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JGR/Presidential Remarks, [Statements, & Addresses] (03/01/1985-03/12/1985)
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JGR/Presidential Remarks, [Statements, & Addresses] (03/01/1985-03/12/1985)
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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 Remarks,
[Statements, & Addresses] (03/01/1985-03/12/1985)
Box: 41
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
March 5, 1985
MEMORANDUM FOR BEN ELLIOTT
DEPUTY ASSISTANT TO THE PRESIDENT
DIRECTOR, PRESIDENTIAL SPEECHWRITING
FROM:
JOHN G. ROBERTS ryoR
ASSOCIATE COUNSEL TO THE PRESIDENT
SUBJECT:
Presidential Remarks: Dropby for
National Newspaper Association
Counsel's Office has reviewed the above-referenced draft
remarks. On page 4, line 1, we recommend changing
"constitutionally entitled" to "intended." With this change
the sentence conveys the same notion that much of what the
Federal Government has attempted to do in recent years has
been beyond what the Framers envisioned, without suggesting
that it was legally ultra vires. Also, on page 5, line 11,
"council" should be "counsel."
CC: David L. Chew
ID #
CU
WHITE HOUSE
CORRESPONDENCE TRACKING WORKSHEET
0 * OUTGOING
H * INTERNAL
I * INCOMING
Date Correspondence
Received (YY/MM/DD)
/
/
Name of Correspondent: David L. chew
MI Mail Report
User Codes: (A)
(B)
(C)
Subject: Presidential Remarks: Drapby for national
nuwspaper association
ROUTE TO:
ACTION
DISPOSITION
Tracking
Type
Completion
Action
Date
of
Date
Office/Agency
(Staff Name)
Code
YY/MM/DD
Response
Code
YY/MM/DD
CUNCLL
ORIGINATOR
85,03,04
/ /
Referral Note:
CHAT 18
R
85,03,04
5 85,03,05
10 am
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Referral Note:
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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: 3/4/85
ACTION/CONCURRENCE/COMMENT DUE BY: 10:00 a.m. 3/5/85
SUBJECT: PRESIDENTIAL REMARKS: Dropby Briefing for National Newspaper
Association
(3/4/85 - 1:30 p.m. draft)
ACTION FYI
ACTION FYI
VICE PRESIDENT
MURPHY
MEESE
OGLESBY
REGAN
ROGERS
DEAVER
SPEAKES
STOCKMAN
SVAHN
CHEW
P
SS
VERSTANDIG
FIELDING
WHITTLESEY
FULLER
KINGON
BUCHANAN
TUTTLE
HICKEY
ROLLINS
McFARLANE
FRIEDERSDORF
McMANUS
ELLIOTT
REMARKS:
Please provide any comments or edits directly to Ben Elliott,
with an info copy to my office.
Thanks.
RESPONSE:
David L. Chew
1385 MAR -1, ME 2:01
Staff Secretary
Ext. 2702
(Dolan/BE)
March 4, 1985
1:30 p.m.
PRESIDENTIAL REMARKS: DROPBY BRIEFING FOR NATIONAL
NEWSPAPER ASSOCIATION
THURSDAY, MARCH 7, 1985
I want you all to know how delighted I am that you are here
with us again; this is the fifth year now that we've had the
privilege of having you as our guests -- I feel as though we've
sort of grown up together. I hope that doesn't offend anyone;
actually, as far as I'm concerned, none of us is really older,
just better. And as Cardinal Spellman used to say, there are
three ages in life: youth, middle age, and you're looking great.
And that brings up the story about the cub reporter who went
out to interview a 65-year-old man who had just won the local
marathon. The fast-paced old timer claimed vitality was part of
his family heritage. "After all," he boasted, "my father is
90 years old and is still swimming a mile every day. My
grandfather, who is 110 years old, just got married for the third
time."
The young reporter asked why he would want to do that, to
which the runner answered, "Who said he wanted to get married."
Well, all this talk about age is not really accidental -- I
am aware that you are celebrating this year your 100th
anniversary. Here at the White House, we do issue our share of
proclamations and send out a fair number of congratulations; yet
yours was and is special. As the proclamation suggests,
community newspapers had their origins in the early days of our
Nation in the struggle for independence and liberty; as our
political parties grew and democracy flourished, the newspaper
Page 2
business also came of age. Today, with the enormous advances
made in technology, you are even more capable than in the past of
bringing to your hometowns timely, provocative, and comprehensive
coverage of what concerns and affects your readers.
I know that local news -- what's happening in your
communities -- is one of the real important focuses for your
newspapers. I think it's interesting that the new technology
leading to such developments as newspaper chains and television
networks is now being put to use by many of you -- to strengthen
the very thing that so many people said the modern age would help
to eliminate -- that sense of community, that rich diversity and
difference that exists in America's towns and cities.
I think you also know that at the Federal level, we are
trying to do much the same thing. This Administration has always
believed that the real source of America's economic and social
progress is not national edicts and mandates issued from
Washington, but the toil and creativity of her people working at
the local level through their own private institutions and
associations.
That's why we are trying to shrink the cost and size of the
national Government, bring its expenditures under control, and
transfer as much of its power as we can back to the States and
localities where it will be subject to more control by the people
themselves; and, I might add, to more scrutiny by their
watchdogs, those of you in the local press.
It hasn't been all that easy, of course -- Federal
expenditures during the 15 years before we took office went up
Page 3
400 percent and the number of Federal programs escalated beyond
belief. So much so -- and I think this is interesting -- no one
can really get an exact account of just how many such programs
currently exist. Government and regulations were America's
biggest growth industry.
Now, at last, we're putting a stop to that. I won't go
through all the statistics about how we're cutting the number of
programs and regulations, the rate of growth in spending or
elaborate on the amount of power we're returning to people in the
local communities. I think the best measure of our success is
the change in the climate here in Washington. All of you can
remember that a few years ago the surest way to headlines and
success for Washington politicians was to propose another Federal
initiative and spending extravaganza, to laugh at the deficit and
claim we could try to spend our way to prosperity. Well, now, at
least, our elected officials publicly acknowledge that deficit
spending is a serious problem, and that spending yourself rich is
a bit like drinking yourself sober. But they still have a ways
to go from talking about bringing deficits down to bringing
deficits down.
And you know one additional point here is important.
Perhaps you've noticed that when some newspapers start to lose
their impact, they do it by trying to cover everything on the
international and national scale but lose their real focus --
what is important to the people in their local community. Well,
it's always fascinated me that, as Government grew larger and
larger, and started to do more and more things it was neither
Page 4
constitutionally entitled to do or competent enough to handle, it
grew less capable of carrying out its traditional and far more
important functions: maintaining civil order and protecting our
national security.
