The President's News
Conference
The President. We've got to stop
meeting like this. [Laughter]
Well,
as most of you know, President Gorbachev has had to return to the
The
nature of President Gorbachev's departure is unfortunate and provides a sad
final note to what has been an otherwise successful -- and I use the next words
advisedly -- happy and historic visit to the United States. It was in this
spirit that yesterday at lunch I presented Mr. Gorbachev a memento of our first
meeting: an inscribed photo of the walk we took together in
And
so we have. It was exactly 1 year ago today that an event here in this room spoke
to the epoch-making nature of what has been achieved: the signing of the first
treaty to eliminate an entire class of
On
a personal note, Nancy and I were delighted that the Gorbachevs
extended an invitation for us to visit
So,
the path remains open, and the pace of peace continues. As I said yesterday,
this means our responsibilities have grown not less but more serious. We must
remain resolute and without illusion. And we must speak candidly about
fundamental points of difference. We must especially maintain our military
strength, but we must also continue our course of vigorous diplomatic
engagement.
I
cannot tonight attempt to put all these events in perspective or, still less,
to claim credit for any person or administration. Let it be enough to say this:
that since 1985, extraordinary things have happened, and nothing more
extraordinary than the sight yesterday of a President of the United States and
a future President of the United States and a President of the Soviet Union
standing together in New York Harbor under the protective gaze of the Statue of
Liberty.
Our
hope, our prayer, remains the same as that heard on the lips of so many
millions who looked up once, as we did yesterday, to see the outstretched lamp
of Liberty and who felt for the first time its warmth and glow: a prayer that
someday freedom will light the world and become the blessing and birthright of
every people, everywhere.
And,
Helen [Helen Thomas, United Press International], you have the first question.
Federal
Budget Deficit and Tax Cuts
Q.
The world is applauding the initiative, the new detente, that
you and President Gorbachev have initiated. But on the debit side, as you leave
office, the Nation is saddled with a $2.6 billion debt, an enormous deficit,
caused perhaps by the tripling of military spending, tax cuts. How does all
this jibe with the goals that you set 8 years ago? And I'd like to follow up.
The President. Helen, I have to tell
you it is incorrect to say that all of this happened because we cut taxes and
the things that have happened in these last few years. I've said many times,
and pointed out, that over 58 years in which the opposing party held the House
of Representatives -- 54 of those 58 years -- and in those years there were
only 8 scattered years in which there was a balanced budget.
And
I was among a great chorus out on the hustings
speaking out against this consistent and constant deficit spending. And each
time the answer came back that it was necessary to maintain prosperity. And the
other part of the answer was: It's meaningless because we owe it to ourselves.
Now, beginning in 1965, in the middle sixties, when President Johnson's program
of the War on Poverty was put in place -- in the 15 years from then until 1980,
the budget increased just about 5 times what it had been 15 years before. And
the deficit increased to 58 times what it had been. So, we came in inheriting
literally deficit spending built into the structure of government.
Now,
with regard to the tax cuts -- yes, the rates were cut. But since 1981 our
revenue from those taxes has increased by $375 billion, and our projection --
and we've been very accurate on our projections -- our projection for 1990, in
the budget we're working on now, calls for another $80 billion increase in our
revenues with the rates as they presently are.
If
you look back beyond us to Coolidge and his tax cuts, if you look to the
Kennedy tax cut in his administration -- which was very similar to the one that
we later put in -- in every case, it did not reduce the Government revenues; it
raised them. So, it is maintaining this and continuing to get back to a reduced
spending, because while the revenue was increasing $375 billion, the spending
increase was close to $100 billion more than that increase in revenues.
Federal
Spending
Q.
Mr. President, some of your former associates claim that you deliberately
created a larger deficit in order to dismantle the compassionate social programs
for the poor, the sick, the needy, the handicapped, the
elderly, which you didn't like. Is that true?
