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Originally Processed With FOIA(s):
FOIA Number:
S; 1998-0255-F
S
FOIA
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
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Speech File Backup Files
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OA/ID Number:
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13783-011
Folder Title:
American Enterprise Institute 12/4/91 [OA 8331] [1]
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26
22
1
1
AMERICAN ENTERPRISE INSTITUTE LUNCHEON
THE WILLARD HOTEL
DECEMBER 4, 1991
12:45 P.M.
THANK YOU, CHRIS [DEMUTH, A.E.I. PRESIDENTI, FOR
THOSE WARM WORDS. / LET ME RECOGNIZE PAUL ORREFICE,
A.E.I.'S CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD, AND THANK SECRETARY
NICK BRADY FOR JOINING US TODAY. FINALLY, LET ME
SALUTE IRVING KRISTOL -- HONORED BY A.E.I. WITH THIS
YEAR'S FRANCIS BOYER AWARD -- FOR THE ABUNDANCE OF
INSIGHT HE BRINGS TO THE STUDY OF AMERICAN POLITICS,
THE AMERICAN SYSTEM, AND AMERICAN SOCIETY. // IRVING
HAS DEVOTED MUCH OF HIS EFFORT THE PAST THREE DECADES
TO MAKING THE WORLD SAFE FOR DEMOCRATIC CAPITALISM.
[[THAT MESSAGE NOW OPENS NEW WORLDS FROM MOSCOW TO
WARSAW. I JUST WISH WE COULD SAY THE SAME OF
WASHINGTON.]] //
IRVING ALSO RUNS ONE OF AMERICA'S MOST FORMIDABLE
ONE-MAN TALENT AGENCIES. NOT ONLY HIS OWN SON, BILL,
WHO SO ABLY SERVES THIS ADMINISTRATION -- BUT LEGIONS
OF PROTEGES IN EVERY CORNER OF THE POLITICAL AND
INTELLECTUAL WORLDS OPEN DOORS BY SAYING, "IRVING SENT
ME." ///
- 2 -
I'M PLEASED TO HAVE THIS OPPORTUNITY TO SPEAK TO
ALL OF YOU TODAY. A.E.I. EPITOMIZES SOMETHING
QUINTESSENTIALLY AMERICAN -- THE ENGAGED INTELLECTUAL.
MANY OF YOU HAVE SERVED IN GOVERNMENT -- AND LIVED TO
TELL ABOUT IT. //
A.E.I. ENCOURAGES THE IDEAL OF THE CITIZEN-SCHOLAR
-- A KIND OF MODERN-DAY CINCINNATUS: READY TO ANSWER
YOUR COUNTRY'S CALL, AND WHEN YOUR WORK IS DONE --
CONTENT TO RETURN TO YOUR WORD PROCESSORS. //
FOR THE PAST THREE YEARS YOU'VE BEEN ESPECIALLY
GRACIOUS IN OFFERING ME ADVICE ON ALL MANNER OF ISSUES.
I THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT -- AND YES, FOR WHAT I'LL
CALL YOUR // "CONSTRUCTIVE CRITICISM."
- 3 -
IN THE SHORT SPACE OF THOSE THREE YEARS, WE'VE SEEN
OUR WORLD TRANSFORMED. THE COLLAPSE OF COMMUNISM, /
THE COLD WAR'S END, / THE TRIUMPH OF THE DEMOCRATIC
IDEA: EACH EPOCH-MAKING EVENT SWEPT AWAY THE
CHALLENGES, THE CONFLICTS THAT DEFINED THE WORLD WE
KNEW. EACH OPENED UP A NEW ERA -- A NEW WORLD OF
POSSIBILITIES. //
AS I'VE SAID BEFORE, THE COLD WAR WAS -- IN ITS
DECISIVE ASPECT -- A WAR OF IDEAS: A CLASH BETWEEN TWO
SYSTEMS SPEAKING TO THE DEEPEST DREAMS AND DESIRES OF
MAN. THAT BATTLE WAS WON BY WESTERN IDEALS. AND THE
FACT THAT IN THE NATIONS OF THE OLD WARSAW PACT AND
EVEN WITHIN THE SOVIET UNION FREE GOVERNMENTS AND FREE
MARKETS ARE NOW TAKING ROOT STANDS AS A TRIBUTE TO THE
IDEAS AND IDEALS THAT GUIDE A.E.I. //
New
OUR NEW ERA BRINGS WITH IT A NEED FOR NEW
GUIDEPOSTS -- FOR SOLUTIONS AND APPROACHES THAT KEEP
PACE WITH THE TIMES. THE FACT THAT AT LONG LAST WE
CELEBRATE A WORLD TRANSFORMED INEVITABLY MEANS CHANGE
HERE AT HOME. //
- 4 -
RIGHT NOW, THE FOCUS HERE IN WASHINGTON AND ACROSS
our
THE COUNTRY IS ON THE ECONOMY. / YESTERDAY I WAS IN
BRADENTON, FLORIDA AND MERIDIAN, MISSISSIPPI, MEETING
WITH WORKING AMERICANS, LISTENING TO WHAT'S ON THEIR
MINDS -- THE SAME WAY I'VE LISTENED TO PEOPLE ACROSS
AMERICA -- 48 STATES TO BE EXACT -- FOR THREE YEARS
NOW. / THESE ARE TOUGH TIMES. MANY AMERICANS ARE
WORRIED. THEY'RE LOOKING FOR A SIGN FROM WASHINGTON
THAT SOMEONE CARES -- UNDERSTANDS WHAT'S HAPPENING. I
HOPE I'VE MADE CLEAR THAT I DO.
THESE PEOPLE WON'T FEEL COMFORTED BY A WEIGHTY
DISCOURSE ON THE DIFFICULTIES OF DIVIDED GOVERNMENT.