Even as we fought to get the Federal Behemoth under control
during the past few years, we were emphasizing these traditional
and most important duties of Government. I think many of you
have been reading and writing about our success against crime --
much of it the result of a sweeping organized crime initiative we
announced a few years ago.
So, too, we have been moving against the dangers to our
national security. We have come a long way from the days when
the growth of totalitarianism was unchecked and America was
routinely held up to world humiliation.
But all the work of the past few years -- the rebuilding of
our military strength and our international stature -- depends on
the continued support of the American people and the Congress.
And very shortly, one critical vote will be held on the Hill on
one of the mainstays of our strategic defenses: the MX missile.
I'm very grateful for the support all of you have given us
in the past on SO many issues, but let me emphasize this morning
that the MX is one of the most critical items on the national
agenda. I know I don't have to tell you it just isn't those of
us at home who will be watching this vote; the world is watching
too, and especially those with whom we are now trying to
negotiate arms control and reduction measures in Geneva. A vote
now against the MX would be interpreted as a sign of weakness; a
Page 5
symbol of disunity; and it could be interpreted by some as a
signal to exploit rather than seriously negotiate the arms
reduction process.
We need passage of the MX program; we need it now; we need
it for the success of our arms reduction efforts, we need it for
the sake of our future.
And there we are again talking about the future and the
passage of time. I know that many of you during the past few
years have gone through the business of hiring young reporters
and executives in your businesses. I know that sometimes you
must reflect on how young they are and council them on the work
and adventures that await them.
That's what it is really all about. Passing on to another
generation and the generations after them this thing called the
American dream -- making sure it remains a beacon of hope to a
troubled but waiting world. You've been doing that now through
this association for a hundred years; and during the past
4-1/2 years especially, all of us together have come a long way
towards bringing back excitement and energy to that dream.
So this morning I want to thank you for all your support in
the past, seek your support for the future -- particularly on the
crucial MX vote -- and wish you all a very Happy Birthday.
THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
March 7, 1985
MEMORANDUM FOR BEN ELLIOTT
DEPUTY ASSISTANT TO THE PRESIDENT
DIRECTOR, PRESIDENTIAL SPEECHWRITING
FROM:
ASSOCIATE COUNSEL TO THE PRESIDENT
JOHN G. ROBERTS OSR
SUBJECT:
Presidential Statement: Send-off for
U.S. Negotiators (Friday, March 8)
Counsel's Office has reviewed the above-referenced
statement, 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:
DAVID L. Chew
MI Mail Report
User Codes: (A)
(B)
(C)
Subject: Presidential statement: Send-ass far U.S.
negotiatars (Indues march 8)
ROUTE TO:
ACTION
DISPOSITION
Tracking
Type
Completion
Action
Date
of
Date
Office/Agency
(Staff Name)
Code
YY/MM/DD
Response
Code
YY/MM/DD
CHITOLL
ORIGINATOR 85,03,07
/
/
Referral Note:
CUAT 18
R
85,03,07
5 85,02,07
12N
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I
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I
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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: 3/7/85
ACTION/CONCURRENCE/COMMENT DUE BY: Noon TODAY
SUBJECT: PRESIDENTIAL STATEMENT: Send-off for U.S. Negotiators
(3/6/83 - 7:00 p.m. draft)
ACTION FYI
ACTION FYI
VICE PRESIDENT
McMANUS
REGAN
MURPHY
DEAVER
OGLESBY
STOCKMAN
ROLLINS
BUCHANAN
SPEAKES
CHEW
P
55 SVAHN
FIELDING
TUTTLE
FRIEDERSDORF
VERSTANDIG
FULLER
R
WHITTLESEY
HICKEY
ELLIOTT
HICKS
KINGON
McFARLANE
REMARKS:
Please provide any comments or edits directly to Ben Elliott,
with an info copy to my office.
Thanks.
RESPONSE:
David L. Chew
Staff Secretary
1985 MARI-7 All 7: 32
Ext. 2702
(State/NSC)
March 6, 1985
7:00 p.m.
PRESIDENTIAL STATEMENT: SEND-OFF FOR U.S. NEGOTIATORS
FRIDAY, MARCH 8, 1985
The challenge of statesmanship is to have the vision to
dream of a better, safer world and the courage, persistence and
patience to turn that dream into reality. Since the dawn of the
nuclear era, each generation has lived with the reality of
nuclear weapons and the fear of nuclear devastation. We face a
moral imperative -- we cannot allow our children and their
children to grow up with the fear of nuclear war.
Today we reaffirm a new vision -- of a world striving toward
the elimination of nuclear weapons, of a world in which
technology provides ever greater safety, rather than ever greater
fear. Today we set out on a new path -- toward agreements which
radically reduce the size and destructive power of existing
nuclear arsenals.
Soviet leader Konstantin Chernenko said last month: "Our
ultimate objective here is the complete elimination of nuclear
weapons everywhere on this planet, the complete removal of the
threat of nuclear war." I welcome that statement and assure
Mr. Chernenko that the elimination of nuclear weapons is also the
ultimate objective of the American Government and the American
people.
It is now our task and responsibility to take practical
steps to turn this vision into reality. We should have no
illusions that this will be easy. Any venture of this magnitude
will take time. Since the most vital security interests of both
Page 2
sides are at stake, this will clearly be long and difficult. And
we are realistic, because we know that our differences with the
Soviet Union are great. Patience, strength, and Western unity
will therefore be required if we are to have a successful
outcome.
Next week, the United States and the Soviet Union meet in
Geneva to begin a new dialogue on these vital issues. For our
part, the United States is ready -- with firmness, patience, and
understanding -- to negotiate fair and equitable agreements
reducing the dangers of nuclear war and enhancing strategic
stability. And, above all, we seek agreement as soon as possible
on real and verifiable reductions in American and Soviet
offensive nuclear arms.
I have just concluded a very good meeting with our three
negotiators -- Ambassadors Max M. Kampelman, John Tower, and
Mike Glitman -- which culminates an intensive round of
preparations. In the meeting, I gave my instructions for the
first round of the talks. These instructions enable our
negotiators to explore every promising avenue for progress. The
negotiators have my strongest personal support. Like Americans
everywhere, I want these negotiations to succeed. I will do
everything I can to ensure that this happens, and I pray that the
Soviet leadership is prepared to make the same commitment.
I want to thank our team for the fine work you have already
done in getting ready for this endeavor. And, as you prepare to
leave for Geneva, I cannot think of a more welcome message than
Page 3
an unmistakable vote of confidence from the American people and
the Congress.
Ambassadors Kampelman, Tower, and Glitman, and all the
members of our negotiating team, I know that all of our fellow
Americans wish you every success. And I know from my
conversations with the bipartisan leadership of the Congress that
the Congress of the United States joins in supporting you.
