For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
April 25, 2001
Remarks by the President at Tim Hutchinson for Senate Reception
Statehouse Convention Center Little Rock, Arkansas
6:53 P.M. CDT
THE PRESIDENT: Well, Tim, thank you
very much. It's my honor to be back in the great state of
Arkansas. We were just reminiscing about the
campaign. I remember -- I was kind of tired, because it was
the last day of the campaign, and I was on the airplane flying into
Arkansas, wondering whether or not I could give one final
speech. And we landed up there in Northwest Arkansas, and
there was about -- I don't know, 17,000 people inside the area and
another 17,000 trying to get in. And I had that funny
feeling right there that not only could I not only give the speech, but
I had that feeling things were going to go okay on election day in
Arkansas, and they did, and I want to thank you
all. (Applause.)
I want to thank Tim Hutchinson for his help in
getting me here. More importantly, I want to thank him for
his help as a United States Senator. I'm here for one simple
reason. This man needs to be returned back to the United
States Senate, come elections in 2002. (Applause.)
It's good to see the Lieutenant Governor, Win
Rockefeller, and wife, Lisa Ann. Thank you all for being
here. Every time I came back to Arkansas, it seemed like Win
was able to make time for his old buddy, the Governor of Texas, and I
appreciate that very much, sir. Thank you very
much. It's great to be here -- (applause) -- with former
State Senator Jim Keet. It's good to see you
again. He reminded me in 1988 when I campaigned here for the
man we affectionately call "Number 41." (Laughter.) I'm
"Number 43" -- (applause) -- but we campaigned together for a great
President, my dad, in 1998 together, and it's good to see you again,
sir. (Applause.)
It's also great -- Nick Bacon is here, Medal
of Honor winner, an American hero, a man who represents the veterans of
this state incredibly well. You need to know, Nick, that the
veterans have got a friend in the White House. And it's my
honor to be the President, not only the Commander-In-Chief, of those
who wear the uniform, but a President who understands that those who
used to wear the uniform need to be well-represented in Washington,
just like you're doing here in Arkansas. (Applause.)
And Dennis Rainey (phonetic) of the Family
Life Ministry, and Pastor Robert Smith, thank you all for being up
here. I'm sorry my wife isn't here with me. She
is in Crawford, Texas. And I'm headed to Crawford, Texas
after this speech. (Laughter.) They say, well,
you must not like to live in Washington because you like to go to your
ranch or Camp David. Well, I like to do both. I like -- I
love my life in the White House, I love getting up every morning and
going into this majestic office that we call The Oval
Office. As Tim said, it is an honor to be the President of
the United States, and I view it that way, but I also like to stay in
touch with the people that got me here.
I like to get outside of
Washington. I like to go to where the space is open, where I
can walk around with Spot and Barney, the two family dogs.
(Laughter.) My wife loves our country, the country house
we've got, and so do I, and so I beg your forgiveness for not eating
dinner here tonight. I am here to thank you for supporting
Tim. I do want to give some remarks about what I think is
going on in Washington, but then I'm fixing to get on Air Force One and
take it to Crawford, Texas. (Laughter.)
By the way, our family is
happy. I'm really proud of the work that Laura is
doing. She is -- people are learning about West Texas
women. They sometimes don't say a lot, but when they speak, people do
listen. She's a great listener. And she's doing the country
a great service by traveling our nation, convincing people, both young
and old alike, to become teachers, reminding people that teaching is a
noble profession, and that you do the country a great service if you
end up in the classroom.
We're working Troops to Teachers programs that
take retired teachers -- I mean, retired military folks and help them
become a teacher. And she, as well, is working with
youngsters who are just getting out of college and saying, be a
teacher; it will be a huge contribution to America and people are
listening. And for that, I am grateful, and I know you are
as well. (Applause.)
As Tim mentioned, I think we are making good
progress in Washington -- reminding people that we're up there for a
reason, and it's just politics. We're up there to get some things done
on behalf of the American people. And Tim's helping -- a
lot. And he mentioned tax relief.
I want to remind people that before the tax
relief debate started because of me, he had already been up there
talking about increasing the child credit for people who are raising
children in America. Well, now, one of the key ingredients
in our tax plan is doubling the child credit. And that's an important
part of tax relief. It's an important part of tax relief,
particularly when you drop the bottom rate in our tax code, like we're
advocating.
