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Skriven 2006-10-27 23:31:20 av Whitehouse Press (1:3634/12.0)
Ärende: Press Release (0610272) for Fri, 2006 Oct 27
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Mrs. Bush's Remarks at Vern Buchanan for Congress Reception
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For Immediate Release
Office of the First Lady
October 27, 2006

Mrs. Bush's Remarks at Vern Buchanan for Congress Reception
The Ritz-Carlton Sarasota
Sarasota, Florida



1:55 P.M. EDT

MRS. BUSH: Thank you all very much. Thank you very much, Sandy. Thank you,
Sandy. Sandy, that was a very lovely introduction, and it was also fun for
me to hear how you all met. Everyone is always interested, I think, in
those kind of stories.

And especially when you're running for office, people want to know what
your background is like and what you were like when you first met each
other and what your parents are like, because what happens in politics is
that your spouse is involved, whether they want to be or not. And I know
that Sandy -- we all know that successful politicians are the ones whose
families stand with them and are with them all the time.

And so I want to thank Sandy and your two boys, as well, for -- James and
Matt -- for standing with their dad while he does this. Politics really
ends up being a family business, and there's something terrific about being
able to share all the ups and downs of politics, but especially the good
parts -- the parts where you make friends that you have for the rest of
your life. That's really one of the very best parts of it.

So thank you, Sandy, and to James and Matt for your support for Vern. And I
want to thank each and every one of you in the audience for the very, very
warm welcome.

I'm very happy to be here today to support Vern Buchanan for Congress.
(Applause.) In the crowd also, I want to acknowledge State House Speaker
Pro Tem, Leslie Waters is here. Leslie, where are you? (Applause.) Is she
here? Oh, there she is, right there, great. Florida State Representative
Nancy Detert is here, as well. (Applause.) Thanks so much, Nancy and
Leslie. Thank you for your service and thanks for coming. State Senator
Lisa Carlton is here, too. (Applause.) Thanks to all the Republican leaders
that are here and the Republican officials. I'm so delighted to get to be
with so many accomplished women. It does look like I'll have to say that
Vern took a little few extra minutes this morning getting ready.
(Laughter.)

It's great to be with so many women today to support Vern Buchanan's
campaign for the United States Congress. Vern cares deeply about the people
of Florida, and in Washington, he'll be a passionate advocate for the
people of the 13th district.

Vern will help Florida families by improving employment opportunities in
your state. He first learned the value of a job when he was a teenager,
delivering newspapers to 70 homes a day, seven days a week. Vern will tell
you that his paper route helped him save a lot of money, but he adds that
he got into cars -- (laughter) -- so he spent some of that money. Sandy
just told us about one of those cars.

After college, Vern went to work -- first in marketing, and then by
starting his own printing company. Later he combined his love of cars with
his love of business, and he bought Ocala Honda/Acura in 1992. He built
that one enterprise into Buchanan Automotive Group, which today owns 20
franchises across Florida and the Southeast. Vern's efforts have helped his
fellow Floridians become small business owners themselves, and have created
hundreds of jobs for your state.

Vern will bring to Washington the principles of efficiency and
accountability he developed during his business career. He'll ensure that
Florida tax dollars are spent wisely and responsibly. Vern supports the
Presidential Line Item Veto, which will help eliminate unnecessary spending
from the federal budget. And in Congress, Vern will support President
Bush's tax cuts. (Applause.) These tax cuts have fueled our economy, and
they've added 6.6 million new jobs since 2003. And that means 6.6 million
more Americans wake up every morning with the dignity and the sense of
purpose that comes with a job. And here in Florida, your unemployment rate
is a low 3.2 percent. Congratulations to the hard-working Floridians.
(Applause.)

Something else Vern and the President have in common -- and this is
something I share with them -- is a commitment to natural preservation. In
2003, President Bush announced the Preserve America Initiative, which
encourages communities to safeguard both their natural and their historic
treasures. Preserve America can boost local economies, because recognized
landmarks attract visitors and businesses.

Vern Buchanan is an enthusiastic steward of Florida's natural resources. He
understands how important the oceans are to your state's economy, and to
Floridians' very way of life. As Vice Chairman of Sarasota's Mote Marine
Laboratory and Aquarium, Vern is helping advance our knowledge of Florida's
coral reefs and coastal ecology. Mote Marine also rescues and cares for
dolphins, whales, and sea turtles, protecting threatened ocean species.

And the lab monitors and researches red tide, helping reduce the effects of
this harmful algae on Florida's marine life. Thank you, Vern, for
supporting this vital preservation work. (Applause.)

One of the benefits of natural and historical preservation is that it gives
our children more opportunities to learn about our country. Visits to
aquariums or national parks or museums or monuments are great activities
for young people, offering them healthy and positive ways to learn and to
spend time with their families.

Vern Buchanan has a strong record of commitment to young people. He and
Sandy are actively involved with their local Boys and Girls Clubs. Boys and
Girls Clubs provide local youth with safe places to learn and play, and
they help young people build character, self-confidence, and leadership
skills under the guidance of caring adults. Thank you, Sandy and Vern, for
supporting Boys and Girls Clubs, and helping the many young people that go
to those clubs.

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

Vern Buchanan understands the needs of our troops at this crucial time in
our country's history. After he graduated from high school, Vern served six
years in the Michigan Air National Guard. And in Washington, Vern Buchanan
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 citizens 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 men and women risk
their lives overseas to make sure that their families, and all of our
families, are safe here in the United States. Their love of country, and of
liberty, never wavers, and neither does their belief in our mission.

Many of these men and women have given their lives for this cause. 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 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 the mission through. They ask the American people to stand with our
troops. (Applause.)

Vern Buchanan appreciates our troops' sacrifice. He understands that this
election is critical to the future of our country. And he 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 are 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. It's very important now that
all of us stand with Vern and our Republican candidates at this very
challenging time in our history. (Applause.)

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

Thanks so much, everybody. Thank you for coming out today. Thank you in
advance for the hard work you're going to do over the next two weeks to
make sure Vern Buchanan is elected to the United States Congress on
November 7th.

Thank you all very much. (Applause.)

END 2:08 P.M. EDT
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