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17th Annual Republican Women's Conference, Sheraton-Park Hotel, April 16, 1969
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17th Annual Republican Women's Conference, Sheraton-Park Hotel, April 16, 1969
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The original documents are located in Box D26, folder "17th Annual Republican Women's
Conference, Sheraton-Park Hotel, April 16, 1969" 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States of America his copyrights in all of his unpublished writings in National Archives collections.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 D26 of the Ford Congressional Papers: Press Secretary and Speech File at the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library
17TH ANNUAL REPUBLICAN WOMEN'S CONFERENCE
SHERATON-PARK HOTEL, 9:15 A.M. WEDNESDAY,
APRIL 16, 1969.
GOOD MORNING, MADAME CHAIRMAN,
AND DISTINGUISHED LADIES-ALL:
YOU HAVE ALREADY BEEN WELCOMED
TO WASHINGTON AND HAVE BEEN BRIEFED ON SOME
OF THE PROGRAMS AND GOALS OF THE NIXON
ADMINISTRATION. LET ME ADD MY GREETINGS
AS WE CELEBRATE REPUBLICAN VICTORIES OF 1968
BY PLANNING TO MAKE 1970 ANOTHER REPUBLICAN
VICTORY YEAR.
THIS IS AN AUSPICIOUS OCCASION.
IT IS A GREAT FEELING TO BE MAPPING OUR 1970
CAMPAIGN PLANS WITH A REPUBLICAN IN THE
WHITE HOUSE -- AND NOT JUST "A REPUBLICAN"
BUT A MAN I FEEL IS DESTINED TO PROVE
HIMSELF A TRULY/OUTSTANDING/PRESIDE OF
THESE UNITED STATES.
IT IS A GREAT FEELING, Too, TO
-2-
BE TALKING WITH PEOPLE WHO CONTRIBUTED SO
MUCH TO WINNING THE WHITE HOUSE FOR THE
REPUBLICAN PARTY. YOU ARE PARTICULARLY TO
BE CONGRATULATED BECAUSE YOU DID NOT MERELY
WIN THE WHITE HOUSE FOR THE REPUBLICAN PARTY,
YOU GAVE THE WHITE HOUSE BACK TO THE PEOPLE.
I FIND IT MOST APPROPRIATE THAT
THE REPUBLICAN PARTY IS KICKING OFF ITS
1970 CAMPAIGN AT THIS 17TH ANNUAL REPUBLICAN
WOMEN'S CONFERENCE. TIF AUGURS WELL FOR
REPUBLICAN CHANCES IN THAT CAMPAIGN
THE GREAT NEW ENGLAND POET AND
PHILOSOPHER, RALPH WALDO EMERSON, ONCE SAID:
"NOTHING GREAT WAS EVER ACHIEVED WITHOUT
ENTHUSIASM."
I AGREE, BUT I WOULD ADD:
"NOTHING GREAT WAS EVER ACHIEVED WITHOUT
WOMEN."
YOU REPEATEDLY HEAR IT SAID THAT
BEHIND EVERY MAN THERE'S A WOMAN. I WOULD
-3-
EXPAND ON THAT A BIT. BEHIND EVERY
SUCCESSFUL CANDIDATE FOR CONGRESS THERE IS
NOT JUST ONE WOMAN BUT HUNDREDS OF THEM.
SO I WELCOME THIS OPPORTUNITY
TO TALK WITH YOU -- WOMEN WHO NOT ONLY
ACQUITTED THEMSELVES MAGNIFICENTLY IN THE
1968 CAMPAIGN BUT ARE READY NOW TO PLEDGE
THEIR ENERGY AND THEIR DEVOTION TO THE
TREMENDOUS TASK OF ACHIEVING REPUBLICAN
CONGRESSIONAL GAINS IN 1970.
THE CHALLENGE THAT FACES US IN
THE 1970 ELECTIONS IS MOST FORMIDABLE, BUT
I AM AN OPTIMIST. YOU KNOW WHAT AN OPTIMIST
IS, DON'T YOU? AN OPTIMIST IS A MAN WHO
MARRIES HIS SECRETARY/AND THINKS HE CAN GO
ON DICTATING TO HER.
SERIOUSLY, I AM AN OPTIMIST
ABOUT THE 1970 CONGRESSIONAL ELECTIONS. THE
REPUBLICAN PARTY CAN SHATTER TRADITION IN
1970 -- THE TRADITION THAT THE PARTY WHICH
-4-
CONTROLS THE WHITE HOUSE LOSES SEATS IN THE
OFF-YEAR ELECTIONS.
THE SOLE EXCEPTION IN MODERN
POLITICAL HISTORY TO OFF-YEAR CONGRESSIONAL
LOSSES FOR THE PARTY HOLDING THE WHITE HOUSE
WAS 1934, WHEN THE VOTERS GAVE FRANKLIN D.
ROOSEVELT EVEN BIGGER MAJORITIES TO WORK WITH.
TODAY WE HAVE A NEW REPUBLICAN
PRESIDENT IN THE WHITE HOUSE, WITH BOTH
HOUSES OF CONGRESS CONTROLLED BY THE
DEMOCRATS.
