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323152259
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Trenton, New Jersey 10/22/92 [OA 8485]
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323152259
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Trenton, New Jersey 10/22/92 [OA 8485]
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Records of the White House Office of Speechwriting (George H. W. Bush Administration)
Speech Draft Files
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Originally Processed With FOIA(s):
FOIA Number:
S
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MARKER
This is not a textual record. This is used as an
administrative marker by the George Bush Presidential
Library Staff.
Record Group/Collection:
George H.W. Bush Presidential Records
Collection/Office of Origin:
Speechwriting, White House Office of
Series:
Speech File Draft Files
Subseries:
Chron File, 1989-1993
OA/ID Number:
13646
Folder ID Number:
13646-012
Folder Title:
Trenton, New Jersey 10/22/92 [OA 8485]
Stack:
Row:
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Position:
G
26
18
5
5
THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
October 21, 1992
MEMORANDUM FOR STEVE PROVOST / CHRISTINA MARTIN
FROM:
GARY GERSHOWITZ
SUBJECT:
LOCAL COLOR
F
PLACE: TRENTON/ROBBINSVILLE AIRPORT
TIME: 2:00 P.M.
AUDIENCE: 1,000 (or more), small business owners,
Blue Collar workers, the community
The Robbinsville Airport where the President will be speaking is
owned & operated by 52 year-old Ed Eget. When Mr. Eget was 15,
he lied about his age just to join the Army. He was a helicopter
Pilot in Viet Nam, and was wounded in the right leg -- he
received the Purple Heart and the Bronze Star. Ed tells people,
"having been in war, I feel safer with a Commander-in-Chief who
has also been in war. "
Nottingham High School Band will be performing -- the name of
their football team is: "THE NOTTINGHAM NORTHSTARS -- so far
their record is: 1-4 -- not too good -- but on Saturday the 24th
they play their cross-town rival, Steinert High School, and it's
coming back for a victory!
their homecoming -- so maybe we can wish them luck, the underdogs
away. Norman Schwarzkopf is from the Lawrence Township, about 9 miles
A famous diner in near by Bordontown is: "MASTORIS" -- EVERYBODY
KNOWS THIS PLACE. "MOM'S PEPPERMILL RESTAURANT" is also a well-
known watering hole.
"MINIKIN-THE-CLOWN" was at the recently held Washington Township
County Fair. (Everyone will know about the fair). Ed Eget,
owner of the airport, said to himself as he watched "Minikin"
juggle bowling pins, "Clinton is going to have to juggle the
numbers the way Minikin is Juggling the pins.' "
clown to another (THE SECOND PART IS MINE) Or maybe there's
from one
some "MINIKIN-THE-CLOWN" other humor/analogy we can make between Clinton and
THE WHITE HOUSE
Office of the Press Secretary
(Ridgewood, New Jersey)
For Immediate Release
October 22, 1992
REMARKS BY THE PRESIDENT
AT TRENTON/ROBBINSVILLE WELCOME
Robbinsville Airport
Robbinsville, New Jersey
2:07 P.M. EDT
THE PRESIDENT: Thank you very, very much. Thank
you, guys.
AUDIENCE: Four more years! Four more years! Four
more years!
THE PRESIDENT: Thank you, New Jersey. Thank you,
Chris. You know, everyplace I go, you see these signs that say
"Clean House." If we had more congressmen like Chris Smith, we
wouldn't be saying "Clean House." (Applause.)
And I want to salute not only Chris, but Governor
Tom Kean. What a great job he did for this wonderful state.
(Applause.) I want to thank the Mayor, Rosemary Pramuck, and
everybody else who's done a superb job on this rally.
(Applause.)
And may I say that I am proud to share this stage
with Joe Cicippio back here, a true American hero. (Applause.)
Great courage. You talk about courage and stick with -- my
heavens, that man has shown us all an awful lot. And we learn
from that kind of courage in this country. And I want to thank
him for his perseverance. And I am proud that our policy of not
negotiating has freed all the American hostages. (Applause.)
well, I can hardly believe it, but 12 days from
today, the fate of this country and, indeed, of the free world is
in your hands. And I ask for your support for four more years to
lead this nation. (Applause.)
It's going to spell out --
AUDIENCE: Four more years! Four more years' Four
more years! Four more years!
THE PRESIDENT: -- the question that Americans will
answer and that the whole world will be watching for the answer
to, is whose idea do you trust to lead America out of this global
recession, to create new jobs and to keep trust and character in
the White House? (Applause.)
For 11 months, Governor Clinton and the other
liberal Democrats have been running around distorting our record.
so I want to just spend a little time -- not ruin this beautiful
day in New Jersey -- but a little time to remind America of
Governor Clinton's own record in Arkansas. Here we go!
