June 22, 1987
Thank you all very much for coming out here on a very nice day -- but a nice warm day. I'm most grateful to you. You know, I think maybe I ought to tell you a little bit about what I'm doing traveling around right now and trips like this so that you'll understand. I think it's kind of decision time in Washington. And the decision that has to be made is how we're going to get our fiscal house in order without overburdening the people of this country with taxes. I've brought along your fine Congressman Bill Nelson, who's here with me. Of course, I'm taking a chance on getting him out of there when there's so many people up there on the other side. I know what side he's on, and he's on the right side with regard to taxes and what we're trying to do.
Very briefly -- because I know I have to move on -- very briefly, we think the time has come to recognize that there are some things lacking in the budget process in Washington. Over 80 percent of the people, if we believe the polls, believe that we should have an amendment to the Constitution that says the Federal Government cannot borrow money and go in debt. And so far, we haven't been able to get action on that. But if you show some interest in it to the people in Washington, we can.
The second thing is another one that I want to explain a little bit, because I've just been told that a lot of people don't know what I'm talking about when I say that the President ought to have a line-item veto. Well, the line-item veto simply means that when they're passing a piece of legislation that ordinarily the President would want to sign and be able to sign, but then somebody sticks a couple of spending measures in there that have nothing to do with the original bill, the President ought to have the right to sign that bill after he has vetoed those particular spending measures and gotten them out of the bill. Well, that's what I'm going to be talking about to the other people that I'll be meeting today.
But right now, once again, I just want to thank you. This is very heartwarming for this kind of welcome, and I'm most grateful -- try to be deserving of it. [Applause] All right. Thank you all. Goodbye, and again, thanks. God bless you.
Note: The President spoke at 11:13 a.m. at Melbourne Regional Airport.