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Outdoor Advertising Association of America, Inc., Atlanta, GA, November 3, 1969
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Outdoor Advertising Association of America, Inc., Atlanta, GA, November 3, 1969
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Gerald R. Ford Congressional Papers
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The original documents are located in Box D28, folder "Outdoor Advertising Association of
America, Inc., Atlanta, GA, November 3, 1969" of the Ford Congressional Papers: Press
Secretary and Speech File at the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library.
Copyright Notice
The copyright law of the United States (Title 17, United States Code) governs the making of
photocopies or other reproductions of copyrighted material. The Council donated to the United
States of America his copyrights in all of his unpublished writings in National Archives collections.
Works prepared by U.S. Government employees as part of their official duties are in the public
domain. The copyrights to materials written by other individuals or organizations are presumed to
remain with them. If you think any of the information displayed in the PDF is subject to a valid
copyright claim, please contact the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library.
Digitized from Box D28 of the Ford Congressional Papers: Press Secretary and Speech File at the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library
OUTDOOR ADVERTISING ASSOC. OF AMERICA, INC.
MONDAY MORNING, NOV. 3, 1969, ATLANTA, GA,
IF I WERE TO GIVE MY REMARKS A TITLE
IT WOULD BE: "THE AGE OF REFORM: NEW
DIRECTIONS FOR THE SEVENTIES." WE ARE
DEFINITELY ENTERING UPON AN AGE OF REFORM,
AND WE ARE TRAVELING IN NEW DIRECTIONS AS
WE MAKE NEW ATTACKS ON PROBLEMS THAT HAVE
PLAGUED US FOR YEARS.
TO KNOW WHAT THE NIXON ADMINISTRATION
IS DOING AND WHY, WE MUST FIRST TAKE A LOOK
AT ITS LEGACY -- THE SITUATION IT INHERITED
UPON TAKING OFFICE. I WOULD LIKE TO GIVE
YOU A FACTUAL RUNDOWN ON THAT SITUATION
WITHOUT PARTISAN BIAS OF ANY KIND.
RICHARD NIXON ASSUMED THE LEADERSHIP
OF A COUNTRY DEEPLY ENMESHED IN A JUNGLE
WAR HALFWAY AROUND THE WORLD, A COUNTRY
WHICH HAD SUFFERED ESCALATING INFLATION FOR
-2-
NEARLY FOUR YEARS, A COUNTRY IN WHICH THE
CRIME RATE HAD CLIMBED NEARLY 10 TIMES AS FAST
AS THE POPULATION, A COUNTRY IN WHICH THE
PROBLEMS OF THE CITIES THREATENED TO TURN
URBAN CRISIS INTO FLAMING REVOLUTION, A
COUNTRY IN WHICH THE HAVE-NOTS CONTINUED
TO BE THE HAVE-NOTS AND THE WELFARE SYSTEM
WAS LIKE A CONSTANTLY FESTERING SORE, A
COUNTRY IN WHICH LOCAL, STATE AND FEDERAL
TAXES HAD DRIVEN TAXPAYERS TO THE RIM OF
REVOLT ALTHOUGH THE REVENUE HAD BEEN
INADEQUATE TO SOLVE THE HORRENDOUS PROBLEMS
RUSHING IN ON US FROM ALL SIDES.
ANY NEW ADMINISTRATION COMING INTO
OFFICE FIRST TAKES STOCK AND THEN CHARTS
A NEW COURSE.
WITH THE SITUATION AS I HAVE
DESCRIBED IT -- AND I THINK THE RUNDOWN WAS
TRUTHFUL AND ACCURATE -- IT WAS INEVITABLE
THAT THE NIXON ADMINISTRATION SHOULD BECOME
-3-
A REFORM ADMINISTRATION AND SHOULD MOVE IN
TOTALLY NEW DIRECTIONS.
WHAT HAS HAPPENED?
THE NEW ADMINISTRATION HAS MOVED
TOWARD PEACE IN VIETNAM AND ELSEWHERE. IN
VIETNAM THE PROBLEM IS TO MAKE THE ENEMY
WANT TO NEGOTIATE A POLITICAL SETTLEMENT.
I PRAY THAT THE PRESIDENT'S CRITICS WILL
GIVE HIM TIME TO SUCCEED WITH HIS POLICY
VIETNAMIZATION
OF CONTINUED PRESSURE AND DISENGAGEMENT.
AS THE PRESIDENT HAS SAID, ONLY THE RIGHT
OF THE SOUTH VIETNAMESE TO CHOOSE THEIR OWN
DESTINY IS NON-NEGOTIABLE.
IN THE GENERAL FIELD OF FOREIGN
POLICY, PRESIDENT NIXON HAS SEIZED THE
INITIATIVE IN DRAMATIC MOVES AIMED AT
PROMOTING WORLD PEACE. WITH HIS
ROUND-THE-WORLD TRIP, THE PRESIDENT LAID
THE DIPLOMATIC GROUNDWORK FOR POSSIBLE NEW
3REAKTHROUGHS IN EAST-WEST RELATIONS. BY
-4-
BECOMING THE FIRST AMERICAN PRESIDENT TO
VISIT A COMMUNIST CAPITAL, MR. NIXON OPENED
NEW CHANNELS OF COMMUNICATION BETWEEN EAST
AND WEST.
