Ask the Scholar
Document scope · 1 page
Scholar
Ask about this object, its catalog metadata, its source description, or the page inventory.
For page-specific OCR and visual context, open one of the page chats.
Scholar Source Context
Document identity
localId
7344550
label
Remarks of the President to the Rural Electric Cooperative Youth Delegates, The East Room [Ford Speech or Statement]
core
doc
dtoType
document
citationUrl
pageCount
1
Source metadata
id
7344550
sourceUrl
contentType
document
title
Remarks of the President to the Rural Electric Cooperative Youth Delegates, The East Room [Ford Speech or Statement]
citationUrl
collections
White House Press Releases (Ford Administration)
Press Releases
largeImageUrl
imageCount
1
hasImages
yes
source
import
hasTranscription
no
Source extras
naId
7344550
levelOfDescription
item
productionDates
day
16
logicalDate
1976-06-16
month
6
year
1976
recordType
description
ocrSource
nara-archive
Single page context
seq
1
pageIndex
0
type
document
mediaId
4b2c13fc8c8ac8f7
ocrText
Digitized from Box 27 of the White House Press Releases at the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
JUNE 16, 1976
OFFICE OF THE WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY
THE WHITE HOUSE
REMARKS OF THE PRESIDENT
TO THE
RURAL ELECTRIC COOPERATIVE YOUTH DELEGATES
THE EAST ROOM
4:20 P.M. EDT
Secretary Butz, Mr. Dollinger, Mr. Mitchell,
students and guests:
I am extremely happy to welcome the 900 winners of
the 12th Annual Government in Action Youth Tour to Washington
D. C. Your selection from 20,000 high school seniors and
juniors indicates you have won over some pretty stiff competition.
Obviously there is an awful lot of talent here. We
might recruit you for other purposes. (Laughter)
But I am also delighted to greet the 100 adult
representatives of the local Rural Electric Distribution
Cooperatives, and you should be proud of the work you have
done and the work done by those that you have sponsored.
Finally, let me welcome the representatives from
eight different countries who are a part of this group, and
I especially am anxious to have an opportunity to say hello
to them.
Now I have watched with enthusiasm the very rapid
growth of your program. I was interested to find that it
existed in only two States in 1957 but by 1964 it had gained
the sponsorship of the National Rural Electric Cooperative
Association. And as Vice President two years ago I remember
greeting your delegation from Kansas up on Capitol Hill.
Last June I welcomed last year's winners and their sponsors
in the Rose Garden, and we had hoped to have it out in the
Rose Garden this year but the weather was a little uncertain
so we thought you might enjoy coming into the East Room
And this year I congratulate the entire program
for involving students from some 23 States.
MORE
Page 2
I understand the essays you wrote on political
and community involvement indicate your very sincere concern
for the future of this great country. For four decades
electric cooperatives have brought power to rural areas.
Perhaps no group better understands the essentials of con-
servation and careful planning in energy use than this
organization -- all of you and those that have sponsored
you.
Our energy resources and our energy production are
very limited in this country. We are importing more and more
oil than we take from our own fields.
Two years ago we were importing about 31 percent
of our oil that we use. At the present time in 1976 we are
importing 40 percent or maybe slightly more. So we have a
real problem and a serious crisis, and I think it is a
problem where we must find an answer and an answer without
further delay.
We must increase production and the utilization of
coal. We must expand and increase our use of nuclear power.
Marketplace incentives need to be provided for gas and oil
in the domestic market. The Government must work with
private industry for the development of alternative forms
of energy such as solar, geothermal and wind power.
A coordinated effort in this area can and will make American
self-sufficient and the target date must be no later than
1985, and we need your help.
Now in your visits with Members of the Congress
I hope you will express your deep concern for America's
electrical needs. As you visit various historical sights,
realize that those sights represent a heritage of sacrifice,
discovery, freedom and achievement unparalleled in the history
of mankind. To maintain that level of accomplishment, we
must foster the kind of involvement in crucial issues you
have demonstrated by your participation in this program.
And as you visit departments of the Executive
Branch, study how they operate to serve you and how you can
work with them.
It is my understanding this afternoon you toured
the White House. I hope you felt a sense of involvement in
America's adventure. As leaders you are dynamic participants
in that great adventure and your contributions can be tremendous
in the months and years ahead.
Tonight the Rural Electric Cooperative Association
will choose a President and Vice President for the new Youth
Advisory Board. The candidates, I understand, come from Texas,
Illinois, Iowa, Missouri, Tennessee, Florida and South
Carolina. I wish all candidates the best of luck. Since they
must come from this group, they will be among the very best
in your generation, and your generation has a great deal to offer.
I thank you all for/coming to see us at the White
House and I wish you all a most enjoyable and productive visit
to our Nation's Capital, and I extend to you the very best
wishes from Mrs. Ford and myself. Thank you very much.
END
(AT 4:28 P.M. EDT)