Transcript: Bush's 2nd Inaugural Address
Back to the President GW Bush Page
Thursday, January 20, 2005
WASHINGTON — Following is President George W. Bush's inaugural address:
Vice President Cheney, Mr. Chief Justice, President Carter, President Bush, President Clinton, reverend clergy, distinguished guests, fellow citizens:
On this day, prescribed by law and marked by ceremony, we celebrate the durable wisdom of our Constitution, and recall the deep commitments that unite our country. I am grateful for the honor of this hour, mindful of the consequential times in which we live, and determined to fulfill the oath that I have sworn and you have witnessed.
At this second gathering, our duties are defined not by the words I use, but by the history we have seen together. For a half century, America defended our own freedom by standing watch on distant borders. After the shipwreck of communism came years of relative quiet, years of repose, years of sabbatical - and then there came a day of fire.
We have seen our vulnerability - and we have seen its deepest source. For as long as whole regions of the world simmer in resentment and tyranny - prone to ideologies that feed hatred and excuse murder - violence will gather, and multiply in destructive power, and cross the most defended borders, and raise a mortal threat. There is only one force of history that can break the reign of hatred and resentment, and expose the pretensions of tyrants, and reward the hopes of the decent and tolerant, and that is the force of human freedom.
We are led, by events and common sense, to one conclusion: The survival of liberty in our land increasingly depends on the success of liberty in other lands. The best hope for peace in our world is the expansion of freedom in all the world.
America's vital interests and our deepest beliefs are now one. From the day of our Founding, we have proclaimed that every man and woman on this earth has rights, and dignity, and matchless value, because they bear the image of the Maker of Heaven and earth. Across the generations we have proclaimed the imperative of self-government, because no one is fit to be a master, and no one deserves to be a slave. Advancing these ideals is the mission that created our Nation. It is the honorable achievement of our fathers. Now it is the urgent requirement of our nation's security, and the calling of our time.
So it is the policy of the United States to seek and support the growth of democratic movements and institutions in every nation and culture, with the ultimate goal of ending tyranny in our world.
This is not primarily the task of arms, though we will defend ourselves and our friends by force of arms when necessary. Freedom, by its nature, must be chosen, and defended by citizens, and sustained by the rule of law and the protection of minorities. And when the soul of a nation finally speaks, the institutions that arise may reflect customs and traditions very different from our own. America will not impose our own style of government on the unwilling. Our goal instead is to help others find their own voice, attain their own freedom, and make their own way.
The great objective of ending tyranny is the concentrated work of generations. The difficulty of the task is no excuse for avoiding it. America's influence is not unlimited, but fortunately for the oppressed, America's influence is considerable, and we will use it confidently in freedom's cause.
My most solemn duty is to protect this nation and its people against further attacks and emerging threats. Some have unwisely chosen to test America's resolve, and have found it firm.
We will persistently clarify the choice before every ruler and every nation: The moral choice between oppression, which is always wrong, and freedom, which is eternally right. America will not pretend that jailed dissidents prefer their chains, or that women welcome humiliation and servitude, or that any human being aspires to live at the mercy of bullies.
We will encourage reform in other governments by making clear that success in our relations will require the decent treatment of their own people. America's belief in human dignity will guide our policies, yet rights must be more than the grudging concessions of dictators; they are secured by free dissent and the participation of the governed. In the long run, there is no justice without freedom, and there can be no human rights without human liberty.
Some, I know, have questioned the global appeal of liberty - though this time in history, four decades defined by the swiftest advance of freedom ever seen, is an odd time for doubt. Americans, of all people, should never be surprised by the power of our ideals. Eventually, the call of freedom comes to every mind and every soul. We do not accept the existence of permanent tyranny because we do not accept the possibility of permanent slavery. Liberty will come to those who love it.
Today, America speaks anew to the peoples of the world:
All who live in tyranny and hopelessness can know: the United States will not ignore your oppression, or excuse your oppressors. When you stand for your liberty, we will stand with you.
Democratic reformers facing repression, prison, or exile can know: America sees you for who you are: the future leaders of your free country.
