We will not waver; we will not tire; we will not falter, and we will not fail. Peace and Freedom will prevail.
— George W. Bush
People forget... that we structured it so that the government, or the people, would be repaid with a really good rate of return. And as it turns out, that aspect of TARP, that's what happened.
And the cornerstone of my economic policies, when I first got elected, was cutting taxes on everybody on who paid taxes.
I just didn't want to get out there anymore; I didn't want to get back into what I call 'the swamp.' And the other reason why is I don't think it's good for the presidency for a former president to be opining about his successor. President Obama's got plenty of critics - and I'm just not gonna be one.
I have zero desire, just so you know, to be in the limelight. I don't think it's good for the country to have a former president criticize his successor. You're not going to see me giving my opinions in the public arena, until I start selling my book. I'm going to emerge then submerge.
I told you I'm not going to criticize my successor. I'll just tell you that there are people at Gitmo that will kill American people at a drop of a hat and I don't believe that persuasion isn't going to work. Therapy isn't going to cause terrorists to change their mind.
Natural gas is hemispheric. I like to call it hemispheric in nature because it is a product that we can find in our neighborhoods.
I am mindful not only of preserving executive powers for myself, but for predecessors as well.
I want to thank you for taking time out of your day to come and witness my hanging.
We cannot let terrorists hold this nation hostile or hold our allies hostile.
Our nation must come together to unite.
Free nations are peaceful nations. Free nations don't attack each other. Free nations don't develop weapons of mass destruction.
I understand everybody in this country doesn't agree with the decisions I've made. And I made some tough decisions. But people know where I stand.
America will never seek a permission slip to defend the security of our people.
We can't allow the world's worst leaders to blackmail, threaten, hold freedom-loving nations hostage with the world's worst weapons.
Iraq is no diversion. It is a place where civilization is taking a decisive stand against chaos and terror, we must not waver.
I will never relent in defending America - whatever it takes.
One of my proudest moments is I didn't sell my soul for the sake of popularity.
I had to abandon free market principles in order to save the free market system.
So, for example, a country was into recession right after I was sworn in, a dot-com bust had taken place. Then the attacks of September the 11th, and then of course the great financial meltdown in the -the fundamental question facing any presidency is how do you deal with the hand you're dealt?
Look, when you're the president, there's all kinds of things said about us. I mean, it's just the nature of the job.
I would like to be remembered as a guy who had a set of priorities, and was willing to live by those priorities. In terms of accomplishments, my biggest accomplishment is that I kept the country safe amidst a real danger.
Government does not create wealth. The major role for the government is to create an environment where people take risks to expand the job rate in the United States.
It is clear our nation is reliant upon big foreign oil. More and more of our imports come from overseas.
The legislature's job is to write law. It's the executive branch's job to interpret law.
You teach a child to read, and he or her will be able to pass a literacy test.
I think we ought to raise the age at which juveniles can have a gun.
We know that dictators are quick to choose aggression, while free nations strive to resolve differences in peace.
The true history of my administration will be written 50 years from now, and you and I will not be around to see it.
I believe the most solemn duty of the American president is to protect the American people. If America shows uncertainty and weakness in this decade, the world will drift toward tragedy. This will not happen on my watch.
Americans are rising to the tasks of history, and they expect the same of us.
Every nation in every region now has a decision to make. Either you are with us, or you are with the terrorists.
We've climbed the mighty mountain. I see the valley below, and it's a valley of peace.
The terrorists are fighting freedom with all their cunning and cruelty because freedom is their greatest fear - and they should be afraid, because freedom is on the march.
So, I'm lying on the couch and Laura walks in and I say, 'Free at last,' and she says 'You're free all right, you're free to do the dishes.' So I say, 'You're talking to the former president, baby,' and she said, 'consider this your new domestic policy agenda.'
And what's interesting, and I don't think a lot of Americans understand this fact, is that, one, most new jobs are created by small businesses; two, most small businesses pay tax at the individual income tax, or many small businesses pay tax there.
The financial crisis should not become an excuse to raise taxes, which would only undermine the economic growth required to regain our strength.
No one was more shocked or angry than I was when we didn't find the weapons. I had a sickening feeling every time I thought about it. I still do.
I have written a book. This will come as quite a shock to some. They didn't think I could read, much less write.
The California crunch really is the result of not enough power-generating plants and then not enough power to power the power of generating plants.
You can fool some of the people all the time, and those are the ones you want to concentrate on.
We don't believe in planners and deciders making the decisions on behalf of Americans.
A dictatorship would be a heck of a lot easier, there's no question about it.
It's clearly a budget. It's got a lot of numbers in it.
I just want you to know that, when we talk about war, we're really talking about peace.
Only a liberal senator from Massachusetts would say that a 49 percent increase in funding for education was not enough.
Senator Kerry has been in Washington long enough to take both sides on just about every issue.
Bring them on.
The United States prefers that Iraq meet its obligations voluntarily, yet we are prepared for the alternative.
I believe in the transformational power of liberty. I believe that the free Iraq is in this nation's interests. I believe a free Afghanistan is in this nation's interest.
