For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
February 26, 2001
Remarks by the President in Photo Opportunity at Cabinet Meeting
The Cabinet Room
1:07 P.M. EST
THE PRESIDENT: I want to thank our
Cabinet for coming in today. Amongst a variety of topics, one of which
is going to be, we're going to talk about the budget and my speech
tomorrow night to the Congress. And I want to thank all of
the Cabinet officers for their hard work in helping us prepare a
realistic budget that is going to enable our nation to meet its
priorities, and at the same time not only set aside money for
contingencies and pay down debt, but to leave enough money left over so
that people can get a real, substantial tax relief package that they
will feel.
I would be glad to answer some questions.
Q Mr. President, in
your speech tomorrow night, what will be your message to the American
people, and will you begin addressing reforms in the Social Security
system?
THE PRESIDENT: Of course we'll be
talking about Social Security. Secondly, I will be making the case as
to why our budget makes sense for the country and for the people who
pay the bills of our country. It is a common-sense approach
to what our nation ought to do with the tax revenues that are coming
into the Treasury.
Q Do you expect to
propose Social Security reforms this year?
THE PRESIDENT: I will see.
Q Mr. President, what
are your thoughts about the final Florida recount that put you over
from the Vice President, and what do you say to those who now have to
call you the legitimate president that didn't call you
that? (Laughter.)
THE
PRESIDENT: Good. (Laughter.) Hopefully,
all the focus on the past is over with. It's time to move
forward. And tomorrow night's speech is a part of moving
forward. We've worked hard here in this administration to
reach out to people that may not have supported me. I think
we're making pretty good progress to say that the discussions that take
place around this table, for example, are what's best for America; not
what's best for a political party, but what's best for the country.
Q Sir, in your speech,
will you have specific areas in the budget where spending will slow
down, and will you specify those areas in your speech?
THE PRESIDENT: No. In my
speech I will talk about the budget. And in the budget is
where people will see all the particulars. If I tried to
review every particular in the budget, I would set the all-time record
for the amount of time in front of the Congress. And as you
know, I'm the kind of person who likes to try to get to the
point. I will spend enough time speaking so that people will
understand where I'm coming from, but not too long so they go to
sleep.
Q Mr. President, you've
acknowledged that you're going to have to make cuts to the budget to
some extent. What do you say to those who are saying that
you're telling the American people essentially they can have their cake
and eat it too?
THE PRESIDENT: What I'm going to
say to the American people is that, had we kept spending at the rate we
were spending last year, there would be no surplus, that the size of
growth in the federal budget that -- and the budget we inherited was
way too high, that we can meet our needs by slowing down the rate of
growth in our budget. But it requires a president to set
priorities. And I'm going to set clear priorities in the
budget.
I readily concede some appropriators may not
like the fact that we're asking for there to be fiscal sanity in the
federal budget, but that's one of the reasons I became the President;
because I said, give us a chance and we will have fiscal sanity in our
budget. And I'll look forward to making the case.
The people are going to hear in plain spoken
words why I believe, strongly believe, when we meet priorities, pay
down debt, protect Social Security, and as importantly, make sure that
people get some of their own money back, so to make sure that the
economy is strong, help people pay for high energy bills, to help
people manage their own personal debt, we need to have tax relief --
tax relief that the people can feel. And I will make the
case tomorrow night that it's within our grasp to do so. And
people will hear as plainly as I can say it what the facts are.
Q It sounds like your
speech will be shorter than ones we're used to in the last eight
years. (Laughter.)
THE PRESIDENT: I don't
know. (Laughter.) It depends on how loud you
clap.
END 1:12
P.M. EST
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