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Republican Governors Association Conference, Colorado Springs, CO, December 9, 1966
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The original documents are located in Box D21, folder "Republican Governors Association
Conference, Colorado Springs, CO, December 9, 1966" of the Ford Congressional Papers:
Press Secretary and Speech File at the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library.
Copyright Notice
The copyright law of the United States (Title 17, United States Code) governs the making of
photocopies or other reproductions of copyrighted material. The Council donated to the United
States of America his copyrights in all of his unpublished writings in National Archives collections.
Works prepared by U.S. Government employees as part of their official duties are in the public
domain. The copyrights to materials written by other individuals or organizations are presumed to
remain with them. If you think any of the information displayed in the PDF is subject to a valid
copyright claim, please contact the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library.
Digitized from Box D21 of The Ford Congressional Papers: Press Secretary and Speech File at the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library
SPEECH BEFORE REPUBLICAN GOVERN ORS' ASSOCIATION CONFERENCE
COLO. SPRINGS, COLO. - FRIDAY, DECEMBER 9, 1966
MY GOOD FRIENDS AND FELLOW REPUBLICANS--AND I THINK
THAT'S REDUNDANT.
very
I'M HAPPY AND HONORED TO HAVE THE CHANCE TO SPEND A
FEW HOURS WITH YOU, FIRST OF ALL TO CONGRATULATE YOU--
THOSE WHO WERE ELECTED OR RE-ELECTED LAST NOVEMBER 8--AND
TO THANK ALL OF YOU, WHETHER YOU WERE CANDIDATES OR NOT,
FOR THE KEY ROLES YOU PLAYED IN THE GREAT RESURGENCE OF
REPUBLICANISM WHICH WE HAVE WITNESSED AND WHICH IS STILL
IN MOTION.
IF I CAN CLEAR MY DESK OF THE POLITICAL PROBLEMS THAT
HAVE PILED UP IN ANTICIPATION OF THE NEW CONGRESS, I AM
the Rochels
COMING BACK TO COLORADO WITH MY WHOLE FAMILY LATER THI
FORD & LIBRARY BERU
-2-
John, The Fanto
MONTH FOR, THE RELATIVELY SAFE SPORT OF SKIING. #E ALL
the rachies + this
LOVE THIS STATE. THERE IS SOMETHING ABOUT THESE MAJESTIC
MOUNTAINS THAT REDUCES MAN TO HIS PROPER SIZE AND I THINK
IT WAS A WONDERFUL CHOICE FOR REPUBLICANS TO GATHER HERE
Despite our collective
IN THE FLUSH OF LAST MONTH'S SWEEPING SUCCESSES. WE STILL program
HAVE A WAY TO GO in The months
1
YOUNG LT. ZEBULON PIKE, WHEN HE FIRST LOOKED AT THE
PEAK THAT BEARS HIS NAME, SUPPOSEDLY SAID IT WOULD "NEVER
BE SCALED BY MORTAL MAN. ONLY A FEW YEARS LATER, OF COURSE,
IT WAS. I THINK WE MIGHT CONSIDER SETTING UP A ZEBULON
PIKE AWARD FOR ALL THE POLITICAL PUNDITS WHO TWO YEARS AGO
WERE DOLEFULLY PREDICTING THAT THE REPUBLICAN PARTY WOULD
GO THE WAY OF THE WHIGS, AND AS LATE AS THE END OF OCTOBER
CONCLUDED THAT THE REPUBLICANS HAD FAILED TO FIND ANY
ERALD FORD LIBRARY
SIGNIFICANT CAMPAIGN ISSUES IN 1966 AND THAT THE ELECTION
-3-
WOULD PRODUCE NO APPRECIABLE CHANGE IN THE POLITICAL
COMPLEXION OF THE COUNTRY OR THE CONGRESS.
NOW THESE SAME PROGNOSTICATORS ARE SAYING WE REPUBLICANS
WILL GET SO EMBROILED AND ENMESHED IN OUR OWN IDEOLOGICAL
AND PERSONAL ARGUMENTS THAT WE WILL DEFEAT OURSELVES BEFORE
1968 WITHOUT ANY HELP FROM THE OUTSIDE. I THINK WE OUGHT
TO SEND THIS WARMED-OVER DISH RIGHT BACK TO THE KITCHEN.
