George W. Bush photo

Remarks at a Presidential Debate Watch Party in Phoenix, Arizona

October 13, 2004

The President. Thank you all.

Audience members. Four more years! Four more years! Four more years!

The President. Thank you all very much. I've been to a lot of ballparks in my day, but I've never been to a ballpark filled with so many people who are going to go out and work the vote and make sure we can win in November.

I am so honored you came out tonight. I cannot thank you enough for greeting me and Laura and Barbara and Jenna. It warms our heart and lifts our spirit to be here with so many great American citizens. Thanks for coming. You know, when I got here, Laura said, "Stand up straight. Don't scowl, and keep your speech short." [Laughter]

I meant what I said about Laura. I love her dearly. She's a great First Lady. Tonight I tried to give the people a reason to put me back in for 4 more years, but perhaps the most important reason of all is so that Laura is the First Lady for 4 more years. I'm proud to be here with Barbara and Jenna. I told them, I said, "Get you some sleep tonight, and get back out on the campaign trail." [Laughter]

But thank you all for coming. I love my family. I love my country. I love working with John McCain. I'm so proud to be standing with him here today. He is—he and I are going to go to Nevada tomorrow. We're going to Las Vegas. We're going to Reno. We're going to Oregon. We're going to travel this country with a message that's hopeful and optimistic, and we're going to win.

I want to thank Cindy McCain as well for being here. I want to thank my friend Senator Jon Kyl and Caryll Kyl for being here as well. I want to thank the Members of Congress who are here.

I want to thank my friend Aaron Tippin for providing some—[applause]—yes. I want to thank the Arizona Diamondbacks for opening up this fantastic facility for us here today. I want to thank the players who are here.

I want to thank the grassroots activists, the people who are going to put up the signs and make the phone calls and turn out the people to vote.

I know you know this, but you can now cast your ballot for Dick Cheney and me. Make sure you do so, and get your friends and neighbors to do so. We need your help. We need your vote. We're going to win in November.

I enjoyed the debate tonight. It gave me a chance to tell the American people where I want to lead for the next 4 years. We'll continue to create jobs. We'll continue to make sure our schools work. We'll work on health care. We'll make sure that America is safe and secure by staying on the offensive. We'll defeat the terrorists overseas so we do not face them here at home.

And finally, we will never forget the values of this country, our faith, our families. We will make sure that we continue to hold true to our beliefs that liberty can transform the world. We long for peace. We will spread the peace by spreading freedom.

I'm honored that you're here. Thank you for coming. May God bless you, and may God bless America.

NOTE: The President spoke at 8:12 p.m. at the Bank One Ballpark. In his remarks, he referred to Cindy McCain, wife of Senator John McCain; Caryll Kyl, wife of Senator Jon L. Kyl; and entertainer Aaron Tippin.

George W. Bush, Remarks at a Presidential Debate Watch Party in Phoenix, Arizona Online by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley, The American Presidency Project https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/node/212856

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