Good afternoon: At the beginning of each new year, as we reflect on the state of our American Union, we seek again a definition of what America means. Carl Sandburg came close to capturing its real meaning in three simple words that became the title for one of his greatest poems: "The People, Yes." America has risen to greatness because again and again when the chips were down, the American people have said yes--yes to the challenge of freedom, yes to the dare of progress, and yes to the hope of peace---even when defending the peace has meant paying the price of war. America's greatness will endure in the future only if our institutions continually rededicate themselves to saying yes to the people--yes to human needs and aspirations, yes to democracy and the consent of the governed, yes to equal opportunity and unlimited horizons of achievement for every American. It is in this spirit of rededication that I will send to the Congress in the next few days the fourth section of my 1973 State of the Union report--a message on the progress we have made, the steps we now must take, in helping people to help themselves through our Federal programs for human resources. Nineteen hundred seventy-three is a year full of opportunity for great advances on this front. After more than 10 years of war, we have successfully completed one of the most unselfish missions ever undertaken by one nation in the defense of another, and now the coming of peace permits us to turn our attention more fully to the works of compassion, concern, and social progress at home. The seriousness of your Government's commitment to make the most of this opportunity is evidenced by the record level of funding for human resources programs proposed in our new budget--$125 billion-nearly twice the amount that was being spent on such programs when I took office in 1969. Let us look behind this impersonal label, "human resources," let us see some examples of the way these programs are helping to provide a better life for the American people. Social security cash benefits for the elderly and the disabled in fiscal year 1974 will be twice what they were 4 years ago. Next year, 5 million additional poor, aged, and disabled persons will receive increased health benefits. Hundreds of counties which previously had no food programs to assure nutrition for the needy have them now--hunger is being eliminated from American life. Hundreds of school districts which were giving black or brown children inferior educations in separate school systems at the time we took office now give all their children an equal chance to learn together in the same schools. A new student assistance system is being established to bring higher education within reach of every qualified student in America. We have launched a national drive for the conquest of cancer. We have advanced a workable proposal to provide comprehensive health insurance for every American family. Health and education benefits for our veterans have been substantially increased. High-priority job programs have decreased the unemployment rate among Vietnam-era veterans by almost one-third during the past year alone. Sweeping reforms have been set in motion to assure our senior citizens of quality nursing home care and of a better chance to live with dignity in homes of their own. Legislative proposals to increase self-determination and economic opportunity for the American Indian have been laid before the Congress. They will be resubmitted to the Congress this year. Outlays for civil rights activities in 1974 will be more than $3 billion--that's 3 1/2 times what they were at the beginning of this Administration. With this support, we are closer today than ever before to the realization of a truly just society, where all men--and all women--are equal in the eyes of the law. These achievements, and others that I will outline in my message to the Congress, constitute a record to be proud of, a good beginning to build on. But there are certain other aspects of the state of our Union's human resources which urgently need reform. During the 1960's, the Federal Government undertook ambitious, sometimes almost utopian, commitments in one area of social policy after another, elbowing aside the State and local governments and the private sector and establishing literally hundreds of new programs based on the assumption that any human problem could be solved simply by throwing enough Federal dollars at it. The intention of this effort was laudable, but the results in case after case amounted to dismal failure. The money which left Washington in a seemingly inexhaustible flood was reduced to a mere trickle by the time it had filtered through all the layers of bureaucrats, consultants, and social workers, and finally reached those whom it was supposed to help. Too much money has been going to those who were supposed to help the needy and too little to the needy themselves. Those who make a profession out of poverty got fat, the taxpayer got stuck with the bill, and the disadvantaged themselves got little but broken promises. We must do better than this. The American people deserve compassion that works--not simply compassion that means well. They deserve programs that say yes to human needs by saying no to paternalism, social exploitation, and waste. In order to bring our programs up to this standard, we have carefully reviewed each of them with three questions in mind: How can we reform the decisionmaking process to bring it closer to the people whom these decisions will affect? How can we get more value and productivity out of every tax dollar devoted to human resources? How can we reform our approach to the delivery of services so as to give people the assistance they need without taking away their freedom or decreasing their self-reliance and their self-respect? Here are some of the reforms we propose: To give the people served a better and greater voice in education and manpower training