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George H.W. Bush Presidential Records
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Speech File Draft Files
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National Association of Manufacturers, 3/23/89 [1]
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1
7
THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
MARCH 21, 1989
INFORMATION
MEMORANDUM FOR THE PRESIDENT
FROM:
CHRISS WINSTON Cw
SUBJECT: SPEECH TO THE NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF MANUFACTURERS
Your audience will be some 600 to 700 representatives (many
CEOs) of small- to mid-sized manufacturing concerns.
This event is an opportunity to present an "Agenda for the
New American Century," in the context of a strong manufacturing
sector.
The attached draft focuses attention on issues for the long
term: investment and entrepreneurship; sound S&Ls; the family,
and choice in childcare; education and re-training; drugs; the
environment; and volunteerism in America.
(Lange/Martin)
March 21, 1989
7:15 p.m.
PRESIDENTIAL REMARKS:
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF MANUFACTURERS
WASHINGTON, D.C.
THURSDAY, MARCH 23, 1989
Thank you, [Dick]. You know, after one tough football game,
somebody asked Knute Rockne why Notre Dame had lost. He
answered, "I won't know until my barber tells me on Monday."
Well, nobody's second-guessing American manufacturing
anymore. Clearly, you're playing a winning game.
I'm here today to tell you that "de-industrialization" is a
myth. Manufacturing, as a share of our national output, is as
strong today as it has ever been.
Thanks to the hard work of the men and women in this room --
who are the brains and muscle of America's basic industries -- we
are producing more products with a smaller percentage of our
population than ever before.
That, my friends, is productivity. That is why since 1982,
our manufacturing output has gone up twice as fast as Western
Europe and has kept pace with Japan.
You are the producers who are building a better America
every day. Your presence here today demonstrates that you are
2
fighting to win the international struggle for continued growth.
You have demonstrated that you can make America more competitive
-- and that you can keep America more competitive.
Now, I'm not saying you're going to have to do it alone.
There is a role for government. Sometimes political leadership
is needed -- for example, to keep international trade free and
fair. However, I will tell you that this government will not
confuse involvement with interference.
There's a lot of talk about competitiveness going around
these days. But competitiveness is more than just the latest
trade figures, or the latest quarterly earnings -- or the latest
poll or the latest election, for that matter.
Surely our success can be measured by better methods than
these. In your industry, as in mine, this may be a good time for
us to look toward a longer horizon.
We stand at a special moment in American history. We are
prosperous
and we are at peace.
At such a point, we must set our sights higher. We must
look farther ahead. The 21st Century is less than a dozen years
away now.
3
You've called this conference "The New Leadership Summit." "
Leadership is many things: vision, the power to inspire, the
capacity to define an agenda for future action. It is certainly
found in those who keep the great engines of American industry
turning.
Leadership means understanding where an organization finds
itself, right now; seeing where it wants to go; and knowing how
to get there. Above all, it's playing the long game, whatever
the odds -- and playing for keeps.
So today, I'd like to outline my agenda for the next
American century.
To build a better America, one of the most important
priorities for this government will be to encourage savings and
long-term investment -- and get our fiscal house in order. This
means bringing down the deficit.
Last month, I submitted a budget to Congress with a clear
agenda to cut the Federal deficit, and enhance business' ability
to plan, expand, and build.
My friends, next year, under current law, the economic
growth we are enjoying will increase federal revenues by more
4
than $80 billion without increasing tax rates. Our plan will
hold the line on spending, using that revenue to slash the
deficit by more than 40 percent -- and bring it down below the
mandated Gramm-Rudman-Hollings targets.
To encourage long-range investment and entrepreneurship in
businesses of all sizes, it's time we restored the capital gains
differential. This is a case where less means more. More
revenue to the Federal government -- $4.8 billion more in 1990,
according to Treasury estimates. More savings, and more
investment. More competitive, flexible businesses. More
opportunities for innovation.
And more jobs for all Americans -- including those who have
been left behind, and who need a chance to work for their share
of the American dream. This is no tax break for the rich. It's
a fair shake for America.
Competitiveness, opportunity, saving, and investing for the
long term -- this is why we need a capital gains tax rate cut.
It's why we need one now.
To spur investment in basic research, we've proposed a
permanent research and experimentation tax credit. A 13 percent
increase for science and technology programs.
5
And we have created a new post at the Commerce Department --
Undersecretary for Technology -- that embodies our commitment to
guaranteeing that American technology is number one. We also
intend to double the National Science Foundation's budget by
1993.
A strong economy needs a safe and secure banking system.
That is why we proposed a comprehensive plan to solve the
difficulties of our savings and loans. Our plan has been well-
received on both sides of the aisle on Capitol Hill -- and I've
asked for action within 45 days.
We want to ease the pressures now building on the most
important organization in America -- the family -- by promoting
choice on issues like child care. So last week I sent
legislation to Congress that puts money and options in the hands
of parents, rather than bureaucracies.
But the most powerful key to long-term competitiveness is
education. A strengthened education system is the essential
ingredient for America's prosperity into the next decade and the
next century. Let no one suggest that education is a minor
matter on the national agenda. It is vital to everything we are,
and can become.
6
But there are no quick fixes here, either. Like most of the
long-term issues on the national agenda, American education won't
be fixed with a bolt of lightning here, a puff of smoke there.
It will take collective effort at all levels, public and private,
to get it right. Those businesses that are involved with local
schools -- developing the workforce at its source -- are making
fail-safe investments. And they stand to reap the greatest
rewards.
For those workers already on the line, we must build new
skills and flexibility as jobs change, through training and re-
training. The NAM policy position you adopted last year said
that "investment in human resources is at least as important as
investment in equipment and technology." And you're absolutely
right. Machinery and technology alone don't improve
productivity. People do.
Another issue where we plan to play for keeps: We're
determined to get drugs out of the workplace. Drug and alcohol
abuse in the workplace costs $60 billion every year, putting
productivity and lives at risk.
Drug abuse in America must stop -- and we are off to a fast
start. Last month I spoke to Congress about four decisive
issues: education, treatment, interdiction, and enforcement.
And I asked for an increase of $1 billion in budget outlays -- to
7
nearly $6 billion in 1990 -- to escalate our effort. But we will
also be looking to you to set effective, well-reasoned drug
policies in your businesses.
Employers can teach their people to recognize the signs of
substance abuse in their co-workers -- and understand how drug
abuse hurts the non-users on the line.
Any long-term agenda must also ask how we can leave the
earth we've inherited a little better than when we found it. We
must devise answers to the problems of ozone depletion, global
warming, and acid rain. We've already joined with other nations
to call for the elimination of CFCs and the development of
environmentally safe substitutes -- as well as adopting a tough
new policy on the export of hazardous waste.
The time has come to set aside partisan approaches to these
and other enormous environmental questions. We must ensure that
our grandchildren can fish on the same lakes we've enjoyed.
In this agenda for a new American century, I've asked you to
consider a broad vision: a vision that relies on the dynamic
spirit that is America. The spirit that says: Buildings should
not stand empty, while people lack shelter. Jobs should not go
unfilled, while young men and women stand idle on street corners.
No one should go hungry, in the richest nation on earth.
8
We must promote local efforts to assure that every American
can seize a share of prosperity -- and help to create more of it.
Whether through the constellation of local community groups
already at work -- or through new ideas, like our program to
encourage our nation's youth to become involved in community
service: we will rely less on the collective wallet, and more on
collective will.
But this does not mean lowering our sights, or our
expectations. Just the opposite. In an era of tight budgets, we
are not going to simply "make do with less." " We're going to
learn how to do more with less --- and do it better. In the
factory, that's called productivity. Across our country, that's
called national spirit.
Yes, we are prosperous. And we are at peace. But such
quiet moments often become pivotal in a nation's history.
My friends, the choices we make now will determine whether
the door to the next American century is closing -- or opening
wide, for all who dare to dream.
Thank you. God bless you. And God bless America.
THE WHITE HOUSE
Office of the Press Secretary
For Immediate Release
March 23, 1989
REMARKS BY THE PRESIDENT
TO THE NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF MANUFACTURERS
The Mayflower Hotel
Washington, D.C.
1:23 P.M. EST
THE PRESIDENT: Thank you, Dick, and thank all of you.
