Old executive Office Building next door to the white house. This video is courtesy of the Ronald Reagan president ial library in valley california. How do you do . I have a brief Opening Statement here before i take your questions yesterday secretary of the treasury donna reagan, sent to the congress of request to raise the debt to 985 billion dollars. This represents a dramatic jump of 50 billion dollars over the previous thats. You administration took this action with great regret because it is clear that the massive deficits that the government runs is one of the root causes of our profound economic problems. For too many years, this process has come to easily for us. We have lived beyond our means and then financed are extravagance on the backs of the American People. A clear message i received in the Election Campaign is that we must gain control of this inflationary monster. Let me briefly review for the American People, what we have already done. Within moments of taking the oath of office, i placed a freeze on the hiring of civilian employees in the federal government. Two days later, i issued an order to cut down on government travel, reduce the number of consultants to the government, stop the procurement of certain items, and called on my appointees to exercise restraint in their own offices. Yesterday, i announced the elimination of remaining federal controls on u. S. Oil production and marketing. Today, i am announcing two more actions to reduce the size of the federal government. First, i am taking major steps toward the elimination of the council on wage and price stability. This counsel has been a failure. It has been totally ineffective and controlling inflation and its imposed unnecessary burdens on labor and business. Therefore, i am now ending the wage and Price Program of the council. I am eliminating a staff that carries out its wage pricing activities, and i am asking congress to rescind its budget, saving the taxpayer someone and a half Million Dollars a year. My second decision today is a direct of ordering key federal agencies to freeze pending regulations for 60 days. This action gives ministration time to start a new Regulatory Oversight process and also prevent certain lastminute regulatory decisions of the previous administration, the so called midnight regulations from taking effect without proper review and approval. All of us should remember that the federal government is not some mysterious institution composed of buildings, files and paper. The people are the government. What we create, we are to be able to control. I do not intend to make wildly skyrocketing deficits and runaway governments, simple facts of life in this administration. As ive said, our ills have come upon us over several decades and they will not go away in days or weeks or months, but i want to the American People to know that we have begun. Now, i will be happy to take your questions. Will your policy party be one of revenge rick reconciliation . Will the United States honor the recent commitments to iran especially since you most of them during the campaign. Im certainly not thinking of revenge. I dont know whether reconciliation will be possible with the present government or absence of the government in iran. I think that the United States will honor the obligations. As a matter of fact, the most important of those were already put into effect by the proceeding administration in negotiating the release. We are, however, studying, because there were four major agreements and nine executive orders, and we are studying thoroughly what is a pretty complex matter weve discovered with regard to whether they are in keeping with international and our own national laws. So i will not be able to really answer your questions on specifics until we have completed that steady. The treasury secretary said monday, that your budget cuts will be of a much higher magnitude than most people thought they would be. You said there would be across the board. Now that you have some time to steady the budget, you say where these cuts have been made, what program will fill the cuts the most . There would be made every place. What we meant by across the board was the wrong decision, or it describes. It what i meant was that no one is exempt from being looked at for areas in which we can make cuts and spending. Yes, they probably are going to be bigger than anyone has ever attempted, because this administration did not come here to be a caretaker government. We hope that we can go along the same way and do it a little better. We think the time has come where there has to be a change of direction of this country, and it is going to begin with reducing Government Spending. Mister president , in your welcoming, address to the americans, who sounded a warning of swift ineffective retribution in future terrorist situation. What kind of action are you prepared to take to back up this hard rhetoric . Well, it is a question i do not think you can or should answer as to specifics. This is a big and powerful nation. It has a lot of options open to it. And to try and specify now, just particularly what you should do i think is one of the things that has been wrong. People have gone to bed in some of these countries that have done these things to us in the past, confident that they can go to sleep, wake up in the morning and the United States would not have taken any action. What i meant by that phrase was that anyone who does these things, violates our rights in the future is not going to be able to go to bed with that confidence. Walt. Mister president , you campaigned rather vociferously in result saying it was slanted toward the soviet union. I noticed your secretary of state seems to suggest that for the time being, at least, the United States will abide by the limits of the treaty and he hopes that the soviet union will too. How long do you intend the United States should abide by the terms of the assault agreement, which you consider inequitable and what you consider its greatest inequities to be . The