[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: GEORGE W. BUSH (2001, Book I)]
[February 26, 2001]
[Pages 135-136]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]



Remarks Prior to a Cabinet Meeting and an Exchange With Reporters
February 26, 2001

    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.

Upcoming Address to Congress

    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 
commonsense 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.

Miami Herald's Florida Vote Recount

    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.

Upcoming Address to Congress

    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

[[Page 136]]

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 8 years. [Laughter]
    The President. I don't know. [Laughter] It depends on how loud you 
clap.

Note: The President spoke at 1:07 p.m. in the Cabinet Room at the White 
House. A tape was not available for verification of the content of these 
remarks.