The President. No, Helen, it is not
true; and that is, I guess, political propaganda also. Actually, the reductions
that we have made have not been made in the actual basic spending. I have cut
the increases that were asked for, but also we have taken action to vastly
improve the business management of government. When I came here, there was a
program, one program -- I found out about it when I was Governor -- a program
in which the administrative overhead was so great that it cost $2 to deliver $1
to a needy person. Now, this is one of the things we've been trying to correct.
But
actually there has been an ongoing increase in the aid to college students.
There has been an ongoing increase in housing with all of the talk about the
need for housing. That has been increased. And I could go on about all the
other programs that they have. We've simply tried to keep the increase from
being as much as was being asked for. And actually, our defense spending and
what we asked for -- regardless of the cuts that were then made in it -- the
ones that I asked for, the annual budgets for defense, were less than the
projected budgets necessary for defense for the 5 years that President Carter
had projected ahead of what was going to be needed for defense. And he
projected more than we asked for.
Conventional
Arms Reductions
Q.
Mr. President, Mr. Gorbachev yesterday announced a major cutback in the Soviet
troop strength and talked generally about nations relying less on military
might. Do you think that Mr. Gorbachev is trying to remake the
The President. Yes, I do. And I think
he recognizes that their massive buildup has been responsible for the great
economic crisis that he faces there in the
Q.
Mr. President, if I may follow up: Aside from the conventional forces where the
Soviets do retain this advantage, is there an area where the
The President. Well, we're still way
below them in that. But we have announced our willingness to continue into --
well, before he ever made this move -- and we're very grateful for this, and I
appreciate it very much -- but we have proposed that the next negotiations with
regard to military -- and then between us -- should be in the area of
conventional weapons.
President-elect
Bush and Taxes
Q.
Mr. President, George Bush has been receiving advice on all fronts,
it seems, to raise taxes. I wondered if you think he can hold the line and not
raise taxes for a full 4 years? And if he should cave
in and raise them, would you be deeply disappointed in him?
The President. Yes, I would be deeply
disappointed. And I don't think it's going to happen, because I think he is
aware, as I am, that rates reduced actually increase
the economic growth of the country and provide an incentive for more earnings
today. The top 5 percent of earners -- when I hear these people start talking
about the upper levels of income -- the top 5 percent of earners in this
country at this much lower rate of taxation are paying a bigger share of the
total revenue from the income tax than they were paying before at the higher
rates, because there's now an incentive to go out and not look for tax shelters
and so forth.
Federal
Budget Deficit
Q.
Sir, if I could follow up: Do you really feel it's possible simply to grow out
of the deficit, or is it necessary -- if you're not going to raise taxes -- to
cut Social Security benefits and Medicare benefits?
The President. We don't have to touch
Social Security, and we don't have to have taxes. As I've said, we're on a line
right now that is bringing the deficit down. There was no way anyone could ever
pull the rug out and have the deficit solved in 1 year. But the deficit will be
reduced down, under the Gramm-Rudman scale that we're
following, to $100 billion, and by 1993 the budget will be balanced if we
continue observing this thing.
Andrea [Andrea Mitchell, NBC News]?
Q.
Mr. President, this is your final news conference with us, we think. And at
your first news conference, you said that the Soviets would commit any crime,
would lie, would cheat, would steal to achieve their
political goals. Now, tonight, you're celebrating your joint progress with
President Gorbachev and celebrating a speech in which he renounced the use of
force by the
The President. I know so many of you
have quoted this in that first press conference of mine, and Sam [Sam
Donaldson, ABC News], I think it was your question.
Q.
She stole my question.
The President. Yes, but none of you
ever thought to give the complete answer. I said, in their own words this was
their philosophy, and it was in writing that there was no crime -- all of these
things were not a crime if they advanced the cause of socialism. Now, I didn't
make that up. That's what they said. I think there's been a change. That was
four leaders back before this one. And I think there have been some changes.