I THINK/THEY ARE TALKING ABOUT THE WRONG PARTY ! DURING
THE PAST TWO YEARS, I HAVE MADE ONE OR MORE VISITS TO SOME
44 STATES, AND ALL I CAN REPORT THAT I NEVER HEARD ANY
REPUBLICAN TALKING ABOUT ANY OF YOU THE WAY SENATOR FULBRIGHT
AND PRESIDENT JOHNSON ARE ALLEGED TO TALK ABOUT EACH OTHER.
AND I NEVER CAUGHT ANYBODY EYEING ME THE WAY HUBERT LOOKS
AT BOBBY, AND VICE VERSA.
GERALD FORD LIBRARY
-4-
THE MAIN REASON I'M HERE IS TO REPORT TO YOU BRIEFLY
AS MINORITY LEADER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, AND
IT SHOULDN'T SURPRISE YOU THAT WITH A NET REINFORCEMENT OF
47 MORE REPUBLICANS IN THE HOUSE, I DO FEEL A LOT MORE
LIKE A LEADER AND A LOT LESS LIKE A MINORITY.
IN THE UPCOMING 90TH CONGRESS, WE WILL HAVE 187 SEATS--
OUR HIGHEST FIGURE SINCE 1958. THIS IS STILL 31 VOTES SHORT
OF THE MAJORITY WE'D LIKE, BUT IT'S A WHOLE LOT DIFFERENT
FROM BEING OUTNUMBERED BY TWO TO ONE WITH 15 VOTES TO SPARE.
PRELIMINARY FIGURES INDICATE THAT REPUBLICAN CANDIDATES
FOR THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES WON CLOSE TO 49 PERCENT
OF THE TOTAL CONGRESSIONAL VOTE NATIONWIDE. THIS WOULD
BE OUR BEST OFF-YEAR SHOWING SINCE 1950.
GERALD FORD LIBRARY
-5-
THE TOTAL VOTE FOR REPUBLICAN CANDIDATES IN HOUSE
CONTESTS WAS MORE THAN 25 MILLION, WHICH WOULD APPEAR TO
BE A RECORD FOR A NON-PRESIDENTIAL YEAR. YOU GENTLEMEN
RIGHTFULLY SHARE IN THE CREDIT FOR THIS TURNOUT AND FOR
THE ENCOURAGING FACT THAT REPUBLICAN CANDIDATES OUTPOLLED
DEMOCRATS IN HOUSE RACES IN 26 STATES -- ALASKA, ARIZONA,
CALIFORNIA, DELAWARE, IDAHO, ILLINOIS, INDIANA, IOWA,
KANSAS, KENTUCKY, MICHIGAN, MINNESOTA, MONTANA, NEBRASKA,
NEW HAMPSHIRE, NEW JERSEY, NORTH DAKOTA, OHIO, OREGON,
PENNSYLVANIA, SOUTH DAKOTA, TENNESSEE, UTAH, VERMONT,
WISCONSIN AND WYOMING.
NOT TO PAINT TOO ROSY A PICTURE, WE DID LOSE HOUSE SEATS
IN MAINE, MISSISSIPPI AND ALABAMA. AND WE FAILED TO GAIN
BACK HOUSE SEATS LOST IN 1964 IN NEW YORK AND WASHINGTON.
FORD
GERA
LIBRARY
-6-
BUT JUST AS THE SCOPE OF OUR SUCCESS WAS NATIONWIDE, SO
THE FEW DARK CLOUDS WERE NOT CONFINED TO ANY PARTICULAR
REGION. THERE WAS ENOUGH HAPPINESS FOR ALL TO SHARE.
PERSONALLY, I STARTED THE political GUESSING SEASON SAYING WE had
the opportunity to
COULD PICK UP 30 TO 40 HOUSE SEATS, BUT AS THE PRESSURE
FROM THE PRESS INCREASED, PARTICULARLY AFTER MY GOOD FRIEND
SENATOR DIRKSEN LAID $100 ON THE TABLE TO BACK HIS FORECAST
OF 75 SEATS, I TOOK TO SAYING "40 OR MORE." TOWARDS THE
END, I KEPT LAYING A LITTLE LOUDER STRESS ON THE "OR MORE"
AND THUS I DISQUALIFIED MYSELF FOR THE ZEBULON PIKE AWARD.
