 Those the president of the United States well Good morning, and I know others are probably already welcomed you to Washington, but I'd like to add my welcome to I know that you're from every corner of the nation and You're here to feel the pulse of government Having been governor of California and now in this job. I've gotten used to journalists feeling my pulse I Always remember a story About a cub reporter and I know it's dangerous to tell you stories about your own trade You probably know them already, but this fella's first solo assignment Was to interview the oldest man in town a mr. Brown And he went out there and knocked on the door and mr. Brown came to the door and He told him what he was there for and the from the newspaper and he was invited into the living room And as they were sitting down the reporter got right to the heart of the matter Said mr. Brown. How old are you? The old boy said 97 And he says and what to what do you attribute your longevity the old man thought for a moment, and then he answered I don't drink. I don't smoke. I don't browse around with women And before he finished that sentence there was a great noise and a thud upstairs And these reporters said what the heck was that? He said, ah, that was dad. He's drunk again And from the earliest days of our Republic journalism has played a vital role in our American democracy In one of his more well-publicized quotes Which all of you know, I'm sure Thomas Jefferson explained were it left to me to decide Whether we should have government without newspapers or newspapers without a government I should not hesitate a moment To prefer the latter of course. He said that before he became president Seriously though Freedom of the press is part of the foundation upon which all of our other freedoms are guaranteed and today we must remain vigilant Not only to domestic but also international challenges to the free press The recent arrest and threatened imprisonment of a French journalist in Afghanistan is cause for concern And we're concerned as well about the increase in press censorship in Nicaragua Even more worried some of the moves in Certain international institutions aimed at restricting press freedom and controlling the free flow of information. I Can pledge to you that we will continue to resist Strenuously any attempt through international organizations to suppress freedom of the press I'd like to take this opportunity to congratulate your chairman Al Newhart for his strong stand on this issue As an officer of the international federation of European journalists. He has spoken out firmly Against the idea of a so-called new world information order More correctly that could be named a brave new world information order I'd also like to commend him and all of you for your commitment to responsible journalism Your high professional standards and your vision of new opportunities have helped you accomplish what must be called a Journalistic and entrepreneurial miracle the creation of a new national newspaper USA Today USA Today represents in your business the kind of investment in America's future that we've been encouraging throughout the economy. I Know you've heard much about the economic issues can Fronting us from secretary Regan, and I hope he was able to give you a better understanding of what we're trying to establish and accomplish Let me just say that putting America on a sound economic footing and Ensuring the conditions necessary for new investment new jobs and higher growth Continues to be our top priority We confronted a crisis situation in the first four years in the second four years We want to make the fundamental reforms to ensure lasting prosperity for years to come We can and will have a new era of opportunity and goodwill if enough of us will work together to make it happen Deficit reduction is an essential ingredient of any economic reform But let me emphasize again, and I'm sure Don said this successful deficit reduction Must mean stronger growth in the economy and less growth in government Any deficit reduction proposal that reduces America's potential for economic growth, and that's what tax increases would do inevitably will give us higher deficits To get serious about debt reduction We must get serious about controlling government spending and strengthening personal incentives And any help that the press could give us with regard to a balanced budget amendment And a line item veto for the president something that 43 governors in this country have and that I once had Will go a long way toward helping us restore control of something that is very definitely out of control today And that is government spending We'll be proposing the most historic effort ever made do cut unnecessary spending No area of the budget will be exempt from cost savings Tax simplification to ensure greater efficiency Fairness and growth is another avenue of reform which we're exploring we've Set out a good starting point for discussion of this issue and now we're moving forward on both of these approaches The American people emphatically stated their opinion in the last election. I think the issues were clearly defined And I think your papers and others in the media outlined the choices and the differences very well Given the outcome. I don't think anyone can misconstrue what the voters were saying They don't want higher taxes. They want greater opportunities As we approach the new year We can look forward to a time of dramatic change There's going to be a lot of activity to keep all of you busy and reporting it So I thank you all for being here. God bless you all and now I'm going to go back to the office and go to work Thank you