This is IN THE NEWS in VOA
Special English.George
W. Bush leaves office on Tuesday after eight years as president of the United
States. He gave his farewell speech to the American people Thursday night.
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President Bush during his farewell address
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PRESIDENT BUSH: "Tonight,
with a thankful heart, I have asked for a final opportunity to share some
thoughts on the journey we have traveled together and the future of our
nation."He noted that his first speech
from the White House was on September eleventh, two thousand one, after the
terrorist attacks that day.
PRESIDENT BUSH: "As the
years passed, most Americans were able to return to life much as it had been
before 9/11. But I never did."
The
forty-third president has been defending his record during his final days in
office, and he did so again in his speech.
PRESIDENT BUSH: "There are
things I would do differently if given the chance. Yet I have always acted with
the best interests of our country in mind."
He spoke about Iraq and the
handling of his war on terror.
PRESIDENT BUSH: "There is a
legitimate debate about many of these decisions. But there can be little debate
about the results. America has gone more than seven years without another
terrorist attack on our soil."
President Bush offered best
wishes to Barack Obama, who will be the nation's first African-American
president. His father was a black exchange student from Kenya; his mother was a
white American.
PRESIDENT BUSH: "Standing on
the steps of the Capitol will be a man whose story reflects the enduring
promise of our land. This is a moment of hope and pride for our nation."
President Bush's farewell address
was his last public event planned before the inauguration. He called his final
news conference on Monday. He talked about progress in education and other
areas, but especially in keeping the country safe. He said the most urgent
threat that Barack Obama and other presidents after him will have to deal with is
another attack.
The
attacks in two thousand one took place during President Bush's first year in
office. His presidency began after an election dispute. But after the attacks,
nine out of ten Americans approved of the job he was doing, compared lately to
about one in four. His presidency comes to a close at a time of economic
crisis.
PRESIDENT BUSH: "Look,
I inherited a recession and I am ending on a recession. In the meantime, there
were fifty-two months of uninterrupted job growth."
The president said one of his greatest
"disappointments" was the abuse of prisoners at Abu Ghraib prison in
Iraq. Another disappointment, he said, was not finding weapons of mass
destruction in Iraq. He had warned of the threat of such weapons as he argued
for military action to remove Saddam Hussein from power.
The war in Iraq and the handling
of Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans took attention from one of the president's biggest
successes. In two thousand three, he launched a program to fight AIDS in Africa
and elsewhere. That program has helped about ten million people.
By tradition, George and Laura
Bush will leave Washington immediately after Barack Obama is sworn-in on
Tuesday. They will return to their home state of Texas.
And that's IN THE NEWS in VOA
Special English, written by Brianna Blake. Be a part of VOA's social networking
site for the inauguration. Go to voaspecialenglish.com and click on USA Votes. I'm
Steve Ember.