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    "ocrText": "Ronald Reagan Presidential Library\nDigital Library Collections\nThis is a PDF of a folder from our textual collections.\nCollection: Roberts, John G.: Files\nFolder Title: JGR/Presidential Remarks,\n[Statements, & Addresses] (03/13/1985-03/31/1985)\nBox: 41\nTo see more digitized collections visit:\nhttps://reaganlibrary.gov/archives/digital-library\nTo see all Ronald Reagan Presidential Library inventories visit:\nhttps://reaganlibrary.gov/document-collection\nContact a reference archivist at: [email protected]\nCitation Guidelines: https://reaganlibrary.gov/citing\nNational Archives Catalogue: https://catalog.archives.gov/\nTHE WHITE HOUSE\nWASHINGTON\nMarch 25, 1985\nMEMORANDUM FOR BEN ELLIOTT\nDEPUTY ASSISTANT TO THE PRESIDENT\nDIRECTOR, PRESIDENTIAL SPEECHWRITING\nFROM:\nJOHN G. ROBERTS\nASSOCIATE COUNSEL TO THE PRESIDENT\nSUBJECT:\nPresidential Remarks for Meeting With\nCorporate and Economic Leaders in\nNew York on March 28, 1985\nCounsel's Office has reviewed the above-referenced remarks,\nand finds no objection to them from a legal perspective. On\npage 1, line 19, should \"spending\" be inserted between \"and\"\nand \"over\"?\nCC: David L. Chew\nID #\nCU\nWHITE HOUSE\nCORRESPONDENCE TRACKING WORKSHEET\n0 . OUTGOING\nH - INTERNAL\n. I INCOMING\nDate Correspondence\nReceived (YY/MM/DD)\n/\n/\nName of Correspondent:\nDave Chew\nMI Mail Report\nUser Codes: (A)\n(B)\n(C)\nSubject:\nw/ corporate and economic leaders in\nPresidential remarks for meeting\nnew york on 3/28/85,\nROUTE TO:\nACTION\nDISPOSITION\nTracking\nType\nCompletion\nAction\nDate\nof\nDate\nOffice/Agency\n(Staff Name)\nCode\nYY/MM/DD\nResponse\nCode\nYY/MM/DD\nCUHOLL\nORIGINATOR 85103122\n/\n/\nReferral Note:\nCUAT18\nR\n85103123\n85103125\nReferral Note:\n3pm\n/\n/\n/ /\nReferral Note:\n/\n/\n/\n/\nReferral Note:\n/\n/\n/ /\nReferral Note:\nACTION CODES:\nDISPOSITION CODES:\nA - Appropriate Action\nI Info Copy Only/No Action Necessary\nA Answered\nC Completed\nC Comment/Recommendation\nR. Direct Reply w/Copy\nB - Non-Special Referral\nS Suspended\nD Draft Response\nS For Signature\nF Furnish Fact Sheet\nX Interim Reply\nto be used as Enclosure\nFOR OUTGOING CORRESPONDENCE:\nType of Response = Initials of Signer\nCode = \"A\"\nCompletion Date = Date of Outgoing\nComments:\nKeep this worksheet attached to the original incoming letter.\nSend all routing updates to Central Reference (Room 75, OEOB).\nAlways return completed correspondence record to Central Files.\nRefer questions about the correspondence tracking system to Central Reference, ext. 2590\n5/81\nDocument No.\nWHITE HOUSE STAFFING MEMORANDUM\n3/22/85\n3:00 P.M. MONDAY 3/25\nDATE:\nACTION/CONCURRENCE/COMMENT DUE BY:\nREMARKS: MEETING WITH CORPORATE AND ECONOMIC LEADERS\nSUBJECT:\n(3/22 - 7:00 p.m. draft)\nACTION FYI\nACTION FYI\nVICE PRESIDENT\nMcMANUS\nREGAN\nMURPHY\nDEAVER\nOGLESBY\nSTOCKMAN\nROLLINS\nBUCHANAN\nSPEAKES\nCHEW\nP\nS\nSVAHN\nFIELDING\nTUTTLE\nFRIEDERSDORF\nVERSTANDIG\nFULLER\nWHITTLESEY\nHICKEY\nCEA\nHICKS\nELLIOTT\nKINGON\nHENKEL\nMcFARLANE\nREMARKS:\nPlease provide any edits directly to Ben Elliott by 3:00 p.m. Monday,\nMarch 25th, with an information copy to my office. Thank you.\nRESPONSE:\nDavid L. Chew\nStaff Secretary\nExt. 2702\n(Robinson/BE)\nMarch 22, 1985\n7:46\n7:00 p.m.\nPRESIDENTIAL REMARKS: MEETING WITH CORPORATE AND\nECONOMIC LEADERS\nNEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK\nTHURSDAY, MARCH 28, 1985\nThank you and good afternoon. It's an honor to join you in\nthis historic room, and I might add that it's refreshing to speak\nin a place where the word \"capitalism\" doesn't have to be\nwhispered.\nNow, before we get to your questions, permit me to say a few\nwords about an issue that affects each of you directly -- the\nFederal budget.\nWhen we took office in 1981, the American economy, once\nvigorous, had become moribund. To bring the economy back to\nlife, we made the first attempt in many years to restrain the\ngrowth and power of Government and free enterprise to do what it\ndoes best: we slowed the pace of spending and regulations,\nsupported a sound monetary policy, and proposed an\nacross-the-board personal income tax rate cut of 25 percent with\nnew incentives for business investment. Our reasoning on this\nwas straightforward. Throughout the seventies, effective tax\nrates had risen relentlessly, eroding incentives and driving\nmillions to choose leisure over work, conformity over innovation,\n2\nand over savings and investment. And, the impact of inflation on\noutdated depreciation schedules was eroding capital investment.\nA tax cut, we believed, would reverse the process, giving our\neconomy new vigor.\nPage 2\nAt the time, you will remember, our policies were received\nwith less than universal acclaim. In October 1982, John Kenneth\nGalbraith stated, \"We have\nan unprecedented experiment in\neconomic policy. It has failed.\" Mr. Galbraith was correct that\nit was an experiment, but he should have waited for the results\nto come in.\nSince the day our tax rate reductions became fully\neffective, we have seen 27 straight months of economic growth;\nthe strongest rate of business investment in 35 years; the lowest\nrate of inflation in 18 years; a sharp rise in productivity; and\nthe creation of some 7 million new jobs -- more than were created\nby all the nations of Western Europe during the past 10 years.\nBut the way I really knew our program was working was when\nthey didn't call it Reaganomics anymore.\nHere in New York, the stock exchange has come back to life.