IT WAS AN ACT OF INITIATIVE WHEN
SECRETARY OF STATE WILLIAM P. ROGERS
DECLARED HIS INTENTION TO SEEK IMPROVED
RELATIONS WITH COMMUNIST CHINA. IT WAS ALSO
AN ASTUTE MOVE WHEN HE DECLARED THAT THE
UNITED STATES WANTS FRIENDLY RELATIONS WITH
BOTH COMMUNIST CHINA AND THE SOVIET UNION
AND CAUTIONED THEM TO AVOID WAR WITH EACH
OTHER.
IN A LITTLE NOTED TURN OF EVENTS,
HUNGARY AND THE UNITED STATES HAVE ANNOUNCED
FOUR MODEST STEPS TOWARD BETTER RELATIONS.
WE ARE CLEARLY ENTERING INTO THE ERA
OF NEGOTIATION WHICH PRESIDENT NIXON
PROMISED US WHEN HE TOOK OFFICE LAST JAN. 20---
AN ERA OF NEGOTIATION INSTEAD OF
-5-
CONFRONTATION, AN ERA WHEN PEACE BECOMES
MORE THAN JUST A WORD.
THE PRESIDENT HAS LAID THE FOUNDATION
OF A NEW FOREIGN POLICY -- INNOVATIVE,
FLEXIBLE, ADAPTABLE AND CLOSELY ATTUNED TO
THE NATIONALISTIC AND REGIONAL INTERESTS OF
FREE WORLD AND COMMUNIST NATIONS.
THE OVERWHELMINGLY CORDIAL RECEPTION
IN COMMUNIST ROMANIA HAD DEEP SIGNIFICANCE.
THE ROMANIANS RECOGNIZED
THAT PRESIDENT NIXON
NO LONGER SEES THE COMMUNIST WORLD AS A
MONOLITHIC ENEMY ALLIANCE BUT AS A GROUP OF
NATIONS WHOSE COMMON IDEOLOGY IS
TRANSCENDED BY POWERFUL NATIONALISTIC
ASPIRATIONS. PRESIDENT NIXON IS KEENLY
AWARE THAT UNITED STATES POLICY SHOULD BE
ADAPTED TO THOSE NATIONALISTIC INTERESTS.
THIS NEW CONCEPT OF U.S. FOREIGN POLICY
ALSO IS REFLECTED IN THE NEW NIXON DOCTRINE
FOR ASIA -- THE "DO-IT-YOURSELF POLICY"
-6-
WHICH PRESIDENT NIXON HAS LAID DOWN FOR THE
NATIONS OF SOUTHEAST ASIA, THE POLICY WHICH
DECLARES TO THE WORLD THAT THERE WILL BE
NO MORE VIETNAMS.
TO PUT IT BLUNTLY, THE UNITED STATES
WILL PLAY THE RUSSIAN GAME IN SOUTHEAST
ASIA BUT, HOPEFULLY, WILL PLAY IT BETTER.
WE WILL PROVIDE ARMS AND ECONOMIC ASSISTANCE
TO NON-COMMUNIST NATIONS IN SOUTHEAST ASIA
BUT WE WILL NOT SEND AMERICAN GROUND TROOPS
TO FIGHT OTHER COUNTRIES' BATTLES THERE.
WE ARE A PACIFIC POWER, NOT AN ASIAN POWER.
AN ASIAN PRESENCE, YES. AN ASIAN POWER, NO.
WHILE GRADUALLY DISENGAGING OURSELVES
MILITARILY FROM SOUTHEAST ASIA, WE ARE MOVING
TOWARD NEGOTIATIONS WITH THE SOVIET UNION
ON ARMS LIMITATION AND STABILIZATION OF THE
SITUATION IN EUROPE.
BY ANNOUNCING IN BUCHAREST THAT "THE
UNITED STATES BELIEVES THE RIGHTS OF ALL
-7-
NATIONS ARE EQUAL," PRESIDENT NIXON VOICED
A VIEW WITH TREMENDOUS APPEAL FOR MINOR
COMMUNIST NATIONS AS WELL AS FREE WORLD
COUNTRIES. HE ALSO MADE CLEAR TO THE WORLD
THE SHARP CONTRAST BETWEEN AMERICA'S VIEWS
AND THOSE OF SOVIET LEADERS WHO CRUSHED
CZECHOSLOVAKIA IN THE NAME OF THE RUSSIAN
DOCTRINE WHICH ALLOWS THE SOCIALIST STATES
VERY LIMITED SOVEREIGNTY.
UNDER PRESIDENT NIXON, WE HAVE
SEIZED THE INITIATIVE IN FOREIGN AFFAIRS
EVEN IN THE FACE OF COMMUNIST AGGRESSION.
WE HAVE PROCLAIMED AND PROMOTED DOCTRINES
OF INTERNATIONAL LAW AND JUSTICE WHICH HAVE
GIVEN THE UNITED STATES A NEW AND LOFTY
STANDING IN THE COURT OF WORLD OPINION.
