Annotated State Of The Union Highlights (Real Long)
Posted: Wed Jan 21, 2004 11:06 am
As we gather tonight, hundreds of thousands of American servicemen and women are deployed across the world in the war on terror. By bringing hope to the oppressed, and delivering justice to the violent, they are making America more secure.
And there are some in Iraq, too. Hah! I'm here all week, folks.
Each day, law enforcement personnel and intelligence officers are tracking terrorist threats; analysts are examining airline passenger lists; the men and women of our new Homeland Security Department are patrolling our coasts and borders. And their vigilance is protecting America.
War is peace! Freedom is slavery! You must allow us to protect you!
Americans are proving once again to be the hardest working people in the world. The American economy is growing stronger. The tax relief you passed is working.
At least for the third quarter last year. Shame about the jobs thing.
We have faced serious challenges together -- and now we face a choice. We can go forward with confidence and resolve -- or we can turn back to the dangerous illusion that terrorists are not plotting and outlaw regimes are no threat to us.
Has anyone actually suggested this?
We can press on with economic growth, and reforms in education and Medicare -- or we can turn back to the old policies and old divisions.
The ones that brought us a huge economic expansion, budget surpluses, and a robust job market?
The terrorists continue to plot against America and the civilized world.
But I thought we caught Saddam and we were safer now.
Key provisions of the Patriot Act are set to expire next year. The terrorist threat will not expire on that schedule. Our law enforcement
needs this vital legislation to protect our citizens -- you need to renew
the Patriot Act.
We must destroy the Constitution in order to save it.
Since we last met in this chamber, combat forces of the United States, Great Britain, Australia, Poland, and other countries enforced the demands of the United Nations, ended the rule of Saddam Hussein -- and the people of Iraq are free.
But we don't want them to have elections, because we're scared of who they might elect.
Having broken the Baathist regime, we face a remnant of violent Saddam supporters. Men who ran away from our troops in battle are now dispersed and attack from the shadows.
Why don't they fight the way we want them to?
Nine months of intense negotiations involving the United States and Great Britain succeeded with Libya, while 12 years of diplomacy with Iraq did not. And one reason is clear: For diplomacy to be effective, words must be credible -- and no one can now doubt the word of America.
Considering the content of the last SOTU, this is side-splittingly funny.
When I came to this rostrum on September 20th, 2001, I brought the police shield of a fallen officer, my reminder of lives that ended, and a task that does not end. I gave to you and to all Americans my complete
commitment to securing our country and defeating our enemies. And this
pledge, given by one, has been kept by many. You in the Congress have
provided the resources for our defense, and cast the difficult votes of war
and peace. Our closest allies have been unwavering. America's intelligence personnel and diplomats have been skilled and tireless.
Again with the 9/11 - Iraq links. I thought you admitted there were none.
We have seen the joy when they return, and felt the sorrow when one is lost.
No you haven't, you don't go to the damn funerals.
I have had the honor of meeting our servicemen and women at many posts, from the deck of a carrier in the Pacific, to a mess hall in Baghdad.
He mentioned the carrier? He's really cocky.
Many of our troops are listening tonight. And I want you and your families to know: America is proud of you. And my Administration, and this Congress, will give you the resources you need to fight and win the war on terror.
Big talk when they have to buy their own flak jackets.
I know that some people question if America is really in a war at all. They view terrorism more as a crime -- a problem to be solved mainly with law enforcement and indictments. After the World Trade Center was first attacked in 1993, some of the guilty were indicted, and tried, convicted, and sent to prison. But the matter was not settled. The
terrorists were still training and plotting in other nations, and drawing
up more ambitious plans. After the chaos and carnage of September the
11th, it is not enough to serve our enemies with legal papers. The
terrorists and their supporters declared war on the United States -- and
war is what they got.
Oooooh, tough guy. Violence is *always* better than justice. This is a
really interesting paragraph. So what is he saying -- that we should have
invaded Iraq in 1993? Oh, silly me. *Of course* that's what we should have done.
Plus, if his thesis is that the criminal justice system is inadequate for cases of terrorism, what about old Tim McVeigh? I mean, if we dealt with that case like we did with 9/11, we would have:
1) Busted down the door to his apartment, shot a few of the neighbors, and found nobody home.
2) Blown up the apartment complex two blocks away where the annoying drunk lives and declared America safer.
The impression I get is that the criminal justice system is for Christian extremists, and military action is for Muslim extremists.
Some in this chamber, and in our country, did not support the liberation of Iraq.
No, we did not support a unilateral, illegal, unprovoked war. If you could
have found a way to "liberate" Iraq without doing that, we'd have been all
for it.