\nPerhaps of greater significance, the number of Americans who own\nstocks has increased from million in 197_ to today's record\nI\nmillion, as more and more of our citizens have choosen to\npurchase a stake in our growing economic enterprise, each of them\nmaking himself -- oh, that word -- a capitalist.\nAs for Government revenues, the expansion spurred by the tax\ncuts has actually caused them to mount. Indeed, the Treasury's\nmonthly statements for the first 4 months of the current fiscal\nyear show that, compared to the same period last year, receipts\nhave risen more than 11 percent. This means that remarkably\nenough, revenues are growing more quickly than the rates of\ninflation and real growth combined.\nPage 3\nToday, with the effects of our tax cuts being fully felt,\nthe American people have new opportunities with rising incomes;\nAmerican business is growing, with more capital and higher rates\nof return. John Kenneth Galbraith, where are you now?\nUnfortunately, even with Government revenues up, Government\nspending is up even higher. I know you agree: this year, the\ndeficit must be cut. There are three options for doing so.\nOption one is a tax increase. A tax hike, however, would\nonce again dampen economic activity. Indeed, Government revenues\nmight actually fall. A tax increase is out.\nOption two is a radical cut in defense spending. Yet\nalready during the past 4 years, defense spending has been\nreduced by more than $150 billion below the 5-year plan we\nproposed in 1981. Indeed, our projected defense expenditures for\n1985 are already almost $16 billion less than the figure the last\nAdministration projected for this year. The military threats we\nmust face, however, have not been reduced. They have grown.\nAt this point, it is a simple necessity to continue to bring\nour Armed Forces up to date. I've told the Senate leadership\nthat I'm willing to consider proposed savings on defense, but I\ncannot compromise on funding for weapons systems, either\nconventional or strategic, vital to our security.\nThat brings us to option three, cuts in domestic spending.\nIt is here that we must make our greatest efforts.\nYes, it will prove difficult -- indeed, to paraphrase\nDr. Johnson, watching the Congress cut deficit spending is like\nPage 4\nseeing a dog walk on its hind legs. The remarkable thing is not\nthat it gets done poorly, but that it happens at all.\nThe deliberations of the Senate Budget Committee, for\nexample, have in their way been encouraging. At first the\nCommittee proposed shallow spending cuts and considered a tax\nincrease. Then they rejected the tax increase and proposed\ndeeper cuts -- not all of them good cuts, by any means, but- cuts.\nThis represents progress, and I am confident that this session of\nthe Congress will begin to bring deficit spending under control.\nPermit me to close by suggesting an idea that is, perhaps, a\nlittle revolutionary -- namely, that there just might be a fourth\noption for reducing the deficit\nanother cut in tax rates.\nOur tax reform proposal is at present undergoing substantial\nrevision, but we know that it will simplify our tax code, broaden\nthe base, and cut both personal and corporate tax rates. On\nstatic analysis, it is revenue neutral. But I fully expect that,\nby adding to the incentives our first tax cuts produced, it will\nspur further economic growth -- and add to Government revenues.\nSome say that chances for the passage of such a bill during\nthis session of the Congress are virtually nil. Please, don't\nbelieve it. As the remarkable results of our first tax cuts\nbegin to sink in, it will become clear to Members of the Congress\nthat, if they want to share the credit for economic growth in the\n1986 elections, a good way to do so would be by supporting\nanother cut in tax rates.\nPage 5\nGrowth -- growth is what we have already fostered; growth is\nwhat we continue to seek; growth, I am confident, is what,\ntogether, we shall achieve.\nThank you and God bless you.\nAnd now I'd be happy to answer your questions.\nTHE WHITE HOUSE\nWASHINGTON\nMarch 25, 1985\nMEMORANDUM FOR BEN ELLIOTT\nDEPUTY ASSISTANT TO THE PRESIDENT\nDIRECTOR, PRESIDENTIAL SPEECHWRITING\nFROM:\nJOHN G. ROBERTS 222R\nASSOCIATE COUNSEL TO THE PRESIDENT\nSUBJECT:\nRemarks: Open New York Stock Exchange\n(Thursday, March 28, 1985)\nCounsel's Office has reviewed the above-referenced remarks,\nand finds no objection to them from a legal perspective.\nAs a matter of taste, however, I question whether the humor\nat the top of page 2 is sufficiently Presidential.\nCC: David L. Chew\nID #\nCU\nWHITE HOUSE\nCORRESPONDENCE TRACKING WORKSHEET\no OUTGOING\nH * INTERNAL\nI - INCOMING\nDate Correspondence\nReceived (YY/MM/DD)\n/\n/\nName of Correspondent: Dave Chew\nMI Mail Report\nUser Codes: (A)\n(B)\n(C)\nSubject: Remarks: Open new York Stoch Exchange\n(Thursday march 28,1985)\nROUTE TO:\nACTION\nDISPOSITION\nTracking\nType\nCompletion\nAction\nDate\nof\nDate\nOffice/Agency\n(Staff Name)\nCode\nYY/MM/DD\nResponse\nCode\nYY/MM/DD\nCUNOLL\nORIGINATOR 85,03,22\n/ /\nReferral Note:\nCUAT 18\nR 15,13,22\n585,03,25\n12N\nReferral Note:\n/ /\n/ /\nReferral Note:\n/ /\n/ /\n-\nReferral Note:\n/ /\n/ /\nReferral Note:\nACTION CODES:\nDISPOSITION CODES:\nA Appropriate Action\nI Info Copy Only/No Action Necessary\nA Answered\nC Completed\nC Comment/Recommendation\nR Direct Reply w/Copy\nB . Non-Special Referral\nS Suspended\nD - Draft Response\nS For Signature\nF Furnish Fact Sheet\nX Interim Reply\nto be used as Enclosure\nFOR OUTGOING CORRESPONDENCE:\nType of Response = Initials of Signer\nCode = \"A\"\nCompletion Date = Date of Outgoing\nComments:\nKeep this worksheet attached to the original incoming letter.