George H.W. Bush: “Well, I'd rather say hello, but I--for busy people, working hard in a struggling economy, to take the time to come here…”

“Well, I'd rather say hello, but I--for busy people, working hard in a struggling economy, to take the time to come here has been extraordinarily helpful to me. And I just want to end where I started. I don't know what I have to do to convince people here that I really care about this; I do. I probably have made mistakes in assessing the fact that the economy would recover. Last year at this time, 49 out of the 50 blue-chip economists thought that by now we'd be in recovery. They were wrong; I was wrong. Maybe one or two of you around the table would admit he or even she was wrong. Sorry, Bonnie. I don't know. So, it's not a question of blame; I will accept that. But what I want to do is con- vince the people here, one, that I under- stand the problem--I think I do; two, that I need help in solving the problem, and that means support for the growth initiatives, some of which I've tried and failed on because of a stiff by a partisan Congress, and some of which we will try again, and add to that additional ones that I've been listening to around this table. So, we're going to go, and go forth in this State of the Union. Then I also took on board this comment about needing to follow that up. And what we can get done in an election year, I don't know. But I'll conclude this way: Without having it sound like Mrs. Rose Scenario, this is New Hampshire. You've done a lot; you've accomplished a lot. And this State is going to pull out of this. This national economy is going to pull out of this. You look back in history of this country; it always has, and it will. So, my message without, as I say, just being euphorically optimistic, is that in place there are some fundamentals that we haven't talked about today. Somebody ought to--the market's seeing them, incidentally. What are they? They are: Interest rates are down. Inflation, the cruelest tax of all, is down. Unfortunately, part of the reason is economic growth is so slow. But nevertheless, that is down. Inventories are in fair shape. And I think most people here understand that. We are making progress on access to foreign markets. The exports are vibrant. Couple those with the bad news, and we all know what that is, of unemployment and, somebody put their finger on it, confidence, the confidence factor. I mean, we had national unemployment at 10.7 percent in about 1981 or 1982, and confidence was higher then than it is now. People were saying, ``Hey, tomorrow is going to be better.'' So, I don't want to be the cheerleader saying tomorrow is going to be better. I do think the economy is going to come out of it. But I need the help of sound-thinking people to resist the siren call of protection, to resist some of these quick political appeal taxing schemes that may get you a vote or two, but will do nothing to stimulate jobs, investment, and economic growth. And so, I came here to ask for support in this very important field, as well as to listen to the heartbeat of this State that I do feel Barbara and I both know. Somebody mentioned her, and I am very proud of what she is doing, not just because she knows how to handle her husband when he throws up--[laughter]--but she is expressing something that I think the people of New Hampshire understand. And that is love of family, faith, determination, helping kids--taking an AIDS baby and holding it in her arms and say, ``Hey, we need a little compassion and understanding on all this.'' And I have a very comfortable feeling that people here know that we do feel a part of this State. In any event, that's what I'd say in conclusion. And thank you all very, very much. I've learned a lot. Note: The President spoke at 8:52 a.m. at the Pease Air National Guard Base. In his remarks, he referred to J. Bonnie Newman, former Assistant to the President for Management and Administration, and Ruth L. Griffin, member of the Governor's Council.”