[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 12 (Monday, February 6, 2006)]
[Senate]
[Pages S720-S722]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                PRESIDENT RONALD REAGAN'S 95TH BIRTHDAY

  Mr. ALLEN. Mr. President, I rise late in the afternoon, early 
evening, in remembrance of a great patriotic leader, a person who I 
think was America's greatest leader of the 20th century and one of 
history's alltime adherence advocates and leaders for freedom, 
individual freedom, liberty, and the advancement of security for free 
and just societies. The gentleman I am talking about would have been 95 
years old today, and that is Ronald Wilson Reagan.
  I would hope, actually, on future birthdays, the date of the birth of 
Ronald Wilson Reagan, some Senator will stand in this Chamber and 
remind Americans and remember Ronald Reagan, his words, his ideas, and 
his inspiration.
  Ronald Reagan was one who motivated me to get involved in organized 
politics, and there are literally tens of thousands of others. There 
are certain people, though, if one looks through history, whose words 
are ones you can use; they are just enduring principles. I think of 
Thomas Jefferson, John Locke, George Washington, James Madison, 
Benjamin Franklin, Mark Twain--all those great quotes from Mark Twain--
even Will Rogers. But in our day, the person for inspiration, to help 
us decide how to meet the challenges of our day, was Ronald Reagan.
  President Reagan did leave the White House 17 years ago. For some 
young people, this seems like a long time ago.
  President Reagan's words and deeds are still so applicable today.
  He left our world 2 years ago, but we are still living in the wake of 
the Reagan era. It was Ronald Reagan, let's remember, along with 
Margaret Thatcher and Pope John Paul II, who fundamentally changed all 
the dynamics of the Cold War, to bury communism and advance human 
liberty. While many in those days accepted the perpetual menace of 
communism and the perpetual servitude of millions of men and women 
locked behind the Iron Curtain, Ronald Reagan did not. His philosophy 
toward the Cold War was radically different from the elite sages of the 
establishment. As Governor of California and then also as President, he 
offered very clear and refreshing ideas. He was asked one time:

       Mr. Reagan, what is your strategy on the Cold War?

  He declared:

       About the Cold War, my view is that we win and they lose.

  He came into office as President. In his inaugural address in 1981, 
he called for an era of national renewal, and this was something very 
important after the years of malaise that we had in the late 1970s. 
That is exactly what his 8-year Presidency turned out to be--an era of 
national renewal for security, for opportunity, and for foundational 
values. The Reagan revolution reversed the high unemployment, high 
inflation, economic policies of the 1970s and unleashed the greatest 
economic boom in American history.
  His policies proved that low taxes are good for the taxpayers, and 
they are also good for the economy, with more investment and more jobs 
and, for those who care about it, generating more revenue for the 
Government. After his tax cuts started to impact the economy in 1983, 
the wheels of American commerce started to move again. We saw an 
explosion of job creation, innovation, and investment.
  In foreign affairs, President Reagan scrapped the policy of 
coexistence. He made the advancement of freedom, not containment, into 
the foundational principle of America's foreign policy. He rebuilt 
America's military strength. He started and initiated the Strategic 
Defense Initiative which put unprecedented strains on the Soviet 
economy and their ability to finance their military.
  He refused to be cowed into silence when talking about our enemy or 
the evils of communism. He called the Soviet Union an evil empire. Oh, 
they criticized him, but, indeed, that was an accurate description. He 
was a vocal, tireless champion for freedom. He went to Brandenburg Gate 
in 1987 and boldly said, ``Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall.'' He was 
criticized, but 2 years later, the Berlin Wall was gone, and 2 years 
after, the Soviet Union itself was gone, discarded into the ``ash heap 
of history,'' as Ronald Reagan prophesied during the depths of the Cold 
War.
  Today, because of Ronald Reagan, there are literally hundreds of 
millions of people who were once locked behind the Iron Curtain living 
in countries we now know as free countries--Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, 
former East Germany, Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, 
Romania, Bulgaria, and added countries such as Ukraine and Georgia, 
which are now tasting that sweet nectar of liberty as opposed to being 
behind the Iron Curtain. It is because Ronald Reagan provided us with a 
perseverance--he persevered, our allies persevered, particularly in 
Western Europe, and freedom has prevailed.
  Five years after he left office in 1994, we were all crushed to learn 
about Ronald Reagan being diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease. He 
concluded his farewell address and letter to the American people by 
writing:

       Now I begin the journey that will lead me into the sunset 
     of my life. I know that for America there will always be a 
     bright new dawn ahead.

