Text Of Bush's State Of The Union Speech
President Defends His Iraq Policy, Outlines Energy Plan
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Play CBS Video Video Bush On The Economy In his speech, President Bush laid out three economic priorities: balancing the federal budget, reducing earmarks and saving Social Security while fixing Medicare and Medicaid.
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Video Bush On Health Care President Bush proposed initiatives to help more Americans afford health insurance and to help states cover the uninsured.
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Video Bush On Gas Consumption President Bush wants to reduce U.S. dependence on foreign oil and put forth a goal of reducing gasoline use by 20% over the next 10 years.
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President Bush (AP)
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Interactive 2007 State Of The Union President Bush lays out a streamlined agenda to Congress, VIPs, invited guests and the nation.
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Interactive Presidential Approval Ratings A sampling of President Bush's overall job approval ratings at selected points during his term in office.
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Interactive New Plan For Iraq Key elements of the plan, excerpts from the president's speech, reaction and more.
In the minds of the terrorists, this war began well before September 11th and will not end until their radical vision is fulfilled. And these past five years have given us a much clearer view of the nature of this enemy. Al Qaeda and its followers are Sunni extremists, possessed by hatred and commanded by a harsh and narrow ideology. Take almost any principle of civilization and their goal is the opposite. They preach with threats ... instruct with bullets and bombs ... and promise paradise for the murder of the innocent.
Our enemies are quite explicit about their intentions. They want to overthrow moderate governments and establish safe havens from which to plan and carry out new attacks on our country. By killing and terrorizing Americans, they want to force our country to retreat from the world and abandon the cause of liberty. They would then be free to impose their will and spread their totalitarian ideology. Listen to this warning from the late terrorist Zarqawi: "We will sacrifice our blood and bodies to put an end to your dreams, and what is coming is even worse." And Osama bin Laden declared: "Death is better than living on this Earth with the unbelievers among us."
These men are not given to idle words, and they are just one camp in the Islamist radical movement. In recent times, it has also become clear that we face an escalating danger from Shia extremists who are just as hostile to America and are also determined to dominate the Middle East. Many are known to take direction from the regime in Iran, which is funding and arming terrorists like Hezbollah — a group second only to al Qaeda in the American lives it has taken.
The Shia and Sunni extremists are different faces of the same totalitarian threat. But whatever slogans they chant, when they slaughter the innocent, they have the same wicked purposes. They want to kill Americans ... kill democracy in the Middle East ... and gain the weapons to kill on an even more horrific scale.
In the sixth year since our nation was attacked, I wish I could report to you that the dangers have ended. They have not. And so it remains the policy of this government to use every lawful and proper tool of intelligence, diplomacy, law enforcement, and military action to do our duty, to find these enemies, and to protect the American people.
This war is more than a clash of arms. It is a decisive ideological struggle, and the security of our nation is in the balance. To prevail, we must remove the conditions that inspire blind hatred and drove 19 men to get onto airplanes and come to kill us. What every terrorist fears most is human freedom — societies where men and women make their own choices, answer to their own conscience and live by their hopes instead of their resentments. Free people are not drawn to violent and malignant ideologies, and most will choose a better way when they are given a chance. So we advance our own security interests by helping moderates, reformers and brave voices for democracy. The great question of our day is whether America will help men and women in the Middle East to build free societies and share in the rights of all humanity. And I say, for the sake of our own security . . . we must.
In the last two years, we have seen the desire for liberty in the broader Middle East — and we have been sobered by the enemy's fierce reaction. In 2005, the world watched as the citizens of Lebanon raised the banner of the Cedar Revolution, drove out the Syrian occupiers and chose new leaders in free elections. In 2005, the people of Afghanistan defied the terrorists and elected a democratic legislature. And in 2005, the Iraqi people held three national elections — choosing a transitional government, adopting the most progressive, democratic constitution in the Arab world and then electing a government under that constitution. Despite endless threats from the killers in their midst, nearly 12 million Iraqi citizens came out to vote in a show of hope and solidarity we should never forget.
