George W. Bush Holds Campaign Rally in Grand Rapids, Michigan
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: Live to Grand Rapids as Texas governor has now entered the building. We anticipate his comments shortly here. And, again, all this follows the news that broke last night when the Texas governor was in the state of Wisconsin. Again, the report out of Portland, Maine that, 24 years ago at the age of 30, the Texas governor was arrested for DUI. We'll listen now.</s>GOV. GEORGE W. BUSH (R-TX), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Thank you all, thank you all very much. First, let me thank all those who are inside this magnificent facility.</s>AUDIENCE: Engy. Engy. Engy. Engy. Engy.</s>BUSH: Old Engy and I...</s>AUDIENCE: We want Bush. We want Bush. We want Bush. We want Bush.</s>BUSH: We are less than 100 hours away from the hour of decision. And whether or not you're a Republican or a Democrat or an independent, we're asking for your support. We're asking you to join our cause and join us in victory on November the 7th.</s>AUDIENCE: No more Gore! No more Gore! No more Gore!</s>BUSH: I want you all to hear this. I think you'll find it interesting, for my opponent in these closing hours will be asking for the vote in Tennessee.</s>AUDIENCE: We want Bush. We want Bush. We want Bush. We want Bush.</s>BUSH: America's military is the strongest in the world, confident, proud and willing to carry out every mission we give them. But we've got a serious problem in our military today. And that problem is not with our men and women in uniform; it is a problem of leadership at the very top of the chain of command. The Clinton-Gore administration has used our military too much and supported it too little. Defense spending is lower as a share of our economy than at any time since 1940, the year before the attack on Pearl Harbor. Yet rarely has our military been used so freely -- more commitments, less resources. It is a short-sighted policy with long- term consequences. In the Air Force, combat readiness is down. In the Army, 40 percent of the helicopter fleet was reported not up to performing its mission. In the Navy, some missions have been cut short, because they do not have the money to pay for fuel. One retired general, a former commander of U.S. forces in the Persian Gulf said this, he says: Our nation would have trouble today mounting another operation the size of Desert Storm. With all these problems in our military, we've learned something else: When you don't keep faith with the men and women of our military, it's hard to keep them at all. In a survey last year, more than half of officers and enlisted people said they were dissatisfied and intended to leave as soon as they could. This is no way to treat young men and women giving their country the best years of their lives.</s>HEMMER: After several minutes and a lot of words regarding the issue of taxes and a heavy topic regarding the U.S. military, George W. Bush did, in the final comments there, address the reports that came out last night in Portland, Maine, the reports, again, that said, 24 years ago, at the age of 30, 1976, George W. Bush was arrested for DUI near his parent's home in Kennebunkport. The Texas governor saying -- and repeating now -- quote, "it has become clear that I have made mistakes in my life, but I am here to tell you I have learned from my mistakes." After heavy applause, he continued with saying, "and that is the role of a leader." Toward the end, you saw him again raise his right hand, as he has done many times throughout the course of this campaign. George Bush again on the stump there in Grand Rapids, Michigan. The big story again, the fallout from the report that came out last evening. The Texas governor did address it after a rally in Wisconsin. Today, the vice president is in Kansas City, Missouri. A short time ago, CNN's Jonathan Karl caught up with the vice president, asked him if he had any comment or anything to say. A quick clip from the vice president a few hours ago.</s>VICE PRES. AL GORE (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I have no comment on this. I want to talk about the issues.</s>HEMMER: Again, that was the extent of it. Al Gore on the stump today in Missouri; later in Iowa; as you heard George Bush say, later today in his home state of Tennessee.