[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 43, Number 6 (Monday, February 12, 2007)]
[Pages 115-117]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

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The President's Radio Address

February 3, 2007

    Good morning. This week was filled with more good news about 
America's economy. We learned that our economy grew at an annual rate of 
3.5 percent in the fourth quarter of last year. Overall, our economy 
grew 3.4 percent in 2006--up from 3.1 percent in 2005. The Dow Jones 
reached an alltime high this week for the 27th time in the past

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4 months. And we learned that America created 111,000 new jobs in 
January, which means we have added over 7.4 million jobs in the past 
3\1/2\ years.
    This good news is a result of the hard work of the American people 
and progrowth economic policies like tax relief. By cutting taxes, we 
put more money into the hands of American families and small businesses. 
You have used this money to produce strong and lasting economic growth. 
And now Congress needs to make this tax relief permanent, so we can keep 
America's economy growing.
    Progrowth economic policies also play a vital role in our plan to 
balance the Federal budget. Our growing economy has produced record 
levels of tax revenue. This increase in tax revenue has helped us cut 
the deficit in half 3 years ahead of schedule. And on Monday, we will 
take the next step when I submit to Congress a budget that will 
eliminate the deficit by 2012.
    To meet this goal, we must set priorities for Government spending. 
My top priority will continue to be keeping America safe and winning the 
war against extremists who want to destroy our way of life. The budget I 
will submit to Congress includes the cost of funding the global war on 
terror, including in Iraq and Afghanistan. Our troops deserve our full 
support, and this budget gives them the resources they need.
    Cutting the deficit during a time of war requires us to restrain 
spending in other areas. One good way to help eliminate wasteful 
spending is to pass earmark reform. Earmarks are special interest items 
that are often slipped into bills at the last hour. Even worse, more 
than 90 percent of earmarks never make it to the floor of the House and 
Senate for a vote. They are dropped into committee reports that are not 
even part of the bill that arrives on my desk, yet they are treated as 
if they have the force of law. The time has come to end this practice. 
So I will work with Democrats and Republicans in Congress to continue 
reforming the budget process, expose every earmark to the light of day 
and a vote in Congress, and cut the number and cost of earmarks at least 
in half.
    Another important tool for eliminating wasteful spending is the 
line-item veto. Today, when lawmakers tack porkbarrel spending onto 
large bills, the President is left with an all-or-nothing choice: either 
sign the bill with the wasteful spending or veto the whole bill and deny 
funding for vital programs. With the line-item veto, the President can 
sign the funding for necessary programs into law and send the 
unnecessary provisions back to Congress for a prompt up-or-down vote on 
whether to uphold the spending. Forty-three Governors have a line-item 
veto. I urge Congress to pass the line-item veto, so we can work 
together to control Federal spending.
    Controlling spending also requires us to address the unsustainable 
growth of entitlement programs such as Social Security, Medicare, and 
Medicaid. Spending for these programs is growing faster than inflation, 
faster than our economy, and faster than our ability to pay for it. 
Unless we act, we will saddle our children and grandchildren with tens 
of trillions of dollars of unfunded obligations. They will face three 
bad options: huge tax increases; huge budget deficits; or huge and 
immediate cuts in benefits. Republicans and Democrats need to come 
together to confront the challenge of entitlement spending and ensure 
that these vital programs are there when our children and grandchildren 
need them.
    I look forward to working with Members of Congress from both sides 
of the aisle to address these challenges. Together we can pass a budget 
that keeps our economy strong, keeps America safe, and makes deficit 
spending a thing of the past.
    Thank you for listening.

Note: The address was recorded at 7:35 a.m. on February 2 in the Cabinet 
Room at the White House for broadcast at 10:06 a.m. on February 3. The 
transcript was made available by the Office of the Press Secretary on 
February 2 but was embargoed for release until the broadcast. The Office 
of the Press Secretary also released a Spanish language transcript of 
this address.

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