IT IS TOO EARLY TO TELL TO WHAT
EXTENT THE DEMOCRATS WILL COOPERATE WITH
MR. NIXON, BUT IT IS AXIOMATIC THAT A
REPUBLICAN PRESIDENT COULD BETTER ACHIEVE
HIS OBJECTIVES WITH A CONGRESS MANAGED BY
HIS OWN PARTY LEADERS.
SO WHILE WE WILL BE HOPING FOR
THE GREATEST POSSIBLE COOPERATION FROM
DEMOCRATS IN THE CONGRESS, WE MUST BEGIN NOW
-5-
TO WORK DILIGENTLY FOR REPUBLICAN
CONGRESSIONAL VICTORIES IN 1970.
IT MAY BE OVER-REACHING TO HOPE
FOR A REPUBLICAN MAJORITY IN THE HOUSE AS A
RESULT OF THE 1970 ELECTIONS, BUT I BELIEVE
THERE IS A SOUND BASIS FOR PREDICTING GOP
GAINS IN THE HOUSE.
hopeful
THE BASIS FOR THAT PREDICTION IS
MY DEEP BELIEF THAT THE NIXON ADMINISTRATION
WILL END THE VIETNAM WAR AND BRING
INFLATION UNDER CONTROL BEFORE THE 1970
ELECTION. AS A RESULT THE AMERICAN PEOPLE
WILL EXPRESS THEIR CONFIDENCE IN THE NIXON
ADMINISTRATION BY ADDING TO THE NUMBER OF
REPUBLICAN MEMBERS IN THE HOUSE AND SENATE.
THE SITUATION IN THE SENATE IS
EXTREMELY FAVORABLE. WITH A SUCCESSFUL
NIXON PROGRAM AT HOME AND ABROAD, WE CAN WIN
A SENATE MAJORITY.
THE HOUSE EFFORT IS AN UPHILL
-6-
FIGHT. WE ALWAYS START FAR BEHIND BECAUSE
MORE THAN 30 CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICTS IN THE
SOUTH STILL ARE ONE-PARTY TERRITORY. BUT WE
ARE BUILDING THE REPUBLICAN PARTY IN THE
1948/26
SOUTH. WITH YOUR HELP, WE ARE MAKING STEADY
PROGRESS.
WE COULD NOT EXPECT TO MAKE AN
OVERNIGHT COMEBACK IN THE HOUSE AFTER OUR
DISASTROUS LOSSES IN 1964. THE GAP WAS FAR
TOO WIDE. BUT WE HAVE MADE GREAT ADVANCES.
IN THE LAST FOUR YEARS WE MADE
A NET GAIN OF 52 SEATS IN THE HOUSE, ONLY
Ww
TO LOSE ONE SEAT -- ON STATE AND LOCAL
ISSUES -- IN A RECENT SPECIAL ELECTION. WE
NOW HOLD 189 SEATS IN THE HOUSE. TWO
VACANCIES FORMERLY HELD BY REPUBLICANS ARE
TO BE FILLED BY SPECIAL ELECTION. THE
DEMOCRATS HOLD 244 SEATS. ASSUMING THAT THE
TWO VACANT SEATS STAY REPUBLICAN, WE WOULD
NEED A NET GAIN OF 27 SEATS TO WIN CONTROL
-7-
OF THE HOUSE IN 1970.
WE HAVE A LONG WAY TO GO, AND WE
NEED THE HELP OF EVERY MAN, WOMAN AND YOUNG
PERSON IN THIS COUNTRY WITH A COMMITMENT TO
THE PRINCIPLES THAT MADE THIS NATION GREAT.
I BELIEVE THE REPUBLICAN PARTY
IS THE VEHICLE TO CARRY US "FORWARD TOGETHER"
TO NEW GREATNESS IN THE SOARING SEVENTIES.
OUR TASK -- YOURS AND MINE -- IS TO CONVINCE
MILLIONS OF OTHER AMERICANS THAT OURS IS THE
PARTY OF PROGRESS, THE PARTY OF PEACE, THE
PARTY OF PROSPERITY.
EVENTS OF THE NEXT TWO AND FOUR
YEARS WILL BEAR US OUT, WILL PROVIDE US
WITH THE TOOLS OF PERSUASION.
ALREADY THE POLLS INDICATE A
HIGH LEVEL OF NIXON ADMINISTRATION POPULARITY.
ALTHOUGH POLLS SHIFT AND EVERY PRESIDENT
EXPERIENCES RISES AND DECLINES IN PUBLIC
FAVOR, IT IS HIGHLY SIGNIFICANT THAT A
-8-
PRESIDENT ELECTED WITH A PLURALITY OF THE
TOTAL POPULAR VOTE HAS RECEIVED A 65 PER CENT
VOTE OF NATIONWIDE APPROVAL IN THE LATEST
GALLUP POLL. IT IS EVEN MORE REMARKABLE
THAT MR. NIXON HAS BEEN GIVEN A 70 PER CENT
APPROVAL RATING IN MASSACHUSETTS, WHICH HE
LOST BY NEARLY 2 TO 1 LAST NOVEMBER. JALL
THIS IN LESS THAN 100 DAYS SINCE RICHARD M.