programs, we propose to convert them from narrow, fragmented, categorical programs--closely controlled from Washington--into new special revenue sharing programs which will provide Federal funds to 'be used within broad areas as each State and community judges best to meet its own special needs. To make the Federal health care dollar go further, we propose to eliminate programs whose job is done---such as hospital construction subsidies which if continued would only worsen the national oversupply of hospital beds and further inflate medical costs. The savings achieved would help to make possible increases in other areas--such as over $100 million more next year in cancer and heart disease research. To make the economic opportunity dollar go further, we propose to transfer most of the antipoverty programs now conducted by the Office of Economic Opportunity into the appropriate Cabinet departments, thereby making them more efficient by linking them with other related Federal activities. To ensure that all of our people are provided with a decent income under circumstances that will increase human dignity rather than eroding such basic values as the family structure and the dignity of work, we will work with the Congress to improve the welfare system. A system which penalizes a person for going to work and rewards a person for going on welfare is totally alien to the American tradition of self-reliance and self-respect. That is why reforming the present welfare system has been, and will continue to be, one of our major goals. The overall effect of these reforms will be the elimination of programs that are wasteful so that we can concentrate on programs that work. They will make possible the continued growth of Federal efforts to meet human needs--while at the same time helping to prevent a ballooning budget deficit that could lead to higher taxes, higher prices, higher interest rates for all Americans. Despite what some people say, fiscal responsibility is not just a rich man's concern. If we were to spend our economy into a tailspin in the name of social welfare, we would only be punishing those we sought to help. Over the course of our history, the free American economy has done more to combat poverty and to raise our standard of living than any government program imaginable. The stable, healthy growth of our economy must remain the cornerstone of all of our human resources policies in the 1970's. To our great credit we Americans are a restless and impatient people--we are a nation of idealists. We dream of eradicating poverty and hunger, discrimination, ignorance, disease, and fear, and we would like to do it all today. But in order to reach these goals, we need to connect this warmhearted impatience of ours with another equally American trait--and that is levelheaded common sense. We need to forge a new approach to human services in this country--an approach which will treat people as more than just statistics--an approach which recognizes that problems like poverty and unemployment, health care and the costs of education are more than cold abstractions in a government file drawer. I know how tough these problems are, because I grew up with them. But I also know that with the right kind of help and the right kind of spirit they can be overcome. I believe that no American family should be denied good health care because of inability to pay. But I also believe that no family should be deprived of the freedom to make its own health care arrangements without bureaucratic meddling. I believe that no boy or girl should be denied a quality education. But I also believe that no child should have to ride a bus miles away from his neighborhood school in order to achieve an arbitrary racial balance. I believe that no American family should have to suffer for lack of income or to break up because the welfare regulations encourage it. But I also believe that we should never make it more comfortable or more profitable to live on a welfare check than on a paycheck. I believe that government must be generous and humane. But I also believe that government must be economically responsible. We must reform or end programs that do not work. We must discontinue those programs that have served their purpose, so that our limited resources can be applied to programs that produce 100 cents worth of human benefits for every tax dollar spent. Working together to meet human needs and unlock human potential is the greatest adventure upon which any people can embark. I pledge continued, strong Federal leadership in this work. But we have learned the hard way that Washington cannot do the whole job by itself. State and local governments, private institutions, and each individual American must do their part as well. Let us give all our citizens the help they need. But let us also remember that each of us bears a basic obligation to help ourselves and to help our fellow man, and no one else can assume that obligation for us--least of all the Federal Government. If we shirk our individual responsibility, the American dream will never be more than a dream. But if the people say yes to this challenge, and if government says yes to the people, we can make that dream come true in the lives of all Americans. Thank you and good afternoon.
