country. We have no compassion. Nor will we have any compassion for any state that sponsors them. Oh yes, we're a compassionate nation, but our compassion is limited. We have great compassion, however, for the millions around the world who are victims of hate, of victims of oppressive government, including the people who live in Afghanistan.
Today I'm announcing, along with the Secretary of State, that America will contribute an additional $320 million in humanitarian assistance for Afghans for more food, more medicine, to help the innocent people of Afghanistan deal with the coming winter. This is our way of saying that while we firmly and strongly oppose the Taliban regime, we are friends of the Afghan people.
We will work with the UN agencies such as the World Food Program and work with private volunteer organizations to make sure this assistance gets to the people. We will make sure that not only the folks in Afghanistan who need help get help, but we will help those who have fled to neighboring countries to get help as well.
There's no question that we're an angry people about what happened to our country. But in our anger, we must never forget we're a compassionate people as well. We will fight evil. But in order to overcome evil, the great goodness of America must come forth and shine forth. And one way to do so is to help the poor souls in Afghanistan. And we're going to do so.
I want to remind the world that helping people in need is a central part of not only the Christian faith, but of Judaism and the Hindu faith, and of course a central part of Islamic traditions. And that's why our coalition is more than just one to rout terrorism out of the world. It's one to bind together, to knit those traditions in a way that helps people in need.
You know, I talked to a lot of world leaders, and Colin has as well. And I told him, through our tears, we see opportunity, that in our sadness and grief we see an opportunity to not only defend freedom, but to make the world more peaceful.
I see an opportunity at home when I hear the stories of Christian and Jewish women alike, helping women of cover, Arab American women go shop because they're afraid to leave their home. I see a great opportunity when I see moms and dads spend more time with their children here at home.
I see out of this sadness and grief an opportunity for America to reexamine our culture, to reexamine how we view the need to help people in need, whether it be in our own neighborhood and around the world.
I see out of this evil will come good, not only here at home, as youngsters all of a sudden understand the definition of sacrifice, the sacrifice of those brave souls on Flight 93 who, after the 23rd Psalm said, let's roll to save America.
I see an opportunity as well to bring peace to the world, the likes of which we've never seen. I appreciate the Secretary of State's hard work in the Middle East. It has been diligent. It has been consistent. It has been true to the principles of America, that in order for there to be peace, we must reduce the level of violence.
I see an opportunity to make sure the subcontinent is more peaceful. No, in our grief and in our sadness, I see an opportunity to make the world a better place for generations to come. And we will seize the opportunity. I fully understand that some will grow weary and some will tire. Not this administration, and not the people of the State Department.
I know there will be some nations that will become frustrated over time because we're fighting a different kind of campaign. But we won't weary. This is a nation that has determined, made a determination to rise up in a united way; to not only spread goodwill around the world, but to find terrorists where they may live and may hide, and those who harbor them, and bring them to justice. Now is the time. (Applause.)
Now is the time for this great nation to lead. And I'm proud of the Secretary of State and the hardworking people of the State Department for joining us in this cause. Thank you for letting me come by again. May God bless you all, and may God bless America. (Applause.)
[End]
PRESIDENT URGES TAX RELIEF AIMED AT RECOVERY
Remarks by the President on the Economy
The Rose Garden
October 5, 2001
2:36 P.M. EDT
THE PRESIDENT:
Good afternoon. I just concluded a meeting with my economic policy team. Secretary O'Neill has been up on the Hill talking to members of Congress and brought back some encouraging news. And that is, the United States Congress is interested in working as quickly as possible to pass an economic stimulus package.
I want to remind the American people that the Congress has been working with us to provide relief. We passed monies for disaster relief, monies to help the people in New York. We passed appropriations to help beef up our security. We passed appropriations to help airlines. Yesterday, I proposed additional expenditures to help workers who have been laid off as a result of the September 11th tragedy. That spending totals about $60 billion.
And in order to stimulate the economy, Congress doesn't need to spend any more money -- what they need to do is to cut taxes. So I propose this: I propose that the United States Congress, as quickly as possible, pass tax relief equal to or a little bit greater than the monies that we have already appropriated.