NIXON ENTERED THE OVAL OFFICE AT THE WHITE
HOUSE
Partiann
CRITICS SEEKING TO UNDERCUT
MR. NIXON'S POPULARITY WOULD HAVE THE AMERICAN
PEOPLE BELIEVE THAT HE HAS DONE VIRTUALLY
NOTHING SINCE ASSUMING THE PRESIDENCY.
SUCH TALK IS ABSOLUTELY FANTASTIC
IN THE LIGHT OF THE FACTS.
AS AL SMITH, A DEMOCRAT WHO NEVER
QUITE MADE IT TO THE WHITE HOUSE, WAS SO
FOND OF SAYING: "LET'S LOOK AT THE RECORD."
THROUGH HIS EIGHT-DAY TOUR OF FIVE
-9-
EUROPEAN COUNTRIES AND HIS THEN AND
SUBSEQUENT CONFERENCES WITH EUROPEAN LEADERS,
PRESIDENT NIXON HAS RESTORED BALANCE AND A
PROPER SENSE OF PERSPECTIVE TO AMERICAN
FOREIGN POLICY.
HE HAS FOCUSED NEW ATTENTION ON
EUROPE AND LATIN AMERICA IN THEIR RELATIONSHIPS
WITH THE UNITED STATES.
HE HAS MADE IT CLEAR THAT THE
UNITED STATES IS OVERCOMMITTED THROUGHOUT
THE WORLD -- THAT THERE IS A DANGER'S EDGE
FROM WHICH WE MUST STEP BACK TO AVOID
TRAGEDIES MORE HORRIBLE THAN VIETNAM.
HE HAS MADE IT PLAIN THAT
AMERICA CANNOT AND SHOULD NOT PLAY GLOBAL
FIREMAN AND ATTEMPT TO PUT OUT BRUSHFIRES
ALL OVER THE WORLD.
HE HAS RECOGNIZED THAT NEITHER
THE UNITED STATES NOR THE SOVIET UNION CAN
MANAGE WORLD EVENTS -- AND THAT CAREFUL
-10-
DIPLOMACY IN FOREIGN AFFAIRS IS MIGHTIER
AND MORE EFFECTIVE THAN POWER ALONE atthough must power have
However,
HE HAS PLEDGED THAT THE UNITED
STATES WILL HAVE SUFFICIENT POWER TO
DISCOURAGE RECKLESS AGGRESSION ON THE PART
OF OTHER NATIONS WHILE PRACTICING TO THE
FULLEST THE FINE ART OF PERSUASION IN THE
INTERESTS OF PEACE.
HE HAS LAID THE FOUNDATION FOR
HIS PROMISED ERA OF NEGOTIATION IN PLACE
OF CONFRONTATION, HAS INITIATED FOUR-POWER
TALKS ON THE MIDEAST, TALKS THAT THUS FAR
HAVE SHOWN STEADY PROGRESS.
HE IS DISPLAYING THE KIND OF
WORLD LEADERSHIP THAT BUILDS PEACE.
HE IS FOLLOWING A CAREFULLY
THOUGHT-OUT PLAN WHICH HOPEFULLY WILL
RESOLVE THE VIETNAM WAR. PREMATURE PUBLICITY
AND HEADLINES DO NOT SOLVE THESE COMPLICATED
PROBLEMS OR AID IN PRODUCING RESULTS IN
-11-
NEGOTIATION. EVENTS HAVE SKETCHED THE
OUTLINES OF THE NIXON PEACE STRATEGY FOR US:
NIXON RESTRAINT IN THE FACE OF A NEW ENEMY
OFFENSIVE, SWINGING WORLD OPINION TO OUR SIDE
AND PUTTING PRESSURE ON NORTH VIETNAM FOR
DE-ESCALATION;/A CUTBACK IN PLANNED B-52 RAIDS,
PROVIDING AN ADDITIONAL BASIS FOR MUTUAL
DE-ESCALATION,/ENCORAGUEN DE-ESCALATION ENCOURAGEMENT OF PRIVATE TALKS
AIMED AT PRODUCING MUTUAL WITHDRAWAL OF
U.S. AND NORTH VIETNAMESE TROOPS AND A
POLITICAL AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE SOUTH
VIETNAMESE AND THE VIET CONG I SUCCESS IN
GETTING SOUTH VIETNAMESE PRESIDENT THIEU TO
SEEK DIRECT NEGOTIATIONS WITH THE VIET CONG.
THERE IS MOVEMENT TOWARD A
VIETNAM PEACE SETTLEMENT ALTHOUGH IT MAY
NOT BE READILY APPARENT AND IT IS PRESIDENT
NIXON WHO HAS BROUGHT ABOUT THAT MOVEMENT.
AT HOME, [DO NOT THE AMERICAN
PEOPLE FEEL A NEW SENSE OF CONFIDENCE
-12-
ALTHOUGH RICHARD M. NIXON HAS BEEN IN THE
WHITE HOUSE FOR LESS THAN THREE MONTHS
THE
ANSWER TO THAT QUESTION HAS TO BE IN THE
AFFIRMATIVE
PRESIDENT NIXON IS MOVING
DETERMINEDLY TO BRING ORDER,/JUSTICE JUSTICE AND
EXPANDED OPPORTUNITY TO AMERICAN LIFE.