\nSend all routing updates to Central Reference (Room 75, OEOB).\nAlways return completed correspondence record to Central Files.\nRefer questions about the correspondence tracking system to Central Reference, ext. 2590.\n5/81\nDocument No.\nWHITE HOUSE STAFFING MEMORANDUM\nDATE:\n3/22/85\nACTION/CONCURRENCE/COMMENT DUE BY:\nNOON MONDAY, 3/25\nSUBJECT:\nREMARKS: OPEN NEW YORK STOCK EXCHANGE\n(3/22/85 - 12:30 p.m. draft)\nACTION FYI\nACTION FYI\nVICE PRESIDENT\nMcMANUS\nREGAN\nMURPHY\nDEAVER\nOGLESBY\nSTOCKMAN\nROLLINS\nBUCHANAN\nSPEAKES\nCHEW\nP\n85\nSVAHN\nFIELDING\nTUTTLE\nFRIEDERSDORF\nVERSTANDIG\nFULLER\nWHITTLESEY\nHICKEY\nELLIOTT\nHICKS\nCEA\nKINGON\nHENKEL\nMcFARLANE\nREMARKS:\nPlease provide any edits directly to Ben Elliott by noon Monday,\nMarch 25th, with an information copy to this office. Thank you.\nRESPONSE:\nDavid L. Chew\n1985 MAR 22 PH 2:02\nStaff Secretary\nExt. 2702\n(Gilder/BE)\nMarch 22, 1985\n12:30 p.m.\nPRESIDENTIAL REMARKS: OPEN NEW YORK STOCK EXCHANGE\nNEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK\nTHURSDAY, MARCH 28, 1985\nThank you. Thank you all.\nThis is a great view from up here -- kind of like ring side\nat a Saturday night tag-team wrestling match at the Garden. In a\nfew moments I'll ring the bell and the action will begin. But in\nthis lull before the storm, I'd like to say a few words about\nwhere this country has been and where we'll be going from here.\nThe last time I visited the New York Stock Exchange was in\n1980, and the mood sure was different back then. But in the last\n5 years, we've moved from malaise to hope, confidence, and\nopportunity. We knew that malaise for what it really was.\nGovernment, with its high taxes, excessive spending, and\nover-regulation, had thrown a wrench in the works of our free\nmarkets. In essence, Government was trying to run the economy,\nbut was ruining it instead.\nSo we cut tax rates and counter-productive regulations and\nmoved to limit spending growth. And I think we've seen some\nhealthy results on this trading floor. As soon as the tax cut\nbegan to take effect, the stock market surged ahead. An enormous\nrush of new equity issues, venture capital, and new investment\nbecame the driving force behind an economic expansion stronger\nthan any we'd seen in over a generation -- an expansion SO strong\nit catapulted the United States once again into the position as\nthe world's leading economic power. And for all those who say we\ncan't repeat the dramatic growth record of the past 2 years for\nPage 2\nthe rest of the decade, we have only one thing to say:\nbull\nmarket.\nThe American economy is like a race horse that's begun to\ngallop in front of the field. Other nations, hobbled by high tax\nrates and weighed down by oversized Government spending, have\nbeen slow to catch up. This has caused some painful\ndislocations, especially for America's exporting industries. But\nthe answer is hardly to hamstring the American economy to make it\ndrop back with the others. The solution is for our trading\npartners to throw off the dead weight of government -- cut their\nown tax rates, spending, and over-regulation -- so that they can\ncatch up with us in our race to the future.\nThere's one sure method to cut the expense and price of\nAmerican-made goods and increase our export sales. The surest\nway to make American products more competitive is to cut the cost\nof Government to our private sector by cutting tax rates yet\nagain. And that's exactly what we intend to do.\nIt's about time, too, that Congress took a serious look at\nitself and figured out why it is unable to cut spending. I saw\nSenators on the news state publicly that Amtrak was wasteful and\nunaffordable, but that they still couldn't bring themselves to\nvote to end Federal subsidies. If Congress can't bring itself to\ndo what's right, they should give the President what 43 Governors\nhave, a line-item veto. I can tell you, it would really make my\nday.\nWith tax reform and budget control, our economy will be free\nto expand to its full potential; the bears will go back into\nPage 3\ntheir caves for a permanent hibernation, and this bull market\nwill continue to hit new, history-making highs. That's our\neconomic program for the next 4 years -- we're going to turn the\nbull lose.\nTHE WHITE HOUSE\nWASHINGTON\nMarch 26, 1985\nMEMORANDUM FOR BEN ELLIOTT\nDEPUTY ASSISTANT TO THE PRESIDENT\nDIRECTOR, PRESIDENTIAL SPEECHWRITING\nFROM:\nJOHN G. ROBERTS\nASSOCIATE COUNSEL TO THE PRESIDENT\nSUBJECT:\nRemarks: Meeting with Corporate\nand Economic Leaders (NY)\nCounsel's Office has reviewed the above-referenced remarks,\nand finds no objection to them from a legal perspective.\nCC: David L. Chew\nID #.\nCU\nWHITE HOUSE\nCORRESPONDENCE TRACKING WORKSHEET\n0 . OUTGOING\nH INTERNAL\nI INCOMING\nDate Correspondence\nReceived (YY/MM/DD)\n/\n/\nName of Correspondent: Dave chew\nM1 Mail Report\nUser Codes: (A)\n(B)\n(C)\nSubject: Remarks: meeting with Carparate and\nEconomic Cenders (N.V)\nROUTE TO:\nACTION\nDISPOSITION\nTracking\nType\nCompletion\nAction\nDate\nof\nDate\nOffice/Agency\n(Staff Name)\nCode\nYY/MM/DD\nResponse\nCode\nYY/MM/DD\ncultoce\nORIGINATOR $5,03,26\n/\n/\nReferrat Note:\nCUAT 18\nR\n85,03126\n5 85,03,06\n12N\nReferral Note:\n/ /\n/\n/\n-\nReferral Note:\n/\n/\n/ /\nReferral Note:\n/\n/\n/\n/\nReferral Note:\nACTION CODES:\nDISPOSITION CODES:\nA * Appropriate Action\n1. . Info Copy Only/No Action Necessary\nA Answered\nC Completed\nC - Comment/Recommendation\nR. - Direct Reply w/Copy\nB . Non-Special Referral\nS Suspended\nD Draft Response\nS For Signature\nF - Furnish Fact Sheet\nX Interim Reply\nto be used as Enclosure\nFOR OUTGOING CORRESPONDENCE:\nType of Response = Initials of Signer\nCode = \"A\"\nCompletion Date = Date of Outgoing\nComments:\nKeep this worksheet attached to the original incoming letter.