Good afternoon: At the beginning of each new year, as we reflect on the state of our American Union, we seek again a definition of what America means. Carl Sandburg came close to capturing its real meaning in three simple words that became the title for one of his greatest poems: "The People, Yes." America has risen to greatness because again and again when the chips were down, the American people have said yes--yes to the challenge of freedom, yes to the dare of progress, and yes to the hope of peace---even when defending the peace has meant paying the price of war. America's greatness will endure in the future only if our institutions continually rededicate themselves to saying yes to the people--yes to human needs and aspirations, yes to democracy and the consent of the governed, yes to equal opportunity and unlimited horizons of achievement for every American. It is in this spirit of rededication that I will send to the Congress in the next few days the fourth section of my 1973 State of the Union report--a message on the progress we have made, the steps we now must take, in helping people to help themselves through our Federal programs for human resources. Nineteen hundred seventy-three is a year full of opportunity for great advances on this front. After more than 10 years of war, we have successfully completed one of the most unselfish missions ever undertaken by one nation in the defense of another, and now the coming of peace permits us to turn our attention more fully to the works of compassion, concern, and social progress at home. The seriousness of your Government's commitment to make the most of this opportunity is evidenced by the record level of funding for human resources programs proposed in our new budget--$125 billion-nearly twice the amount that was being spent on such programs when I took office in 1969. Let us look behind this impersonal label, "human resources," let us see some examples of the way these programs are helping to provide a better life for the American people. Social security cash benefits for the elderly and the disabled in fiscal year 1974 will be twice what they were 4 years ago. Next year, 5 million additional poor, aged, and disabled persons will receive increased health benefits. Hundreds of counties which previously had no food programs to assure nutrition for the needy have them now--hunger is being eliminated from American life. Hundreds of school districts which were giving black or brown children inferior educations in separate school systems at the time we took office now give all their children an equal chance to learn together in the same schools. A new student assistance system is being established to bring higher education within reach of every qualified student in America. We have launched a national drive for the conquest of cancer. We have advanced a workable proposal to provide comprehensive health insurance for every American family. Health and education benefits for our veterans have been substantially increased. High-priority job programs have decreased the unemployment rate among Vietnam-era veterans by almost one-third during the past year alone. Sweeping reforms have been set in motion to assure our senior citizens of quality nursing home care and of a better chance to live with dignity in homes of their own. Legislative proposals to increase self-determination and economic opportunity for the American Indian have been laid before the Congress. They will be resubmitted to the Congress this year. Outlays for civil rights activities in 1974 will be more than $3 billion--that is 3 1/2 times what they were at the beginning of this Administration. With this support, we are closer today than ever before to the realization of a truly just society, where all men--and all women--are equal in the eyes of the law. These achievements, and others that I will outline in my message to the Congress, constitute a record to be proud of, a good beginning to build on. But there are certain other aspects of the state of our Union's human resources which urgently need reform. During the 1960's, the Federal Government undertook ambitious, sometimes almost utopian, commitments in one area of social policy after another, elbowing aside the State and local governments and the private sector and establishing literally hundreds of new programs based on the assumption that any human problem could be solved simply by throwing enough Federal dollars at it. The intention of this effort was laudable, but the results in case after case amounted to dismal failure. The money which left Washington in a seemingly inexhaustible flood was reduced to a mere trickle by the time it had filtered through all the layers of bureaucrats, consultants, and social workers, and finally reached those whom it was supposed to help. Too much money has been going to those who were supposed to help the needy and too little to the needy themselves. Those who make a profession out of poverty got fat, the taxpayer got stuck with the bill, and the disadvantaged themselves got little but broken promises. We must do better than this. The American people deserve compassion that works--not simply compassion that means well. They deserve programs that say yes to human needs by saying no to paternalism, social exploitation, and waste. In order to bring our programs up to this standard, we have carefully reviewed each of them with three questions in mind: How can we reform the decisionmaking process to bring it closer to the people whom these decisions will affect? How can we get more value and productivity out of every tax dollar devoted to human resources? How can we reform our approach to the delivery of services so as to give people the assistance they need without taking away their freedom or decreasing their self-reliance and their self-respect? Here are some of the reforms we propose: To give the people served a better and greater voice in education and manpower training programs, we propose to convert them from narrow, fragmented, categorical programs--closely controlled from Washington--into new special revenue sharing programs which will provide Federal funds to 'be used within broad areas as each State and community judges best to meet its own special needs. To make the Federal health care dollar go further, we propose to eliminate programs whose job is done---such as hospital construction subsidies which if continued would only worsen the national oversupply of hospital beds and further inflate medical costs. The savings achieved would help to make possible increases in other areas--such as over $100 million more next year in cancer and heart