© MMVII, CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Best-selling author Mitch Albom on his first nonfiction work since "Tuesdays with Morrie."





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See all 24 CommentsMOre importantly it should be noted that he has plenty of hidden agendas in this speech, like his plan to make sure employers are not hiring undocumented workers...here comes the US Citizen ID idea again...a way for the Repubes to track us all with the technology that could be used develop and promote sustainable energy. And note his intentions to create "affordable" health care coverage, not actual health care just insurance, which is all about the big business, insurance stockholders and CEO who make 400% more than the working poor or even the working middle class.
We may never know the truth about what steps led to the decision to attack Iraq, but we all can agree it was a mistake. What's troublesome is that Iraq is no longer a stable, secular state--it now shares Islamic extremism with Iran, Afghanistan, and a number of the other Islamic states. And this is not religious--it's about power and wealth, with religion used as a tool, just as Christianity has been used to keep peasants in their place by powerful Western leaders. The hornets' nest has just increased in size and focus since our regime change in Baghdad.
The only real hope is to develop alternative energy sources and stop wasting our resources and relying on foreign energy with gas-guzzling cars and MacMansions. We The People have to get a grip and stop it ourselves.
Until we start insisting on smaller vehicles and homes, we are at the mercy of Islamic extremists, irrespective of how many of our pristine wilderness areas we drill.
Both dems and repubs need to wake up and quickly refocus on this issue and forget about red herrings that both parties use to grab our attention.
I am quite sure that Bush actually stated "Democrat majority." Important distinction given that right wing Repubs have made it their goal to deny the Democratic party the use of the word democratic. If I am correct, I would respectfully ask CBS to make this correction.
I can't get over how stupid SOME of the people who post on this board really are.
Yes democrats voted to go to Iraq and it was based on the information they were given by bush and cheney.
And it has been proven that the information was false fabricated by bush and cheney.
Now just what part of that do you not understand?
A... chief [executive] strictly limited, the right of war vested in the legislative body, a rigid economy of the public contributions and absolute interdiction of all useless expenses will go far towards keeping the government honest and unoppressive." --Thomas Jefferson to Lafayette, 1823. (*) ME 15:491
More can be found at: http://etext.virginia.edu/jefferson/quotations/jeff0650.htm
He says that we're in the 41st month in which there have been no job declines, but, my tio licho just lost his job...j/k about that..comic relief
how can he be offering tax cuts, when there is a freaking $8.6 TRILLION deficit! what a moron!
jazthegenius pointed out that he said "minority students are closing the achievement gap."...what the hell???..why doesnt he worry about the redneck hillbillies in the south, they're dumber than rocks!
i guess his immigration policy is...ok
i didnt buy any of the oil ***, striaght up BS
he spoke too much of the "totalitarian ideology", and only achieved making me rethink wether "ideology" is a word, b/c it just sounded weird after the kagillionth time.
and i found it hilarious that he thanked God for the TSA workers, i mean, they do great things, like, mope around all day and get payed $15 per hour.
what stood out themost was this little phrase : "they [iraqis] just want to live in peace"...hilarious!!! i bet he thinks we think he thinks we think its his fault...well, it is!
and finally, all that *** about helping Africa with HIV and AIDS, total BS, he only pledged like..1/5 billion, yet he spends 6 billion per month on this damned war...ay yayay!
But, President Bush and the Republican held congress at that time promised a strategic military plan that would bring our fighting forces home, and leave just a small compliment of soldiers to help the Iraqi's with small sectarian squirmishes and humanitarian operations. This is where the comments made by the Democratic response tonight holds great strength...the President has refused to listen to the military advisors and continues his Napoleonic ideology on the war in Iraq.
It is time to bring all of the Middle Eastern countries together at the diplomatic table and try to find a sense and an end to sectarian violance and a peaceful exsistance of all, in this important and historic region of our world.
Its time to bring our fathers, mothers, brothers, sisters, cousins, neighbors, our friends home from the front lines of battle.
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