    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George H. W. Bush (1991, Book I)]
    [June 22, 1991]
    [Pages 710-711]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Radio Address to the Nation on the Administration's Domestic Agenda
    June 22, 1991

        I'd like to talk with you about some things that are very important
    to me: families and homes, futures and hopes--the ways in which we
    Americans can tackle the domestic problems that confront us.
        In recent months, we've all felt a bracing surge of American
    optimism and determination. We look at our schools and say: Let's make
    them better. We look at our neighborhoods and say: Let's make them even
    safer. We see opportunities around us and say: Let's go for it.
        In many ways, we've regained a sense of ourselves and our values.
    For the past quarter-century, politicians in Washington have acted as if
    the Federal Government could solve every problem from chigger bites to
    earthquakes. No more. We all realize that government has real limits.
    You can't replace values with regulations. You can't replace parents
    with caseworkers. And you can't replace the dedication to service with
    mandates.
        Over the years, a number of well-meaning laws have thrown up
    barriers to individual action. Gradually, they have begun to transform
    government from the guardian of individual liberty into a weed that
    chokes off freedom and strangles initiative.
        I'd like to ask your help in pruning this creeping weed so that we
    can take on problems that concern us all. Our administration's domestic
    agenda strives to build a more effective, compassionate government, to
    encourage service to others, and to give Americans the elbowroom that
    they need to do great deeds.
        Several months ago, I challenged the Congress to pass two bills in
    100 days. One was a comprehensive crime package. It includes measures to
    help law enforcement officials defend the peace, to let citizens live
    without fear of neighborhood terror, to compensate victims, and to
    punish victimizers swiftly and firmly.
        The American people are tired of watching hoodlums walk, of seeing
    criminals mock our justice system with endless technicalities. They want
    to bring order to streets shaken by chaos and crime. Yet, for more than
    2 years, Congress has failed to act on my proposals to fight crime and
    strengthen the rule of law.
        The second 100-days bill is a transportation package that would give
    States the freedom to build the highways and transit systems they want
    and not just those Washington dictates. It encourages innovation, such
    as private efforts, to improve our transportation system. It tries to
    put Federal dollars where they belong--on national needs, not pork-
    barrel projects. Some in Congress want to weaken the bill's focus,
    pretend that our transportation needs and challenges haven't changed. As
    a result, no bill has yet reached my desk.
        I chose the crime and transportation bills because of their obvious
    importance to the American public. But our administration's agenda
    includes much more. We have submitted a civil rights package aimed at
    attacking discrimination and building a new atmosphere of brotherhood
    and trust. We've proposed a revolution in education, a dramatic reform
    of public housing, and a banking package that would restore the health
    of our financial system. While there's been some movement, Congress
    still has not passed any of these bills.
        We have made progress, however. Our education strategy has caught
    fire in communities from coast to coast. And to help our families, we've
    just completed a major reorganization of the Department of Health and
    Human Services, giving unprecedented attention to children's needs.
        Think of this when someone claims that we don't spend enough money
    to have a

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    vision. Dollars don't make visions; deeds do. When government spends
    your money, it shouldn't do so for appearances. It should spend your
    money on programs that work. This philosophy lies at the heart of our
    domestic agenda. We want to restore proportion to government by letting
    government do what it does best and freeing you to do what you do best.
    We want to restore faith in government by making real commitments, not
    impossible promises.
        But while we Americans demand more effective government, we also
    must demand more of ourselves. Entrepreneurs should be free to pursue
    their visions boldly, knowing that our future depends upon their
    success. Neighbors should seize the chance to help one another, to
    settle disputes over a cup of coffee rather than in a courtroom, to
    commit the little acts of kindness that turn rows of houses into
    neighborhoods. Let's stop seeking excuses and find opportunities to
    serve, to help one another, to become sources of wealth and Points of
    Light.
        John Kennedy was right when he said: ``Ask not what your country can
    do for you. Ask what you can do for your country.''
        While government can't do everything, it ought to do its job. So
    today, I urge Congress to join us in doing the Nation's business.
    Unshackle our initiatives on crime, transportation, banking, economic
    growth, education, energy, housing, and civil rights. There is no shame
    in acting, and there's plenty of time between now and Congress' August
    recess to get the job done.
        We know we can do great things. Together, let's do them.
        Thank you, and may God bless you and our great nation.

                        Note: The address was recorded at 12:03 p.m. on June
                            21 in the Cabinet Room at the White House. It
                            was released by the Office of the Press
                            Secretary on June 22.