So, to all of you - those who will be in Geneva, and those
who will be supporting this crucial effort from Washington --
best wishes and God bless you.
THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
March 12, 1985
MEMORANDUM FOR BEN ELLIOTT
DEPUTY ASSISTANT TO THE PRESIDENT
DIRECTOR, PRESIDENTIAL SPEECHWRITING
FROM:
JOHN G. ROBERTS 022
ASSOCIATE COUNSEL TO THE PRESIDENT
SUBJECT:
Presidential Remarks: Departure Statement
Signing Ceremony, Quebec City, Canada
Counsel's Office has reviewed the above-referenced remarks,
and finds no objection to them from a legal perspective.
The version we have reviewed did not include a discussion of
the transboundary air pollution issue.
The second sentence on page 2 -- with its reference to "both
our continents" -- strikes me as inartfully phrased.
Perhaps "the continent we share" or something along those
lines would be better; as written the phrase refers to more
than one continent.
CC: David Chew
ID #.
CU
WHITE HOUSE
CORRESPONDENCE TRACKING WORKSHEET
o - OUTGOING
H . INTERNAL
I - INCOMING
Date Correspondence
Received (YY/MM/DD)
/
/
Name of Correspondent: David chew
MI Mail Report
User Codes: (A)
(B)
(C)
Subject: Presidential remarks: Departure statement / signing
ceremony , Quebec City, Canada
ROUTE TO:
ACTION
DISPOSITION
Tracking
Type
Completion
Action
Date
of
Date
Office/Agency
(Staff Name)
Code
YY/MM/DD
Response
Code
YY/MM/DD
curtone
ORIGINATOR
85,03,12
/
/
Referral Note:
CUAT18
R
85,03,12
585,03,12 S
COB
Referral Note:
/
/
/
/
Referral Note:
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Referral Note:
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Referral Note:
ACTION CODES:
DISPOSITION CODES:
A * Appropriate Action
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.
Document No.
WHITE HOUSE STAFFING MEMORANDUM
DATE:
3/11/85
ACTION/CONCURRENCE/COMMENT DUE BY: c.o.b. Tuesday, 3/12/85
SUBJECT: PRESIDENTIAL REMARKS: DEPARTURE STATEMENT/SIGNING CEREMONY
Quebec City, Canada
(3/11/85 - 5:00 p.m. draft)
ACTION FYI
ACTION FYI
VICE PRESIDENT
McMANUS
REGAN
MURPHY
DEAVER
OGLESBY
STOCKMAN
ROLLINS
BUCHANAN
SPEAKES
CHEW
P
SS SVAHN
FIELDING
TUTTLE
FRIEDERSDORF
VERSTANDIG
FULLER
WHITTLESEY
HICKEY
HENKEL
HICKS
ROSEBUSH
KINGON
ELLIOTT
McFARLANE
REMARKS:
Please provide any comments/edits directly to Ben Elliott by c.o.b. Tuesday,
with an information copy to my office.
Thanks.
RESPONSE:
1985 MAR 12 AM 8: 57
David L. Chew
Staff Secretary
Ext. 2702
(Rohrabacher/BE)
March 11, 1985
5:30 p.m.
PRESIDENTIAL REMARKS: DEPARTURE STATEMENT/SIGNING CEREMONY
QUEBEC CITY, CANADA
MONDAY, MARCH 18, 1985
The Citadel at Quebec says so much about Canada and about
the relations between our two countries. On this rock once flew
the flag of France and then the flag of Britain. Today, the
Maple Leaf flag symbolizes a united Canada.
Over two centuries ago, Canadians and Americans battled one
another in this city. It appeared then that we were destined to
be enemies. But the walls surrounding us today were erected for
a war which never came. Canada and the United States put aside
suspicion and malice to build not only a lasting and permanent
friendship, but a great and productive relationship. Today, the
Citadel and other places like it in both our countries stand as
monuments to a history of peace, good will, and cooperation.
Earlier today, I suggested that Canada and the United States
are forging a New Partnership. This afternoon, Prime Minister
Mulroney and I are putting the new partnership to work. The
relationship between our two countries is complex and varied.
The agreements we are announcing this afternoon reflect that
variety.
We share the world's longest boundary and the world's
longest water boundary. Yet, more fundamentally, we share
Earth's most bountiful continent. We are responsible for its
environment.
[Potential transboundary air pollution insert]
Page 2
For almost three decades, the Distant Early Warning Line --
known as the DEW Line -- has been the northern-most edge of our
early warning capability. It's been a vital part of the
deterrent system, which protects both our continents from attack,
?
serving as a watch tower for NORAD headquarters. The technology
of the DEW Line is now almost obsolete. But the need for an
early warning line remains. Accordingly, the Prime Minister and
I are signing/announcing an agreement to modernize the North
American air defense system.
The Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty, which we'll sign, will
facilitate the serving of subpoenas by Canadian and American law
enforcement officials.
Protecting the environment, defending our people, and
ensuring that justice is done -- these are all special roles for
government. Economic prosperity, however, requires the
enterprise, work, and investment of the private sector. Being
each other's largest trading partner, Canadians and Americans
have long enjoyed profitable economic and commercial ties.
Today, Prime Minister Mulroney and I are issuing a statement on
the enhancement of our mutually beneficial trade.
We are also exchanging the instruments of ratification for a
U.S.-Canada Pacific Salmon Treaty. This brings a 15-year-old
undertaking to a successful conclusion. The Treaty will be a
boon to both our citizens along the Pacific Coast. It symbolizes
how we are able, with a combination of hard work and high-level
attention, to turn an irritant in our relations into a form of
cooperation.
Page 3
The poet Rupert Brooke wrote: "And high and grey and serene
above the morning lay the citadel of Quebec. Is there any city
in the world that stands so nobly as Quebec?" Nancy and I have
deeply appreciated your hospitality. We will remember the beauty
of your city, the warmth of your welcome, and your friendship.
Nous nous souviendrons de vous.
Mila and Brian, this has been a wonderful visit for Nancy
and me. We look forward to seeing both of you again. I can only
repeat what I said the last time we met: a la prochaine.
THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
March 12, 1985
MEMORANDUM FOR BEN ELLIOTT
DEPUTY ASSISTANT TO THE PRESIDENT
DIRECTOR, PRESIDENTIAL SPEECHWRITING
FROM:
ASSOCIATE COUNSEL PR TO THE PRESIDENT
JOHN G. ROBERTS
SUBJECT:
Presidential Remarks: Arrival Ceremony
Quebec City, Canada
Counsel's Office has reviewed the above-referenced remarks,
and finds no objection to them 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: David chew
MI Mail Report
User Codes: (A)
(B)
(C)
Subject: Presidential Remarks: ameral Ceremany Quebec
City + Canada
ROUTE TO:
ACTION
DISPOSITION
Tracking
Type
Completion
Action
Date
of
Date
Office/Agency
(Staff Name)
Code
YY/MM/DD
Response
Code
YY/MM/DD
CUNOLL
ORIGINATOR
85,03,12
/
/
Referral Note:
CUAT 18
R
85,03,12
85,03,12
Referral Note:
/ /
/
/
Referral Note:
/
/
/
/
Referral Note:
RECOUDELÀ
/
/
/
/
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
CONDS
OF 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: 3/11/85
ACTION/CONCURRENCE/COMMENT DUE BY: c.o.b. Tuesday 3/12/85
SUBJECT: PRESIDENTIAL REMARKS: ARRIVAL CEREMONY
Quebec City, Canada
(3/11/85 - 5:00 p.m. draft)
ACTION FYI
ACTION FYI
VICE PRESIDENT
McMANUS
REGAN
MURPHY
DEAVER
OGLESBY
STOCKMAN
ROLLINS
BUCHANAN
SPEAKES
x
CHEW
P
SVAHN
FIELDING
TUTTLE
FRIEDERSDORF
VERSTANDIG
FULLER
WHITTLESEY
HICKEY
HENKEL
HICKS
ELLIOTT
KINGON
ROSEBUSH
McFARLANE
REMARKS:
Please provide any comments/edits directly to Ben Elliot by c.o.b. Tuesday,
with an information copy to my office.
Thanks
RESPONSE:
David L. Chew
1985 MAR 12 AM 8: 57
Staff Secretary
Ext. 2702
(Noonan/BE)
March 11, 1985
5:00 p.m.
PRESIDENTIAL REMARKS: ARRIVAL CEREMONY
QUEBEC CITY, CANADA
SUNDAY, MARCH 17, 1985
Prime Minister Mulroney, thank you very much.
Ladies and gentlemen, Mr. Ambassador, and my friends, the
people of Canada:
It is a great pleasure to be here, for to be on Canadian
soil is to be among friends. Nancy and I are happy to return
here.
I am delighted that Prime Minister Mulroney chose Quebec as
the site of this visit. It is one of the most intriguing spots
on the continent. Here, New France was founded. Here, French is
the language of commerce, the arts, and everyday life. Here,
English-Canadians and French-Canadians came together a century
ago to set the foundations for a country in whose Parliament both
French and English would be spoken. And here, the Citadel and
the walls of the old city remind us that Canadians and Americans
long ago put aside their differences to become friends. In fact,
we are more than friends, and neighbors, and allies. We are kin,
who together have built the most productive relationship between
any two countries in the world today.
This is my first trip outside the United States since I was
sworn in to a second term. Four years ago I took my first trip
as President -- and then, too, I came to Canada. This is not a
coincidence. For the United States there is no more important
relationship than our tie with Canada. We are each other's most
Page 2
important economic partner -- we each play an important role in
world affairs -- we share a responsibility for the protection of
the continent we peacefully share -- we have a joint stake in its
environment -- and we are partners in space and in the
technologies of the future.
Between two such independent and sovereign countries there
will always be some differences, as there will always be
opportunities for agreement. We can still use what Franklin
D. Roosevelt, our last American President to visit Quebec while
serving in the White House, called for between us. He asked for
"frank dealing, cooperation, and a spirit of give and take."
That is precisely what your Prime Minister and I will be
engaged in here in Quebec. We will discuss many matters
pertaining to the environment, economic growth, and our mutual
security. We will discuss global affairs, including arms
control.
We will also be celebrating St. Patrick's Day. As two
fellows named Reagan and Mulroney this would seem to be
appropriate. I brought along Don Regan and Pat Buchanan, two of
my top advisors, for the party. They'll both be wearing green
ties. I will make my contribution this evening at the state
dinner: I'm going to think of the Prime Minister's majority in
Parliament and turn green with envy.
It's wonderful to be here. Thank you. Merci beaucoup.
THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
March 12, 1985
MEMORANDUM FOR BEN ELLIOTT
DEPUTY ASSISTANT TO THE PRESIDENT
DIRECTOR, PRESIDENTIAL SPEECHWRITING
FROM:
JOHN G. ROBERTS OZR
ASSOCIATE COUNSEL TO THE PRESIDENT
SUBJECT:
Presidential Remarks: Dropby Briefing for
American Business Conference (Revised)
Counsel's Office has reviewed the above-referenced remarks,
and finds no objection to them from a legal perspective.
CC: David L. Chew
ID #.
CU
WHITE HOUSE
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5/81
Document No.
WHITE HOUSE STAFFING MEMORANDUM
DATE:
3/12/85
ACTION/CONCURRENCE/COMMENT DUE BY: 1:00 p.m. TODAY
SUBJECT: PRESIDENTIAL REMARKS: Dropby Briefing for American Business Conference
(3/12/85 - 10:30 a.m. draft)
ACTION FYI
ACTION FYI
VICE PRESIDENT
McMANUS
REGAN
MURPHY
DEAVER
OGLESBY
STOCKMAN
ROLLINS
BUCHANAN
SPEAKES
CHEW
P
SVAHN
FIELDING
TUTTLE
FRIEDERSDORF
VERSTANDIG
FULLER
>
WHITTLESEY
A
HICKEY
ELLIOTT
HICKS
ROSEBUSH
KINGON
McFARLANE
REMARKS:
Please provide any comments/edits directly to Ben Elliott by 1:00 p.m. TODAY,
with an info copy to my office.
Thanks.
RESPONSE:
1935 MAR 12 AM 11: 27
David L. Chew
Staff Secretary
Ext. 2702
(Gilder/BE)
March 12, 1985
10:30 a.m.
PRESIDENTIAL REMARKS: DROPBY BRIEFING FOR AMERICAN
BUSINESS CONFERENCE
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 13, 1985
Good afternoon and welcome to the White House.
It's good to be meeting with you again. For the last
4 years, the American Business Conference has been a staunch and
much-appreciated ally in the battle to liberate our economy from
the old ideas of over-taxation, over-spending, and Government
control. But, as we've been seeing recently in Congress, old
habits die hard -- very hard.
I've been thinking of starting a new counseling group up in
Congress along the lines of "Over-Eaters Anonymous." We'd call
it, "Big Spenders Anonymous." It would meet every week or so and
members would get together and talk about how, try as they might,
they just can't stop squandering the people's money.
The scene in the Senate Budget Committee this past week was
a disappointing one for the American people. It seems that when
push comes to shove, it's always easier to let the taxpayer take
the fall. But let them be forewarned. I have my veto pen drawn
and ready for any tax increase Congress might even think of
sending up. I have only one thing to say to the tax increasers:
"Go ahead, make my day."