// THEY KNOW THAT, WHATEVER THE LEADING ECONOMIC
INDICATORS MIGHT SAY, FOR A PERSON WHO'S LOST HIS JOB
-- THE UNEMPLOYMENT RATE IS 100%. // THEY ARE
IMPATIENT, TIRED OF EXCUSES. THEY WANT ACTION -- AND
THEY CAN'T UNDERSTAND THE POLITICAL GRIDLOCK THAT TOO
OFTEN PARALYZES WASHINGTON, D.C. //
- 5 -
BUT GOVERNING REQUIRES MORE THAN ACTION FOR
ACTION'S SAKE. YOU SEE, TOO MANY IN CONGRESS MAKE THE
EASY ASSUMPTION THAT WHEN POLLS TELL US ABOUT
DISSATISFACTION WITH WASHINGTON . -- IT MEANS THEY WANT
GOVERNMENT TO DO MORE, TAKE MORE POWER TO ITSELF. BUT
THAT NOTION SIMPLY DOESN'T SQUARE WITH MY SENSE OF WHAT
PEOPLE WANT. / YES, THE AMERICAN PEOPLE WANT
centrained
GOVERNMENT TO ACT -- BUT NOT TO BUILD NEW BUREAUCRACIES
OR CREATE MORE RED TAPE. ACROSS AMERICA, WE SEE A
DEMAND FOR GREATER FREEDOM OF ACTION. A PUBLIC WEARY
OF MANDATES, REGULATIONS AND TAXES WANTS TO REVERSE THE
FLOW OF GOVERNMENT POWER -- TO RESTORE AUTHORITY TO THE
PEOPLE. //
- 6 -
IN THE POLITICAL AND SOCIAL SPHERE, THIS NEW DEMAND
FOR FREEDOM OF ACTION MEANS POLICIES THAT ENHANCE THE
POWER OF THE INDIVIDUAL -- STRENGTHEN THE FAMILY. YOU
CAN SEE THOSE IDEAS TRANSLATED INTO ACTION IN THIS
ADMINISTRATION'S STAND AGAINST QUOTAS -- AND FOR REAL
EQUALITY OF OPPORTUNITY; IN OUR CHILD CARE BILL, A
VICTORY AGAINST THE FORCES THAT SAW THIS ISSUE AS A
CHANCE TO BUILD A BRAVE NEW CHILD CARE BUREAUCRACY.
YOU CAN SEE IT IN OUR HOPE PROGRAM'S EMPHASIS ON
TURNING TENANTS INTO HOMEOWNERS -- AND IN EDUCATION,
WHERE CHOICE IS AN ESSENTIAL PART OF OUR AMERICA 2000
STRATEGY.
TAKE A LOOK AT THAT STRATEGY. WHAT WORRIES OUR
CRITICS -- THE DEFENDERS OF THE STATUS QUO IN THE
EDUCATION ESTABLISHMENT -- ISN'T THAT OUR PLAN WON'T
WORK. THEY WORRY THAT IT WILL. // THEY KNOW THAT
CHOICE, COMPETITION AND COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT ARE
REVOLUTIONARY CONCEPTS -- CAPABLE OF LITERALLY RE-
INVENTING THE AMERICAN SCHOOL. // BUT THAT'S WHAT WE
WANT TO DO -- WHAT WE MUST DO.
- 7 -
IN THE ECONOMIC SPHERE, THE DEMAND FOR FREEDOM OF
ACTION MEANS POLICIES THAT PROMOTE MARKET-BASED
SOLUTIONS: THE KIND WE FOUGHT FOR IN THE AMENDMENTS TO
THE CLEAN AIR ACT, AND BUILT INTO OUR ENERGY STRATEGY.
//
LET ME FOCUS IN MORE DETAIL ABOUT WHAT THIS MEANS
GIVEN OUR CURRENT ECONOMIC SITUATION. / NO ONE SHOULD
BE COMPLACENT ABOUT THE SLUGGISH ECONOMY OR STUBBORN
UNEMPLOYMENT RATES. / BUT WE MUST NOT DISCOUNT THE
FUNDAMENTALS -- THE UNDERLYING FACTORS THAT PROPEL OUR
ECONOMY TOWARD GROWTH.
- 8 -
FROM THE FIRST, WE'VE BUILT OUR LONG-TERM GROWTH
STRATEGY ON SEVERAL KEY ELEMENTS: UNLEASHING CAPITAL
AND REDUCING TAX BURDENS; KEEPING INFLATION IN CHECK
-- AND INTERESTS RATES DOWN. SECOND, WE RECOGNIZE THE
NEED TO KEEP AMERICAN BUSINESS COMPETITIVE: TO SLASH
RED TAPE AND REGULATIONS WHEREVER POSSIBLE -- DRAW THE
LINE AGAINST GOVERNMENT MANDATES THAT HANDCUFF THE
It
AMERICAN ENTREPRENEUR. [[CHRIS DEMUTH AND BILL KRISTOL
STET THEIR
-- WITH HIS INVOLVEMENT IN THE COMPETITIVENESS COUNCIL
-- CAN TELL YOU STORIES THAT WILL MAKE YOUR HAIR
CURL.]] AND TRUE COMPETITIVENESS INCLUDES REAL TORT
REFORM -- CAPPING THESE CRIPPLING SKY'S-THE-LIMIT
LIABILITY AWARDS, WHICH EXERT SUCH A STRONG "CHILLING
EFFECT" ON ENTREPRENEURS READY TO BRING NEW PRODUCTS TO
MARKET.
THIRD, AS A NATION, WE'VE GOT TO MAKE GOOD ON OUR
COMMITMENT TO QUALITY EDUCATION AND JOB TRAINING, TO
ENSURE A WORKFORCE READY FOR THE CHALLENGES A NEW
CENTURY WILL BRING.