BUT I WILL VENTURE ONE MORE PROPHESY. IF WE ALL HANG
TOGETHER IN SUCCESS AS WELL AS WE DID IN ADVERSITY, WE ARE
NOT GOING THE WAY OF THE WHIGS. WE ARE GOING THE WAY OF
is
GERALD
ABRAHAM LINCOLN AND DWIGHT D. EISENHOWER, FOR WHOSE SPEEDY
-7-
RECOVERY FROM SURGERY WE SHOULD ALL PRAY TODAY.
YOU GENTLEMEN ALL WANT TO KNOW IN A NUTSHELL HOW THE
90TH CONGRESS WILL DIFFER FROM THE UNLAMENTED 89TH.
AS I SEE IT, THE DIFFERENCE WILL BE SIMPLY THIS:
REPUBLICANS IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES WILL BE BACK
IN THE BALLGAME.
THE MINORITY PARTY WILL AGAIN BE IN A POSITION TO
SIGNIFICANTLY INFLUENCE THE LEGISLATIVE PROCESS, AND THAT
IS THE WAY THE AMERICAN GOVERNMENT IS SUPPOSED TO WORK
IT HASN'T FOR THE PAST TWO YEARS. THE NEXT CONGRESS WON'T
SIMPLY GO THROUGH THE MOTIONS OF RECEIVING, APPROVING AND
RETURNING PRESIDENTIAL PROPOSALS FOR SIGNATURE, WITHOUT
HEARING OPPOSING OPINIONS OR ADEQUATE FLOOR DEBATE. WE
WILL REALLY BE LEGISLATING AGAIN, IN COMMITTEES AND ON
GERAL THE FORD LIBRARY
-8-
FLOOR--AND THE COUNTRY WILL BENEFIT, AS THE VOTERS KNEW.
BUT WITH INCREASED INFLUENCE, WE REPUBLICANS IN THE
HOUSE WILL HAVE TO BEAR INCREASED RESPONSIBILITY, AND THE
VOTERS WILL BE WATCHING THIS, TOO. WE WERE RESPONSIBLE,
I BELIEVE, AND WE TRIED TO BE CONSTRUCTIVE IN THE 89TH
CONGRESS; BUT WITH THE LOPSIDED LINEUP, WE DIDN'T WIND UP
WITH TOO MUCH TO SHOW FOR IT. NEXT YEAR I THINK YOU WILL
FIND MANY DEMOCRATS, MAYBE INCLUDING THE PRESIDENT, PUSHING
FOR THE VERY THINGS WE KEPTURGING BE DONE IN 1965 OR '66.
IT WOULD BE EASY FOR US JUST TO SIT BACK AND SAY "WE
TOLD YOU SO" OR "WE SAID IT FIRST" -- BUT THAT WON'T DO!
INSTEAD WE PROPOSE TO START RIGHT OFF WITH A POSITIVE
REPUBLICAN PROGRAM IN THE SECOND "STATE OF THE UNION"
APPRAISAL WHICH SENATOR DIRKSEN AND I PLAN TO MAKE WHEN
GERALD FORD LIBERRY
CONGRESS CONVENES.
-9-
WHILE IT'S TOO EARLY TO REVEAL ALL THE PROPOSALS WE
ARE CONSIDERING FOR THIS PRESENTATION, WHICH WILL AGAIN
BE NATIONALLY TELEVISED ACCORDING TO CURRENT PLANS, IT
CERTAINLY WILL INCLUDE A FORM OF FEDERAL-STATE TAX SHARING
AND INCREASED SOCIAL SECURITY BENEFITS TIED PERMANENTLY
TO COST OF LIVING AND INFLATIONARY INCREASES.
