 Members of the Congress, I have the great pleasure, the high privilege and the great honor of presenting to you the President of the United States. I congratulate you all. Not merely on your electoral victory, but on your selected role in history. For you and I are privileged to serve the Great Republic in what could be the most decisive decade in its long history. The choices we make for good or ill will affect the welfare of generations yet unborn. A little more than 100 weeks ago, I assumed the office of the President of the United States. In seeking the help of the Congress and our countrymen, I pledged no easy answers. I pledged an asked, only toriel and dedication. These, the Congress and the people, have given in good measure. And today, having witnessed in recent months a heightened respect for our national purpose and power, having seen the courageous calm of a united people in a perilous hour, and having observed a steady improvement in the opportunities and well-being of our citizens, I can report to you that the state of this old, but youthful union is good. The world beyond our borders, steady progress has been made in building a world of order. The people of West Berlin remain free and secure. A settlement, though still precarious, has been reached in Laos. The spear point of aggression has been blunted in South Vietnam. The end of the agony may be in sight in the Congo. The doctrine of Troika is dead. And while danger continues, a deadly threat has been removed from Cuba. At home, the recession is behind us. Turning to the world outside, it was only a few years ago. In Southeast Asia, Africa, Eastern Europe, Latin America, even out of space, that communism sought to convey the image of a unified, confident, and expanding America, empire, closing in on a sluggish America, and a free world in disarray. But few people would hold that picture today. In the past months, we have reaffirmed the scientific and military superiority of freedom. We have doubled our efforts in space to assure us of being first in the future. We have undertaken the most far-reaching defense improvements in the peacetime history of this country. And we have maintained the frontiers of freedom from Vietnam to West Berlin. But complacency or self-congratulation can imperil our security as much as the weapons of our adversaries. A moment of pause is not a promise of peace. Dangerous problems remain from Cuba to the South China Sea. The world's prognosis prescribes in short not a year's vacation for us, but a year of obligation and opportunity. Four special avenues of opportunity stand out. The Atlantic Alliance, the developing nation, the new Sino-Soviet difficulties, and the search for worldwide peace. First, how fair is the Grand Alliance? Free Europe is entering into a new phase in its long and brilliant history. The era of colonial expansion has passed. The era of national rivalries is fading. And a new era of interdependence and unity is taking shape. Defying the old prophecies of Marx, consenting to what no conqueror could ever compel, the free nations of Europe are moving towards a unity of purpose and power and policy in every sphere of activity. For 17 years, this movement has had our consistent support, both political and economic. Far from resenting the new Europe, we regard her as a welcome partner, not a rival. For the road to world peace and freedom is still very long, and these are burdens which only full partners can share in supporting the common defense, in expanding world trade, in aligning our balance of payments, in aiding the emerging nations, in concerning political and economic policies, and in welcoming to our common effort other industrialized nations, notably Japan, whose remarkable political and economic development in the 1950s permits it now to play on the world scene a major constructive role. No doubt differences of opinion will continue to get more attention than agreements on action, as Europe moves from independence to more formal interdependence. But these are honest differences among honorable associates, more real and frequent in fact, among our Western European allies than between them and the United States, for the unity of freedom has never relied on uniformity of opinion, fortunately. But the basic agreement of this alliance on fundamental issues continues. The first task of the alliance remains the common defense. Last month, Prime Minister McMillan and I laid plans for a new stage in our long cooperative effort, one which aims to assist in the wider task of framing a common nuclear defense for the whole alliance. The Nassau agreement recognizes that the security of the West is indivisible and so must be our defense. But it also recognizes that this is an alliance of proud and sovereign nations and works best when we do not forget it. It recognizes further that the nuclear defense of the West is not a matter for the present nuclear powers alone, that France will be such a power in the future and that ways must be found without increasing the hazards of nuclear diffusion, to increase the role of our other partners in planning, manning and directing a truly multilateral nuclear force within an increasingly intimate NATO alliance. Finally, the Nassau agreement recognizes that nuclear defense is not enough, that the agreed NATO levels of conventional strength must be met, and that the alliance cannot afford to be in a position of having to answer every threat with nuclear weapons or nothing. We remain too near the Nassau decisions and too far from their final realization to know their place in history. But I believe that for the first time the door is open for the nuclear defense of the alliance to become a source of confidence instead of a cause of contention. The next most pressing concern of the alliance is our common economic goals of trade and growth. This nation continues to be concerned about its balance of payments deficit, which despite its decline remains a stubborn and troublesome problem. We believe moreover that closer economic ties among all three nations are essential to prosperity and peace. And neither we nor the members of the common market are so affluent that we can long afford to