'Happy, Healthy and Home'

" Ivan Watson had. Breaking news now. Former president George W. Bush is speaking live on TV for the first time from southern Methodist university in Texas let's listen to -- to see so many friends here. I. I'm in I'm also pleased to be shared the stage with lives. She has been an awesome partner for the past 32 years. And seven days."

" Thanks season. -- best former First Lady in the nation's history."

" I better be a little careful."

" Some competition in the family."

" I'm glad to be when our daughter Jana. And we're looking forward I have been. Our daughter Barbara come come to Dallas tonight -- one of the joys. In my time in public service has been watching. Our girls grow into. Professional women. We're making a contribution. To our society. And Barbara has started day. And healthy Ngo. And -- teacher. If you may have heard she's. Also a correspondent. For The Today Show. Thus continuing. The bush family tradition of warmer relations with the press. I am grateful to demand that members of my administration I appreciate my dear friend Don Evans. For taking the lead in this important. Project. I want to thank the members of the presidential center board including brother Marvin. Appreciate the leadership of our outstanding president. Of the bush foundation. Ambassador mark -- I am thrilled. That this center. Is going to be a Southern Methodist University."

" From."

" Thank president Gerald turner. Asked him he's distinguished faculty and staff. And the student body. For sharing your campus. It is pretty exciting. -- 63 year old to be back on a college campus. I enjoyed pop and you know class from time to time. And I can think of that was my strategy when I was a student. One year from now we're gonna break ground on our new building -- SMU. So this is a fitting time to give you an update on what I have been doing. And to share our vision for the George W bush presidential center. First I'm pleased to report. There is life after the White House."

" are happy healthy and home. Right here in the promised land."