IT'S NOT TOO EARLY, EITHER, TO MAKE IT, emystall CLEAR THAT WE
IN THE HOUSE ARE NOT MAKING ANY AUTOMATIC ALLIANCES OR
COALITIONS SIMPLY FOR POWER OR OBSTRUCTION. WE WILL WELCOME
THE SUPPORT OF LIKE-MINDED DEMOCRATS IN ADVANCING MEASURES
THAT ARE GOOD FOR THE COUNTRY OR RESISTING THOSE THAT ARE
UNWISE OR UNTIMELY--BUT WE ARE GOING TO CALL OUR OWN PLAYS
AND WILL BE GLAD TO HAVE THE HELP OF ANY DISCERNING
DEMOCRATS.
GERALD LIBRARY GERALD R. FORD
-10-
I EARNESTLY HOPE, AND I SPEAK NOW FOR ALL MY REPUBLICAN
COLLEAGUES IN THE HOUSE, THAT YOU REPUBLICAN GOVERNORS AND
INDEED REPUBLICAN OFFICIALS AT ALL ECHELONS OF GOVERNMENT
WILL FIND THE TIME AND TAKE THE TROUBLE TO FORWARD YOUR
SUGGESTIONS AND IDEAS TO US. WE WOULD LIKE THESE DURING
THE DRAFTING OF OUR FORTHCOMING STATE OF THE UNION APPRAISAL,
AND WE WANT TO SUSTAIN A CLOSE EXCHANGE OF INFORMATION WITH
REPUBLICAN STATE CAPITOLS THROUGHOUT THE NEXT TWO YEARS.
WE ALL SUBSCRIBE AS REPUBLICANS TO THE THEORY THAT ALL
WISDOM DOES NOT REPOSE IN WASHINGTON. THIS THEORY SHOULD
FIND CONCRETE EXPRESSION IN CONTINUING COMMUNICATION ON
MATTERS AFFECTING YOUR STATES OR THE FEDERAL-STATE RELATION-
SHIP IN GENERAL.
WE HOPE DURING THE 90TH CONGRESS TO HAVE EACH OF YOU
RD
GERAL
LIBRARY
-11-
AS OUR GUEST TO ADDRESS OUR HOUSE REPUBLICAN CONFERENCE
OF ALL 187 REPUBLICAN MEMBERS IN WASHINGTON. WE WOULD
LIKE TO SEE INCREASED PARTICIPATION AND REPRESENTATION
OF REPUBLICAN GOVERNORS ON THE REPUBLICAN COORDINATING
COMMITTEE. AND, ALTHOUGH THE DEMOCRATS ARE STILL IN
CONTROL, WE FEEL YOU COULD CONTRIBUTE MUCH-NEEDED INFORMA-
TION AND VIEWS AS EXPERT WITNESSES BEFORE THE VARIOUS
COMMITTEES OF THE CONGRESS.
WE, IN TURN, ARE VITALLY INTERESTED IN THE COMPOSITION
OF THE CONGRESS, AND I AM REMINDED THAT BETWEEN NOW AND
1968 SEVEN STATES WITH A TOTAL OF 110 HOUSE SEATS MUST BE
REDISTRICTED--INCLUDING CALIFORNIA, WHICH I AM DELIGHTED
TO SEE REPRESENTED AGAIN AT A REPUBLICAN GOVERNORS' MEETING.
AS THE DEMOCRATS GROW A LITTLE LESS POSITIVE ABOUT BEING
LIBRARY
-12-
A PERMANENT MAJORITY PARTY IN THE NATION, THERE IS A DANGER
THAT THEY MAY TRY TO SHORTCHANGE US IN SOME STATE LEGISLA-
TURES.
I HAVE TAKEN TOO MUCH OF YOUR TIME ALREADY, BUT MAY
I SPEAK VERY BLUNTLY AND EARNESTLY BEFORE I CLOSE. I AM
SICK OF HEARING THAT WE REPUBLICANS CAN SURVIVE ANYTHING
EXCEPT SUCCESS. I AM TIRED OF READING HOW WE ARE GOING TO
FLY OFF INTO ALL KINDS OF COLLISION COURSES, THE GOVERNORS
VERSUS THE CONGRESSIONAL LEADERS, THE EASTERNERS VERSUS
THE WESTERNERS, THE LIBERALS VERSUS THE CONSERVATIVES,
THE URBANITES VERSUS THE SUBURBANITES, AND THE SUBURBANITES
VERSUS THE FARMERS, AND SO FORTH AD NAUSEUM.
