George H.W. Bush: “May 7, 1992 Thank you, Reverend Hill. Let me just say to his parishioners and to his fellow members of the clergy that…”

“May 7, 1992 Thank you, Reverend Hill. Let me just say to his parishioners and to his fellow members of the clergy that we Bushes have great respect for your pastor, respect for what he stands for, respect for his leadership, and respect for his emphasis on family values. I listened to the prayers with wonder, admiration. I think we got a pretty good start, don't you, with Miss Elmore singing, but I heard what His Eminence Cardinal Mahoney said about racial tension. We must address that. What Bishop McMurray and Dr. Billy Ingram said about healing, we've got to address that; what Dr. Massey said about the importance of the church. And as you look at the chaos and turmoil in this country, not just in the wake of the riots of Los Angeles but all the problems we face in the country, the problems we face internationally, I keep coming back in my own thinking to the importance of the church, the importance of our faith. Then Reverend Massey talked about this is no time for blame, and he's right about that. This is not a time for blame, and I am not here in the mode of politics. I am not here in the mode of partisanship. I am not here in the mode of blame. I'm here to learn from the community and at this moment to tell you of the values that I strongly believe in. When Reverend Hill and other national leaders came last Friday to the White House, I reminded the group of what Mayor Tom Bradley and other mayors, urban mayors, rural mayors, had to tell me not so many months ago.…”