HE HAS VOWED TO MOVE THIS NATION
AHEAD. HE KNOWS THAT BEFORE WE CAN MOVE
FORWARD TOGETHER, BEFORE THERE CAN BE
PROGRESS, THERE MUST BE ORDER. THERE MUST
BE FREEDOM FROM THE PARALYZING FEAR THAT IS
GENERATED BY STREET CRIME.
WE HAVE SEEN EVIDENCE OF IT
ALREADY -- PROGRESS IN THE WAR AGAINST CRIME
UNDER THE NEW NIXON LEADERSHIP. AUGMENTED
LAW ENFORCEMENT IN THE NATION'S CAPITAL, AND
A CONSEQUENT DROP IN ROBBERIES AND HOLDUPS.
A CRACKDOWN ON NARCOTICS TRAFFICKERS. AND
NEW MEASURES TO COME, NEW PROPOSALS TO BE
-13-
SENT TO CONGRESS AS WEAPONS AGAINST ORGANIZED
CRIME.
ORDER / STABILITY./ SOUND
PROSPERITY.
THE NIXON ADMINISTRATION IS
MOVING TO ACHIEVE ALL OF THESE GOALS,
SEEKING TO ATTAIN THESE OBJECTIVES BY
ENLISTING ALL AMERICANS IN A GREAT PROGRESS
MOVEMENT THAT CAN ROLL TOWARD VICTORY LINE
ONLY WITH THE HELP OF ALL AND NOT JUST
GOVERNMENT ALONE.
PRESIDENT NIXON HAS EXPANDED THE
JOB OPPORTUNITIES IN THE BUSINESS SECTOR
(JOBS) PROGRAM FROM 50 CITIES TO 125, GIVING
THE NATIONAL ALLIANCE OF BUSINESSMEN THE
CHALLENGE TO TRAIN AND PLACE 614,000 HARD-CORE
UNEMPLOYED IN PRODUCTIVE JOBS BY JUNE 30, 1971.
AND THE RECORD INDICATES THEY CAN AND WILL DO
IT.
PRESIDENT NIXON HAS ACTED TO
-14-
LIFT THE UNDERPRIVILEGED OUT OF A LIFE OF
CERTAIN BLIGHT BY ESTABLISHING AN OFFICE OF
CHILD DEVELOPMENT IN THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH,
EDUCATION AND WELFARE.
THE PRESIDENT HAS PROPOSED A
SUBSTANTIAL SOCIAL SECURITY BENEFITS INCREASE
TO HELP OUR PENSIONERS -- AND HAS
SIMULTANEOUSLY LAUNCHED A NEW OFFENSIVE
AGAINST THE INFLATION WHICH HURTS US ALL BUT
MOSTLY THOSE ON FIXED INCOMES.
COURAGE. PRESIDENT NIXON HAS
DONE WHAT MUST BE DONE IF THERE IS TO BE
ANY HOPE OF HALTING THE PRICE SPIRAL AND
BRINGING INFLATION UNDER CONTROL. HE HAS
URGED A RESPONSIBLE TAX POLICY AND HAS CUT
THE LAST JOHNSON ADMINISTRATION BUDGET BY
$4 BILLION.
YOU KNOW WHAT A FAMILY BUDGET IS.
IT'S AN ATTEMPT TO LIVE BELOW OUR YEARNINGS.
WELL, THAT IS WHAT WE MUST LEARN TO DO AT THE
-15-
FEDERAL LEVEL IF WE ARE EVER TO RESTORE SENSE
AND A SENSE OF PRIORITIES TO FEDERAL SPENDING.
REPUBLICANS WILL DEMONSTRATE TO
AMERICA AND ALL THE WORLD THAT THIS NATION
CAN LIVE WITHIN ITS MEANS AND AT THE SAME
TIME DEAL MORE EFFECTIVELY WITH OUR MOST
PRESSING PROBLEMS.
PRESIDENT NIXON OUTLINED THIS
PROGRAM OF FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY AND SOCIAL
ACTION IN MESSAGES TO CONGRESS THIS WEEK.
REPUBLICANS IN THE CONGRESS ARE DETERMINED
TO SEE THOSE PROGRAMS IMPLEMENTED.
DO REPUBLICANS CARE ABOUT
PEOPLE? YOU BET WE DO.
REPUBLICANS CARE -- AND THAT IS
WHY WE WILL END THE LONGEST AND COSTLIEST
AMERICAN WAR SINCE WORLD WAR II.
REPUBLICANS CARE -- AND THAT IS
WHY WE WILL WHIP INFLATION.
REPUBLICANS CARE -- AND THAT
-16-
IS WHY WE ARE EMBARKED ON A CRUSADE TO CURB
CRIME THROUGHOUT THE NATION AND TO SHAKLE
THE MOBSTERS AND DRUG TRAFFICKERS AND
FORNOGRAPHY PEDDLERS.
REPUBLICANS CARE -- AND THAT IS
WHY WE WILL CUT TAXES ONCE WE HAVE ENDED THE
VIETNAM WAR AND BROUGHT INFLATION UNDER
CONTROL.