THAT ISN'T THE MESSAGE I READ IN THE 1966 RETURNS.
FORD & LIBRARY GERALD
I THINK OUR REPUBLICAN COORDINATING COMMITTEE, WHICH
-13-
IS MEETING AGAIN NEXT MONDAY UNDER THE ABLE CHAIRMANSHIP
OF RAY BLISS, HAS DONE A MARVELOUS AND ALMOST MIRACULOUS
JOB OF UNIFYING OUR PARTY AND HAMMERING OUT RESPONSIBLE
REPUBLICAN POSITIONS ON CURRENT ISSUES. THIS BODY WAS
AN EXPERIMENT HARDLY ANYONE THOUGHT WOULD WORK, BUT IT HAS
WORKED. AND IT HAS WORKED BECAUSE WE ALL WANTED THIS RESULT.
CONCURRENTLY, IT HAS BEEN THE DEMOCRATS WHO HAVE BEEN ON
ALL SIDES OF EVERY ISSUE, CUTTING EACH OTHER UP FOR PERSONAL
SPITE OR POLITICAL ADVANTAGE, CAUSING THE AMERICAN PEOPLE
TO WONDER IF THEY REALLY DESERVE TO DIRECT THEIR DESTINIES.
I SAY/LET'S LET THE DEMOCRATS CONTINUE TO ENJOY THESE
CANNIBALISTIC EXERCISES. IF WE ARE RESPONSIBLE REPUBLICANS,
IF WE ARE A MEANINGFUL MINORITY, AND ABOVE ALL IF WE
CONTINUE TO SHOW THE COUNTRY A PICTURE OF CLEAR UNITY AND
FORD
GERAL
LIBRARY
-14-
COMMON PURPOSE ON THE GREAT ISSUES OF THESE DIFFICULT
TIMES, 1966 WILL BE JUST A PRELUDE TO VICTORY.
THANK YOU----
---END---
GREALD FORD LIBRARY
FOR RELEASE UPON DELIVERY, FRIDAY P.M.
REMARKS BY REP. GERALD R. FORD, MINORITY LEADER,
GLRALD
U. S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
AT THE REPUBLICAN GOVERNORS' ASSOCIATION CONFERENCE
FORD
COLORADO SPRINGS, COLO. - DEC. 9, 1966
I am happy and honored to have the chance to spend a few hours with you, first
of all to congratulate you--those who were elected or re-elected last November 8--
and to thank all of you, whether you were candidates or not, for the key roles you
played in the great resurgence of Republicanism which we have witnessed and which
is still in motion.
Young Lt. Zebulon Pike, when he first looked at the peak that bears his name,
supposedly said it would "never be scaled by mortal man." Only a few years later,
of course, it was. I think we might consider setting up a Zebulon Pike Award for
all the political pundits who two years ago were dolefully predicting that the
Republican Party would go the way of the Whigs, and as late as the end of October
concluded that the Republicans had failed to find any significant campaign issues in
1966 and that the election would produce no appreciable change in the political
complexion of the country or the Congress.
Now these same prognosticators are saying we Republicans will get so embroiled
and enmeshed in our own ideological and personal arguments that we will defeat our-
selves before 1968 without any help from the outside. I think we ought to send this
warmed-over dish right back to the kitchen. I think they are talking about the
wrong party. During the past two years, I have made one or more visits to some 44
states, and all I can report is that I never heard any Republican talking about any
of us the way some prominent Democrats in Washington have been talking about one
another.
The main reason I'm here is to report to you briefly as Minority Leader of the
House of Representatives, and it shouldn't surprise you that with a net reinforce-
ment of 47 more Republicans in the House I do feel a lot more like a leader and a
lot less like a minority.
In the upcoming 90th Congress we will have 187 seats--our highest figure since
1958. This is still 31 votes short of the majority we'd like, but it's a whole lot
different from being outnumbered by two to one with 15 votes to spare.
Preliminary figures indicate that Republican candidates for the House of
Representatives won close to 49 percent of the total Congressional vote nationwide.
This would be our best off-year showing since 1950.
