 Well, I certainly appreciate this opportunity to be with all of you and thank you very much for being here tonight. When I was governor of California, I especially enjoyed the camaraderie of other governors and I have changed jobs since those days, yet I still feel that as chief executives, there is a special bond between us. In the early days of the Republic, those holding our jobs weren't so certain of what our relationship should be. They knew that every decision they made would set precedence, especially concerning the sovereignty of state government in relation to the federal government. Frank Shateroff, a man of liberating insight, wrote of the time when George Washington was to make his first visit as president to Massachusetts. And according to Shateroff, Governor Hancock of Massachusetts was beside himself over a matter of protocol. Would it be proper to meet President Washington on his arrival or would it be more appropriate for the president to call at the state capitol? What Hancock did, he thought, might be taken as an acknowledgment of the supremacy of the federal government or simply as a matter of courtesy. It was a difficult decision and finally the day of Washington's arrival was at hand and Hancock boldly made the decision. He pleaded illness. Wouldn't it be nice if feigning illness would substitute for making some of the hard decisions that we face? Today of course that's not an alternative. The challenges before us, especially concerning tax simplification and spending restraint, will require great courage and effort and extraordinary cooperation between us. I hope that I can count on you to continue to work with me in a spirit of goodwill in the months ahead. I've sought and appreciated your advice and will continue to do so. The federal-state relationship should strive to maximize the benefits of limited resources, to eliminate waste, to further reduce the federal regulatory burden, and to preserve the strength and vitality of our nation's economy. A vigorous and expanding economy must be priority number one. As governors, you know that better than most. Low inflation and high growth have cut your costs and increased your tax base. No federal program is more important to the viability of state government than economic expansion. Today, the people no longer look to Washington as an emerald city with magic solutions to every problem. I've been here going on five years now and I can tell you it's more like the twilight zone than the land of Oz. This new view of the federal government, a more realistic understanding of its limitations as well as its potentials, has been a great boon to our country. Now, all over America, we hear stories of the success of innovative and creative state and local enterprises. Only a few years ago, people were waiting for the federal government to act. Well, today they're taking the initiative, taking the future in their hands, and in doing so, accomplishing things that would never have happened if encumbered by federal red tape and another layer of bureaucratic entanglement. We in this room, as chief executives, are lucky to be holding office during a period of great change. It's a difficult time and what we do will lay the foundation for a better future. I does not be afraid to make these historic decisions, consulting openly and honestly one with another. All of us seek the same goal, America, as our God and our forefathers intended her to be, a land of limited government and unlimited opportunity, a land of prosperity and freedom. And you know, just to convince you that I do understand having been there where you presently are, I remember once as governor, shortly after it had taken office and on the way to the office, and the problem seemed to be multiplying as the days went by, and then on the way in, the car radio was on, and I heard a disc jockey in Sacramento who became my instant hero. Because for one every reason he said it, I don't know, but all of a sudden between records he said, every man should take unto himself a wife because sooner or later something is bound to happen that you can't blame on the governor. So I offer you a toast to the governors of the sovereign states of this federation of United States. Thank you. Mr. President, Mrs. Reagan, Mr. Vice President, Mrs. Bush, members of the cabinet, spouses, friends, the governors of this country and their spouses once again are enjoying the wonderful hospitality and the unique relationship that we have coming together on this particular evening. I would say to you, Mr. President, that I personally thank you for seeing to it that we had Kansas beef on the menu. And I would also say to you that we look forward to hearing Lee Greenwood, although in all honesty we aren't quite sure whether he's as talented as Lamar Alexander. You have appropriately commented this evening, Mr. President, on some of the critical issues and now is not the time to respond for you've also generously given us the opportunity to return tomorrow and to visit and as you have in the past and I'm sure in the future will give us additional opportunities. Tonight it's an opportunity to gather, to have fun and to enjoy each other. And for that we are most thankful. President Reagan, on behalf of all the governors, we salute you. As a former governor, you do understand the unique relationship between state government and the federal government. As president you've understood the need to