disease research. To make the economic opportunity dollar go further, we propose to transfer most of the antipoverty programs now conducted by the Office of Economic Opportunity into the appropriate Cabinet departments, thereby making them more efficient by linking them with other related Federal activities. To ensure that all of our people are provided with a decent income under circumstances that will increase human dignity rather than eroding such basic values as the family structure and the dignity of work, we will work with the Congress to improve the welfare system. A system which penalizes a person for going to work and rewards a person for going on welfare is totally alien to the American tradition of self-reliance and self-respect. That is why reforming the present welfare system has been, and will continue to be, one of our major goals. The overall effect of these reforms will be the elimination of programs that are wasteful so that we can concentrate on programs that work. They will make possible the continued growth of Federal efforts to meet human needs--while at the same time helping to prevent a ballooning budget deficit that could lead to higher taxes, higher prices, higher interest rates for all Americans. Despite what some people say, fiscal responsibility is not just a rich man's concern. If we were to spend our economy into a tailspin in the name of social welfare, we would only be punishing those we sought to help. Over the course of our history, the free American economy has done more to combat poverty and to raise our standard of living than any government program imaginable. The stable, healthy growth of our economy must remain the cornerstone of all of our human resources policies in the 1970's. To our great credit we Americans are a restless and impatient people--we are a nation of idealists. We dream of eradicating poverty and hunger, discrimination, ignorance, disease, and fear, and we would like to do it all today. But in order to reach these goals, we need to connect this warmhearted impatience of ours with another equally American trait--and that is levelheaded common sense. We need to forge a new approach to human services in this country--an approach which will treat people as more than just statistics--an approach which recognizes that problems like poverty and unemployment, health care and the costs of education are more than cold abstractions in a government file drawer. I know how tough these problems are, because I grew up with them. But I also know that with the right kind of help and the right kind of spirit they can be overcome. I believe that no American family should be denied good health care because of inability to pay. But I also believe that no family should be deprived of the freedom to make its own health care arrangements without bureaucratic meddling. I believe that no boy or girl should be denied a quality education. But I also believe that no child should have to ride a bus miles away from his neighborhood school in order to achieve an arbitrary racial balance. I believe that no American family should have to suffer for lack of income or to break up because the welfare regulations encourage it. But I also believe that we should never make it more comfortable or more profitable to live on a welfare check than on a paycheck. I believe that government must be generous and humane. But I also believe that government must be economically responsible. We must reform or end programs that do not work. We must discontinue those programs that have served their purpose, so that our limited resources can be applied to programs that produce 100 cents worth of human benefits for every tax dollar spent. Working together to meet human needs and unlock human potential is the greatest adventure upon which any people can embark. I pledge continued, strong Federal leadership in this work. But we have learned the hard way that Washington cannot do the whole job by itself. State and local governments, private institutions, and each individual American must do their part as well. Let us give all our citizens the help they need. But let us also remember that each of us bears a basic obligation to help ourselves and to help our fellow man, and no one else can assume that obligation for us--least of all the Federal Government. If we shirk our individual responsibility, the American dream will never be more than a dream. But if the people say yes to this challenge, and if government says yes to the people, we can make that dream come true in the lives of all Americans. Thank you and good afternoon.
good afternoon at the beginning of each new year as we reflect on the state of our american union we seek again a definition of what america means carl sandburg came close to capturing its real meaning in three simple words that became the title for one of his greatest poems the people yes america has risen to greatness because again and again when the chips were down the american people have said yes yes to the challenge of freedom yes to the dare of progress and yes to the hope of peace when defending the peace has meant paying the price of war america greatness will endure in the future only if our institutions continually rededicate themselves to saying yes to the people yes to human needs and aspirations yes to democracy and the consent of the governed yes to equal opportunity and unlimited horizons of achievement for every american it is in this spirit of rededication that i will send to the congress in the next few days the fourth section of my 1973 state of the union report a message on the progress we have made the steps we now must take in helping people to help themselves through our federal programs for human resources nineteen hundred is a year full of opportunity for great advances on this front after more than 10 years of war we have successfully completed one of the most unselfish missions ever undertaken by one nation in the defense of