Announcement of the Vice-President
Austin, Texas
Tuesday, July 25, 2000
Governor George W. Bush Remarks
I believe you are looking at the next Vice President of the United
States.
Throughout this vice presidential selection process, my foremost goal
has been to select an outstanding individual who is capable of serving
as President of the United States.
I wanted the selection process to be thorough and dignified. I reached
out to a distinguished and experienced statesman to lead the search. For
months, we worked closely together to review the qualifications of many
impressive candidates.
As we worked to evaluate the strengths of others, I saw firsthand Dick
Cheney’s outstanding judgment. As we considered many different
credentials, I benefited from his keen insight.
I was impressed by the thoughtful and thorough way he approached his
mission. And gradually, I realized that the person who was best
qualified to be my vice presidential nominee was working by my side.
Before I asked Dick Cheney to chair the selection process, I had asked
whether he would consider being a candidate himself. At the time, he
said no. He had a challenging and demanding job leading a worldwide
company; he was enjoying life in the private sector. But I kept the
thought of him joining me in the back of my mind.
When Secretary Cheney visited me in Crawford over the July 4th weekend,
we reviewed many different candidates, all of whom are impressive. But I
continued to believe the best candidate might be sitting next to me. I
asked him again whether he would be willing to join me to accomplish
some great goals for our country: to save and strengthen social
security, to improve medicare and provide prescription drug benefits to
seniors, to reform our public schools and to rebuild our military. This
time he said he was willing to talk with his family and consider it.
Early this morning, I called and asked him to join me in renewing
America’s purpose, together. So I am proud to announce that Dick Cheney,
a man of great integrity and judgment and experience, is my choice to be
the next Vice President of the United States. I can’t wait for the
delegates at our convention next week to hear from Dick Cheney and I
will ask them to confirm this good man as our party’s choice for
Vice-President.
The fact that this outstanding man is willing to serve speaks to the
power of our compassionate conservative message and its promise for our
country.
I have to admit: I didn’t pick Dick Cheney because of Wyoming’s three
electoral votes – although we want and will work hard to earn them. I
picked him because he is without a doubt fully capable of being
President of the United States and he will be a valuable partner in a
Bush administration.
Dick Cheney has served our country as chief of staff to a President,
served in the United States Congress and as Secretary of Defense. He is
a man of integrity who is respected by Republicans and Democrats alike.
Even my opponent, Vice President Gore, once said Dick Cheney is a good
man who is well liked and respected by his colleagues. I am proud to
call him my friend, and honored to call him my running mate.
I also want to welcome Lynne Cheney. She is woman of many
accomplishments. She served as chair of the National Endowment for the
Humanities and she is a leader in developing high standards and sound
curriculum for public schools. She is an important member of our team.
Laura and I are delighted to have Dick and Lynne by our side. And we
look forward to winning and working for a better America.Source:
George W. Bush for President
Official 2000 Web Site |