seoul treaty, first of all i think it permits a continued building on both sides of Strategic Nuclear weapons. In the main thing, it authorizes an immediate increase in large numbers of soviet warheads. There is no verification us to the number of warheads on the missile. I do not think that a treaty means strategic arms limitation. That actually permits a buildup on both sides of Strategic Nuclear weapons. It can probably be called that. I have said that when we can, and i am willing for our people to go into negotiate, or let me say, discussions leading to negotiations, that we should start negotiating on the basis of trying to affect an actual reduction in the numbers of nuclear weapons. That would then be real strategic arms limitation. And i happen to believe also that you cannot sit down at the table and just negotiate that unless you take into account the consideration at that table all the other things that are going on. In other words, i believe in linkage. Mister president , what do you see as the longrange intentions of the soviet union . Do you think for instance the kremlin is spent on World Domination that might lead to a continuation of the cold war, or do you think that under other circumstances, detention sponsor will . So far, detente has been a one way street. The soviet union has used to pursue its own. Names i dont have to think of unanswered as to what i think their intentions are. They have repeated it. I know of no leader of the soviet union since the revolution and including the present leadership that has not more than once repeated in the various communist congress is they hold. Their determination that their goal must be the promotion of World Revolution and the one world socialist or communist state, whichever words you want to use. As long as they do that, and as long as they have the same time have openly and publicly declared that the only morality they recognize is what will further their cause. Meaning, they reserve under themselves the right to commit any crime to lie, to cheat, in order to attain that, and that is a moral moral, not a moral. We operate on a different set of standards. I think when you do business with them even at a detente, you keep that in mind. Let me take someone. Mister president , what is your opinion of American Companies that now have resumed business with iran . My opinion of American Companies that want to resume business with iran . I hope they are going to do it by long distance. [laughter] we would not want to have to go back to a different cast of characters with the same show going on. I can understand that that particularly in the field of energy, they want to do that. But we are urging the people to think long and hard before a travel to iran, because we do not think their safety can be guaranteed there. We americans are still incarcerated in vietnam. Can you tell us the status of their cases and whether the administration is doing anything to get them back . I have told our people about those three. They knew about them, of course. I told them that yes, we continue. We want to get them back also. I know i have been staying down front here to. Much i have got to prove i could look at the back rose there. You, sir. Mister president , Administration Officials have promised adherence to the civil rights laws which are on the books, but there has been considerable discussion about dismantling the affirmative action aspect that give those laws some people greater meaning. Im wondering, mister president , if there will be a retreat in the federal government on the governments for affirmative action programs, generally and in federal hiring of blacks and hispanics, specifically . There will be no retreat. This administration is going to be dedicated to equality. I think we have made great progress in the civil rights field. I think there are some things, however, that may not be as useful as they once were or that may even be distorted in the practice, such as some affirmative action programs becoming quota systems, and im old enough to remember when quotas existed in the United States for the purpose of discrimination. I dont want to see that happen again. When and how do you see the control of Natural Gas Prices . We have not dealt with that problem yet. We thought oil would do for a starter, but i cannot really answer your question. That will be a matter for discussion and future cabinet meetings. Mister president , during the campaign you repeatedly talked about the unfairness of the grain embargo as you saw it. Do you have second thoughts now or will you lift the grain embargo . With the green embargo, my quarrel was that i thought it was asking only one group of americans to participate, the farmers. It was not you only have two choices with an embargo. You either lifted or broaden it. We have not made a decision except that at the request of secretary of agriculture, john block, i have taken a matter of the embargo out of the discussions of the National Security council, and next week is on the agenda for a full cabinet meeting. As to what our course will be, so i cannot answer what we do about it until next week. As i say, it was asking one group of americans to bear the burden. I have always thought that was more of a kind of gesture then it was something real. Yes, madam. Mister president , what will you do to honor the request by federal officials, atlanta officials, for you and the federal government to intervene in the atlanta case of 17 missing black children . Just a few minutes before i came in here, that message was handed to me that the Atlanta Mayor wanted to talk, and we are going to get someone in touch with him immediately. You recognize of course that possibly, civil rights would be the only basis upon which we could have any jurisdiction down there in this. For fbi, for example, there has been no evidence of crossing state lines or anything. Yet, we want to be helpful, because that is a most tragic case, and so we will be meeting on that very shortly. Mister president , when the jamaican