another and now the coming of peace permits us to turn our attention more fully to the works of compassion concern and social progress at home the seriousness of your government commitment to make the most of this opportunity is evidenced by the record level of funding for human resources programs proposed in our new budget 125 twice the amount that was being spent on such programs when i took office in 1969 let us look behind this impersonal label human resources let us see some examples of the way these programs are helping to provide a better life for the american people social security cash benefits for the elderly and the disabled in fiscal year 1974 will be twice what they were 4 years ago next year 5 million additional poor aged and disabled persons will receive increased health benefits hundreds of counties which previously had no food programs to assure nutrition for the needy have them now hunger is being eliminated from american life hundreds of school districts which were giving black or brown children inferior educations in separate school systems at the time we took office now give all their children an equal chance to learn together in the same schools a new student assistance system is being established to bring higher education within reach of every qualified student in america we have launched a national drive for the conquest of cancer we have advanced a workable proposal to provide comprehensive health insurance for every american family health and education benefits for our veterans have been substantially increased job programs have decreased the unemployment rate among veterans by almost during the past year alone sweeping reforms have been set in motion to assure our senior citizens of quality nursing home care and of a better chance to live with dignity in homes of their own legislative proposals to increase and economic opportunity for the american indian have been laid before the congress they will be resubmitted to the congress this year outlays for civil rights activities in 1974 will be more than 3 billion that is 3 times what they were at the beginning of this administration with this support we are closer today than ever before to the realization of a truly just society where all men and all women are equal in the eyes of the law these achievements and others that i will outline in my message to the congress constitute a record to be proud of a good beginning to build on but there are certain other aspects of the state of our union human resources which urgently need reform during the 1960 the federal government undertook ambitious sometimes almost utopian commitments in one area of social policy after another elbowing aside the state and local governments and the private sector and establishing literally hundreds of new programs based on the assumption that any human problem could be solved simply by throwing enough federal dollars at it the intention of this effort was laudable but the results in case after case amounted to dismal failure the money which left washington in a seemingly inexhaustible flood was reduced to a mere trickle by the time it had filtered through all the layers of bureaucrats consultants and social workers and finally reached those whom it was supposed to help too much money has been going to those who were supposed to help the needy and too little to the needy themselves those who make a profession out of poverty got fat the taxpayer got stuck with the bill and the disadvantaged themselves got little but broken promises we must do better than this the american people deserve compassion that works not simply compassion that means well they deserve programs that say yes to human needs by saying no to paternalism social exploitation and waste in order to bring our programs up to this standard we have carefully reviewed each of them with three questions in mind how can we reform the decisionmaking process to bring it closer to the people whom these decisions will affect how can we get more value and productivity out of every tax dollar devoted to human resources how can we reform our approach to the delivery of services so as to give people the assistance they need without taking away their freedom or decreasing their and their here are some of the reforms we propose to give the people served a better and greater voice in education and manpower training programs we propose to convert them from narrow fragmented categorical programs closely controlled from washington into new special revenue sharing programs which will provide federal funds to used within broad areas as each state and community judges best to meet its own special needs to make the federal health care dollar go further we propose to eliminate programs whose job is done as hospital construction subsidies which if continued would only worsen the national oversupply of hospital beds and further inflate medical costs the savings achieved would help to make possible increases in other areas such as over 100 million more next year in cancer and heart disease research to make the economic opportunity dollar go further we propose to transfer most of the antipoverty programs now conducted by the office of economic opportunity into the appropriate cabinet departments thereby making them more efficient by linking them with other related federal activities to ensure that all of our people are provided with a decent income under circumstances that will increase human dignity rather than eroding such basic values as the family structure and the dignity of work we will work with the congress to improve the welfare system a system which penalizes a person for going to work and rewards a person for going on welfare is totally alien to the american tradition of and that is why reforming the present welfare system has been and will continue to be one of our major goals the overall effect of these reforms will be the elimination of programs that are wasteful so that we can