rekindle the spirit of the people of this country. And we, the governors and spouses of this country, thank you and Mrs. Reagan for the commitment that you've made and continue to make to the people of this country and for the service that you provide to the president and Mrs. Reagan. Just another place to call a home away from home. Well it took a job that sent me down to Greenwood, Mississippi. I had two nights with the Gatlin band and on to Baton Rouge. Help me brother. One more stop in Little Rock and on to Tyler, Texas. Just another place to call a home. She's on the coast of Carolina. Why she wait silent? Well I wonder if it's really worth the time. Let me tell you now the bus broke down to south of town. And left the whole band stranded. Not much chance of going on. So we tried to hitch a ride on a diesel to understand. At the governor's convention in Nashville, Tennessee, we were able to perform at the courtesy and invitation of Barbara Mandrill as she was the featured entertainer. And since that time we've had an album released as a duet album. And it has been very successful. And since that time Miss Mandrill has suffered a very serious automobile accident. Kind of took her out of the touring schedule. She's back on the road to recovery but she's not singing yet on tour hopefully in the fall. In any case the Grammys next week which is Tuesday night the 26th. Sounds like an ad doesn't it for television. Barbara and I will both be in Los Angeles as we're nominated for duet of the year. And the song that has made it so very special was written in Nashville by Mike, Matt Davis and Mike Reed. And they're two great writers and it's a great song. And even though Barbara can't be here tonight at my invitation, only because I'm here at your invitation, I'd like to sing the song for you by myself if I may. It's called To Me. The gentlemen who are here with me on the stage and the fellas that set up a crew all work in the road show. And the guys here in the band, Jean and Paul and Mickey, Nick and Harry and Mark. And I just want to point out that the gentleman behind the drums is my son, Mark Greenwood, which I'm very proud of. We are extremely proud to be here in the East Room with the White House. That sounds great. And at your invitation. And it's been a wonderful year for us last year and of course the most exciting thing that happened to us was to be at Mr. Reagan's side several times during the campaign trail. And again, when he accepted the presidency for the second term, which we of course applauded and we just thought it was a wonderful thing, because of a song. And the song that I wrote about America was a song that was one I wanted to write for a long time. I never thought I would ever get this far. I'm extremely proud that it did. It was just something I felt in my heart about something that needed to be said. The other day I went to a third grade class in Nashville, Tennessee where I now live. They put on a little play called It God Bless the USA and they invited me as the special guest of honor. It's probably the neatest thing I've ever done or been to because the honesty and the faces of the youngsters in the third grade looked at me as if I was their hero. And they sang a lot of songs written by much better writers than myself about America, which you hear all the time. America the beautiful, the grand old flag, the Star Spangled Banner. And they put my song at the end of the show. It was almost too much. I just wanted to write about the fact that freedom is such a fragile thing. And oftentimes we can mouth the words to the Star Spangled Banner and know that we feel it, but it's not real. We feel all the time because freedom can be very fleeting if we let it be. If tomorrow and I had to start again with just my children and my wife I'd thank my lucky stars to be living here today because the flag still stands for freedom and they can't take that away. To be an American where at least I don't forget the men who the hills of Tennessee across the plains of Texas and sea to shining sea of Detroit down to Houston every American heart and it's time. Thank you so much. The trick man. Please, ladies and gentlemen, this, you know there's been a lot of speculation and the talk shows on the weekend still talk about it and so if we're trying to guess it, why the campaign came out the way it did and now you know came out because we had him on our side. But incidentally I think you should know he mentioned individually all these fine musicians, they are some of the finest in the business and I think he didn't say and you should know that they drove all night from Tennessee to be here. Was it from Kentucky? Well, they went through Tennessee, sir. They went through Tennessee. That's pretty generous from a fellow who started out in California. Well, anyway, this man, Lee Greenwood, he really served his apprenticeship. He overcame obstacles and things that would have turned anyone away from the career that he had aspired to and went on for a long time and then one day they hung a star upon his door and he has been a great star since and I think it's evident why and I just want to express on behalf of all of you I think our most grateful thanks for your coming here tonight and for your band here, all of you to be here and I think give us just one of the greatest shows that we've had in the old East Room. Thank you. Thank you very much. Yes, sir. Vice President. Thank you.