- 9 -
FOURTH, WE'VE GOT TO CONTROL THE DEFICIT. / THE
AMERICAN PEOPLE NEED TO UNDERSTAND THAT, RIGHT NOW, WE
SPEND $286 BILLION DOLLARS A YEAR -- THAT'S THREE-
QUARTERS OF A BILLION DOLLARS A DAY -- JUST TO PAY
INTEREST ON THE NATIONAL DEBT. WE'VE GOT TO KEEP
SPENDING DOWN -- AND AVOID DRIVING INTEREST RATES UP
AGAIN. //
AND FINALLY, WE'VE GOT TO MAKE CERTAIN AMERICAN
BUSINESSES COMPETE ON AN EQUAL FOOTING -- AND THAT
MEANS A GOVERNMENT COMMITTED TO THE PRINCIPLES OF FREE
AND FAIR TRADE. WE'VE FOUGHT TO ADVANCE THOSE
PRINCIPLES FROM THE E.C. TO EAST ASIA -- IN THE URUGUAY
ROUND AND WITH OUR PROMISING ENTERPRISE FOR THE
AMERICAS INITIATIVE. //
- 10 -
WE FEEL THE BENEFITS OF FOREIGN TRADE RIGHT HERE AT
HOME. EACH ADDITIONAL BILLION DOLLARS IN MANUFACTURED
GOODS
TRADE MEANS ANOTHER 20,000 AMERICAN JOBS. AND YET IN
SPITE OF THE FACT THAT LAST YEAR ALONE, TOTAL GROSS
EXPORTS ACCOUNTED FOR VIRTUALLY ALL OF THIS NATION'S
ECONOMIC GROWTH -- A NEW BREED OF ISOLATIONISTS SEEM TO
THINK DOMESTIC POLICY ENDS AT THE WATER'S EDGE. //
[[THANK GOD THEY WEREN'T AROUND BACK IN 1492
--
Idail
IMAGINE THE HARD TIME THEY'D HAVE GIVEN COLUMBUS.: ]] / //
VOICES ON THE RIGHT AND LEFT ARE WORKING RIGHT NOW TO
BREATHE NEW LIFE INTO THOSE OLD FLAT-EARTH THEORIES OF
PROTECTIONISM AND ISOLATIONISM. // BUT THERE IS NO
GOING BACK. / OUR NEW WORLD IS FAR SMALLER -- OUR
instrumed
HORIZONS STRETCH MUCH FARTHER WITH EACH GENERATION.
THIS IS 1991 -- NOT 1791: A HORSE-AND-BUGGY ATTITUDE
WON'T CARRY US INTO THE NEXT CENTURY. //
- 11 -
ON CERTAIN ISSUES -- MANY IN THE FOREIGN POLICY
SPHERE -- THE PRESIDENT POSSESSES ALL THE AUTHORITY HE
NEEDS TO ADVANCE AN AMBITIOUS AGENDA. BUT THERE ARE
THINGS NO PRESIDENT CAN DO UNILATERALLY -- TIMES WHEN
THE NEED FOR ACTION FINDS THE PRESIDENT AND CONGRESS
PULLING IN DIFFERENT DIRECTIONS. I DON'T APPROACH THE
PROBLEM OF DIVIDED GOVERNMENT AS A POLITICAL SCIENTIST.
THE IDEAL SOLUTION TO DIVIDED GOVERNMENT REMAINS A
GOVERNMENT UNITED IN PURSUIT OF THE PUBLIC GOOD. [[IN
OTHER WORDS, TO BE CANDID, MY PREFERRED SOLUTION TO
DIVIDED GOVERNMENT IS A REPUBLICAN CONGRESS. ]] // IN
THE MEANWHILE, I'LL KEEP PUSHING CONGRESS -- REACHING
OUT WHEN I CAN, GIVING A KINDER, GENTLER POKE NOW AND
AGAIN WHEN NECESSARY -- TO WORK WITH ME TO GET THE JOB
DONE. //
- 12 -
I CALLED ON CONGRESS TO JOIN ME IN RESPONSIBLE
ACTION LONG BEFORE OUR ECONOMY BEGAN TO STRUGGLE. / I
SAID BACK IN 1989 --DURING THE LONGEST PEACETIME
RECOVERY ON RECORD -- THAT AMERICA COULD NOT REST EASY,
THAT WE NEEDED TO LOOK TO THE LONG-TERM, PUT IN PLACE
POLICIES THAT WOULD SUSTAIN GROWTH AND CREATE JOBS. I
OFFERED THEN THE FIRST OF THREE ECONOMIC GROWTH
PACKAGES. THREE SESSIONS OF CONGRESS HAVE COME AND
GONE. EVERYONE KNOWS THE RESULT: PRECIOUS LITTLE
ACTION. //
- 13 -
EVERY ONE OF THE ECONOMIC PROPOSALS I'VE SENT UP TO
CAPITOL HILL SERVES THE SINGLE STANDARD OF GENERATING
GROWTH -- AND THAT INCLUDES THE CAPITAL GAINS TAX CUT
levelles/
MY OPPONENTS HAVE LABELED "CONTROVERSIAL." // MY
OPPONENTS LIKE TO TREAT CAPITAL GAINS AS A CODE WORD
FOR CLASS WARFARE -- EVEN AT THE VERY SAME TIME THEY'RE
LEARNING TO PAY LIP SERVICE TO A CONCEPT CALLED
COMPETITIVENESS. I WONDER WHETHER THEY REALIZE THE
U.S. IS SADDLED WITH CAPITAL GAINS TAX RATES FAR HIGHER
THAN OUR KEY INTERNATIONAL COMPETITORS? LOOK AT
GERMANY: 0% -- NO CAPITAL GAINS TAX AT ALL -- ON
ASSETS HELD LONGER THAN SIX MONTHS. OR CONSIDER JAPAN:
AN ENTREPRENEUR WHO SELLS THE COMPANY HE'S BUILT FROM
SCRATCH PAYS A TAX OF 1%. / IT'S TIME WE SEE THAT
HIGHER COSTS FOR CAPITAL CRIPPLE COMPETITIVENESS -- AND