They are -- I think of this state and all we've done
to work with the New Jersey officials to help clean up the
beaches -- in Arkansas, his record is the 50th in quality of
environmental initiative; 50th in percentage of adults with
college degrees; 50th in per capita spending on criminal justice;
49th -- they're moving up -- in per capita spending on police
protection; of their students that graduate from high school, 75
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percent of those that go on to college need remedial education;
48th in the percentage of adults with high school diplomas; 48th
in spending on corrections; 46th in teachers salaries; 45th in
the overall well-being of children.
And the other night in that debate, he says, "I want
to do for America what I've done for Arkansas." NO way.
AUDIENCE: Booo --
THE PRESIDENT: No way. It makes you think of the
guy that's failed -- he's o and 10 in the Little League and he
wants to manage the Braves. You can't do that. (Laughter.)
He calls this change. He calls himself the
candidate of change. NOW, let's look a close look at what he
offers. Chris mentioned it -- $150 billion -- this is for
openers -- $150 billion in new taxes; $220 billion in new
spending. That is called "trickle-down government." It goes
right from the top into your pocket. And we don't need that
anymore. (Applause.)
He says he's going to take it from the rich. And I
think everybody's heard that one before. He's not going to take
it from the rich -- if you drive a cab, teach school, trying to
make ends meet in the household, watch your wallet, gang; he's
coming after you. And we're not going to let it happen on
November 3rd. (Applause.)
He says he can work with Congress. I remember the
last time we elected a southern governor to go up there and work
with this spendthrift Congress. Thank God we've got guys like
Chris.
Let me remind you of what it was like, though,
because that's what he wants to do -- program sounds identical.
When Jimmy Carter left office -- same kind of situation --
inflation wiping out every senior citizen, every family, every
saver with 15 percent. And interest rates -- remember? - 21.5
percent. We do not need that kind of change. (Applause.)
Family budgets were wiped out, hopelessness and
despair, the world standing -- not even believe in the
credibility of the President of the United States. And that was
changed. And if you listen to that kind of change, change is all
you'll have left in your pocket. We don't need that.
(Applause.)
You heard my program the other night. We're going
to get that government spending down and get the tax rates under
control and let the private sector provide the growth. Let small
business move out and employ more people in this state.
(Applause.)
I'm not the kind of guy that likes to attack the
media. I like to needle them once in a while, though. You
remember the bumper sticker -- who's got one of those bumper
stickers? I'd like to show it to you. It's my favorite -- there
it is ! My favorite bumper sticker: "Annoy the Media -- Reelect
President Bush. (Applause.) It's great. (Applause.) It's
fantastic. (Applause.) I sure hope they've got a good sense of
humor back there. (Laughter.)
But, really, let me tell you this -- we'll see how
they play it tonight on the news. In early October -- this was
just sannounced today -- the number of Americans filing new claims
for jobless benefits fell to a two-year low. Now, this is a good
sign. We've still got big problems, but that's a good sign.
We've had three months in & row with unemployment going down.
But I don't hear too much noise about it out of here.
(Applamuse.)
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I'm not saying we don't have problems, we've got
plenty of them. But we're not going to improve them by raising
taxes and raising government spending, I'll guarantee you that.
(Applause.)
Here's what I want to do. I want to see us expand
our markets abroad. You know, we've been in a global recession.
The United States -- you can't tell this from Clinton and Gore,
the ozone man -- (laughter) -- but I'm telling you, the United
States is leading all these world economies. It's not just "my
failure" if you listen to the Democrats. We're caught up in
something global. And the way we'll get out of it is to increase
our exports. New Jersey sells an awful lot of product abroad --
sells a lot. Open these markets is what I say. Get those New
Jersey products going into worldwide markets, and you watch us
lead out of this recession. (Applause.)
I'd like to pin down Governor Clinton on this one
because he's got all kinds of mandates he wants to stick on small
business. But one of them was his health care plan that would
sock it to the small business. And instead of that, I believe
that small business employs two-thirds of the people in this
country. And they need relief from taxation and regulation and
litigation. (Applause.)
And I said yes, litigation. We need legal reform.
We spend up to $200 billion a year on lawyers. I don't have
anything against lawyers. I do have something against these
crazy malpractice lawsuits -- these lawsuits that keep a neighbor
from helping a neighbor for afraid of getting sued. (Applause.)
That keep a Little League coach from -- afraid of coaching
because some crackpot dad is going to sue him with a big trial
lawyer at his side. we got to sue each other less and care for
each other more. (Applause.)
And, yes, we need to do something about health care.
But what we don't need -- to get the government to try to run it.
Congress couldn't even run a two-bit bank, and screwed up a two-
bit post office. Now they want to run the health care.
(Applause.)