The defense budget has also become a convenient scapegoat
for those in Congress who aren't willing to face up to the tough
budget decisions. The fact is, however, the recent growth in the
deficit has nothing to do with defense spending. In the last
2 years, projected defense spending for fiscal year 1985 has
Page 2
decreased by $26 billion in real terms. During the same time,
expected total revenues for this year have increased $30 billion
in real terms.
But projected non-defense, non-debt service spending has
increased about double that amount -- around $60 billion. It
seems that despite all their rhetoric about the deficit, Congress
has been carrying on its old pork-barrelling politics as usual.
We are now seeing dramatic growth in our economy, the kind of
growth that used to be called impossible. Revised figures
for '84 showed a 6.9-percent increase in the G.N.P. But, no
economy can grow faster than Congress can write a check.
If special interest group pressures on Congress are too
great for them to get spending under control, let's do as Senator
Mack Mattingly has proposed and give the Presidential line-item
veto a 2-year trial run. Somebody has got to stop this spending
splurge, and I'm willing to take the political heat. Somebody
has to start looking out for the long-term interests of the
American people as a whole.
Later in this session of Congress, we will be presenting our
proposals for tax reform that will lower tax rates, broaden the
tax base, and make the tax code simpler and fairer. We are
looking at a top rate of 35 percent, and very possibly less, and
we will be sure that incentives for capital formation are
maintained. We are also moving forward on new GATT negotiations,
a series of trade liberalization talks with our trading partners,
developed and developing alike.
Page 3
These three initiatives -- tax reform, budget control, and
trade liberalization -- are the heart of our economic program.
Taken together, they can produce an economic renaissance in this
country. With the political will to carry these programs
through, we can very well hope to achieve the same kind of growth
we saw in 1984 every year through the end of the decade.
We can look back to the mid-sixties to see another period of
dramatic growth liberated by tax cuts and trade liberalization.
But we have an advantage they didn't have back then: Today's
economy is being powered by a high-tech explosion whose effects
are only beginning to be felt. The face of American industry is
being transformed daily by revolutionary new inventions and
breakthroughs in productivity.
But we should keep in mind as we work to reform our tax code
that misguided tax policies back in the seventies almost
destroyed America's position as the leader of the high-tech
revolution. Exorbitant tax rates, together with the high rate of
inflation, almost wiped out the venture capital markets in this
country -- forcing American entrepreneurs to look abroad for
financing. One such case is the story of Gene Amdahl, the
inventor of what many consider the most successful computer ever
built. Back in the seventies he decided to start his own
company, but he couldn't find the venture capital he needed in
this country. He was forced to go to a large high-tech
competitor in Japan. They gave him the money -- in return for
his ideas.
Page 4
High tax rates were literally producing an exodus of
American high-tech to foreign countries. We were creating tax
refugees out of our best minds and talents and most successful
entrepreneurs. But when tax rates were cut, the dollars
committed to venture capital exploded, from barely $39 million in
1977 to over $4 billion last year.
One of the first rules of economics is: If you tax
something, you get less of it. High tax rates discourage work,
risk-taking, initiative, and imagination; they are really a tax
on hope, optimism, and our faith in the future. And they
penalize most the very people who give the most -- the
risk-takers and entrepreneurs who create whole new businesses and
industries -- often out of no more than a dream and hard work.
Bob Swiggett, a member of ABC, started the Kollmorgen
[coal-morgan] Corporation in his garage. George Hatsopoulos
[hot-SOP-oh-lus], founder of Thermo Electron, and Dermot Dunphy,
CEO of Sealed Air Corporation, came to this country as
immigrants.
Entrepreneurs such as these may have started with little,
but they have added immeasurably to the wealth and prosperity of
our Nation. They took hold of the opportunity that America
offers, and they used it to create opportunity for others. The
entrepreneurial, high-growth firms of the American Business
Conference created new jobs ten times faster than the overall
economy, and more than ten times faster than the Fortune 500.
America's entrepreneurs are this country's life blood. We must
Page 5
allow them the wherewithal to follow through on their dreams and
build a great future for our country.
Taxes are simply the price of Government, and democratic
governments, just like businesses, exist in a highly competitive
environment. Individuals are constantly making choices about the
quality and extent of their participation in the taxed economy.
Do high taxes make hard work less rewarding and increased leisure
more attractive? Do they make investment less profitable and
consumption relatively cheaper? Do they channel the remaining
investment out of the productive sector and into tax shelters and
non-taxable assets? And finally, does the taxed economy begin to
lose out altogether to an expanding underground economy? This
was the story of the high-tax decade of the seventies, when more
and more Americans decided that the price of Government was,
simply, too high.
But just as businesses can increase profits by cutting
prices and expanding their share of the market, governments can
increase revenues by cutting tax rates and expanding the tax
base. This is what Japan did between 1955 and 1974 when they cut
effective tax rates practically every year. These were, of
course, years of unparalleled prosperity for Japan that
catapulted them out of the league of underdeveloped nations and
into the front ranks of the world's leading economic powers.
Our historic tax cut in '81 gave the United States the same
kind of upward push. It's no accident that revenues increased by
11 percent in 1984, the first full year when all three elements
of our tax cut were in place. There is no better time than now
Page 6
to follow through with a tax reform that will continue to
stimulate the entrepreneurial genius of the American people.
It's sometimes been said that if you lined up 1,000 economists
end to end, they still wouldn't reach a conclusion. But the
American Business Conference, and other companies that are on the
cutting edge of our economy, know the importance of the growth
scenario of tax reform, budget control, and trade liberalization.
We are poised on the threshold of an era of unrivaled prosperity,
and we will be looking to you for your support in the crucial
months ahead to make it happen.
Thank you very much and God bless you all. Now, I
understand your chairman, Arthur Levitt, has a few words.
THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
March 12, 1985
MEMORANDUM FOR FRED F. FIELDING
FROM:
JOHN G. ROBERTS
Job
SUBJECT:
Address: Canadian Luncheon
David Chew has asked that comments on the above-referenced
remarks be sent directly to Ben Elliott by close of business
today. The remarks stress the closeness of U.S. - Canadian
ties, praise Prime Minister Mulroney, and marvel at the
Canadian economic renaissance. The President emphasizes
that continued economic progress will result from easing the
burden of taxes and regulation. Moving to foreign affairs,
the remarks review the need to upgrade NATO conventional
forces and negotiate reduction in nuclear stockpiles, while
pursuing research on the Strategic Defense Initiative. In
his remarks the President announces that he and Mulroney
will (1) issue a declaration on acid rain, (2) issue a
declaration on modernizing the North American air defense
system, (3) exchange ratification instruments for the
Pacific Salmon Treaty, (4) sign a law enforcement assistance
treaty, and (5) issue a declaration on trade.