COST AMERICAN JOBS. "aplan his
- 14 -
WHEN I DELIVER MY STATE OF THE UNION MESSAGE IN
JANUARY, I WILL GO TO THE CONGRESS WITH A NEW ACTION
PROGRAM -- I'LL CALL ON CONGRESS TO SET ASIDE POLITICS
AND FOCUS ON THE PUBLIC INTEREST: I'LL CHALLENGE THEM
TO ENACT A COMMON-SENSE SET OF ECONOMIC REFORMS. / IF
WE DO OUR WORK PROMPTLY, WE'LL STILL HAVE PLENTY OF
TIME LEFT IN 1992 FOR PARTISAN POLITICS. //
IN THE MEANTIME, THERE IS A GREAT DEAL WE CAN DO IN
THE EXECUTIVE BRANCH TO FOSTER ECONOMIC GROWTH WITHOUT
WAITING FOR CONGRESS TO ACT. WE WILL CONTINUE DOING
ALL WE CAN TO DRIVE DOWN BARRIERS TO TRADE AND OPEN
FOREIGN MARKETS TO AMERICAN GOODS. WE WILL SEEK WAYS
TO LIFT THE BURDEN OF FEDERAL REGULATION WITHOUT
COMPROMISING PUBLIC HEALTH OR SAFETY. AS I SAID
MONDAY, WE WILL MOVE QUICKLY TO IMPLEMENT THE JOB-
INTENSIVE TRANSPORTATION BILL -- AND I HAVE ORDERED
FEDERAL AGENCIES TO REVIEW THE EFFECTIVENESS OF A FULL
RANGE OF PROGRAMS: FROM SMALL BUSINESS LOANS TO JOB
PLACEMENT AND JOB TRAINING, TO THE PROCESS FOR GETTING
UNEMPLOYMENT CHECKS OUT TO THE WORKERS AND FAMILIES
WAITING FOR THEM. // NONE OF THESE ACTIONS CAN
SUBSTITUTE FOR EFFECTIVE CONGRESSIONAL ACTION -- BUT
EACH CAN HELP MOVE THE ECONOMY ALONG. //
- 15 -
so LET ME REPEAT: WE HAVE HAD A COMPREHENSIVE
ECONOMIC GROWTH STRATEGY FROM THE BEGINNING,
ENCOMPASSING EVERY ASPECT OF POLICY: DEFICIT REDUCTION
TO LOWER INTEREST RATES; TAX INCENTIVES TO SPUR SAVING
REGULATORY REFORM;
1
AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP; INCREASED AND MORE EFFICIENT
INVESTMENT IN OUR PUBLIC INFRASTRUCTURE; EDUCATION
REFORM TO ENHANCE AMERICA'S HUMAN CAPITAL; TORT REFORM
TO EASE THE COSTLY LITIGATION THAT SAPS OUR
PRODUCTIVITY; BANKING REFORM TO MAKE OUR FINANCIAL
SYSTEM SAFER AND MORE INTERNATIONALLY COMPETITIVE --
AND A TRADE POLICY AIMED AT OPENING THE NEW MARKETS
THAT MEAN MORE AMERICAN JOBS.
- 16 -
I'M CONFIDENT WE CAN ACT TO ADVANCE AMERICA'S
INTERESTS -- AND I'M CERTAIN WE MUST, BECAUSE OUR WORLD
DEMANDS IT. / I'M CONFIDENT BECAUSE I REMAIN
CONVINCED AMERICA'S "FUNDAMENTALS" ARE SOUND -- NOT
JUST THE ECONOMIC INDICATORS I MENTIONED A FEW MOMENTS
AGO, BUT THE BROAD FUNDAMENTALS THAT SUSTAIN AMERICAN
OF FELLOWSHIP
>
SOCIETY: FAITH AND FAMILY. THE FELLOW FEELING THAT
LEADS MILLIONS OF AMERICANS TO HELP NEIGHBORS IN NEED
-- WITHOUT LOOKING TO WASHINGTON FOR GUIDANCE. AND OF
COURSE, THE CORNERSTONE OF OUR AMERICAN IDEA: THE
BEDROCK BELIEF IN FREEDOM THAT LED US FORWARD FROM
VALLEY FORGE TO DESERT STORM TO THE NEW WORLD NOW
UNFOLDING AROUND US. //
ENTIRE
LOOK OUT ON THE HORIZON: TO THE AMERICA THE
AWART
CRANTIE WORLD LOOKS TO FOR LEADERSHIP. TO THE AMERICA
THAT EXALTS ENTERPRISE AND SWEAT -- THE HANDS THAT WORK
AND THE UNLIMITED POWER OF THE HUMAN MIND. TO THE
AMERICA WHOSE VERY NAME MEANS FREEDOM FOR MILLIONS
AROUND THE WORLD. / THAT AMERICA POSSESSES A POWER
THAT DOES NOT OWE ITS STRENGTH TO GOVERNMENT -- AN
ITS
POWER
APREAL\THAT APREAL THAT BEGINS AND ENDS IN THE LIVING EXAMPLE OF
ITS PEOPLE. //
- 17 -
ONCE AGAIN, I THANK ALL OF YOU FOR THIS WARM
WELCOME -- AND MAY GOD BLESS THE UNITED STATES OF
AMERICA.
# # #
THE WHITE HOUSE
Cirey's
WASHINGTON
Comments
December 3, 1991
MEMORANDUM FOR THE PRESIDENT
THROUGH:
DAVE DEMAREST
TONY SNOW TS
FROM:
DAN MC GROARTY DWr
SUBJECT:
PROPOSED REMARKS FOR THE AMERICAN ENTERPRISE
INSTITUTE LUNCHEON
I. SUMMARY
On Wednesday, December 4, 1991 at 12:45 p.m. you will
deliver remarks to an audience of 200 at the American Enterprise
Institute Luncheon in the Ballroom at The Willard Hotel,
Washington, D.C.
