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Ronald Reagan Presidential Library
Digital Library Collections
This is a PDF of a folder from our textual collections.
Collection: Roberts, John G.: Files
Folder Title: JGR/Presidential Articles
Box: 37
To see more digitized collections visit:
https://reaganlibrary.gov/archives/digital-library
To see all Ronald Reagan Presidential Library inventories visit:
https://reaganlibrary.gov/document-collection
Contact a reference archivist at: [email protected]
Citation Guidelines: https://reaganlibrary.gov/citing
National Archives Catalogue: https://catalog.archives.gov/
THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
September 10, 1984
MEMORANDUM FOR FRED F. FIELDING
FROM:
JOHN G. ROBERTS
226R
SUBJECT:
LTV/Employment Article
Richard Darman has asked us to review a draft campaign
article submitted to the White House by Reagan-Bush '84,
and provide any comments to Mike Baroody by 3:00 p.m.
September 13. The article, on employment, discusses the
economic recovery, the failure of the CETA program and the
contrasting approach of the Jobs Training Partnership Act,
and the youth minimum wage and enterprise zones proposals.
It criticizes Democratic "industrial policy" alternatives as
interventionist departures from the free enterprise system.
I have reviewed the article and have no legal objections.
The article does, however, contain several slips that I have
noted in the attached draft memorandum for Baroody.
Attachment
THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
September 10, 1984
MEMORANDUM FOR MICHAEL E. BAROODY
DEPUTY ASSISTANT TO THE PRESIDENT
DIRECTOR, PUBLIC AFFAIRS
FROM:
FRED F. FIELDING Orig. signed by FFF
COUNSEL TO THE PRESIDENT
SUBJECT:
LTV/Employment Article
Counsel's Office has reviewed the above-referenced draft
article. In line five on page two, "reduce" should be
"increase" or "incentives" should be "disincentives." In
line 20 on page two, "real jobs" or some phrase to like
effect should appear after "300,000." As the sentence is
now written, read in context, our claim is that the recovery
has created more than 300,000 make-work jobs every month.
Also on page two, in the last sentence of the fifth para-
graph, I would use some phrase other than "traditionally the
hardest group to employ" in describing black teenagers.
That phrase could be misinterpreted as an adverse comment on
the group. I suggest something like "traditionally the
group that faces the greatest difficulty in finding employment."
Finally, in line one on page two, "these" should be "those,"
and in line 21 on page three, the second "in" should be
"on."
CC: Richard G. Darman
FFF: JGR:aea 9/10/84
bcc: FFFielding
JGRoberts
Subj
Chron
THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
September 10, 1984
MEMORANDUM FOR MICHAEL E. BAROODY
DEPUTY ASSISTANT TO THE PRESIDENT
DIRECTOR, PUBLIC AFFAIRS
FROM:
FRED F. FIELDING
COUNSEL TO THE PRESIDENT
SUBJECT:
LTV/Employment Article
Counsel's Office has reviewed the above-referenced draft
article. In line five on page two, "reduce" should be
"increase" or "incentives" should be "disincentives." In
line 20 on page two, "real jobs" or some phrase to like
effect should appear after "300,000." As the sentence is
now written, read in context, our claim is that the recovery
has created more than 300,000 make-work jobs every month.
Also on page two, in the last sentence of the fifth para-
graph, I would use some phrase other than "traditionally the
hardest group to employ" in describing black teenagers.
That phrase could be misinterpreted as an adverse comment on
the group. I suggest something like "traditionally the
group that faces the greatest difficulty in finding employment."
Finally, in line one on page two, "these" should be "those,"
and in line 21 on page three, the second "in" should be
"on."
CC: Richard G. Darman
FFF: JGR:aea 9/10/84
bcc: FFFielding
JGRoberts
Subj
Chron
ID #.
CU
WHITE HOUSE
CORRESPONDENCE TRACKING WORKSHEET
0 . OUTGOING
H INTERNAL
I * INCOMING
Date Correspondence
Received (YY/MM/DD)
/
/
Name of Correspondent:
Richard Darman
MI Mail Report
User Codes: (A)
(B)
(C)
Subject: LTV TC Emplayment Article
ROUTE TO:
ACTION
DISPOSITION
Tracking
Type
Completion
Action
Date
of
Date
Office/Agency
(Staff Name)
Code
YY/MM/DD
Response
Code
YY/MM/DD
Cuttou
ORIGINATOR 84 09,10
/ /
Referral Note:
CUAT 18
D 840910
58409113
Referral Note:
CUAT 17
3:00pm
I 84,09,10
11
Referral Note:
/ /
/ /
I
Referral Note:
/ /
/
/
I
Referral Note:
ACTION CODES:
DISPOSITION CODES:
A - Appropriate Action
I . Info Copy Only/No Action Necessary
A Answered
C Completed
C . Comment/Recommendation
R Direct Reply w/Copy
B - Non-Special Referral
S Suspended
D Draft Response
S For Signature
F . Furnish Fact Sheet
X Interim Reply
to be used as Enclosure
FOR OUTGOING CORRESPONDENCE:
Type of Response = Initials of Signer
Code
=
"A"
Completion Date = = Date of Outgoing
Comments:
Keep this worksheet attached to the original incoming letter.
Send all routing updates to Central Reference (Room 75, OEOB).
Always return completed correspondence record to Central Files.
Refer questions about the correspondence tracking system to Central Reference, ext. 2590.
5/81
Document No.