I have no legal objections, but have noted two minor stylistic
ones in the attached draft for Elliott.
Attachment
THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
March 12, 1985
MEMORANDUM FOR BEN ELLIOTT
DEPUTY ASSISTANT TO THE PRESIDENT
DIRECTOR, PRESIDENTIAL SPEECHWRITING
FROM:
FRED F. FIELDING
COUNSEL TO THE PRESIDENTINED by FFF
SUBJECT:
Address: Canadian Luncheon
Counsel's Office has reviewed the above-referenced remarks,
and finds no objection to them from a legal perspective. On
page 1, line 17, "gentlemen" should be "gentleman." In
paragraph 3 on page 5, perhaps "America" wherever it appears
should be changed to "the United States" or "the States."
The Canadians are themselves, after all, Americans.
CC: David Chew
FFF: JGR:aea 3/12/85
bcc: FFFielding
JGRoberts
Subj
Chron
THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
March 12, 1985
MEMORANDUM FOR BEN ELLIOTT
DEPUTY ASSISTANT TO THE PRESIDENT
DIRECTOR, PRESIDENTIAL SPEECHWRITING
FROM:
FRED F. FIELDING
COUNSEL TO THE PRESIDENT
SUBJECT:
Address: Canadian Luncheon
Counsel's Office has reviewed the above-referenced remarks,
and finds no objection to them from a legal perspective. On
page 1, line 17, "gentlemen" should be "gentleman." In
paragraph 3 on page 5, perhaps "America" wherever it appears
should be changed to "the United States" or "the States."
The Canadians are themselves, after all, Americans.
cc: David Chew
FFF:JGR:aea 3/12/85
bcc: FFFielding
JGRoberts
Subj
Chron
ID #.
CU
WHITE HOUSE
CORRESPONDENCE TRACKING WORKSHEET
0 - OUTGOING
H
INTERNAL
I
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Date Correspondence
Received (YY/MM/DD)
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Subject: address: Canadian Runchean
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85,03,11
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CUAT18
D
85,03,11
$ 85,03,12
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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:
3/11/85
ACTION/CONCURRENCE/COMMENT DUE BY:
c.o.b. tomorrow 3/12
SUBJECT:
ADDRESS: CANADIAN LUNCHEON
(3/11/85 - 3:00 p.m. draft)
ACTION FYI
ACTION FYI
VICE PRESIDENT
McMANUS
REGAN
MURPHY
DEAVER
OGLESBY
STOCKMAN
ROLLINS
BUCHANAN
SPEAKES
CHEW
P
SS SVAHN
FIELDING
TUTTLE
FRIEDERSDORF
VERSTANDIG
FULLER
WHITTLESEY
HICKEY
ELLIOTT
HICKS
HENKEL
ROSEBUSH
KINGON
McFARLANE
REMARKS:
Please provide any edits directly to Ben Elliott by c.o.b. tomorrow,
March 12th, with an information copy to my office.
Thank you.
RESPONSE:
David L. Chew
Staff Secretary
Ext. 2702
(Elliott)
March 11, 1985
3:00 p.m. SS
PRESIDENTIAL ADDRESS: CANADIAN LUNCHEON
MONDAY, MARCH 18, 1985
Mr. Prime Minister, Mrs. Mulroney, Mayor Pelletier, and all
of you very distinguished ladies and gentlemen. Nancy and I
thank you with all the warmth in our hearts for your gracious
welcome. Just as 4 years ago, it is an honor and privilege to
make our first visit of the term a visit to Canada, our nearest
neighbor, our closest ally, and, yes, our dearest friend.
To have come here to the heart of old Quebec, and to this
magnificent chateau, that, for us, will forever be a golden
memory of beauty looking down on beauty all around, and, still
more, to have been joined by one who shares my ancestral roots on
Saint Patrick's Day -- well, it's almost too much for this son of
an Irishman to bear. I can now say I've lived to the fullest one
fine expression from your native tongue - C'etait formidable.
That might be enough to convince you that French is not my
native tongue. Actually, I was told, a long time ago, don't
worry about your accent. It's not how well you speak French, the
gentlemen said, but how well you appreciate our people and
culture. And, ever since Jacques Cartier told me that, I've been
a great admirer of all things French-Canadian.
Sometimes we see similarities. Unlike the United States,
Canada has never had a civil war. But you make up for it with
your hockey games between the Quebec Nordiques and the Montreal
Canadians.
Page 2
As we begin anew, we come again to be with friends. We come
to share great dreams in a land where big is a word too small to
describe the sweep of Laurentian peaks and prairie plains, or the
strength of Canadian spirit that tamed a giant continent and now
looks to a future rich with promise.
Flying across Canada yesterday afternoon, I thought of your
Commander Marc Garneau. He is the first of what we hope will be
many Canadian astronauts on joint Canadian-American missions.
When he was aboard the space shuttle Challenger, at a moment
high above Quebec, Commander Garneau said, "My country is very
fantastic. We are lucky to be Canadian, to have such a big and
wonderful country." To which I would only add: And are we not
lucky to be neighbors in these good, free lands that God has
blessed as none others have ever been blessed?
When we look around the globe today, when we see a scar of
shame dividing families in Europe east from west, and dividing
Korea north from south, see the great anguish that military
aggression and terrorism have wrought upon so many innocent lives
across Asia, Africa, the Middle East, and Central America, then,
yes, we would do well to give thanks for the principles of
democracy and human dignity that have cradled us with peace and
showered us with abundance since the birth of our two Nations.
We celebrate our Canadian-American relationship, symbolized
by a peaceful 4,000-mile border preserving the best in our
national characters and cultures. Our border has not changed its
physical aspects. But like the constant ebb and flow of this
Page 3
great waterway, the Saint Lawrence, the currents of ideas
crossing our border are changing dramatically.
Victor Hugo once said, no army can stop an idea whose time
has come. Today, the tide of freedom is up, lifting our
economies ever upward on a new current of imagination, discovery,
and hope for our future.
There is a leader who personifies this new spirit, a leader
who has said, "Canadians in the mid-1980's have a renewed sense
of confidence in themselves as a nation." And who also said,
there is a "role for government that is less
interventionist
a role that creates a climate in which the
entrepreneurial genius of the private sector can do what it does
best -- namely, create new wealth, new possibilities of
employment."
Mr. Prime Minister, I like those words so much, I thought if
I might borrow them for one of my speeches. Well, Americans take
a friendly neighbor's quiet pride in your Canadian revival; and
we share your respect and admiration for the man doing so much to
carry it forward, Prime Minister Brian Mulroney.