And the reason that's important is because
there's a lot of folks in our country who live on the outskirts of
poverty who are working hard to get ahead, and as a result of the way
this tax code is structured, as they begin to get ahead, pay a higher
marginal rate on dollars earned than somebody who is successful.
I love to use the example, because it helps
make my case as loud, as clearly as I can about the single lady working
in any state in the union, trying to get ahead. She may have
two children. First, it's important for Congress to
understand she's got the toughest job in America. Raising
children on her own is the hardest work in our country -- coupled with
the fact that for whatever reason, she's making $22,000 a year.
The way this tax code is structured today, for
every additional dollar she earns, she pays a higher marginal rate on
that dollar than someone making $200,000 a year. And that is
not fair, and that's not what America is about, as far as we're
concerned.
So tax relief, when you combine dropping the
bottom rate from 15 percent to 10 percent and increasing the child
credit, it makes the tax code more fair and more
equitable. It inculcates this principle: The
harder you work, the more money you ought to put in your pocket in
America. And Tim understands that. (Applause.)
Well, I've heard a lot of the debate about
taxes. You know, they say, well George W., he only cares
about the wealthy people. That's because I believe if you
pay taxes, you ought to get tax relief. What I don't
subscribe to is this business about Washington, D.C. people being able
to pick and choose the winners. That's code word for
targeted tax cuts. That means elected officials get to sit
in a room and they get to say, this table over here gets tax relief,
and this table doesn't. Our attitude is, if you're paying
taxes, you ought to get relief. That's the only fair thing
in America. (Applause.)
We dropped that top rate, just like we dropped
the bottom rate. And there are two positive effects when you
do so. First of all, it sets a principle, that the federal
government should take no more than a third of anybody's
check. It's time we have some principles in the tax
code. One, the code ought to be more fair.
Two, our federal government doesn't need to
take more than a third of anybody's
check. (Applause.) And, secondly, it's important
for the policy makers in Washington to focus on the reality of dropping
the top rate. By dropping the top rate, we stimulate
investment. We send a clear message that ours is an
entrepreneurial economy.
The role of government is not to create
wealth. The role of government is to create an environment
in which the entrepreneur or the small business person can
flourish. (Applause.) And these senators that are
balking on this plan must understand that most small businesses all
across America are unincorporated, they're Subchapter-S's, they're sole
proprietorships. They don't pay the corporate
tax. They pay the personal tax. And by dropping
the top rate we're sending a clear message that small business must
thrive and flourish in America; that we want our entrepreneurs to have
more cash so they can expand their payrolls, create new investment
opportunities.
No, the way to deal with this tax code is to
recognize if you pay taxes you've got to get relief. And
that's what this Senate must hear loud and clear from the people of
Arkansas. (Applause.)
We're trying to do something about the
marriage penalty. This tax code of ours sends the wrong
signals. It taxes marriage. We ought to be
rewarding marriage. We ought to be encouraging families in
the tax code. (Applause.)
And, finally, one area the senator and I are
working closely on, it's an area dear to the hearts of a lot of people
-- doesn't matter whether you're Republican or Democrat. And
that's this business about the death tax. The death tax is
unfair and we need to repeal the death tax in the
code. (Applause.)
It's unfair to tax a person's assets
twice. I've talked to hundreds of people all across America
who've heard this message about repealing the death tax. And
they come up to me and say, I've worked all my life. I
started with nothing. It looks like I'm going to end up with
something. And it should be the American right to be able to pass my
assets on to my children without the federal government making it
impossible for me to do so. (Applause.)
This is a state with a lot of
farmers. And Tim and I spent a lot of time talking about
agriculture coming down here. And I understand that some in
the agricultural sector are hurting. And I understand there
is pressure -- what they call urban sprawl in some areas.
Well, if you're worried about urban sprawl and
if you're worried about the farmer, why don't we make it easier for
people not to have to sell their farm upon death. We need to
get rid of the death tax and the Senate needs to hear that loud and
clear. (Applause.)
I'm sure you've heard the arguments -- I
certainly have -- that, well, if you have a $1.6 trillion tax cut, the
government is not going to be able to meet its needs; that by letting
people keep their own money, the federal government is going to starve
to death.
Well, let me tell you about the budget that
Tim has supported and I proposed. It increases discretionary
spending by 4 percent. Now, there are some parts of our
budget that are going to grow based upon what they call
entitlements. That's like Social Security. And
Social Security, by the way, we've set aside all the payroll taxes, and
-- only be spent on Social Security. This business about
letting Congress dip into Social Security, that's over
with. People have got to understand the Social Security is
safe and secure and sound under a Bush administration. (Applause.)