Prime Minister was here yesterday, he suggested publicly that now might be a good time for you, as the new president , to have a Foreign Policy initiative for latin america and for the caribbean. Do you intend to follow that suggestion, and if so, how would your policies differ from those of president carter . I think we have seen a great reverse in the caribbean situation, and it came about through the Prime Ministers election. It was the turnover, turn around, of a nation that had gone, that have certainly in the direction of the communist movement. It was a kind of protegee of castro. And his election was greeted by me with great enthusiasm, because it represented a people by their vote, having experienced that kind of government, turned another direction, and i think this opens the door for us to have a policy in the mediterranean of bringing them back in those countries that might have started in that direction, or keeping them in the western world and the free world. We are looking forward to cooperation with Prime Minister. I think you met the caribbean in that last answer . I meant caribbean. Im sorry. What do you intend to do about the draft registration law that has passed during president carters administration, and in view of your opposition to it and the campaign, how has that assisted with here avowed intention to strengthen our National Defenses . To answer that last part first, i just did not feel that the advanced registration and all the evidence we could get would materially speed up the process if an emergency required the draft. It did create a bureaucracy. It cost some unrest and said the satisfaction. We were told that it would only be a matter of several days if we had to call up in a draft, that we could do that several days earlier with the registration, and we would be able if there was no registration at all. We this is one that is something to be looked at further down. I have only been here in nine days, and most of these nine days have been spent in cabinet meetings on the economy, getting ready to send our package up to the hill, and so, i just have to tell you that we will be dealing with that. We will make a decision on what to do with it and down the road someplace. Gary. Speaking of your economic package, can you give us your thoughts on Effective Dates for the tax cuts that you plan to recommend in the economic Recovery Plan and specify whether you prefer when Effective Date for business and another for personal cuts, or whether you would like to combine them . I would like to see itll go forward all at once. As to date, i know there has been talk about whether it should be retroactive or whether it should be as of that minute. That to me is not as important as getting for individuals, the principle of a 10 cut for each of three years in place, and in the business taxes also, so that we can all look forward with some confidence of stability in the program. We are going to strive for that, and i cannot really answer you about with the date will be until we submit the package. Mister president. Mister president. , i know you said earlier that you are not thinking of revenge toward iran, but does that preclude anything punishment whatsoever for what they have done . Again, i have to ask your forbearance and wait until we have finished our study of this whole situation as to what we are going to do. I dont think that any of us have a friendly feeling toward the people that have done what they have done. But i think it is too complex for me to answer until we have had time to really steady. This would you go so far as to encourage american businesses to resume commercial trade in iran . At this point, no. Education . Do you intend to follow through with her campaign for energy and education . I have not retreated from that at all. Yes. The process, however, that i have asked for, is for both the secretary of education and the secretary of energy to reorganize, to produce the most effective streamlining of the department, if theyre departments that they can. In education, to look at the appropriate role of the federal government in education, if there is one, and to report back, and then we will decide on making our recommendations. Much the same thing holds true with the department of energy. The reason for this being that while they were new cabinet level agencies, they incorporated government functions and programs that had been going on in them and they came under that umbrella, and we have to find out which of those functions that have been a federal government function, continue, and where they would best fit. But yes, i am determined. I believe it was wrong to have created the two agencies to begin with. There. Mister president , during the campaign, your chief arms spokesman put you on record as favoring for the time being, continuation of the price support level where it had been. Within the last couple of days your budget director and your secretary of agriculture had indicated that the Dairy Program is too expensive and should be cut back. Do you reconcile those differences a report for us . I can only tell you that this again its something to wait for the next cabinet meeting. All of these things are worked out between the appropriate cabinet members and our director of omb, and then they come to the cabinet for full discussion so that the others who have an interest in this can have their input, and so i cannot answer because that has not yet come to the cabinet. Young lady. There are two young ladies. Iran and the soviet union share a long border in a region viable to the stability of the world. Given your sentiment there, how do you best think the United States can control the stability of the region . You said iran and the soviet union . I think one of the first things that have to happen for stability is not to be in iran itself to establish a government that can speak as a government for iran, and part of our problem in all of these long 444 days, has been the inability of anyone seemingly to speak for that nation. To have a