Thank you very much for that warm welcome. Thank you for that warm
welcome back. And Dick, thank you, sir, for introducing me and for
what you're doing leading the NAM. I want to pay my respects to your
president, former secretary "Sandy" Trowbridge, who continues to do
an outstanding job. Harry Truman used to say "If you want a friend
in Washington, buy a dog." (Laughter and applause.) And I'm here to
disagree with him, because I feel in Dick, your chairman, and in
"Sandy," your president, and in the membership of this illustrious
organization, that our administration has a friend, not only in
Washington, but all across the country. And I am very grateful for
that and I normally would not dare to speak for our new illustrious
Secretary of Commerce, Bob Mosbacher, but in this regard I expect I'm
saying exactly what he feels. And I might say to you, the members of
the NAM, it is a wonderful thing to have him at my side, a successful
businessman, who knows what it means to take risks, knows what it
means to try to keep the costs down and knows what it means to add to
the productivity of this country. And Bob Mosbacher is already doing
a superb job. (Applause.)
After one tough football game, somebody asked Knute
Rockne why Notre Dame had lost. And he answered, "I won't know until
my barber tells me on Monday." (Laughter.) Well, nobody is
second-guessing American manufacturing anymore. And clearly, you all
are playing a winning game.
And I'm here today to tell you that deindustrialization
that we read about is a myth. And manufacturing, as a share of our
national output, is as strong today as it has ever been. And I think
many people in this room deserve great credit for that. Thanks to
the hard work of you people, who are the brains and the muscle of
America's basic industries, were producing more products with a
smaller percentage of our population than ever before.
And that, my friends, is productivity. And that is why
since 1982, our manufacturing output has gone up twice as fast as
Western Europe and has kept pace with Japan. You're the producers
-- is somebody's heart beating very fast over there or what the heck
is going on? (Laughter and applause.) In the technological age in
which we're living I'm sure we can -- (laughter and applause).
- 2 -
around these days, and in a way that's a very good thing. But
competitiveness is more than just the latest trade figures, or the
latest quarterly earnings -- or the latest poll or the latest
election, for that matter.
Surely our success can be measured by better methods
than these. This is a good time for us to look towards a larger
horizon. And we stand at a special moment in our history. We're
prosperous. We are at peace. And at such a point, we've got to set
our sights higher. And we must look farther ahead. It's hard for
us to believe, but the 21st century is only 11 years from now.
And you've called this conference "The New Leadership
Summit." Leadership is certainly found in those like you who keep
the great engines of American industry turning. In creating jobs and
building businesses and meeting needs, our nation's manufacturers
have shown the qualities that will carry us into the future. And
make no mistake, the challenges we face will test your vision and
your capacity to define an agenda for action.
So today, I'd like to address that very point by
outlining my agenda for the next American Century.
To build a better America, one of the most important
priorities for this govenment will be to encourage savings and
long-term investment -- to get our fiscal house in order. And that
means priority, bringing down the federal budget deficit.
(Applause.)
And last month, one of the very first things we did was
to submit a budget to Congress with a clear agenda to cut the federal
deficit and enhance business' ability to plan, expand, and build.
And next year, under current law -- there are no changes in the
revenue laws -- the economic growth we are currently enjoying will
increase federal revenues by more than $80 billion without increasing
the tax rates. And our plan will hold the line on spending, using
some of those new revenues to slash the deficit by more than 40
percent -- and meeting those Gramm-Rudman-Hollings targets.
To encourage long-range investment in businesses of all
sizes, it's time that we restored the capital gains differential. By
reducing the capital gains rate to 15 percent on long-held assets.
(Applause.) And this really is a case where less means more. More
revenue to the federal government. The Treasury now estimates that
my proposal would bring in $4.8 billion of new revenues in 1990.
That's the Treasury estimate. And the critics all say and have
climbed on us in saying "This is a tax cut for the rich." I say cut
the capital gains rate and you'll have more jobs for the poor and
others. And more growth and opportunity for the whole country.
Competitiveness, opportunity, saving and investing for the long-term
-- this is why we need a capital gains tax rate cut. And it's why we
need one now. And I am going to keep on fighting to see that the
Congress gives the people that which they deserve -- more opportunity
and more jobs.
To spur investment in basic research, we've proposed a
permanent research and experimentaton tax credit. We've also
proposed a 13 percent increase for science and technology programs,
and intend to double the National Science Foundation's budget
- 3 -
important organization in America, the family -- by promoting choice
on issues like child care. So last week I sent legislation to
Congress that puts money and options in the hands of parents, rather
than in the hands of the bureaucracies. And we are going to keep on
pushing for that concept. I do not want to have my administration
identified with one single initiative that diminishes parental choice
or in any way weakens the family. The government must do what it can
to strengthen family. (Applause.)
I'd say, though, that the most powerful key -- the most
powerful key to long-term competitiveness is education. A
strengthened education system is the essential ingredient for
America's prosperity into the next decade, into the next century.
But no one suggests that education is a minor matter on the national
agenda. It is vital to everything we are and can become. Make no
mistake about it, I understand the historic role of the communities
and of the states, and I understand the limited role that is properly
assigned the federal government. So I don't want you to feel that I
am moving towards centralizing control over our schools in
Washington, D.C.
There are no quick fixes in education. Like most of the
long-term issues on the national agenda, American education won't be
fixed with a bolt of lightning or a puff of smoke. It's going to
take collective effort at all levels, public and private, to get it
right. And those businesses that are involved with local schools --
developing the work force at its source -- are making fail-safe
investments. And they stand to reap the greatest rewards.
I -wish Barbara were here to talk to you a little bit
about her interest in literacy and to salute as she does the business
community for its involvement. I think this -- I talk about a
thousand points of light. And if there's ever an example of that, it
is the wide array of business people and business interests that are
out there helping in the field of education. I didn't much like it
when I talked about a thousand points of light and some cynic around
here made some reference, what he really is talking about is a
thousand pints of Light. (Laughter.)
But I do salute you for your outreach. For those workers
that are already on the line, we must build new skills and
flexibility as jobs change, through training and retraining. The NAM
policy position that you adopted last year said that "investment in
human resources is at least as important as investment in equipment
and technology." And you're absolutely right on that one. Machinery
and technology alone don't improve productivity. People do.
Another issue where we plan to play for keeps -- we're
determined and we are going to keep working at this one -- to get the
drugs out of the workplace. (Applause.) Drug and alcohol abuse in
the workplace costs $60 billion every year, putting productivity and
lives at risk.
Drug abuse in America really must stop -- and we're off
to a fast start. Last month I talked to the Congress about four
decisive issues: education, treatment, interdiction, and
enforcement. And I asked for an increase of $1 billion in budget
outlays -- to nearly $6 billion in 1990 -- to escalate this effort.
But
we'll
also
- 4 -
was delighted to see Russ Train here, Bill Ruckelshaus here, and I
understand they did a first-class job in addressing themselves, with
their background of experience, to this question.
We've got to devise answers to the problems of ozone
depletion and global warming and acid rain. We've already joined
with other nations to call for the elimination of CFCs and the
development of environmentally safe substitutes -- as well as
adopting a tough new policy on the export of hazardous waste. We can
do these things without stifling the economic growth that is
necessary, indeed, essential for our nation's economic health.
The time has come to set aside partisan approaches to
these and these other enormous environmental questions. We've got to
ensure that our grandchildren can fish on the same lakes we've
enjoyed.
And in this agenda for the new American Century, I've
asked you to consider a broad vision; a vision that relies on the
dynamic spirit that is America. The spirit that says buildings
should not stand empty, while people lack shelter; jobs should not go
unfilled, while young men and women stand idle on the street corners;
no one should go hungry in the richest nation on the face of the
Earth.
And we must promote local efforts to assure that every
American can seize a share of this prosperity -- and help to create
more of it -- whether through the constellation of local community
groups already at work, or through new ideas, like our program to
encourage our nation's youth to become involved in community service.
I'm absolutely convinced that with the proper leadership from the
White House and across the business community and elsewhere, we can
encourage those young people who are more fortunate than some of
their peers to pitch in and help those that are less fortunate.
We're going to rely less on the collective wallet -- we have to, to
do what I told you I want to do on the budget -- less on the
collective wallet and more on the collective will.
But this does not mean lowering our sights or our
expectations. Just exactly the opposite of that. In the era of
tight budgets, we're not going to simply "make do with less.' We're
going to learn how to do more with less -- and do it better. In the
factory, you call it productivity. Across our country, I call it the
national spirit.