My plan provides insurance to the poorest of the
poor; says to the middle class, we're going to give you tax
breaks; says that your health insurance will be portability --
leave one job, it goes with you; pools insurance so the rates
come down; goes after malpractice; and it does not turn to the
government for rationing. Anytime government rations, the price
goes up. Let's get it down by pooling insurance. (Applause.)
Tom Kean was and is one of the great education
leaders in this country. And he and I both know -- he and I both
know that our America 2000 program to literally revolutionize
education is the way to go. And what we are doing is trying to
give parents a choice. say to a parent, you should be able to
choose, and we'll help you. Whether your kid goes to public
school, private school or a religious school. (Applause.)
Governor Clinton always knocks my background but did
you know that he drove in from Hope into someplace else -- a
bigger place in Arkansas to go to a parochial school. Forty-six
per cent of the school teachers in the public schools in Chicago
send their kids to private school. If you give parents a choice,
not only will the school that are chosen improve, but it will
show as it has in Milwaukee that those that are left behind will
pick themselves up and compete and be better for those kids that
are left there. (Applause.)
I think of the police officers and the sheriff's
department and those that are helping enforce the law here as
dedicated Americans and we owe them a vote of thanks for trying
to keep our neighborhood free of these crackheads and backing up
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the law. (Applause.) And you don't get that way by coddling the
bad elements.
The other day -- I told them at this last rally --
it was a very moving meeting for me, just before I left the White
House -- I think it was eight guys that came up to see me. And
they were your basic grassroots family people -- hard-working men
-- and they came to see to endorse me for President. And they
were the Fraternal Order of Police from Little Rock, Arkansas.
(Applause).
The last point, we got to reform the government.
We've got to get it right-sized. And I'll tell you what I'd do
-- I've got a program for getting the deficit down. Let me tell
you what it is. Give the nation the balanced budget amendment to
make the Congress get it down. (Applause).
Give the taxpayer a check-off on his tax return. And
if you feel as strongly about the deficit as your neighbor or as
I do, check 10 percent of your taxes, send it in, and that 10
percent then will have to be offset by a reduction in government
spending. Congress can't do it, let the people do it.
(Applause).
Forty-three governors have this one -- give the
President the line-item veto to cross out all this stuff.
(Applause).
And I like the idea of giving the Congress back to
the people, putting term limits on for the new members of
Congress. (Applause).
I'll tell you something -- I think the defining
movement -- the defining moment in the debate was when Governor
Clinton, in Richmond, said, it's not the character of the
President, he said, it's the character of the presidency. And I
say to everybody here, the two are interlocked. You cannot
separate them. (Applause). You cannot separate those two
things.
And I'm not asking for sympathy, I'm just telling
you, sometimes those decisions are tough. Sometimes you've got
to make a decision that doesn't keep anybody happy. Sometimes
you have to make a decision that might send somebody else's son
or someone else's daughter into harm's way, as I had to do in
Desert Storm. And you cannot waffle. You've got to look the
American people in the eye say, this is what we're going to
do. And if you make a mistake, admit it, and then go on about
the people's business. (Applause).
But in time after time, Governor Clinton waffles,
trying to make one person happy and then the group opposing him
happy. And you can't do it. Whether its free trade or if it's
right to work or if -- whatever it is. Here's what he said on
the war -- here's what he say in Desert Storm -- how's this --
try this one on for a commander-in-chief -- he said, well, I
agreed with the minority -- you remember the minority were
telling me you can't do this, you can't do that; you've got to
let sanctions work -- I agree with the minority, but I guess I
would have voted with the majority. Leadership -- that is a
Waffle House, and we can't have it for the American people.
(Applause).
Now, every President -- every decision the President
makes, in one way or another, affects the lives of others. And
let me tell you something about character and trust -- I've
messed up a time or two, but Barbara and I have worked hard to
uphold the public trust by living there in that White House.
(Applause). We've tried to conduct ourselves with decency and
honor because I do believe in duty, honor and country.
(Applause).
- 5 -
And now we're getting down to a choice. Who do you
trust to be the leader of the free world and the President of the
United States?
AUDIENCE: Four more years! Four more years! Four
more years!
THE PRESIDENT: Governor Clinton --
AUDIENCE: Bush! Bush! Bush! Bush!
THE PRESIDENT: Governor Clinton wants to win by
saying we are a nation in decline. Somewhere -- he puts it this
way -- somewhere less than Germany and a little more than Sri
Lanka. Let me tell you something, we have problems. we have
big, tough economic problems, and people are hurting. But we are
the United States, the most respected nation on the face of the
Earth. (Applause.) And I will not apologize for this country.
(Applause).
I am proud that I served my country in uniform. I
am proud to be serving as President. And I came here to say
this: I need your support because I want to finish the job.
And may God bless America. May God bless our great
country. Thank you all very much. (Applause).
END
2:23 P.M. EDT