The rulers of outlaw regimes can know that we still believe as Abraham Lincoln did: "Those who deny freedom to others deserve it not for themselves; and, under the rule of a just God, cannot long retain it."
The leaders of governments with long habits of control need to know: To serve your people you must learn to trust them. Start on this journey of progress and justice, and America will walk at your side.
And all the allies of the United States can know: we honor your friendship, we rely on your counsel, and we depend on your help. Division among free nations is a primary goal of freedom's enemies. The concerted effort of free nations to promote democracy is a prelude to our enemies' defeat.
Today, I also speak anew to my fellow citizens:
From all of you, I have asked patience in the hard task of securing America, which you have granted in good measure. Our country has accepted obligations that are difficult to fulfill, and would be dishonorable to abandon. Yet because we have acted in the great liberating tradition of this nation, tens of millions have achieved their freedom. And as hope kindles hope, millions more will find it. By our efforts, we have lit a fire as well - a fire in the minds of men. It warms those who feel its power, it burns those who fight its progress, and one day this untamed fire of freedom will reach the darkest corners of our world.
A few Americans have accepted the hardest duties in this cause - in the quiet work of intelligence and diplomacy … the idealistic work of helping raise up free governments … the dangerous and necessary work of fighting our enemies. Some have shown their devotion to our country in deaths that honored their whole lives - and we will always honor their names and their sacrifice.
All Americans have witnessed this idealism, and some for the first time. I ask our youngest citizens to believe the evidence of your eyes. You have seen duty and allegiance in the determined faces of our soldiers. You have seen that life is fragile, and evil is real, and courage triumphs. Make the choice to serve in a cause larger than your wants, larger than yourself - and in your days you will add not just to the wealth of our country, but to its character.
America has need of idealism and courage, because we have essential work at home - the unfinished work of American freedom. In a world moving toward liberty, we are determined to show the meaning and promise of liberty.
In America's ideal of freedom, citizens find the dignity and security of economic independence, instead of laboring on the edge of subsistence. This is the broader definition of liberty that motivated the Homestead Act, the Social Security Act, and the G.I. Bill of Rights. And now we will extend this vision by reforming great institutions to serve the needs of our time. To give every American a stake in the promise and future of our country, we will bring the highest standards to our schools, and build an ownership society. We will widen the ownership of homes and businesses, retirement savings and health insurance - preparing our people for the challenges of life in a free society. By making every citizen an agent of his or her own destiny, we will give our fellow Americans greater freedom from want and fear, and make our society more prosperous and just and equal.
In America's ideal of freedom, the public interest depends on private character - on integrity, and tolerance toward others, and the rule of conscience in our own lives. Self-government relies, in the end, on the governing of the self. That edifice of character is built in families, supported by communities with standards, and sustained in our national life by the truths of Sinai, the Sermon on the Mount, the words of the Koran, and the varied faiths of our people. Americans move forward in every generation by reaffirming all that is good and true that came before - ideals of justice and conduct that are the same yesterday, today, and forever.
In America's ideal of freedom, the exercise of rights is ennobled by service, and mercy, and a heart for the weak. Liberty for all does not mean independence from one another. Our nation relies on men and women who look after a neighbor and surround the lost with love. Americans, at our best, value the life we see in one another, and must always remember that even the unwanted have worth. And our country must abandon all the habits of racism, because we cannot carry the message of freedom and the baggage of bigotry at the same time.
From the perspective of a single day, including this day of dedication, the issues and questions before our country are many. From the viewpoint of centuries, the questions that come to us are narrowed and few. Did our generation advance the cause of freedom? And did our character bring credit to that cause?
These questions that judge us also unite us, because Americans of every party and background, Americans by choice and by birth, are bound to one another in the cause of freedom. We have known divisions, which must be healed to move forward in great purposes - and I will strive in good faith to heal them. Yet those divisions do not define America. We felt the unity and fellowship of our nation when freedom came under attack, and our response came like a single hand over a single heart. And we can feel that same unity and pride whenever America acts for good, and the victims of disaster are given hope, and the unjust encounter justice, and the captives are set free.