\nSend all routing updates to Central Reference (Room 75, OEOB).\nAlways return completed correspondence record to Central Files.\nRefer questions about the correspondence tracking system to Central Reference, ext. 2590.\n5/81\nDocument No.\nWHITE HOUSE STAFFING MEMORANDUM\nDATE: 3/25/85\nACTION/CONCURRENCE/COMMENT DUE BY: NOON TOMORROW, 3/36\nSUBJECT:\nREMARKS: MEETING WITH CORPORATE AND ECONOMIC LEADERS\n(3/25 - 7:30 p.m. draft)\nACTION FYI\nACTION FYI\nVICE PRESIDENT\nMcMANUS\nREGAN\nMURPHY\nDEAVER\nOGLESBY\nSTOCKMAN\nROLLINS\nBUCHANAN\nSPEAKES\nCHEW\nP\nSS SVAHN\nà\nFIELDING\nTUTTLE\nFRIEDERSDORF\nVERSTANDIG\nFULLER\nWHITTLESEY\nHICKEY\nELLIOTT\nHICKS\nHENKEL\nKINGON\nRYAN\nMcFARLANE\nREMARKS:\nPlease provide any edits directly to Ben Elliott by noon tomorrow,\nMarch 26th, with an information copy to my office. Thank you.\nRESPONSE:\nDavid L. Chew\n1985 MAR 26 III 7: 17\nStaff Secretary\nExt. 2702\n(Robinson/BE)\nMarch 25, 1985\n7:30 p.m.\nReceived SS\nPRESIDENTIAL REMARKS: 2 MEETING WITH CORPORATE AND\n1005\nPINA\nECONOMIC LEADERS\nNEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK\nTHURSDAY, MARCH 28, 1985\nThank you and good morning. It's an honor to join you in\nthis historic room. Don Regan used to preside over meetings here\nwhen he served as president of the New York Stock Exchange, and\nhe tells me this is one place where the word \"capitalism\" doesn't\nhave to be whispered.\nNow, before we begin our give-and-take, permit me to say a\nfew words about an issue that affects each of you directly -- the\nFederal budget.\nWhen we took office in 1981, the American economy, once\nvigorous, had become moribund. To bring the economy back to\nlife, we made the first attempt in many years to restrain the\ngrowth and power of Government and to set enterprise free. We\nslowed the growth of Government spending and regulations,\nsupported a sound monetary policy, and proposed an\nacross-the-board personal income tax rate cut of 25 percent with\nnew incentives for business investment.\nOn the tax cut, our reasoning was straightforward.\nThroughout the seventies, effective tax rates had risen\nrelentlessly, eroding incentives and driving millions to choose\nleisure over work, conformity over innovation, and immediate\ngratification over savings and investment. At the same time, the\nimpact of inflation on outdated depreciation schedules was\nPage 2\neroding capital investment. A tax cut, we believed, would\nreverse the process, giving our economy new vigor.\nAt the time, you will remember, our policies were received\nwith less than universal acclaim. In October 1982 John Kenneth\nGalbraith stated, \"We have\nan unprecedented experiment in\neconomic policy. It has failed.\" Mr. Galbraith was correct that\nit was an experiment. He should simply have waited for the\nresults to come in.\nIndeed, the results are historic. Since our tax rate\nreductions became fully effective, we have seen 28 months of\neconomic growth; the strongest recovery of business investment in\n35 years; the lowest rate of inflation in 18 years; a sharp rise\nin productivity; and the creation of some 7 million new jobs --\nmore than were created by all the nations of Western Europe\nduring the past 10 years.\nBut I really knew our program was working when they didn't\ncall it Reaganomics anymore.\nHere in New York, the stock exchange has come back to life.\nJust as significant, the number of Americans who own stocks has\nincreased from 25 million in 1975 to today's record 42 million,\nas more and more of our citizens have chosen to purchase a stake\nin our growing economic enterprise, each of them making\nhimself -- oh, that word -- a capitalist.\nAs for Government revenues, they appear to be on the rise.\nWhile revenues in 1984 held steady, the Treasury's statements for\nthe first 4 months of the current fiscal year months show that,\ncompared to the same period last year, receipts have risen more\nPage 3\nthan 11 percent. Remarkably enough, this suggests that revenues\nare growing more quickly than the rates of inflation and real\ngrowth combined.\nWith the effects of our tax cuts being fully felt, today the\nAmerican people have new opportunities and rising incomes;\nAmerican business is growing, with more capital and higher rates\nof return; and the Government is watching its revenues rise.\nJohn Kenneth Galbraith, where are you now?\nUnfortunately, even with Government revenues up, Government\nspending is up even higher. Deficit spending this fiscal year is\nexpected to top $200 billion, absorbing vast sums of resources\nthat could be used far more efficiently in the private sector. I\nknow you agree: this year, deficit spending must be cut. There\nare three options for doing SO.\nOption one is a tax increase. Yet a tax hike would squander\nour hard-won progress by placing a new damper on economic\nactivity. Indeed, Government revenues might actually fall. A\ntax increase is out.\nOption two is a radical cut in defense spending. Already\nduring the past 4 years, however, defense spending has been\nreduced by more than $150 billion below the 5-year plan we\nproposed in 1981. Indeed, our projected defense expenditures for\n1985 are almost $16 billion less than the figure the last\nadministration projected for this year. Yet the military threats\nwe must face have not been reduced. They have grown.