concentrate on programs that work they will make possible the continued growth of federal efforts to meet human needs while at the same time helping to prevent a ballooning budget deficit that could lead to higher taxes higher prices higher interest rates for all americans despite what some people say fiscal responsibility is not just a rich man concern if we were to spend our economy into a tailspin in the name of social welfare we would only be punishing those we sought to help over the course of our history the free american economy has done more to combat poverty and to raise our standard of living than any government program imaginable the stable healthy growth of our economy must remain the cornerstone of all of our human resources policies in the 1970 to our great credit we americans are a restless and impatient people we are a nation of idealists we dream of eradicating poverty and hunger discrimination ignorance disease and fear and we would like to do it all today but in order to reach these goals we need to connect this warmhearted impatience of ours with another equally american trait and that is levelheaded common sense we need to forge a new approach to human services in this country an approach which will treat people as more than just statistics an approach which recognizes that problems like poverty and unemployment health care and the costs of education are more than cold abstractions in a government file drawer i know how tough these problems are because i grew up with them but i also know that with the right kind of help and the right kind of spirit they can be overcome i believe that no american family should be denied good health care because of inability to pay but i also believe that no family should be deprived of the freedom to make its own health care arrangements without bureaucratic meddling i believe that no boy or girl should be denied a quality education but i also believe that no child should have to ride a bus miles away from his neighborhood school in order to achieve an arbitrary racial balance i believe that no american family should have to suffer for lack of income or to break up because the welfare regulations encourage it but i also believe that we should never make it more comfortable or more profitable to live on a welfare check than on a paycheck i believe that government must be generous and humane but i also believe that government must be economically responsible we must reform or end programs that do not work we must discontinue those programs that have served their purpose so that our limited resources can be applied to programs that produce 100 cents worth of human benefits for every tax dollar spent working together to meet human needs and unlock human potential is the greatest adventure upon which any people can embark i pledge continued strong federal leadership in this work but we have learned the hard way that washington can not do the whole job by itself state and local governments private institutions and each individual american must do their part as well let us give all our citizens the help they need but let us also remember that each of us bears a basic obligation to help ourselves and to help our fellow man and no one else can assume that obligation for us least of all the federal government if we shirk our individual responsibility the american dream will never be more than a dream but if the people say yes to this challenge and if government says yes to the people we can make that dream come true in the lives of all americans thank you and good afternoon
good afternoon beginning new year reflect state american union seek definition america means carl sandburg came close capturing real meaning three simple words became title one greatest poems people yes america risen greatness chips american people said yes yes challenge freedom yes dare progress yes hope peace defending peace meant paying price war america greatness endure future institutions continually rededicate saying yes people yes human needs aspirations yes democracy consent governed yes equal opportunity unlimited horizons achievement every american spirit rededication send congress next days fourth section 1973 state union report message progress made steps must take helping people help federal programs human resources nineteen hundred year full opportunity great advances front 10 years war successfully completed one unselfish missions ever undertaken one nation defense another coming peace permits us turn attention fully works compassion concern social progress home seriousness government commitment make opportunity evidenced record level funding human resources programs proposed new budget 125 twice amount spent programs took office 1969 let us look behind impersonal label human resources let us see examples way programs helping provide better life american people social security cash benefits elderly disabled fiscal year 1974 twice 4 years ago next year 5 million additional poor aged disabled persons receive increased health benefits hundreds counties previously food programs assure nutrition needy hunger eliminated american life hundreds school districts giving black brown children inferior educations separate school systems time took office give children equal chance learn together schools new student assistance system established bring higher education within reach every qualified student america launched national drive conquest cancer advanced workable proposal provide comprehensive health insurance every american family health education benefits veterans substantially increased job programs decreased unemployment rate among veterans almost past year alone sweeping reforms set motion assure senior citizens quality nursing home care better chance live dignity homes legislative proposals increase economic opportunity american indian laid congress resubmitted congress year outlays civil rights activities 1974 3 billion 3 times beginning administration