'God is good. God is great. God is good. My God is good. Bin Laden's God is bad. His is a bad God. Saddam's God was bad, except he didn't have one. He was a barbarian. We are not barbarians. We don't chop people's heads off. We believe in freedom. So does God. I am not a barbarian. I am the democratically elected leader of a freedom-loving democracy. We are a compassionate society. We give compassionate electrocution and compassionate lethal injection. We are a great nation. I am not a dictator. He is. I am not a barbarian. He is. And he is. They all are. I possess moral authority. You see this fist? This is my moral authority. And don't you forget it.'
Harold Pinter
Madame Speaker, Vice President Cheney, Members of Congress, distinguished guests and fellow citizens:Seven years have passed since I first stood before you at this rostrum.
[AND SEVEN YEARS HAVE BEEN PISSED]
In that time, our country has been tested in ways none of us could have imagined. We have faced hard decisions about peace and war [BUT MY WAR DECISION WAS EASY], rising competition in the world economy and the health and welfare of our citizens. These issues call for vigorous debate, and I think it's fair to say we've answered that call.
[THOUGH THE CALL WAS ANSWERED QUITE LATE
SINCE THERE WAS LITTLE DEBATE ABOUT MY DECISION TO START AN UNNECESSARY PRE-EMPTIVE WAR IN IRAQ THAT WAS BASED UPON A NEST OF LIES]
Yet history will record that amid our differences, we acted with purpose.
[AND I BOMBED IRAQ ON PURPOSE EVEN WHEN MANY, MANY VOICES DISAGREED WITH ME]
And together, we showed the world the power and resilience of American self-government.
[A SELF-GOVERNMENT WHERE NEARLY TWO-THIRDS OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE BELIEVE THAT MY WAR IN IRAQ WAS WRONG AND THAT SOLDIERS SHOULD NOW COME HOME]
All of us were sent to Washington to carry out the people's business. That is the purpose of this body. It is the meaning of our oath. And it remains our charge to keep.
[DON'T ASK IF IT WAS IN THE PEOPLE'S INTEREST OR THE PEOPLE’S BUSINESS TO INVADE IRAQ]
In the work ahead, we must be guided by the philosophy that made our nation great. As Americans, we believe in the power of individuals to determine their destiny and shape the course of history. We believe that the most reliable guide for our country is the collective wisdom of ordinary citizens.
[AND NOT THE HUBRIS AND IGNORANCE OF ONE MAN WHO CALLS HIMSELF THE DECIDER]
So in all we do, we must trust in the ability of free people to make wise decisions, and empower them to improve their lives and their futures.
[YOU ARE CALLED FREE PEOPLE BUT I MAKE THE DECISIONS FOR YOU]
Wages are up, but so are prices for food and gas. Exports are rising, but the housing market has declined. And at kitchen tables across our country, there is concern about our economic future.
[AND QUESTIONS ABOUT WHAT’S FOR DINNER]
In the long run, Americans can be confident about our economic growth.
[AND BE CONFIDENT ABOUT THE GROWTH OF THE NATIONAL DEBT THAT I’VE ALREADY DOUBLED DURING MY ADMINISTRATION]
We have other work to do on taxes. Unless the Congress acts, most of the tax relief we have delivered over the past 7 years will be taken away.
[THE VERY RICH WOULD LOSE THEIR FREE RIDE AND HAVE TO PAY THEIR SHARE ONCE AGAIN]
Others have said they would personally be happy to pay higher taxes.
[BUT THE FILTHY RICH ARE NOT SAYING THIS. FOR THEM IT ISN’T A TAX INCREASE, BUT WOULD BE A ROLLBACK TO WHAT THEY WERE PAYING BEFORE I GAVE THEM THEIR RELIEF]
I welcome their enthusiasm, and I am pleased to report that the IRS accepts both checks and money orders.
[I SHOULD HAVE SKIPPED THIS LAST SARCASTIC REMARK]
Most Americans think their taxes are high enough. With all the other pressures on their finances, American families should not have to worry about the federal government taking a bigger bite out of their paychecks.
[AS MY RABID IRAQ WAR IS DOING]
There is only one way to eliminate this uncertainty: make the tax relief permanent. And members of Congress should know: If any bill raising taxes reaches my desk, I will veto it.
[I WON’T LET MY RICH FRIENDS DOWN]
Just as we trust Americans with their own money, we need to earn their trust by spending their tax dollars wisely.
[STOP: DON’T MAKE A PEEP ABOUT MY DESTRUCTIVE AND DECEPTIVE IRAQ OCCUPATION]
Next week, I will send you a budget that terminates or substantially reduces 151 wasteful or bloated programs totaling more than $18 billion. And this budget will keep America on track for a surplus in 2012. American families have to balance their budgets, and so should their government.