The total vote for Republican candidates in House contests was more than 25
million, which would appear to be a record for a non-Presidential year. You
FORD VILKARY
gentlemen rightfully share in the credit for this turnout and for the encouraging
-2-
fact that Republican candidates outpolled Democrats in House races in 26 states--
Alaska, Arizona, California, Delaware, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas,
Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, North
Dakota, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, Wisconsin
and Wyoming.
Not to paint too rosy a picture, we did lose House seats in Maine, Mississippi
and Alabama; and we failed to gain back House seats lost in 1964 in New York and
Washington. But just as the scope of our success was nationwide, so the few dark
clouds were not confined to any particular region. There was enough happiness for
all to share.
Personally, I started the guessing season saying we could pick up 30 to 40
House seats, but as the pressure from the press increased, particularly after my
good friend Senator Dirksen laid $100 on the table to back his forecast of 75 seats,
I took to saying "40 or more." Towards the end I kept laying a little louder stress
on the "or more" and thus I disqualified myself for the Zebulon Pike Award.
But I will venture one more prophesy. If we all hang together in success as
well as we did in adversity, we are not going the way of the Whigs. We are going
the way of Abraham Lincoln and Dwight D. Eisenhower, for whose speedy recovery from
surgery we should all pray today.
You gentlemen all want to know in a nutshell how the 90th Congress will differ
from the unlamented 89th.
As I see it, the difference will be simply this: Republicans in the House of
Representatives will be back in the ballgame.
The minority party will again be in a position to significantly influence the
legislative process, and that is the way the American government is supposed to work.
It hasn't for the past two years. The next Congress won't simply go through the
motions of receiving, approving and returning Presidential proposals for signature,
without hearing opposing opinions or adequate floor debate. We will really be
legislating again, in committees and on the floor--and the country will benefit, as
the voters knew.
But with increased influence we Republicans in the House will have to bear
increased responsibility, and the voters will be watching this, too. We were
responsible, I believe, and we tried to be constructive in the 89th Congress, but
with the lopsided lineup we didn't wind up with too much to show for it. Next year
I think you will find many Democrats, maybe including the President, pushing for the
very things we kept urging be done in 1965 or '66.
It would be easy for us just to sit back and say "We told you 80" or "We said
it first" but that won't do. Instead we propose to start right off with a positive
(More)
-3-
Republican program in the second "State of the Union" appraisal, which Senator
Dirksen and I plan to make when Congress convenes.
While it's too early to reveal all the proposals we are considering for this
presentation, which will again be nationally televised according to current plans,
it certainly will include a form of Federal-State tax sharing and increased Social
Security benefits tied permanently to cost of living and inflationary increases.
It's not too early, either, to make it clear that we in the House are not
making any automatic alliances or coalitions simply for power or obstruction. We
will welcome the support of like-minded Democrats in advancing measures that are good
for the country or resisting those that are unwise or untimely--but we are going to
call our own plays and will be glad to have the help of any discerning Democrats.
I earnestly hope, and I speak now for all my Republican colleagues in the
House, that you Republican governors and indeed Republican officals at all the
echelons of government will find the time and take the trouble to forward your
suggestions and ideas to us. We would like these during the drafting of our forth-
coming State of the Union appraisal, and we want to sustain a close exchange of
information with Republican State capitols throughout the next two years. We all
subscribe as Republicans to the theory that all wisdom does not repose in Washington.
This theory should find concrete expression in continuing communication on matters
GERALD
affecting your states or the Federal-State relationship in general.
We hope during the 90th Congress to have each of you as our guest to address
our House Republican Conference of all 187 Republican Members in Washington. We
would like to see increased participation and representation of Republican Governors
on the Republican Coordinating Committee. And, although the Democrats are still in
control, we feel you could contribute much-needed information and views as expert
witnesses before the various committees of the Congress.
We, in turn, are vitally interested in the composition of the Congress; and I
am reminded that between now and 1968 seven states with a total of 110 House seats
must be redistricted--including California, which I am delighted to see represented
again at a Republican governors' meeting. As the Democrats grow a little less
positive about being a permanent majority party in the nation, there is a danger
that they may try to shortchange us in some state legislatures.
May I speak very bluntly and earnestly before I close. I am sick of hearing
that we Republicans can survive anything except success. I am tired of reading how
we are going to fly off into all kinds of collision courses--the governors versus
the Congressional leaders, the Easterners versus the Westerners, the liberals versus
the conservatives, the urbanites versus the suburbanites, and the suburbanites versus
the farmers, and so forth ad nauseum.
