George H.W. Bush: “Thank you all very much. Hey, let me tell you something. In case you don't know it, we finally have a first-class, great…”

“Thank you all very much. Hey, let me tell you something. In case you don't know it, we finally have a first-class, great secretary of agriculture in Texas that understands the farmer in Rick Perry. And I was very, very proud of him at that Houston convention when he got up there and told it as it is, making all Texans proud, making people across the country understand that we know about agriculture and we know about the American spirit. Rick, thank you very much for that introduction. And let me salute the Future Farmers that are with us today. Also, you know I'm having a little feud with the liberal gridlocked Congress. If we had more Congressmen like Larry Combest, we wouldn't have a gridlocked Congress. And may I thank Mayor Moe Dozier and, of course, Sonny Lupton, the one-footed glider pilot who has made us feel so much at home here, turned the facilities of this great place over to us. And I'm very, very grateful to him. May I say hello to Carye Gruben, the 1992 South Plains Maid of Cotton. You should be very proud to be represented by her. And special thanks to Randy Kennedy, who has worked so hard on this event, and Jane Anne Stinnett, both of them and so many more. Our convention in Houston was so successful that I just had to get back in Texas for another major event. But unfortunately, I won't be able to stay to see the Raiders open it up tomorrow with Oklahoma. But go Texas Tech! A little bit of reminiscing: Barbara and I moved down into Odessa in 1948, and then we lived in Midland, Odessa-Midland for 12 years. And I've driven every mile between Lubbock County and Ector and Midland County, into Dawson County and Howard County and--[applause]--I thought we might have a few from around there. But I'll tell you, on a day like this, you can't help but feel you're glad to be back. This is beautiful, and I'm very grateful to all for this fantastic turnout. I remember when west Texas was dry. I remember picking out the Lubbock tumbleweeds out of one of those evaporative air conditioners in our little house in Odessa. No more, I'll tell you. But when I lived in--one more reminiscent that some of you football fans, older ones, might remember. We had a touch football team in Midland. And we played against the Lubbock team made up of Glen Davis, Mel Kutnow and Bobby Lane. Now, how do you like that for Lubbock excellence? We lost. Now, I came back here to Texas today to the heart of this wonderful part of rural America to talk about the farm and to talk about the future of the farmer. Let me be very clear right up front: I am for opening up world markets, for increasing exports, for keeping the Government off your back at home, and being there to help you get back on your feet when disaster strikes. The challenge for agricultural America is to win this economic competition and to win the peace. And out here in Texas we know this: We must be a military superpower, we must be an economic superpower, and we must be an export superpower. That means looking forward and getting ready to compete. Make no mistake, America's farmer can compete with anybody, anywhere around the world, provided that playing field is level, provided we get an even shot at world trade. I've fought to open new markets for American agriculture: Texas beef to Asia, Midwest grain to Russia, and just last month we concluded a North American free trade agreement with Mexico. That means new markets, and that means jobs for Americans. Open up trade. You all know this, but I want to share it with the rest of the country here today. American products, from blue jeans spun from Texas high-plains cotton to bushels of wheat from Haskell County, are in demand everywhere. In fact, one in every three acres planted in this country produces crops for export. Exports are up, and that is good for the growth of the American economy. If it hadn't been for exports, we'd really be in deep trouble. Thank you for exporting our goods and services abroad. This fall we've got a choice. Rick, I appreciate what you said, that I do stand with American agriculture. This fall we've got a real clear choice, an important choice because it's going to mean the economic health of American farmers all across the country. And if our opponents in this year's election put up these walls around America, whether they're high tariff walls or high tax walls, the first losers will be American agriculture and American jobs. And let me make this point. You know that Texas is America's number one exporter of cotton, and the State of Texas ranks among the top 10 exporters in 14 different major crops. And if Governor Clinton gets infected with that antitrade strain from the protectionist crowd he's running around with, the big labor guys, it's going to be Texas that catches pneumonia. And we cannot have that. One of the big union heads in Washing- ton today was quoted in a Washington paper as saying, ``Well, we're not going to get Clinton to take a position on the free trade agreement. We'll get that all worked out after the election.'' They're trying to get it worked out for protection, and that's going to hurt jobs in west Texas. And we cannot have it. He's got to commit. When you're President you can't sit on the fence--``Well, on the one hand it's this way, and on the one hand another.'' You've got to say, I'm for it or against it. I am for opening markets abroad. I am for free trade. Audience members. Four more years! Four more years! Four more years!”