DOMESTICALLY, THE PRESIDENT HAS
SUCCEEDED IN GETTING PEOPLE TO LOWER THEIR
VOICES AND THEIR ARMS, TOO. WE HAVE
ENTERED INTO A PERIOD OF HEALING AND RENEWAL.
-8-
AGAIN IN QUEST OF DOMESTIC
TRANQUILLITY, THE NIXON ADMINISTRATION HAS
LAUNCHED A STRONG CRACKDOWN AGAINST
ORGANIZED CRIME. THE PRESIDENT HAS SENT
CONGRESS A DETAILED PROGRAM FOR DEALING
WITH ORGANIZED CRIME AND THE NEED FOR
REORGANIZATION OF THE COURTS.
THE NIXON ADMINISTRATION HAS MADE
THE FIGHT AGAINST CRIME ONE OF ITS CENTRAL
CONCERNS. WHILE OTHER DEPARTMENTAL BUDGETS
HAVE BEEN CUT IN A HOLD-DOWN ON FEDERAL
SPENDING, THE JUSTICE DEPARTMENT BUDGET HAS
BEEN INCREASED AND THE LEVEL OF ENFORCEMENT
ACTIVITY AND NARCOTICS CONTROL HAS BEEN
STEPPED UP.
THE NIXON ADMINISTRATION RECOGNIZES,
AS DO ALL OF YOU, THAT THE FIRST CIVIL RIGHT
OF EVERY AMERICAN -- BLACK OR WHITE -- IS
THE RIGHT TO PROTECTION FROM CRIME AND
VIOLENCE.
-9-
IT IS SAID THAT THERE CAN BE NO
PROGRESS WITHOUT ORDER. I SUBSCRIBE TO THAT.
I WOULD ADD THAT THERE CANNOT LONG BE ORDER
WITHOUT PROGRESS. AND I BELIEVE THE NIXON
ADMINISTRATION IS PROMOTING THE KIND OF
ORDER AND THE KIND OF PROGRESS WHICH WILL
OPERATE TOGETHER TO MOVE THIS COUNTRY
FORWARD
PRESIDENT NIXON HAS ADOPTED A
RESPONSIBLE COMMON-SENSE APPROACH TQ OUR
URBAN PROBLEMS. HIS ANSWER IS JOBS AND JOB
TRAINING. THE ACCENT IS ON THE SOLID
AMERICAN ETHIC OF WORKING FOR A LIVING.
THE PRESIDENT'S APPROACH IS BASED ON THE
IDEA THAT A MAN NEVER STANDS SO TALL AS
WHEN HE STANDS ON HIS OWN TWO FEET.
WORKFARE INSTEAD OF WELFARE. THAT IS THE
AMERICAN WAY. THAT IS DICK NIXON'S WAY.
A HAND UP INSTEAD OF A HANDOUT, THAT'S
THE ONLY WAY TO BRIDGE THE GAP BETWEEN THE
-10-
HAVES AND THE HAVE-NOTS IN AMERICA.
PRESIDENT NIXON HAS MANAGED TO
PROMOTE ORDER IN THIS COUNTRY BECAUSE HE HAS
BROUGHT ORDER TO THE PRESIDENCY. THE DAYS
OF GOVERNMENT BY CRISIS HAVE GIVEN WAY TO
CRISIS PREVENTION. THE SCATTER-GUN APPROACH
IS YIELDING TO AN ASSEMBLING OF NEW
PRIORITIES.
ALSO ON THE DOMESTIC SCENE, WE ARE
GETTING
SLOWLY BUT SURELY
HOLD OF
INFLATION.
DESPITE THE ACTIONS OF THOSE WHO
WOULD HAVE US CAST ASIDE THE SURTAX AND
CAST SPENDING CAUTION TO THE WINDS, THE
RESPONSIBLE FORCES IN THE CONGRESS -- BOTH
DEMOCRATS AND REPUBLICANS -- ARE DETERMINED
TO RETAIN THE SURTAX AT 5 PER CENT FOR SIX
MONTHS BEYOND NEXT JAN. 1 AND TO BUILD A
STRONG SURPLUS INTO THE FEDERAL BUDGET.
MUCH TO ITS CREDIT, THE NIXON
-11-
ADMINISTRATION HAS REFUSED TO KNUCKLE UNDER
TO THOSE WHO HAVE TRIED TO PLAY POLITICS
WITH THE PEOPLE'S POCKETBOOK.
BESIDES FIGHTING INFLATION WITH
APPROPRIATE FISCAL AND MONETARY MEASURES,
PRESIDENT NIXON IN APRIL 1969 RECOGNIZED
THE URGENT NEED FOR TAX REFORM AND THEREFORE
PROPOSED 16 MAJOR CHANGES IN OUR INCOME TAX
LAWS. THE HOUSE WAYS AND MEANS COMMITTEE
BUILT ON THAT FOUNDATION AND CAME UP WITH
THE MOST SWEEPING TAX REFORM AND TAX RELIEF
BILL IN THE 56 YEARS SINCE THE FEDERAL
INCOME TAX FIRST WAS ADOPTED.