" had some interesting days after my retirement from politics. I actually got a job offer when I first came back. To be a greater Elliott's hardware. -- that -- are we may be retired. But I'm not tired. I've given speeches in eight states six countries and five Canadian provinces. I'm writing a book that gives readers my perspective I'm my toughest decisions which will hit the shelves next fall. Most importantly. Lauren are working to build the presidential -- your addition you. The center will provide a platform for us to continue our public service for the rest of our lives. Which hopes alone -- The senator will be housed an elegant building. Designed by a first class architect Robert Stern. It'll be landscaped. By an innovative genius. Michael -- mockingbird. Inside visitors will find three components. And archive and museum and a policy institute. First your travel preserving documents and records of my presidency. There will be about four million photos. Thousands of boxes of documents. And hundreds of millions of emails. Not one of mine. The archive will be eight priceless resource for historians. I know first hand because -- materials. To write my memoirs. I appreciate their hard work of the professionals. From the National Archives and Records Administration. Led by its superb director. Alan -- Second the museum we'll tell the story of my presidency through the most consequential decisions. We use technology and innovative design to make the exhibits interactive. Educational. And relevant to the future. Visitors will see the bull horn I use my first visit to ground zero. The Oval Office. They will ever be able to it romp in -- Texas rose garden. Finally the center will include a vibrant. Principal thought. And practical action. The bush institute. I ran for public office because I saw society drifting away from the values of the heart of the American dream. I pledge to govern based on principles and empower people. To improve their lives. I believe in free markets open the path to opportunity. That a successful society requires personal responsibility. That freedom is universal and transformer -- and that every human life has dignity and value. I thought of those principles throughout my time in public service. But they're not mine alone. They are timeless ideals that inspired our nation's founders. And they all got all the work. Of the bush institute. The institute's mission is to advance policy initiatives that expand freedom opportunity responsibility and compassion. The institute will be independent. The institute will be nonpartisan. Every project the institute undertakes will be designed to make an impact in the real world. Like any successful organization. The institute was set priorities. And measure results. We have selected for initial areas of focus. Education. Global health human freedom. And economic growth. Programming will start this spring. Under the leadership of the institute's first executive director. In innovative journalists scholar and ambassador. Jim Glassman. The institute's first area of focus is going to be education. It's fitting place to start. Education with my top priority as governor and top domestic priority as president. Obviously it's a top priority of Southern Methodist University is well. I believe every child can learn. Every school should be accountable for results. And measuring progress is the best way to ensure children master the basics. This was the philosophy behind the nonpartisan. No Child Left Behind act. Which helped lift student performance. And narrow the achievement gap across our country. Bush institute will build on this hopeful progress. In partnership and SMU's outstanding Annette Caldwell Simmons school of education and human development. We will bring together scholars and practitioners. To pursue the next steps in education reform. We'll develop research to help prepare more effective teachers. Advance the principle of accountability. And enable schools to make better use of the data collected in tools provided. By No Child Left Behind. To leave these efforts are pleased to introduce. The bush institution first to education finalist. Our director of education policy studies will be doctor Jim Guthrie. Jim is currently a professor of educational leadership and policy at Vanderbilt University. Where he helped -- education school. To the nation's top ranking. Over is distinguished career he's authored -- coauthored twenty books. And more than 200 scholarly articles. On January 1 who have become our first concurrent fellow with joint appointments as a senior fellow at the bush institute. Any full professors Southern Methodist University. I want to thank president term. Provo followed an education school dean David short for their partnership. In bringing this world class scholar to SMU. And -- thank Jim and his wife Olivia. For taking on this new venture. The first matter second education fellow nearly two decades ago. When I supported his campaign for the Dallas school board. What made that Suu Kyi decision interest in his sandy happen to have served as the sandy -- happened to have served as the Democratic Party chairman for Dallas County. We shared conviction that high standards and accountability are essential. To improving schools. Anyone as election. And he went on ably lead the board of trustees. And I am pleased that he was shares talents and expertise as the institute's director of education policy development and outreach. Jim and sandy will conduct an innovative project on education leadership. Many studies have concluded that the quality of schools is directly related to the quality of their leaders the principles in the ministry source. Yet there has been little research. On how. To effectively recruit prepare evaluate and reward these leaders. So bush institute will fill that gap. And we will start with a national conference on education leadership at SMU next march. If -- secondary focus will be global health. I believe. In the timeless call to whom much is given much is required. It should affect the conscience of our country. When a child goes hungry. Or dies needlessly from a mosquito bite. I also believe America as a strategic interest in alleviating suffering and healing disease in lifting societies out of despair. Hopeful healthy productive societies are less likely. To be sources of violence and instability. And more likely to be partners in trade and prosperity and peace. This is a conviction behind the emergency plan for aids relief. The malaria initiative. In the millennium challenge account. These programs represented a new approach to development. Based on partnership. Not paternalism. America provides for lending its support and in return. Partner nations develop their own strategy. And held accountable for results. These principles of accountability and country ownership will -- the bush institute's global health initiative. Which was searched for new effective ways to deliver health services to people in desperate need. Especially on the continent of Africa. Our first global health fell will be won the world form Morse experts from development disease. Ambassador -- eyeball. Markets -- humble decent affected man. As the coordinator of the emergency plan for aids relief. He let our effort to expand the number of patients receiving anti retroviral treatment from 50002003. To over two million. In 2008. He's an African today. Is beginning work on a project focused on mothers and newborn children. This is an area where research is urgently needed. Infant and maternal mortality rates remain unacceptably high in the developing world. It's part of this fellowship with the bush institute. Mark will develop a strategy to provide timely effective and comprehensive health services to new mothers and babies. And here's how we define his goal. As saving as many lives as quickly as possible. And the bush institute will support that goal. The institute's third -- focus will be human freedom. As -- said my second inaugural address. Expanding the