Canadians live at the top of North America, SO sometimes we
think of you as fellow-homedwellers inhabiting the upper floors
of the house. We who live down on the first floor have heard
some pretty loud rumbles upstairs. They've been loudest up here,
in that portion of the house we know to be Quebec.
Those who have come up for a look have discovered some very
interesting and positive developments. The changes in French
Canada during the past 25 years -- your revolution tranquille --
Page 4
propelled the transformation of Quebec into a modern community,
while emphasizing all along its French-speaking character.
In a free and unique referendum, the people of Quebec
declared themselves at once Canadian and Quebecois. And, now
your long historical development as a French-speaking North
American community is entering an exciting phase -- entrepreneurs
from Quebec competing in markets throughout the continent,
introducing business know-how with a French face.
We can feel the pulse of progress within this Nation. And I
can tell you we value highly the friendship of a people unafraid
to embrace the challenge of change, yet unwilling to forsake your
oldest, most trusted companions -- your traditions, values, and
roots.
There is a saying I've always liked -- one should keep old
roads and old friends. You have not strayed from the road of
good and graceful virtues that enrich our lives and keep us truly
free -- free to be generous, kind, and true, and yes, free to
strive for progress and greatness, but without surrendering our
souls to a mad and mindless pursuit of the material.
Mes amis, the eyes of America are on Canada. In our
universities, new chairs for Canadian studies have been created;
in our Government, new attention is being paid to
Canadian-American relations; and, in our economic relations,
Canada's heightened presence was recently highlighted by a
special feature in the New York Times Sunday Magazine entitled,
"Canada's New Economic Clout."
Page 5
For all this and more -- for Quebec-owned power companies
and Canadian railroads stretching from New England to Washington
State, combine equipment across our great grain-belt, and what
Americans insist is the best beer in the world, we echo Brian
Mulroney's words, "Thank God for Canada."
At the heart of my Nation's policies is one conviction, and
please hear it well: There is no relationship more important to
the United States than our ties with Canada. We are, by far,
each other's most important trading partner. Our two-way trade,
the largest in the world, is valued at over $100 billion. We are
allies. In North America and across the North Atlantic region we
stand watch together on the walls of freedom. Most important, we
are friends, determined always to remain friends.
The question is, having righted ourselves, having regained
our spirit of exuberance and optimism, where do we go from here?
I know that your Prime Minister and I agree: Canada and America
can build together, Canada and America can grow together, Canada
and America can lead together -- and leaders we shall be in a New
Partnership for Progress into the 21st Century.
Each of us knows that the economic actions we take affect
not just us alone, but the relationships across our borders and
the confidence of our friends and allies throughout the world.
And so each must set an example worthy of emulation.
For our part, the United States is making a very fundamental
change in direction -- a change away from years of creeping
socialism that slowed our progress with overspending and
taxation, redistribution of wealth, and ever-greater dependency
Page 6
on Government, toward a new American Revolution -- a peaceful
revolution to be sure -- rising from our conviction that
successful action must begin with a vision of hope and
opportunity for all.
For many years, we heard a pessimistic view of the future
that saw humankind doomed to inhabit a world of limits. We were
told that, since the decisive factors of wealth were material
resources, space, energy, and land, and since these resources
were finite, Government's duty was to supervise production and
consumption through steep taxation and aggressive regulation.
Many academics insisted such policies were the only way third
world countries could leapfrog to higher stages of economic
development.
But all the while, another, more optimistic view was gaining
currency, though given little notice by opinionmakers of the day:
the belief that there are no limits to human progress when men
and women are free to follow their dreams; no limits, because the
ultimate resources are not of matter, but of mind and spirit --
the resources of faith, courage, imagination, and intellect.
Government's responsibility, then, is to end tax and
regulatory barriers, throw open wide the windows of opportunity,
welcome the warm sunlight of incentives, and encourage creativity
to flower and every individual to excel.
It was human faith and skill that discovered oil where some
believed there was only sand; that created surpluses of energy
and food when shortages were predicted; and that, today, are
pioneering substitutes like tar sands, biotechnology, and
Page 7
microchips the size of a fingernail, even though a leading
business expert said in 1957, quote, "I can assure you on the
highest authority that data processing is a fad and won't last
out the year.
The evidence is in and all points in one direction: Freedom
works. Japan, once considered an underdeveloped country, cut tax
rates almost every year for two decades, producing an explosive,
non-inflationary expansion, making them a world economic power,
and leaving Europe and North America falling behind.
But while Europe and North America were raising tax rates
and falling behind, communist nations prohibiting incentives had
become economic basket cases. As for the developing countries,
the contrasts have been just as dramatic. There is not one
high-tax, centralized economy in the world today that is an
economic success story. Tragically, some African countries rich
in material resources have begun falling into a death spiral of
starvation, victims not just of drought, but of their
governments' hostility to freedom.
Yet, tiny specks on the globe like Singapore, heavily
populated and with seemingly nothing to produce or sell, are
modern-day versions of a children's story hero of old: They are
The Little Engines That Could, new entrepreneur nations of
stunning success, pulling the world forward with their dynamic
policies that reward innovation, risk-taking, and hard work.
Let us then set our sights on a new vision: A renaissance
of growth in a world come alive with entrepreneurial vigor; each
nation trading freely with its neighbors; all of us together a
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mighty freedom train carrying hope and opportunity to the
farthest corners of the globe.
We in the States have learned from our mistakes and are
endeavoring to show, once again, that nothing works like freedom.
Since the day our tax rate reductions became fully
effective, we have enjoyed 27 straight months of economic growth,
the strongest rate of business investment in 35 years, a sharp
rise in productivity growth, the lowest inflation rate in
18 years, great leaps in venture capital and advanced technology,
and, led by the new superstars of the eighties -- the high growth
entrepreneurs -- a record 7 million jobs producing a dramatic
increase in our purchases of goods and services from other
nations, starting with Canada.
We believe we have begun well. We are taking new steps to
restrain the growth of Government, break down barriers of trade,
and become more competitive. And, since tax rates, the prices
for production, saving and investing, are the keys to economic
growth or decline, we are committed to an historic reform of our
tax code, making America's after-tax rewards the brightest light
for growth and stability in the industrialized world.
In all that we do, we seek to go forward with Canada as our
partner, two leaders lighting the paths to progress through
shared vision and enlightened cooperation. This afternoon at the
Citadel, Prime Minister Mulroney and I will put our New
Partnership to work:
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-- We have agreed on how jointly to proceed in addressing
the problem of acid rain and will be issuing a declaration on
that subject;
-- We will issue a declaration on the modernization of our
jointly-operated North American air defense system;
-- We will exchange the instruments of ratification that
will bring the Pacific Salmon Treaty into effect;
-- We will sign a Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty which will
aid law-enforcement authorities in both our countries;
-- And, we will issue a declaration on trade.