And, yes, we're a prosperous country and we are at peace.
But such quiet moments often become pivotal in the nation's history.
The choices we make now are going to determine whether the door to
the next American Century is closing or opening wide, for all who
dare to dream.
Thank you for your leadership. Thank you for the support
of our administration. And aren't we lucky to be living in 1989 in
the United States of America, the best, the freest, the greatest
country on the face of the Earth? Thank you all and God bless you.
(Applause.)
END
1:40 P.M. EST
(Lange/Martin)
March 17, 1989
5:45 p.m.
PRESIDENTIAL REMARKS:
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF MANUFACTURERS
WASHINGTON, D.C.
THURSDAY, MARCH 23, 1989
Thank you, [Dick]. You know, I understand a few of you were
concerned about the 1984 Trade Report, heralding the arrival of
the "post-industrial" society. And I have to confess, that
whenever anyone talks to me about some "post-industrial" society,
I have doubts of my own.
Would such a place get along without plumbers, for instance.
And if such a society could exist, I wonder if either its pipes
or its theories would hold water.
For now, I'm willing to bet my last dollar on manufacturing
in America. At least until somebody can show me how to wear a
piece of information, or parallel-park a concept.
American manufacturing has been -- and continues to be --
the backbone of this economy. It's been estimated that every new
manufacturing job creates three other jobs here at home.
I've been a great admirer of the export-driven, rust-belt
renaissance you've kicked off. Last year, the merchandise trade
deficit dropped by a fifth. Exports surged to an all-time high.
And manufacturing productivity is also now at record levels. The
2
quality of American exports is arguably better than it has ever
been. And in terms of sheer output, American factories have
never done better.
Now, there's a lot of talk about competitiveness going
around these days -- and these facts and figures are all ways of
measuring it.
But competitiveness is more than just the latest trade
figures, the latest quarterly earnings -- or the latest poll, the
latest election, or the latest Nielson ratings, for that matter.
Surely our success can be measured by better methods than these.
In your industry, as in mine, this may be a good time for us to
look toward a longer horizon.
We stand at a special moment in American history. We are
prosperous
and we are at peace.
At such a point, we are empowered -- even required -- to set
our sights higher. To look farther ahead. It is a time to make
choices. A time to answer those questions that will have the
farthest-reaching impact on our success as a society.
The 21st century is less than a dozen years away now.
3
You've called this conference "The New Leadership Summit." Well,
whatever else you think about leadership -- or vision, for that
matter -- it's not lofty rhetoric, charisma, or clairvoyance.
No, it may be as simple as understanding where an
organization finds itself, right now; seeing where it wants to
go; and knowing how to get there. Above all, it's playing the
long game, whatever the odds -- and playing for keeps. So today
I'm like to outline my agenda for the next American century.
To build a better America, one of the most important
priorities for this government will be to build savings and long-
term investment -- and get our fiscal house in order. This
means, first off, bringing down the deficit.
Last month, I submitted a budget to Congress with a clear
agenda to cut the Federal deficit, and enhance business' ability
to plan, expand, and build. My friends, next year alone, Federal
tax revenues will rise by more than $80 billion -- and yes, here
I go again -- with No New Taxes. Our plan will hold the line on
spending, using that revenue to slash the deficit by more than 40
percent -- bringing it down below the mandated targets.
To encourage long-range investment and entrepreneurship in
businesses of all sizes, it's time we restored the capital gains
differential. This is another case where less means more. More
4
revenue to the Federal government -- $4.3 billion more, according
to Treasury estimates. More savings, and more investment. More
competitive, flexible businesses. More opportunities for
innovation. And more jobs for all Americans.
This is no tax break for the rich. It's a fair shake for
America.
To spur investment in basic research, we've proposed a
permanent extension of the research and experimentation tax
credit. A 13 percent increase for science and technology
programs. And we intend to stay on track in our effort to double
the National Science Foundation's budget by 1993.
To support capital formation, we will encourage personal
savings, and restore the integrity of our nation's savings and
loans institutions. Our plan has been well-received on both
sides of the aisle on Capitol Hill -- and I've asked for action
within 45 days.
We want to ease the pressures now building on the most
important organization in America -- the family -- by promoting
choice on issues like child care. So last week I sent
legislation to Congress that puts money and options in the hands
of parents, rather than bureaucracies. Our plan empowers all
families: dual earners, single parents, those who choose to
5
remain at home; those who prefer informal, neighborhood
arrangements; and especially those on low incomes, struggling to
be self-sufficient.
Lasting self-sufficiency, of course, means quality
education. And I see education as long-range planning at its
best -- a solution for the next century, for problems we haven't
even begun to recognize yet. It is an essential key to our
competitive future. Let no one suggest that education is a minor
matter on the national agenda. It is vital to everything we are,
and can become.
But there are no quick fixes here, either. No stop-gap
solutions. Like most of the long-term issues on the national
agenda, American education won't be fixed with a bolt of
lightning here, a puff of smoke there. It will take collective
effort at all levels, public and private, to get it right. Those
businesses that are involved with local schools -- developing the
workforce at its source -- are making fail-safe investments. And
they stand to reap the greatest rewards.
For those workers already on the line, we must build new
skills and flexibility as jobs change. By one estimate, 75
percent of all people now working will need some kind of
retraining before this century is over. The NAM policy position
you adopted last year said that "investment in human resources is
- 6
at least as important as investment in equipment and technology."
And you're absolutely right.
The astounding gains in productivity you've already achieved
can be pushed still higher -- but we'll have to look beyond
upgrades to plant and equipment. Ever since the 1930s, machine
capital has contributed only about 20 percent to productivity.
Most of this country's productivity improvements -- and most of
our growth in national income -- have been directly linked to
labor quality: and that means training, and retraining.
I'm reminding you of something you already know: machinery
and technology alone don't improve productivity. People do.
Another issue where we plan to play for keeps: We're
determined to get drugs out of the workplace. Drug abuse in the
workplace costs $00 billion every year, putting productivity and
lives at risk. Bill Bennett is off to a fast start. But we will
also be looking to you to set effective, well-reasoned drug
policies in your businesses.
Employers can teach their people to recognize the signs of
substance abuse in their co-workers -- and understand how drug
abuse hurts the non-users on the line.
7
Any long-term agenda must ask how we can leave the earth
we've inherited a little better than when we found it. And, you
know, this is no political litmus test. I think of Teddy
Roosevelt as one of the great conservationists -- one of the
great environmentalists. Our grandchildren should be able to
fish on the same lakes we've enjoyed.
The time has come to set aside the partisan approach to
these enormous environmental questions. We must devise a global
answer to the problem of ozone depletion and global warming. We
intend to make rapid progress on acid rain, and see that a new
clean air bill is produced. And we've already broken ground in
joining with other nations to call for the elimination of CFCs --
as well as adopting a tough new policy on the export of hazardous
waste.
In this agenda for a new American century, I've asked you to
consider a broad vision: long-term savings and investment;
support for the family; education and retraining; stopping drugs;
and cleaning up the environment. But we must rely on more than
legislation.
We must rely on the dynamic spirit that is America. The
spirit that says: Houses should not stand empty, while people
lack shelter. Jobs should not go unfilled, while young men and
8
women stand idle on street corners. No one should go hungry, in
the richest nation on earth.
We must promote local efforts to assure that every American
can seize a share of prosperity -- and help to create more of it.
Whether through the constellation of local community groups
already at work -- or through new ideas, like our program for
Youth Engaged in Service -- we will rely less on the collective
wallet, and more on collective will.
But this does not mean lowering our sights, or our
expectations. Just the opposite. In an era of tight budgets, we
are not going to simply "make do with less." We're going to
learn how to do more with less -- and do it better.
Yes, we are prosperous. And we are at peace. But such
quiet moments often become pivotal in a nation's history.
My friends, the choices we make now will determine whether
the door to the next American century is closing -- or opening
wide, for all who dare to dream.
Thank you. God bless you. And God bless America.
