Jimmy Carter

We have already done that, and we are pushing that as hard as we possibly can.

I am today announcing my support for efforts in Congress to reform the regulation of telecommunications.

This is a significant step toward providing a new source of energy supplies for our country.

We need a new system, which would be administered openly by public officials.

We have just reached an agreement with the Government of Mexico which will permit the purchase of Mexican natural gas by United States buyers.

Regulatory reform is one of my highest national priorities.

I see our Nation directly threatened in its security by an excessive dependence on imported oil.

Universal availability of basic telephone service at affordable rates must be maintained.

Active, growing youngsters need good food to do well in school.

I will nominate Roberts Bishop Owen, of Washington, D.C., to be Legal Adviser of the Department of State.

I'm today appointing an emergency board, under the Railway Labor Act, to intervene in the labor dispute that has crippled the Rock Island Railroad since August 27.

I call upon the Congress to pass without delay the rail deregulation proposal to break the strangulation of outmoded, unnecessary economic regulations.

This strike is having a severe, adverse economic effect on farmers throughout the Central United States.

I urge the people of the United States to observe the week of October 14, 1979, as National School Lunch Week.

The purpose of this action is to get the trains rolling again in a matter of days and to start moving grain that has already been piling up in the large areas of the Midwest served by the Rock Island Railroad line.

It is inconceivable that the Congress would allow the Panama Canal to be closed even for a short time.

There is established a board of three members to be appointed by the President to investigate these disputes.

The United States must have legislative authority by October 1 to exercise our rights to operate the canal.

This will involve both wide competition and a very careful selection for the executive development programs required by the Reform Act.

The SES offers one of the most promising avenues for improving the management of the Federal government.

This year marks the twenty-fifth anniversary of the Meals on Wheels programs which make nutritious food available to aged and ailing persons in their homes.

I will nominate Inez Smith Reid, of New York City, to be Inspector General of the Environmental Protection Agency.

I invite the Governors of the several States, the chief officials of local governments and the people of the United States to observe this period with appropriate ceremonies and activities.

There are no more important actions we can take to provide long-term benefit to Government and more efficient delivery of services to the public.

It is imperative that you impress upon the Chairperson and members of your Executive Resources Board the importance this Administration places upon executive selection and development.