support closer today ever realization truly society men women equal eyes law achievements others outline message congress constitute record proud good beginning build certain aspects state union human resources urgently need reform 1960 federal government undertook ambitious sometimes almost utopian commitments one area social policy another elbowing aside state local governments private sector establishing literally hundreds new programs based assumption human problem could solved simply throwing enough federal dollars intention effort laudable results case case amounted dismal failure money left washington seemingly inexhaustible flood reduced mere trickle time filtered layers bureaucrats consultants social workers finally reached supposed help much money going supposed help needy little needy make profession poverty got fat taxpayer got stuck bill disadvantaged got little broken promises must better american people deserve compassion works simply compassion means well deserve programs say yes human needs saying paternalism social exploitation waste order bring programs standard carefully reviewed three questions mind reform decisionmaking process bring closer people decisions affect get value productivity every tax dollar devoted human resources reform approach delivery services give people assistance need without taking away freedom decreasing reforms propose give people served better greater voice education manpower training programs propose convert narrow fragmented categorical programs closely controlled washington new special revenue sharing programs provide federal funds used within broad areas state community judges best meet special needs make federal health care dollar go propose eliminate programs whose job done hospital construction subsidies continued would worsen national oversupply hospital beds inflate medical costs savings achieved would help make possible increases areas 100 million next year cancer heart disease research make economic opportunity dollar go propose transfer antipoverty programs conducted office economic opportunity appropriate cabinet departments thereby making efficient linking related federal activities ensure people provided decent income circumstances increase human dignity rather eroding basic values family structure dignity work work congress improve welfare system system penalizes person going work rewards person going welfare totally alien american tradition reforming present welfare system continue one major goals overall effect reforms elimination programs wasteful concentrate programs work make possible continued growth federal efforts meet human needs time helping prevent ballooning budget deficit could lead higher taxes higher prices higher interest rates americans despite people say fiscal responsibility rich man concern spend economy tailspin name social welfare would punishing sought help course history free american economy done combat poverty raise standard living government program imaginable stable healthy growth economy must remain cornerstone human resources policies 1970 great credit americans restless impatient people nation idealists dream eradicating poverty hunger discrimination ignorance disease fear would like today order reach goals need connect warmhearted impatience another equally american trait levelheaded common sense need forge new approach human services country approach treat people statistics approach recognizes problems like poverty unemployment health care costs education cold abstractions government file drawer know tough problems grew also know right kind help right kind spirit overcome believe american family denied good health care inability pay also believe family deprived freedom make health care arrangements without bureaucratic meddling believe boy girl denied quality education also believe child ride bus miles away neighborhood school order achieve arbitrary racial balance believe american family suffer lack income break welfare regulations encourage also believe never make comfortable profitable live welfare check paycheck believe government must generous humane also believe government must economically responsible must reform end programs work must discontinue programs served purpose limited resources applied programs produce 100 cents worth human benefits every tax dollar spent working together meet human needs unlock human potential greatest adventure upon people embark pledge continued strong federal leadership work learned hard way washington whole job state local governments private institutions individual american must part well let us give citizens help need let us also remember us bears basic obligation help help fellow man one else assume obligation us least federal government shirk individual responsibility american dream never dream people say yes challenge government says yes people make dream come true lives americans thank good afternoon
good afternoon begin new year reflect state american union seek definition america mean carl sandburg come close capture real meaning three simple word become title one great poems people yes america rise greatness chip american people say yes yes challenge freedom yes dare progress yes hope peace defend peace mean pay price war america greatness endure future institution continually rededicate say yes people yes human need aspiration yes democracy consent govern yes equal opportunity unlimited horizon achievement every american spirit rededication send congress next day fourth section 1973 state union report message progress make step must take help people help federal program human resource nineteen hundred year full opportunity great advance front 10 year war successfully complete one unselfish mission ever undertake one nation defense another come peace permit u turn attention fully work compassion concern social progress home seriousness government commitment make opportunity evidence record level funding human resource program