He did decide to run in the Republican primary elections and received his party's nomination in August 2000. After a campaign in which he outlined sweeping proposals to reform America's public schools, transform the nation's national defense, provide tax relief, modernize Social Security and Medicare, and encourage faith-based and community organizations to work with government to help Americans in need. In the November 2000 presidential election, Bush defeated the Democratic candidate, Al Gore, who had been vice president under Bill Clinton for eight years.

President Bush reaches out to greet supporters following a campaign rally at the Grand Traverse County Civic Center, in Traverse City, Michigan. (AP/WWP)

Speaking to the 2004 Republican Party Convention "This young century will be liberty's century. By promoting liberty abroad, we will build a safer world. By encouraging liberty at home, we will build a more hopeful America. Like generations before us, we have a calling from beyond the stars to stand for freedom. This is the everlasting dream of America - and tonight, in this place, that dream is renewed. Now we go forward - grateful for our freedom, faithful to our cause, and confident in the future of the greatest nation on Earth." September 2, 2004

Building on the priorities of his first term, President Bush looked to the future in his 2004 campaign for re-election by reminding Americans that the most fundamental goal of his presidency was strengthening homeland security and protecting the American people. Other major goals included growing America's economy; encouraging Americans to work together to improve their communities and touch the lives of their neighbors; improving health care for all Americans; ensuring that no American child is left behind by the education system; and preserving the beauty and quality of America's environment while encouraging responsible stewardship of the nation's vast natural resources.

Speaking in the midst of the 2004 campaign, President Bush recognized the nation's endurance through unsettled times and the enduring institutions that would guide it forward, saying, "In this time of change, there are some things [that] won't change: our belief in liberty and opportunity, and in the non-negotiable demands of human dignity; the individual values we try to live by, courage and compassion, reverence and integrity; the institutions that give us direction and purpose -- our families, our schools, our religious congregations." In the 2004 presidential election, Bush defeated Democratic candidate John Kerry, a U.S. Senator from Massachusetts.