The President. Thank you very much, Governor Terry Branstad, and members of the Iowa delegation, and my old friend, the conscience of the Congress, H.
Thank you all for your very warm welcome. And may I say it's a tonic to be in this beautiful place. You don't listen to the worldly cynics; you're too busy making America's future better. It's wonderful to see so many of you here. There are almost as many of you as there are Democratic Presidential candidates.
Now, correct me if I'm wrong, because you're closer to the situation than I am. But aren't these people who talk so much about fairness for all Americans the same ones who can't see you unless you belong to a special interest group? And don't you get a little nervous when those born-again budget balancers tell us there's only one way to reduce deficits, and it begins with raising your taxes? But let's be fair. This is one area where all our liberal friends are willing to cut spending.
There is one area. They'll cut what America needs to protect her national security. Oh, they say they're for a strong national defense. But ask them if we should build the B - 1 bomber or the MX missile or the Trident submarine or the cruise missile or the aircraft carriers or the M - 1 tank or rebuild the battleship Iowa -- but that's another story. I don't know how they feel about slingshots -- [laughter] -- but I do know that with them in control our defenses would still be growing weaker.
Oh, troops would have landed in Grenada all right; they just wouldn't have been American troops. The Grenadians wouldn't have been applauding, and our American students might not have been saved. You know, I'm going to interrupt right here, because -- I wasn't going to tell you this, but I have to.