WHITE HOUSE STAFFING MEMORANDUM
DATE:
9/10/84
ACTION/CONCURRENCE/COMMENT DUE BY:
3:00 p.m. 9/13
LTV RE EMPLOYMENT ARTICLE
SUBJECT:
ACTION FYI
ACTION FYI
VICE PRESIDENT
MURPHY
MEESE
OGLESBY
BAKER
ROGERS
DEAVER
SPEAKES
STOCKMAN
SVAHN
DARMAN
P
DSS VERSTANDIG
FIELDING
WHITTLESEY
FULLER
TUTWILER
HERRINGTON
BAROODY
HICKEY
ELLIOTT
McFARLANE
McMANUS
REMARKS:
Please provide any edits/comments directly to Mike Baroody, with a copy
to my office, by 3:00 p.m. Thursday, 9/13. Thank you.
NOTE: 2,000 word limit
RESPONSE:
Richard G. Darman
Assistant to the President
Ext. 2702
1984 SEP 10 Pit 1: 26
REAGAN-BUSH'84
10
WH2135
1.)
The President's Authorized Campaign Committee
MEMORANDUM
TO:
MARGARET TUTWILER
FROM:
JIM LAKE
THROUGH:
ED ROLLINS
DATE:
SEPTEMBER 4, 1984
RE:
LTV/EMPLOYMENT ARTICLE
Per the procedures outlined in Fred Fielding's
November 28, 1983 memo on candidate questionnaires, I am
enclosing a draft response to one of the eight article requests
from LTV.
Before making any revisions, please bear in mind that
LTV has imposed a 2,000 word limit; our draft responses are
approximately that length.
Please advise me at your earliest possible convenience
of White House approval of the responses.
440 First Street N.W., Washington, D.C. 20001 (202) 383-1984
Paid for by Reagan-Bush '84: Paul Laxalt. Chairman: Angela M. Buchanan Jackson, Treasurer
HONORABLE RONALD REAGAN
President of the United States
Statement on Employment
LTV / Wall Street Journal
September 4, 1984
When we took office four years ago, America had been caught
for more than a decade in the grip of a previously unknown
economic malady. The condition was called stagflation -- and
its symptoms of simultaneously high levels of inflation and
unemployment confounded economists.
When we took over from the previous Administration, America
suffered from a particularly virulent strain of this disease.
Economic growth had stalled in 1979, and unemployment had
climbed from under 6 percent in 1979 to 7.5 percent when we
took office. And with inflation running at a fever pitch and
pushing interest rates to record levels, unemployment was
poised for a further increase.
The previous Administration found itself ill-prepared to
take on stagflation. Instead, they took refuge behind the
nostrums of the "no-growth society" and the "era of limits."
The Carter-Mondale "inflation czar" said, "We can't avoid a
decline in our standard of living. All we can do is adapt to
that."
But the no-growth society actually resulted from the
previous Democratic Administration's no-growth policies.
America's productivity plummeted as government overspending,
high taxes and overregulation dried up investment and
innovation. We fell farther and farther behind our world
competitors -- and as a result, we lost jobs.
Their prescription to make up for this decline in
employment opportunities, unfortunately, consisted of more of
the same bitter medicine that got us into the economic mess in
the first place. Billions of dollars were spent on federal
make-work jobs programs that provided only temporary aid, and
in some cases, none at all. Though nearly $60 billion was
expended on the failed and scandal-ridden Comprehensive
Employment Training Act (CETA) program alone over a period of
eight years, only 18 percent of the training budget went to
actual job training. Only 30 percent of CETA participants
found permanent jobs -- and only half of those were private
sector jobs. The ultimate proof of the failure of this
approach is that, in two decades, unemployment among young
people increased over 50 percent. The rate for black male
teenagers more than doubled, from 22 percent in 1962 to 47
percent in 1982.
After four years of this brand of economic mismanagement,
many economists doubted whether inflation and unemployment
could both be reduced at the same time -- if either could be
reduced at all. And no wonder. For 20 years, no
Administration had reduced both inflation and unemployment over
a full presidential term -- until now.
Today, these days of no-growth and nay-saying are all
over. Our economic policies have opened new vistas of
prosperity and opportunity for working Americans.
We cut the rate of growth of federal spending by more than
half, we reduced taxes across the board to reduce incentives to
work, save and invest, we put in place accelerated cost
recovery to encourage business investment and boost
productivity and we untangled the red tape that was suffocating
initiative and innovation.
As a result, the inflation rate has dropped from 12.4
percent in the last year of the Carter-Mondale Administration
to around four percent this year. And unemployment has dropped
more than three percentage points in 20 months.
In fact, three words describe our recovery program: jobs,
jobs and jobs. More than six million jobs have been created by
our economic recovery. I remember how in late 1982, a number
of liberals in Congress were pushing for legislation that they
claimed would have created 300,000 make-work jobs -- at a cost
of over $3 billion to the U.S. Treasury. Our economic recovery
has produced an average of more than 300,000/every month since
then. In May alone, nearly 900,000 jobs were created. That's
more jobs than have been created in the last ten years in all
of Europe. More than 105 million men and women are at work in
America today -- more than ever before in our history.
The most exciting aspect of our economic recovery is that
everyone has benefited. Unemployment has dropped for men and
women. It dropped more sharply for blacks and Hispanics than
for whites. And the unemployment rate has dropped almost five
percentage points for black teenagers, traditionally the
hardest group to employ.
But our efforts to expand opportunity for all Americans
have gone beyond economic recovery. One of our
Administration's crowning achievements is the implementation of
a landmark employment bill -- the Jobs Training Partnership Act.