\nAt this point, it is a simple necessity to continue to bring\nour Armed Forces up to date. I've told the Senate leadership\nPage 4\nthat I'm willing to consider proposed savings on defense, perhaps\nstretching out the acquisition of such items as food, fuel, and\nmunitions. But I cannot compromise on funding for weapons\nsystems, either conventional or strategic, that are vital to our\nsecurity.\nThat brings us to option three, cuts in domestic spending.\nIt is here that we must make our greatest efforts.\nYes, this will prove difficult -- indeed, to paraphrase\nDr. Johnson, watching the Congress cut deficit spending is like\nseeing a dog walk on its hind legs. The remarkable thing is not\nthat it gets done awkardly, but that it happens at all.\nThe deliberations of the Senate Budget Committee, for\nexample, have in their way been encouraging. At first the\nCommittee proposed shallow spending cuts and considered a tax\nincrease. Then they rejected the tax increase and proposed\ndeeper cuts -- not all of them good cuts, by any means, but cuts.\nThis represents progress. Earlier this week, moreover, I held\nbudget discussions with the Senate leadership, and we made still\nfurther progress. If the House cooperates, I am confident, this\nsession of the Congress will begin to bring deficit spending\nunder control.\nPermit me to close by suggesting an idea that is, perhaps, a\nlittle revolutionary. There just might be a fourth option for\nreducing the deficit: a major tax reform that would\ninclude\nanother cut in tax rates.\nToday, Treasury's tax reform proposal is undergoing\nrevision, but I can tell you this much about it for certain: it\nPage 5\nwill simplify our tax code, broaden the base, and cut both\npersonal and corporate tax rates. Of course, absolutely nothing\ncan take the place of major reductions in spending. But with\nthose cuts made, a tax reform could add to the incentives our\nfirst tax cuts provided, foster still more economic growth, and\neven increase Government revenues.\nSome say that chances for the passage of such a bill during\nthis session of the Congress are nil. Please, don't believe it.\nAs the remarkable results of our first tax cuts begin to sink in,\nit will become clear to Members of the Congress that, if they\nwant to share the credit for economic growth in the 1986\nelections, a good way to do so would be by supporting another cut\nin tax rates.\nGrowth -- growth is what we have already fostered; growth is\nwhat we continue to seek; growth, I am confident, is what,\ntogether, we shall achieve.\nThank you and God bless you.\nTHE WHITE HOUSE\nWASHINGTON\nMarch 26, 1985\nMEMORANDUM FOR BEN ELLIOTT\nDEPUTY ASSISTANT TO THE PRESIDENT\nDIRECTOR, PRESIDENTIAL SPEECHWRITING\nFROM:\nJOHN G. ROBERTS 02R\nASSOCIATE COUNSEL TO THE PRESIDENT\nSUBJECT:\nRemarks: Open New York Stock Exchange\nCounsel's Office has reviewed the above-referenced remarks,\nand finds no objection to them from a legal perspective.\nCC: David L. Chew\nID #\nCU\nWHITE HOUSE\nCORRESPONDENCE TRACKING WORKSHEET\n0 . OUTGOING\nH - INTERNAL\nI . INCOMING\nDate Correspondence\nReceived (YY/MM/DD)\n/\n/\nName of Correspondent:\nDave chew\nMI Mail Report\nUser Codes: (A)\n(B)\n(C)\nSubject: Remarks Open new York stoch Eschange\nROUTE TO:\nACTION\nDISPOSITION\nTracking\nType\nCompletion\nAction\nDate\nof\nDate\nOffice/Agency\n(Staff Name)\nCode\nYY/MM/DD\nResponse\nCode\nYY/MM/DD\nCUNTOLL\nORIGINATOR\n85,03,26\n/ /\nReferral Note:\nCUAT 18\nR\n85,03,26\nS 85,03,26\n12N\nReferral Note:\n/ /\n/ /\nReferral Note:\n/\n/\n/ /\nReferral Note:\n/\n/\n/ /\nReferral Note:\nACTION CODES:\nDISPOSITION CODES:\nA Appropriate Action\n1 Info Copy Only/No Action Necessary\nA Answered\nC Completed\nC Comment/Recommendation\nR Direct Reply w/Copy\nB Non-Special Referral\nS Suspended\nD Draft Response\nS For Signature\nF - Furnish Fact Sheet\nX Interim Reply\nto be used as Enclosure\nFOR OUTGOING CORRESPONDENCE:\nType of Response = Initials of Signer\nCode = \"A\"\nCompletion Date = Date of Outgoing\nComments:\nKeep this worksheet attached to the original incoming letter.\nSend all routing updates to Central Reference (Room 75, OEOB).\nAlways return completed correspondence record to Central Files.\nRefer questions about the correspondence tracking system to Central Reference, ext. 2590.\n5/81\nDocument No.\nWHITE HOUSE STAFFING MEMORANDUM\n3/25/85\nDATE:\nACTION/CONCURRENCE/COMMENT DUE BY: NOON TOMORROW, 3/26\nSUBJECT:\nREMARKS: OPEN NEW YORK STOCK EXCHANGE\n(3/25 - 6:00 p.m. draft)\nACTION FYI\nACTION FYI\nVICE PRESIDENT\nMcMANUS\nREGAN\nMURPHY\nDEAVER\nOGLESBY\nSTOCKMAN\nROLLINS\nBUCHANAN\nSPEAKES\nCHEW\nP\n55 SVAHN\nFIELDING\nTUTTLE\nFRIEDERSDORF\nVERSTANDIG\nFULLER\nWHITTLESEY\nHICKEY\nELLIOTT\nHICKS\nHENKEL\nKINGON\nRYAN\nMcFARLANE\nREMARKS:\nPlease provide any edits directly to Ben Elliott by noon tomorrow,\nMarch 26th, with an information copy to my office. Thank you.\nRESPONSE:\nDavid L. Chew\n1985 HAR 26 AM 7: 17\nStaff Secretary\nExt. 2702\n(Gilder/BE)\nMarch 25, 1985\n6:00 p.m.\nReceivedSS\nPRESIDENTIAL REMARKS: OPEN NEW YORK STOCK EXCHANGE\n1935 HAR 26 AM 7:\nNEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK\nTHURSDAY, MARCH 28, 1985\nThank you. Thank you all.\nThis is a great view from up here -- kind of like ringside\nat a Saturday night tag-team wrestling match at the Garden. In a\nfew moments I'll ring the bell and the action will begin. But in\nthis lull before the storm, I'd like to say a few words about\nwhere this country has been and where we'll be going from here.