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Remarks of the President at the Iowa GOP Reception [Ford Speech or Statement]
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7340569
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Remarks of the President at the Iowa GOP Reception [Ford Speech or Statement]
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Digitized from Box 14 of the White House Press Releases at the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
AUGUST 18, 1975
OFFICE OF THE WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY
(Des Moines, Iowa)
THE WHITE HOUSE
REMARKS OF THE PRESIDENT
AT THE
IOWA GOP RECEPTION
HOTEL FORT DES MOINES
7:14 P.M. CDT
Bob Ray, Chuck Grassley, Mary Louise Smith,
John McDonald, Margaret McDonald -- these Scotsmen seem
to predominate around here -- distinguished guests,
ladies and gentlemen -- and I have to add a postscript.
Your new Miss Iowa is a most attractive young lady:
It is nice to be here on this occasion, but I
must say it has been a wonderful opportunity to come back
to Des Moines. I have a great fondness for the people
here, people in Iowa, and I thank you not_only for the
warm reception at the State fair this afternoon, but for
the great reception here tonight. I want you to know I
appreciate it.
I have been looking forward to this evening and
in particularly the entertainment part of the program that
follows this speech. I understand that Governor Bob Ray
and Attorney General Dick Turner are going to sing a
duet together. (Laughter) It will be their favorite
song -- "Come Josephine In My Flying Machine." (Laughter)
I am really so encouraged to be here tonight
to enjoy your wonderful hospitality and especially to ask
for your help next year in making it a banner year
for the Republican Party in Iowa, as well as across the
country.
Without question, 1976 offers 2 great, great
opportunity for the Republican Party, to prove once
and for all to the skeptics that it has the strength to
survive setbacks, the resolution to rouse the Nation's
greatness and the will to win elections.
We can do it, and we are going to do it.
MORE
Page 2
I think it is obvious to all of you the fondness
I have for Bob Ray who is nearly a year into his fourth
term and who is also serving with great distinction as the
Chairman of the National Govenors Conference.
He has done a magnificent, a superior job of putting
across what I think is the most important thing -- the
common sense philosophy of the Republican Party and
making it work here in your great State of Iowa.
His successful Administration, not one, but several,
is a testament to the effectiveness of both his leadership
and the sound Republican approach he has brought to the
Government here in your State, and I must say I thank you very,
very deeply for giving us Mary Louise Smith, who is doing
an outstanding job as Republican National Chairwoman.
As you know, the Iowa State slogan is "Iowa is
a place to grow". Mary Louise has definitely applied this
philosophy, this thinking to the Republican Party nationally,
and we are seeing some results. And I thank you and
congratulate you, Mary Louise. And in Chuck Grassley you
have a fine new younger member of the House of Representatives.
He may be outnumbered -- what is it, five to one, Chuck? (Laughter)
Not always because votes do count in the House,
but when you put it on another scale, I would rather have
quality than quantity.
Chuck has impressed me,as well as his colleagues
in the House of Representatives, and after spending 25 years
in the House, I have a feel for the kind of people that will
grow and become more and more effective. And it would
be my judgment that Chuck fits that pattern.
He started well, he will do better and better
every year. Just give him some help here in Iowa. We
could use those votes, too.
I visited every State in the Union in the last
ten years since I became first the Minority Leader of
the House and then Vice President and now President, so
I know State organizations, I know the kind of people that
back State organizations. And I think here in Iowa, you
have a good State organization. And I wish to congratulate
those who have been giving you the leadership and those who
will now take over and continue that leadership.
You are fortunate in Iowa, and I: congratulate
you, John, and those who have worked with you, Charlie.
Now, if we are to capitalize on the opportunity
ahead of us, in my judgment, we must reach out to that
great, great American majority that does the Nation's work,
pays the Nation's bills, provides for the Nation's defense and
obeys the Nation's laws. That is the group we believe
ought to be in the Republican Party.
MORE
Page 3
You know, no matter the color of their skin, the
religion they profess, the politics they vote, these solid,
solid Americans who make up this vast Midwest heartland of
the Republican Party's national constituency--I could feel
that out there at the State Fair today--they are the
people to whom we must tell our story, over and over again,
this year and next year.
Once again in our party's history our principles
and our goals match the beliefs, and, I happen to think, the
aspirations of a majority of the American people.
Republicans have always believed that too
much Government spending has been the primary cause of
inflation, and I have a feeling, as I travel around the
country, that on a daily basis more and more Americans
agree with that principle.
Aren't we fortunate that these people who are
getting this new approach, this new attitude, look to
the Republican Party as their only hope. That is one reason
I have been vetoing some of the bills that compel excess
Federal spending.
Quite frankly, I will keep on doing it as long
as the Congress keeps sending down to the White House
these budget busters to me.
Let me put it this way: They stop, I stop.
It is just as simple as that. (Laughter)
Our Republicans, you know, have always believed
in a strong, effective, ready national defense program.
Today, most Americans are convinced a strong defense is
the best guarantee of peace in the world, and I will do every-
thing in my personal power to see that Congress appropriates
such funds to make sure that the United States, our
country, always has a military capability second to none.
Republicans have always believed that personal
initiative and private enterprise, not a meddling muscle-
bound Government, a Federal Government, are what made
this Nation great.
Today, more and more Americans, as I see people
from the 50 States, are reaffirming that view. They
want personal initiative and private enterprise to
be rewarded. Hard work and diligence are the foundation
in many respects in any endeavor that we undertake.
Frankly, that is one reason why I am trying to
free American business from the shackles of Government
overregulation.
MORE
Page 4
While we, on a daily basis, in the White House
are seeking to free the individual citizen from the
pressures of a faceless bureauocracy, insensitive to
personal differences and personal desires. I think
Republicans have always believed that local control over
local problems is better than turning to Washington for
every single solitary solution.
Today, after nearly 40 years of seeing reruns of
"Washington knows best", in the halls of the Congress and
elsewhere, the American people are ready for a fresh start.
And we are going to give it to them.
That is why I have proposed what we call a new
agenda for America's future. And I ask the American people
through what we hope to do in a series of community meetings
around the country; I asked the American people to help
me write that new agenda. There is a message I think we
have to get across to our fellow citizens, a message that says
loud, that says clearly, "Republican Government is common
sense Government, it is the most effective Government."
A message that says, "Republican stands for and works for the
very same things that the majority of Americans believe in."
And finally, a message that says, "We can win the
elections of 1976 from the courthouse right here in
Des Moines to the White House in Washington. Let's do it."
If we broaden our Party, bringing in to join us
those who have a philosophical agreement with us -- and I
think we must -- opening our door wide to all Americans
rather than opening it just a crack for a few; if we
work together for a common victory, as we must, rather
than working against each other for sure defeat, I am
convinced that 1976 can be a great election year for all of
us.
Together, you know, there is so much that we can
do for our Party, for the American people, but primarily
for our country. Let's get to work. Let's get it done.
Let's make sure 1976 is a banner year and let's make sure, let's
make certain that that banner says, "Republican".
Thank you very much.
END
(AT 7:28 P.M. CDT)