I STRONGLY SUPPORTED THE HOUSE TAX
REFORM BILL. IT WILL UNDERGO SOME CHANGES
IN THE SENATE, BUT I BELIEVE IT WILL EMERGE
IN BASICALLY THE SAME FORM THAT IT PASSED
THE HOUSE. FINAL PASSAGE BY BOTH HOUSES
PROBABLY WILL NOT COME UNTIL PERHAPS
DECEMBER -- HOPEFULLY BY JANUARY 1.
-12-
I SPOKE AT THE OUTSET ABOUT REFORM.
WE ARE LIVING IN AN AGE THAT DEMANDS
REFORMS. I SAY THAT THE NIXON ADMINISTRATION
WILL BE A REFORM ADMINISTRATION. THE
COURSE HAS BEEN CHARTED, AND WE WILL HUE TO
IT. THE WINDS OF CHANGE ARE BLOWING. THEY
CANNOT BE BOTTLED UP.
PRESIDENT NIXON HAS PROPOSED A
SWEEPING ARRAY OF REFORMS WHICH I BELIEVE
THE AMERICAN PEOPLE HAVE LONG WANTED --
WELFARE REFORM WHICH WILL TURN ALL
ABLE-BODIED AMERICANS FROM WELFARE TO
WORKFARE; DRAFT REFORM WHICH WILL MAKE THE
SELECTIVE SERVICE SYSTEM AS FAIR AS
POSSIBLE UNTIL WE CAN ESTABLISH A VOLUNTEER
ARMY; POSTAL REFORM WHICH WILL CREATE A
GOVERNMENT-OWNED SELF-SUPPORTING POSTAL
CORPORATION IN PLACE OF THE PRESENT
IMPOSSIBLE SYSTEM; POVERTY PROGRAM REFORM
WHICH KEEPS THE OFFICE OF ECONOMIC
-13-
OPPORTUNITY AS AN INNOVATIVE AGENCY BUT
SPINS OFF SUCCESSFUL ANTI-POVERTY PROGRAMS
TO OLD-LINE GOVERNMENT DEPARTMENTS;
MANPOWER TRAINING REFORM WHICH CONSOLIDATES
FEDERAL MANPOWER TRAINING PROGRAMS; TAX
REFORM WHICH TAKES MILLIONS OF POOR CITIZENS
OFF THE TAXROLLS, REDUCES TAXES FOR MILLIONS
OF OTHER LOW-INCOME AMERICANS AND PREVENTS
THE MOST WEALTHY IN OUR SOCIETY FROM
ESCAPING TAXATION; A NEW FEDERALISM WHICH
PERCENTAGE
PROVIDES A
SLICE OF FEDERAL
INCOME TAX REVENUE FOR THE CITIES AND STATES
AND GIVES THEM NEW VIGOR AS SOLVERS OF
THE PROBLEMS TO WHICH THEY ARE CLOSEST.
THIS IS INDEED THE AGE OF REFORM,
AND WE WILL MOVE AHEAD QUICKLY WITH THESE
NEW APPROACHES TO PRESSING PROBLEMS IF THE
CONGRESS WILL WORK HAND IN HAND WITH THE
NEW NATIONAL ADMINISTRATION.
NOW LET US LOOK AT THE ECONOMY.
-14-
I FORMLY BELIEVE THAT THE RESTRAINTS
PRESENTLY BEING EMPLOYED WILL STRENGTHEN
OUR ECONOMY SO THAT IT WILL RIDE HIGHER BUT
IN BETTER BALANCE IN THE SEVENTIES. AT THIS
MOMENT I SEE AMERICA STANDING ON THE EDGE OF
MANY YEARS OF DYNAMIC AND UNPARALLELED
ECONOMIC GROWTH.
DESPITE ALL THE GLOOMY TALK, 1969
WILL BE THE BEST YEAR YET FOR OUR ECONOMY
DON'T LET STOCK MARKET MISERIES OBSCURE THE
BASIC FACT THAT THE AMERICAN PRIVATE
ENTERPRISE SYSTEM HAS GREAT BOUNCE IN IT AND
IS HEADED FOR CONTINUING GROWTH.
WE MUST FIGHT INFLATION, BUT THE
END OF THE BUSINESS UPSWING IS NOT IN
SIGHT -- AND THIS IS NOT A CONTRADICTION.
THE BATTLE AGAINST INFLATION IS SIMPLY A
CORRECTIVE MANEUVER -- AN ADJUSTMENT IN THE
ATTITUDE OF OUR ECONOMIC VEHICLE SO THAT
IT WILL TRAVEL A TRUER COURSE.
-15-
LET US NOT LOOK ONLY TO THE NATIONAL
ADMINISTRATION FOR CORRECTIVE MANEUVERS,
HOWEVER. WE ALL HAVE A RESPONSIBILITY IN
THE BATTLE TO PUT THE AFFAIRS OF OUR NATION
IN ORDER.
THE ADMINISTRATION IS MOVING TO UNIFY
THE NATION BY CORRECTING PAST FAILURES BUT
WE -- ALL OF US -- MUST ABANDON THE
ATTITUDE THAT "ALL IS FINE SO LONG AS I
GET MINE " WE MUST RATHER -- INDIVIDUALLY
AND COLLECTIVELY -- SEEK THE GREATEST GOOD
FOR THE GREATEST NUMBER.
