In Memoriam
1911
2004
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Farewell from Office
President
Ronald Reagan, January 11, 1989. The White House.
This
is the 34th time Ill speak to you from the Oval Office and
the last. Weve been together 8 years now, and soon itll
be time for me to go. But before I do, I wanted to share some thoughts,
some of which Ive been saving for a long time.
Its
been the honor of my life to be your President. So many of you have
written the past few weeks to say thanks, but I could say as much
to you. Nancy and I are grateful for the opportunity you gave us
to serve.
One
of the things about the Presidency is that you're always somewhat
apart. You spent a lot of time going by too fast in a car someone
else is driving, and seeing the people through tinted glass
the parents holding up a child, and the wave you saw too late and
couldn't return. And so many times I wanted to stop and reach out
from behind the glass, and connect. Well, maybe I can do a little
of that tonight.
People
ask how I feel about leaving. And the fact is, "parting is
such sweet sorrow." The sweet part is California and the ranch
and freedom. The sorrow the good-byes, of course, and leaving
this beautiful place.
You
know, down the hall and up the stairs from this office is the part
of the White House where the President and his family live. There
are a few favorite windows I have up there that I like to stand
and look out of early in the morning. The view is over the grounds
here to the Washington Monument, and then the Mall and the Jefferson
Memorial. But on mornings when the humidity is low, you can see
past the Jefferson to the river, the Potomac, and the Virginia shore.
Someone said thats the view Lincoln had when he saw the smoke
rising from the Battle of Bull Run. I see more prosaic things: the
grass on the banks, the morning traffic as people make their way
to work, now and then a sailboat on the river.
Ive
been thinking a bit at that window. Ive been reflecting on
what the past 8 years have meant and mean. And the image that comes
to mind like a refrain is a nautical one a small story about
a big ship, and a refugee, and a sailor. It was back in the early
eighties, at the height of the boat people. And the sailor was hard
at work on the carrier Midway, which was patrolling the South China
Sea. The sailor, like most American servicemen, was young, smart,
and fiercely observant. The crew spied on the horizon a leaky little
boat. And crammed inside were refugees from Indochina hoping to
get to America. The Midway sent a small launch to bring them to
the ship and safety. As the refugees made their way through the
choppy seas, one spied the sailor on deck, and stood up, and called
out to him. He yelled, "Hello, American sailor. Hello, freedom
man."
A
small moment with a big meaning, a moment the sailor, who wrote
it in a letter, couldn't get out of his mind. And, when I saw it,
neither could I. Because thats what it was to be an American
in the 1980s. We stood, again, for freedom. I know we always
have, but in the past few years the world again and in a
way, we ourselves rediscovered it.
It's
been quite a journey this decade, and we held together through some
stormy seas. And at the end, together, we are reaching our destination.
The
fact is, from Grenada to the Washington and Moscow summits, from
the recession of 81 to 82, to the expansion that began
in late 82 and continues to this day, we've made a difference.
The way I see it, there were two great triumphs, two things that
Im proudest of. One is the economic recovery, in which the
people of America created and filled 19 million new
jobs. The other is the recovery of our morale. America is respected
again in the world and looked to for leadership.
Something
that happened to me a few years ago reflects some of this. It was
back in 1981, and I was attending my first big economic summit,
which was held that year in Canada. The meeting place rotates among
the member countries. The opening meeting was a formal dinner of
the heads of government of the seven industrialized nations. Now,
I sat there like the new kid in school and listened, and it was
all Francois this and Helmut that. They dropped titles and spoke
to one another on a first-name basis. Well, at one point I sort
of leaned in and said, "My name's Ron." Well, in that
same year, we began the actions we felt would ignite an economic
comeback cut taxes and regulation, started to cut spending.
And soon the recovery began.
Two
years later, another economic summit with pretty much the same cast.
At the big opening meeting we all got together, and all of a sudden,
just for a moment, I saw that everyone was just sitting there looking
at me. And then one of them broke the silence. "Tell us about
the American miracle," he said.
Well,
back in 1980, when I was running for President, it was all so different.
Some pundits said our programs would result in catastrophe. Our
views on foreign affairs would cause war. Our plans for the economy
would cause inflation to soar and bring about economic collapse.
I even remember one highly respected economist saying, back in 1982,
that "The engines of economic growth have shut down here, and
they're likely to stay that way for years to come." Well, he
and the other opinion leaders were wrong. The fact is what they
call "radical" was really "right." What they
called "dangerous" was just "desperately needed."
And
in all of that time I won a nickname, "The Great Communicator."
But I never thought it was my style or the words I used that made
a difference: it was the content. I wasn't a great communicator,
but I communicated great things, and they didn't spring full bloom
from my brow, they came from the heart of a great nation
from our experience, our wisdom, and our belief in the principles
that have guided us for two centuries. They called it the Reagan
revolution. Well, I'll accept that, but for me it always seemed
more like the great rediscovery, a rediscovery of our values and
our common sense.
