It is my intention to curb the size and influence of the Federal
establishment and to demand recognition of the distinction between the
powers granted to the Federal Government and those reserved to the
States or to the people. All of us need to be reminded that the Federal
Government did not create the States; the States created the Federal
Government.
Now, so there will be no misunderstanding, it is not my intention to do
away with government. It is, rather, to make it work--work with us, not
over us; to stand by our side, not ride on our back. Government can and
must provide opportunity, not smother it; foster productivity, not
stifle it.
If we look to the answer as to why, for so many years, we achieved so
much, prospered as no other people on Earth, it was because here, in
this land, we unleashed the energy and individual genius of man to a
greater extent than has ever been done before. Freedom and the dignity
of the individual have been more available and assured here than in any
other place on Earth. The price for this freedom at times has been high,
but we have never been unwilling to pay that price.
It is no coincidence that our present troubles parallel and are
proportionate to the intervention and intrusion in our lives that result
from unnecessary and excessive growth of government. It is time for us
to realize that we are too great a nation to limit ourselves to small
dreams. We are not, as some would have us believe, doomed to an
inevitable decline.
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