THE GREAT ENGLISH POET JOHN DONNE
ONCE DECLARED THAT "NO MAN IS AN ISLAND
UNTO HIMSELF."
GEORGE BERNARD SHAW PUT IT THIS
WAY: "WE ARE ALL DEPENDENT ON ONE ANOTHER,
EVERY SOUL OF US ON EARTH."
THE RESPONSIBILITY FOR GUIDING THE
FUTURE OF AMERICA RESTS NOT ONLY WITH THE
-16-
CONGRESS, NOT ONLY WITH GOVERNMENTAL
LEADERS, NOT ONLY WITH THE PRESIDENT. THAT
RESPONSIBILITY DEVOLVES UPON ALL OF US. EACH
OF OUR LIVES IMPINGES ON THE LIVES OF OTHERS.
TO THE EXTENT THAT WE ALL LIVE THE GOOD LIFE,
THE UNSELFISH LIFE, THE LIVES OF ALL OTHERS
ARE ENRICHED.
WE ALL BELIEVE IN THE AMERICAN DREAM.
LET US LIVE SO THAT ALL MAY SHARE IN IT.
-- END --
Distribution 20 capies to
atlanta 10/29/64
office Copy
AN ADDRESS BY REP. GERALD R. FORD, R-MICH.
BEFORE THE OUTDOOR ADVERTISING ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA, INC.
MONDAY MORNING, NOVEMBER 3, 1969
AT ATLANTA, GEORGIA
FOR RELEASE ON DELIVERY EXPECTED AT 11 A.M.
If I were to give my remarks a title it would be: "The Age of Reform: New
Directions for the Seventies." We are definitely entering upon an age of reform,
and we are traveling in new directions as we make new attacks on problems that
have plagued us for years.
To know what the Nixon Administration is doing and why, we must first take
a look at its legacy the situation it inherited upon taking office. I would like
to give you a factual rundown on that situation without partisan bias of any kind.
Richard Nixon assumed the leadership of a country deeply enmeshed in a
jungle war halfway around the world, a country which had suffered escalating infla-
tion for nearly four years, a country in which the crime rate had climbed nearly
10 times as fast as the population, a country in which the problems of the cities
threatened to turn urban crisis into flaming revolution, a country in which the
Have-Nots continued to be the Have-Nots and the welfare system was like a constantly
festering sore, a country in which local, state and federal taxes had driven
taxpayers to the rim of revolt although the revenue had been inadequate to solve
the horrendous problems rushing in on us from all sides.
Any new administration coming into office first takes stock and then charts
a new course.
With the situation as I have described it -- and I think the rundown was
truthful and accurate it was inevitable that the Nixon Administration should
become a reform administration and should move in totally New Directions.
What has happened?
The new administration has moved toward peace in Vietnam and elsewhere. In
Vietnam the problem is to make the enemy want to negotiate a political settlement.
I pray that the President's critics will give him time to succeed with his policy
of Vietnamization of the war. As the President has said, only the right of the
South Vietnamese to choose their own destiny is non-negotiable.
In the general field of foreign policy, President Nixon has seized the
initiative in dramatic moves aimed at promoting world peace. With his
round-the-world trip, the President laid the diplomatic groundwork for possible
LIBRARY
(more)
-2-
new breakthroughs in East-West relations. By becoming the first American President
to visit a Communist capital, Mr. Nixon opened new channels of communication
between East and West.
It was an act of initiative when Secretary of State William P. Rogers
declared his intention to seek improved relations with Communist China. It was
also an astute move when he declared that the United States wants friendly
relations with both Communist China and the Soviet Union and cautioned them to
avoid war with each other.
In a little noted turn of events, Hungary and the United States have
announced four modest steps toward better relations.
We are clearly entering into the era of negotiation which President Nixon
promised us when he took office last Jan. 20 -- an era of negotiation instead of
confrontation, an era when peace becomes more than just a word.
The President has laid the foundation of a new foreign policy -- innovative,
flexible, adaptable and closely attuned to the nationalistic and regional interests
of Free World and Communist nations.
The overwhelmingly cordial reception in Communist Romania had deep signifi-
cance. The Romanians recognized that President Nixon no longer sees the communist
world as a monolithic enemy alliance but as a group of nations whose common
ideology is transcended by powerful nationalistic aspirations. President Nixon
is keenly aware that United States policy should be adapted to those nationalistic
interests.
This new concept of U.S. foreign policy also is reflected in the new Nixon
Doctrine for Asia -- the "do-it-yourself policy" which President Nixon has laid
down for the nations of Southeast Asia, the policy which declares to the world
that there will be no more Vietnams.
To put it bluntly, the United States will play the Russian game in
Southeast Asia but, hopefully, will play it better. We will provide arms and
economic assistance to non-communist nations in Southeast Asia but we will not
send American ground troops to fight other countries' battles there. We are a
Pacific power, not an Asian power. An Asian presence, yes. An Asian power, no.