WE WILL GIVE THIS NATION
RESPONSIBLE GOVERNMENT AND PROGRESSIVE
GOVERNMENT. WE WILL LIGHT NEW FIRES OF
NATIONAL PRIDE IN THE HEART OF EVERY AMERICAN.
WE WILL MOVE FORWARD TOGETHER
BECAUSE OUR NEW REPUBLICAN ADMINISTRATION
WILL GIVE AMERICA THE KIND OF GOVERNMENT
WHICH WILL BRING US A NEW NATIONAL SOLIDARITY.
IT IS IN THAT SPIRIT AND WITH THAT
MOOD OF CONFIDENCE THAT I LOOK FORWARD TO
THE 1970 ELECTIONS. AND IT IS THAT MESSAGE
THAT I LEAVE WITH YOU, WHO WILL HELP US
-17-
BUILD THE ROAD TO GREATER VICTORIES.
END : :
Distribution Full
Galleries 11:15 a.m. 4/16/69
air mail 11:30 a.m. 4/16/69
200 capies GOP Women
M Office Copy
REMARKS BY REP. GERALD R. FORD, R-MICH.,
REPUBLICAN LEADER, U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES,
PREPARED FOR DELIVERY ABOUT 9:15 A.M. WEDNESDAY, APRIL 16, 1969
AT THE 17TH ANNUAL REPUBLICAN WOMEN'S CONFERENCE
SHERATON-PARK HOTEL
FOR RELEASE ON DELIVERY AT 9:00A.M. WEDNESDAY
Good morning, Madame Chairman, and distinguished ladies-all:
You have already been welcomed to Washington and have been briefed on
some of the programs and goals of the Nixon Administration. Let me add my
greetings as we celebrate Republican victories of 1968 by planning to make
1970 another Republican victory year.
This is an auspicious occasion. It is a great feeling to be mapping
our 1970 campaign plans with a Republican in the White House -- and not just
"a Republican" but a man I feel is destined to prove himself a truly out-
standing President of these United States.
It is a great feeling, too, to be talking with people who contributed
so much to winning the White House for the Republican Party. You are
particularly to be congratulated because you did not merely win the White House
for the Republican Party, you gave the White House back to the people.
I find it most appropriate that the Republican Party is kicking off its
1970 campaign at this 17th Annual Republican Women's Conference. It augurs well
for Republican chances in that campaign.
The New England poet and philosopher, Ralph Waldo Emerson, once
said: "Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm."
I agree, but I would add: "Nothing great was ever achieved without women."
You repeatedly hear it said that behind every man there's a woman.
I would expand on that a bit. Behind every successful candidate for Congress
there is not just one woman but hundreds of them.
So I welcome this opportunity to talk with you -- women who not only
acquitted themselves magnificently in the 1968 campaign but are ready now to
pledge their energy and their devotion to the tremendous task of achieving
Republican congressional gains in 1970.
The challenge that faces us in the 1970 elections is most formidable, but
I am an optimist. You know what an optimist is, don't you? An optimist is a
man who marries his secretary and thinks he can go on dictating to her.
Seriously, I am an optimist about the 1970 congressional elections.
(more)
- 2
The Republican Party can shatter tradition in 1970 -- the tradition that the
Party which controls the White House loses seats in the off-year elections.
The sole exception in modern political history to off-year congressional
losses for the party holding the White House was 1934, when the voters gave
Franklin D. Roosevelt even bigger majorities to work with.
Today we have a new Republican President in the White House, with both
houses of Congress controlled by the Democrats.
It is too early to tell to what extent the Democrats will cooperate
with Mr. Nixon, but it is axiomatic that a Republican President could better
achieve his objectives with a Congress managed by his own party leaders.
So while we will be hoping for the greatest possible cooperation from
Democrats in the Congress, we must begin now to work diligently for Republican
congressional victories in 1970.
It may be over-reaching to hope for a Republican majority in the
House as a result of the 1970 elections, but I believe there is a sound basis
for predicting GOP gains in the House.
The basis for that prediction is my deep belief that the Nixon Adminis-
tration will end the Vietnam War and bring inflation under control before the
1970 election. As a result the American people will express their confidence
in the Nixon Administration by adding to the number of Republican members
in the House and Senate.
The situation in the Senate is extremely favorable. With a successful
Nixon program at home and abroad, we can win a Senate majority.
The House effort is an uphill fight. We always start far behind because
more than 30 congressional districts in the South still are one-party territory.
But we are building the Republican Party in the South. With your help, we are
making steady progress.
We could not expect to make an overnight comeback in the House after our
disastrous losses in 1964. The gap was far too wide. But we have made great
advances.
In the last four years we made a net gain of 52 seats in the House, only
to lose one seat -- on state and local issues -- in a recent special election.
We now hold 189 seats in the House. Two vacancies formerly held by
Republicans are to be filled by special election. The Democrats hold 244 seats.
Assuming that the two vacant seats stay Republican, we would need a net gain of
(more)
- 3 -
27 seats to win control of the House in 1970.
We have a long way to go, and we need the help of every man, woman and
young person in this country with a commitment to the principles that made
this Nation great. I believe the Republican Party is the vehicle to carry us
"Forward Together" to new greatness in the Soaring Seventies. Our task --
yours and mine -- is to convince millions of other Americans that ours is the
party of progress, the party of peace, the party of prosperity.
