SPEAKERS LIST: U.S. SENATOR FRED THOMPSON (R-TN)

THOMPSON: Thank you.

(APPLAUSE)

Thank you. Those of us who went to Washington for the first time last year know why you sent us there -- to cut big government down to size, to change the way Washington works, and to steer our country in a new direction.

Well, on our first day at work, Bob Dole called us all in, he got his new Republican majority around him, and said, "I've been waiting for you. Let's roll up our sleeves."

Now, that was my first experience with Bob Dole. He said, "Let's get to work."

(APPLAUSE)

Well, we got to work, and under his leadership we then passed more congressional reforms in one session of Congress than had been passed in an entire decade.

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We did something unique in Washington. We did what we said we were going to do.

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We thought Congress might not make so many laws if they actually had to live under them. So we put Congress under the same laws as everybody else.

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We promised to reduce the size of Congress, and we did -- cutting staff by a third. We passed lobbying reform, banned gifts to members of Congress. We promised a balanced budget amendment, and Bob Dole passed it.

And Bob Dole even got 58 senators, including every Republican, to vote for a constitutional amendment on congressional term limits.

(APPLAUSE)

And we promised to stop -- and we did stop -- the "Washington knows best" attitude that tells your state how to spend your tax money.

Yes, we've done some things, some things to be proud of, starting with real change in Congress. And the man who got it done is a man of straight talk and quiet courage, driven by one basic commitment -- to see that we leave this country better off than when we found it. And that's why Bob Dole should be president of the United States.

(APPLAUSE)

Yes, we miss the voice of Ronald Reagan, and we paid tribute to him this week for a very good reason. For eight historic years, President Reagan's contagious optimism and unsinkable hope reawakened our nation's pride and reminded us that America's birthright is to live free and to dream big.

But he taught us not to dwell on the past. He taught to look to the future. And you know what he'd tell us if he were here now?

He'd tell us to lift up our eyes and look over the horizon, not just to what we can do, but to what we can become -- an America where government is small and our families are strong; where we are free to save and invest what we earn from honest labor. An America where a head with an idea and a heart with a dream can achieve anything because nothing is beyond our reach.

(APPLAUSE)

Ronald Reagan would say that it's time we took power away from Washington and gave it back to our families. And we ought to start by cutting taxes 15 percent across the board for every working American.

(APPLAUSE)

My fellow Americans, we stand on the edge of something big -- a time of peace, and progress, and prosperity greater than anything we've ever seen. It can happen. In fact, I believe it's our destiny.

And that's why we're here tonight with an honest man from Kansas who has walked away from Washington to do what's right and to tell the truth and to stand with the American people.

The American people -- you know they are the heroes that some folks in Washington have forgotten about. The mom who somehow finds hours in the day to care for and work for her family. The store owner who works dawn to dusk and lifts up his entire community. The young men and women who wear our uniform to protect our future and our liberty.

With Bob Dole's leadership, we've begun to take our government back. And tonight, we move forward. We begin a new journey. And history will record that we were there at the beginning when a better man stepped forward to lead us to a better America, where every morning in America is a new opportunity to demonstrate to the world what this great nation can do when we are brave and when we are free.

My friends, I thank you. Good night.

END

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