The Jobs Training Partnership Act (JTPA) is exactly what it
sounds like -- an innovative partnership among the federal
government, state and local governments, and the private sector
to provide jobs training to disadvantaged youth, AFDC
recipients and displaced workers to aid them in securing
permanent employment in the private sector. Under JTPA, the
federal government distributes funds to states in the form of
block grants under a formula which allots shares to states on
the basis of disadvantaged and unemployed persons. The states'
governors then distribute funds to local service delivery
areas. Within those areas, Private Industry Councils (PIC),
comprised of members of the business community and of labor,
educational and community groups, either develop the training
plan or delegate that responsibility to the local government
while retaining final approval over the plan. The PICs then
either administer the plan or delegate that authority as well.
Title II of JTPA provides training for the economically
disadvantaged, the handicapped, offenders, displaced
homemakers, older workers, and teenage parents. Our budget
request for this aspect of JTPA for the next fiscal year is
$1.89 billion -- providing an estimated 1.25 million
participants with remedial education, basic skills training and
on-the-job training.
Title III of JTPA will provide services to dislocated
workers -- those who have lost their jobs permanently because
of plant closings and have little prospect of another job in
the industry. Services under Title III include job search
assistance, retraining, pre-layoff assistance and relocation
expenses, and the budget request for next year is $223
million. Title IV of JTPA reauthorizes the Jobs Corps,
retaining its successful approach to in-residence programs with
food, clothing, shelter, health services, and recreation
provided as part of the education and job training program for
each recruit. We are seeking $600 million to serve the
estimated 80,000 participants in this program next year.
JTPA is unique among federal job training programs not only
in its emphasis Qn local control and private sector
involvement, but in its philosophy as well. Under JTPA, unlike
the CETA program, 70 percent of funds will go directly to job
training; make-work "public service employment" will be
eliminated. Funds will be targeted to those who most need such
training. A minimum of 40 percent of funding will go to youth
between 16 and 21 years of age. At least 90 percent of funds
will go to economically disadvantaged persons, defined as those
on welfare or food stamps, foster children, or families with
incomes below the poverty level. And most important, jobs
training plans will be developed with the involvement of the
private sector. Since the private sector creates more than 80
percent of all jobs in the U.S., it knows best the training
necessary for productive, career-building jobs.
The story of our Administration's attempts to expand
opportunity and prosperity for working Americans, then, is a
success. But expanding employment is not enough. We must
ensure that the growing American workforce is protected while
on the job.
And here, again, the story of our Administration is one of
unparalleled success. During our Administration, we have seen
the safest year on record in the American workplace. The total
job injury rate in 1982 was the lowest recorded since the Labor
Department began keeping records in 1972. In fact, as a result
of our policy of targeting high-hazard work sites, nearly every
major job safety indicator improved during our Administration's
first two years.
Still, we intend to build on our successes in producing
prosperity for American workers. Our priorities are two-fold:
preserving the job-creating economic recovery juggernaut we
have constructed, and promoting innovative programs to expand
opportunity to hard-to-employ workers and depressed areas, and
shoring up the educational system which will prepare our young
people to produce prosperity in the coming generations.
One such initiative is a youth minimum wage of $2.50 for
workers under age 22 hired for the months of May through
September. While everyone must be assured a fair wage, there's
no compassion in mandating $3.35 an hour for start-up jobs that
simply aren't worth that much in the marketplace. All that
does is guarantee that fewer jobs for teenagers will be created
and fewer young people will be hired.
But opposition from Democratic Party leaders and organized
labor now threatens enactment of this proposal. They argue
that adult workers will be displaced and teenagers will be
exploited. Anticipating these concerns, we went to great
lengths to ensure that important protections were built into
the legislation. As the bill is written, no employer would be
allowed to lower the wage of a teenager already on the job. No
employer would be able to fire an adult worker to hire a
teenager at a lower wage. And the lower wage would be
available only during the summer, when the need among teens for
jobs is greatest.
Significantly, the youth wage proposal, which could provide
up to 600,000 summer jobs, has been endorsed by the National
Conference of Black Mayors -- who know perhaps better than
anyone the disastrous effects of high teenage unemployment. In
addition to the youth minimum wage, we have also worked to
extend the targeted job tax credit for hiring disadvantaged
youths. This credit provided 300,000 jobs in 1983.
We have also proposed the establishment of urban enterprise
zones -- an entirely fresh approach for promoting economic
growth and creating jobs in our inner cities. Enterprise zones
would revitalize theese areas through dramatic reductions in
barriers to business growth and job creation, relying on market
forces to stimultate economic activity and overcoming the
poverty and unemployment that have for so long plagued
residents of those depressed areas. Employers would receive a
10 percent tax credit for all payroll increases given to zone
employees. They would receive an additional 50 percent tax
credit for hiring disadvantaged zone residents.
Improvements to commercial, industrial or rental structures
would be eligible for a 10 percent tax credit, federal business
taxes would be substantially lowered, and firms would be
allowed to carry forward operating losses and tax credits.
Even employees would receive a five percent income tax credit
for working in the zone.
Finally, businesses would be offered relief from federal
regulations -- while protecting the civil rights, safety, and
health of the zone's residents and workers. Local versions of
our urban enterprise zones proposal -- which has been blocked
by House Democrats -- have proved successful in moving jobs and
investment to depressed inner-city areas.
Our opponents would choose a different path. Instead of
building on the economic policies which produced recovery and
enhanced opportunity, they would reverse these policies and go
back to the tax and spend policies of the past. They have
promised to roll back the tax cuts and incentives which have
spurred the rise in business investment and the blazing
economic recovery and to repeal the best tax reform ever enated
for low- and middle-income Americans -- tax indexing. And the
Wall Street Journal has estimated that the promises made by our
opponents would require up to $90 billion in additional
spending -- spending which would crowd out private,
job-creating investment.