While gradually disengaging ourselves militarily from Southeast Asia, we
are moving toward negotiations with the Soviet Union on arms limitation and
stabilization of the situation in Europe.
By announcing in Bucharest that "the United States believes the rights of
all nations are equal," President Nixon voiced a view with tremendous appeal for
(more)
-3-
minor Communist nations as well as Free World countries. He also made clear to the
world the sharp contrast between America's views and those of Soviet leaders who
crushed Czechoslovakia in the name of the Russian doctrine which allows the
socialist states very limited sovereignty.
Under President Nixon, we have seized the initiative in foreign affairs
even in the face of Communist aggression. We have proclaimed and promoted
doctrines of international law and justice which have given the United States a
new and lofty standing in the court of world opinion.
Domestically, the President has succeeded in getting people to lower their
voices
and their arms, too. We have entered into a period of healing and
renewal.
Again in quest of domestic tranquillity, the Nixon Administration has
launched a strong crackdown against organized crime. The President has sent
Congress a detailed program for dealing with organized crime and the need for
reorganization of the courts.
The Nixon Administration has made the fight against crime one of its
central concerns. While other departmental budgets have been cut in a hold-down
on Federal spending, the Justice Department budget has been increased and the
level of enforcement activity and narcotics control has been stepped up.
The Nixon Administration recognizes, as do all of you, that the first civil
right of every American --- black or white -- is the right to protection from
crime and violence.
It is said that there can be no progress without order. I subscribe to
that. I would add that there cannot long be order without progress. And I
believe the Nixon Administration is promoting the kind of order and the kind of
progress which will operate together to move this country forward.
President Nixon has adopted a responsible common-sense approach to our
urban problems. HIs answer is jobs and job training. The accent is on the solid
American ethic of working for a living. The President's approach is based on the
idea that a man never stands so tall as when he stands on his own two feet.
Workfare instead of welfare. That is the Aemrican way. That is Dick Nixon's way.
A hand up instead of a handout. That's the only way to bridge the gap between
the Haves and the Have-Nots in America.
President Nixon has managed to promote order in this country because he
has brought order to the Presidency. The days of government by crisis have given
way to crisis prevention. The scatter-gun approach is yielding to an assembling
of new priorities.
(more)
-4-
Also on the domestic scene, we are slowly but surely beginning to get hold
of inflation.
Despite the actions of those who would have us cast aside the surtax and
cast spending caution to the winds, the responsible forces in the Congress -- both
Democrats and Republicans -- are determined to retain the surtax at 5 per cent for
six months beyond next Jan. 1 and to build a strong surplus into the federal
budget.
Much to its credit, the Nixon Administration has refused to knuckle under
to those who have tried to play politics with the people's pocketbook.
Besides fighting inflation with appropriate fiscal and monetary measures,
President Nixon in April 1969 recognized the urgent need for tax reform and there-
fore proposed 16 major changes in our income tax laws. The House Ways and Means
Committee built on that foundation and came up with the most sweeping tax reform
and tax relief bill in the 56 years since the Federal income tax first was
adopted.
I strongly supported the House tax reform bill. It will undergo some
changes in the Senate, but I believe it will emerge in basically the same form
that it passed the House. Final passage by both houses probably will not come
until perhaps December -- hopefully by January 1.
I spoke at the outset about reform. We are living in an age that demands
reforms. I say that the Nixon Administration will be a reform administration. The
course has been charted, and we will hue to it. The winds of change are blowing.
They cannot be bottled up.
President Nixon has proposed a sweeping array of reforms which I believe
the American people have long wanted -- welfare reform which will turn all able-
bodied Americans from welfare to workfare; draft reform which will make the selective
service system as fair as possible until we can establish a volunteer army; postal
reform which will create a government-owned self-supporting postal corporation in
place of the present impossible system; poverty program reform which keeps the
Office of Economic Opportunity as an innovative agency but spins off successful
anti-poverty programs to old-line Government departments; manpower training
reform which consolidates Federal manpower training programs; tax reform which
takes millions of poor citizens off the taxrolls, reduces taxes for millions of
other low-income Americans and prevents the most wealthy in our society from
escaping taxation; a New Federalism which provides an increasing slice of Federal
income tax revenue for the cities and states and gives them new vigor as solvers
(more)
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of the problems to which they are closest.
This is indeed the Age of Reform, and we will move ahead quickly with these
new approaches to pressing problems if the Congress will work hand in hand with the
new national Administration.
Now let us look at the economy.
I firmly believe that the restraints presently being employed will strengthen
our economy so that it will ride higher but in better balance in the Seventies.
At this moment I see America standing on the edge of many years of dynamic and
unparalleled economic growth.
Despite all the gloomy talk, 1969 will be the best year yet for our economy.
Don't let stock market miseries obscure the basic fact that the American private
enterprise system has great bounce in it and is headed for continuing growth.
We must fight inflation, but the end of the business upswing is not in
sight -- and this is not a contradiction. The battle against inflation is simply
a corrective maneuver -- an adjustment in the attitude of our economic vehicle so
that it will travel a truer course.
Let us not look only to the national Administration for corrective maneuvers,
however. We all have a responsibility in the battle to put the affairs of our
Nation in order.