The prosperity of Canada and the United States depends upon
freer-flowing trade within this continent and across the seas.
We stand ready to further improve the Canada-U.S. trading
relationship and to work with you to initiate a new multilateral
trade round in early 1986.
Mr. Prime Minister, I'm confident there isn't an area where
you and I cannot reach an agreement for the good of our two
countries. Come to think of it, maybe there is one: I know it's
a great concern to you, but I don't think I have the authority to
send Gary Carter back to the Expos.
More powerful in our economies, more powerful in our
partnership, the United States and Canada can meet together the
challenge of defending freedom and leave a safer world for those
who will follow. For almost 40 years, we and our European
friends have joined together in history's most successful
alliance, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. The world will
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not forget that Canada was in the forefront of the nations that
formed and armed NATO.
Two daunting challenges lie before us: To upgrade NATO's
conventional forces; and to reduce -- and I mean radically
reduce -- the level of nuclear arms and categories of weapons
hanging over the world. The United States will continue to
pursue the arms control talks in Geneva with determination,
flexibility, and patience. I am convinced, and know every one of
you agrees, that a nuclear war cannot be won and must never be
fought.
Upgrading NATO's conventional forces is essential to
deterrence, for the greater our common ability to resist Soviet
aggression with conventional forces, the less likely such
aggression will ever occur. NATO is engaged in a rebuilding
program, and today, I want to thank publicly Prime Minister
Mulroney and the Canadian people for your commitment to enhance
significantly your contribution to NATO's conventional forces.
Your deficit as a percent of G.N.P. is bigger than ours, yet
you are honoring your commitment, because you understand that
protecting freedom is government's primary responsibility. For
your courage, Canada deserves more than praise, you deserve
emulation.
We must never pause in our search for a safer world, a world
dedicated to the elimination of nuclear weapons, where technology
can provide ever greater safety, not ever greater fear. We are
enthusiastic about the research done so far on our Strategic
Defense Initiative, research designed ultimately to protect us
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with a global security shield that would intercept enemy missiles
before they could reach the U.S. or her allies.
Ideally, we could build a shield so strong, so secure, that
not even a slapshot by Wayne Gretsky could get through. The
possibility of developing, and sharing with you, technology that
could render a nuclear attack obsolete is for us the most hopeful
possibility of the nuclear age -- and we very much appreciate
Canada's support on S.D.I.
It puzzles me to hear the Soviets describe research to
protect humanity as a threat to peace. Their protests ring a
little hollow. I did some research of my own and found that,
in 1967, Soviet Premier Aleksey Kosygin said, "The anti-missile
system is not a weapon of aggression, of attack, it is a
defensive system." And the Soviets took his words to heart, and
began investing heavily in strategic defense.
Nor must we confuse our priorities in these negotiations.
The Soviets seek to divide us by promising to reduce the
offensive weapons they are pointing at us, if we'll scrap our
work on S.D.I. But imagine if our research pays off. It would
be like a person having a bulletproof vest being confronted by
another who says: "I'm pointing a gun at you, and I have two
more guns in my coat. But if you'll throw away your bulletproof
vest, I'll throw away one of my guns."
Forgive me, but speaking as a former negotiator for my
union, that's not my idea of a good trade. Let us hope the
Soviets are not more determined to eliminate systems that might
protect people, than they are to eliminate weapons that kill
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people. As allies, we must consult with each other, maintain our
unity, and insist on agreements that are equitable and
verifiable.
Verifiable, because the Soviet Union signed the Yalta accord
pledging free elections, then proceeded to dominate Eastern
Europe; verifiable, because they signed the Geneva Convention
banning toxins, SALT II limiting development of new weapons, and
the ABM treaty, and are now violating all three; verifiable,
because they signed the Helsinki Accord solemnly pledging respect
for human rights, then not only ignored the agreement, but jailed
the individuals trying to monitor it in the USSR and its
satellite countries.
We need both idealism and realism. Each of us would agree,
I suspect, that what gives our lives meaning is knowing that we
have helped make another life better -- make it more safe, more
secure, more free. We must never doubt the great good that
Canada and the United States can accomplish together; never doubt
for a moment our journey toward a world, where, someday, all may
live under freedom's star, free to worship as they please, to
speak their thoughts, to come and go as they will, to achieve the
fullness of their potential, and, yes, reach out to those who
have fallen to comfort them with the Godly gift of human love.
This is the idealist within us whose heart is pure and can
power our journey with faith and courage. But the realist must
be there too, our navigator at the helm whose eagle-eyes discern
each movement of the sky above and waves below. We must never
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stop trying to make our world better, but we'll never succeed if
we don't see our world as it truly is.
We cannot look the other way when treaties are violated,
human beings are persecuted, religions are banned, and entire
democracies crushed. We cannot ignore that while Canadians and
Americans have donated more than $100 million from their own
pockets to help feed starving Ethiopians, the Soviets and all
their satellites have given almost no aid. But they continue to
provide over a billion dollars a year in military supplies that
the Ethiopian government is using against its own people.
These are painful realities, but history may well remember
them as the birth pangs of a new, much brighter era. Brave men
and women are challenging the Brezhnev Doctrine that insists once
a country has been taken from the family of free nations, it may
never return. Freedom movements are rising up -- from
Afghanistan, to Cambodia, Angola, Ethiopia and Nicaragua. For
the first time in post-war history, the weight of the world is
struggling to shift -- away from the dreary failures of communist
oppression, toward restoration and creation of genuine democracy
and human rights.
Will history speak of freedom victorious? May we someday
salute new heroes from nations reborn -- sons and daughters who
might grow up to be like Marc Garneau or Roberta Bondar, bringing
honor to science and to their nations; or, perhaps, like Andre
Viger, paralyzed below the waist, but no matter, because with a
will of steel in a land of the free he could keep on going to
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open six stores employing 44 people, many of them handicapped,
and to win our Boston Marathon as well.
History's verdict will depend on us -- on our courage and
our faith, on our wisdom and our love. It will depend on what we
do, or fail to do, for the cause of millions who carry one dream
in their hearts -- to live a life like ours, in this special land
between the seas, where each day a new adventure can begin in a
revolution of hope that never ends.
You know, Prime Minister Mulroney once suggested that
Americans, and their President should be grateful for Canada.
How can we not be grateful for the greatness of General George C.
Kenney, of young Terry Fox, of so many we never knew. For the
inspiration you give; for the success you enjoy; and for the
friend of America and friend of freedom you will always be, we
say, once again, Merci Dieu pour la Canada.
We will always remember Quebec, and we will always remember
you. God bless you all.