Last part of my reaction to the NUL address
We've done a lot in three-and-a-half years. I ask you to look at the record of accomplishment. And I didn't do this alone. I've got a good administration, really good people. It's a diverse Cabinet. It's a Cabinet full of strong people. It's a Cabinet who are serving our country first. People like Rod Paige. You've heard my talk about education. I hope you have a sense of my passion to make sure we get it right. I understand the importance of schools in America. I picked a good man to serve as the head of the Education Department, Rod Paige. He was -- (applause.) You heard me talk about owning your own home, it's a vital part of this future of this country. Alphonso Jackson is the head of the Housing and Urban Development. (Applause.) Kay James runs the Office of Personnel Management. You know, the government owns a lot of property. Steve Perry is the head of the GSA. (Applause.)
We've got a diverse cabinet, diverse administration, people who serve our nation with dignity. You know, when it comes time to money, Allen Greenspan is a smart guy, so is the Vice Chairman, Roger Ferguson, of the Federal Reserve. (Applause.) Chairman of the FCC, the Federal Communications Commission, Michael Powell -- in other words, what I'm telling you is -- (applause) -- I feel I have an obligation to reach out to people from all walks of life. I have met that obligation, and the government is better for it. (Applause.)
You would have to be awfully sheltered to call talking to the guys he named "reaching out to people from all walks of life." But that's not the best questionable statement. He saved that for his aces in the hole.
And when it comes to national security, thankfully I've had a good team. We've had some big challenges in this country. And I've got a strong foreign policy, because the architects of that policy are people like Condi Rice and Colin Powell. (Applause.) These are good people. I've seen them -- I've seen them under incredible pressure. I know their steadiness and their clear vision.
"People like" Condi Rice and Colin Powell are the archetechs of his foreign policy. Not Condi Rice and Colin Powell themselves but "people like" them.
This is what actually made me decide to see what other precision parsing they set up. Not one word in this speech was placed there accidentally.
See, our most solemn duty is to protect the American people. That's our most solemn duty. It's a duty brought upon us not at our asking, because we were attacked unmercifully by people who hate what we stand for. They hate the fact that we can have free dialogue just like this. They hate the fact that there's open discourse. They hate the fact that we're a free society where people can worship any way they see fit.
They hate the idea that we welcome people who worship God and we welcome people who don't worship God. They can't stand the thought that we're a society that says, if you choose to worship, you're equally American, if you're a Christian, Jew, or Muslim.
And so they attacked us.
This is just so much bullshit and spew.
[Empty rhetoric redacted]
Our foreign policy is tough and it's compassionate. It's tough and we have to be tough, it's compassionate. We liberated over 50 million people who were brutalized by tyrants.
He's talking about Afghanistan and Iraq?
Afghanistan where the warlords run everything outside the capital city? Iraq, where hundreds of people known to have been innocent were abused, tortured and worse.
We're proud to lead the armies of liberation. We're standing true to this great American ideal that freedom is the almighty God's gift to each man and woman in this world.
I have to say that "armies of liberation" thing gives me the creeps.
We've begun the largest initiative ever to combat global AIDS. America is in the lead on dealing with the pandemic that ravages the continent of Africa. We're taking the lead because we're a compassionate nation. We feed more of the hungry than any nation on the face of the Earth. We're a compassionate nation.
We're also a wise nation when it comes to smart policy. I signed the African Growth and Opportunity Acceleration Act of 2004. It recognizes that the best way to help lift people out of poverty is to trade, it's through the free flow of commerce. And it's working on the -- this policy is working on the continent of Africa.
Problems come to our desk because of our influence in the world. We've dealt with Liberia. We're now dealing with Sudan. The United States is working closely with the United Nations. As a matter of fact, the Secretary of State was recently with Kofi Annan talking about this very subject. We're working closely with the African Union to bring relief to the suffering people in that region. We've made our position very clear to the Sudanese government: They must stop the Janjaweed violence. They must provide access for humanitarian relief to the people who suffer.
Having not actually done anything about Sudan and the Janjaweed yet I think the promise to intercede saves a loss of moral ground rather than gaining ground. And my understanding of the promise to support the U.N.'s AIDS research and prevention program has seen only a small fraction of the pledged funds. I will mark a plus in Bush's column for each promise he actually keeps.
As for the African Growth and Opportunity Acceleration Act of 2004, regardless of intent, there's a pattern to how these things work out.
Ours is a solid record of accomplishment. And that's why I've come to talk about compassionate conservatism and what I envision for the future. I'm here for another reason. I'm here to ask for your vote.
No.
No, I know, I know, I know. The Republican party has got a lot of work to do. I understand that.
Here's a question: if it's so clear that a lot of work need be done, why has no one started on it?
[babble redacted]
And as I do, I'm going to ask African American voters to consider some questions.
Does the Democrat party take African American voters for granted? (Applause.) It's a fair question. I know plenty of politicians assume they have your vote. But do they earn it and do they deserve it? (Applause.)
On a national level, yes the Democratic Party has just assumed Black folks need not be specifically attended to. That's since Clinton days, actually. Democratic presidents have been the cooler to Black folks (since I've been political anyway).
Is it a good thing for the African American community to be represented mainly by one political party? That's a legitimate question.
It is not a good thing, and it is do because the Republican Party campaigns are hostile to Black interests. That hostility is a selling point to Bush's major constituencies. It's the nature of the parties, not Black folks' lack of political unsophistication, that is the Republican problem.
How is it possible to gain political leverage if the party is never forced to compete?
And if Black people vote Republican, they will have gotten the votes without having done a damn thing. Without even intending to.
Have the traditional solutions of the Democrat party truly served the African American community?
Based on all that Black progress you just lauded, I'd say yes.
No one can even pretend the traditional solutions of the Republican party served the African American community.
That's what I hope people ask when they go to the community centers and places, as we all should do our duty and vote. People need to be asking these very serious questions.
Does blocking the faith-based initiative help neighborhoods where the only social service provider could be a church?
No.
Does the status quo in education really, really help the children of this country?
No.
Does class warfare -- has class warfare or higher taxes ever created decent jobs in the inner city?
I don't even know that that says.
Are you satisfied with the same answers on crime, excuses for drugs and blindness to the problem of the family?
Hey, Mr. Stay-The-Course. I haven't heard any new answers on anything from you. And who is making excuses for which drugs?
I know I'm setting myself up here but what is the problem of the family?
[Closes with a lot of noise about what the guy who doesn't read newspapers himself believes]