\nThe last time I visited the New York Stock Exchange was in\n1980, and the mood sure was different back then. But in the last\n5 years, we've moved from malaise to hope, confidence, and\nopportunity. We knew that malaise for what it really was.\nGovernment, with its high taxes, excessive spending, and\nover-regulation, had thrown a wrench in the works of our free\nmarkets. In essence, Government was trying to run the economy,\nbut was ruining it instead.\nSo we cut tax rates and counter-productive regulations and\nmoved to limit spending growth. And I think we've seen some\nhealthy results on this trading floor. Those tax cuts helped\nre-energize the stock market, with the volume of shares traded\nhitting record highs, and more Americans than ever before\nparticipating in the market. An enormous rush of new equity\nissues, venture capital, and new investment became the driving\nforce behind an economic expansion as strong as any we'd seen in\n20 years. And for all those who say we can't repeat the dramatic\nPage 2\ngrowth record of the past 2 years, we have only one thing to say:\nbull\nmarket.\nThe American economy is like a race horse that's begun to\ngallop in front of the field. Other nations, hobbled by high tax\nrates and weighed down by oversized Government spending, have\nbeen slow to catch up. This has caused some painful\ndislocations, especially for America's exporting industries. But\nthe answer is hardly to hamstring the American economy to make it\ndrop back with the others. The solution is for our trading\npartners to throw off the dead weight of government -- cut their\nown tax rates, spending, and over-regulation and join us in\nopening up their markets to foreign competition -- so that they\ncan catch up with us in our race to the future.\nThere's one sure method to cut the expense and price of\nAmerican-made goods and increase our export sales. The surest\nway to make American products more competitive is to spur\ninnovation, enterprise, and productivity by cutting tax rates yet\nagain. And that's exactly what we intend to do.\nIt's time, too, that Government got off its present spending\nspree before it squanders our future prosperity. Senate\nRepublicans are trying to put together a package of meaningful\nspending reductions, and they're going to need all of our support\nand encouragement in the coming weeks. And let me repeat again,\nif the political heat of budget cutting is too much for Congress,\nthey should give the President what 43 Governors have, a\nline-item veto. If Congress can't cut, I will. Let me tell you,\nit would really make my day.\nPage 3\nWith tax reform and budget control, our economy will be free\nto expand to its full potential; the bears will go back into\ntheir caves for a permanent hibernation, and this bull market\nwill continue to hit new, history-making highs. That's our\neconomic program for the next 4 years -- we're going to turn the\nbull lose.\nTHE WHITE HOUSE\nWASHINGTON\nMarch 26, 1985\nMEMORANDUM FOR BEN ELLIOTT\nDEPUTY ASSISTANT TO THE PRESIDENT\nDIRECTOR, PRESIDENTIAL SPEECHWRITING\nFROM:\nJOHN G. ROBERTS JJR\nASSOCIATE COUNSEL TO THE PRESIDENT\nSUBJECT:\nPresidential Remarks: National Space Club\nLuncheon (3/26/85; 11:30 a.m. Draft)\nCounsel's Office has reviewed the above-referenced draft\nremarks. The joke in the first paragraph on page 3 plays\ninto the hands of those who seek to ridicule the Strategic\nDefense Initiative as \"Star Wars.\" It was my understanding\nthat we were trying to avoid use of that label; saying \"the\nforce is with us\" hardly helps.\nThe first sentence in the last paragraph on page 6 should be\nchanged. The National Commission on Space was created some\ntime ago by Public Law 98-361, 42 U.S.C. § 2451 note; the\nsentence in question conveys the false impression that the\nCommission was all the President's idea. Suggested alter-\nnative: \"I am accordingly happy to introduce today the\nmembers of the National Commission on Space, which will\ndevise an aggressive space strategy to carry America into\nthe 21st century.\"\ncc: David L. Chew\nID #\nCU\nWHITE HOUSE\nCORRESPONDENCE TRACKING WORKSHEET\nO * OUTGOING\nH - - INTERNAL\nI - INCOMING\nDate Correspondence\nReceived (YY/MM/DD)\n/\n/\nName of Correspondent:\nDavid Chew\nMI Mail Report.\nUser Codes: (A)\n(B)\n(C)\nSubject: Presidential Remarks: national Space\nClub Luncheon (3/26/85, 11:30 am draft)\nROUTE TO:\nACTION\nDISPOSITION\nTracking\nType\nCompletion\nAction\nDate\nof\nDate\nOffice/Agency\n(Staff Name)\nCode\nYY/MM/DD\nResponse\nCode\nYY/MM/DD\nCULtole\nORIGINATOR 85103 126\n/\n/\nReferral Note:\nCUAT18\nR 85,03,26\nS 85/03/27\nReferral Note:\n10:00 am am\n/\n/\n/\n/\n-\nReferral Note:\n/\n/\n/ /\nReferral Note:\n/\n/\n/\n/\nReferral Note:\nACTION CODES:\nDISPOSITION CODES:\nA Appropriate Action\nI Info Copy Only/No Action Necessary\nA Answered\nC Completed\nC Comment/Recommendation\nR. * Direct Reply w/Copy\nB - Non-Special Referral\nS Suspended\nD Draft Response\nS For Signature\nF Furnish Fact Sheet\nX Interim Reply\nto be used as Enclosure\nFOR OUTGOING CORRESPONDENCE:\nType of Response = Initials of Signer\nCode = \"A\"\nCompletion Date = Date of Outgoing\nComments:\nKeep this worksheet attached to the original incoming letter.\nSend all routing updates to Central Reference (Room 75, OEOB).\nAlways return completed correspondence record to Central Files.\nRefer questions about the correspondence tracking system to Central Reference, ext. 2590.