II. DISCUSSION
Your remarks (approximately 18 minutes / teleprompter) focus
on our long- and short-term economic strategies, as well as the
challenges of formulating policy in the post-Cold war era. The
remarks also highlight AEI's contributions to the study of
American politics and salute Irving Kristol, recipient of AEI's
1991 Francis Boyer Award.
# # #
THE WHITE HOUSE
washington
December 3, 1991
MEMORANDUM FOR THE PRESIDENT
THROUGH:
DAVE DEMAREST
TONY SNOW TS
FROM:
DAN MC GROARTY our
SUBJECT:
PROPOSED REMARKS FOR THE AMERICAN ENTERPRISE
INSTITUTE LUNCHEON
I. SUMMARY
On Wednesday, December 4, 1991 at 12:45 p.m. you will
deliver remarks to an audience of 200 at the American Enterprise
Institute Luncheon in the Ballroom at The Willard Hotel,
Washington, D.C.
II. DISCUSSION
Your remarks (approximately 18 minutes / teleprompter) focus
on our long- and short-term economic strategies, as well as the
challenges of formulating policy in the post-Cold war era. The
remarks also highlight AEI's contributions to the study of
American politics and salute Irving Kristol, recipient of AEI's
1991 Francis Boyer Award.
# # #
GERTRUDES
-Paul AEI Orrefice Chairman it poard
McGroarty/Bunton
(BEA)
December 3, 1991
11:45 am
[AEI]
PRESIDENTIAL REMARKS: AMERICAN ENTERPRISE INSTITUTE LUNCHEON
THE WILLARD HOTEL
DECEMBER 4, 1991
12:45 P.M.
Thank you, Chris [DeMuth, AEI President], for those warm
words. [Introductory acknowledgements.] Finally, let me salute
Irving Kristol -- honored by AEI with this year's Francis Boyer
Award -- for the abundance of insight he brings to the study of
American politics, the American system, and American society. //
Irving has devoted much of his effort the past three decades to
making the world safe for democratic capitalism. [[That message
now opens new worlds from Moscow to Warsaw. I just wish we could
say the same of Washington. ]] //
Irving also runs one of America's most formidable one-man
talent agencies. Not only his own son, Bill, who so ably serves
this Administration -- but legions of proteges in every corner of
the political and intellectual worlds open doors by saying,
"Irving sent me." ///
I'm pleased to have this opportunity to speak to all of you
today. AEI epitomizes something quintessentially American -- the
engaged intellectual. Many of you have served in government --
and lived to tell about it. //
AEI encourages the ideal of the citizen-scholar --- a kind of
modern-day Cincinnatus: ready to answer your country's call, and
when your work is done -- content to return to your word
processors. //
2
For the past three years you've been especially gracious in
offering me advice on all manner of issues. I thank you for your
support -- and yes, for what I'll call your // "constructive
criticism."
In the short space of those three years, we've seen our
world transformed. The collapse of communism, / the Cold War's
end, / the triumph of the democratic idea: each epoch-making
event swept away the challenges, the conflicts that defined the
world we knew. Each opened up a new era -- a new world of
possibilities. //
As I've said before, the Cold War was -- in its decisive
aspect -- a war of ideas: A clash between two systems speaking
to the deepest dreams and desires of man. The fact that the
battle was won by Western ideals -- the fact that in the nations
of the old Warsaw Pact and even within the Soviet Union free
governments and free markets are taking root -- stands as a
tribute to the ideas and ideals that guide AEI. //
Our new era brings with it a need for new guideposts -- for
solutions and approaches that keep pace with the times. The fact
that at long last we celebrate a world transformed inevitably
means change here at home. //
Right now, the focus here in Washington and across the
country is on the economy. / Yesterday I was in Bradenton,
Florida and Meridian, Mississippi, meeting with working
Americans, listening to what's on their minds -- the same way
I've listened to people across America -- 48 states to be exact -
3
- for three years now. / These are tough times. Many Americans
are worried. They're looking for a sign from Washington that
someone cares -- understands what's happening. I hope I've made
clear that I do.
These people won't feel comforted by a weighty discourse on
the difficulties of divided government. 11 They know that,
whatever the leading economic indicators might say, for a person
who's lost his job -- the unemployment rate is 100%. // They
are impatient, tired of excuses. They want action -- and they
can't understand the political gridlock that too often paralyzes
Washington, D.C. //
But governing requires more than action for action's sake.
[[The scholars of American history here today can vouch for the
fact that I'm not the only one who fears our basic liberties are
not safe so long as Congress is in session. ]] I made a promise
some time back that I owe it to the American taxpayer never to
leave Congress "home alone." //
You see, too many in Congress make the easy assumption that
when polls tell us about dissatisfaction with Washington -- it
means they want government to do more, take more power to itself.
But that notion simply doesn't square with my sense of what
people want. Look back over the 60's and 70's -- over a
generation of creeping centralism -- every inch of the road paved
by good intentions. / Yes, the American people want government
to act -- but not to build new bureaucracies or create more red
tape. Across America, we see a demand for greater freedom of
4
action. A public weary of mandates, regulations and taxes wants
to reverse the flow of government power -- to restore authority
to the people. / /
In the political and social sphere, this new demand for
freedom of action means policies that enhance the power of the
individual -- strengthen the family. You can see those ideas
translated into action in this Administration's stand against
quotas -- and for real equality of opportunity; in our child
care bill, a victory against the forces that saw this issue as a
chance to build a brave new child care bureaucracy. You can see
it in our HOPE program's emphasis on turning tenants into
homeowners. //
Take a look at our education strategy, America 2000. What
worries "the edu-crats" -- the defenders of the status quo who
are more comfortable here inside the Beltway than in front of the
blackboard -- isn't that our plan won't work. They worry that it
will. // They look at America 2000 with about the same
enthusiasm that candle makers looked at Edison's light bulb.