Document No. 018102
WHITE HOUSE STAFFING MEMORANDUM
DATE: 03/17/89
ACTION/CONCURRENCE/COMMENT DUE BY: C.O.B. Monday 03/20
SUBJECT: PRESIDENTIAL REMARKS: NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF MANUFACTURERS
(03/17 5:45 p.m. draft)
ACTION FYI
ACTION FYI
VICE PRESIDENT
MCCLURE
SUNUNU
NEWMAN
SCOWCROFT
PORTER
d
DARMAN
STUDDERT
&
BATES
UNTERMEYER
BREEDEN
PINKERTON
CARD
ROGERS
CICCONI
WINSTON
DEMAREST
BOSKIN
FITZWATER
BENNETT
GRAY
HAGIN
REMARKS:
Please provide any comments/recommendations to Chriss Winston
(Rm. 122, x2930) by close of business on Monday, 03/20, with
an info copy to my office. Thanks.
RESPONSE: gorden Whate
James W. Cicconi
Assistant to the President
and Deputy to the Chief of Staff
(Lange/Martin)
March 17, 1989
5:45 p.m.
PRESIDENTIAL REMARKS:
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF MANUFACTURERS
WASHINGTON, D.C.
THURSDAY, MARCH 23, 1989
Thank you, [Dick]. You know, I understand a few of you were
concerned about the 1984 Trade Report, heralding the arrival of
the "post-industrial" society. And I have to confess, that
whenever anyone talks to me about some "post-industrial" society,
I have doubts of my own.
Would such a place get along without plumbers, for instance.
And if such a society could exist, I wonder if either its pipes
or its theories would hold water
For now, I'm willing to bet my last dollar on manufacturing
in America. At least until somebody can show me how to wear a
piece of information, or parallel-park a concept.
American manufacturing has been -- and continues to be --
the backbone of this economy. It's been estimated that every new
manufacturing job creates three other jobs here at home.
I've been a great admirer of the export-driven, rust-belt
renaissance you've kicked off. Last year, the merchandise trade
deficit dropped by a fifth. Exports surged to an all-time high.
And manufacturing productivity is also now at record levels. The
2
quality of American exports is arguably better than it has ever
been. And in terms of sheer output, American factories have
never done better.
Now, there's a lot of talk about competitiveness going
around these days -- and these facts and figures are all ways of
measuring it.
But competitiveness is more than just the latest trade
figures, the latest quarterly earnings -- or the latest poll, the
latest election, or the latest Nielson ratings, for that matter.
Surely our success can be measured by better methods than these.
In your industry, as in mine, this may be a good time for us to
look toward a longer horizon.
We stand at a special moment in American history. We are
prosperous
and we are at peace.
At such a point, we are empowered -- even required -- to set
our sights higher. To look farther ahead. It is a time to make
choices. A time to answer those questions that will have the
farthest-reaching impact on our success as a society.
The 21st century is less than a dozen years away now.
3
You've called this conference "The New Leadership Summit." Well,
whatever else you think about leadership -- or vision, for that
matter -- it's not lofty rhetoric, charisma, or clairvoyance.
No, it may be as simple as understanding where an
organization finds itself, right now; seeing where it wants to
go; and knowing how to get there. Above all, it's playing the
long game, whatever the odds -- and playing for keeps. So today
I'm like to outline my agenda for the next American century.
To build a better America, one of the most important
priorities for this government will be to build savings and long-
term investment -- and get our fiscal house in order. This
means, first off, bringing down the deficit.
Last month, I submitted a budget to Congress with a clear
agenda to cut the Federal deficit, and enhance business' ability
to plan, expand, and build. My friends, next year alone, Federal
tax revenues will rise by more than $80 billion -- and yes, here
I go again -- with No New Taxes. Our plan will hold the line on
spending, using that revenue to slash the deficit by more than 40
percent -- bringing it down below the mandated
Gamm targets. Rudman - Hollings deficit
To encourage long-range investment and entrepreneurship in
businesses of all sizes, it's time we restored the capital gains
differential. This is another case where less means more. More
4
inthefiestyear?
revenue to the Federal government -- $4.3 billion more^ according
to Treasury estimates. More savings, and more investment. More
competitive, flexible businesses. More opportunities for
innovation. And more jobs for all Americans.
This is no tax break for the rich. It's a fair shake for
America.
To spur investment in basic research, we've proposed a
permanent extension of the research and experimentation tax
credit. A 13 percent increase for science and technology
programs. And we intend to stay on track in our effort to double
the National Science Foundation's budget by 1993.
To support capital formation, we will encourage personal
savings, and restore the integrity of our nation's savings and
loans institutions. Our plan has been well-received on both
sides of the aisle on Capitol Hill -- and I've asked for action
within 45 days.
We want to ease the pressures now building on the most
important organization in America -- the family -- by promoting
choice on issues like child care. So last week I sent
legislation to Congress that puts money and options in the hands
of parents, rather than bureaucracies. Our plan empowers all
families: dual earners, single parents, those who choose to
5
remain at home; those who prefer informal, neighborhood
arrangements; and especially those on low incomes, struggling to
be self-sufficient.
Lasting self-sufficiency, of course, means quality
education. And I see education as long-range planning at its
best -- a solution for the next century, for problems we haven't
even begun to recognize yet. It is an essential key to our
competitive future. Let no one suggest that education is a minor
matter on the national agenda. It is vital to everything we are,
and can become.
But there are no quick fixes here, either. No stop-gap
solutions. Like most of the long-term issues on the national
agenda, American education won't be fixed with a bolt of
lightning here, a puff of smoke there. It will take collective
effort at all levels, public and private, to get it right. Those
businesses that are involved with local schools -- developing the
workforce at its source -- are making fail-safe investments. And
they stand to reap the greatest rewards.
For those workers already on the line, we must build new
skills and flexibility as jobs change. By one estimate, 75
percent of all people now working will need some kind of
retraining before this century is over. The NAM policy position
you adopted last year said that "investment in human resources is
6
at least as important as investment in equipment and technology." "
And you're absolutely right.
The astounding gains in productivity you've already achieved
can be pushed still higher -- but we'll have to look beyond
upgrades to plant and equipment. Ever since the 1930s, machine
capital has contributed only about 20 percent to productivity.
Most of this country's productivity improvements -- and most of
our growth in national income -- have been directly linked to
labor quality: and that means training, and retraining.
I'm reminding you of something you already know: machinery
and technology alone don't improve productivity. People do.
Another issue where we plan to play for keeps: We're
determined to get drugs out of the workplace. Drug abuse in the
workplace costs $00 billion every year, putting productivity and
lives at risk. Bill Bennett is off to a fast start. But we will
also be looking to you to set effective, well-reasoned drug
policies in your businesses.
Employers can teach their people to recognize the signs of
substance abuse in their co-workers -- and understand how drug
abuse hurts the non-users on the line.
7
Any long-term agenda must ask how we can leave the earth
we've inherited a little better than when we found it. And, you
know, this is no political litmus test. I think of Teddy
Roosevelt as one of the great conservationists -- one of the
great environmentalists. Our grandchildren should be able to
fish on the same lakes we've enjoyed.
The time has come to set aside the partisan approach to
these enormous environmental questions. We must devise a global
answer to the problem of ozone depletion and global warming. We
intend to make rapid progress on acid rain, and see that a new
clean air bill is produced. And we've already broken ground in
joining with other nations to call for the elimination of CFCs --
as well as adopting a tough new policy on the export of hazardous
waste.
In this agenda for a new American century, I've asked you to
consider a broad vision: long-term savings and investment;
support for the family; education and retraining; stopping drugs;
and cleaning up the environment. But we must rely on more than
legislation.
We must rely on the dynamic spirit that is America. The
spirit that says: Houses should not stand empty, while people
lack shelter. Jobs should not go unfilled, while young men and
8
women stand idle on street corners. No one should go hungry, in
the richest nation on earth.
We must promote local efforts to assure that every American
can seize a share of prosperity -- and help to create more of it.
Whether through the constellation of local community groups
already at work -- or through new ideas, like our program for
Youth Engaged in Service -- we will rely less on the collective
wallet, and more on collective will.
But this does not mean lowering our sights, or our
expectations. Just the opposite. In an era of tight budgets, we
are not going to simply "make do with less." We're going to
learn how to do more with less -- and do it better.
Yes, we are prosperous. And we are at peace. But such
quiet moments often become pivotal in a nation's history.
My friends, the choices we make now will determine whether
the door to the next American century is closing -- or opening
wide, for all who dare to dream.
Thank you. God bless you. And God bless America.
018102
Document No.