  As always, Ronald Reagan was right. Despite new and numerous 
challenges, this blessed country, America, has stood strong for 
freedom, extending the blessings of liberty and prosperity to a whole 
new generation of Americans and sharing those blessings with even more 
people who live here in this world.
  When Ronald Reagan passed away on June 5, 2004, I know you, Mr. 
President--and I see Senator Hatch from Utah here--and all of America 
grieved and mourned. He was my political hero. But I also felt 
grateful, grateful for our country, for America, that we and, indeed, 
the world were blessed to have had Ronald Reagan's commonsense 
leadership and unwavering commitment to the ideals of freedom 
throughout the world.
  Today, on what would have been his 95th birthday, I reflect on 
everything Ronald Reagan accomplished during his extraordinary life. If 
you want to measure a person's greatness and what he or she did in 
their life, you kind of determine it by the number of people who were 
positively impacted by their efforts, their deeds, and their life--in 
Ronald Reagan's case, as I said, the hundreds of millions of people in 
Central and Eastern Europe who were liberated from the tyranny of 
communism, but we also have Americans, now over 300 million strong, who 
have been enriched by the peace and prosperity that resulted from 
Ronald Reagan's courageous commitment to foundational ideals.
  There are many such as myself--and really too many to count--who were 
inspired by meeting Ronald Reagan in person, who were touched by his 
great character and integrity, his unfailing optimism and patriotism, 
his genuine good will and sense of humor, and his words that applied 
the philosophy of our Founders, whether it is George

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Washington in his peace-through-strength approach or James Madison in 
understanding our representative democracy or the spirit of this 
country as written by Thomas Jefferson in our Declaration of 
Independence.
  Everyone remembers meeting Ronald Reagan. I met him first when I was 
in high school. We moved out to California when my father became head 
coach of the L.A. Rams. Ronald Reagan that year was elected Governor 
and used to come to practices. One thing I really remember about Ronald 
Reagan is that he didn't just talk about ideals and principles; as 
Governor and as President, he put them into action. He realized we are 
all put here on Earth to do something, and we cheat ourselves or others 
if we do not advocate and advance those ideas.
  President Reagan gave my father in the 1980s a plaque which bore his 
famous quote: ``If not us, who? If not now, when?'' My father kept that 
plaque on his desk. When my father passed away, my mother gave it to 
me, saying I should have it. I had it on my mantel as Governor of 
Virginia in the capitol designed by Thomas Jefferson. I keep that 
plaque, ``If not us, who? If not now, when?'' on my mantel in the U.S. 
Senate.
  Ronald Reagan was a man of action. He was one who produced many great 
quotes over the years. In fact, a whole industry has sprung up around 
them. I share with my colleagues and American people my very favorites:

       No weapon in the arsenals of the world is so formidable as 
     the will and moral courage of free men and women. It is a 
     weapon our adversaries in today's world do not have.

  Here is another great quote which is the essence of my philosophy:

       Every dollar the government does not take from us, every 
     decision the government does not make for us will make our 
     economy stronger, our lives more abundant, and our future 
     more free.

  He also understood our country:

       In America, our origins matter less than our destination, 
     and that is what democracy is all about.