[[And think of all the firemen that put out of work!] // They
know that choice, competition and community involvement are
revolutionary concepts -- capable of literally re-inventing the
American school. //
In the economic sphere, the demand for freedom of action
means policies that promote market-based solutions: The kind we
fought for in the amendments to the Clean Air Act, and built into
our energy strategy. //
5
Let me focus in more detail about what this means given our
current economic situation. / No one should be complacent about
the sluggish economy or stubborn unemployment rates. / We need
to be candid about the fact that hasty government intervention in
the economy is likely to do more harm than good. We need to
resist feel-good solutions that would tilt a listless recovery
back into recession. Rather, we need to keep our focus on the
fundamentals -- on the underlying factors that propel our economy
toward growth.
From the first, we've built our long-term growth strategy on
several key elements: unleashing capital and reducing tax
orlavey Broadman
burdens; keeping inflation in check -- 1 and sustaining the
Gand doing out level beststo kung interest rates at these lows kuels.
BOSKIN IFF
policies that helped bring interest rates to these historic low
levels.
their 2 Gwest lvls in a decade 9 V2
Second, we recognize the need to keep American business
competitive: to slash red tape and regulations wherever possible
-- draw the line against government mandates that handcuff the
American entrepreneur. [[Chris DeMuth and Bill Kristol -- with
his involvement in the Competitiveness Council -- can tell you
stories that will make your hair curl. ]] And true
competitiveness includes real tort reform -- capping these
crippling sky's-the-limit liability awards, which exert such a
strong "chilling effect" on entrepreneurs ready to bring new
KEEP INT. RATES AT THESE LOW LEVELS.
products to market. It also requires unshackling our Nation's tanks,
allowing them to compete across state lines and product lines.
DECADE AND ONE- HALF, AND POING owe LEVEL BEST TO
[BRING INTEREST RATES TO THEIR LOWEST LEVESINA A
6
Third, as a nation, we've got to make good on our commitment
to quality education and job training, to ensure a workforce
ready for the challenges a new century will bring.
Fourth, we've got to control the deficit. Keep spending
dollars dellars! day week or
down -- and avoid driving interest rates up again.
dokar fyn to how much spending in interest on the deficit //
Boskin
And finally, we've got to make certain American businesses
compete on an equal footing -- and that means a government
committed to the principles of free and fair trade. We've fought
to advance those principles from the EC to East Asia -- in the
Uruguay Round and with our promising Enterprise for the Americas
Initiative. //
We feel the benefits of foreign trade right here at home.
Each additional billion dollars in manufactured trade means
another 20,000 American jobs. And yet in spite of the fact that
last year alone, manufacturing exports accounted for nearly all
of this nation's economic growth -- a new breed of isolationists
seem to think domestic policy ends at the water's edge. //
[ [Thank God they weren't around back in 1492 -- imagine the
hard time they'd have given Columbus. ]] Voices on the Right and
Left are working right now to breathe new life into that old
Flat-Earth theory of "America First." // But there is no going
back to the old isolationism. Our new world is far smaller --
our horizons stretch much farther with each generation. This is
(HARRY BROADMAN BOSKIN)
DOLLARS FOR INTEREST PAYMENTS ON THE NAT'L DEBT.
CACH DAY THE GOVT is SPEND' MORE THAN 3/4 of"1 BILLION
1991 -- not 1791: A horse-and-buggy attitude won't carry us into
the next century. //
RATE
ANNUAL
Domistic
1
SEqUE
7
On certain issues -- many in the foreign policy sphere --
the President possesses all the authority he needs to advance an
ambitious agenda. But there are things no President can do
unilaterally -- times when the need for action finds the
President and Congress pulling in different directions. I don't
approach the problem of divided government as a political
scientist. The ideal solution to divided government remains a
government united in pursuit of the public good. [[In other
words, my preferred solution to divided government is a
Republican Congress. ]] // In the meanwhile, I'll keep pushing
Congress -- reaching out when I can, giving a kinder, gentler
poke now and again when necessary -- to work with me to get the
job done. //
I called on Congress to join me in responsible action long
before our economy began to struggle. / I said back in 1989 --
during the longest peacetime recovery on record -- that America
could not rest easy, that we needed to look to the long-term, put
in place policies that would sustain growth and create jobs. I
offered then the first of three economic growth packages. Three
sessions of Congress have come and gone. Everyone knows the
result: Plenty of pontificating -- precious little action. //
Every one of the proposals I've sent up to Capitol Hill
serves the single standard of generating growth -- and that
includes the capital gains tax cut my opponents have labeled
"controversial." // My opponents like to treat capital gains as
a code word for class warfare -- even at the very same time
on Competitueness Conncil
x6222
list 5 competing countries and their
Apr/May 89 WILL be tough
Larry undsey used to do this
capital jains rates
Freq does.