We go forward with complete confidence in the eventual triumph of freedom. Not because history runs on the wheels of inevitability; it is human choices that move events. Not because we consider ourselves a chosen nation; God moves and chooses as He wills. We have confidence because freedom is the permanent hope of mankind, the hunger in dark places, the longing of the soul. When our Founders declared a new order of the ages; when soldiers died in wave upon wave for a union based on liberty; when citizens marched in peaceful outrage under the banner "Freedom Now" - they were acting on an ancient hope that is meant to be fulfilled. History has an ebb and flow of justice, but history also has a visible direction, set by liberty and the Author of Liberty.
When the Declaration of Independence was first read in public and the Liberty Bell was sounded in celebration, a witness said, "It rang as if it meant something." In our time it means something still. America, in this young century, proclaims liberty throughout all the world, and to all the inhabitants thereof. Renewed in our strength - tested, but not weary - we are ready for the greatest achievements in the history of freedom.
May God bless you, and may He watch over the United States of America.
© Associated Press. All rights reserved
Copyright © 2005 ComStock, Inc.
Copyright 2005 FOX News Network, LLC. All rights reserved.
Reply 1 - Posted by: Christie, 1/20/2005 12:35:13 PM
I missed it, now I have to watch C-Span.
I can imagine that as Dubya uttered the word PEACE, the lefties had to pull out their dictionary to look up the definition.
They have completely lost their way and their minds, if they ever possessed them to begin with.
God Bless our President and our great nation. I am proud to be an American who supports this President.
Reply 2 - Posted by: Dreadnought, 1/20/2005 12:35:37 PM
...Our nation relies on men and women who look after a neighbor and surround the lost with love. Americans, at our best, value the life we see in one another, and must always remember that even the unwanted have worth...
A pro-life speech.
Reply 3 - Posted by: tedward, 1/20/2005 12:40:38 PM
Reply 4 - Posted by: TruthRules, 1/20/2005 12:44:19 PM
Excellent speech!!!
Reply 5 - Posted by: rufus.t.firefly, 1/20/2005 12:45:18 PM
A beautiful, stirring speech. My favorite passage:
...Americans of every party and background, Americans by choice and by birth, are bound to one another in the cause of freedom.
Reply 6 - Posted by: Cavallodifiero, 1/20/2005 12:51:06 PM
Inspiring and encouraging!
Reply 7 - Posted by: jingoist , 1/20/2005 1:02:10 PM
A great speech. It was not an apology that the Commie left always looks for. He pressed the fact that FREEDOM is the goal. The nations of the world should read this speech several times and take heed of the warnings.
He intends to continue the expansion of Liberty and Freedom.
GOD BLESS President George W Bush!
GOD BLESS AMERICA!! Our soldiers and every American can be very proud of this Commander In Chief!!!
Reply 8 - Posted by: zarin, 1/20/2005 1:03:10 PM
Awesome speech! Very meaningful! It will go down in history - we must study it! His references to God as the author of human freedom - wow!
Reply 9 - Posted by: LittleHoodedMonk, 1/20/2005 1:08:31 PM
'For as long as whole regions of the world simmer in resentment and tyranny - prone to ideologies that feed hatred and excuse murder - violence will gather, and multiply in destructive power, and cross the most defended borders, and raise a mortal threat.'
NOTE to dRATS and their media puppetheads: Dubya said, ''mortal threat,'' not ''imminent threat,'' so when we next 'attack' our enemies, do try that old LIE, again.
Reply 10 - Posted by: Pam, 1/20/2005 1:23:28 PM
Wonder what kind of a response he'll get seeing as he basically said, 'put your money, time and effort where your mouth is'. At no time in our past did America as a country undertake a task such as this. Looking outward to share what we have enjoyed and saying we'll stand with those who try. Wow.
Reply 11 - Posted by: Pathogen, 1/20/2005 1:26:15 PM
He once again inspires me. I have often cringed when George mangles a sentence here and there, but this is it once again, a speech that is a diamond of truth and purpose. To those who have ears, let them hear.
Reply 12 - Posted by: CorkysDad, 1/20/2005 1:29:24 PM
GBPB (God Bless President Bush).