WHITE HOUSE STAFFING MEMORANDUM
3/22/89
DATE:
ACTION/CONCURRENCE/COMMENT DUE BY:
SUBJECT:
PRESIDENTIAL REMARKS: NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF MANUFACTURERS
ACTION FYI
ACTION FYI
VICE PRESIDENT
MCCLURE
SUNUNU
NEWMAN
SCOWCROFT
PORTER
DARMAN
STUDDERT
BATES
UNTERMEYER
BREEDEN
ROGERS
WINSTON
CARD
CICCONI
PINKERTON
DEMAREST
BOSKIN
FITZWATER
BENNETT
GRAY
HAGIN
REMARKS:
The attached has been forwarded to the President.
RESPONSE:
James W. Cicconi
Assistant to the President
and Deputy to the Chief of Staff
Ext. 2702
1989 MAR 22 Fiy
MARCH 21, 1989
INFORMATION
MEMORANDUM FOR THE PRESIDENT
FROM:
CHRISS WINSTON
cw
SUBJECT: SPEECH TO THE NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF MANUFACTURERS
Your audience will be some 600 to 700 representatives (many
CEOs) of small- to mid-sized manufacturing concerns.
This event is an opportunity to present an "Agenda for the
New American Century," in the context of a strong manufacturing
sector.
The attached draft focuses attention on issues for the long
term: investment and entrepreneurship; sound S&Ls; the family,
and choice in childcare; education and re-training; drugs; the
environment; and volunteerism in America.
(Lange/Martin)
March 22, 1989
12:30 p.m.
PRESIDENTIAL REMARKS:
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF MANUFACTURERS
MAYFLOWER HOTEL
THURSDAY, MARCH 23, 1989
1:27 p.m.
Thank you, [Dick]. You know, after one tough football game,
somebody asked Knute Rockne why Notre Dame had lost. He
answered, "I won't know until my barber tells me on Monday."
Well, nobody's second-guessing American manufacturing
anymore. Clearly, you're playing a winning game.
I'm here today to tell you that "de-industrialization" is a
myth. Manufacturing, as a share of our national output, is as
strong today as it has ever been.
Thanks to the hard work of the men and women in this room --
who are the brains and muscle of America's basic industries -- we
are producing more products with a smaller percentage of our
population than ever before.
That, my friends, is productivity. That is why since 1982,
our manufacturing output has gone up twice as fast as Western
Europe and has kept pace with Japan.
2
You are the producers who are building a better America
every day. Your presence here today demonstrates that you are
fighting to win the international struggle for continued growth.
You have demonstrated that you can make America more competitive
-- and that you can keep America more competitive.
Now, I'm not saying you're going to have to do it alone.
There is a role for government. Sometimes political leadership
is needed -- for example, to keep international trade free and
fair. However, I will tell you that this government will not
confuse involvement with interference.
There's a lot of talk about competitiveness going around
these days. But competitiveness is more than just the latest
trade figures, or the latest quarterly earnings -- or the latest
poll or the latest election, for that matter.
Surely our success can be measured by better methods than
these. In your industry, as in mine, this may be a good time for
us to look toward a longer horizon.
We stand at a special moment in American history. We are
prosperous
and we are at peace.
3
At such a point, we must set our sights higher. We must
look farther ahead. The 21st Century is less than a dozen years
away now.
You've called this conference "The New Leadership Summit."
Leadership is certainly found in those like you who keep the
great engines of American industry turning. In creating jobs,
building businesses and meeting needs, our Nation's manufacturers
have shown the qualities that will carry us into the future. And
make no mistake, the challenges we face will test your vision and
your capacity to define an agenda for action.
Today, I'd like to address that very point by outlining my
agenda for the next American century.
To build a better America, one of the most important
priorities for this government will be to encourage savings and
long-term investment -- and get our fiscal house in order. This
means bringing down the deficit.
Last month, I submitted a budget to Congress with a clear
agenda to cut the Federal deficit, and enhance business' ability
to plan, expand, and build.
My friends, next year, under current law, the economic
growth we are enjoying will increase federal revenues by more
4
than $80 billion without increasing tax rates. Our plan will
hold the line on spending, using that revenue to slash the
deficit by more than 40 percent -- and bring it down below the
mandated Gramm-Rudman-Hollings targets.
To encourage long-range investment and entrepreneurship in
businesses of all sizes, it's time we restored the capital gains
differential. This is a case where less means more. More
revenue to the Federal government -- $4.8 billion more in 1990,
according to Treasury estimates. More savings, and more
investment. More competitive, flexible businesses. More
opportunities for innovation.
And more jobs for all Americans -- including those who have
been left behind, and who need a chance to work for their share
of the American dream. This is no tax break for the rich. It's
a fair shake for America.
Competitiveness, opportunity, saving, and investing for the
long term -- this is why we need a capital gains tax rate cut.
It's why we need one now.
To spur investment in basic research, we've proposed a
permanent research and experimentation tax credit. A 13 percent
increase for science and technology programs.
5
And we have created a new post at the Commerce Department --
Undersecretary for Technology -- that embodies our commitment to
guaranteeing that American technology is number one. We also
intend to double the National Science Foundation's budget by
1993.
A strong economy needs a safe and secure banking system.
That is why we proposed a comprehensive plan to solve the
difficulties of our savings and loans. Our plan has been well-
received on both sides of the aisle on Capitol Hill -- and I've
asked for action within 45 days.
We want to ease the pressures now building on the most
important organization in America -- the family -- by promoting
choice on issues like child care. So last week I sent
legislation to Congress that puts money and options in the hands
of parents, rather than bureaucracies.
But the most powerful key to long-term competitiveness is
education. A strengthened education system is the essential
ingredient for America's prosperity into the next decade and the
next century. Let no one suggest that education is a minor
matter on the national agenda. It is vital to everything we are,
and can become.
6
But there are no quick fixes here, either. Like most of the
long-term issues on the national agenda, American education won't
be fixed with a bolt of lightning here, a puff of smoke there.
It will take collective effort at all levels, public and private,
to get it right. Those businesses that are involved with local
schools -- developing the workforce at its source -- are making
fail-safe investments. And they stand to reap the greatest
rewards.
For those workers already on the line, we must build new
skills and flexibility as jobs change, through training and re-
training. The NAM policy position you adopted last year said
that "investment in human resources is at least as important as
investment in equipment and technology." And you're absolutely
right. Machinery and technology alone don't improve
productivity. People do.
Another issue where we plan to play for keeps: We're
determined to get drugs out of the workplace. Drug and alcohol
abuse in the workplace costs $60 billion every year, putting
productivity and lives at risk.
Drug abuse in America must stop -- and we are off to a fast
start. Last month I spoke to Congress about four decisive
issues: education, treatment, interdiction, and enforcement.
And I asked for an increase of $1 billion in budget outlays -- to
7
nearly $6 billion in 1990 -- to escalate our effort. But we will
also be looking to you to set effective, well-reasoned drug
policies in your businesses.
Employers can teach their people to recognize the signs of
substance abuse in their co-workers -- and understand how drug
abuse hurts the non-users on the line.
Any long-term agenda must also ask how we can leave the
earth we've inherited a little better than when we found it. We
must devise answers to the problems of ozone depletion, global
warming, and acid rain. We've already joined with other nations
to call for the elimination of CFCs and the development of
environmentally safe substitutes -- as well as adopting a tough
new policy on the export of hazardous waste.
The time has come to set aside partisan approaches to these
and other enormous environmental questions. We must ensure that
our grandchildren can fish on the same lakes we've enjoyed.
In this agenda for a new American century, I've asked you to
consider a broad vision: a vision that relies on the dynamic
spirit that is America. The spirit that says: Buildings should
not stand empty, while people lack shelter. Jobs should not go
unfilled, while young men and women stand idle on street corners.
No one should go hungry, in the richest nation on earth.
8
We must promote local efforts to assure that every American
can seize a share of prosperity -- and help to create more of it.
Whether through the constellation of local community groups
already at work -- or through new ideas, like our program to
encourage our nation's youth to become involved in community
service: we will rely less on the collective wallet, and more on
collective will.
But this does not mean lowering our sights, or our
expectations. Just the opposite. In an era of tight budgets, we
are not going to simply "make do with less." We're going to
learn how to do more with less -- and do it better. In the
factory, that's called productivity. Across our country, that's
called national spirit.
Yes, we are prosperous. And we are at peace. But such
quiet moments often become pivotal in a nation's history.
My friends, the choices we make now will determine whether
the door to the next American century is closing -- or opening
wide, for all who dare to dream.