(More)
-4-
That isn't the message I read in the 1966 returns.
I think our Republican Coordinating Committee, which is meeting again next
Monday under the able chairmanship of Ray Bliss, has done a marvelous and almost
miraculous job of unifying our party and hammering out responsible Republican
positions on current issues. This body was an experiment hardly anyone thought would
work, but it has worked. And it has worked because we all wanted this result.
Concurrently, it has been the Democrats who have been on all sides of every issue,
cutting each other up for personal spite or political advantage, causing the American
people to wonder if they really deserve to direct their destinies. I say let's let
the Democrats continue to enjoy these cannibalistic exercises. If we are responsible
Republicans, if we are a meaningful minority, and above all if we continue to show
the country a picture of clear unity and common purpose on the great issues of these
difficult times, 1966 will be just a prelude to victory.
###
LIBRARY
FOR RELEASE UPON DELIVERY, FRIDAY P.M.
GERALD
&
REMARKS BY REP. GERALD Ri FORD, MINORITY LEADER,
FORD
U. S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
LIBRARY
AT THE REPUBLICAN GOVERNORS' ASSOCIATION CONFERENCE
COLORADO SPRINGS, COLO. - DEC. 9, 1966
I am happy and honored to have the chance to spend a few hours with you, first
of all to congratulate you--those who were elected or re-elected last November 8--
and to thank all of you, whether you were candidates or not, for the key roles you
played in the great resurgence of Republicanism which we have witnessed and which
is still in motion.
Young Lt. Zebulon Pike, when he first looked at the peak that bears his name,
supposedly said it would "never be scaled by mortal man." Only a few years later,
of course, it was. I think we might consider setting up a Zebulon Pike Award for
all the political pundits who two years ago were dolefully predicting that the
Republican Party would go the way of the Whigs, and as late as the end of October
concluded that the Republicans had failed to find any significant campaign issues in
1966 and that the election would produce no appreciable change in the political
complexion of the country or the Congress.
Now these same prognosticators are saying we Republicans will get so embroiled
and enmeshed in our own ideological and personal arguments that we will defeat our-
selves before 1968 without any help from the outside. I think we ought to send this
warmed-over dish right back to the kitchen. I think they are talking about the
wrong party. During the past two years, I have made one or more visits to some 44
states, and all I can report is that I never heard any Republican talking about any
of us the way some prominent Democrats in Washington have been talking about one
another.
The main reason I'm here is to report to you briefly as Minority Leader of the
House of Representatives, and it shouldn't surprise you that with a net reinforce-
ment of 47 more Republicans in the House I do feel a lot more like a leader and a
lot less like a minority.
In the upcoming 90th Congress we will have 187 seats--our highest figure since
1958. This is still 31 votes short of the majority we'd like, but it's a whole lot
different from being outnumbered by two to one with 15 votes to spare.
Preliminary figures indicate that Republican candidates for the House of
Representatives won close to 49 percent of the total Congressional vote nationwide.
This would be our best off-year showing since 1950.
The total vote for Republican candidates in House contests was more than 25
FORD
million, which would appear to be a record for a non-Presidential year. You
gentlemen rightfully share in the credit for this turnout and for the encouraging
-2-
fact that Republican candidates outpolled Democrats in House races in 26 states--
Alaska, Arizona, California, Delaware, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas,
Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, North
Dakota, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, Wisconsin
and Wyoming.
Not to paint too rosy a picture, we did lose House seats in Maine, Mississippi
and Alabama; and we failed to gain back House seats lost in 1964 in New York and
Washington. But just as the scope of our success was nationwide, so the few dark
clouds were not confined to any particular region. There was enough happiness for
all to share.
Personally, I started the guessing season saying we could pick up 30 to 40
House seats, but as the pressure from the press increased, particularly after my
good friend Senator Dirksen laid $100 on the table to back his forecast of 75 seats,
I took to saying "40 or more." Towards the end I kept laying a little louder stress
on the "or more" and thus I disqualified myself for the Zebulon Pike Award.
