[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George H. W. Bush (1992-1993, Book II)]
[September 29, 1992]
[Pages 1694-1697]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]



[[Page 1694]]


Remarks on Arrival in Knoxville, Tennessee
September 29, 1992

    The President. Thank you. What a great Tennessee welcome.
    Audience members. Four more years! Four more years! Four more years!
    The President. This is fantastic. Thank you, Knoxville. Thank you 
very, very much. Thank you, Knoxville, Tennessee. This is fantastic.
    Let me thank Naomi Judd for being with us. I'm the guy who's 
honored. What a wonderful entertainer and a great personality and a 
wonderfully strong character we have standing here today in Naomi Judd. 
And may I salute your former, some of you all's former president of the 
great university here, our marvelous Secretary of Education, Lamar 
Alexander; and another Tennessean known nationally as a true leader, a 
true, honest, decent, strong leader in a Congress that was crying out 
for it and still is, I'm talking about Howard Baker.
    You know, you hear a lot of calls--everyplace I go, people have 
brooms and they're yelling, ``Clean House! Clean House! Change the 
Congress!'' If we had more Congressmen like Jimmy Duncan and more like 
Don Sundquist and Jimmy Quillen with us here today, we wouldn't have to 
clean House. But since we do, help us clean House and get this country 
moving again.
    May I salute another old friend, longtime friend for Barbara and me, 
Victor Ashe, the Mayor of this city. And also I understand our county 
executive, Dwight Kessel, is here. And that brings me also to another 
special friend who's taking it out on the trail for me, Ricky Skaggs. 
I'm just delighted to be with him; and standing over here, another good 
one, another great one, T.G. Sheppard. Thank you very much for being 
with us.
    Now, first let me start with a word about the polls and the talking 
heads. [Laughter] Every one of them said that Tennessee would lose to 
Georgia, and every one of them said that Tennessee would lose to 
Florida. So much for the polls, and so much for the talking heads. 
Enough of it. We're going to win this election.
    This campaign, like every campaign, is about a simple question: What 
kind of America do you want for the young people that are here today? 
I'll tell you what kind of an America I want and am working for, an 
America that is not just a military superpower but the greatest economic 
superpower in the entire world. That means more jobs for the American 
people.
    I have laid out a comprehensive Agenda for American Renewal, a 
specific, integrated agenda to create in America the world's first $10 
trillion economy. We can get that happening by moving to change the 
Congress and moving forward with my program.
    The Democrats don't like my even talking about it, but I am very 
proud of our record in ending and winning the cold war, proud of the way 
the sons and daughters of Tennessee performed in the sands of Saudi 
Arabia. It was a proud moment, not a moment to be forgotten.
    The Clinton ticket feels that I ought not to talk about foreign 
policy. I want to use my experience to lead the way to new markets for 
America products because that is how we are going to create good 
American jobs, the same leadership that changed the world. Now let's 
make America better and renewed.
    But look, we all know that if we're going to compete abroad and do 
what I am talking about with markets, we've got to make changes at home. 
It's small business that creates two-thirds of the new jobs in the new 
economy, and Governor Clinton promises small business higher taxes and 
more redtape.
    Audience members. Boo-o-o!
    The President. And I promise relief from regulation and taxation 
and, yes, relief from these crazy lawsuits that are killing us in this 
country.
    If we've going to compete in this new world, in this new economy, we 
must reform our schools. I am very proud of our great Secretary of 
Education, Lamar Alexander. I am proud of our national America

[[Page 1695]]