Just as important, the Democrats also would reverse our
philosophy of faith in free enterprise that has led us into
sustained recovery. Instead, they would resort to a series of
policies that fall under the rubric of "industrial policy." No
one knows exactly what programs that would entail, because the
Democrats have been deliberately vague. But we do know one
thing -- it means massive intervention into the free market on
the part of government -- and probably more of the make-work
jobs programs of the past. It is a defeatist mentality from
the "era of limits" school of thought -- implying that
Americans cannot outinnovate, outproduce, and outsell any
country on the globe on their own.
But we know we can -- if only government will give us the
elbow room to reach as high as our vision and God-given talents
take us. We don't have to return to the nay-saying, no-growth
policies of the past. With your help and support, together we
can keep one of the greatest job-creating juggernauts in
American history rolling -- and produce a future of
opportunity, prosperity and full employment for all Americans.
THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
August 7, 1985
MEMORANDUM FOR FRED F. FIELDING
FROM:
JOHN G. ROBERTS 872
SUBJECT:
Draft Article for Scholastic Magazine
David Chew has asked that comments on draft responses by the
President to written questions submitted by Scholastic
Magazine be sent directly to Russell Mack by August 9. The
questions are general ones about the Presidency and the
functioning of the Executive Branch, and the answers present
no serious problems. The only response I would change is
that to question 16, concerning the President's efforts to
achieve tax reform. As written, the response is susceptible
to criticism under the Anti-Lobbying Act. The changes
suggested in the attached draft memorandum for your signature
cure this problem.
Attachment
THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
August 7, 1985
MEMORANDUM FOR RUSSELL MACK
DIRECTOR, PUBLIC AFFAIRS
FROM:
FRED F. FIELDING Orig. signed by FFF
COUNSEL TO THE PRESIDENT
SUBJECT:
Draft Article for Scholastic Magazine
Counsel's Office has reviewed the draft responses by the
President to written questions submitted by Scholastic
Magazine. As drafted, the response to question 16 raises
concerns under the Anti-Lobbying Act. I recommend changing
"lobbying" to "working" in the first line, and deleting the
last sentence, to avoid any possible objections.
CC: David L. Chew
FFF: JGR:aea 8/7/85
CC: FFFielding
JGRoberts
Subj
Chron
THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
August 7, 1985
MEMORANDUM FOR RUSSELL MACK
DIRECTOR, PUBLIC AFFAIRS
FROM:
FRED F. FIELDING
COUNSEL TO THE PRESIDENT
SUBJECT:
Draft Article for Scholastic Magazine
Counsel's Office has reviewed the draft responses by the
President to written questions submitted by Scholastic
Magazine. As drafted, the response to question 16 raises
concerns under the Anti-Lobbying Act. I recommend changing
"lobbying" to "working" in the first line, and deleting the
last sentence, to avoid any possible objections.
cc: David L. Chew
FFF: JGR:aea 8/7/85
CC: FFFielding
JGRoberts
Subj
Chron
ID #
CU
WHITE HOUSE
CORRESPONDENCE TRACKING WORKSHEET
o OUTGOING
H INTERNAL
I - INCOMING
Date Correspondence
Received (YY/MM/DD)
/
/
Name of Correspondent: D. chew
MI Mail Report
User Codes: (A)
(B)
(C)
Subject:
Drant article par scholastic magazine
ROUTE TO:
ACTION
DISPOSITION
Tracking
Type
Completion
Action
Date
of
Date
Office/Agency
(Staff Name)
Code
YY/MM/DD
Response
Code
YY/MM/DD
ORIGINATOR
85,08,06
/
/
cuat 18
Referral Note:
D
85,08,06
5 85,08,09
Referral Note:
/ /
/
/
-
Referral Note:
/
/
/
/
-
Referral Note:
/
/
/
/
-
Referral Note:
ACTION CODES:
DISPOSITION CODES:
A Appropriate Action
I . Info Copy Only/No Action Necessary
A Answered
C Completed
C Comment/Recommendation
R. Direct Reply w/Copy
B - - Non-Special Referral
S Suspended
D Draft Response
S For Signature
F Furnish Fact Sheet
X Interim Reply
to be used as Enclosure
FOR OUTGOING CORRESPONDENCE:
Type of Response = Initials of Signer
Code = "A"
Completion Date = Date of Outgoing
Comments:
Keep this worksheet attached to the original incoming letter.
Send all routing updates to Central Reference (Room 75, OEOB).
Always return completed correspondence record to Central Files.
Refer questions about the correspondence tracking system to Central Reference, ext. 2590.
5/81
Document No.
WHITE HOUSE STAFFING MEMORANDUM
DATE:
8/6/85
ACTION/CONCURRENCE/COMMENT DUE BY:
Friday, 8/9/85
SUBJECT:
DRAFT ARTICLE FOR SCHOLASTIC MAGAZINE
ACTION FYI
ACTION FYI
VICE PRESIDENT
LACY
REGAN
McFARLANE
WRIGHT
OGLESBY
BUCHANAN
ROLLINS
CHAVEZ
RYAN
CHEW
P
SS SPEAKES
DANIELS
SPRINKEL
FIELDING
SVAHN
FRIEDERSDORF
THOMAS
HENKEL
TUTTLE
MACK
HICKEY
HICKS
KINGON
REMARKS:
Please provide any comments/edits on the attached directly to
Russ Mack, Room 160, by Friday, August 9th, with an information
copy to my office. Thank you.
