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Skriven 2006-10-25 23:31:40 av Whitehouse Press (1:3634/12.0)
Ärende: Press Release (0610254) for Wed, 2006 Oct 25
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Mrs. Bush's Remarks at a Michele Bachmann for Congress and Republican Party
of Minnesota Breakfast
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For Immediate Release
Office of the First Lady
October 25, 2006

Mrs. Bush's Remarks at a Michele Bachmann for Congress and Republican Party
of Minnesota Breakfast
Minneapolis Marriott Southwest
Minnetonka, Minnesota



10:05 A.M. CDT

MRS. BUSH: Thank you, Michele. Thank for that kind introduction. I'm so
thrilled to have this chance to be here with you, and I want to thank
everyone here for the warm welcome to Minnesota.

I want to acknowledge a few people in the crowd with us. We have
Congressman Gil Gutknecht and Mary, who are here with us. They're going to
go on. We're going to go to Rochester and do an event after this. Thank you
all for joining us. He's the U.S. Representative from the 1st district in
Minnesota. Congressman John Kline, the U.S. Representative from Minnesota's
2nd district, and his wife, Vicky, are here with us. Thank you so much for
joining us. Debbie Kennedy, wife of Congressman and Republican candidate
for U.S. Senate, Mark Kennedy -- Debbie, thanks so much for joining us.
Kathryn Ramstad, wife of U.S. Representative Jim Ramstad from the 3rd
district. And former U.S. Senator Rod Grams, candidate for Congress from
the 8th district and his wife, Chris, are here with us, as well. Thank you
so much for joining us.

And I especially want to recognize Dr. Marcus Bachmann, Michele's husband.
When your spouse is in politics, you're involved -- (laughter) -- whether
you want to be or not. And we know that successful politicians have spouses
who stand with them and are with them all the time. So thank you, Dr.
Bachmann, very much for your support. (Applause.)

And Dr. Bachmann is not the only member of the family. Michele's mother and
even Michele's in-laws are here, along with three daughters. So thank you
all very much for coming. Thank you for your support of Michele.

I'm delighted to be with you today to support Michele Bachmann's campaign
for the United States Congress. Michele cares deeply about the people of
Minnesota, and in Washington, she'll be a passionate advocate for the
people of the 6th district.

Michele will bring to Congress the principles of efficiency and
accountability that have defined her public service. She'll ensure that
Minnesota's tax dollars are spent wisely and responsibly. During her six
years in the State Senate, Michele has consistently supported initiatives
to lower Minnesotans' taxes. She authored the Taxpayer Bill of Rights --
legislation that would limit state spending and curb tax increases, helping
Minnesotans keep more of hard-earned money.

In Washington, Michele will support President Bush's tax cuts. (Applause.)
These tax cuts have fueled our economy, and they've helped add more than
6.6 million new jobs since 2003. Here in Minnesota, your unemployment rate
is a low 3.8. Congratulations to all of you. (Applause.) Those 6.6 million
new jobs mean that 6.6 million more Americans wake up every morning with
the dignity and the sense of purpose that comes with a job.

Michele Bachmann is committed to creating jobs for Minnesota. She's
witnessed the challenges facing Minnesota businesses firsthand as her
husband Marcus built from scratch a small business that now employs 30
people here in the 6th district. And through her leadership on the State
Senate's Jobs, Energy, and Community Development Committee, Michele has
improved the business climate for Minnesota entrepreneurs, so they can
expand their companies and create more jobs for your state.

Offering young people the hope of good employment is one of the most
important things we can do for our children. Another way we can help young
people is by steering them away from risky behavior, and guiding them
toward the knowledge and the self-respect they need to build successful
lives.

Michele Bachmann has a strong record of commitment to young people. Michele
is the mother of five children, and she and Marcus have welcomed into their
home 23 foster children -- all who have gone on to graduate from high
school. (Applause.) And in the State Senate, as a member of the Education
Committee, Michele has led the effort to raise academic standards in
Minnesota schools, improving opportunities for young people throughout your
state. Thank you, Michele, for this very important work. (Applause.)

We all know, though, that the well-being of young people in Minnesota and
throughout our country ultimately depends on our government's ability to
keep them safe -- by defeating terrorism and increasing liberty abroad.

Michele understands the needs of our troops at this crucial time in our
country's history. In the State Senate, she's been a passionate advocate
for Minnesotans who've served our country in uniform, sponsoring
legislation that kept the state from seizing and closing Washington
County's Disabled Veterans' Rest Camp. And in Congress, Michele will be a
champion of the men and women of the United States military. (Applause.)

Thanks to our troops, the Iraqi people are now free from the oppression of
Saddam Hussein, and are working to build a democratic future for their
country.

And in Afghanistan, women and girls can now be educated. It's hard for us
to imagine a country that would forbid half of its population from being
educated. But now, little girls are in school all over Afghanistan.
(Applause.)

All of us are proud of the men and women who are deployed around the world
defending our country. Every day, thousands of these young men and women
risk their lives overseas to make sure their families, and all of our
families, are kept safe in the United States. Their love of our country,
and of liberty, never wavers, and neither does their belief in their
mission.

Many of these young men and women have given their lives for this belief.
Around the country, President Bush and I meet with their families. In
military hospitals, we meet with their fellow soldiers who've been wounded
in combat. And from all our troops and their families, the President and I
hear the same request: that we honor the sacrifice of these men and women
by seeing their mission through. They ask the American people to stand with
our troops until we've succeeded in securing Iraq, and the Iraqi people
have a stable government that's an ally to the United States. (Applause.)

Michele Bachmann appreciates our troops. She understands that this election
is critical to the future of our country. And she knows that America faces
challenges too important to be reduced to just politics.

President Bush has an ambitious agenda for the rest of his time in
Washington, and he takes his responsibility to the American people very
seriously. Ending our dependence on foreign oil, reforming our immigration
system, rebuilding the Gulf Coast, and keeping our country safe from
terrorism are not easy tasks, but they're absolutely vital goals. To
accomplish them, we must have serious national conversations, conducted
with civility and respect.

The right to have these conversations is part of what makes our country
great, and our democracy strong. We must be mindful that people around the
world are listening to these discussions. Responsible candidates understand
that the men and women of our military are risking their lives for us
overseas, and that we must conduct our debate here at home in a way that
does not jeopardize our troops in harm's way. (Applause.) It's critical
that all of us stand with Michele and our Republican candidates, since
they're such a thoughtful and positive part of this dialogue.

Thanks to each and every one of you for your generous support of Michele
Bachmann's campaign. And thanks especially to all the volunteers for your
hard work making the phone calls and knocking on the doors. You've already
done so much to help Michele, and in the next two weeks, she'll need more
of your energy and enthusiasm. Go to the phone banks, knock on those doors,
and talk to your neighbors about Michele Bachmann and all of Minnesota's
great Republicans. They need your support, and our country needs them.
(Applause.)

Thanks so much. Thank you all for coming out today. Thank you in advance
for all the hard work you're going to do over the next two weeks to make
sure Michele Bachmann and all of our candidates are elected on November
7th.

Thank you all very, very much. (Applause.)

END 10:16 A.M. CDT

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