Common
sense told us that when you put a big tax on something, the people
will produce less of it. So, we cut the people's tax rates, and
the people produced more than ever before. The economy bloomed like
a plant that had been cut back and could now grow quicker and stronger.
Our economic program brought about the longest peacetime expansion
in our history: real family income up, the poverty rate down, entrepreneurship
booming, and an explosion in research and new technology. Were
exporting more than ever because
American
industry became more competitive and at the same time, we summoned
the national will to knock down protectionist walls abroad instead
of erecting them at home.
Common
sense also told us that to preserve the peace, wed have to
become strong again after years of weakness and confusion. So, we
rebuilt our defenses, and this New Year we toasted the new peacefulness
around the globe. Not only have the superpowers actually begun to
reduce their stockpiles of nuclear weapons and hope for even
more progress is bright but the regional conflicts that rack
the globe are also beginning to cease. The Persian Gulf is no longer
a war zone. The Soviets are leaving Afghanistan. The Vietnamese
are preparing to pull out of Cambodia, and an American-mediated
accord will soon send 50,000 Cuban troops home from Angola.
The
lesson of all this was, of course, that because we're a great nation,
our challenges seem complex. It will always be this way. But as
long as we remember our first principles and believe in ourselves,
the future will always be ours. And something else we learned: Once
you begin a great movement, theres no telling where it will
end. We meant to change a nation, and instead, we changed a world.
Countries
across the globe are turning to free markets and free speech and
turning away from the ideologies of the past. For them, the great
rediscovery of the 1980s has been that, lo and behold, the
moral way of government is the practical way of government: Democracy,
the profoundly good, is also the profoundly productive.
When
youve got to the point when you can celebrate the anniversaries
of your 39th birthday you can sit back sometimes, review your life,
and see it flowing before you. For me there was a fork in the river,
and it was right in the middle of my life. I never meant to go into
politics. It wasn't my intention when I was young. But I was raised
to believe you had to pay your way for the blessings bestowed on
you. I was happy with my career in the entertainment world, but
I ultimately went into politics because I wanted to protect something
precious.
Ours
was the first revolution in the history of mankind that truly reversed
the course of government, and with three little words: "We
the People." "We the People" tell the government
what to do; it doesn't tell us. "We the People" are the
driver; the government is the car. And we decide where it should
go, and by what route, and how fast. Almost all the worlds
constitutions are documents in which governments tell the people
what their privileges are. Our Constitution is a document in which
"We the People" tell the government what it is allowed
to do. "We the People" are free. This belief has been
the underlying basis for everything Ive tried to do these
past 8 years.
But
back in the 1960s, when I began, it seemed to me that wed
begun reversing the order of things that through more and
more rules and regulations and confiscatory taxes, the government
was taking more of our money, more of our options, and more of our
freedom. I went into politics in part to put up my hand and say,
"Stop." I was a citizen politician, and it seemed the
right thing for a citizen to do.
I
think we have stopped a lot of what needed stopping. And I hope
we have once again reminded people that man is not free unless government
is limited. Theres a clear cause and effect here that is as
neat and predictable as a law of physics: As government expands,
liberty contracts.
Nothing
is less free than pure communism and yet we have, the past
few years, forged a satisfying new closeness with the Soviet Union.
Ive been asked if this isnt a gamble, and my answer
is no because were basing our actions not on words but deeds.
The détente of the 1970s was based not on actions but
promises. Theyd promise to treat their own people and the
people of the world better. But the gulag was still the gulag, and
the state was still expansionist, and they still waged proxy wars
in Africa, Asia, and Latin America.
Well,
this time, so far, its different. President Gorbachev has
brought about some internal democratic reforms and begun the withdrawal
from Afghanistan. He has also freed prisoners whose names I've given
him every time weve met.
But
life has a way of reminding you of big things through small incidents.
Once, during the heady days of the Moscow summit, Nancy and I decided
to break off from the entourage one afternoon to visit the shops
on Arbat Street that's a little street just off Moscow's
main shopping area. Even though our visit was a surprise, every
Russian there immediately recognized us and called out our names
and reached for our hands. We were just about swept away by the
warmth. You could almost feel the possibilities in all that joy.
But within seconds, a KGB detail pushed their way toward us and
began pushing and shoving the people in the crowd. It was an interesting
moment. It reminded me that while the man on the street in the Soviet
Union yearns for peace, the government is Communist. And those who
run it are Communists, and that means we and they view such issues
as freedom and human rights very differently.
We
must keep up our guard, but we must also continue to work together
to lessen and eliminate tension and mistrust. My view is that President
Gorbachev is different from previous Soviet leaders. I think he
knows some of the things wrong with his society and is trying to
fix them. We wish him well. And well continue to work to make
sure that the Soviet Union that eventually emerges from this process
is a less threatening one. What it all boils down to is this: I
want the new closeness to continue. And it will, as long as we make
it clear that we will continue to act in a certain way as long as
they continue to act in a helpful manner. If and when they dont,
at first pull your punches. If they persist, pull the plug. Its
still trust by verify. Its still play, but cut the cards.