RESPONSE:
ISS5 AUG -S Fill 3: 10
David L. Chew
Staff Secretary
Ext. 2702
DRAFT ARTICLE FOR SCHOLASTIC MAGAZINE
1) The President of the United States does not have unlimited
powers. In some ways, he doesn't even have the kind of power a
general has. His power to shape national policy is shared with
the Congress, the Supreme Court, the fifty states, and ultimately
with the people. So, no, you can't just snap your fingers and
make things happen. But you can persuade, you can set clear
goals, you can use the good sense of the American people to set a
course, convince lawmakers to do the right thing, and get things
done. Most of all, you can and must be an advocate for the basic
values the American people hold dear, values like faith, family,
work, neighborhood, freedom, and peace.
2) That depends on what you mean by "wants." I want a
constitutional amendment to require the Congress to balance the
federal budget. I haven't gotten that yet. On the other hand, I
wanted to bring down the roaring inflation our administration
inherited, and that has been accomplished, along with reducing
the tax burden, getting the economy moving, modernizing our
defenses and reducing over-regulation.
3) Yes. In a democracy, power derives from the consent of the
governed. The only power a government has is the power the people
have decided to cede to it. And that power is only maintained as
long as the elected official carries out the broad will of the
people. If a leader can persuade his countrymen that a particular
policy is beneficial, he'll be successful. If they're
unconvinced, he's out of a job.
4) The Presidency is an enormously complex job. It's perfectly
possible to work 24 hours a day and still not even begin to
satisfy all of the demands made on the President. Ideally, a
President should be a good manager who can delegate
responsibility and keep tabs on his assistants, while keeping
sight of the big picture and making the decisions.
It's my hope that the size of government can be reduced
further. We have agencies and offices and bureaus and commissions
for thousands of unnecessary pet projects and causes. But
Americans -- who pay the cost of big government and feel its
often harmful effects -- know that when government becomes too
large, it becomes yet another problem.
5) The most difficult part of this job is the sad duty I have had
to greet the caskets of the spirited, brave, young men who gave
their lives serving their country in other parts of the world.
6) Well, some days you don't decide: events decide for you. But
on long-range strategy, I regularly meet with my cabinet and
advisers and then decide which policies will get top priority.
Reducing the deficit, making the tax system simpler and fairer
and improving the chances for lasting peace are among our
priorities now.
7) It's hard to point to any one person as the most important. My
Chief of Staff, Don Regan, has done an outstanding job in
managing the White House staff. Each cabinet member runs his or
her department. My assistants have different areas of expertise,
and I rely on them to be at their best, which has been the case.
8) I know others have complained of stress. But I think some of
that comes from not budgeting time well. Come to think of it,
some of them didn't budget the federal budget well either.
Despite the pressures, I love the job.
9) Changing course can sometimes be problematical. It can send
confusing signals to friends and foes. There's a price to be
paid. If a change in course is contemplated, that price must be
considered as part of the deliberations. In the case of the visit
to the Bitberg cemetery, if I were making the decision today, I
would do the same thing again.
10) Governments just love to spend money -- your money. And the
only way to prevent them from spending like drunken sailors is to
turn off the spigot. So one of our first initiatives was the 1981
tax cut, to put government on an enforced diet. You might call it
a supply-side approach to dealing with Congress.
The Grace Commission, which I empanelled to come up with
suggestions for cutting the size of government, submitted a
report with more than 3,000 ideas. We know where the fat in the
budget is. The great challenge now is to get Democrats in
Congress to take spending reduction seriously. Or, if they can't
bring themselves to do what is so urgently necessary for the
health of the economy, let them pass the line-item veto and I'll
make the cuts, and I'll take the heat
and I'll enjoy it.
11) Government will never work as efficiently as a business. It's
just not in the cards because it's a rare person who's as careful
with other people's money as with his or her own.
Once you recognize that government is often inefficient by
its very nature, you begin to want to scale back the jobs
government is given to perform -- leaving only those which
government alone is equipped to handle.
12) Sure. There are thousands of dedicated and conscientious
government workers. I suppose the ideal is someone who is always
looking for ways to save the taxpayers money, and who considers
his or her job as a public trust.
13) Federal workers have negotiated good contracts for
themselves. But then, so have many private sector workers. As a
former union-man myself, I have nothing against workers
organizing to improve their circumstances. But I do believe that
oaths should be obeyed. When the air traffic controllers union
violated their oath not to strike against the public, I fired
them. I believe government workers should be treated fairly, and
that, since taxpayers pay their salaries, they are accountable to
those taxpayers.
14) There is a severe scrutiny of top-level appointees which I
think sometimes verges on illegitimate hounding. I do worry that
some very fine people may be reluctant to subject themselves to
that glare of hostile publicity, which can end up being
counterproductive to the public interest.
15) That so-called friction has been exaggerated. Middle-level
civil servants know that each new administration arrives with its
own agenda and its own ideas and their job is to carry out the
policies of those elected by the American people, within the law.
There are some who disagree with what we're trying to accomplish.
But the place for them to express that disapproval is the voting
booth, not on the job. Most of them understand that and are
cooperative.
16) I'll be lobbying hard to make the federal income tax system
fairer over the next several months. Members of Congress have
already been hearing from me. The important thing though, is that
they hear from you. And if I can stimulate letters to Congressmen
by travelling this country and explaining the plan, then that's
what I'll do.
17) Our plan will do a great deal for young people just starting
out. The most important thing from their point of view will be
the fact that almost all of them will have lower tax rates.
What we aim to do, through tax simplification, is further
enhance incentives to work, save, and invest in a better future.
This is particularly important for young couples just starting
out. They need breathing room from the IRS if they're going to
create a nest egg for their children's education and for their
own chances of owning a home.
If you are interested in starting a small business, which a
lot more young people are doing these days, our plan helps there,
too. The smaller enterprises -- the so-called unincorporated ones
-- have their profits taxed at the personal tax rate scale. So,
if we're cutting that for individual workers and savers, we're
also giving every unincorporated business a similar break and for
everybody, we're making the system simpler, with fewer loopholes
and more of a chance to keep a bigger chunk of your paycheck.