shelter high-cost farms or factories from the winds of foreign competition or to restrict the channels of trade with other nations of the free world. If the common market should now move towards protectionism and restrictionism, it would undermine its own basic principles. This government means to use the authority conferred on it last year by the Congress to encourage trade expansion on both sides of the Atlantic and around the world. Second, what are the development and non-aligned nations? They were, I believe, shocked by the Soviet sudden and secret attempt to transform Cuba into a nuclear-striking base and by communist China's arrogant invasion of India. They have been reassured by our prompt assistance to India, by our support through the United Nations of the Congo's unification, by our patient search for disarmament and by the improvement in our treatment of citizens and visitors whose skin does not happen to be white. And as the older colonialism recedes and the neocolonialism of the communist powers stand out more starkly than ever, they realize more clearly that the issue in the world's struggle is not communism versus capitalism, but coercion versus a free choice. They realize that the longing for independence is the same the world over, whether it is the independence of West Berlin or Vietnam. They realize that such independence runs at thwart all communist ambitions but is in keeping with our own and that our approach to their needs is resilient and resourceful while the communists rely on ancient doctrines and old dogmas. Nevertheless, it is hard for any nation to focus on an external, a subversive threat to its independence when its energies are drained in daily combat with the forces of poverty and despair. It makes little sense for us to assail in speeches and resolutions the horrors of communism to spend $50 billion a year to prevent its military advance and then to begrudge spending largely on American products less than one-tenth of that amount to help other nations strengthen their independence and cure the social chaos in which communism has always thrived. I am proud and I think most Americans are proud of a mutual defense and assistance program evolved with bipartisan support in three administrations which has, with all of its recognized problems contributed to the fact that not a single one of the nearly 50 United Nations members to gain independence since the Second World War has succumbed to communist control and of a country that has helped to arm and feed and clothe millions of people who live on the front lines of freedom. I am especially proud that this country has put forward for the 60s a vast, cooperative effort to achieve economic growth and social progress throughout the Americas the Alliance for Progress I do not underestimate the difficulties that we face in this mutual effort among our close neighbors but the free states of this hemisphere working in close collaboration have begun to make this alliance a reality today it is feeding one out of every four school-aged children in Latin America an extra food ration from our farm services it has distributed 1.5 million school books and is building 17,000 classrooms it has helped resettle tens of thousands of found families on land they can call their own it is stimulating our good neighbors to more self-help and reform fiscal, social, institutional and land reform it is bringing housing and hope and health to millions who were forgotten the men and women of this hemisphere know that the alliance cannot succeed if it's only another name for United States handout that it can succeed only as the Latin American nations themselves to vote their best efforts to fulfilling its goals this story is the same in Africa in the Middle East and in Asia wherever nations are willing to help themselves we stand ready to help them build new bulwarks of freedom we are not purchasing votes for the Cold War we have gone to the aid of imperiled nations neutrals and allies alike what we do ask and all that we ask is that our help be used to the best advantage and that their own efforts not be diverted by needless quarrels with other independent nations despite all its past achievements the continued progress of the mutual assistance program requires a persistent discontent with present progress we have been reorganizing this program to make it more effective an efficient instrument and that process will continue this year but free world development will still be an uphill struggle government aid can only supplement the role of private investment and trade expansion and commodity stabilization and above all internal self-improvement the processes of growth are gradual bearing fruit in a decade not a day our successes will be neither quick nor dramatic but if these programs were ever to be ended our failures in a dozen countries would be sudden and would be certain neither money nor technical assistance however can be our only weapon against poverty in the end the crucial effort is one of purpose requiring the fuel of finance but also a torch of idealism and nothing carries the spirit of this American idealism and expresses our hopes better and more effectively to the far corners of the earth than the American Peace Corps a year ago less than 900 Peace Corps volunteers were on the job a year from now they will number more than 9,000 men and women aged 18 to 79 willing to give two years of their lives to helping people in other lands there are in fact nearly one million Americans serving their country and the cause of freedom in overseas posts a record no other people can match surely those of us who stay at home should be glad to help indirectly by supporting our aid programs by opening our doors to foreign visitors and diplomats and students and by proving day by day by deed as well as by word that we are a just and generous people third what comfort can we take from the increasing strains and tensions within the communist bloc here hope must be tempered with caution for the soviet-chinese disagreement is over means not ends a dispute over how to bury the west is no grounds for western rejoicing nevertheless while a strain is not a fraction it is clear that the