\n5/81\nDocument No.\nWHITE HOUSE STAFFING MEMORANDUM\nDATE: 3/26/85\nACTION/CONCURRENCE/COMMENT DUE BY: 10:00 a.m. 3/27/85\nSUBJECT: PRESIDENTIAL REMARKS: National Space Club Luncheon\n(3/26/85, 11:30 a.m. draft)\nACTION FYI\nACTION FYI\nVICE PRESIDENT\nMcMANUS\n>\nREGAN\nMURPHY\nDEAVER\nOGLESBY\nSTOCKMAN\nX\nROLLINS\nBUCHANAN\nSPEAKES\nD\nCHEW\nP\n5S SVAHN\nFIELDING\nTUTTLE\nFRIEDERSDORF\nX\nVERSTANDIG\nFULLER\nWHITTLESEY\nHICKEY\nELLIOTT\nHICKS\nKINGON\nX\nMcFARLANE\nREMARKS:\nPlease provide any comments or edits directly to Ben Elliott,\nwith an information copy to my office.\nThanks.\nRESPONSE:\nDavid L. Chew\nStaff Secretary\nExt. 2702\n(Rohrabacher/BE)\nMarch 26, 1985\nReceived SS\n11:30 a.m.\n1285 MAR 26 PM 12 40\nPRESIDENTIAL REMARKS: NATIONAL SPACE CLUB LUNCHEON\nFRIDAY, MARCH 29, 1985\nThank you. Chuck, distinguished guests, ladies and\ngentlemen. I would like to express my appreciation to the Board\nof Governors for honoring me with this magnificent trophy. One\nof the fun things about my current job is being able to get\npersonally involved in history-making endeavors, like the\nAmerican space program. Nancy and I have watched space shuttles\nland and have spoken with the astronauts.\nThe space shuttle is now making it possible even for\npoliticians to be transported into the heavens. Not long ago,\nthe only way to do that was with hot air balloons. And\nscientists say there is no such thing as perpetual motion.\nSeriously, though, I am proud to have been selected as the\nrecipient of this coveted award. I accept it with thanks and on\nbehalf of those tens of thousands of individuals across our great\ncountry who, with their hard work, creativity, and faith in the\nfuture, have built the American space program and laid the\nfoundation for a better tomorrow.\nRobert Goddard, for whom this award is named, exemplified\nthe ingenuity and perserverance of individuals who make lasting\ncontributions to their fellow countrymen and to mankind.\nDr. Goddard persevered for 17 years of imtense research and\ndevelopment. As so often happens, his genius was not apparent to\nmany until after his success.\nPage 2\nArthur C. Clarke, distinguished author of science and\nfiction, says ideas often have three stages of reaction: first,\nit's crazy, don't waste my time; second, it's possible, but it's\nnot worth doing; and finally, I always said it was a good idea.\nIn Dr. Goddard's case, the New York Times, claiming rockets\nwould never work in the vacuum of space, ridiculed his effort.\n\"He only seems to lack the knowledge ladled out daily in high\nschools\n\" the Times editorialized. My, my, I seem to\nremember when they were saying the same thing about Reaganomics.\nDue to the efforts of Dr. Goddard and other individuals of\nvision and tenacity, America is now on the edge of a new era. By\nstanding on the shoulders of giants like Robert Goddard, this\ngeneration is moving forward to harness the enormity of space in\nthe preservation of peace, in increasing our economic well-being,\nand in expanding the horizons of human freedom beyond the\ngreatest dreams of our Founding Fathers.\nAmerican freedom was once protected by musket and ball.\nToday scientific advancements are changing the way we think about\nour security. Two years ago, I challenged our scientific\ncommunity to use their talents and energies to find a method of\nshielding us from attack with a totally defensive system. We\nseek to render obsolete the balance of terror -- or Mutual\nAssured Destruction, as it is called -- and replace it with\ntechnology incapable of initiating armed conflict or causing mass\ndestruction, yet effective in preventing nuclear war. This is\nnot, and should never be misconstrued as, just a method of\nprotecting missile silos.\nPage 3\nThe Strategic Defense Initiative has been labeled, \"Star\nWars,\" but it isn't about war, it is about peace; it isn't about\nretaliation, it's about prevention; it isn't about fear, it's\nabout hope -- and in that struggle, if you will pardon my\nstealing a film line, \"the force is with us.\"\nThe means to intercept ballistic missiles during the boost\nphase of their trajectory would enable us to fundamentally change\nour national security strategy, permitting us to rely on a system\nbased, not on offense, but on defense. What could be more moral\nthan a system designed to save lives rather than avenge them?\nAnd S.D.I. research is not aimed only at protecting the\nUnited States. Our security is inextricably linked with other\nfree peoples. An essential element of S.D.I. research is an\neventual ability to defend the United States and our allies from\nboth long and short range ballistic missiles. Thus we will not\nonly be consulting with our allies on S.D.I. research, but\nworking actively with them. In fact, we are extending formal\ninvitations to allied nations to join us in making S.D.I. a fully\ncooperative research effort. The Secretary of Defense will be\nestablishing this program of allied cooperation on S.D.I.\nOur activities in space are already helping keep the peace,\nproviding us early warning and also, through spy satellites,\nenabling us to verify arms agreements. And far from being a\nviolation of existing arms agreements, once our adversaries fully\nunderstand S.D.I., it will add new incentives to both sides in\nGeneva to actually reduce the number of nuclear weapons\nthreatening mankind. By making missiles less effective, we make\nPage 4\nthese weapons more negotiable. If we are successful, the\nspiraling arms race will be a downward spiral.