Third, I will adjust our program to restore America’s defenses by proposing $55 billion in defense savings over the next 5 years.  These are savings recommended to me by the Secretary of Defense, who has assured me they can be safely achieved and will not diminish our ability to negotiate arms reductions or endanger America’s security.  We will not gamble with our national survival.

And fourth, because we must ensure reduction and eventual elimination of deficits over the next several years, I will propose a standby tax, limited to no more than 1 percent of the gross national product, to start in fiscal 1986.  It would last no more than 3 years, and it would start only if the Congress has first approved our spending freeze and budget control program.  And there are several other conditions also that must be met, all of them in order for this program to be triggered.

Now, you could say that this is an insurance policy for the future, a remedy that will be at hand if needed but only resorted to if absolutely necessary.  In the meantime, we’ll continue to study ways to simplify the tax code and make it more fair for all Americans.  This is a goal that every American who’s ever struggled with a tax form can understand.

At the same time, however, I will oppose any efforts to undo the basic tax reforms that we’ve already enacted, including the 10-percent tax break coming to taxpayers this July and the tax indexing which will protect all Americans from inflationary bracket creep in the years ahead.

Now, I realize that this four-part plan is easier to describe than it will be to enact.  But the looming deficits that hang over us and over America’s future must be reduced.  The path I’ve outlined is fair, balanced, and realistic.  If enacted, it will ensure a steady decline in deficits, aiming toward a balanced budget by the end of the decade.  It’s the only path that will lead to a strong, sustained recovery.  Let us follow that path together.

No domestic challenge is more crucial than providing stable, permanent jobs for all Americans who want to work.  The recovery program will provide jobs for most, but others will need special help and training for new skills.  Shortly, I will submit to the Congress the Employment Act of 1983, designed to get at the special problems of the long-term unemployed, as well as young people trying to enter the job market.  I’ll propose extending unemployment benefits, including special incentives to employers who hire the long-term unemployed, providing programs for displaced workers, and helping federally funded and State-administered unemployment insurance programs provide workers with training and relocation assistance.  Finally, our proposal will include new incentives for summer youth employment to help young people get a start in the job market.

We must offer both short-term help and long-term hope for our unemployed.  I hope we can work together on this.  I hope we can work together as we did last year in enacting the landmark Job Training Partnership Act.  Regulatory reform legislation, a responsible clean air act, and passage of enterprise zone legislation will also create new incentives for jobs and opportunity.