Events of the next two and four years will bear us out, will provide us
with the tools of persuasion.
Already the polls indicate a high level of Nixon Administration popularity.
Although polls shift and every President experiences rises and declines in public
favor, it is highly significant that a President elected with a plurality of the
total popular vote has received a 65 per cent vote of nationwide approval in the
latest Gallup Poll. It is even more remarkable that Mr. Nixon has been given
a 70 per cent approval rating in Massachusetts, which he lost by nearly 2 to 1
last November. All this in less than 100 days since Richard M. Nixon entered
the Oval Office at the White House.
Critics seeking to undercut Mr. Nixon's popularity would have the American
people believe that he has done virtually nothing since assuming the Presidency.
Such talk is absolutely fantastic in the light of the facts.
As A1 Smith, a Democrat who never quite made it to the White House, was
so fond of saying: "Let's look at the record."
Through his eight-day tour of five European countries and his then
and subsequent conferences with European leaders, President Nixon has restored
balance and a proper sense of perspective to American foreign policy.
He has focused new attention on Europe and Latin America in their relation-
ship with the U. S.
He has made it clear that the United States is overcommited throughout the
world that there is a danger's edge from which we must step back to avoid
tragedies more horrible than Vietnam.
He has made it plain that America cannot and should not play global
fireman and attempt to put out brushfires all over the world.
He has recognized that neither the United States nor the Soviet Union
can manage world events -- and that careful diplomacy in foreign affairs is
mightier and more effective than power alone.
(more)
- 4 -
He has pledged that the United States will have sufficient power to
discourage reckless aggression on the part of other nations while practicing to
the fullest the fine art of persuasion in the interests of peace.
He has laid the foundation for his promised era of negotiation in place
of confrontation; has initiated Four-Power talks on the Mideast, talks that
thus far have shown steady progress.
He is displaying the kind of world leadership that builds peace.
He is following a carefully thought-out plan which hopefully will resolve
the Vietnam War. Premature publicity and headlines do not solve these compli-
cated problems or aid in producing results in negotiation. Events have sketched
the outlines of the Nixon peace strategy for us: Nixon restraint in the face of
a new enemy offensive, swinging world opinion to our side and putting pressure
on North Vietnam for de-escalation; a cutback in planned B-52 raids, providing
an additional basis for mutual de-escalation; encouragement of private talks
aimed at producing mutual withdrawal of U. S. and North Vietnamese troops and a
political agreement between the South Vietnamese and the Viet Cong; success in
getting South Vietnamese President Thieu to seek direct negotiations with the
Viet Cong.
There is movement toward a Vietnam peace settlement although it may not
be readily apparent, and it is President Nixon who has brought about that
movement.
At home, do not the American people feel a new sense of confidence
although Richard M. Nixon has been in the White House for less than three months?
The answer to that question has to be in the affirmative.
President Nixon is moving determinedly to bring order, justice and
expanded opportunity to American life.
He has vowed to move this Nation ahead. He knows that before we can
move forward together, before there can be progress, there must be order. There
must be freedom from the paralyzing fear that is generated by street crime.
We have seen evidence of it already progress in the war against crime
under the new Nixon leadership. Augmented law enforcement in the Nation's
capital, and a consequent drop in robberies and holdups. A crackdown on
narcotics traffickers. And new measuresto come, new proposals to be sent to
Congress as weapons against organized crime.
Order. Stability. Sound prosperity.
(more)
- 5 -
The Nixon Administration is moving to achieve all of these goals, seeking
to attain these objectives by enlisting all Americans in a Great Progress Move-
ment that can roll toward Victory Line only with the help of all and not just
Government alone.
President Nixon has expanded the Job Opportunities in the Business Sector
(JOBS) Program from 50 cities to 125, giving the National Alliance of Business-
men the challenge to train and place 614,000 hard-core unemployed in productive
jobs by June 30, 1971. And the record indicates they can and will do it.
President Nixon has acted to lift the underprivileged out of a life of
certain blight by establishing an Office of Child Development in the Department
of Health, Education and Welfare.
The President has proposed a substantial Social Security benefits increase
to help our pensioners -- and has simultaneously launched a new offensive against
the inflation which hurts us all but mostly those on fixed income.
Courage. President Nixon has done what must be done if there is to be
any hope of halting the price spiral and bringing inflation under control. He
has urged a responsible tax policy and has cut the last Johnson Administration
budget by $4 billion.
You know what a family budget is. It's an attempt to live below our
yearnings. Well, that is what we must learn to do at the federal level if we
are ever to restore sense and a sense of priorities to federal spending.
Republicans will demonstrate to America and all the world that this
Nation can live within its means and at the same time deal more effectively
with our most pressing problems.
President Nixon outlined this program of fiscal responsibility
and social action in messages to Congress this week. Republicans in the Congress
are determined to see those programs implemented.
Do Republicans care about people? You bet we do.
Republicans care -- and that is why we will end the longest and costliest
American war since World War 2.
Republicans care -- and that is why we will whip inflation.
