And tonight, and tonight let me say again to all the members of the Congress, the American people did not send us here to bicker.  There is work to do, and they sent us here to get it done.  And once again, in the spirit of cooperation I offer my hand to all of you.  And let’s work together to do the will of the people—­clean air, child care, the educational excellence act, crime and drugs.  It’s time to act.  The farm bill, transportation policy, product liability reform, enterprise zones.  It’s time to act together.

And there’s one thing I hope we can agree on.  It’s about our commitments.  And I’m talking about Social Security.

To every American out there on Social Security, to every, every American supporting that system today, and to everyone counting on it when they retire, we made a promise to you, and we are going to keep it.

We, we rescued the system in 1983 and it’s sound again, bipartisan arrangement.  Our budget fully funds today’s benefits and it assures that future benefits will be funded as well.  And the last thing we need to do is mess around with Social Security.

There’s one more problem we need to address.  We must give careful consideration to the recommendations of the health care studies under way now.  And that’s why tonight, I am asking Dr. Sullivan, Lou Sullivan, Secretary of Health and Human Services, to lead a Domestic Policy Council review of recommendations on the quality, accessibility and cost of our nation’s health care system.  I am committed to bring the staggering costs of health care under control.

The State of the Government does indeed depend on many of us in this very chamber.  But the State of the Union depends on all Americans.  We must maintain the democratic decency that makes a nation out of millions of individuals.  And I’ve been appalled at the recent mail bombings across this country.  Every one of us must confront and condemn racism, anti-Semitism, bigotry and hate.  Not next week, not tomorrow, but right now.  Every single one of us.

The State of the Union depends on whether we help our neighbor, claim the problems of our community as our own.  We’ve got to step forward when there’s trouble, lend a hand, be what I call a point of light to a stranger in need.  We’ve got to take the time after a busy day to sit down and read with our kids, help them with their homework, pass along the values we had as children.  And that’s how we sustain the State of the Union.

Every effort is important.  It all adds up.  It’s doing the things that give democracy meaning.  It all adds up to who we are and who we will be.

And let me say, that so long as we remember the American idea, so long as we live up to the American ideal, the State of the Union will remain sound and strong.

And to those who worry that we’ve lost our way, well, I want you to listen to parts of a letter written by James Markwell, Pvt. 1st Class James Markwell, a 20-year-old Army medic to the First Battalion, 75th Rangers.  It’s dated Dec. 18, the day before our armed forces went into action in Panama.  It’s a letter servicemen write—­and hope will never, ever be sent.  And sadly, Private Markwell’s mother did receive this letter.  She passed it on to me out there in Cincinnati.