One we just talked about earlier, of his cut in armaments.
Q.
Mr. President, to follow up: What about the changes in your own thinking?
Granted that they have changed and that Mr. Gorbachev is a very different kind
of Soviet leader, but do you think in any way that your previous views might
have been rigid or poorly formed?
The President. Well, Andrea, there
were differences in these leaders. And there is a situation now where many of
the things that they preached have been proven unsound, and that's why their
economy is in such great trouble. But I must say I have never met with one of
those leaders that was comparable to this man or had the approach that he has.
But he knows that I feel that -- well, we put it this way, as I've said, my
philosophy is: Trust everybody, but cut the cards.
Administration
Accomplishments
Q.
I was going to ask that, but let me just now ask you what's the toughest thing
that you've had in your job? What's been the toughest
part of these 8 years? And I have a followup.
[Laughter]
The President. You realize how much
time you're stealing with these followups away from
others that want to ask a question? Well, there -- --
Q.
Yeah. Yeah.
The President. I think there have been
many tough things. I don't think there's anything any tougher than to have to
order these magnificent young men and women in our military today -- and I
think I'm prouder of them than of anything that has happened -- to have to send
them into danger, to order them to go someplace where their lives are threatened
and their lives are taken. That's got to be something that any President would
hesitate on and have to say was the greatest burden.
Q.
All right, let me ask the other side then. What have you enjoyed most? What is
the thing you're going to miss the most?
The President. Well, there are a
number of things to miss. I don't want to get into a lecture here. Let me just
simply say on ``enjoyed the most'' is the economic recovery. When I came here,
for almost half a century the debate on the Hill, in the Congress, had always
been between more big spending programs, more power for the Federal Government,
more intervention in private affairs by the Federal Government, as against
those who were preaching less. Well, now, today -- and for a long time, the very
question that was asked here about the deficit -- the argument on the Hill
today is not more spending; the argument is how best can we
reduce the deficit.
Q.
Comment personally, sir -- I mean personally as President.
The President. Well, I appreciate very
much the fact of being a party to this economic recovery. We were in a
disastrous situation when we came here.
Q.
Mr. President, until recently the
The President. Well, I think that,
once again, here we're going to have to see whether this is still acceptable to
the parties that are to be involved in the direct negotiations. Actually, we
talk an international gathering or something, but the Middle East, which is
still technically in a state of war -- that must be resolved between the
nations of the Middle East in direct negotiations. And if we can help bring
that about, then I would welcome anyone who wants to help.
Arms
Reduction
Q.
In light of his speech yesterday at the U.N., are there any new steps that we
can take to continue the arms reduction process?
The President. Oh, yes. We have long
said that as soon as we once settle this issue of the START agreement -- I have
said that I think our next goal must be to now engage in negotiations on
reducing conventional weapons.
Q. Mr. President, one question and no followups. [Laughter]
The President. This man deserves a
hand. [Laughter]
President-elect
Bush
Q.
Now that you're leaving the White House, or will soon, what is going to become
of the contras and resistance forces in Nicaragua without you here as their
champion? And do you have a commitment from President-elect Bush to carry on
the same policy line that you have for supporting the Nicaraguans -- --
The President. Now, Jerry [Jeremiah
O'Leary, Washington Times], obviously, I do not try to pin him down. He is the
President-elect, and he will be the President when he takes over. But I do
believe, knowing him -- and our association together for all these years -- I
believe that he agrees with me that the contras are freedom fighters and they
are trying to achieve democracy in their country, which is now a Communist
totalitarian government.
Soviet-U.S.
Relations
Q.
Mr. President, you've made a career lately of using an old
Russian proverb: ``Trust, but verify.'' But given that verification can never
be a 100-percent science, given that there are always a few percentage points
where you just can't be sure, do you trust General Secretary Gorbachev for
those few points?