reach of freedom. Is the urgent requirement of our nation's security. And the calling of our time. History shows that free societies are peaceful societies. Governments to respect the rights of their people or more likely to respect the rights of their neighbors. Young people with a -- future. One not search for meaning and extremism. We've seen a transformer if -- freedom in our lifetime. Especially your baby boomer. In Japan transformed from a brutal enemy to a democratic and power peaceful ally. In the South Korea that rose from the rubble of war into a dynamic democracy. And twenty years ago this week in Berlin where people denied liberty for decades. Defied their precious. And toward and the law. There are many reasons for America's victory in the Cold War. Including the resolute vision of our fortieth president. And the steady hand over 41 president. One crucial factor was America's support for dissidents. The time critics dismissed this policy is simplistic and naive. Then came the story from prisoners in the -- lives. Who tapped out the words of president Reagan's speeches. And learned that America saw their pressures as they did. Destined for defeat. Today the forces of Freedom -- face new challenges. And once again people on the front lines -- look into the United States. And labor camps in North Korea. Political prisoners in Cuba and Burma to university halls and Iran coffee houses and Venezuela and other places. Dissidents and reformers. Looking for support. And strength. And America stands for liberty they take heart. We do not the dictator's tighten their grip. Throughout my presidency garner met with democratic activists defenders of religious freedom and families of political prisoners. The bush institute will continue this cause. By supporting advocates of freedom around the globe. The first step we will assemble freedom collection. A repository of video history -- memoirs and documents from democratic activists. -- freedom collection will be on line. For the world legacy. Among the leaders who've agreed to participate airport former president -- a couple of the Czech Republic. President Ellen Johnson surely from Liberia. Most of -- regard the founder of Iran's. Revolutionary guard. Who became an advocate. For democratic change. Com -- wamp. Who spent ten years in a North Korean good luck. And authored the book aquariums of Pyongyang. With the freedom collection of bush institute will send a message. The dissidents and underground preachers and political prisoners around the world we hear your voice. And as you stand for your freedom. Free people will stand with you. I'm also pleased to announce that bush institute's first fellow -- human freedom. -- Morales -- For decades Josh Earnest fellow Colombian suffered under the -- A brutal narco terrorist network. Two young action heroes are used FaceBook. To launch a movement called one million voices against the far. A month later. More than twelve million people in forty countries. Turned out for rallies to proclaim no must park. Thanks to enterprising citizens like those -- in the steady strong leadership of Colombian president president Alvaro leave me. The -- is in retreat in the Colombian people are better off. As part of this fellowship. A scar where organized a conference that brings together cyber dissidents from around the world to share lessons on using the Internet. To promote democratic change. The issues fourth period focus will be economic growth. I believe the role of government -- to create wealth. But to create the conditions that allow entrepreneurs and innovators to thrive. I believe in the power free enterprise. Which made the decision to -- last fall when most difficult of my presidency. When I guess my free market instincts. And approve a temporary government intervention to unfreeze the credit markets. So that we can avoiding. Major global depression. As to a recovers we're gonna face it temptation. To replace -- risk and reward model for the private sector. With a blunt -- of government spending and control. History shows that the greater threat to prosperity is not too little government involvement. -- too much. The bush institute will devote itself. Promoting economic growth at home and abroad. Former first projects would -- to be it will be to convene a task force of leading economists. To promote free trade. Trade. Has been one of the world's most powerful engines for economic growth. And while most effective ways to lift people out of poverty. Get a sixty year movement toward trade liberalization is under threat from creeping protectionism and isolationism. The bush institute task force will analyze the benefits of trade. That trade is delivered in the past. And the opportunities it can create for American workers. And developing nations in the future. -- the key ingredient to economic growth as a clean affordable reliable energy supply. Thanks to recent advances in drilling technology America's natural gas reserves have expanded by about 35%. Thus far. American has enough natural gas to last as an estimated nine years. This is a hugely important development. Natural gas is a clean burning fuel. They can generate electricity power machinery and run vehicles. And all of it will be domestically produced. Next April the bush -- to collaborate with the Maguire energy institute of SMU's. Cox business school. To host a conference titled natural gas nation. Experts from around the country. Will explore the economic. Environmental and national security and its consequences. Of the boom in natural gas. The -- to help educate Americans. On these dramatic new discoveries. And point the way toward stronger cleaner economic growth for America and the world. Within all -- focus education global health human freedom and economic growth. The bush addition to prioritize involvement from two important groups. Social entrepreneurs and women. Just as business judgment -- pioneer new ideas to create jobs. Social entrepreneurs find innovative ways to turn around lives. -- institute will promote social entrepreneurship. Conducting research on best practices. In shining the spotlight -- successful agents of change. Including faith based organizations. Next year the institute will host a conference of social entrepreneurship. And we were present an award honoring an organization that is achieved outstanding results. In areas such as mentoring of children of prisoners. Just seeing addicts in recovery. Combating sex trafficking. Are not believe that women. Are powerful catalysts for social change. So the bush institute will include an ongoing women's initiative. To encourage and empower women in many different fields. Saving the lives of new mothers and Africa. Just supporting women entrepreneurs here in America and around the world. To encouraging women reformers. I strongly believe. Women will lead to democracy movement in the Middle East. And they will have an ally in the bush institute. I'm excited about our women's initiative. In part because we have a dynamic leader person deleted. Ladies and gentlemen. Laura Bush."

" Thanks so --"

" George and I are very enthusiastic about every. Part of the institute that I'm especially excited about the women's and -- The women's initially will focus on advancing social and economic opportunities for women and girls around the world. And it will be integrated into every part of the institute's."

" Well there you go president former president George W. Bush and his wife Laura speaking of bush institute which will open of course. At SMU and they've been working very hard on its as the former president. He laid out the challenges and what they're hoping to accomplish with the bush institute in. I'm told us a little bit about life after the White House and how great it was to be back home. In the promised land and you know he means that while the bushes love Texas. I was never any secret and get back to the ranch in Crawford was dream come true for them. He looked bear hand like that it's been good time in Texas --"