READING BETWEEN THE COMMENCEMENT LINES

President Bush Delivers Commencement Address at Furman University
Paladin Stadium, Furman University
Greenville, Carolina

[THIS IS AN ABBREVIATED VERSION]

THE PRESIDENT:

Thank you. Thank you very much. Mr. President. President Shi, thank you for that kind introduction.

I congratulate the parents here who have sacrificed to make this day possible. When your child graduates from college, it is a glorious day for your family, and a pretty good day for your bank account.

[AND FOR THE BANK’S INVESTORS AND CEO]

(Laughter.)

And I thank the members of the Furman faculty. I appreciate your devoting your career to improving the lives of young people. I know this is an institution where folks are encouraged to make their voices heard. I, too, am a strong believer in free speech. And to prove it, I'm about to give you one

[DAMN MY SPEECH WRITERS ARE GOOD!]

(Laughter and applause.)

For four years, this campus has been your life.

[AND FOR ALMOST EIGHT YEARS MY LIFE HAS BEEN CAVORTING, CAMPAIGNING AND CAJOLING AFTER CONDEMNING AMERICA TO A WAR BASED ON LIES]

You've studied hard, and I suspect some of you may have played hard.

[AS I DID]

Along the way, some of you may have wondered whether this day would ever come.

[JUST AS I WONDERED ABOUT MY OWN GRADUATION]

It's a special time in your life. And you're going to find it's a time when you get a lot of free advice, some of it helpful, some of it not -- like that one graduation speaker who urged the students to keep their ears to the ground, their shoulders to the wheel, and their noses to the grindstone. All I could think was that's a hell of a position to be in.

[BECAUSE I’VE BEEN THERE AND DONE THAT]

(Laughter.)

I also remember what it was like to graduate from college and look out at the world before me.

[THE WORLD WASN’T THE MESS THAT IT IS NOW AFTER HAVING ME FOR YOUR PRESIDENT]

At the time, I must confess the last thing on my mind was how to be a model citizen.

[JUST LIKE IT WAS THE LAST THING ON MY MIND WHEN I BECAME PRESIDENT]

Just ask my mother.

(Laughter.)

Soon many of you will be earning a living and getting married and raising families. As you move ahead in life, you will find temptations and distractions that can take you off course.

[THINGS LIKE COCAINE, BOOZE AND ILLEGAL WARS]

I'm heartened today to see that our country is seeing a resurgence of personal responsibility.

[BUT MINE HASN’T]

I saw the spirit of service in Greensburg, Kansas, which was destroyed by a tornado last year. In the aftermath, a Greensburg resident simply said: "My town is gone."

[AND I SAID “SO IS YOUR COUNTRY”]

And it was.

In recent years, we've seen millions of people in places like Afghanistan, Iraq, and Georgia and Ukraine risk their lives for the right to cast a ballot. These courageous people should inspire us to take our votes just as seriously. I know the democratic spirit is alive in our country because there was a big vote recently -- the new American Idol got about 55 million votes;

[HAVE MY WRITERS GONE COMPLETELY NUTS? PUTTING IN A JOKE RIGHT AFTER MENTIONING IRAQ AND AFGHANISTAN?]

(Laughter.)

I hope we see even a bigger turnout this November. For some of you, this will be your first presidential election. I ask you to get involved in the process, and do your duty and vote. By the way, if you're wondering who to vote for, the Governor and I would be happy to offer a few suggestions.

[HERE ARE A COUPLE: CAST YOUR VOTES ON RIGGED VOTING MACHINES AND KEEP A SUPREME COURT IN YOUR POCKET AND ON YOUR SIDE]

(Laughter.)

You can strengthen our country by showing fiscal discipline in your lives.

[BECAUSE YOUR COUNTRY HAS BEEN VERY WEAKENED BY ITS OWN LACK OF FISCAL DISCIPLINE, AND I HAVE THREE WORDS FOR THIS: BUSH AND IRAQ]

Congratulations. God bless you.

(Applause.)

IT'S THE OIL STUPID!