George H.W. Bush: “Thank you, thank you. Thank you so very much. Thank you for this warm Mississippi welcome. It is great to be back in…”

“Thank you, thank you. Thank you so very much. Thank you for this warm Mississippi welcome. It is great to be back in Gulfport, great to be back in Fordice, Lott, Cochran, and Bush-Quayle country. Thank you very, very much. This is our first stop after Houston, the first step into the future. We're here to kick off a crusade to bring back values and to build a stronger, more secure America. We're grateful to be here with your Mayor and our Lieutenant Governor, Eddie Briggs. And may I single out my dear friend, a man of real values, a man of real talent, Ricky Scaggs. You talk about southern hospitality, let me thank all the Republican leadership, those who greeted us on the ground, all of you who worked on this fantastic rally, and those who came with me on Air Force One. This is, as I say, our first step out of Houston, on to the election. I am delighted to be back here in this place which has sound family values, great tradition, and believes in a strong America. I understand that since my last visit, Biloxi is something of the Monte Carlo of the gulf coast. Well, my pastor may be listening, so I want to say I never was much of a gambler. But let me offer a little sporting advice: Don't bet against us in November. We are going to win this election. Now, let me put something in perspective. You've been reading about some of these crazy reports about my health. Well, let me say I am blessed with good health, blessed with good health. Last night I laid out an agenda for America, and the reaction has been very positive. If those overnight polls are any barometer, the American people agree with me that I do look better in my jogging shorts than Bill Clinton. You know, last night we answered some questions for the American people. One of them is, ``Well, why spend any time anymore on foreign policy?'' Well, remember the days when some of these schoolchildren, or when some of you all were schoolchildren, hiding under the desks in drills to prepare for nuclear war. Well, I saw a chance to rid our children's dreams of the nuclear nightmare. And I did it, with the help of many others before me. Seriously, do you know that over the past 4 years, more people have breathed the fresh air of freedom than in all of human history? We saw a chance to help, and we did it. And understand something: These were the two defining opportunities, not of a year, not of a decade but of an entire span of human history. We can all take great pride in that. And yes, now that we have made the world safer and more secure, it's time to build a safer and more secure America. Here in Gulfport, you understand how the world has become linked, interconnected. The challenge before America today is to bring together foreign policy, economic policy, and national security policy to make a difference in your home. So this election isn't simply, as the opposition, as that new twin ticket says, simply about change. It's about who do you trust to make the change work for you. That is the question. And our opponents, my opponent is---- Audience members. George Bush! George Bush! George Bush!”