18) In the domestic sphere there is no single problem as
threatening to young people as the federal budget deficit. Their
elders have been on a spending spree for most of the past 40
years and have shown none of the courage necessary to break the
cycle of debt.
Before long, the monkey of debt on the backs of our children
will become a gorilla which will choke the economy. Buying a
home, for so long a mainstay of the American dream, will become
impossible for all but the very rich as interest rates rocket
upwards. Capital for new business ventures will dry up. The value
of the dollar will plunge. The whole economy will rust and decay.
Unless we correct the problem soon, our young people face the
very real prospect of an America less bountiful than their
parents had known, and of lives dominated by crippling
obligations instead of opportunities. That is why I'm working so
hard to make Congress get spending under control once and for
all.
19) Young Americans need to educate themselves about the history
of governments -- particularly in the twentieth century. They
need to familiarize themselves with the horrors totalitarian
governments have perpetrated so that they can put our own system
into perspective, and realize how precious our freedoms really
are.
I would also like to tell young Americans that the
government belongs to them. It's not some all-powerful,
totalitarian behemoth like those in the communist world. Those
countries call themselves "People's Republics" but the only true
people's republics in the world are the democracies. And in this
people's democracy of ours, every single person can make a
difference. And everyone should. Don't let that mountain of debt
crush the economy. Don't break faith with freedom fighters around
the globe struggling to achieve a small portion of what we have
in so much abundance. Don't allow our national strength to flag.
Be good to America as she has been good to you--and go as far as
your energy and dreams will take you in this blessed land.
20) I'd remind them that generations of Americans have worked,
struggled and often suffered to produce this marvel we call the
American democracy. I'd ask them to reflect that never before in
human history has a society produced so much freedom, so much
opportunity as ours has. Our government in itself isn't what
makes America the "last, best hope of mankind." It's the freedom
to reach for the stars, unimpeded by government, that has marked
our history and unlocked the restless genius of our people.
Scholastic Inc.
730 Broadway
New York, NY 10003
(212) 505-3000
Scholastic
3064
June 21, 1985
Mr. Frederick J. Ryan, Jr.
Director, Presidential Appointments
and Scheduling
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20500
RE: Written questions from Scholastic UPDATE;
Request for Presidential schedule and photographs
Dear Mr. Ryan:
Thank you for your letter of June 5, informing us that President Reagan will be
pleased to answer written questions for Scholastic UPDATE's September issue on
"Today's Executive Branch." We know that his comments will make a memorable
impression on our more than one million teenage readers and their teachers.
We expect to send you our questions for the President within the next week. We
also hope to supplement his answers with a special feature describing what the
President does during a typical day. The idea is to picture the wide range of duties
-- from decision-making to ceremonial appearances -- that our nation's chief
executive performs. In other words, a day in the life of the President.
For this, we would like to run a copy of the President's schedule -- preferably of a
day on which the Cabinet meets - combined with a series of photographs of six
events from that particular day. For instance, the photographs might picture
President Reagan at a morning Cabinet meeting, discussing legislation with
Congressional leaders over lunch, meeting with a foreign dignitary, conferring with
top aides, and perhaps making a speech or special appearance in the evening.
Similar features have appeared in civics textbooks and such magazines as American
Heritage. I will be calling your office soon to follow-up this request and clear up
any further questions you may have. Our deadline for this issue, which will appear
September 20, is in early August.
Again, we would like to thank you, and the President, for your gracious help -- to
Scholastic UPDATE, and through us, to tomorrow's voters.
With best wishes,
Sincerely,
DandGoddy Associate Editor
David Goddy
Scholastic UPDATE
Scholastic Inc.
730 Broadway
New York, NY 10003
(212) 505-3000
Scholastic
July 9, 1985
Mr. Frederick J. Ryan, Jr.
Director, Presidential Appointments
and Scheduling
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20500
DULING
RE: Written Questions from Scholastic UPDATE
Request for Presidential Schedule and Photographs
Dear Mr. Ryan:
Thank you for your continuing help in arranging to have President Reagan answer
written questions for Scholastic UPDATE's September 20 issue, "The Executive
Branch At Work." Enclosed you will find our carefully prepared questions. They
focus primarily on how President Reagan views the federal bureaucracy. We also
have enclosed several policy questions, dealing, for instance, with the impact of
President Reagan's tax proposals on young people.
We at UPDATE look forward to President Reagan's answers. We know the
President's insights will be invaluable to our readers, and will give them the
dramatic opportunity of seeing the challenges and the pressures of today's
Presidency through the eyes of our chief executive.
As we mentioned in our letter of June 20, the editors at UPDATE hope to
supplement President Reagan's answers with a special feature describing a day in
the life of the President. For this feature, we would like to run a copy of the
President's schedule on a particular day, preferable a day in which the Cabinet
meets, along with information describing the significance or outcome of each of the
day's events. We would like to illustrate this feature with a series of six
photographs from that particular day.
I am enclosing copies of similar features which have appeared in the American
Heritage Magazine and in a civics textbook. Our deadline for this issue which will
appear September 20, is in early August. If you have any questions, please call me
at (212) 505-3079.
Again, we thank you and President Reagan for your help and cooperation.
Sincerely,
Manua Christopher
Ms. Maura Christopher
Associate Editor
Scholastic UPDATE
encl.