2000 program; proud that we're raising standards; proud that we're 
freeing up the teachers, and God bless them all, freeing them up from 
regulation and redtape; and proud that we are designing totally new 
schools for a new century. And I thank our Secretary. I thank these 
communities in Tennessee that are working to rebuild American education.
    Lamar and I want to go further. The parents of today's Volunteers 
had the power to choose the best college for their kids. I want that 
same choice for elementary and high school. My ``GI bill'' for kids will 
give parents and fundamental resources they need and the right to choose 
the best schools for their kids, whether they're public, private, or 
religious.
    Now, these are some of my ideas and what we're fighting for and what 
this election is about. I'm proud of our record, and I'll stand by it in 
November. But if candidate Clinton wants to talk about the past, then I 
say I'm ready. Let's take a look at what's been going on in Arkansas. 
Sorry to ruin your day, but we've got to look at the record.
    There's a lot you don't know about this man, and the more you find 
out, the more you know is that he's wrong for America. We cannot take a 
risk with this great country of ours. Take a look at the issue of 
education. As long as I'm standing here with some greats on education, 
let me put it this way: Governor Clinton was part of the national summit 
which set our education goals. I've given him credit for participating 
in that, and so has Lamar Alexander.
    But in Arkansas, his rhetoric does not match his record. He talks 
about a high-tech economy that Arkansas is 48th in the percent of 
students who have high school diplomas. Three out of every four Arkansas 
high school graduates spend his first year in college relearning what 
they were supposed to learn in high school. I think America must do a 
lot better than that.
    I think of Tennessee as a fairplay State when it comes to race. It's 
the same thing on every issue with him. Governor Clinton says he's for 
civil rights, but Arkansas doesn't even have a basic civil rights law. 
He says he's for a clean environment, but the Institute of Southern 
Studies ranks Arkansas 50th, 50th in environmental policies. It's the 
only place where mother fish teach baby fish to jog instead of to swim--
[laughter]--it's so polluted in that river over there. Governor Clinton 
says he's been tough on crime. But in the eighties, Arkansas' crime 
increases far outstripped the Nation. The Little Rock police say it all, 
because they have endorsed me for President of the United States of 
America.
    Now let's take a look at the economy. I know America has had some 
tough times. I know families are concerned, worried about the next job. 
Those out of work are worried about how they're going to get back to 
work. But understand, we are being affected by a global economic 
slowdown. It isn't just the United States. Look at Europe. Look at 
Canada. Look at other countries around the world. Our competitors in 
Europe would trade places with us in a minute. And yes, Governor Clinton 
offers America the European social welfare state policies----
    Audience members. Boo-o-o!
    The President. ----more Government, more special interest spending, 
more regulation, and more taxes on the middle class. We cannot let him 
do that to the taxpayers in this country.
    This is not simply campaign rhetoric. As Governor, he raised and 
extended the sales tax, including a tax on baby formula, vegetables, and 
other groceries. He raised the gas tax. He taxed mobile homes. For those 
of you ESPN watchers, he even taxed cable TV. Then he put a tax on beer 
just for an add-on.
    Audience members. Boo-o-o!
    The President. I knew the college crowd wouldn't like that too much. 
[Laughter]
    Governor Clinton now says, well, he's seen the light. In this 
campaign he's proposing at least, and look at the record, $150 billion 
in new taxes, plus at least a $220 billion in new Federal spending. 
``But don't worry,'' he says, ``I'll get it all from the rich, from the 
top 2 percent.''
    But the problem is, here's the truth, to get the money that he needs 
for this plan, everybody that's analyzed it says this, the $150 billion 
that he's promised in new taxes, Governor Clinton would have to get

[[Page 1696]]

