October 2004 Issue
Students Attend Presidential Rally
Jesse Roisin '05The Wednesday after Summer Term finals, I got an email from my contact in the Bush campaign that the President was going to give a speech in Derry, New Hampshire, in a few weeks, and that he had tickets for us College Republicans if we agreed to volunteer for a few hours after the event. Well, how could we miss such an awesome opportunity to hobnob with fellow Republicans and meet the President? I promptly emailed him back that we would love to help out...
Now, zoom ahead to mid-September: Fall Term has not yet started and we actually have no work to do. So, about twenty of us head down to Derry in Bush campaign vans. We park quite a distance away from the high school where the President is scheduled to appear, and take buses to the venue. On the way, we pass several rather sedate protestors who seem to rely on their signs replete with incoherent verbiage to communicate their disagreement.
Luckily for us, not only the President, but also New Hampshire Governor Craig Benson and both Congressmen – Charlie Bass ’74 and Jeb Bradley – are scheduled to appear at the event. We haggle with Rep. Bradley’s assistant to garner second row seats, right behind Rep. Bass. Naturally, we strike up a conversation with him about his experiences at Dartmouth. Charlie recounts some of his fondest college memories as we wait for the President to arrive.
In a few minutes, Governor Benson hops onto the stage and begins to paint a rosy picture of his state. “New Hampshire has the 49th lowest tax burden in the nation, is the healthiest state in the Union, and is now operating under its first budget surplus in years,” he points out. Driving home the Bush campaign’s main themes, he says: “We want security, we want good education for our children…We want a leader who does the right thing. We want Bush.” Even before he finishes, the audience starts cheering and chanting, “four more years!”
The President makes his entrance and is welcomed by a loud standing ovation. He starts off with a bit of humor. Looking directly at Governor Benson, he suggests: “fill the potholes.” This, naturally, brings down the house. He then proceeds into his stump speech, starting with a defense of the No Child Left Behind Act. He attacks the “soft bigotry of low expectations” and demands that we ask the tough questions such as “can a child read?” As part of the struggle for better education, Bush encourages us to be “soldiers in the army of compassion.”
The audience becomes more attentive as Bush segues into a discussion on unemployment. He emphasizes that we must create an “environment conducive to job growth” and friendly to small business. Promoting his tax cuts, the President points out that New Hampshire has an astoundingly low unemployment rate of 3.8%, and reminds us that the United States “is the best place in the world to do business.” To further strengthen his points, he yields the floor to a local entrepreneur who has greatly benefited from the Bush tax cuts. The businessman recounts that he has been able to invest in new machinery and increase production by over 25%, primarily because of the reduction in tax rates. “Not bad for a Harvard man,” Bush quips.
After briefly discussing his energy policy and the importance of lowering foreign energy dependence, the President outlines his health care reform proposals. He declares that it should be up to the “doctors and patients to decide, not the government” and encourages the “proper use of technology to reduce the cost of health care.” Making a pointed jab at his opposition, Bush says: “I do not think you can be pro-doctor and pro-patient, or pro-hospital and pro-trial attorney at the same time. I think you have to choose. My opponent made his choice, and he put him on the ticket.” Democratic Vice-Presidential candidate John Edwards is a trial lawyer.
Bush then makes the Reaganite in all of us proud: “It’s not the government’s money, it’s your money. You can spend your money far better than the government can.”
The President wraps up his speech with a discussion of American foreign policy and the War on Terror. He believes that our enemies have “no conscience” and pledges to bring them to justice. Defending the Iraq War, he says that we “must take [every] threat seriously.” He describes the immense progress made by women in Afghanistan, where millions recently voted in a peaceful election, the first in their history. Bush concludes: “Freedom is innate, freedom is powerful. It is not America's gift to the world. Freedom is the Almighty God's gift to each man and woman in this world.”
After closing remarks, Bush opens the floor to questions. Microphone gophers are stationed around the gym, but we are unable to pose our own queries, as the President only responds to those coming from the rear of the hall. Despite later media reports to the contrary, it is obvious to us that this part of the program is entirely unscripted. Although many questions turn out to be full of praise for the President’s leadership and steadfastness, the unwieldy nature of most of them makes their spontaneity quite apparent. For instance, an elderly veteran reads a lengthy letter in support of the President from a young Marine stationed in Iraq. After a few such questions, Bush brings the event to a close by thanking Gov. Benson and our Congressmen.
He then walks off the stage to meet his supporters. We are able to shake hands with the President, and after a few jabs to our Ivy League rival, get our tickets autographed. After the President leaves, we meet up with Bush campaign folks, and form groups for some door-to-door canvassing. While most of the responses we get are elation that there are indeed Republicans studying at Dartmouth, we also face the occasional curt, but polite refusal on the part of the rare Democrat. As dusk sets in, we pile into the van and drive back up to Dartmouth, with many fond memories of a wonderful day.