The President. Well, as I said, right
now with regard to the INF treaty, we have worked out verification provisions
that are greater than anything that has ever been done before between us. And I
think that there is a reasonable chance, a very reasonable chance,
that we can continue to have that kind of verification.
One
of the first things that I talked over with Mr. Gorbachev in Geneva when we
first met was that I said to him we both didn't have great military -- how did
I say it -- put it that we didn't mistrust each other because of our great
military; we had our military because we mistrusted each other, and that our
negotiations should be aimed at removing the causes of mistrust. And I have to
say it's pretty much followed that pattern.
Q.
Well, what I want to know is: Do you trust Gorbachev?
The President. He hasn't shown me any
reason yet that I shouldn't, but again, as I've said, that's why I kept
referring to Dovorey no provorey
-- trust but verify. And he knows that, and neither one of us -- I don't think
that he would gamble on believing that he shouldn't protect his own interests
also.
Soviet
Reforms
Q.
Mr. President, at your meeting with Mr. Gorbachev yesterday, you toasted the
things that he and Vice President Bush will accomplish. You spoke this evening
about the grave economic crises that Mr. Gorbachev faces. What is the
The President. Well, I realize that --
I think we all should -- that he is battling a bureaucracy; because whether it's
a Russian bureaucracy or one of our own, the first rule of bureaucracy is
protect the bureaucracy. And it would mean some great changes for some of the nomenclatura, as they call their bureaucracy there, if he
institutes the reforms that he's talking about. But on the plus side for him,
it's very evident that the people of the
Let
me go over here for a minute. I've been kind of one-sided.
Q.
Mr. President, you could help Mr. Gorbachev with a severe domestic political
problem, that is,
The President. Well, there's one
thing. If we're talking about disarming the Mujahidin,
remember that there is still a military force in
Q.
But Mr. Gorbachev proposed at the U.N. yesterday
sending in a U.N. peacekeeping force just to do this.
The President. Well, you'd have to
take up with the U.N. This is something rather exceptional that he's asking on
that, and I'm not sure that the U.N. would like that or that the U.N. is
prepared to do such a thing.
Q.
What would you like?
The President. I think that we've got
to recognize that if the Afghan people are going to be able to state and create
the Government they want, then that puppet government has got to be ready and
willing to step down, and not have some kind of a compromise thing in which it
remains as a government, compromising with the others. Let's let them start
from scratch and build the government they want.
Yasser Arafat
Q.
Mr. President, let me bring you back to the
The President. No, we've been watching
very closely. And for example, we thought in the last few days that there was a
statement that came out of that meeting in
Now,
the thing about George Shultz's decision -- I'd like to call to your attention
-- there is a law passed by the Congress with regard to the conditions for
granting a waiver to someone to come in and meet with the United Nations or
participate in what they're doing. And there's no way under that law that Mr.
Arafat qualifies as yet. And the day that he does, and it is clear cut, then we
can grant that visa. But as I say, he is barred by the terms of that law, and
the only way that the -- and the Secretary of State has full power under that
law. It's his decision to make. And he can only grant a waiver if an individual
meets certain requirements, and Arafat doesn't.
Q.
Well, to follow up, and to be just as clear-cut: Did he not in his statement
say that he accepts the U.N. articles and that he recognizes
The President. What we're still
analyzing is -- then, as he went on, other things in which -- it's a case, and
this has happened before, certainly with the same individual -- you could quote
to him, ``Oh, you said this,'' but he's still in a position where he can say,
``Well, yes, but wait a minute, I also said this.'' And then you find that the
second ``this'' kind of reduces or nullifies the first ``this.''
Nuclear
Weapons Production Plants
Q.
