Barbara Bush: You are very well behaved. I want to thank you very much for doing what I asked you to do and the rest of you sit down, too. Let me thank Roxanne very much for that most generous introduction. You know, I feel a little bit like the tail wagging the dog. She is so much more qualified than I am to even begin to speak to you, but I want to thank her very very much and tell you how really impressed I am by your dedication and your record in life. It's all very easy to talk the talk like I do, but she walks the walk which is even better, and I want to thank Dr. Sabato very much. Obviously you were a brilliant teacher because Marvin is a very brilliant child and I want to thank all of you for the welcome to this special meeting of the Youth Leadership Initiative.

Obviously they sent the right Bush. They sent the youngest Bush to come today to talk about how important the election process is and, by the way, I am a huge fan of the University of Virginia as you were told, not only because one of our greatest presidents founded the University, Thomas Jefferson, but because it did so much for not only Marvin but Margaret, the wife he met here, too. This is a great marriage place, isn't it?

I feel especially honored to be here to talk to you today about our democracy and why it's so important for you all to get involved and to pay attention and I feel very strongly about this for many reasons. I was lucky enough to be married to the president of the United States. You do all remember George Bush, don't you? And I know you remember that he hated broccoli and that he parachutes out of airplanes, but now besides those things, he was also a great president and being First Lady was the best job in America. I got to live in the White House which is an enormous honor and I got to witness history firsthand which was also exciting, and I got to meet exciting and very interesting people. For instance, I know and they know me--Michael Jordan, Tiger Woods, Bruce Willis, Arnold Schwartzeneger, and I danced with John Travolta. That's just to name a few, but even though I've been gone from the White House for seven years, I still get an enormous amount of mail. For instance, just this very week, a little girl from Magnolia, Texas wrote me and said, "I have some great news, Mrs. Bush. I named my heifer after you." I really wasn't sure what to think, but I decided that it's very flattering to have a cow named after you. I bet not one other person in this room can say that, and certainly while living at the White House, I realized more than ever what a wonderful country we live in and what a gift democracy and freedom is.

While George was president, we witnessed the end of communism in Eastern Europe and eventually even in the Soviet Union. It was truly wondrous to watch these people experience freedom for the first time. Most of you probably don't remember the Cold War. Don't worry. You didn't miss a thing, but just imagine not being able to get into a car and go wherever you wanted to go with your parents, not being able to watch television you wanted on TV, or surf the net. That's what living under communism meant. Democracy's worth fighting for, whether it's on the battlefield which is the biggest sacrifice we can make, but also in our everyday life in ways big and small. For example, every time someone participates in an election by voting, that is a small but very important say to say I appreciate my freedom and my country. Certainly running for office, whether it's for city council or the school board or president of the United States, is a wonderful way to participate in your democracy. It's easy to stay home and criticize decisions being made in Richmond or in Washington. It's quite another to roll up your sleeves and decide to run yourself and be part of that decision-making process.

Running for office takes time and energy, enormous patience and dedication, a lot of determination and above all, courage. You have to be willing to say publicly what you think and then defend yourselves when others disagree, so you can only imagine how proud George and I are to have two sons in politics, one running for president and I'm going to tell you the honest truth, it's overwhelming for a mother to say those words. There's no question in my mind and in our minds, George and mine, that George W. is the right person to lead this country in this brand new century and millennium, and I hope by the time you get through studying all the candidates and their positions on issues, that you will agree with me. But I didn't come really to campaign for George W., really, but I'm sure you already figured out who I was for.

I came instead to encourage you to learn as much as you can about this wonderful democracy of ours and how you can make a difference, and don't worry, I'm not going to give you too much advice. I remember what a young boy wrote about Socrates. He said that Socrates was a very smart man who lived in ancient Greece and he went around giving people advice and they poisoned him, and also some times when you think you're giving brilliant advice, it doesn't always work. Like the mother who was preparing pancakes for her sons, Kevin--5, and Brian--3, and the boys began to argue over who would get the first pancake and their mother saw a great opportunity for a moral lesson. She said if Jesus were sitting here, he would say "let my brother have the first pancake, I can wait," and Kevin turned to his younger brother and said, "Brian, you be Jesus."

That's not going to stop me. My first piece of advice is please don't waste this time while you're in school. Study hard. There's no such thing as knowing too much. After all, you may grow up and be on "Who Wants to be a Millionaire?" and of course, you all do. Play hard. Life, after all, was meant to be fun. That doesn't mean break the rules and run wild. It just means to have fun. Enjoy your years here and be kind to everyone. There's no such thing as having too many friends and the ones you make here will last for a lifetime and get involved, whether it's at home or at school, and even in your community. Help your little brothers and sisters with their homework, or run for student council. Maybe you and some of your friends can volunteer to make peanut butter and jelly sandwiches at a local homeless shelter. I think you'll find you'll enjoy being what my husband calls a point of light and above all, live life with enthusiasm and gusto.

There's a wonderful author named Robert [Fulgrum] who during his years has spoken to many classrooms from kindergarten to college age and he once made this observation. He said, "ask a kindergarten class how many of you can draw," and all hands go up. "Well, what can you draw." "Anything." "How about a dog eating a fire truck in a jungle?" "Sure. How big do you want it?" "How many of you can sing?" All hands go up. "Of course, we can sing." "What can you sing?" "Anything." "What if you don't know the words?" "No problem. We'll make them up." "Let's sing." "Now?" "Why not?" "Do you like to act in plays?" "Yes." "Do you like to play musical instruments?" "Yes." "Do you write poetry?" "Yes." "Can you read, write and count?" "Yes. We're learning all stuff now." Their answer is yes over and over again. The children are confident in spirit, infinite in resources and eager to learn. Everything is still possible. Try these same questions on a college audience. A small percentage of the students will raise their hands when asked if they can draw, dance, sing, paint, act or play an instrument. Not infrequently those who do raise their hands will want to qualify their responses with limitations. "I only play piano." "I only draw horses." "I only dance to rock 'n roll and I only sing in the shower." When asked why these limitations, college students answer that they do not have talents or are not majoring in the subject or have not done any of these things since third grade. You can imagine the response to the same question if it were asked to an older audience. The answer is always none of the above. What went wrong between kindergarten and college? What happened to yes, of course, I can. That's exactly what I hope your motto will be for your whole life. Yes, of course, I can.

Taking part in this wonderful Leadership Initiative is a great way to start living up to that motto. By being here, you are saying yes, I can. I can make a difference. It's important for our young people to participate in our democratic process. We need your energy and your ideas and your youthful enthusiasm. Our great and wonderful country is at an important crossroads in its history--a beginning of a new century filled with hope and promise. This election is much more about your future than your parents. During the next presidency, many of you will go to college, decide on careers, maybe even get married and have children. A lot will happen that will decide your future, so pay attention, get involved and above all, never stop saying yes, I can.

Thank you very very much.