President Bush marked the 275th birthday of the nation’s first president Monday, calling George Washington’s “long strugglefor freedom” an inspiration for Americans standing for “freedom in their own time.”
“Today, we’re fighting a new war to defend our liberty and our people and our way of life,” Bush said before about 5,000 onlookers gathered in the bitter cold on the bowling green in front of Washington’s Mount Vernon estate.
In his 10-minute Presidents Day speech, Bush sought to correlate the first president’s fight to establish the nation with the country’s present war on terrorism.
“As we work to advance the cause of freedom around the world, we remember that the father of our country believed that the freedoms we secured in our revolution were not meant for Americans alone,” Bush said.
Bush was introduced by Gay Hart Gaines, regent of the Mount Vernon Ladies’ Association, which has owned and maintained Washington’s home since 1853.
The president and first lady Laura Bush laid a wreath in a private ceremony at Washington’s tomb on the west side of the estate prior to Monday’s speech.
Washington was born Feb. 22, 1732. Following the American Revolution in 1783, Washington retired to his family’s Potomac River plantation, where he oversaw two massive expansions.
“After winning the war, Washington did what victorious leaders rarely did at the time. He voluntarily gave up power,” Bush said.
But Washington’s retirement was short-lived. The electoral college twice unanimously elected Washington president, in 1789 and in 1793.
“America’s path to freedom was long, and it was hard,” Bush said. “And the outcome was really never certain. Honoring George Washington’s life requires us to remember the many challenges that he overcame, and the fact that American history would have turned out very differently without his steady leadership.”