\nLet history record that in our day America's best scientific\nminds developed technology that helped mankind ease away from the\nnuclear parapet, the ledge of a harrowing cliff upon which all\nliving things were perched. Let us move on to a happier chapter\nin the history of man. And I would think any man of science\nwould be proud to help turn that page.\nWe have used and will continue to use space to make ours a\nsafer world. Space is also making a more prosperous world, and\nin this endeavor we have only scratched the surface. Space\ntechnology has already revolutionized communications and is\nassisting everyone from farmers to navigators. Industries that\nseem far removed from any direct tie with the space program have\nbenefited beyond expectation.\nRecently, the Presidential Commission on Industrial\nCompetitiveness -- composed of leaders from business, labor,\ngovernment, and academia -- reported that America's leadership in\nscience and technology is the key to future U.S. competitiveness.\nSpace can give America the edge. This is true not only for \"high\ntech\" industries like computers and biotechnology, but for mature\nones as well. Innovation -- often spurred on, if not inspired,\nby the space program -- is vital to the modernization of our\nsteel, automobile, and textile industries.\nThe grandeur of the space shuttle taking off and then\nlanding after a successful mission has been a source of\nPage 5\ninspiration to America. We cannot put a price tag on this. And\nwe cannot take our achievements in space for granted.\nJust 15 years ago, two Americans landed on the Moon and\ncaptured the imagination of the world. In 1969, the space\nprogram had momentum and we seemed on the verge of moving\npermanently into space. Instead, in the 1970's, America\nhesitated. It was almost like Columbus returning from\ndiscovering the New World, only to hear Queen Isabella say:\n\"Well done, now let's break up the sailing ships for firewood.\nWe have more serious things to do.\"\nThat attitude, shortsighted and pessimistic, didn't take our\ncountry anywhere. Investing in space and other frontiers of\ntechnology is like planting seed corn; the more you plant, the\nmore you harvest.\nToday we have an operating fleet of three -- soon to be\nfour -- space shuttles. And last year we took the next step\ntoward future achievements in space: a permanently-manned space\nstation. The space station will serve as an orbiting laboratory\nfor scientific and industrial research. It will give us vital\nnew capabilities to work and learn in space and provide us a\ngateway to future space goals.\nOur friends and allies have been invited to join us as\npartners in the space station effort. The response has been very\nexciting. We can fully expect that, in less than a decade, space\nwill shine as an outstanding area of cooperation between the free\npeoples of this planet.\nPage 6\nBut we expect more than inspiration from our commitment to\nspace. Space should and will become an increasing sphere of\ninvestment and commercial activity, a center of attention for\nentrepreneurs and businessmen. As free enterprise expands into\nspace, not only will innovative ways be discovered to produce the\ngoods and services we now enjoy, but new opportunities,\ninconceivable in the confines of Earth, will come to light and be\nacted upon. Before the end of the century, many billions of\ndollars of commercial activity will be taking place in and\nbecause of space. Government policies must be geared toward\nencouraging this wherever they can.\nLet us always remember that our space program, first and\nforemost, belongs to and should address the needs of the American\npeople. To maximize our benefits, we must look beyond short-term\nsteps to develop a long-term strategy for our national space\nenterprise.\nI am, therefore, announcing today the formation of a\n?\nNational Commission on Space that will devise an aggressive space\nstrategy to carry America into the 21st century. The commission,\nwith the participation of the brightest minds in and out of the\nspace community, will bring into focus a vision of America's\nfuture opportunities and develop a strategy to ensure America is\nready for tomorrow. The commission will outline for us an\noperational plan, including objectives, agents, and resources.\nThe members will talk with a broad sampling of Americans to keep\nour space efforts on target with the hopes, dreams, and\naspirations of the people.\nPage 7\nIt gives me great pleasure to announce to you that the\nChairman of the National Commission on Space will be Dr. Thomas\nPaine.\nWe have other members of the commission with us today.\nCould they please stand? I want to thank all of you for taking\non this task. We have faith in your dedication, in your\njudgement, and your imagination. Thank you for being willing to\ngive of yourselves this way. You deserve a round of applause.\nThe challenge of pushing back frontiers is part of our\ncharacter and, as we face the vast expanses of space, let us\nrecapture those stirrings in our soul that make us Americans.\nSpace, like freedom, is a limitless, never-ending frontier on\nwhich our citizens can prove that they are indeed Americans.\nDr. Goddard once wrote a letter to H. G. Wells. In it he\nexplained, \"There can be no thoughts of finishing, for 'aiming at\nthe stars,' both literally and figuratively, is a problem to\noccupy generations, so that no matter how much progress one\nmakes, there is always the thrill of just beginning.\"\nLet us hope Americans never lose that thrill. Thank you for\nletting me be with you today."
}