Thomas Jefferson Day, 2006

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Title 3--
The President

Proclamation 8001 of April 13, 2006

Thomas Jefferson Day, 2006

By the President of the United States of America

A Proclamation

Today, we celebrate the birthday of Thomas Jefferson.
Few individuals have shaped the course of human events
as much as this proud son of Virginia. His achievements
are extraordinary: Governor of Virginia, author of the
Statute of Virginia for Religious Freedom, Secretary of
State, third President of the United States, and
founder of the University of Virginia. Thomas Jefferson
was also a scholar, author, farmer, inventor, and
architect. As President, Thomas Jefferson secured the
purchase of the Louisiana Territory from France, which
doubled the size of the United States and extended
opportunity and prosperity to many more Americans.

Thomas Jefferson was an eloquent and powerful champion
of liberty. He captured the American creed when he
wrote in a private letter: ``I have sworn upon the
altar of God eternal hostility against every form of
tyranny over the mind of man.'' And in one of the most
important public documents in history, Jefferson wrote
these words: ``We hold these truths to be self-evident,
that all men are created equal, that they are endowed
by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that
among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of
Happiness.'' The Declaration of Independence has become
a cornerstone for those who love freedom and justice.

More than eight decades later, Abraham Lincoln returned
to the words and meaning of the Declaration of
Independence. Lincoln knew that in the distant future
people would look upon it and ``take courage to renew
the battle which their fathers began--so that truth,
and justice, and mercy . . . might not be extinguished
from the land.'' A century after Lincoln, Martin Luther
King, Jr., called the Declaration of Independence a
``promissory note to which every American was to fall
heir.''

The Declaration of Independence has become a standard
by which other nations and peoples measure their
progress in the effort to advance human freedom. Even
nations that are not yet free pay homage to freedom,
and it is seen as a universal human good.

Our Nation is vastly different than it was during the
days of our founding--yet our commitment to America's
founding truths remains strong and steady. Our duty is
to continue to fulfill the promise of Thomas
Jefferson's words and vision of a better life for all
people. Meeting that responsibility is the best way we
can honor the memory of the man who was an architect of
the freest Nation on Earth.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, GEORGE W. BUSH, President of the
United States of America, by virtue of the authority
vested in me by the Constitution and laws of the United
States of America, do hereby proclaim April 13, 2006,
as Thomas Jefferson Day. I encourage all Americans to
join in celebrating Thomas Jefferson's achievements,
reflecting on his words, and learning more about this
extraordinary man's influence on American history and
ideals.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this
thirteenth day of April, in the year of our Lord two
thousand six, and of the Independence of the United
States of America the two hundred and thirtieth.

(Presidential Sig.)B