Scholastic UPDATE
QUESTIONS FOR PRESIDENT REAGAN
1) President Truman once remarked, "I thought I was the President, but when it
comes to these bureaucracies I can't make 'em do a damn thing." Later, when he
was to turn over the White House to President Eisenhower, he said, "He'll sit here
and he'll say, 'Do this! Do that!' and nothing will happen. Poor Ike -- it won't be a
bit like the Army. he'll find it very frustrating."
Do you agree with President Truman's description? how responsive is the
machinery of government to your commands?
2) A young intern with UPDATE this summer suggests that her peers would like to
know whether everything the President wants done actually gets done. Does it?
3) Some say the basis of Presidential power is really the power to persuade. Do
you agree?
4) In your five years in office, what lessons have you learned about the nature of
the Presidency and about governing the world's largest organization?
5) What is the most difficult part of your job?
6) How would you describe your management style? How do you decide what
issues get top priority?
7) Who, among your top advisers, do you rely on most -- and why?
8) The pressures of office have affected Presidents in different ways. Some have
complained of frustration and stress. How does the job affect you from day to day?
9) Once a decision has been made and is being implemented, how hard is it for a
President and your staff to reverse course? Many outside observers thought this
contributes to problems, such as the one that occurred over your visit to the Bitburg
cemetary.
10) You took office with the clear intention of reshaping government cutting its
size and making it more efficient. What have you accomplished? Has this been
more difficult than you expected? What still needs to be done?
11) Government is often criticized for not operating as efficiently as businesses. Is
this true? And should government, which must service social as well as economic
goals, operate like a business?
12) Is there such a thing as a "good bureaucrat"? What, in your view, is the "ideal"
government worker?
13) Many complain that government workers get an "easier ride" than workers in
the private sector. Do you agree?
Scholastic UPDATE
Questions for President Reagan
Page 2
14) Do you or your top aides find that it's hard to attract top-notch people to
government service?
15) There's been much friction in your administration between top-level political
appointees and middle-level career civil servants. Why has this happened? What is
the effect of this friction?
16) What are you doing to renew your campaign for tax reform? Are you worried
that your proposals will be too watered down by the time they're voted on in
Congress?
17) What impact would your tax reform proposals have on young Americans who'll
be going to work in the next few years?
18) What impact will large federal budget deficits have on young Americans?
19) What would you like to tell young Americans about their government?
20) Would you encourage young Americans to consider government service as a
career?
THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
December 19, 1985
MEMORANDUM FOR TOM GIBSON
SPECIAL ASSISTANT TO THE PRESIDENT
DIRECTOR, PUBLIC AFFAIRS
FROM:
JOHN G. ROBERTS
M
ASSOCIATE COUNSEL TO THE PRESIDENT
SUBJECT:
Martin Luther King Day
Counsel's Office has reviewed the above-referenced public
service announcement, and finds no objection to it from a
legal perspective.
CC: David L. Chew
ID #.
CU
WHITE HOUSE
CORRESPONDENCE TRACKING WORKSHEET
o . OUTGOING
H INTERNAL
I - INCOMING
Date Correspondence
Received (YY/MM/DD)
/
/
Name of Correspondent:
Dave Chew
MI Mail Report
User Codes: (A)
(B)
(C)
Subject:
Martin Luther King Day
ROUTE TO:
ACTION
DISPOSITION
Tracking
Type
Completion
Action
Date
of
Date
Office/Agency
(Staff Name)
Code
YY/MM/DD
Response
Code
YY/MM/DD
CUHOLL
ORIGINATOR 85 1121119
/ /
Referral Note:
CUAT18
R 85/12/19
5 85,12,19
Referral Note:
SPM
I if
/ /
I
Referral Note:
/ il
/ /
I
Referral Note:
/ il
/ /
Referral Note:
ACTION CODES:
DISPOSITION CODES:
A Appropriate Action
1-. Info Copy Only/No Action Necessary
A Answered
C Completed
C Comment/Recommendation
R Direct Reply w/Copy
B - Non-Special Referral
S Suspended
D Draft Response
S For Signature
F Furnish Fact Sheet
X Interim Reply
to be used as Enclosure
FOR OUTGOING CORRESPONDENCE
Type of Response = Initials of Signer
Code = "A"
Completion Date = Date of Outgoing
Comments:
Keep this worksheet attached to the original incoming letter.
Send all routing updates to Central Reference (Room 75, OEOB).
Always return completed correspondence record to Central Files.
Refer questions about the correspondence tracking system to Central Reference, ext. 2590.
5/81
Document No.
WHITE HOUSE STAFFING MEMORANDUM
DATE: 12/19/85
ACTION/CONCURRENCE/COMMENT DUE BY: 5:00 P.M. TODAY
SUBJECT: MAGAZINE TEXT PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT FOR MARTIN LUTHER KING DAY
ACTION FYI
ACTIQ FYI
VICE PRESIDENT
McFARLANE
REGAN
OGLESBY
MILLER
RYAN
BUCHANAN
SPEAKES
CHAVEZ
SPRINKEL
CHEW
P
SS SVAHN
DANIELS
THOMAS
FIELDING
TUTTLE
HENKEL
HICKS
KINGON
LACY
REMARKS:
Please provide any comments/recommendations directly to
Tom Gibson, with an info copy to my office, by 5:00 p.m.
today. Thank you.
RESPONSE:
David L. Chew
Staff Secretary
Ext. 2702
Draft Magazine Text Public Service Announcement for Martin Luther
King Holiday
More than twenty years ago, Martin Luther King Jr. stood on
the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. and
summoned America to her own best ideals. He yearned for the day
when "this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of
its creed, 'we hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men
are created equal. He also spoke of his dream -- that his
"four little children will one day live in a nation where they
will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content
of their character."