Republicans care -- and that is why we are embarked on a crusade to
curb crime throughout the Nation and to shackle the mobsters and drug traffickers
and pornography peddlers.
Republicans care and that is why we will cut taxes once we have ended
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the Vietnam War and brought inflation under control.
We will give this Nation responsible government and progressive government.
We will light new fires of national pride in the heart of every American.
We will move forward together because our new Republican Administration
will give America the kind of government which will bring us a new national
solidarity.
It is in that spirit and with that mood of confidence that I look forward
to the 1970 elections. And it is that message that I leave with you, who will
help us build the road to greater victories.
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a Office Copy
REMARKS BY REP. GERALD R. FORD, R-MICH.,
REPUBLICAN LEADER, U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES,
PREPARED FOR DELIVERY ABOUT 9:15 A.M. WEDNESDAY, APRIL 16, 1969
AT THE 17TH ANNUAL REPUBLICAN WOMEN'S CONFERENCE
SHERATON-PARK HOTEL
FOR RELEASE ON DELIVERY AT 9:00A.M. WEDNESDAY
Good morning, Madame Chairman, and distinguished ladies-all:
You have already been welcomed to Washington and have been briefed on
some of the programs and goals of the Nixon Administration. Let me add my
greetings as we celebrate Republican victories of 1968 by planning to make
1970 another Republican victory year.
This is an auspicious occasion. It is a great feeling to be mapping
our 1970 campaign plans with a Republican in the White House -- and not just
"a Republican" but a man I feel is destined to prove himself a truly out-
standing President of these United States.
It is a great feeling, too, to be talking with people who contributed
so much to winning the White House for the Republican Party. You are
particularly to be congratulated because you did not merely win the White House
for the Republican Party, you gave the White House back to the people.
I find it most appropriate that the Republican Party is kicking off its
1970 campaign at this 17th Annual Republican Women's Conference. It augurs well
for Republican chances in that campaign.
The New England poet and philosopher, Ralph Waldo Emerson, once
said: "Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm."
I agree, but I would add: "Nothing great was ever achieved without women."
You repeatedly hear it said that behind every man there's a woman.
I would expand on that a bit. Behind every successful candidate for Congress
there is not just one woman but hundreds of them.
So I welcome this opportunity to talk with you -- women who not only
acquitted themselves magnificently in the 1968 campaign but are ready now to
pledge their energy and their devotion to the tremendous task of achieving
Republican congressional gains in 1970.
The challenge that faces us in the 1970 elections is most formidable, but
I am an optimist. You know what an optimist is, don't you? An optimist is a
man who marries his secretary and thinks he can go on dictating to her.
Seriously, I am an optimist about the 1970 congressional elections.
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The Republican Party can shatter tradition in 1970 -- the tradition that the
Party which controls the White House loses seats in the off-year elections.
The sole exception in modern political history to off-year congressional
losses for the party holding the White House was 1934, when the voters gave
Franklin D. Roosevelt even bigger majorities to work with.
Today we have a new Republican President in the White House, with both
houses of Congress controlled by the Democrats.
It is too early to tell to what extent the Democrats will cooperate
with Mr. Nixon, but it is axiomatic that a Republican President could better
achieve his objectives with a Congress managed by his own party leaders.
So while we will be hoping for the greatest possible cooperation from
Democrats in the Congress, we must begin now to work diligently for Republican
congressional victories in 1970.
It may be over-reaching to hope for a Republican majority in the
House as a result of the 1970 elections, but I believe there is a sound basis
for predicting GOP gains in the House.
The basis for that prediction is my deep belief that the Nixon Adminis-
tration will end the Vietnam War and bring inflation under control before the
1970 election. As a result the American people will express their confidence
in the Nixon Administration by adding to the number of Republican members
in the House and Senate.
The situation in the Senate is extremely favorable. With a successful
Nixon program at home and abroad, we can win a Senate majority.
The House effort is an uphill fight. We always start far behind because
more than 30 congressional districts in the South still are one-party territory.
But we are building the Republican Party in the South. With your help, we are
making steady progress.
We could not expect to make an overnight comeback in the House after our
disastrous losses in 1964. The gap was far too wide. But we have made great
advances.
In the last four years we made a net gain of 52 seats in the House, only
to lose one seat -- on state and local issues -- in a recent special election.
We now hold 189 seats in the House. Two vacancies formerly held by
Republicans are to be filled by special election. The Democrats hold 244 seats.
Assuming that the two vacant seats stay Republican, we would need a net gain of
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27 seats to win control of the House in 1970.
We have a long way to go, and we need the help of every man, woman and
young person in this country with a commitment to the principles that made
this Nation great. I believe the Republican Party is the vehicle to carry us
"Forward Together" to new greatness in the Soaring Seventies. Our task --
yours and mine is to convince millions of other Americans that ours is the
party of progress, the party of peace, the party of prosperity.
Events of the next two and four years will bear us out, will provide us
with the tools of persuasion.
Already the polls indicate a high level of Nixon Administration popularity.
