This was the day in Marlton, NJ when he made an important terrorism policy speech.
Let's see what he said.
THE PRESIDENT: Most Americans still felt that terrorism was something distant, and something that would not strike on a large scale in America. That is the time that my opponent wants to go back to.
AUDIENCE: Booo!
THE PRESIDENT: A time when danger was real and growing, but we didn't know it. A time when some thought terrorism was only a "nuisance."
AUDIENCE: Booo!
Oh...I gotta pause here. Did I mention these quotes are
not from the Bush-F***Yourself campaign site? These are in fact the official transcripts from the White House site. The site we all pay for. The official site of the President of the United States of America. We continue.
THE PRESIDENT: My opponent has taken a different approach, and it shows in his record. Just one year after the first attack on the World Trade Center in 1993, Senator Kerry proposed a $6 billion cut in the nation's intelligence budget.
AUDIENCE: Booo!
_______
THE PRESIDENT: My opponent has a fundamental misunderstanding on the war on terror. A reporter recently asked Senator Kerry how September the 11th changed him. He replied, "It didn't change me much at all."
AUDIENCE: Booo!
THE PRESIDENT: His unchanged world view is obvious from the policies he still advocates. He has said this war is "primarily an intelligence and law enforcement operation." He has declared, we should not respond to threats until they are -- quote -- "imminent." He has complained that my administration -- quote -- "relies unwisely on the threat of military preemption against terrorist organizations." Let me repeat that. He says that preemptive action is "unwise," not only against regimes, but even against terrorist organizations.
AUDIENCE: Booo!
THE PRESIDENT: Senator Kerry's approach would permit a response only after America is hit.
AUDIENCE: Booo!
_______
THE PRESIDENT: My opponent promises that he would do better with our allies. Yet, he's decided that the way to build alliances is to insult our friends. As a candidate for President, Senator Kerry has managed to offend or alienate almost every one of America's fighting allies in the war on terror. He has called the countries serving alongside us in Iraq -- quote -- "a trumped-up ... coalition of the bribed, the coerced, the bought, and the extorted."
AUDIENCE: Booo!
_______
THE PRESIDENT: As part of his foreign policy, Senator Kerry has talked about applying a "global test."
AUDIENCE: Booo!
THE PRESIDENT: As far as I can tell, it comes down to this: Before we act to defend ourselves, he thinks we need permission from foreign capitals.
AUDIENCE: Booo!
THE PRESIDENT: Yet, even the Gulf War coalition in 1991 did not pass Senator Kerry's global test. Even with the United Nations' approval, he voted against removing Saddam Hussein from Kuwait.
AUDIENCE: Booo!
THE PRESIDENT: If that vast, U.N.-supported operation did not pass his test, nothing ever could. (Applause.) Senator Kerry's global test is nothing more than an excuse to constrain the actions of our own country in a dangerous world. (Applause.)
I believe in strong alliances. I believe in respecting other countries and working with them and seeking their advice. But I will never submit our national security decisions to a veto of a foreign government. (Applause.)
AUDIENCE: USA! USA! USA!
_______
THE PRESIDENT: Unfortunately, Senator Kerry does not share our commitment to victory in Iraq. For three years -- depending on the headlines, the poll numbers and political calculation -- he has taken almost every conceivable position on Iraq.
AUDIENCE: Flip-flop! Flip-flop! Flip Flop!
THE PRESIDENT: First, he said Saddam Hussein was a threat, and he voted for the war. Then he voted against funds for bullets and body armor for the troops he had voted to send into battle.
AUDIENCE: Booo!
THE PRESIDENT: He declared himself an anti-war candidate. Months later he said that knowing everything we know now, he would have still voted for the war. Then he said the war was a "mistake," an "error," or "diversion." Having gone back and forth so many times, the Senator from Massachusetts has now flip-flopped his way to a dangerous position. My opponent -- my opponent finally has settled on a strategy, a strategy of retreat.
AUDIENCE: Booo!
THE PRESIDENT: He has talked about artificial timetables to pull our troops out of Iraq. He has sent the signal that America's overriding goal in Iraq would be to leave, even if the job is not done.
AUDIENCE: Booo!
_______
THE PRESIDENT: The Senator who claims the world is more dangerous since America started fighting the war on terror is the same Senator who said that Ronald Reagan's policies of peace through strength actually made America less safe.
AUDIENCE: Booo!
THE PRESIDENT: The same Senator who said the Reagan presidency was eight years of "moral darkness" --
AUDIENCE: Booo!
THE PRESIDENT: In this campaign, Senator Kerry can run from his record, but he cannot hide. (Applause.) Thank you.
Great policy speech, sir. I feel safer already. You timid wretched little boob.