Objections to war often come from principled motives. But let us be candid about the consequences of leaving Saddam Hussein in power. We are seeking all the facts -- already the Kay Report identified dozens of weapons of mass destruction-related program activities and significant amounts of equipment that Iraq concealed from the United Nations. Had we failed to act, the dictator's weapons of mass destruction programs would continue to this day.
"Weapons of mass destruction-related program activities"? Oh good God, I can't believe he's even trying to spin this.
For all who love freedom and peace, the world without Saddam Hussein's regime is a better and safer place.
Perhaps, in a vacuum. But the actions that toppled that regime did *not*
make the world a safer place.
Some critics have said our duties in Iraq must be internationalized. This particular criticism is hard to explain to our partners in Britain, Australia, Japan, South Korea, the Philippines, Thailand, Italy, Spain, Poland, Denmark, Hungary, Bulgaria, Ukraine, Romania, the Netherlands, Norway, El Salvador, and the 17 other countries that have committed troops to Iraq. As we debate at home, we must never ignore the vital
contributions of our international partners, or dismiss their sacrifices.
From the beginning, America has sought international support for our
operations in Afghanistan and Iraq, and we have gained much support. There is a difference, however, between leading a coalition of many nations, and submitting to the objections of a few. America will never seek a permission slip to defend the security of our country.
So international law doesn't apply to us? Might makes right? If you buy
enough allies, you're moral and just? That's not the America I know.
We also hear doubts that democracy is a realistic goal for the greater Middle East, where freedom is rare. Yet it is mistaken, and condescending, to assume that whole cultures and great religions are incompatible with liberty and self-government. I believe that God has planted in every human heart the desire to live in freedom. And even when that desire is crushed by tyranny for decades, it will rise again.
The very fact that he is invoking God to make assumptions about what people in the Middle East want is pretty hilarious.
America is a nation with a mission -- and that mission comes from our most basic beliefs. We have no desire to dominate, no ambitions of empire. Our aim is a democratic peace -- a peace founded upon the dignity and rights of every man and woman. America acts in this cause with friends and allies at our side, yet we understand our special calling: This great Republic will lead the cause of freedom.
So, we have no desire to dominate, but the world will do things our way or else? Hmmmmm.
You have doubled the child tax credit from 500 to a thousand dollars, reduced the marriage penalty, begun to phase out the death tax, reduced taxes on capital gains and stock dividends, cut taxes on small businesses, and you have lowered taxes for every American who pays income taxes.
Oh, and the huge cuts for the rich and corporations. But we won't get into all that right now.
Americans took those dollars and put them to work, driving this economy forward. The pace of economic growth in the third quarter of 2003 was the fastest in nearly 20 years.
What happens when the $300 breeding-subsidy checks stop flowing and the mortgage refinance boom ends is anyone's guess. Stay tuned.
New home construction: the highest in almost 20 years. Home ownership rates: the highest ever. Manufacturing activity is increasing. Inflation is low. Interest rates are low. Exports are growing. Productivity is high. And jobs are on the rise.
Whew, yeah, 1,000 jobs last month. Go team!
These numbers confirm that the American people are using their money far better than government would have -- and you were right to return it.
Deficits? Who cares! Deficits don't matter. (So sez Cheney.)
America's growing economy is also a changing economy. As technology transforms the way almost every job is done, America becomes more productive, and workers need new skills. Much of our job growth will be found in high-skilled fields like health care and biotechnology. So we must respond by helping more Americans gain the skills to find good jobs in our new economy.
Having those jobs available in the first place would be a good start.
By passing the No Child Left Behind Act, you have made the expectation of literacy the law of our country. We are providing more funding for our schools -- a 36 percent increase since 2001.
Which hardly makes up for the huge drop in local and state money caused by the recession which is supposedly over.
But the status quo always has defenders. Some want to undermine the No Child Left Behind Act by weakening standards and accountability.
As opposed to Bush, who undermines it by not funding it.
Yet the results we require are really a matter of common sense: We expect third graders to read and do math at third grade level -- that’s not asking too much. Testing is the only way to identify and help students who are falling behind.
I love the irony of Bush extolling higher academic standards.
At the same time, we must ensure that older students and adults can gain the skills they need to find work now. Many of the fastest-growing occupations require strong math and science preparation, and training beyond the high school level. So tonight I propose a series of measures called Jobs for the 21st Century. This program will provide extra help to middle and high school students who fall behind in reading and math, expand Advanced Placement programs in low-income schools, invite math and science professionals from the private sector to teach part-time in our high schools. I propose larger Pell Grants for students who prepare for college with demanding courses in high school. I propose increasing our support for America's fine community colleges, I do so, so they can train workers for the industries that are creating the most new jobs. By all these actions, we will help more and more Americans to join in the growing prosperity of our country.