But I will venture one more prophesy. If we all hang together in success as
well as we did in adversity, we are not going the way of the Whigs. We are going
the way of Abraham Lincoln and Dwight D. Eisenhower, for whose speedy recovery from
surgery we should all pray today.
You gentlemen all want to know in a nutshell how the 90th Congress will differ
from the unlamented 89th.
As I see it, the difference will be simply this: Republicans in the House of
Representatives will be back in the ballgame.
The minority party will again be in a position to significantly influence the
legislative process, and that is the way the American government is supposed to work.
It hasn't for the past two years. The next Congress won't simply go through the
motions of receiving, approving and returning Presidential proposals for signature,
without hearing opposing opinions or adequate floor debate. We will really be
legislating again, in committees and on the floor--and the country will benefit, as
the voters knew.
But with increased influence we Republicans in the House will have to bear
increased responsibility, and the voters will be watching this, too. We were
responsible, I believe, and we tried to be constructive in the 89th Congress, but
with the lopsided lineup we didn't wind up with too much to show for it. Next year
I think you will find many Democrats, maybe including the President, pushing for the
very things we kept urging be done in 1965 or '66.
It would be easy for us just to sit back and say "We told you so" or "We said
it first"--but that won't do. Instead we propose to start right off with a positive
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Republican program in the second "State of the Union" appraisal, which Senator
Dirksen and I plan to make when Congress convenes.
While it's too early to reveal all the proposals we are considering for this
presentation, which will again be nationally televised according to current plans,
it certainly will include a form of Federal-State tax sharing and increased Social
Security benefits tied permanently to cost of living and inflationary increases.
It's not too early, either, to make it clear that we in the House are not
making any automatic alliances or coalitions simply for power or obstruction. We
will welcome the support of like-minded Democrats in advancing measures that are good
for the country or resisting those that are unwise or untimely--but we are going to
call our own plays and will be glad to have the help of any discerning Democrats.
I earnestly hope, and I speak now for all my Republican colleagues in the
House, that you Republican governors and indeed Republican officals at all the
echelons of government will find the time and take the trouble to forward your
suggestions and ideas to us. We would like these during the drafting of our forth-
coming State of the Union appraisal, and we want to sustain a close exchange of
information with Republican State capitols throughout the next two years. We all
subscribe as Republicans to the theory that all wisdom does not repose in Washington.
This theory should find concrete expression in continuing communication on matters
affecting your states or the Federal-State relationship in general.
We hope during the 90th Congress to have each of you as our guest to address
our House Republican Conference of all 187 Republican Members in Washington. We
would like to see increased participation and representation of Republican Governors
on the Republican Coordinating Committee. And, although the Democrats are still in
control, we feel you could contribute much-needed information and views as expert
witnesses before the various committees of the Congress.
We, in turn, are vitally interested in the composition of the Congress; and I
am reminded that between now and 1968 seven states with a total of 110 House seats
must be redistricted--including California, which I am delighted to see represented
again at a Republican governors' meeting. As the Democrats grow a little less
positive about being a permanent majority party in the nation, there is a danger
that they may try to shortchange us in some state legislatures.
May I speak very bluntly and earnestly before I close. I am sick of hearing
that we Republicans can survive anything except success. I am tired of reading how
we are going to fly off into all kinds of collision courses--the governors versus
the Congressional leaders, the Easterners versus the Westerners, the liberals versus
the conservatives, the urbanites versus the suburbanites, and the suburbanites versus
the farmers, and so forth ad nauseum.
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That isn't the message I read in the 1966 returns.
I think our Republican Coordinating Committee, which is meeting again next
Monday under the able chairmanship of Ray Bliss, has done a marvelous and almost
miraculous job of unifying our party and hammering out responsible Republican
positions on current issues. This body was an experiment hardly anyone thought would
work, but it has worked. And it has worked because we all wanted this result.
Concurrently, it has been the Democrats who have been on all sides of every issue,
cutting each other up for personal spite or political advantage, causing the American
people to wonder if they really deserve to direct their destinies. I say let's let
the Democrats continue to enjoy these cannibalistic exercises. If we are responsible
Republicans, if we are a meaningful minority, and above all if we continue to show
the country a picture of clear unity and common purpose on the great issues of these
difficult times, 1966 will be just a prelude to victory.
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