  Today, we face challenges. We have a war on terror. I believe our 
mission in this present war on terror can find us constructive examples 
from President Reagan's administration. We are making progress in Iraq 
and Afghanistan. In the coming years, there will be both breakthroughs 
and setbacks in both countries as we lead this generational struggle 
against the forces of Islamic terrorism and fascism. But let's remember 
Ronald Reagan. The Cold War lasted for nearly 50 years, and he 
persevered. Let's keep and remember Ronald Reagan's legacy of strong 
leadership as a guiding example to ourselves as we adapt and protect 
America in this war on terror.
  In the area of our economy, we want to make sure the United States is 
the world capital of innovation, a land of opportunity for all, and is 
more competitive. If we do so, we need to keep Ronald Reagan in mind as 
we choose our country's economic policies.
  I mentioned earlier Ronald Reagan's tax cuts in the 1980s and the 
positive impact that had for jobs, investment, and economic progress in 
our country. When I came to the Senate in 2001, this country was 
actually in the midst of an economic slowdown. Over the next 3 years, 
we passed three rounds of tax cuts, and as a result we have an economic 
growth in this country which is very good, with rising income, more 
jobs, more investment, and record home ownership. We have even had 
record tax revenue for the Government because more people are working, 
investing, and creating more jobs.
  However, Americans are going to be hit with tax increases in the next 
2 years if we do not prevent tax increases, which would put a damper on 
our economy, create less investment, make our country less competitive 
and, in fact, have fewer jobs for the men and women of our country.
  President Reagan showed us how tax relief can revitalize and recharge 
the American economy. Let's not hurt American jobs and American people 
and competitiveness by raising taxes. We should take action this year 
to prevent tax increases, and the Federal Government actually ought to 
be looking to reduce taxes to make our country more competitive for 
investment, jobs, and opportunity.
  People are concerned, as I am, about fiscal accountability. Again, 
let's look to Ronald Reagan for guidance. I point out that in President 
Reagan's farewell address to the American people as President, he said 
that he was ``still sounding off about those things I didn't get 
accomplished while I was President. First, I'm out there stumping to 
help future Presidents--Republican or Democrat--get those tools they 
need to bring the budget under control. And those tools are a line-item 
veto and a constitutional amendment to balance the budget.''
  Today, the bloated cost of Government has become indefensible. We 
need to bring fiscal accountability to Washington. The Federal 
Government needs to spend smarter and learn to do more with less. And 
that starts, in my view, with reviving a pair of ideas Ronald Reagan 
shared in his farewell address: the line-item veto and the balanced 
budget amendment.
  When I was Governor, I had the power of the line-item veto. Forty-six 
Governors have that power. Let me tell you, it is useful. It is a way 
of knocking out wasteful, undesirable expenditures and policies. You 
don't have to use it too much after you use it a few times, and the 
message is understood.
  I want the President to have the same power I had as Governor, and 
so, together with Senator Jim Talent of Missouri, we have introduced a 
constitutional amendment to provide the President the line-item veto so 
that the President and the Congress can be held accountable for 
nonessential Government spending.
  I will also be proposing a constitutional amendment that will require 
the President and the Congress to balance the budget every year. That 
is important because if deficits continue, we will end up with higher 
interest rates. Higher interest rates result in fewer and fewer 
Americans, especially young people, able to afford their own home. 
Owning one's own home is the American dream. It is also a question of 
fairness and opportunity. So to prevent interest rates from rising, we 
do need the institutional mechanism to get this deficit under control 
and we need to wrestle it down with a change of the Constitution.
  Taken together, I believe lower taxes on the taxpayers, coupled with 
both the line-item veto and a balanced budget amendment, will restore 
fiscal accountability and common sense to Washington, and be a fitting 
capstone to the Reagan legacy.
  Ronald Reagan is no longer with us in body, but he is surely with us 
in spirit. On his 95th birthday, my thoughts are with him and his 
family, particularly his wonderful bride and wife Nancy, who exhibited 
such grace and dignity as First Lady and later in caring for her 
husband during his very long goodbye.
  My thoughts are also on America, this land Ronald Reagan loved so 
much and led so well, a land that has been continually blessed by God 
with great patriots such as President Reagan, who possessed strong 
character, integrity, and commitment to enduring values and principles.
  I am going to close with this observation by President Reagan, which 
I believe is still true.

       We have every right to dream heroic dreams. Those who say 
     we're in a time where there are no heroes, they just don't 
     know where to look.

  There are heroes all across this country. There are heroes serving 
this country on ships. They are serving us in Iraq.
  Mr. President, President Reagan: Happy birthday. Your dream lives on. 
It warms the hearts and it cheers the spirit of freedom-loving people 
throughout the world.
  I yield the floor.
  Mr. HATCH. Mr. President, I compliment my distinguished friend, the 
Senator from Virginia, for the remarks he just finished with regard to 
President Reagan and Mrs. Reagan. It is very fitting and appropriate 
the distinguished Senator speak here today because he reminds me a lot 
of Ronald Reagan--in the philosophy he has, the guts he has, the 
ability to move people in so many other ways. I have to say, I believe 
I was one of the few, maybe the only person Ronald Reagan ever 
preprimary endorsed. It was a great thrill for me.
  In 1980, I went to multiple States as one of his two major surrogates 
who spoke for him all over the country. I will never forget the Reagan 
campaign team did not want him to go to the first--what they call 
cattle show--in New Hampshire. So they asked me to

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go in his place and appear with the other seven or eight Presidential 
candidates. My date for that evening was none other than Nancy Reagan. 
She was so beautiful--she was such a beautiful person. It was such an 
honor to be able to speak for the President, for the then Governor 
Reagan. He meant so much to me and I am grateful that the distinguished 
Senator from Virginia has spoken for all of us on this subject. I hope 
and pray Mrs. Reagan has everything that will make life worthwhile, 
even though Ronald Reagan is now gone.
  We love both of them. We revere the memories we have of both of them. 
Of course, we look forward to continuing to meet with Mrs. Reagan as 
time goes on.

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