[SOMETIMES IT TAKES SEVEN YEARS TO GET AROUND TO DOING IT]
The people's trust in their government is undermined by congressional earmarks---
[AND BY A UNITARY PRESIDENT WHO HAS SIGNED HUNDREDS OF SIGNING STATEMENTS]---special interest projects that are often snuck in at the last minute, without discussion or debate.
[JUST LIKE THE PATRIOT ACT]
On education, we must trust students to learn if given the chance [WHEN THEY ARE NOT BEING TAUGHT THE TEST] and empower parents to demand results from our schools. Six years ago, we came together to pass the No Child Left Behind Act [NOT THE NO CHILD LEFT WITH A BEHIND ACT] and today no one can deny its results. Reading scores are on the rise. And African-American and Hispanic students posted all-time highs.
[NOT JUST DRUG HIGHS]
On trade, we must trust American workers to compete with anyone in the world and empower them by opening up new markets overseas.
[WHAT ABOUT OPENING MARKETS RIGHT HERE IN AMERICA?]
Today, our economic growth increasingly depends on our ability to sell American goods, crops and services all over the world. So we are working to break down barriers to trade and investment wherever we can.
[ALLOWING CORPORATIONS TO ELIMINATE MANY JOBS HERE AT HOME SO THAT THEY CAN MOVE OUT OF THE COUNTRY TO PAY LOWER WAGES AND AVOID PAYING FEDERAL TAXES ]
Trade brings better jobs, better choices and better prices. Yet for some Americans, trade can mean losing a job, and the federal government has a responsibility to help. I ask the Congress to reauthorize and reform trade adjustment assistance, so we can help these displaced workers learn new skills and find new jobs.
[WHY NOT JUST CALL TRADE ADJUSTMENT ASSISTANCE WHAT IT REALLY IS: UNEMPLOYMENT BENEFITS]
To build a future of energy security, we must trust in the creative genius of American researchers and entrepreneurs and empower them to pioneer a new generation of clean energy technology.
[I CAN SAY THIS NOW THAT I AM LEAVING OFFICE AND NO LONGER HAVE TO KOWTOW TO MY PETROLEUM CRONIES]
On matters of justice, we must trust in the wisdom of our founders and empower judges who understand that the Constitution means what it says.
[EVEN IF IT IS JUST A GODDAMNED PIECE OF PAPER]
I have submitted judicial nominees who will rule by the letter of the law, not the whim of the gavel.
[OR THE NAVEL]
Many of these nominees are being unfairly delayed. They are worthy of confirmation, and the Senate should give each of them a prompt up-or-down vote.Tonight the armies of compassion continue the march to a new day in the Gulf Coast.
[THIS HAS A MILITARY SOUND TO IT]
America honors the strength and resilience of the people of this region.
[THE SAME STRENGTH AND RESILIENCE THEY HAD WHEN I IGNORED THEIR PLIGHT BEFORE AND AFTER KATRINA HIT THEM]
Every member in this chamber knows that spending on entitlement programs like Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid is growing faster than we can afford. And we all know the painful choices ahead if America stays on this path: massive tax increases, sudden and drastic cuts in benefits, or crippling deficits. I have laid out proposals to reform these programs. Now I ask members of Congress to offer your proposals and come up with a bipartisan solution to save these vital programs for our children and grandchildren.
[IN THE MEANTIME I MUST CUT COSTS AND REDUCE SPENDING ON THESE DOMESTIC PROGRAMS SO THAT I CAN PAY FOR MY BLUNDERING OCCUPATION OF IRAQ]
The other pressing challenge is immigration. America needs to secure our borders -- and with your help, my administration is taking steps to do so.
[CALL THEM BABY STEPS BECAUSE NOT MUCH HAS BEEN DONE IN SEVEN YEARS OF MY REIGN]
Our foreign policy is based on a clear premise: We trust that people, when given the chance, will choose a future of freedom and peace.
[THE PEOPLE OF IRAQ STILL AWAIT THIS FUTURE]
In the last seven years, we have witnessed stirring moments in the history of liberty.
[AND BLOODY AND BRUTAL MOMENTS IN THE HISTORY OF WAR]
Since September 11, we have taken the fight to these terrorists and extremists.
[WHO ARE MAINLY IRAQI CITIZENS AND NOT FOREIGNERS]
We will stay on the offense, we will keep up the pressure, and we will deliver justice to the enemies of America.
[AND THEY WILL CONTINUE TO DELIVER THEIR BOMBS AS OUR JUSTICE IS DELIVERED. YOU CAN CALL ME THE DECIDER AND THE DELIVERER]
The terrorists oppose every principle of humanity and decency that we hold dear. Yet in this war on terror, there is one thing we and our enemies agree on: In the long run, men and women who are free to determine their own destinies will reject terror and refuse to live in tyranny.
