THE UNITED STATES PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN: Submission from Bush-Cheney campaign (10/24/04)

THE UNITED STATES PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN

The Weekly's questions to the candidates

EDITOR'S NOTE: In late September, The Ukrainian Weekly's editorial staff prepared a list of questions on a variety of issues of particular concern to Ukrainian Americans. Preliminary phone calls were made to the presidential campaign staffs of George W. Bush, John F. Kerry and Ralph Nader in order to determine to whom the final list of questions could be e-mailed for the candidates' responses.

On October 3 the questions were e-mailed to all three campaigns. In hopes of publishing these responses in our October 24 issue - one that would reach all of our readers before Election Day (November 2), the campaigns were given a deadline of October 18 by which they had to submit their responses.

The Kerry campaign submitted its responses to most of the questions posed by The Weekly. The Bush campaign chose to issue a statement, while reserving the right to respond to The Weekly's specific questions in our next issue, dated October 31, even though - due to poor postal delivery of second-class mail - that issue may not reach all of our readers before they cast their votes. The Nader campaign did not respond.

Below are the unedited submissions of the Kerry and Bush campaigns.

Submission from Bush-Cheney campaign

Following is the full text of a submission sent to The Ukrainian Weekly on October 19 by the Bush-Cheney campaign.

The contributions to American society by the Ukrainian American community have been significant, and President Bush is proud to recognize their important role in American society. In acknowledging these important contributions, the Bush Administration remains committed to seeing Ukraine develop as a stable, independent, democratic and economically prosperous country, that is governed by the rule of law, respects all human life, and actively strives to strengthen peace and security, and denounce terrorism in the international community.

The people of Ukraine enjoy a rich and colorful history, but one wrought by hardship, adversity, and rocked by change. Yet, Ukraine remains a hopeful nation. In little over a decade the Ukrainian people successfully recovered from the manacles of communism and are making the painstaking transition to a market economy. However, there is still more to be achieved if Ukraine is to become a prosperous democratic state. The United States will work to help the people of Ukraine share this vision to reach their goal.

President Bush urged and pushed for the enlargement of NATO to all of Europe's democracies, from the Baltic to the Black Sea, and all that lie between, so that people in those countries would have the same chance for security and freedom enjoyed by Europe's older democracies. Continued reform within the Ukrainian government will bring that dream to a realization and President Bush fully supports these efforts.

Ukraine is also to be commended for their de-nuclearization. The United States has been proud to work with Ukrainians to pursue a strategy of non-proliferation which will bring greater security to the region and ultimately, to the world.

As in Ukraine, America's leadership knows that defending the United States against its enemies is the first and most fundamental commitment of the federal government. September 11, 2001, awakened Americans to the knowledge that we can no longer depend on geography to protect us from the heinous acts of terrorists. We experienced the horror of a brutal attack on our own soil, and with this experience came a better realization of the struggles borne every day by the people across the ocean - in the Middle East and Eastern Europe. We developed an even stronger determination to defeat terrorism and to eliminate the threat it poses to free people everywhere. As the world's most powerful nation, President Bush believes that the United States has a special responsibility to help make the world more secure. The Bush administration recognizes Ukraine's continued support as we seek to defeat a ubiquitous enemy, and condemns the assertion of John Kerry that America's only allies in the war on terror in Iraq are a "coalition of the coerced and the bribed." President Bush truly believes that "our allies deserve the respect of all Americans, not the scorn of a politician. America is grateful, and America will not forget their contributions."

The partnership between Ukraine and the United States was first formed by the Cold War and is strengthened by our commitment to winning the war on terror. Built on a foundation of strong leadership by President Reagan to protect Eastern Europe, President Bush has reinforced the policies of freedom and democracy in Eastern and Central Europe in the new century.

In establishing a partnership for peace, Americans reached out across to Central and Eastern Europe and Eurasia, and we are pleased to see that many Ukrainians are meeting our efforts. President Bush continues to appreciate the contributions of Ukraine and the Ukrainian American community here in the United States and will continue to work to build peace and prosperity that will benefit all.

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Due to the notification process of the specific questions outlined in the questionnaire, we ask that we respectfully reserve the right to provide detailed answers to the requested questions next week for The Ukrainian Weekly released on the 31st [of October].

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