government. Now, i think that any country would want to help another if they really showed an intent to have a government that would abide by international law, and do what they could to help them in that regard, but until such a thing appears apparent there, i dont know that there is anything we can do. Young lady. Mister president , if it is your intentional to signal the world that this country will respond with swift retributions and cases of International Terrorism in the future, why is it your policy not to retaliate against iran . What good would just revenge do . What form would that take . I dont think revenge is worthy of us. On the other hand, i do not think we act as if this never happened. I would rather wait until is they say, we complete this i know have been on the site too long but someone said please and spanish. Mister president , i am impressed when i listened the other day speaking spanish president , is it true that given the opportunity to serve this country. When are you going to appoint a spanish american to serve in your administration and policymaking positions . We are definitely recruiting and definitely trying to do that. I want an administration that will be representative of the country as a whole. Please, do not judge us on the fact that we have only picked 100. There will be 1700 positions to fill in the executive branch in the white house senior staff and staff. The Personnel Committee in our administration, that is talent hunting and looking for these people, contains members of the minorities, hispanics, and even a majority of women, and we want that very much. Do not judge us now on the tip of the iceberg. Wait till it is all. In president , the chairman of the Federal Reserve board has been implementing policies that are exactly opposite in basic thrust from what you recommend. He has been squeezing the productive sector of the economy in favor of the speculative sector. Frankly, mister president , there are important sections of the American Economy that are about to go under, and wont even have an opportunity to benefit from the programs that you are putting forward because of the Federal Reserves policy. I have a two part question. First of all, do you think that objective Economic Conditions justify the and frustrate levels that we have now . I dont mean for your answer to imply a criticism of the feds. Its an objective question. The second question is, are you concerned that there might be a sabotage, so to speak, of your policies by programs that the Federal Reserve might be putting forward . Im not concerned that there would be sabotage. Not with the intention of trying to dictate the president as an independent agency and i respect. That i think that we have to face the fact that Interest Rates are not in themselves a cause of inflation. They are consequence. And when you have, as we have had, double digit inflation back to back for two solid years now, the last time that happened was in world war i. And when you have double digit inflation, that way, there is no question that Interest Rates are going to have to go up and follow that inflation rate. So the answer to the Interest Rates is going to be our program of reducing Government Spending tied to the reduction of the tax rates that we have spoken of, to bring down inflation. You will find that Interest Rates come down. We do want from the fed, and would ask for a moderate policy of money supply increasing relative to legitimate growth. All of these things have to work together. I dont think that the fed just deliberately raises Interest Rates. The reason that we have got to tie taxes, and we have to cut ties spending together, is we, for all these decades, we have talked and talked about solving these problems, and we have acted as if the two were separate. When year, we fight inflation, and then unemployment goes up, and then the next year we fight unemployment and inflation goes up. It is time to keep the two together where they belong and that is what we are going to do. Yes, sir. A number of conservative leaders, among them, some of your staunchest and most supporters are very concerned about some of your appointments. The basis of the concern is that many people who have been longtime reaganites and supporters of years do not seem to be able to get jobs to play the key role on your defense transition team. Whereas other individuals who have not supported you throughout the years, or your philosophy like the secretary of education who was for the establishment of the departments and mr. Frank car lou jean, the deputy secretary of defense who was not a supporter of yours. They have gotten. Jobs my question is why are these individuals in your ministration . Why isnt mr. Van cleave, how much of a problem do you think this conservative dissatisfaction of your appointments . Is the only problem that i have had that is more difficult and knowing which hand raised to point to hear, and believe me, it bothers me. I go home feeling guilty, and all the hands that i could not point to. The only problem ive had is in the selection of personnel. It may instances, some of the people that have been mentioned whose names have been mentioned by others did not want the position in the administration. They worked very hard and wanted nothing for. It but you also have to recognize there are not that many physicians. After all, look how many votes i had. You cannot reward them all. But thank you. All right. Thank you all very much. Im George Washington to george hill next come on the presidency, the bbcs Godfrey Hodgson sat down with Ronald Reagan. He talked about arms control, the irancountry controversy, and the assassination attempt that left him wounded. The Ronald Reagan president ial library provided this video. Can you recall when you took office for the first time . I recall that day with great clarity. All of it, the coming to the white house, the being taken down, appearing before those thousands of people stretched out on the mall, there was unreality to all of it. It was an awareness of