The Administration is moving to unify the Nation by correcting past failures
but we -- all of us -- must abandon the attitude that "all is fine so long as I
get mine." We must rather -- individually and collectively -- seek the greatest
good for the greatest number.
The great English poet John Donne once declared that "no man is an island
unto himself."
George Bernard Shaw put it this way: "We are all dependent on one another,
every soul of us on earth."
The responsibility for guiding the future of America rests not only with the
Congress, not only with governmental leaders, not only with the President. That
responsibility devolves upon all of us. Each of our lives impinges on the lives of
others. To the extent that we all live the good life, the unselfish life, the lives
of all others are enriched.
We all believe in the American Dream. Let us live SO that all may share
in it.
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a Office Copy
AN ADDRESS BY REP. GERALD R. FORD, R-MICH.
BEFORE THE OUTDOOR ADVERTISING ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA, INC.
MONDAY MORNING, NOVEMBER 3, 1969
AT ATLANTA, GEORGIA
FOR RELEASE ON DELIVERY EXPECTED AT 11 A.M.
If I were to give my remarks a title it would be: "The Age of Reform: New
Directions for the Seventies." We are definitely entering upon an age of reform,
and we are traveling in new directions as we make new attacks on problems that
have plagued us for years.
To know what the Nixon Administration is doing and why, we must first take
a look at its legacy -- the situation it inherited upon taking office. I would like
to give you a factual rundown on that situation without partisan bias of any kind.
Richard Nixon assumed the leadership of a country deeply enmeshed in a
jungle war halfway around the world, a country which had suffered escalating infla-
tion for nearly four years, a country in which the crime rate had climbed nearly
10 times as fast as the population, a country in which the problems of the cities
threatened to turn urban crisis into flaming revolution, a country in which the
Have-Nots continued to be the Have-Nots and the welfare system was like a constantly
festering sore, a country in which local, state and federal taxes had driven
taxpayers to the rim of revolt although the revenue had been inadequate to solve
the horrendous problems rushing in on us from all sides.
Any new administration coming into office first takes stock and then charts
a new course.
With the situation as I have described it -- and I think the rundown was
truthful and accurate -- it was inevitable that the Nixon Administration should
become a reform administration and should move in totally New Directions.
What has happened?
The new administration has moved toward peace in Vietnam and elsewhere. In
Vietnam the problem is to make the enemy want to negotiate a political settlement.
I pray that the President's critics will give him time to succeed with his policy
of Vietnamization of the war. As the President has said, only the right of the
South Vietnamese to choose their own destiny is non-negotiable.
In the general field of foreign policy, President Nixon has seized the
initiative in dramatic moves aimed at promoting world peace. With his
round-the-world trip, the President laid the diplomatic groundwork for possible
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new breakthroughs in East-West relations. By becoming the first American President
to visit a Communist capital, Mr. Nixon opened new channels of communication
between East and West.
It was an act of initiative when Secretary of State William P. Rogers
declared his intention to seek improved relations with Communist China. It was
also an astute move when he declared that the United States wants friendly
relations with both Communist China and the Soviet Union and cautioned them to
avoid war with each other.
In a little noted turn of events, Hungary and the United States have
announced four modest steps toward better relations.
We are clearly entering into the era of negotiation which President Nixon
promised us when he took office last Jan. 20 -- an era of negotiation instead of
confrontation, an era when peace becomes more than just a word.
The President has laid the foundation of a new foreign policy -- innovative,
flexible, adaptable and closely attuned to the nationalistic and regional interests
of Free World and Communist nations.
The overwhelmingly cordial reception in Communist Romania had deep signifi-
cance. The Romanians recognized that President Nixon no longer sees the communist
world as a monolithic enemy alliance but as a group of nations whose common
ideology is transcended by powerful nationalistic aspirations. President Nixon
is keenly aware that United States policy should be adapted to those nationalistic
interests.
This new concept of U.S. foreign policy also is reflected in the new Nixon
Doctrine for Asia -- the "do-it-yourself policy" which President Nixon has laid
down for the nations of Southeast Asia, the policy which declares to the world
that there will be no more Vietnams.
To put it bluntly, the United States will play the Russian game in
Southeast Asia but, hopefully, will play it better. We will provide arms and
economic assistance to non-communist nations in Southeast Asia but we will not
send American ground troops to fight other countries' battles there. We are a
Pacific power, not an Asian power. An Asian presence, yes. An Asian power, no.
While gradually disengaging ourselves militarily from Southeast Asia, we
are moving toward negotiations with the Soviet Union on arms limitation and
stabilization of the situation in Europe.
By announcing in Bucharest that "the United States believes the rights of
all nations are equal," President Nixon voiced a view with tremendous appeal for
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minor Communist nations as well as Free World countries. He also made clear to the
world the sharp contrast between America's views and those of Soviet leaders who
crushed Czechoslovakia in the name of the Russian doctrine which allows the
socialist states very limited sovereignty.
Under President Nixon, we have seized the initiative in foreign affairs
even in the face of Communist aggression. We have proclaimed and promoted
doctrines of international law and justice which have given the United States a
new and lofty standing in the court of world opinion.