Thank you. God bless you. And God bless America.
MARCH 21, 1989
INFORMATION
MEMORANDUM FOR THE PRESIDENT
FROM:
CHRISS WINSTON
cw
SUBJECT: SPEECH TO THE NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF MANUFACTURERS
Your audience will be some 600 to 700 representatives (many
CEOs) of small- to mid-sized manufacturing concerns.
This event is an opportunity to present an "Agenda for the
New American Century," in the context of a strong manufacturing
sector.
The attached draft focuses attention on issues for the long
term: investment and entrepreneurship; sound S&Ls; the family,
and choice in childcare; education and re-training; drugs; the
environment; and volunteerism in America.
(Lange/Martin)
March 22, 1989
12:30 p.m.
PRESIDENTIAL REMARKS:
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF MANUFACTURERS
MAYFLOWER HOTEL
THURSDAY, MARCH 23, 1989
1:27 p.m.
Thank you, [Dick]. You know, after one tough football game,
somebody asked Knute Rockne why Notre Dame had lost. He
answered, "I won't know until my barber tells me on Monday."
Well, nobody's second-guessing American manufacturing
anymore. Clearly, you're playing a winning game.
I'm here today to tell you that "de-industrialization" is a
myth. Manufacturing, as a share of our national output, is as
strong today as it has ever been.
Thanks to the hard work of the men and women in this room --
who are the brains and muscle of America's basic industries -- we
are producing more products with a smaller percentage of our
population than ever before.
That, my friends, is productivity. That is why since 1982,
our manufacturing output has gone up twice as fast as Western
Europe and has kept pace with Japan.
3
At such a point, we must set our sights higher. We must
look farther ahead. The 21st Century is less than a dozen years
away now.
You've called this conference "The New Leadership Summit."
Leadership is certainly found in those like you who keep the
great engines of American industry turning. In creating jobs,
building businesses and meeting needs, our Nation's manufacturers
have shown the qualities that will carry us into the future. And
make no mistake, the challenges we face will test your vision and
your capacity to define an agenda for action.
Today, I'd like to address that very point by outlining my
agenda for the next American century.
To build a better America, one of the most important
priorities for this government will be to encourage savings and
long-term investment -- and get our fiscal house in order. This
means bringing down the deficit.
Last month, I submitted a budget to Congress with a clear
agenda to cut the Federal deficit, and enhance business' ability
to plan, expand, and build.
My friends, next year, under current law, the economic
growth we are enjoying will increase federal revenues by more
4
than $80 billion without increasing tax rates. Our plan will
hold the line on spending, using that revenue to slash the
deficit by more than 40 percent -- and bring it down below the
mandated Gramm-Rudman-Hollings targets.
To encourage long-range investment and entrepreneurship in
businesses of all sizes, it's time we restored the capital gains
differential. This is a case where less means more. More
revenue to the Federal government -- $4.8 billion more in 1990,
according to Treasury estimates. More savings, and more
investment. More competitive, flexible businesses. More
opportunities for innovation.
And more jobs for all Americans -- including those who have
been left behind, and who need a chance to work for their share
of the American dream. This is no tax break for the rich. It's
a fair shake for America.
Competitiveness, opportunity, saving, and investing for the
long term -- this is why we need a capital gains tax rate cut.
It's why we need one now.
To spur investment in basic research, we've proposed a
permanent research and experimentation tax credit. A 13 percent
increase for science and technology programs.
5
And we have created a new post at the Commerce Department --
Undersecretary for Technology -- that embodies our commitment to
guaranteeing that American technology is number one. We also
intend to double the National Science Foundation's budget by
1993.
A strong economy needs a safe and secure banking system.
That is why we proposed a comprehensive plan to solve the
difficulties of our savings and loans. Our plan has been well-
received on both sides of the aisle on Capitol Hill -- and I've
asked for action within 45 days.
We want to ease the pressures now building on the most
important organization in America -- the family -- by promoting
choice on issues like child care. So last week I sent
legislation to Congress that puts money and options in the hands
of parents, rather than bureaucracies.
But the most powerful key to long-term competitiveness is
education. A strengthened education system is the essential
ingredient for America's prosperity into the next decade and the
next century. Let no one suggest that education is a minor
matter on the national agenda. It is vital to everything we are,
and can become.
6
But there are no quick fixes here, either. Like most of the
long-term issues on the national agenda, American education won't
be fixed with a bolt of lightning here, a puff of smoke there.
It will take collective effort at all levels, public and private,
to get it right. Those businesses that are involved with local
schools -- developing the workforce at its source -- are making
fail-safe investments. And they stand to reap the greatest
rewards.
For those workers already on the line, we must build new
skills and flexibility as jobs change, through training and re-
training. The NAM policy position you adopted last year said
that "investment in human resources is at least as important as
investment in equipment and technology." And you're absolutely
right. Machinery and technology alone don't improve
productivity. People do.
Another issue where we plan to play for keeps: We're
determined to get drugs out of the workplace. Drug and alcohol
abuse in the workplace costs $60 billion every year, putting
productivity and lives at risk.
Drug abuse in America must stop -- and we are off to a fast
start. Last month I spoke to Congress about four decisive
issues: education, treatment, interdiction, and enforcement.
And I asked for an increase of $1 billion in budget outlays -- to
7
nearly $6 billion in 1990 -- to escalate our effort. But we will
also be looking to you to set effective, well-reasoned drug
policies in your businesses.
Employers can teach their people to recognize the signs of
substance abuse in their co-workers -- and understand how drug
abuse hurts the non-users on the line.
Any long-term agenda must also ask how we can leave the
earth we've inherited a little better than when we found it. We
must devise answers to the problems of ozone depletion, global
warming, and acid rain. We've already joined with other nations
to call for the elimination of CFCs and the development of
environmentally safe substitutes -- as well as adopting a tough
new policy on the export of hazardous waste.
The time has come to set aside partisan approaches to these
and other enormous environmental questions. We must ensure that
our grandchildren can fish on the same lakes we've enjoyed.
In this agenda for a new American century, I've asked you to
consider a broad vision: a vision that relies on the dynamic
spirit that is America. The spirit that says: Buildings should
not stand empty, while people lack shelter. Jobs should not go
unfilled, while young men and women stand idle on street corners.
No one should go hungry, in the richest nation on earth.
8
We must promote local efforts to assure that every American
can seize a share of prosperity -- and help to create more of it.
Whether through the constellation of local community groups
already at work -- or through new ideas, like our program to
encourage our nation's youth to become involved in community
service: we will rely less on the collective wallet, and more on
collective will.
But this does not mean lowering our sights, or our
expectations. Just the opposite. In an era of tight budgets, we
are not going to simply "make do with less." We're going to
learn how to do more with less -- and do it better. In the
factory, that's called productivity. Across our country, that's
called national spirit.
Yes, we are prosperous. And we are at peace. But such
quiet moments often become pivotal in a nation's history.
My friends, the choices we make now will determine whether
the door to the next American century is closing -- or opening
wide, for all who dare to dream.
Thank you. God bless you. And God bless America.
2
(Lange/Martin)
March 17, 1989
2:30 p.m.
PRESIDENTIAL REMARKS:
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF MANUFACTURERS
WASHINGTON, D.C.
THURSDAY, MARCH 23, 1989
Thank you, [Dick]. [ acknowl. X, y, z... ] [ poss. line
on "mountain elevators"; Dick Heckert likes to fish...
]
My friends, I have to confess, whenever anyone talks to me
about the "post-industrial" society, I have doubts. I wonder if
it has plumbers, for instance. And if such a society does exist,
I wonder if either its pipes or its theories can hold water.
For now, I'm willing to bet my last dollar on manufacturing
in America. At least until somebody can show me how to wear a
piece of information, or parallel-park a concept.
American manufacturing has been -- and continues to be --
the backbone of this economy. It's been estimated that every new
manufacturing job creates three other jobs here at home.
U.S. industry is strong, and it's getting stronger. I've
been a great admirer of the export-driven, rust-belt renaissance
you've kicked off:
Last year, the merchandise trade deficit dropped by a fifth.
Exports surged 27 percent, to an all-time high.
3
And manufacturing productivity is up by over one-third since
1981, to its highest level ever. In head-to-head
competition, American workers still outperform their
Japanese counterparts in terms of productivity.
From just about every angle, the quality of American exports
is arguably better than it has ever been.