8
they're learning to pay lip service to a concept called
competitiveness. I wonder whether they realize the U.S. is
saddled with capital gains tax rates far higher than our key
international competitors? In the end, these higher costs for
capital cripple competitiveness -- and cost American jobs. //
When I deliver my State of the Union message in January,
I'll call on Congress to set aside politics and focus on the
public interest: I'll challenge them to enact a common-sense set
of economic reforms. / If we do our work promptly, we'll still
have plenty of time left in 1992 for partisan politics. //
In the meantime, there is a great deal we can do in the
Executive Branch to foster economic growth without waiting for
councel
shatsdeps
Congress to act. We will move forward to implement important
elements of our National Energy Strategy. We will continue to do
EMEC, ORDERS
love tawn or
all we can to drive down barriers to trade and open foreign
executive orde
markets to American goods. We will continue to seek ways to lift
on NES
the burden of federal regulation without compromising public
health or safety. As I said Monday, we will move quickly to
implement the job-intensive transportation bill -- and I have
ordered federal agencies to review the effectiveness of a full
range of programs: from small business loans to job placement
and job training, to the process for getting unemployment checks
out to the workers and families waiting for them. // None of
these actions can substitute for effective Congressional action -
- but each can help move the economy along. //
9
I'm confident we can act to advance America's interests --
and I'm certain we must, because our world demands it. The
challenge now is to keep pace with change -- to shed the old,
out-dated ways of thinking and seize this moment we've created:
to help the U.S. meet and master the challenges of the
international economy -- to help America forge a new world order:
peaceful, prosperous and free. ///
I'm confident we'll meet the challenges thrown open in this
new world, because I remain convinced America's "fundamentals"
are sound -- not just the economic indicators I mentioned a few
moments ago, but the broad fundamentals that sustain American
society: Faith and family. The fellow feeling that leads
millions of Americans to help neighbors in need -- without
looking to Washington for guidance. And of course, the
cornerstone of our American idea: the bedrock belief in freedom
that led us forward from Valley Forge to Desert Storm to the new
world now unfolding around us. //
Look out on the horizon: To the America the rest of the
world looks to for leadership. To the America that exalts
enterprise and sweat -- the hands that work and the unlimited
power of the human mind. To the America whose very name means
freedom for millions around the world. / That America possesses
a power that does not owe its strength to government -- an appeal
that begins and ends in the living example of its people. //
Once again, I thank all of you for this warm welcome -- and
may God bless the United States of America.
Sec.
Brady Molly Pushi liason
McGroarty/Bunton
December 3, 1991
11:45 am
[AEI]
PRESIDENTIAL REMARKS: AMERICAN ENTERPRISE INSTITUTE LUNCHEON
THE WILLARD HOTEL
DECEMBER 4, 1991
12:45 P.M.
Thank you, Chris [DeMuth, AEI President], for those warm
pron.
words. / Let me recognize Paul Orrefice, AEI's Chairman of the
Board. And let me salute Irving Kristol -- honored by AEI with
this year's Francis Boyer Award -- for the abundance of insight
he brings to the study of American politics, the American system,
and American society. // Irving has devoted much of his effort
the past three decades to making the world safe for democratic
capitalism. [[That message now opens new worlds from Moscow to
Warsaw. I just wish we could say the same of Washington. //
Irving also runs one of America's most formidable one-man
talent agencies. Not only his own son, Bill, who so ably serves
this Administration -- but legions of proteges in every corner of
the political and intellectual worlds open doors by saying,
"Irving sent me." ///
I'm pleased to have this opportunity to speak to all of you
today. AEI epitomizes something quintessentially American -- the
engaged intellectual. Many of you have served in government --
and lived to tell about it. //
AEI encourages the ideal of the citizen-scholar -- a kind of
modern-day Cincinnatus: ready to answer your country's call, and
when your work is done -- content to return to your word
processors. //
2
For the past three years you've been especially gracious in
offering me advice on all manner of issues. I thank you for your
support -- and yes, for what I'll call your // "constructive
criticism."
In the short space of those three years, we've seen our
world transformed. The collapse of communism, / the Cold War's
end, / the triumph of the democratic idea: each epoch-making
event swept away the challenges, the conflicts that defined the
world we knew. Each opened up a new era -- a new world of
possibilities. //
As I've said before, the Cold War was -- in its decisive
aspect -- a war of ideas: A clash between two systems speaking
to the deepest dreams and desires of man. That battle was won by
Western ideals. And the fact that in the nations of the old
Warsaw Pact and even within the Soviet Union free governments and
free markets are now taking root stands as a tribute to the ideas
and ideals that guide AEI. //
Our new era brings with it a need for new guideposts -- for
solutions and approaches that keep pace with the times. The fact
that at long last we celebrate a world transformed inevitably
means change here at home. //
Right now, the focus here in Washington and across the
country is on the economy. / Yesterday I was in Bradenton,
Florida and Meridian, Mississippi, meeting with working
Americans, listening to what's on their minds -- the same way
I've listened to people across America -- 48 states to be exact -
3
- for three years now. / These are tough times. Many Americans
are worried. They're looking for a sign from Washington that
someone cares -- understands what's happening. I hope I've made
clear that I do.
These people won't feel comforted by a weighty discourse on
the difficulties of divided government. // They know that,
whatever the leading economic indicators might say, for a person
who's lost his job -- the unemployment rate is 100%. // They
are impatient, tired of excuses. They want action -- and they
can't understand the political gridlock that too often paralyzes
Washington, D.C. //
But governing requires more than action for action's sake.
You see, too many in Congress make the easy assumption that when
polls tell us about dissatisfaction with Washington -- it means
they want government to do more, take more power to itself. But
that notion simply doesn't square with my sense of what people
want. / Yes, the American people want government to act -- but
not to build new bureaucracies or create more red tape. Across
America, we see a demand for greater freedom of action. A public
weary of mandates, regulations and taxes wants to reverse the
flow of government power -- to restore authority to the people.
//
In the political and social sphere, this new demand for
freedom of action means policies that enhance the power of the
individual -- strengthen the family. You can see those ideas
translated into action in this Administration's stand against
4
quotas -- and for real equality of opportunity; in our child
care bill, a victory against the forces that saw this issue as a
chance to build a brave new child care bureaucracy. You can see
it in our HOPE program's emphasis on turning tenants into
homeowners -- and in education, where choice is an essential part
of our America 2000 strategy.
Take a look at that strategy. What worries our critics --
the defenders of the status quo in the education establishment -
- isn't that our plan won't work. They worry that it will. //
They know that choice, competition and community involvement are
revolutionary concepts -- capable of literally re-inventing the
American school. // But that's what we want to do -- what we
must do.
In the economic sphere, the demand for freedom of action
means policies that promote market-based solutions: The kind we
fought for in the amendments to the Clean Air Act, and built into
our energy strategy. //
Let me focus in more detail about what this means given our
current economic situation. / No one should be complacent about
the sluggish economy or stubborn unemployment rates. / But we
must not discount the fundamentals -- the underlying factors that
propel our economy toward growth.