Tax relief should come in this kind of form. One, that we ought to stimulate demand by cutting -- accelerating the marginal tax cuts that we've passed and I've signed. As well as, there ought to be a provision in the tax relief package to make sure that low- and moderate-income workers get tax relief, as well.
And on the business side, we need to stimulate investment by allowing for enhanced expensing of capital expenditures, and we believe they ought to eliminate alternative minimum tax on corporate America.
This is a package which will dovetail nicely with the marginal cuts and the increased child credit that will kick in next year as well. The American people expect us to act, and here is a way for us to act. We've spent money, and that will have a stimulative effect of some kind.
But to make sure that the economy gets the boost it needs, Congress ought to come together quickly and accept the ideas that I've just laid out. We believe that will be the best way to make sure that America recovers from the terrorist attack of September the 11th.
The terrorists attacked us, but they did not diminish our spirit, nor did they undermine the fundamentals of our economy. And we believe if we act expeditiously, that those fundamentals will kick back in and people will be able to find work again.
I hope you all have a fine weekend. Thank you all very much.
END
2:38 P.M. EDT
PRESIDENT'S RADIO ADDRESS 6 OCTOBER 2001: AID TO AFGHANISTAN
Office of the Press Secretary
October 6, 2001
Radio Address of the President to the Nation
"AFGHAN PEOPLE ARE THE VICTIMS OF OPPRESSION"..."TALEBAN RULERS AND THE TERRORISTS THEY HARBOR HAVE MUCH TO FEAR...", SAYS PRESIDENT BUSH
RADIO ADDRESS
THE PRESIDENT: Good morning. Today I want to update Americans on our global campaign against terror. The United States is presenting a clear choice to every nation: Stand with the civilized world, or stand with the terrorists. And for those nations that stand with the terrorists, there will be a heavy price.
America is determined to oppose the state sponsors of terror. Yet we are equally determined to respect and help the men and women those regimes oppress. Our enemy is not the Arab world. Many friendly Arab governments are, themselves, the targets of extremist terror. Our enemy is not Islam, a good and peace-loving faith, that brings direction and comfort to over one billion people, including millions of Americans. And our enemy is not the people of any nation, even when their leaders harbor terrorists. Our enemy is the terrorists themselves, and the regimes that shelter and sustain them.
Afghanistan is a case in point. Its Taliban regime has made that nation into a sanctuary and training ground for international terrorists -- terrorists who have killed innocent citizens of many nations, including our own. The Taliban promotes terror abroad, and practices terror against its people, oppressing women and persecuting all who dissent.
The Taliban has been given the opportunity to surrender all the terrorists in Afghanistan and to close down their camps and operations. Full warning has been given, and time is running out.
The Afghan people, however, are the victims of oppression, famine and misrule. Many refugees from that unfortunate nation are on the move, and sadly, many Afghans are on the verge of starvation.
America respects the Afghan people, their long tradition and their proud independence. And we will help them in this time of confusion and crisis in their country.
America has long been the largest source of food and humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan. This week I announced an additional $320 million in aid to the Afghan people, to those within Afghanistan and those who have fled across borders. Despite efforts by the Taliban to disrupt these critical aid shipments, we will deliver food and seeds, vaccines and medicines by truck, and even by draft animals. Conditions permitting, we will bring help directly to the people of Afghanistan by air drops.
This aid will help Afghans make it through the upcoming winter. For the longer-term, I urge Congress to make funds available so that one day the United States can contribute, along with other friends of Afghanistan, to the reconstruction and development of that troubled nation.
Helping people in great need is a central part of the Jewish, Christian and Islamic traditions, as well as many other faiths. It is also a central part of the American tradition. Even as we fight evil regimes we are generous to the people they oppress. Following World War II, America fed and rebuilt Japan and Germany, and their people became some of our closest friends in the world.
In the struggle ahead, we will act in accordance with American ideals. We're offering help and friendship to the Afghan people. It is their Taliban rulers, and the terrorists they harbor, who have much to fear.Thank you for listening.