[EVEN IF THAT TYRANNY IS THE TYRANNY OF FOREIGN OCCUPATION]
That is why the terrorists are fighting to deny this choice to people in Lebanon, Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan and the Palestinian Territories.
[WHO WANT TO KICK THE INVADER OUT]
And that is why, for the security of America and the peace of the world, we are spreading the hope of freedom
[FOREIGN OCCUPATION, MILITARY BASES AND REFUGEES].
In Iraq, the terrorists and extremists are fighting to deny a proud people their liberty and to establish safe havens for attacks across the world. One year ago, our enemies were succeeding in their efforts to plunge Iraq into chaos.
[IT WAS ALREADY CHAOS BUT NOW IT’S A MORE SUCCESSFUL CHAOS.]
The Iraqi people quickly realized that something dramatic had happened. Those who had worried that America was preparing to abandon them instead saw tens of thousands of American forces flowing into their country.
[AS FOUR MILLION OF THEM LEFT THEIR COUNTRY]
American troops are shifting from leading operations, to partnering with Iraqi forces, and, eventually, to a protective overwatch mission.
[SOUNDS LIKE EXTRATERRESTRIALS]
The mission in Iraq has been difficult and trying for our nation.
[AND A PILLAGING OF OUR NATIONAL TREASURY]
But it is in the vital interest of the United States that we succeed.
[SUCCESS DOESN’T MEAN ORPHANING MILLIONS OF IRAQIS AND IRRADIATING THE CRADLE OF CIVILIZATION]
A free Iraq will deny al-Qaida a safe haven. A free Iraq will show millions across the Middle East that a future of liberty is possible. And a free Iraq will be a friend of America, a partner in fighting terror and a source of stability in a dangerous part of the world.
[A FREE IRAQ WITH NO IRAQIS OR ENEMIES LEFT]
We will not rest until this enemy has been defeated. We must do the difficult work today, so that years from now people will look back and say that this generation rose to the moment, prevailed in a tough fight, and left behind a more hopeful region and a safer America.
[OR MAYBE NOT]
We are also standing against the forces of extremism [I DON’T MEAN ISRAEL] in the Holy Land, where we have new cause for hope. Palestinians have elected a president who recognizes that confronting terror is essential to achieving a state where his people can live in dignity and at peace with Israel. Israelis have leaders who recognize that a peaceful, democratic Palestinian state will be a source of lasting security.
[IT WOULD ALSO HELP IF PALESTINIANS HAD ENOUGH FOOD AND WATER, ETC.]
This month in Ramallah and Jerusalem, I assured leaders from both sides that America will do, and I will do, everything we can to help them achieve a peace agreement that defines a Palestinian state by the end of this year.
[BUT DEFINITIONS ARE NOT STATES]
The time has come for a Holy Land where a democratic Israel and a democratic Palestine live side-by-side in peace.
[IT’S BEEN THAT TIME FOR A VERY LONG TIME]
Our message to the people of Iran is clear: We have no quarrel with you, we respect your traditions and your history, and we look forward to the day when you have your freedom.
[DIDN’T I SAY THIS TO THE IRAQIS BEFORE I BOMBED THEM?]
Our message to the leaders of Iran is also clear: Verifiably suspend your nuclear enrichment, so negotiations can begin. And to rejoin the community of nations, come clean about your nuclear intentions and past actions, stop your oppression at home and cease your support for terror abroad. But above all, know this: America will confront those who threaten our troops, we will stand by our allies and we will defend our vital interests in the Persian Gulf.
[AND WE’LL AGAIN DO SO AT THE TIME OF OUR OWN CHOOSING]
On the home front, we will continue to take every lawful and effective measure to protect our country.
[AND LAWYERS WILL MAKE SURE THAT I AM PROTECTED FROM PROSECUTION FOR EVERY LAW THAT I BREAK]
The secret of our strength, the miracle of America, is that our greatness lies not in our government, but in the spirit and determination of our people.
[THE MIRACLE IS THAT OUR GOVERNMENT CAN TELL GREAT LIES AND DETERMINED PEOPLE CAN’T STOP THOSE LIES OR PROSECUTE US FOR TELLING THEM]
By trusting the people, succeeding generations transformed our fragile young democracy into the most powerful nation on earth and a beacon of hope for millions. And so long as we continue to trust the people, our nation will prosper, our liberty will be secure and the state of our union will remain strong. So tonight, with confidence in freedom's power, and trust in the people, let us set forth to do their business.
[TOO BAD I DIDN’T FOLLOW THESE SOLEMN WORDS IN MY OWN REGIME WHEN I DID MY BUSINESS AND THAT OF THE NEW AMERICAN CENTURY]
God Bless America.
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