Its still watch closely. And dont be afraid to see what
you see.
I've
been asked if I have any regrets. Well, I do. The deficit is one.
Ive been talking a great deal about that lately, but tonight
isnt for arguments, and Im going to hold my tongue.
But an observation: Ive had my share of victories in the Congress,
but what few people noticed is that I never won anything you didnt
win for me. They never saw my troops, they never saw Reagans
regiments, the American people. You won every battle with every
call you made and letter you wrote demanding action. Well, action
is still needed. If were to finish the job, Reagan's regiments
will have to become the Bush brigades. Soon hell be the chief,
and hell need you every bit as much as I did.
Finally,
there is a great tradition of warnings in Presidential farewells,
and I've got one that's been on my mind for some time. But oddly
enough it starts with one of the things Im proudest of in
the past 8 years: the resurgence of national pride that I called
the new patriotism. This national feeling is good, but it wont
count for much, and it wont last unless its grounded
in thoughtfulness and knowledge.
An
informed patriotism is what we want. And are we doing a good enough
job teaching our children what America is and what she represents
in the long history of the world? Those of us who are over 35 or
so years of age grew up in a different America. We were taught,
very directly, what it means to be an American. And we absorbed,
almost in the air, a love of country and an appreciation of its
institutions. If you didnt get these things from your family
you got them from the neighborhood, from the father down the street
who fought in Korea or the family who lost someone at Anzio. Or
you could get a sense of patriotism from school. And if all else
failed you could get a sense of patriotism from the popular culture.
The movies celebrated democratic values and implicitly reinforced
the idea that America was special. TV was like that, too, through
the mid-sixties.
But
now, were about to enter the nineties, and some things have
changed. Younger parents arent sure that an unambivalent appreciation
of America is the right thing to teach modern children. And as for
those who create the popular culture, well-grounded patriotism is
no longer the style. Our spirit is back, but we havent reinstitutionalized
it. Weve got to do a better job of getting across that America
is freedom freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom
of enterprise. And freedom is special and rare. Its fragile;
it needs protection.
So,
weve got to teach history based not on whats in fashion
but whats important why the Pilgrims came here, who
Jimmy Doolittle was, and what those 30 seconds over Tokyo meant.
You know, 4 years ago on the 40th anniversary of D-day,
I read a letter from a young woman writing to her late father, whod
fought on Omaha Beach. Her name was Lisa Zanatta Henn, and she said,
"We will always remember, we will never forget what the boys
of Normandy did." Well, lets help her keep her word.
If we forget what we did, we won't know who we are. Im warning
of an eradication of the American memory that could result, ultimately,
in an erosion of the American spirit. Lets start with some
basics: more attention to American history and a greater emphasis
on civic ritual.
And
let me offer lesson number one about America: All great change in
America begins at the dinner table. So, tomorrow night in the kitchen
I hope the talking begins. And children, if your parents havent
been teaching you what it means to be an American, let em
know and nail em on it. That would be a very American thing
to do.
And
that's about all I have to say tonight, except for one thing. The
past few days when Ive been at that window upstairs, Ive
thought a bit of the "shining city upon a hill." The phrase
comes from John Winthrop, who wrote it to describe the America he
imagined. What he imagined was important because he was an early
Pilgrim, an early freedom man. He journeyed here on what today wed
call a little wooden boat; and like the other Pilgrims, he was looking
for a home that would be free. Ive spoken of the shining city
all my political life, but I dont know if I ever quite communicated
what I saw when I said it. But in my mind it was a tall, proud city
built on rocks stronger than oceans, windswept, God-blessed, and
teeming with people of all kinds living in harmony and peace; a
city with free ports that hummed with commerce and creativity. And
if there had to be city walls, the walls had doors and the doors
were open to anyone with the will and the heart to get here. Thats
how I saw it, and see it still.
And
how stands the city on this winter night? More prosperous, more
secure, and happier than it was 8 years ago. But more than that:
After 200 years, two centuries, she still stands strong and true
on the granite ridge, and her glow has held steady no matter what
storm. And shes still a beacon, still a magnet for all who
must have freedom, for all the pilgrims from all the lost places
who are hurtling through the darkness, toward home.
Weve
done our part. And as I walk off into the city streets, a final
word to the men and women of the Reagan revolution, the men and
women across America who for 8 years did the work that brought America
back. My friends: We did it. We werent just marking time.
We made a difference. We made the city stronger, we made the city
freer, and we left her in good hands. All in all, not bad, not bad
at all.
And
so, goodbye, God bless you, and God bless the United States of America.
[Posted
June 9, 2004]
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images courtesy of the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation,
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