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Remarks by Vice President Cheney in Rally With Troops

    WASHINGTON, March 18 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The following is a
transcript of remarks by Vice President Cheney in a rally with troops in
Iraq:

Diverse News Editor's Note: The Mainstream Media does not report that Mr. Cheney is a gracious and interpersonal speaker.

    Holt Memorial Stadium
    Balad Air Force Base, Iraq


    9:17 A.M.  (Local)

    VICE PRESIDENT CHENEY: Thank you very much for that warm welcome.
(Applause.) That's all right. Don't hold back. I'm delighted to be here at
Balad Air Base. Ladies and gentlemen, it's good to see all of you -- and of
course to be here with my wife, Lynne, and our daughter, Elizabeth. The
general mentioned I was born in Nebraska, but grew up in Wyoming. The way
we got to Wyoming, when I was 13 years old, my dad worked for the
government. General Eisenhower, then President of the United States,
reorganized the Agriculture Department, and dad got transferred to Casper,
where I met Lynne, and we grew up together, and went to high school
together. We celebrate our 44th wedding anniversary next August.
(Applause.) Anybody here who is 44 years old? (Laughter.) I often explain
to people, if it hadn't been for that election in 1952, I wouldn't have
moved to Wyoming, and Lynne would have married somebody else. She said,
right, and now he'd be Vice President of the United States.

    Anyway, thanks for getting up early to let us say hello. Some of you
know we were in Baghdad yesterday and spent last night here on base.

    I came to Iraq for meetings with General Petraeus, Ambassador Crocker,
the Prime Minister, and others. Before going on to another part of the
country today, I asked for the chance to say a few words to the men and
women serving here at Balad. I want you to know that we appreciate you and
your comrades, that we never take you for granted, that we're inspired by
the tremendous work you've done on this deployment. I bring greetings from
home, and good wishes to all of you from the President of the United
States, George W. Bush. (Applause.)



    On the President's behalf I want to thank all of you for being part of
an extraordinary American team here in Iraq. This is one of our biggest
bases in the country. And the work that goes on at Balad and at Camp
Anaconda, around the clock, seven days a week, is absolutely critical to
the mission that America has undertaken here. Balad is one of the busiest
airports anywhere, and it's the main staging area for the massive
logistical operations we need in this theater. From the very beginning,
we've had high expectations of the men and women serving here. We've given
you a lot of work to do, and at often times a very small amount of time in
which to do it. And you've more than met our expectations.

    Service above self is the military way of life, and that goes, of
course, for everybody back home that has a loved one in the armed forces.
Especially in wartime, our military families understand full well what it
means to make sacrifices for the good of the country. So the next time you
email your family members, please pass along my thanks to them, as well.

    Each one of you has accepted serious duties in a challenging part of
the world. And the job you do here has a direct impact on the security of
the United States. Our country has been engaged in the broader Middle East
now for generations. And the work we're doing right now provides the best
chance for the security of our friends, allies, and partners and for the
long-term peace of the region.

    Five years ago this week, we led a coalition to liberate this country
from tyranny. And we promised that we would stand by the Iraqi people as
they built free institutions and took charge of their own destiny once
again. America has done this kind of work before, from Europe to Asia, and
it's never been easy. But we know from history that it's worth all the
effort we put into it.

    Freedom and democracy are the values that give hope to entire nations.
You and I know what it means to be free; to choose our own leaders, to
live, and work, and worship as we see fit. We wouldn't give such freedoms
away. And neither would the people of Iraq or Afghanistan. But in both of
those countries, they're facing attack from violent extremists who want to
end all democratic progress and pull them once again in the direction of
tyranny. We're helping them fight back because it's the right thing to do,
and because it's important for our own long-term security. As President
Bush has said, the war on terror is an ideological struggle. And as long as
this part of the world "remains a place where freedom does not flourish, it
will remain a place of stagnation, resentment, and violence ready for
export."



    This long-term struggle became urgent on the morning of September 11th,
2001. That day we saw clearly that dangers can gather far from our own
shores and find us right there at home. So the United States made a
decision: To hunt down the evil of terrorism and kill it where it grows, to
hold the supporters of terror to account, and to confront regimes that
harbor terrorists and threaten the peace. Understanding all the dangers of
this new era, we have no intention of abandoning our friends, or allowing
this country of 170,000 square miles to become a staging area for further
attacks against Americans. Tyranny in Iraq was worth defeating. Democracy
in Iraqis worth defending. (Applause.) All Americans can be certain: We
intend to complete the mission, so that another generation of Americans
doesn't have to come back here and do it again. (Applause.)

    During this deployment, ladies and gentlemen, you've seen incredible
progress on the ground in Iraq -- not just as witnesses, but as
participants. A little over a year ago, we made a decisive change in our
strategy -- a decision to seize the initiative against the forces of
violence, to provide basic security in the capital city, to give Iraqis the
opportunity and the confidence to go forward. We made a surge in
operations, and the results are now clear: more effective raids to root out
enemies; better and more accurate intelligence information from the locals;
and higher hopes for the future from the Iraqi people. And across this
country, the more that Iraqis have gotten to know Americans -- the nature
of our intentions, and the character of our soldiers -- the better they've
felt about the United States of America.

    They know, above all, that America can be trusted. They know we're a
nation that accepts a hard job, and keeps at it even if others may tire of
the effort. And we'll continue working to help this young democracy, to be
an example to others, and to be an ally in the war on terror. That war is
not yet won -- but the day will come when terrorists and terror states are
no longer a strategic threat to America. And you, as veterans of this
fight, will always be honored and respected for what you did to defend our
country, and to defeat freedom's enemies. (Applause.)

    The President and I, and your fellow citizens, want nothing more than
have you and all of your comrades return home safely at the end of this
tour of duty. We're going to do everything we can to make that happen. And
when you look back on this deployment, you'll be able to say that here you
did some of the hardest work of your life, some of the most important work
of your life, and some of the best work of your life. And you did it all
for your country.

    I appreciate your attention this morning -- it's been my privilege to
be with all of you. Keep up the great work. And thank you for what you do
for all of us. (Applause.)

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