From the first, we've built our long-term growth strategy on
several key elements: unleashing capital and reducing tax
burdens; keeping inflation in check -- and interests rates down.
Second, we recognize the need to keep American business
5
competitive: to slash red tape and regulations wherever possible
-- draw the line against government mandates that handcuff the
American entrepreneur. [[Chris DeMuth and Bill Kristol -- with
his involvement in the Competitiveness Council -- can tell you
stories that will make your hair curl.]] And true
competitiveness includes real tort reform -- capping these
crippling sky's-the-limit liability awards, which exert such a
strong "chilling effect" on entrepreneurs ready to bring new
products to market.
Third, as a nation, we've got to make good on our commitment
to quality education and job training, to ensure a workforce
ready for the challenges a new century will bring.
Fourth, we've got to control the deficit. / The American
people need to understand that, right now, we spend [$200]
286
billion dollars a year -- that's three-quarters of a billion
Harry
dollars a day -- just to pay interest on the national debt.
Bradnear
We've got to keep spending down -- and avoid driving interest
16/21/h
rates up again. //
And finally, we've got to make certain American businesses
compete on an equal footing -- and that means a government
committed to the principles of free and fair trade. We've fought
to advance those principles from the EC to East Asia -- in the
Uruguay Round and with our promising Enterprise for the Americas
Initiative. //
We feel the benefits of foreign trade right here at home.
Each additional billion dollars in manufactured trade means
Forther 500
6
another 20,000 American jobs. And yet in spite of the fact that
last year alone, manufacturing exports accounted for nearly virtually all
total gross exports
of this nation's economic growth -- a new breed of isolationists
seem to think domestic policy ends at the water's edge. //
[[Thank God they weren't around back in 1492 -- imagine the
hard time they'd have given Columbus. ]] // Voices on the Right
and Left are working right now to breathe new life into those old
Flat-Earth theories of protectionism and isolationism. // But
there is no going back. / Our new world is far smaller -- our
horizons stretch much farther with each generation. This is 1991
--
not
1791
A horse-and-buggy attitude won't carry us into the
next century. //
On certain issues -- many in the foreign policy sphere --
the President possesses all the authority he needs to advance an
ambitious agenda. But there are things no President can do
unilaterally -- times when the need for action finds the
President and Congress pulling in different directions. I don't
approach the problem of divided government as a political
scientist. The ideal solution to divided government remains a
government united in pursuit of the public good. [[In other
words, to be candid, my preferred solution to divided government
is a Republican Congress. ]] // In the meanwhile, I'll keep
pushing Congress -- reaching out when I can, giving a kinder,
gentler poke now and again when necessary -- to work with me to
get the job done. //
7
I called on Congress to join me in responsible action long
before our economy began to struggle. / I said back in 1989 --
during the longest peacetime recovery on record -- that America
could not rest easy, that we needed to look to the long-term, put
in place policies that would sustain growth and create jobs. I
offered then the first of three economic growth packages. Three
sessions of Congress have come and gone. Everyone knows the
result: precious little action. //
Every one of the economic proposals I've sent up to Capitol
Hill serves the single standard of generating growth -- and that
includes the capital gains tax cut my opponents have labeled
"controversial." // My opponents like to treat capital gains as
a code word for class warfare -- even at the very same time
they're learning to pay lip service to a concept called
competitiveness. I wonder whether they realize the U.S. is
saddled with capital gains tax rates far higher than our key
international competitors? Look at Germany: 0% -- no capital
gains tax at all -- on assets held longer than six months. Or
consider Japan: an entrepreneur who sells the company he's built
from scratch pays a tax of 1%. / It's time we see that higher
costs for capital cripple competitiveness --- and cost American
jobs. / /
When I deliver my State of the Union message in January, I
will go to the Congress with a new action program -- I'll call on
Congress to set aside politics and focus on the public interest:
I'll challenge them to enact a common-sense set of economic
8
reforms. / If we do our work promptly, we'll still have plenty
of time left in 1992 for partisan politics. //
In the meantime, there is a great deal we can do in the
Executive Branch to foster economic growth without waiting for
Congress to act. We will continue doing all we can to drive down
barriers to trade and open foreign markets to American goods. We
will seek ways to lift the burden of federal regulation without
compromising public health or safety. As I said Monday, we will
move quickly to implement the job-intensive transportation bill -
- and I have ordered federal agencies to review the effectiveness
of a full range of programs: from small business loans to job
placement and job training, to the process for getting
unemployment checks out to the workers and families waiting for
them. // None of these actions can substitute for effective
Congressional action -- but each can help move the economy along.
//
So let me repeat: we have had a comprehensive economic
growth strategy from the beginning, encompassing every aspect of
policy: deficit reduction to lower interest rates; tax
incentives to spur saving and entrepreneurship; increased and
more efficient investment in our public infrastructure; education
reform to enhance America's human capital; tort reform to ease
the costly litigation that saps our productivity; banking reform
to make our financial system safer and more internationally
competitive -- and a trade policy aimed at opening the new
markets that mean more American jobs. //
9
I'm confident we can act to advance America's interests --
and I'm certain we must, because our world demands it. / I'm
confident because I remain convinced America's "fundamentals" are
sound -- not just the economic indicators I mentioned a few
moments ago, but the broad fundamentals that sustain American
society: Faith and family. The fellow feeling that leads
millions of Americans to help neighbors in need -- without
looking to Washington for guidance. And of course, the
cornerstone of our American idea: the bedrock belief in freedom
that led us forward from Valley Forge to Desert Storm to the new
world now unfolding around us. //
Look out on the horizon: To the America the rest of the
world looks to for leadership. To the America that exalts
enterprise and sweat -- the hands that work and the unlimited
power of the human mind. To the America whose very name means
freedom for millions around the world. / That America possesses
a power that does not owe its strength to government -- an appeal
that begins and ends in the living example of its people. //
Once again, I thank all of you for this warm welcome -- and
may God bless the United States of America.
# # #