And finally, the sheer output of American factories is also
at record levels. Over the course of this ongoing business
expansion, manufacturing output has increased by more than
46 percent.
Now, there's a lot of talk about competitiveness going
around these days -- and these facts and figures are all ways of
measuring it.
But competitiveness is more than just the latest trade
figures, the latest quarterly earnings -- or the latest poll, the
latest election, or the latest Nielson ratings, for that matter.
Surely our success can be measured by greater means than
these.
4
In your industry, as in mine, this may be a good time for us
to look toward a longer horizon.
We stand at a special moment in American history. We are
prosperous
and we are at peace.
At such a point, we are empowered -- even required -- to set
our sights higher. To look farther ahead. It is a time to make
choices. A time to answer those questions that will have the
farthest-reaching impact on our success as a society.
The 21st century is less than a dozen years away now.
You've called this conference "The New Leadership Summit."
Leadership takes many forms. It appears in unexpected places.
Throughout history, some of our best leaders have been those who
served.
And vision, well, it's more than charisma, clairvoyance, or
lofty rhetoric. It may be as simple as understanding where an
organization finds itself, right now. Seeing where it wants to
go. And knowing how to get there.
Above all, it's playing the long game, whatever the odds --
and playing for keeps. If I were writing the history books, I'd
hope to be remembered as a President who worked to prepare this
country for the 21st century.
5
So today let me outline an agenda for the next American
century. This administration is determined to:
-- encourage long-term investment and savings
-- preserve and support the most fundamental institution of
American life, the family
-- prepare a generation of young people who'll have to be
better educated than any before them, and retrain workers as
jobs change
-- stop the scourge of drugs
-- clean up the environment
-- and promote a new kind of volunteerism, for widespread
progress on a human scale.
These issues may never make for great sound bites. And they
defy quick, easy solutions.
Maybe they even make me sound a little like the Mad Hatter
6
-- you know, trying to imagine seven impossible things before
breakfast. But in keeping with my view to the long-term, I think
of a great old Cole Porter tune: "The difficult, we'll do right
now. The impossible will take a little while."
We cannot continue as we have in the past. We won't solve
these problems by imitating the competition. We must forge our
strategy carefully, deliberately -- and together hammer out our
future with a clear eye and a steady hand.
American manufacturers have long been known for building a
better mousetrap. Today let me ask you to think about what it's
really going to take, to build a better America.
One of the most important priorities for this government
will be to build savings and long-term investment -- and get our
fiscal house in order. This means, first off, bringing down the
deficit.
You know, the other day I saw a couple in a sports car, with
a bumpersticker -- one of those great barometers of our time.
And the bumpersticker said, "We're spending our kid's
inheritance."
7
Maybe they were. Individuals can spend as they choose. But
government can't. And this government will secure the next
generation's financial future.
Last month I submitted a budget to Congress with a clear
agenda to cut the Federal deficit, and enhance business' ability
to plan, expand, and build.
My friends, next year alone, Federal tax revenues will rise
by more than $80 billion -- and yes, here I go again -- with No
New Taxes.
Our plan will hold the line on spending, using that revenue
to slash the deficit by more than 40 percent, bringing it down
below the target mandated by Gramm-Rudman-Hollings.
To encourage long-range investment and entrepreneurship in
businesses of all sizes, it's time we restored the capital gains
differential. Bear in mind that the economies of the Pacific Rim
-- the "four dragons" of Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan, and the
Republic of Korea -- all completely exempt capital gains from
tax.
This is another case where less means more. More revenue
to the Federal government -- $4.3 billion more, according to
Treasury estimates. More savings, and more investment. More
8
competitive, flexible businesses. More opportunities for
innovation. And more jobs for all Americans.
This is no tax break for the rich. No, it's a sure and
proven path to widespread economic growth.
To spur investment in basic research, we've proposed a
permanent extension of the research and experimentation tax
credit. A 13 percent increase for science and technology
programs. And we intend to stay on track in our effort to double
the National Science Foundation's budget by 1993.
To support capital formation, we will encourage personal
savings. Not only by keeping inflation in check -- but also by
restoring the integrity of our nation's savings and loans
institutions. Our plan has been well-received on both sides of
the aisle on Capitol Hill -- and I've asked for action within 45
days.
Over the long run, it will be vital to help ease the
pressures now building on the most important organization in
America -- the family -- by promoting choice and options in
issues like child care.
9
Last week I sent legislation to Congress that puts money in
the hands of parents, rather than bureaucracies, without bias in
favor of any one child care solution.
Our plan empowers all families: dual earners, single
parents, those who choose to remain at home; those who prefer
informal, neighborhood arrangements; and especially those on low
incomes, struggling to be self-sufficient.
Education is long-range planning at its best -- a solution
for the next century, for problems we haven't even begun to
recognize yet. It is an essential key to our competitive future.
Let no one suggest that education is a minor matter on the
national agenda. It is vital to everything we are, and can
become.
But there are no quick fixes here, either. No stop-gap
solutions. Like most of the long-term issues on the national
agenda, American education won't be fixed with a bolt of
lightning here, a puff of smoke there.
It will take collective effort at all levels, public and
private, to get it right. Those businesses that are involved
with local schools -- developing the workforce at its source --
are making fail-safe investments. And they stand to reap the
greatest rewards.
10
For those workers already on the line, we must build new
skills and flexibility as jobs change. By one estimate, 75
percent of all people now working will need some kind of
retraining before this century is over.
The NAM policy position you adopted last year said that
"investment in human resources is at least as important as
investment in equipment and technology." No doubt about it.
The astounding gains in productivity you've already achieved
can be pushed still higher -- but we'll have to look beyond
upgrades to plant and equipment.
Ever since the 1930s, most of this country's productivity
improvements -- and most of our growth in national income -- have
been directly linked to labor quality: and that means education,
training, and retraining. Machine capital has contributed 20
percent, or less, to productivity.
I'm reminding you of something you already know: machinery
and technology alone don't improve productivity. People do.
Right now we provide over $50 billion in tax relief
incentives for plant and equipment, and R & D. And that's
11
worthwhile. But we're only providing about $25 million in
incentives for private investment in human resources.
That suggests that new buildings and machinery are 2,000
times more important than improving the skills and productivity
of our workers. Well, as another old song goes, "it ain't
necessarily so."
If employers need to shift more investment toward human
capital, we need to give them the right incentives -- keeping
them revenue neutral -- and we need to give them the right degree
of choice over where, and how, to make those investments.
It's good to see the increased attention companies are
giving to training and development. Time was, when they used to
think the H.R. guy was the one who made sure there was enough
potato salad at the company picnic. Not anymore.
Long-range business success will depend more than ever on
comprehensive, coordinated job training. Public-private
partnerships -- like Private Industry Councils, working through
the Job Training Partnership Act -- will be especially crucial
for smaller businesses. They're a way to pool resources. And
they work.
12
This administration will continue to look for ways to
stimulate these partnerships, and provide incentives for the kind
of education and training that meet market demands. Two days ago
Secretary Cavazos unveiled a plan for vocational training that
[did X, y, & z]. And more will be done.
You know, Henry Kissinger once said, "There cannot be a
crisis next week. My schedule is already full." Well, I have to
add one more to the schedule -- another issue where we plan to
play for keeps: We've got to get drugs out of the workplace, and
out of our schools.
Drug abuse in the workplace costs $00 billion every year,
and puts productivity and lives at risk. Bill Bennett is off to
a fast start. But we will also be looking to you to set
effective, well-reasoned drug policies in your businesses.
Employers can teach their people to recognize the signs of
substance abuse in their co-workers -- and understand how drug
abuse hurts the non-users on the line. And where testing is
concerned, it should be seen as a way out of trouble -- not a way
out of work.
Another compelling long-term question is how we can leave
the earth we've inherited a little better than when we found it.
And, you know, this is no political litmus test. I think of
13
Teddy Roosevelt as one of the great conservationists -- one of
the great environmentalists. Our grandsons should be able to
fish on the same lakes we've enjoyed.
The time has come to set aside the partisan approach to
these enormous environmental questions. We must devise a global
answer to the problem of ozone depletion and global warming. We
intend to make rapid progress on acid rain, and see that a new
clean air bill is produced. And we've already broken ground in
joining with other nations to call for the elimination of CFCs --
as well as adopting a tough new policy on the export of hazardous
waste.
