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CNN Live Event/Special

Bush Delivers Radio Address

Aired October 13, 2001 - 10:05   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
JEANNE MESERVE, CNN ANCHOR: President Bush is in the Maryland mountains today keeping track of the anthrax scare and the military campaign. From his Camp David getaway, that's where White House correspondent Kelly Wallace is as well.

Good morning, Kelly.

KELLY WALLACE, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Jeanne.

Just moments from now we will hear the president deliver his weekly radio address. Once again, he will be giving the American people an update on this campaign on terrorism. Look for the president to focus on the military part of this campaign, also the humanitarian part, how he's calling on children around the country to send a dollar to the White House to help feed the children of Afghanistan. And also, look for the president to reassure a very, very jittery nation.

The president covering lots of ground in this weekly radio address and we will be listening to it just moments from now. He recorded it Friday and it will broadcast -- let's listen now to the president.

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Good morning. This week we opened some important new fronts in the war on terror. We're taking the ward of the enemy and we are strengthening our defenses here at home.

In last week's radio address, I warned that time was running out for the Taliban to turn over the terrorists they shelter. They did not listen and they are paying a price. On Sunday, American and British forces launched strikes at terrorist camps and Taliban military targets in Afghanistan. Our men and women in uniform are performing, as they always do, with skill and courage. And they have achieved the goals of the first phase of our campaign.

We have disrupted the terrorist network inside Afghanistan. We have weakened the Taliban's military and we have crippled the Taliban's air defenses. American forces dominate the skies over Afghanistan and we will use that dominance to make sure terrorists can no longer freely use Afghanistan as a base of operations.

This campaign will not be completed in one attack. Our enemy prefers to attack the helpless. He hides from our soldiers but we are making a determined effort to take away his hiding places.

The best defense against terrorism is a strong offensive against terrorists. That work continues. At the same time, we are taking further action to strengthen our protections against terrorism here at home.

This week I signed an executive order creating a new Office of Homeland Security. The office is headed by a skilled and tested leader, former Pennsylvania governor, Tom Ridge. Governor Ridge is a decorated Vietnam combat veteran. He's an effective executive and he knows what we're up against because his own state was one of the three where Americans died on September the 11th.

Governor Ridge is charged with coordinating a comprehensive national effort to protect our country against terrorism, to frustrate terrorist plans, to help protect vulnerable points and to prepare our response to potential threats. Tom Ridge will report directly to me and he will have the full support of our entire government.

I understand that many Americans are felling uneasy, but all Americans should be assured. We are taking strong precautions. We are vigilant. We are determined. The country is alert and the great power of the American nation will be felt.

Our nation is grateful to so many Americans who are rallying to our cause and preparing for the struggle ahead -- FBI agents, intelligence officers, emergency response workers, public health authorities, state and local officials, our diplomats abroad, law enforcement teams who safeguard our security at home and soldiers, sailors and Marines and airmen who defend us so far away.

Many others are asking what can I do, Americans already contribute to the war on terror by their patience and patriotism, by their resolve and generosity. Yet, I have one more task, one especially for America's children. I urge you to share the best of America by directly helping the children of Afghanistan who are suffering from the oppression and misrule of their own government. Many are malnourished. Many are starving. Put a dollar in an envelop, mark it "America's Fund For Afghan Children" and send it here to the White House -- 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, Washington, D.C. 20509-1600.

Working with the American Red Cross, we will get that money to Afghan children in need. This is something the children of America can do for the children of Afghanistan even as we oppose the brutal Taliban regime. We will oppose their evil with firm justice and we will answer their hatred with compassion for the Afghan people.

Thank you for listening.

WALLACE: And there the president's weekly address. Again, giving the American people an update in this campaign against terrorism. Two notes to bring out to you -- of course, the president responding to concerns in the nation, concerns about the possibility of more terrorist attacks, concerns about the anthrax incident in New York and the cases in Florida, saying Americans are feeling uneasy, but trying to reassure Americans that the government is on alert and doing everything it possibly can.

And then on the military campaign, the president saying the men and women of the Armed Forces have achieved the goals of the first phase of the campaign. The president saying that the United States has disrupted the terrorist network inside Afghanistan, but he also said that the work continues.

Jeanne, back to you.

MESERVE: Kelly Wallace at Camp David, thank you.

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