This all sounds fantastic, but in reality college funding is getting slashed at the state level and scholarship requirements are tightening. This'll be a case of believe-it-when-I-see-it, like that elusive funding to fight AIDS in Africa. (http://allafrica.com/stories/200401201167.html) And where is all this money coming from?
Congress has some unfinished business on the issue of taxes. The tax reductions you passed are set to expire. Unless you act, the unfair tax on marriage will go back up. Unless you act, millions of families will be charged 300 dollars more in Federal taxes for every child. Unless you act, small businesses will pay higher taxes. Unless you act, the death tax will eventually come back to life. Unless you act, Americans face a tax increase. What the Congress has given, the Congress should not take away: For the sake of job growth, the tax cuts you passed should be permanent.
Because, you know, they've created so many jobs in the last two years. (And I love the estate-tax-as-zombie imagery. Braaaaaaaaains!)
Our agenda for jobs and growth must help small business owners and employees with relief from needless Federal regulation, and protect them from junk and frivolous lawsuits.
Hear that, John Edwards? I'm talking to *you*!
Consumers and businesses need reliable supplies of energy to make our economy run -- so I urge you to pass legislation to modernize our electricity system, promote conservation, and make America less dependent on foreign sources of energy.
Promote conservation? Oh dear God, he's just making shit up at this point -- just stringing words together with no regard for what they mean.
My administration is promoting free and fair trade, to open up new markets for America's entrepreneurs, and manufacturers, and farmers, to create jobs for America's workers.
Well, *Central* American workers, at any rate.
Younger workers should have the opportunity to build a nest egg by saving part of their Social Security taxes in a personal retirement account. We should make the Social Security system a source of ownership for the American people.
Because we've seen how well the mutual fund system works this past year.
And we should limit the burden of government on this economy by acting as good stewards of taxpayer dollars. In two weeks, I will send you a budget that funds the war, protects the homeland, and meets important domestic needs, while limiting the growth in discretionary spending to less than four percent. This will require that Congress focus on priorities, cut wasteful spending, and be wise with the people's money. By doing so, we can cut the deficit in half over the next five years.
How did this paragraph make it into this speech? It has nothing to do with the rest of the speech, which is all about more spending and less taxes. And I'm glad he's promising to cut the deficit he created. Applause, applause, applause.
By strengthening Medicare and adding a prescription drug benefit, you kept a basic commitment to our seniors: You are giving them the modern medicine they deserve.
Giving? Not according to any definition of that word I'm familiar with.
In January of 2006, seniors can get prescription drug coverage under Medicare. For a monthly premium of about 35 dollars, most seniors who do not have that coverage today can expect to see their drug bills cut roughly in half.
How is this "giving?" And again, how does this square with that deficit-cutting stuff?
Under this reform, senior citizens will be able to keep their Medicare just as it is, or they can choose a Medicare plan that fits them best -- just as you, as members of Congress, can choose an insurance plan that meets your needs.
Oh, somehow I doubt it's "just like" what the Congresscritters have.
And starting this year, millions of Americans will be able to save money tax-free for their medical expenses, in a health savings account.
Yippee. This has been around for at least ten years.
I signed this measure proudly, and any attempt to limit the choices of our seniors, or to take away their prescription drug coverage under Medicare, will meet my veto.
Read -- any attempt to undermine the position of for-profit private health insurance will be doomed.
Small businesses should be able to band together and negotiate for lower insurance rates, so they can cover more workers with health insurance -- I urge you to pass Association Health Plans.
Huh. Unions for small businesses, but not for workers. My head hurts trying to sort *that* one out.
I ask you to give lower-income Americans a refundable tax credit that would allow millions to buy their own basic health insurance.
Criminy. The hoops these people will jump through to avoid single-payer.
To protect the doctor-patient relationship, and keep good doctors doing good work, we must eliminate wasteful and frivolous medical lawsuits.
Hear that, John Edwards? I'm talking to *you*!
A government-run health care system is the wrong prescription.
Because that might put us on par with the rest of the industrialized world in terms of access to health care and cut profits to big insurance companies. Can't have that.
By keeping costs under control, expanding access, and helping more Americans afford coverage, we will preserve the system of private medicine that makes America's health care the best in the world.
And the most profitable.
Yet some things endure -- courage and compassion, reverence and integrity, respect for differences of faith and race.
But we're working on that problem.
And they are instilled in us by fundamental institutions, such as families, and schools, and religious congregations. These institutions -- the unseen pillars of civilization -- must remain strong in America, and we will defend them.