Reply 13 - Posted by: Midwest Mom, 1/20/2005 1:38:41 PM
I could tell, as he was speaking, that he really and truly believed what he said.. You could see it in his eyes..
Before the ceremony began and right after he was escorted in, my 8-year-old daughter commented to me that "Mom, he looks like he's going to cry." I told her that he probably was really feeling the emotion and importance of this moment...
Reply 14 - Posted by: ZurichMike, 1/20/2005 1:43:32 PM
"From the day of our Founding, we have proclaimed that every man and woman on this earth has rights, and dignity, and matchless value, because they bear the image of the Maker of Heaven and earth."
Amen.
Reply 15 - Posted by: luckydog, 1/20/2005 1:45:07 PM
You really get the feeling that he means everything that he say. He wants toa ctually make a difference and change the world for the better. Such a refreshing difference from Clinton, who only cared about making his own "legacy" and sealing it in his library. Too bad for him, his fake "legacy" is falling apart around him and Hillary and no one cares about his little library. Did you see that Carter is getting close to being trapped in the Oil for Food scandal. He was Clintons man for this program. Geting closer.
Sorry for the rant!
President Bush is a courageous and honorable man who deserves our respect and attention. He is going to make America better with his decisions and his choices of Cabinet members.
Reply 16 - Posted by: Gazoo, 1/20/2005 1:50:37 PM
Magnificent.
Reply 17 - Posted by: lana720, 1/20/2005 2:09:07 PM
A speech for the ages. All the more so because it was given straight from the President's heart. So quotable - good job, Mr. President and Mike Gerson!
Make one wonder how these words will play outside the USA (God bless her!!!).
Reply 18 - Posted by: Tulsa, 1/20/2005 2:11:19 PM
#13, the tears are a manifestation of the Holy Spirit. It is joy. The joy at certain salvation. Joy in purpose. Joy in the peace of knowing one is saved and knowing one's purpose....to serve as Christ did...to do God's will. ...To be a much like Christ as is humanly possible. To know there is forgiveness when we fail and we do, but to never Ever stop trying.
I pray that for all. I pray you will help your child find it, bc it is the most important and finest purpose of your life.
I am so full of joy, I may pop.
Reply 19 - Posted by: Penney, 1/20/2005 2:30:23 PM
President Bush's speech was honest, straightforward, and optimistic, in America's continuing dedication to liberty, equality and justice for all. This is a truely historic speech as it inspires & renews afresh all of the very best America has to offer to the future.
God bless President Bush. We are thankful for his leadership, particularly at this crucial time in history.
Reply 20 - Posted by: TheMom, 1/20/2005 2:33:31 PM
i'm inspired by President Bush's intention to turn the ship of state back onto the course of an ownership society. No one takes care of things like their owners.
And yes, I did fog up at that marvelous performance of "Bless This House"!
Reply 21 - Posted by: Tulsa, 1/20/2005 2:34:36 PM
the President tied federal funding to States for schools with accountability/success.
foreign aid, except for disasters, should be earmarked in the exact same manner. Change...liberty/freedom or no more money.
We may or may not be able to find this in new media, but it will happen.
Reply 22 - Posted by: jglas, 1/20/2005 2:34:53 PM
That was an 'iron fist in a velvet glove' speech. If I was a tyrant I'd feel uneasy about a person with Bush's track record, talking about spreading freedom around the world. He means it.
Reply 23 - Posted by: Tulsa, 1/20/2005 3:01:26 PM
yes he means it and if God is for him and He is...look out.
Reply 24 - Posted by: TruthRules, 1/20/2005 3:03:16 PM
I agree with all the praise. The only flaw I found in the speech was the mention of the Koran.
Reply 25 - Posted by: J.R. Dunn, 1/20/2005 3:03:31 PM
"Make the choice to serve in a cause larger than your wants, larger than yourself - and in your days you will add not just to the wealth of our country, but to its character."
You know, the biggest mistake made by Bush -- and overlooked by everybody -- was when he told everyone to go on and "live their lives" after 9/11, instead of rallying the nation behind him. But he made up for it right there. Good on you, W.
