QUOTE OF THE DAY
President Bush Welcomes Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II to the White House
South Lawn
PRESIDENT BUSH: Good morning. Laura and I are honored to welcome back to the White House Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, and His Royal Highness Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh. (Applause.)
The United Kingdom has written many of the greatest chapters in the history of human freedom. Nearly 800 years ago, the Magna Carta placed the authority of the government under the rule of law. Eighty years later, the first representative assembly of the English people met to debate public policies. Over the centuries, parliaments in Britain established principles that guide all modern democracies. And thinkers from Britain, like Locke and Smith and Burke showed the world that freedom was the natural right of every man, woman and child on Earth
As liberty expanded in the British Isles, British explorers helped spread liberty to many lands, including our own. In May of 1607, a group of pioneers arrived on the shores of the James River, and founded the first permanent English settlement in North America. The settlers at Jamestown planted the seeds of freedom and democracy on American soil. And from those seeds sprung a nation that will always be proud to trace its roots back to our friends across the Atlantic.
Our two nations hold fundamental values in common. We honor our traditions and our shared history. We recognize that the strongest societies respect the rights and dignity of the individual. We understand and accept the burdens of global leadership. And we have built our special relationship on the surest foundations -- our deep and abiding love of liberty.
Today our two nations are defending liberty against tyranny and terror. We're resisting those who murder the innocent to advance a hateful ideology, whether they kill in New York or London, or Kabul or Baghdad.
American and British forces are staying on the offense against the extremists and terrorists. We're supporting young democracies. Our work has been hard. The fruits of our work have been difficult for many to see. Yet our work remains the surest path to peace, and it reflects the values cherished by Americans and by Britons, and by the vast majority of people across the broader Middle East.
Your Majesty, I appreciate your leadership during these times of danger and decision. You've spoken out against extremism and terror. You've encouraged religious tolerance and reconciliation. You've honored those returning from battle, and comforted the families of the fallen.
PHOTOS OF THE DAY
President George W. Bush and Britain's Queen Elizabeth II smile together during remarks at an arrival ceremony on the South Lawn of the White House in honor of the Queen's visit to Washington May 7, 2007
President Bush smiles at Queen Elizabeth II, right, during a light moment as they take part in arrival ceremony on the South Lawn at the White House in Washington, Monday, May 7, 2007. The audience laughed aloud at a verbal slip by the president when he said the queen had dined with 10 U.S. presidents and had helped the United States "celebrate its bicentennial in 17 ... ." The President caught himself and corrected the date to 1976.