Who's attacking them? And why are they "unseen"? I see families and schools and churches every day. They're freaking *everywhere*. Especially churches. There's at least a half-dozen huge mega-churches going up within a few miles of my house. Why do they need defending?
One of the worst decisions our children can make is to gamble their lives and futures on drugs.
Though it didn't seem to hurt W's career any.
Drug use in high school has declined by 11 percent over the last two years. Four hundred thousand fewer young people are using illegal drugs than in the year 2001.
Well, yeah. The economy's made it so they can't afford them.
Drug testing in our schools has proven to be an effective part of this effort. So tonight I propose an additional 23 million for schools that want to use drug testing as a tool to save children's lives. The aim here is not to punish children, but to send them this message: We love you, and we don't want to lose you.
Now piss in this cup. Or else. Freedom is slavery.
To help children make right choices, they need good examples. Athletics play such an important role in our society, but, unfortunately, some in professional sports are not setting much of an example. The use of performance-enhancing drugs like steroids in baseball, football, and other sports is dangerous, and it sends the wrong message -- that there are shortcuts to accomplishment, and that performance is more important than character. So tonight I call on team owners, union representatives, coaches, and players to take the lead, to send the right signal, to get tough, and to get rid of steroids now.
What the hell?
To encourage right choices, we must be willing to confront the dangers young people face -- even when they are difficult to talk about. Each year, about three million teenagers contract sexually transmitted diseases that can harm them, or kill them, or prevent them from ever becoming parents. In my budget, I propose a grassroots campaign to help inform families about these medical risks. We will double Federal funding for abstinence programs, so schools can teach this fact of life: Abstinence for young people is the only certain way to avoid sexually transmitted diseases.
Someone tell Neil. All those Asian hookers can't possibly be healthy.
A strong America must also value the institution of marriage.
Oh, boy, here we go.
I believe we should respect individuals as we take a principled stand for one of the most fundamental, enduring institutions of our civilization. Congress has already taken a stand on this issue by passing the Defense of Marriage Act, signed in 1996 by President Clinton. That statute protects marriage under Federal law as the union of a man and a woman, and declares that one state may not redefine marriage for other states.
Boooooo, Clinton. The things you do in an election year, eh?
Activist judges, however, have begun redefining marriage by court order, without regard for the will of the people and their elected representatives.
activist (n, adj) - one who interprets the Constitution differently than the right.
On an issue of such great consequence, the people's voice must be heard. If judges insist on forcing their arbitrary will upon the people, the only alternative left to the people would be the constitutional process.
Which would be a desecration of the Constitution on a par with Prohibition.
Our nation must defend the sanctity of marriage.
So Britney Spears gets deported? Yay!
The outcome of this debate is important -- and so is the way we conduct it. The same moral tradition that defines marriage also teaches that each individual has dignity and value in God's sight.
As long as you don't get too uppity about it.
It is also important to strengthen our communities by unleashing the compassion of America's religious institutions.
Unleash the compassion! Stand back! Duck and cover!
Tonight I ask you to consider another group of Americans in need of help. This year, some 600,000 inmates will be released from prison back into society. We know from long experience that if they can't find work, or a home, or help, they are much more likely to commit crime and return to prison. So tonight, I propose a four-year, 300 million dollar Prisoner Re-Entry Initiative to expand job training and placement services, to provide transitional housing, and to help newly released prisoners get mentoring, including from faith-based groups. America is the land of the second chance -- and when the gates of the prison open, the path ahead should lead to a better life.
Again, I doubt this proposal will ever amount to anything.
For all Americans, the last three years have brought tests we did not ask for, and achievements shared by all. By our actions, we have shown what kind of nation we are.
And shame on us.
Last month a girl in Lincoln, Rhode Island, sent me a letter. It began, "Dear George W. Bush." "If there is anything you know, I Ashley Pearson age 10 can do to help anyone, please send me a letter and tell me what I can do to save our country." She added this P.S.: "If you can send a letter to the troops -- please put, 'Ashley Pearson believes in you.'"
Maybe you should read her a story about a goat.
Tonight, Ashley, your message to our troops has just been conveyed. And yes, you have some duties yourself. Study hard in school, listen to your mom or dad, help someone in need, and when you and your friends see a man or woman in uniform, say "thank you."
Is that before or after you cut their veteran's benefits?
My fellow citizens, we now move forward, with confidence and faith. Our nation is strong and steadfast. The cause we serve is right, because it is the cause of all mankind. The momentum of freedom in our world is unmistakable -- and it is not carried forward by our power alone. We can trust in that greater power who guides the unfolding of the years. And in all that is to come, we can know that His purposes are just and true.
Man, that's some scary shit right there. *Real* scary. "God told me to kill people" scary.
That's your State of the Union for 2004. Sleep tight.
)