In all of the central tenets of the agenda I've asked you to
consider today -- long-term savings and investment, support for
the family; education and retraining; stopping drugs; and
cleaning up the environment -- we must rely on something much
larger than legislation.
We must rely on the spirit of this great nation. The spirit
that says: Houses should not stand empty, while people lack
shelter. Jobs should not go unfilled, while young men and women
stand idle on streetcorners. No one should go hungry, in the
richest nation on earth.
14
In a country badly governed, wealth is something to be
ashamed of. But in a country well governed, poverty is something
to be ashamed of.
The last item on my agenda for the 21st century -- and the
most difficult -- is to make volunteerism a part of the national
culture. It is to promote local efforts that assure that every
American can seize a share of prosperity -- and help to create
more of it.
Whether through the constellation of local community groups
already at work -- or through new ideas, like our program for
Youth Engaged in Service -- we must make progress through shared
strength.
We will have to rely less on the collective wallet, and more
on collective will. But this does not mean lowering our sights,
or our expectations. Just the opposite.
In an era of tight budgets, we are not going to just have to
"do with less." We're going to have to learn how to do more with
less -- and do it better.
Yes, we are prosperous. And we are at peace. But such
quiet moments can often become pivotal in a nation's history.
15
The hinges upon which this moment turns move silently.
The choices are ours to make.
Taken together, those choices will determine whether the
door to the next American century is closing -- or opening wide,
for all who wish to enter.
Thank you. God bless you. And God bless America.
2
When drugs comes here to the Conestoga Valley, that's proof
the drug epidemic is a national problem. Lancaster is a strong
community Lancaster is a strong community -- a place where
"small-town values" isn't a chiche: It's a way of life. You
know what matters: family, faith, being a good neighbor and
member of this community. The rising problem here simply shows
how vulnerable every American city and town is to the menace of
drug abuse. Recognizing this fact is the first step towards
finding a solution.
And Lancaster is on its way. This morning, you heard from
Thomas Hipple and Peter True -- two young men who for their own
reasons have made a commitment to help others understand the
lasting damage drugs can do, and prevent their peers from making
what can be a life-shattering choice.
What Thomas and Peter are doing takes tremendous courage and
commitment. I'm here to say that you're not alone in battling the
and
drug problem. You have partners -- in your community, in others
across America. And you have partners in the war on drugs in
Washington: right there on Pennsylvania Avenue. As I said in my
Inaugural Address, I am committed to ending the scourge of drugs.
Our task today is not just to deplore the drug problem, but
to take action against it. What the banners you've hung here
today say to me is that Conestoga Valley and the people of
Lancaster are ready to take action to stop the drug scourge.
3
and
One of the most powerful weapons in the war against drug
abuse is education.
Of course, there's another side to the drug problem that
I'll be speaking about later today, when I visit Wilmington,
Delaware on my way back to Washington. That's interdiction and
enforcement -- our effort to stop the supply of illegal drugs,
and shut down the drug trade. But this morning, I want to focus
on means of prevention -- on drying up demand for illegal drugs.
Anti-drug education and awareness can help provide our
with
children and young adults both the reasons and the will-power to
resist the lure of drugs.
That's the aim of an anti-drug education program called DARE
-- Drug Abuse Resistance Education -- that's helping, as the
people involved with DARE like to say, "drug-proof" our children.
The program was pioneered by the Los Angeles Police Department
and the LA public school system. DARE sends policemen into the
classroom, to work with kids, build their self-esteem, teach them
that they can refuse when they are pressured to try drugs. And
the DARE program is teaching youngsters something else: that the
police and their schools are united in a common effort to stop
drug abuse. In the six years since the program began in
California, DARE has caught on nationwide. This year, in 1200
communities in 45 states, three million children will
participate.
4
DARE is just one example of the kind of program that can
provide our children both the reasons and the will-power to
resist the lure of drugs. There is no one right answer when it
comes to battling drug abuse. Each community will find what
works best -- and we will all learn from each other.
Here in Lancaster, you have a program called High Risk Youth
in the elementary schools, and another called SCIP -- School
Community Intervention Program, in place in the high schools and
junior highs. They aim at identifying young people whose
circumstances and family situations make them most vulnerable to
the lure of drugs. Targeting these youth for special attention
is crucial, and with High Risk Youth and SCIP, you are doing
something to stop drug problems before they begin.
For my part, I'm committed to seeing that drug education
receives the funding it needs.
-- My budget for 1990 calls for a full $1.1 billion dollars
for drug prevention and anti-drug education activities -- up 16%
over 1989.
-- I've urged Congress to provide 392 million dollars for
the Drug Free Schools and Communities program, funds that go to
the states and institutions of higher education.
5
-- And I've nominated to serve as Director of my Office of
National Drug Control Policy, Bill Bennett, to map strategy and
oversee the anti-drug campaign. I picked Bill for this job
because he's knowledgeable, he's tough, and he's determined --
but most importantly, he cares deeply about the children of this
country.
These initiatives are important, and they'll have an impact.
But there's a role for each of us in the war on drugs, and I hope
you'll join me in asking what you can do to help -- especially to
advance anti-drug education and awareness.
I'm told you can start tonight, by coming back here to
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Conestoga Valley to see a drug awareness video. I hope the
turnout will be just as large as it is this morning.
We can all play a part in increasing awareness about the
ravages of drug dependency. We must get the message across that
drugs aren't a form of entertainment or a harmless means of
escape -- drugs are a poison, to users and to our communities.
But a widespread awareness of the dangers of drug abuse
depends on sending consistent signals -- on sending a clear
message that using drugs isn't fashionable, isn't fun, and above
all, isn't safe.
6
For too long our popular culture glorified drug use. I
think that's changing now -- and that's a real change for the
better. Consider the anti-drug abuse campaign on television.
Not long ago, I was told a story about a little girl, four
years old, who's getting the message. She got up from in front
of the TV to tell her parents something important.
"Drugs," she said, "fry your brain like an egg."
We've all seen the commercial that little girl was talking
about. Whether you're four or fourteen or forty, the message
gets across. Let's all carry that message.
And let's shed some of the perceptions about the drug
problem that are comforting, but are completely incorrect.
There's no room for saying, "drug abuse doesn't affect me. "
Think about the costs of drug abuse: the lost time, the waste,
the crime, the accidents that can be traced to the influence of
drugs
Twenty three million Americans used illegal drugs last
year. Countless thousands died. The fact is that none of us is
immune to the problems drug abuse can cause.
Together, let's you and me send a message on drug abuse:
To the so-called "casual" user: face up to the fact that
your so-called "recreational" drug use contributes to the drug
7
culture -- to the crime, death and degradation associated with
the drug trade.
To parents: your children know more than you realize about
drugs. Make it your business as a parent to know about drug
abuse yourself. Educate yourselves: don't hide from the reality
of drug abuse in our communities and hope for the best. Your
children depend on you to help them separate fact from fiction ---
to help them make a choice, and stick with it, when it comes to
resisting drugs.
To our children, let's send the message that drugs are
dangerous. That you don't need drugs to feel good about yourself
-- or to win approval from others. That your parents, the people
in your schools and your community care.
But most of all, you must understand that the decision
against drugs is yours to make -- no one else's. When it's time
to draw the line against drugs, the final choice is yours.
As a community, we must work to make it as easy as possible
for our children to make the choice against drugs. We can do it
by creating an environment -- a safe, secure space -- where our
children can acquire a sense of self and self-confidence so
secure that no amount of peer group pressure can push them into
taking drugs.
8
In many homes across America, in many of our communities,
here in Lancaster, you're doing just that. Sure things have
changed. But most Americans want to see their towns restored to
a time when drugs came from the local M.D. A place of mothers
and fathers and children and grandparents and bicycles and
baseball and spelling bees. Where crack was something you jumped
over to avoid bad luck. With your hard work and commitment, that
day will come sooner.
My message to you today is: Don't do drugs. Keep fighting
back. Fight for your community, for your children. The war on
drugs will ultimately be won one day, one battle at a time -- the
battles each and every one of us wage to keep our families and
communities free from drug abuse. We've learned a hard lesson --
unless we join together and fight, it can happen here. But if we
do work as a team and as a community, it won't.
Let these banners be a battle cry -- that in Conestoga
Valley, in Lancaster, and in communities like yours all over the
country, we will join together, turn the tide, and bring the drug
epidemic to an end.
Thank you.