Reply 26 - Posted by: gremlin, 1/20/2005 3:06:58 PM
I got teary-eyed at portions of the speech. It was especially nice whey he stated that even unwanted children have worth.
#21, I don't believe it should be so black and white when it comes to foreign aid. Carter tried that and we got many years of the Sandinistas in Nicaragua. Communisum right there in our own back yard.
One must do the "realpolitik" thing.
Reply 27 - Posted by: Tulsa, 1/20/2005 3:24:09 PM
I cringed at the koran mention too.
guess I don't grok realpolitics then. jimmah was proof positive how the US functions without a potus. weak man.
I happen to believe it is madness to give foreign aid to countries whose public policy is hate and incitement to murder Westerners and that is the policy of some recipients of foreign govments. We should use it to 'force' change. The world doesn't want the US to get in a 'mood'.
Reply 28 - Posted by: qr4j, 1/20/2005 3:39:58 PM
I heard the speech on the radio. Now I have read the speech on the Internet.
WOW! WOW! WOW!
I don't think this speech could have been better. I am so fortunate to live during the presidency of George W. Bush.
Reply 29 - Posted by: Pam Torson, 1/20/2005 4:18:25 PM
David Gelernter wrote a piece a week or two ago entitled ''Americanism — and Its Enemies''. President Bush's Inaugural speech reflected a lot of the ideas Gelertnter presented in his article. You can find the article at http://www.commentarymagazine.com/article.asp?aid=11901043_1 . I am in agreement with those who pronounce this to be a historic speech. Historically, the governance of the United States has no example of precedence (even the children of Israel chose a king, despite God's insistance that they NOT have a single ruler over their nation).
Reply 30 - Posted by: cThree, 1/20/2005 4:53:04 PM
Thank you for posting, LComStaff . . .
Reply 31 - Posted by: ole buzzard, 1/20/2005 5:06:12 PM
I, too, believe that this will go down in history as one of the most important speeches of our age. And he made it clear to all other free countries of the world that they, too, have a responsibility to participate in the spread of freedom.
France and Germany, are you listening?
Reply 32 - Posted by: mrduc, 1/20/2005 6:01:37 PM
Was Laura Bush holding the Bible for her husband during the swearing in ceremony? I thought I saw that, but the podium was in the way. Did anyone else notice this?
Reply 33 - Posted by: TruthRules, 1/20/2005 6:03:12 PM
Laura Bush was holding the Bible, and it was open, but I haven't been able to find out what passage it was opened to.
Reply 34 - Posted by: right-turn, 1/20/2005 6:28:20 PM
Couldn't watch the speech but I did print the transcript so I would know what was said and not what the MSM says he said. A BIG difference I bet.
Reply 35 - Posted by: nav1, 1/20/2005 6:30:44 PM
What a day to be an American! Everybody else, eat your hearts out. As Pastor Caldwell said,
"Rally the Republicans, the Democrats and the Independents around Your common good so that America will truly become one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty, justice and equal opportunity for all -- including the least, the last and the lost.
Reply 36 - Posted by: gumbino, 1/20/2005 7:10:22 PM
#18, you put it so well. It was only recently that the full meaning of 'tears of joy' dawned upon me; and it is just as you say. And that, I'm sure, is what our President was feeling today -- as well as many of us.
Reply 37 - Posted by: zarin, 1/20/2005 8:19:28 PM
This speech is the fianl death blow to 'RealPolitik' - getting along with dictators just because they are anti-communist or somesuch. The tyrants should be shaking in their boots.
Reply 38 - Posted by: ForNow, 1/20/2005 8:23:05 PM
Liberty is the best policy.
Reply 39 - Posted by: Lou E. Brown, 1/20/2005 9:30:08 PM
Great speaker, great speech. The lines that keep coming back to me are how after 9/11 the American reaction was "a single hand over a single heart.", and that we cannot carry the torch of liberty and the baggage of bigotry at the same time.(That one is not exactly as he said it, but I don't have the transcript printed yet.) Love the man! Honor the President!
Reply 40 - Posted by: kiwi2, 1/21/2005 2:21:20 AM
#34: Give us your thoughts after reading the speech.
I would be interested to hear what you think.
