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August 17, 2004'A plain-spoken fella'President connects with boisterous crowd of 12,000ByRecord-Eagle staff writer TRAVERSE CITY - President George W. Bush came to a small city in northern Michigan with an open-collar shirt and rolled-up sleeves hoping to connect with rural America. Judging from the large, partisan crowd at the Grand Traverse County Civic Center, he did just fine. "I suspect people up here like a plain-spoken fella," Bush said, touching off roars and cheers. "I support everything he said - he knows exactly what America needs," said Jennifer Wiser, who drove north from Holly to hear the president's remarks on Monday. "He cares about us, he cares about our future and he cares about our families." Bush, the first sitting president to visit Traverse City in nearly 30 years, arrived at Cherry Capital Airport about 2 p.m., traveled to the Grand Traverse Resort for what campaign officials termed "business," then moved to the Civic Center where he touched on several of his favorite campaign themes. He touted his No Child Left Behind programs in education, the war on terrorism and efforts to build democratic nations in Afghanistan and Iraq. "A free and peaceful Iraq and a free and peaceful Afghanistan will be powerful examples to their neighbors," Bush said. "Free countries will not export terror - free countries believe in peace." He staunchly defended his decision to invade Iraq - which many observers see as the weak link of the Bush campaign - while acknowledging that "stockpiles" of weapons of mass destruction haven't been found. "As he had for over a decade, Saddam Hussein defied the free world,' said Bush, who criticized Democratic opponent John Kerry for what he termed an indecisive position on the war. "Remember that Saddam had the capability to make weapons of mass destruction," Bush said. "Knowing what I know today I would've taken the same action. America and (the) world are safer." Bush also emphasized his tax cuts and said more are needed to strengthen the country's economy. "We didn't pick winners and losers, we did it the fair way - if you pay taxes, you got relief," he said. Bush's message resonated with the large crowd inside the Civic Center, which interrupted his speech several times with loud chants of "Four more years." The Bush campaign staff estimated the crowd inside the park at around 12,000. Bush also hit on some Michigan issues, including Great Lakes water diversion and the stalled nomination of state Court of Appeals Justice Richard Griffin, of Traverse City. Bush said he opposes exporting water to areas outside of the Great Lakes basin. "My position is clear - we'll never allow the diversion of Great Lakes water," he said. Following his 40-minute speech, Bush exited to the left of the stage as a crush of well-wishers pushed in to shake the president's hand. He greeted the crowd for several minutes before being led back to his motorcade and then back to the airport. For onlookers like Dave Hancock, who traveled from Atlanta in Montmorency County, the president's appearance didn't disappoint. "He shows leadership - he's very decisive and he's stepped up to every challenge he's had," Hancock said. "The only other thing I wanted him to say is that he was coming back."
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