THE
PRESIDENT: Okay. Thanks for letting us
come. Can I introduce some people here? Mayor
Rudy -- do you know the Mayor of New York, Rudy
Guiliani? The Governor, George Pataki, of New
York. And I'm President George Bush. And I wanted
to come by your school to say a couple of things.
First, I want to say to the teachers who
work in the school, and all throughout New York, how much we appreciate
the courage that New York teachers showed. There are some --
there's a lot of talk about heroes in our society. A hero is
somebody you look up to, of course. And the teachers of New
York City were very heroic.
They were not only heroic in taking boys
and girls your age out of the building, helping them find places to
stay at night and making sure nobody got hurt; they're heroic today --
you know why? Because they love you. And if you've got any
worries about what took place at the World Trade Center, they can help
you. Some of you -- yes, they do want to help you,
sure. They want to comfort you and they want to make sure
that you understand what went on.
And I want to thank the teachers a
lot. And I know the Mayor and the Governor join me, as
well. (Applause.)
I also want to tell you that you live in a
great country. You know that. You're telling me
-- you are learning about patriotism. It looks like this
guy, Stephen, for example -- "I love America," he writes. Do
you know what? There are a lot of people who love America
today.
And one of the things that we're learning
out of our sadness is what a great country this is. The best
way to realize this country is to learn how to read and
write. And that's what you're doing here. Study
hard, because this country says, you work hard, you can realize your
dreams. And that's what we're here to say to you.
We want to thank you very much for letting
us come by. We want to thank your principals, and thank your
teachers. Tell your moms and dads "hello." It's
good to see you.
Anybody have any questions for me or the
Mayor?
THE PRESS: Mr. President --
THE PRESIDENT: You've already
asked your questions. (Laughter.) I've never seen somebody
try to ask so many questions in one day. (Laughter.)
Well, anyway, thank you very
much. Thanks for letting us come by. A lot of
people care for you, they really do -- starting with your moms and your
dads and your teachers here. A lot of people love you,
too. Thanks for letting us come by. Bye-bye.