Dr. King would be proud -- and perhaps even a little
surprised -- if he could see how far we've come in the past
twenty years. What he struggled and longed for has become
reality for millions. Much of the credit belongs to that man who
stood in the August sun and called a nation to account. And much
of the credit also belongs to a nation with a soul big enough to
hear and take heed.
There can be no greater memorial to Martin Luther King than
to defend the principle of equality of opportunity against all
challenges. Let us not only preserve the dream, but continue
working to make it a final reality.
On Monday, January20th,
Show the world that peace
is not just a dream.
Celebrate
Monday
January20th. 1986
Mar tin Luther King, Jr.
National Holiday
IF FOR ONLY ONE DAY
LIVE THE DREAM
29.
no
02.200
THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
March 18, 1986
MEMORANDUM FOR THOMAS F. GIBSON III
SPECIAL ASSISTANT TO THE PRESIDENT AND
DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS
FROM:
JOHN G. ROBERTS D26R
ASSOCIATE COUNSEL TO THE PRESIDENT
SUBJECT:
Draft Presidential Article
for Highlights Magazine
Counsel's Office has reviewed the above-referenced draft
Presidential article and finds no objection to it from a legal
perspective.
CC: David L. Chew
ID #
CU
WHITE HOUSE
CORRESPONDENCE TRACKING WORKSHEET
o - OUTGOING
H - INTERNAL
I * INCOMING
Date Correspondence
Received (YY/MM/DD)
/
/
Name of Correspondent:
Dave Chew
MI Mall Report
User Codes: (A)
(B)
(C)
Subject: magazine Draft Presidential article has Highlights
ROUTE TO:
ACTION
DISPOSITION
Tracking
Type
Completion
Action
Date
of
Date
Office/Agency
(Staff Name)
Code
YY/MM/DD
Response
Code
YY/MM/DD
CUHOLL
ORIGINATOR 86,03,18
/ /
Referral Note:
cunt 18
&
86,03,18
your 586,03,20
Referral Note:
НЕБГА
/ /
/ /
Referral Note:
/ /
/ /
I
Referral Note:
/ /
-
/ /
Referral Note:
Codes:
ACTION CODES:
DISPOSITION CODES:
A - Appropriate Action
I * Info Copy Only/No Action Necessary
A Answered
C Completed
C - Comment/Recommendation
R Direct Reply w/Copy
00068
B - Non-Special Referral
S Suspended
D Draft Response
S For Signature
F - Furnish Fact Sheet
X . Interim Reply
to be used as Enclosure
FOR OUTGOING CORRESPONDENCE:
ВЕСЛОЙ
Type of Response = Initials of Signer
Code = "A"
Completion Date = Date of Outgoing
Comments:
BECOND? КУНУСЕИЕЙТ ОИГА
Keep this worksheet attached to the original incoming letter.
Send all routing updates to Central Reference (Room 75, OEOB).
Always return completed correspondence record to Central Files.
Refer questions about the correspondence tracking system to Central Reference, ext. 2590.
5/81
Document No.
WHITE HOUSE STAFFING MEMORANDUM
DATE:
3/18/86
ACTION/CONCURRENCE/COMMENT DUE BY: 3/20/86
SUBJECT: DRAFT PRESIDENTIAL ARTICLE FOR HIGHLIGHTS MAGAZINE
ACTION FYI
ACTION FYI
VICE PRESIDENT
LACY
REGAN
POINDEXTER
MILLER
RYAN
BALL
y
SPEAKES
BUCHANAN
SPRINKEL
CHAVEZ
SVAHN
CHEW
P
SS THOMAS
DANIELS
TUTTLE
GIBSON
FIELDING
HENKEL
HICKS
KINGON
REMARKS:
Please provide any comments on the attached directly to
Tom Gibson by Thursday, March 20th, with an info copy to
my office. Thank you.
RESPONSE:
12:51 51
David L. Chew
Staff Secretary
Ext. 2702
March 18, 1986
DRAFT PRESIDENTIAL ARTICLE FOR HIGHLIGHTS MAGAZINE
"The Meaning of the Statue of Liberty"
For 100 years now Miss Liberty, that grand statue in New
York Harbor, has been a symbol of the freedom and the opportunity
that we enjoy in the United States. Freedom and opportunity that
many people in the world are not allowed by their governments to
have.
She has welcomed millions of new immigrants to this country,
maybe even your grandparents or great grandparents. To them, the
Statue of Liberty was their first real glimpse of America, the
land they chose as the place to build a better life for
themselves and their families.
To young Americans, Miss Liberty takes on a special meaning.
She is the link from the past to the present, and she is the
promise of the future.
With her torch held high, she is lighting the way through
"the golden door" of opportunity and showing you that the path to
the future is in freedom. Soon it will be your duty to make
certain that our country will always be the place where those who
dare to dream can succeed.
The millions of new Americans who sailed past Miss Liberty
were drawn here by the dream that with hard work and freedom
there was no limit to what they could do.
We were blessed by these new people who became citizens and
helped build our country and protect our freedom.
They helped make our country great because they brought
something special from every corner of the world. And in doing
SO we have been able to prove that people who are different can
live together.
Miss Liberty has been standing guard, watching our progress
as we worked to build America and keep her free.
She has seen our armed forces sail off to fight in foreign
wars for the freedom and democracy of others and to keep our
country safe. And she welcomed them home again as heroes.
During the past 100 years Miss Liberty has seen all the
progress that we have made as a nation. She has seen us go from
wooden sailing ships to space ships that let us explore the final
frontier. There we will develop new ways to help all of us here
on Earth.
Whenever you see the Statue of Liberty, remember what she
means to us and to the world. She is standing guard over the
promise of freedom and opportunity that is the real meaning of
the American dream.