Domestically, the President has succeeded in getting people to lower their
voices
and their arms, too. We have entered into a period of healing and
renewal.
Again in quest of domestic tranquillity, the Nixon Administration has
launched a strong crackdown against organized crime. The President has sent
Congress a detailed program for dealing with organized crime and the need for
reorganization of the courts.
The Nixon Administration has made the fight against crime one of its
central concerns. While other departmental budgets have been cut in a hold-down
on Federal spending, the Justice Department budget has been increased and the
level of enforcement activity and narcotics control has been stepped up.
The Nixon Administration recognizes, as do all of you, that the first civil
right of every American --- black or white --- is the right to protection from
crime and violence.
It is said that there can be no progress without order. I subscribe to
that. I would add that there cannot long be order without progress. And I
believe the Nixon Administration is promoting the kind of order and the kind of
progress which will operate together to move this country forward.
President Nixon has adopted a responsible common-sense approach to our
urban problems. HIs answer is jobs and job training. The accent is on the solid
American ethic of working for a living. The President's approach is based on the
idea that a man never stands so tall as when he stands on his own two feet.
Workfare instead of welfare. That is the Aemrican way. That is Dick Nixon's way.
A hand up instead of a handout. That's the only way to bridge the gap between
the Haves and the Have-Nots in America.
President Nixon has managed to promote order in this country because he
has brought order to the Presidency. The days of government by crisis have given
way to crisis prevention. The scatter-gun approach is yielding to an assembling
of new priorities.
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Also on the domestic scene, we are slowly but surely beginning to get hold
of inflation.
Despite the actions of those who would have us cast aside the surtax and
cast spending caution to the winds, the responsible forces in the Congress -- both
Democrats and Republicans -- are determined to retain the surtax at 5 per cent for
six months beyond next Jan. 1 and to build a strong surplus into the federal
budget.
Much to its credit, the Nixon Administration has refused to knuckle under
to those who have tried to play politics with the people's pocketbook.
Besides fighting inflation with appropriate fiscal and monetary measures,
President Nixon in April 1969 recognized the urgent need for tax reform and there-
fore proposed 16 major changes in our income tax laws. The House Ways and Means
Committee built on that foundation and came up with the most sweeping tax reform
and tax relief bill in the 56 years since the Federal income tax first was
adopted.
I strongly supported the House tax reform bill. It will undergo some
changes in the Senate, but I believe it will emerge in basically the same form
that it passed the House. Final passage by both houses probably will not come
until perhaps December -- hopefully by January 1.
I spoke at the outset about reform. We are living in an age that demands
reforms. I say that the Nixon Administration will be a reform administration. The
course has been charted, and we will hue to it. The winds of change are blowing.
They cannot be bottled up.
President Nixon has proposed a sweeping array of reforms which I believe
the American people have long wanted --- welfare reform which will turn all able-
bodied Americans from welfare to workfare; draft reform which will make the selective
service system as fair as possible until we can establish a volunteer army; postal
reform which will create a government-owned self-supporting postal corporation in
place of the present impossible system; poverty program reform which keeps the
Office of Economic Opportunity as an innovative agency but spins off successful
anti-poverty programs to old-line Government departments; manpower training
reform which consolidates Federal manpower training programs; tax reform which
takes millions of poor citizens off the taxrolls, reduces taxes for millions of
other low-income Americans and prevents the most wealthy in our society from
escaping taxation; a New Federalism which provides an increasing slice of Federal
income tax revenue for the cities and states and gives them new vigor as solvers
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of the problems to which they are closest.
This is indeed the Age of Reform, and we will move ahead quickly with these
new approaches to pressing problems if the Congress will work hand in hand with the
new national Administration.
Now let us look at the economy.
I firmly believe that the restraints presently being employed will strengthen
our economy so that it will ride higher but in better balance in the Seventies.
At this moment I see America standing on the edge of many years of dynamic and
unparalleled economic growth.
Despite all the gloomy talk, 1969 will be the best year yet for our economy.
Don't let stock market miseries obscure the basic fact that the American private
enterprise system has great bounce in it and is headed for continuing growth.
We must fight inflation, but the end of the business upswing is not in
sight --- and this is not a contradiction. The battle against inflation is simply
a corrective maneuver -- an adjustment in the attitude of our economic vehicle so
that it will travel a truer course.
Let us not look only to the national Administration for corrective maneuvers,
however. We all have a responsibility in the battle to put the affairs of our
Nation in order.
The Administration is moving to unify the Nation by correcting past failures
but we -- all of us -- must abandon the attitude that "all is fine so long as I
get mine. " We must rather -- individually and collectively -- seek the greatest
good for the greatest number.
The great English poet John Donne once declared that "no man is an island
unto himself."
George Bernard Shaw put it this way: "We are all dependent on one another,
every soul of us on earth."
The responsibility for guiding the future of America rests not only with the
Congress, not only with governmental leaders, not only with the President. That
responsibility devolves upon all of us. Each of our lives impinges on the lives of
others. To the extent that we all live the good life, the unselfish life, the lives
of all others are enriched.
We all believe in the American Dream. Let us live SO that all may share
in it.
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