Cheney in Hawaii

Purple state? Uber-democratic Hawaii is in play and gets a visit from VP Cheney, who says he "was in the neighborhood and thought I'd stop by and say, aloha."

It's a reminder that we are engaged in a global war on terror. This is a conflict we did not choose, but it is one that we will win. (Applause.)

We're standing just a few miles from Pearl Harbor, the site of a sudden attack on the U.S., on Sunday, December 7th, 1941. That day our peaceful country found itself in a global struggle that would last four years and would test our patience and resolve as a nation. Fortunately for us all, a great generation of Americans was more than equal to that challenge. (Applause.) They pulled together in freedom's cause, threw back aggression in a two-front war, and aided the rise of democracy in Europe and the Pacific.

Three years ago, America faced another sudden attack. And like other generations of Americans, we found that history had unexpected duties in store for us. September 11th, 2001 made clear the great challenge of our time. And since that morning, we have seen the brutal acts of terrorists around the world -? from a nightclub in Bali, to trains in Madrid, to a school in Beslan, Russia. Against this kind of determined, organized, ruthless enemy, America requires an aggressive strategy -? not merely to prosecute a series of crimes, but to fight and win a global campaign against the terrorist network. (Applause.) If the killers of 9/11 thought we had lost the will to defend our freedom, they did not know America. And they did not know George W. Bush. (Applause.)

Hat-tip: pstupidonymous

Posted by jk at November 1, 2004 09:58 AM