Although polls shift and every President experiences rises and declines in public
favor, it is highly significant that a President elected with a plurality of the
total popular vote has received a 65 per cent vote of nationwide approval in the
latest Gallup Poll. It is even more remarkable that Mr. Nixon has been given
a 70 per cent approval rating in Massachusetts, which he lost by nearly 2 to 1
last November. All this in less than 100 days since Richard M. Nixon entered
the Oval Office at the White House.
Critics seeking to undercut Mr. Nixon's popularity would have the American
people believe that he has done virtually nothing since assuming the Presidency.
Such talk is absolutely fantastic in the light of the facts.
As Al Smith, a Democrat who never quite made it to the White House, was
so fond of saying: "Let's look at the record."
Through his eight-day tour of five European countries and his then
and subsequent conferences with European leaders, President Nixon has restored
balance and a proper sense of perspective to American foreign policy.
He has focused new attention on Europe and Latin America in their relation-
ship with the U. S.
He has made it clear that the United States is overcommited throughout the
world that there is a danger's edge from which we must step back to avoid
tragedies more horrible than Vietnam.
He has made it plain that America cannot and should not play global
fireman and attempt to put out brushfires all over the world.
He has recognized that neither the United States nor the Soviet Union
can manage world events - and that careful diplomacy in foreign affairs is
mightier and more effective than power alone.
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He has pledged that the United States will have sufficient power to
discourage reckless aggression on the part of other nations while practicing to
the fullest the fine art of persuasion in the interests of peace.
He has laid the foundation for his promised era of negotiation in place
of confrontation; has initiated Four-Power talks on the Mideast, talks that
thus far have shown steady progress.
He is displaying the kind of world leadership that builds peace.
He is following a carefully thought-out plan which hopefully will resolve
the Vietnam War. Premature publicity and headlines do not solve these compli-
cated problems or aid in producing results in negotiation. Events have sketched
the outlines of the Nixon peace strategy for us: Nixon restraint in the face of
a new enemy offensive, swinging world opinion to our side and putting pressure
on North Vietnam for de-escalation; a cutback in planned B-52 raids, providing
an additional basis for mutual de-escalation; encouragement of private talks
aimed at producing mutual withdrawal of U. S. and North Vietnamese troops and a
political agreement between the South Vietnamese and the Viet Cong; success in
getting South Vietnamese President Thieu to seek direct negotiations with the
Viet Cong.
There is movement toward a Vietnam peace settlement although it may not
be readily apparent, and it is President Nixon who has brought about that
movement.
At home, do not the American people feel a new sense of confidence
although Richard M. Nixon has been in the White House for less than three months?
The answer to that question has to be in the affirmative.
President Nixon is moving determinedly to bring order, justice and
expanded opportunity to American life.
He has vowed to move this Nation ahead. He knows that before we can
move forward together, before there can be progress, there must be order. There
must be freedom from the paralyzing fear that is generated by street crime.
We have seen evidence of it already -- progress in the war against crime
under the new Nixon leadership. Augmented law enforcement in the Nation's
capital, and a consequent drop in robberies and holdups. A crackdown on
narcotics traffickers. And new measuresto come, new proposals to be sent to
Congress as weapons against organized crime.
Order. Stability. Sound prosperity.
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The Nixon Administration is moving to achieve all of these goals, seeking
to attain these objectives by enlisting all Americans in a Great Progress Move-
ment that can roll toward Victory Line only with the help of all and not just
Government alone.
President Nixon has expanded the Job Opportunities in the Business Sector
(JOBS) Program from 50 cities to 125, giving the National Alliance of Business-
men the challenge to train and place 614,000 hard-core unemployed in productive
jobs by June 30, 1971. And the record indicates they can and will do it.
President Nixon has acted to lift the underprivileged out of a life of
certain blight by establishing an Office of Child Development in the Department
of Health, Education and Welfare.
The President has proposed a substantial Social Security benefits increase
to help our pensioners and has simultaneously launched a new offensive against
the inflation which hurts us all but mostly those on fixed income.
Courage. President Nixon has done what must be done if there is to be
any hope of halting the price spiral and bringing inflation under control. He
has urged a responsible tax policy and has cut the last Johnson Administration
budget by $4 billion.
You know what a family budget is. It's an attempt to live below our
yearnings. Well, that is what we must learn to do at the federal level if we
are ever to restore sense and a sense of priorities to federal spending.
Republicans will demonstrate to America and all the world that this
Nation can live within its means and at the same time deal more effectively
with our most pressing problems.
President Nixon outlined this program of fiscal responsibility
and social action in messages to Congress this week. Republicans in the Congress
are determined to see those programs implemented.
Do Republicans care about people? You bet we do.
Republicans care -- and that is why we will end the longest and costliest
American war since World War 2.
Republicans care and that is why we will whip inflation.
Republicans care and that is why we are embarked on a crusade to
curb crime throughout the Nation and to shackle the mobsters and drug traffickers
and pornography peddlers.
Republicans care and that is why we will cut taxes once we have ended
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the Vietnam War and brought inflation under control.
We will give this Nation responsible government and progressive government.
We will light new fires of national pride in the heart of every American.
We will move forward together because our new Republican Administration
will give America the kind of government which will bring us a new national
solidarity.
It is in that spirit and with that mood of confidence that I look forward
to the 1970 elections. And it is that message that I leave with you, who will
help us build the road to greater victories.
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