But discretionary spending grows in my budget
at 4 percent. Is that enough? Well, 4 percent is
greater than the rate of inflation. Seems like it's enough
to me. Four percent is greater than most people's paychecks
increased by. that ought to be enough. But it's
not enough. And over the objections of Senator Hutchinson,
the United States Senate passed a discretionary budget of 8 percent.
Now, what does 8 percent mean? If
we increase the discretionary budget by 8 percent on an annual basis,
it means that nine years of discretionary budget of the United States
of America will double. And when you double the
discretionary budget of federal spending, you crowd out capital in the
private sector and it's a drag on the U.S. economy. This
Congress needs to be able to live within its means and 4 percent is
plenty. (Applause.)
We've got some choices to
make: bigger government or a stronger
economy. And we've got some choices to make. Once
we meet the needs of the government, who do we trust with the
money? Who do we trust? And that's the question
I'm asking Washington to think about. Senator Hutchinson
trusts the people. And so does President
Bush. (Applause.) Because we understand this surplus is not
the government's money. The surplus is the people's
money. And we've got to trust them with their own money to
make decisions for their family. (Applause.) It's
a fundamental, philosophical question.
Some of your members here of the congressional
delegation are struggling with that question. Who do you
trust? Who do you trust with that additional
money? And Senator Hutchinson has no problems making the
statement loud and clear. Once we meet our needs in
Washington, he trusts the people, the people of Arkansas to make the
right decisions for their families and the children; make the right
decision on how they're going to save and what they're going to do with
their money.
And we've got some priorities in the budget
and that's one reason why I think it's safe for me to say that the
budget meets the needs. Instead of trying to be all things
to all people, it sets clear priorities. Education is a priority in
our budget, and it should be a priority in the budget. The
Department that gets the biggest increase of any one, of any Department
in my budget is the Department of education.
And let me tell you what we do in
it. I've made reading a priority in our nation. I
fully understand if you can't read, it's going to be hard to get
ahead. One of the worst things that's happened is we've just
shuffled children through the system who are illiterate. And
that has got to end in America, and it starts by having the federal
government make a commitment to sound reading programs, diagnostic
tools. And so we've tripled the amount of money in the
federal budget, money that's accessible by the local school districts.
We tripled character education
funds. It's one thing to teach children to read and write,
but we also have to teach them right from wrong in
America. And so we make money available for local school
districts for character education. (Applause.)
Teacher training is a priority. So
we increase teacher training funds by 18 percent, from 2001 to
20002. No, we set priorities in the budget. And I
appreciate Senator Hutchinson's leadership on the Labor and Education
Committee in the Senate. He talked about a bipartisan
consensus, and we're getting there. Because the principles
inherent in the bill are sound and make sense. It's a common
sense approach to education.
It says, first and foremost, this nation must
set high standards for the children to go to school. If you
set low standards, guess what you get? Low
results. And so we set high standards and high
expectations. Secondly, we know who is best to chart the path to
excellence and it's not in Washington, D.C. This bill and
reforms that we're proposing in Washington will pass power out of
Washington because I strongly believe, as does Senator Hutchinson, and
local control of schools. (Applause.)
We've done something different at Washington,
D.C. We have said, listen, we've spent a lot of federal
money. And some of it makes sense. And if you receive
federal money, you have to account for it. It's time to have
a results oriented approach to public
policy. (Applause.) And it says if you receive
money, you must measure. It doesn't say the federal
government should measure, it says the state of Arkansas ought to
measure. And you ought to test. And you ought to let us
know whether or not children are learning to read and write and add and
subtract.
And if they are, there ought to be ample
praise in society. But if they're not, instead of just
quitting on children, instead of just shuffling through the school
system, we've got to end that practice.
Up until now, much of public education has
asked the question to our children: how old are
you? If you're 10, you're supposed to go here; and if you're
12, you belong here; and if you're 16, you go here. And
guess what happens in a system that simply asks age as opposed to, what
do you know? Children get shuffled through the
system. And many times, sadly enough, they're inner city
kids. It's so much easier to quit on a child than to take
the extra time to teach them.
The system must stop asking the question, how
old are you, and start asking the question, what do you know. And if
the children do not know what they're supposed to know early in life,
we need to correct those problems. Because there are no second-rate
children in America as far as this administration is
concerned. There are no second-rate dreams. And
the education reform package we're sending sets this clear and profound
goal: not one single child will be left behind in the great country
called America. (Applause.)