forces of diversity are at work inside the communist camp despite all the iron disciplines of regimentation and all the iron dogmatisms of ideology Marx has proven wrong once again for it is the closed communist societies not the free and open societies which carry within themselves the seeds of internal disintegration this disarray of the communist empire has been heightened by two other formidable forces one is the historic force of nationalism and the yearning of all men to be free the other is the growth inefficiency of their economies for a closed society is not open to ideas of progress and a police state finds it cannot command the grain to grow new nations ask to choose between two competing systems need only compare conditions in east and west germany eastern and west in europe north and south vietnam they need only compare the disillusionment of communist cuba with a promise of a hemisphere alliance for progress and all the world knows that no successful system builds a wall to keep its people in freedom out all dividing berlin is a symbol of that communist failure finally what can we do to move from the present pause towards enduring peace i would counsel caution i foresee no spectacular reversal in communist methods or goals but if all these trends and developments can persuade the soviet union to walk the path of peace then let her know that all free nations can join with her but until that choice is made and until the world can develop a reliable system of international security the free people have no choice but to keep their arms near this country therefore this country therefore continues to require the best defense in the world a defense which is suited to the sixties this means unfortunately a rising defense budget for there is no substitute for adequate defense and no bargain basement way of achieving it it means the expenditure of more than fifteen billion dollars this year on nuclear weapons systems alone a sum which is about equal to the combined defense budgets of our european allies but it also means improved air and missile defenses improved civil defense a strengthened anti-guerrilla capacity and of prime importance more powerful and flexible non-nuclear forces for threats of massive retaliation may not deter peace meal aggression and a line of destroyers and a quarantine or a division of well-equipped men on the border may be more useful to our real security than the multiplication of awesome weapons beyond all rational need but our commitment to national safety is not a commitment to expand our military establishment indefinitely we do not dismiss disarmament as an idle dream but we believe in the end that it is the only way of ensuring the security of all without impairing the interests of any nor do we mistake honorable negotiation for appeasement while we shall never weary in the defense of freedom neither shall we abandon the pursuit of peace in this quest the United Nations requires our full and continued support its value in serving the cause of peace has been shown anew in its role in the West New Guinea settlement in its use as a forum for the Cuban crisis and in its task of unification in the Congo today the United Nations is primarily the protector of the small and the weak and a safety valve for the strong tomorrow it can form the framework for a world of law a world in which no nation dictates the destiny of another and which the vast resources now devoted to destructive means will serve constructive ends in short let our adversaries choose if they choose peaceful competition they shall have it come to realize that their ambitions cannot succeed if they see their wars of liberation and subversion will ultimately fail if they recognize that there is more security in accepting inspection than in permitting new nations to master the black arts of nuclear weapons and war and if they are willing to turn their energies as we are to the great unfinished tasks of our own people then surely the areas of agreement can be very wide indeed a clear understanding about Berlin stability in Southeast Asia and end the nuclear testing new checks on surprise or accidental attack and ultimately general and complete disarmament for we seek not the worldwide victory of one nation or system but a worldwide victory of men the modern globe is too small its weapons are too destructive they multiply too fast and its disorders are too contagious to permit any other kind of victory to achieve this end the United States will continue to spend a greater portion of its national production than any other people in the free world for 15 years no other free nation has demanded so much of itself through hot wars and cold through recession and prosperity through the ages of the atom and outer space the American people have neither folded nor has their faith flagged if at times our actions seem to make life difficult for others it is only because history has made life difficult for us all but difficult days need not be dark I think these are proud and memorable days in the cause of peace and freedom we are proud for example of Major Rudolph Anderson who gave his life over the island of Cuba we salute Specialist James Alan Johnson who died on the border of South Korea we pay honor to Sergeant Gerald Pendle who was killed in Vietnam they are among the many who in this century far from home have died for our country our task now and the task of all Americans is to live up to their commitment my friends I close on a note of hope we are not lulled by the momentary calm of the sea or the somewhat clearer skies above we know the turbulence that lies below and the storms that are beyond the horizon this year but now the winds of change appear to be blowing more strongly than ever in the world of communism as well as our own for 175 years we have sailed with those winds at our back and with the tides of human freedom in our favor we steer our ship with hope as Thomas Jefferson said leaving fear astern today we still welcome those winds of change and we have every reason to believe that our tide is running strong with thanks to Almighty God for seeing us through a perilous passage we ask His help anew in guiding the Good Ship Union