propose new budget 125 twice amount spent program take office 1969 let u look behind impersonal label human resource let u see examples way program help provide good life american people social security cash benefit elderly disable fiscal year 1974 twice 4 year ago next year 5 million additional poor age disabled person receive increase health benefit hundred county previously food program assure nutrition needy hunger eliminate american life hundred school district give black brown child inferior education separate school system time take office give child equal chance learn together school new student assistance system establish bring high education within reach every qualified student america launch national drive conquest cancer advance workable proposal provide comprehensive health insurance every american family health education benefit veteran substantially increase job program decrease unemployment rate among veteran almost past year alone sweeping reform set motion assure senior citizen quality nursing home care well chance live dignity home legislative proposal increase economic opportunity american indian lay congress resubmitted congress year outlay civil right activity 1974 3 billion 3 time begin administration support closer today ever realization truly society men woman equal eye law achievements others outline message congress constitute record proud good beginning build certain aspect state union human resource urgently need reform 1960 federal government undertook ambitious sometimes almost utopian commitment one area social policy another elbow aside state local government private sector establish literally hundreds new program base assumption human problem could solve simply throw enough federal dollar intention effort laudable result case case amount dismal failure money leave washington seemingly inexhaustible flood reduce mere trickle time filter layer bureaucrat consultant social worker finally reach suppose help much money go suppose help needy little needy make profession poverty get fat taxpayer get stuck bill disadvantage get little broken promise must better american people deserve compassion work simply compassion mean well deserve program say yes human need say paternalism social exploitation waste order bring program standard carefully review three question mind reform decisionmaking process bring close people decision affect get value productivity every tax dollar devote human resource reform approach delivery service give people assistance need without take away freedom decrease reform propose give people serve well great voice education manpower training program propose convert narrow fragment categorical program closely control washington new special revenue share program provide federal fund use within broad area state community judge best meet special need make federal health care dollar go propose eliminate program whose job do hospital construction subsidy continue would worsen national oversupply hospital bed inflate medical cost saving achieve would help make possible increase area 100 million next year cancer heart disease research make economic opportunity dollar go propose transfer antipoverty program conduct office economic opportunity appropriate cabinet department thereby make efficient link related federal activity ensure people provided decent income circumstance increase human dignity rather erode basic value family structure dignity work work congress improve welfare system system penalize person go work reward person go welfare totally alien american tradition reform present welfare system continue one major goal overall effect reform elimination program wasteful concentrate program work make possible continued growth federal effort meet human need time help prevent ballooning budget deficit could lead high tax higher price high interest rate americans despite people say fiscal responsibility rich man concern spend economy tailspin name social welfare would punish sought help course history free american economy do combat poverty raise standard living government program imaginable stable healthy growth economy must remain cornerstone human resource policy 1970 great credit american restless impatient people nation idealists dream eradicate poverty hunger discrimination ignorance disease fear would like today order reach goal need connect warmhearted impatience another equally american trait levelheaded common sense need forge new approach human service country approach treat people statistic approach recognize problem like poverty unemployment health care cost education cold abstraction government file drawer know tough problem grow also know right kind help right kind spirit overcome believe american family deny good health care inability pay also believe family deprive freedom make health care arrangement without bureaucratic meddling believe boy girl deny quality education also believe child ride bus mile away neighborhood school order achieve arbitrary racial balance believe american family suffer lack income break welfare regulation encourage also believe never make comfortable profitable live welfare check paycheck believe government must generous humane also believe government must economically responsible must reform end program work must discontinue program serve purpose limited resource apply program produce 100 cent worth human benefit every tax dollar spend work together meet human need unlock human potential great adventure upon people embark pledge continue strong federal leadership work learn hard way washington whole job state local government private institution individual american must part well let u give citizen help need let u also remember u bear basic obligation help help fellow man one else assume obligation u least federal government shirk individual responsibility american dream never dream people say yes challenge government say yes people make dream come true life american thank good afternoon