I take my obligation to defend our country
very seriously. I'm proud to be the Commander in
Chief. And I fully understand that to enhance morale in the
United States military, it requires a Commander in Chief who honors the
men and women who wear the uniform, and in turn, earns the respect of
the men and women who wear our uniform.
And, secondly, in order to boost morale we
must increase pay, and my budget does so. It improves
housing. And my budget does so. And Tim
Hutchinson stands side by side. We need modern
defenses. And he and I agree strongly that the Little Rock
Air Force Base is important for the future of this
country. (Applause.) He not only looks out for
Arkansas, this Senator looks out for America. And for that I
hope the people of this great state are
grateful. (Applause.)
You will hear those who make every excuse in
the world to keep your money in Washington say, well, the Bush budget
or so and so votes means that somebody is not going to get adequate
health care. In the budget I submitted to Congress, we
doubled the Medicare budget over a 10 year period of
time. In the budget I submitted to Congress, we doubled the
number of folks who will be served in community health centers in
America over a five-year period of time. In the budget I
submitted for America, we have tax credits for working
uninsured. We have a President who is saying to
Congress: Instead of just talking about these health care
issues, let's get something done on them, and my budget reflects
that. And that's an important priority of ours -- the health
of our citizens.
And finally, I believe that Senator Hutchinson
and I and others, but Republicans and Democrats, are doing something
that's immeasurable. You can't talk about it in terms of the
budget. But they're working hard to change the tone of
Washington, D.C.
I have pledged to the American people to
change the tone of our Nation's Capital so that when people look at
Washington, they are proud of what they see. I believe most
Americans of either party are sick and tired of needless partisan
bickering and name-calling, and finger-pointing. (Applause.)
We need to spend our energy getting things
done, not passing the blame. And we're making good
progress. There is a culture of respect that's beginning to
emerge in Washington. I'm beginning to notice that the
rhetoric is toning down just a little bit. I hope people
realize that good public policy means good politics. And we
don't need to be spending all our time on politics in
Washington. It's time to focus on the people's
business. Tax relief is in the people's
interest. It's good for our economy, it's good for our
people.
This doesn't have to be a, well, I can't vote
for that bill because it might make George W. Bush look good, or some
political party look good, we need to get the attitude in Washington,
D.C. we've been elected for a reason -- and that's to stand up and do
what each of us think is right on behalf of the American people
Tim Hutchinson understands that. I
hope all senators understand that. And if they understand that, then
the dialogue is going to be much, much more civil, much more
responsible. And that's what we need in this
country. We need responsibility. We need to usher
a period of personal responsibility, where each of us understands we
have the awesome responsibility to be a good citizen.
If you happen to be a mom or dad, you have the
awesome responsibility of loving your children with all your heart and
all your soul. If you're a fortunate citizen in this
country, you have the responsibility of putting your arm around a
neighbor in need and say, brother or sister, somebody loves
you. Somebody cares. One of the most profound
initiatives that we are working on -- (applause) -- one of the most
profound initiatives that we are working on is the faith-based
initiative that welcomes people of faith and community and good heart
into the compassionate delivery of help for people who need help in
America. We should not fear faith in America;
we ought to welcome faith. It changes lives and changes
hearts. (Applause.) We're making good progress
toward ushering in a period of personal responsibility. But
it requires people serving in Washington who understand the reason they
are there. And I firmly believe Senator Tim Hutchinson
understands the reason they are there. He loves and cares
about the people of Arkansas.
And, by the way, as this campaign gets going,
you might turn to a friend or neighbor and say, it makes a lot of sense
for Arkansas to have somebody who can walk into the Oval
Office. It makes a lot of sense for our state with the
problems we have, to have a United States Senator be able to pick the
phone up and say, Mr. President, I'd like to discuss the concerns of
the people of Arkansas. We've got some problems with our
farmers; I'd like to discuss the concerns. We may have a
problem in our education system; Mr. President, I'd like you to hear me
out. I'd like to deliver a message on the people of
Arkansas.
And I can assure you, folks, that the person
running this race who will have the ear of the President of the United
States is Senator Tim Hutchinson. (Applause.)
So I want to thank you all for
coming. Thank you for your generous support. Work
hard. We need this man in Washington, D.C. God
bless. And God bless America. (Applause.)
END 7:20 P.M. CDT
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