Mr. President, in your opening statement, you made reference to our military
strength. Sir, a principal element of this nation's strength is our nuclear
deterrent, and during your administration, sir, numerous nuclear production
plants have been allowed to decay, including plants which produce plutonium and
tritium. Sir, what have you directed your aides to do about the problem, and how serious is the threat, particularly since there
are plants now in
The President. And we have made it
very plain that we will not allow those plants to reopen until they meet the
requirements and constitute no danger to the citizens of this country. And it
just has to be that -- cold turkey. Now, I don't think that we can be blamed
for the deterioration that certainly began long before we were here.
Q.
Mr. President, but if I could follow up: Isn't it true that you have left
President-elect Bush a tremendous financial and national security challenge not
only in getting these plants back in operating order but also in devising ways
that we can dispose of our nuclear waste?
The President. No, we are working on
that, and we have been, and we've made more progress than I think we're given
credit for on that. And he'll have to continue with doing those things. And I
don't think that the problems are all money.
Bill [Bill Plante, CBS
News]?
Hostages
in the
Q.
Mr. President, do you have any reason to believe that the American hostages who
are still being held in the
The President. I don't think that
anyone that takes over this office is going to give in, nor did I. That is,
again, one of those things I should have said to your question, Bill -- that
you go to bed with every night. And we are hopeful that there can be avenues
that would open. We cannot enter into negotiating in the sense of what kind of ransom to pay, or you're just encouraging more
hostage-taking. But there are other channels. We're not advocating that any
individual, as some have, take it upon themselves to try to get them out. But
we're looking at every channel that we can find to try and get them. And I
imagine that the ultimate is going to have to be somehow a negotiation with
Q.
So, you would be willing to do this negotiation with
The President. Oh, there have got to
be some changes there, too. We were not negotiating with them on the so-called
Iran-contra affair at all. We were heeding a plea from some individuals -- and
at that time all of you were kind of heralding the day in the media that was
going to come within a week that the Ayatollah would no longer be the head of
government because of his health -- and these people among those who were
planning ahead to have a government.
Q.
Are you going to do it now?
The President. What?
Q.
Are you going to do it now, sir?
The President. There are things, conditions, that have to be met also there. Any time that
they are ready to come forward on an open basis, we would be ready to talk to
them.
Soviet-U.S.
Relations
Q.
Mr. President, the
The President. I think that is all
dependent on them -- if it can be definitely established that they no longer
are following the expansionist policy that was instituted in the Communist
revolution that their goal must be a one-world Communist state. Now, if that
has definitely been given up, and certainly there are indications, we could
anticipate bringing such a thing about. Then I do think that there is evidence
that they don't like being the pariah, that they might
want to join the family of nations and join them with the idea of bringing
about or establishing peace.
Q.
Is that something you want, sir?
The President. Yes. One of the first
things that I ever told him when we met, I said, ``There are two of us here in
this room, just two men.'' And I said, ``It's a unique situation. Between us,
we have the power to start world war III, or between us, we have the power to
bring peace to the world -- a lasting peace.'' And apparently, we've been
working in that direction.
Soviet
Military Reductions
Q.
Mr. President, if the
The President. Now, I guess I wasn't
switching signals here fast enough at the very beginning of this. Are you
suggesting that the defense spending is -- --
Q.
Soviet troop cuts could lead to some cuts on our own, and that this would help
to reduce the deficit. People are already looking -- some Democrats -- thinking
that this may help us to reduce the deficit.
The President. Well, once again, I
must repeat, that can't happen with our defense spending until we have reached
a parity and at which then both sides can continue the reduction of weapons and
keeping it at a parity. But that is not true today. The dropping of 500,000
military personnel still leaves them with 5 million under arms. They still
outnumber us in tanks and artillery weapons after they make these cuts. So, we
haven't achieved parity, but at least if he goes through with that and succeeds
in that, he is going to bring it down to a range where I think that he would
see that we could proceed and continue then mutually reducing arms.
Q.
Thank you, Mr. President. Merry Christmas.
The President. Thank you. Merry Christmas to you all.
Note: The President's
44th news conference began at