his money from every taxpayer and every individual with taxable income 
over $36,000. And these are not people that you see out there on the 
``Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous.'' They deserve a break, not a tax 
increase.
    The problem is, this is just for openers. He'll need hundreds of 
billions of dollars more to pay for every one of these programs that 
he's proposed. There's an old saying: When you go hunting for ducks, 
hunt where the ducks are. Well, he's hunting for ways to pay for all of 
his promises, and he's going to go right smack to the middle class 
because that's where the bucks are. So watch your wallets. Watch your 
pocketbooks. He's coming right after you. Don't let him say anything 
different.
    On this one you don't have to take my word for it. Go right to his 
neighborhood. Go to Pine Bluff and listen to the Pine Bluff Commercial. 
Here's what it says: ``If Congress followed the example that Bill 
Clinton set as Governor of Arkansas, it would pass a program that hit 
the middle class the hardest.'' He's going to treat the middle class the 
way Johnny Majors' team treated Cincinnati last Saturday, exactly. The 
Volunteers pounced on the Bearcats, and he's going to pounce on your 
wallet. Look at the record. We cannot let this happen to America.
    I'll give you a factual example. Let's say you're a nurse just 
starting out with about $22,000 a year in taxable income. Governor 
Clinton would have you fork over another 430 bucks a year to the tax 
man. I say that you ought to be able to use that to help your kids' 
education or pay the mortgage on the house and not send it to the IRS in 
Washington, DC.
    But he says, ``Hey, forget about this. Forget my record. Forget the 
facts. Don't talk about Arkansas and my record there. I am a different 
kind of Democrat.'' But what is different about him? George McGovern, 
Bill Clinton ran Texas for him in 1972. He learned his liberalism from 
George McGovern, and in that campaign he was out there front for George 
McGovern. Then Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton wore the same moderate 
costume; but at least Carter meant it, even though he brought us the 
highest ``misery index'' in modern times. Then Michael Dukakis, Clinton 
nominated him in an endless nomination speech, I might say. [Laughter] 
Then he praised the Massachusetts Miracle right before it went south and 
the economy collapsed. America does not need this kind of different 
Democrat. There are some wonderful Democrats out there, but we don't 
need this kind, this McGovern, Carter, Dukakis Democrat.
    Now, Governor Clinton wants you to trust the America's economy is 
going to improve if you turn full control of your paycheck over to the 
crew that already runs the United States Congress. He wants tax-and-
spend Government plannings, those kind of planners to have total control 
over the executive branch, too.
    They tried this 12 years ago, and we ended up with double-digit 
inflation. We had interest rates sometimes as high as 18 percent, and we 
had a ``misery index'' over 21 percent, unemployment and inflation added 
together. It took years to wring inflation and high interest rates out 
of the American economy. I want to strengthen our economy and protect 
your paycheck from the ravages of inflation. We cannot go the tax-and-
spend route anymore. It all boils down to this. At this time in our 
history we simply cannot take the risk of Governor Clinton in the White 
House.
    You know, I've been in the Oval Office, and I've faced some tough 
decisions. It's not easy. You cannot be on all sides of every question 
when you're a President of the United States. I stand before you today 
admitting mistakes, but saying I called them as I saw them. I hope I 
brought the character and integrity to this high office that you can 
respect and appreciate.
    So I came here to ask for your support so that we can get to work 
with the new Members of Congress, Democrat and Republican alike, to fix 
the problems that stand in the way of this country; so that we can 
reform our health care system and we can literally reinvent our schools; 
and so that we can retrain the workers from one generation and create 
jobs for the next; so that we can cut Government spending and taxes and 
get this economy moving again; and that we can pass an amendment to 
limit the terms of Members of the United

[[Page 1697]]

States Congress and give the Government back to the people.
    Now, if you want a guy that has a statistic for every problem, your 
man is the Governor of Arkansas. He's got more statistics than there are 
problems: 38 percent of this, 28 percent of that. But he's got to face 
up to the fact that as President you can't have it all ways; you've got 
to make the tough calls.
    If you're looking for a leader of experience, a leader of ideas, a 
leader who shares your values, and a leader who understands that 
America's real strength is not in Government but in places like Alcoa, a 
leader you can trust, then I know that I can count on your support. I 
need it to be President of the United States for 4 more years.
    Let me say this: I am very proud of the sons and daughters of 
Tennessee that have worn the uniform of the United States of America. 
You are a great and proud Volunteer State. Governor Clinton wants us to 
forget that we have changed the world. I am not going to let him forget 
that the young men and women that fought in Desert Storm helped us 
change the world and make it much more peaceful for every young person 
here today.
    I ask for your trust. I ask for your trust, and I will not betray 
it. I ask for your vote, and I hope I have earned it.
    He can talk about the United States being lower than Germany and 
someplace above Sri Lanka. I'll end this way: We are the most decent, 
fairest, strongest country on the face of the Earth. Let's not tear it 
down. Let's build it up. We are Americans.
    May God bless you all, and thank you very, very much. Thank you so 
much.

                    Note: The President spoke at 12:11 p.m. at McGhee-
                        Tyson Airport. In his remarks, he referred to 
                        entertainers Ricky Skaggs and T.G. Sheppard.