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NORTH CHARLESTON -- Under a warm sun and clear blue autumn skies, thousands of Air Force personnel in combat fatigues cheered President Bush on Saturday as he told them that if the nation doesn't win the war on terror, the fight will return to American soil.
"We will do the hard work now to make sure our children grow up in freedom and peace," the president said during a 12-minute speech at Charleston Air Force Base.
Air Force personnel, a scattering of sailors in crisp white uniforms and young mothers with small children in their arms waited about two hours for Bush to arrive. Base officials estimated the crowd at 5,000.
The president arrived in a small jet and walked to a podium accompanied by Gov. Mark Sanford and U.S. Rep. Henry Brown. The podium was set up between a group of five C-17's, all with the blue and white Palmetto State flag and a gold tail stripe reading "Charleston."
Hundreds of cell phone cameras and digital cameras were lifted aloft in the crowd as the president, wearing a jacket and blue shirt but no tie, began to speak.
He said C-17s from Charleston have flown more than 14,000 military missions since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. Planes from the base, as well, ferried humanitarian aide to tsunami victims in Indonesia and those left homeless by Hurricane Katrina.
"You have shown the great compassion of the American people and I thank you for your service," the president said.
"I am proud to be with people who see the threats" of terrorism, he added, saying the nation will stay the course in the war on terror.
"If the United States were to leave before the job is done, the enemy will follow us here," he warned.
"I fully agree," said Air Force Sr. Master Sgt. Tony Levine after the president spoke. "It makes perfect sense to me. Fight them on their territory. Why let them come over here?"
The president spoke for about 12 minutes and greeted the crowd for about 15 minutes more before flying off in a helicopter to Kiawah Island and a closed fundraiser for the Republican National Committee.
"I was impressed, not by what he said but by the reaction of the crowd," Brown said. "It was pleasing to me to hear the applause when he said we must stay the course."
"The thing that stands out is he is clearly a man of resolution who said 'This is what I believe,' " Sanford said. "I admire anybody in politics who stands up for what they believe and not judge direction by the direction of current or momentary public opinion."
Bush's trip came a day after a similar trip by Vice President Dick Cheney, who arrived at the base on Friday evening then traveled by motorcade through a sporadic rain to Kiawah and the RNC meeting at The Sanctuary, a plush oceanfront resort. Cheney did not speak publicly during the stop.
As the crowd waited, a base rock combo, The Blue Aces, played everything from "I'm Proud to be an American" to "Free Bird."
The troops seemed pleased that their commander in chief was coming.
"I'm really excited," said Staff Sgt. Shuja Amhed of the 437th Aerial Port Squadron who has served two tours in the Middle East already and expects to return next year.
"He's going to tell us what a great job we're doing," agreed Staff Sgt. Candice Kundle.
Bush's visit to one of the reddest of the red states did not include any campaigning for candidates.
"There is no sign of weakness in South Carolina," said Katon Dawson, chairman of the South Carolina Republican Party, which held its own fundraiser in Mount Pleasant earlier Saturday with White House strategist Karl Rove.
"We've got very positive numbers going into the election cycle," Dawson said.
Bush campaigned in Indiana earlier in the day.
Associated Press writer Jim Davenport in Columbia contributed to this report.