Transcripts For CSPAN Virginia 20240706

Democracy. Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin will discuss his position on the Chinese Company chinese cummings party during a discussion in the Ronald Reagan library. And he reflect on the life of president reagan. This is about 40 minutes. Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome evan are of virginia, glenn youngkin, accompanied by his wife, misses youngkin. [applause] [laughter] [applause] hello everybody. [laughter] david that evening, welcome to the reagan library, my name is david trulio and its my pleasure to be the president and ceo of the Ronald Reagan president ial Library Institute area and we start with the pledge of allegiance, i ask you due to i ask you to join me in honoring our flag and all those who serve it. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of america, and to the republic for which it fans, one nation under god individual indivisible with liberty and justice for all. Before we go further there are few people id like to recognize in the audience. The first is the first lady of virginia, suzanne youngkin. [applause] former congressman Elton Gallegly and his wife, janice. [applause] and presenting underwriter of the special executive special exhibit, the former ambassador to the european union. [applause] once upon a time there was a conservative republican, a man of deepfake who built a career outside of deep faith built a career outside of politics. After careful reflection, he spoke out on political issues. He captured the attention of his party, earned the nomination of his party and t1. He ran the campaign and he won. He ran a campaign that was reasonable and he spoke calmly and clearly on the kinds of issues that parents talk about around the kitchen table. Not only did he win, he defeated a prominent opponent. This winter made National Headlines in the process. And no sooner had this republican one the governorship and got to work that people started talking, he needs he has a Bright Future and maybe he should run for higher office. Of course, you think im talking about Ronald Reagan. Youre right. But if youre think im talking about Governor Glenn Youngkin of virginia, you are also right. With president reagan, we know the rest of the story. But for Governor Youngkins story it is yet to be written, after the next chapter of the Political Party for which he is a member. We named our Speaker Series time for choosing after the october 19 64 speech on behalf of president ial candidate Barry Goldwater catapulted Ronald Reagan and to put a costarred to political stardom. For the past for years we have been leading nationally prominent leaders to answer critical questions facing the conservative movement and the Republican Party as they face their own time for choosing. For example, with huge challenges facing the country and huge challenges ahead of us with the midterms behind us and the midterms underway, where will the focus be . What foreign and domestic policy positions are critical to take in the years ahead . More fundamentally, what are republican philosophies that we can all agree on. I am especially pleased to introduce our guest of honor this evening for a reason that doesnt necessarily meet the eye. As someone who is in the process of moving permanently back to california, i spent the last 19 years in virginia. I can tell you firsthand that Governor Youngkin is governing effectively and purple state with the divided legislature. Yes. [applause] he exudes happiness, a healthy sense of urgency, and a cando spirit. He has a palpable sense of optimism to the states top office. And in that context he has been vocal about attacking about attracting good and smart people to service. He wet he twice recognized february 6 as Ronald Reagan day in the commonwealth of virginia. And i think anyone seeking a powerful insisting sis synced sucinct about the president , should read that. Governor youngkin, a former coceo of one of the worlds Top Investment firms included a International Trade mission where he visited taiwan, signed an executive order establishing a virginia taiwan trade office, and he created he visited leaders in japan and korea and he visited American Service members. Overall, our special guest brings a remarkable and timely perspective on the issues at hand. We are honored to have him and the first lady of virginia here tonight. Ladies and gentlemen, please join me and giving a warm welcome of the Ronald Reagan president ial library and institute welcome to Governor Youngkin. [applause] gov. Youngkin good evening. Thank you all for coming this evening, and david, thank you for that amazingly kind introduction that no, my wife did not write. [laughter] i do want to congratulate you on your new role here at the Ronald Reagan president ial foundation and institute. As virginias governor, it is disappointing to lose you to california. But given the great work that you are doing here, we will consider you on loan. And it is comforting to know that the custodians of president Ronald Reagans legacy had the good sense to hire a virginian. [laughter] [applause] as a kid who, 40 years ago, was taking out trash and washing dishes at a diner in virginia beach, it is pretty overwhelming to stand here. It is pretty overwhelming to contemplate something that i would have never contemplated. That is, talking about the future of america. And so i guess if i do nothing else, i want to thank you. I want to thank you for the tremendous opportunity that you have presented to me to a kid who grew up in a middleclass family and virginia, and saw good times and bad. To stand here before you and talk about one of the greatest men ever to live, it is such an honor. It is an honor to be here with proud americans, proud americans who carry on president reagans cherished legacy. So to everyone here today, it is time that we recognize that yes, our nation is deeply divided. But it is also the time for all of you, happy warriors. I just returned, as david said for my first International Trade mission where i was in asia and i met with the number of business and political leaders, made trusted friends and allies including president xi tsai. It was just here at the president ial library last month, the entire free world stood with the people of taiwan in their righteous defense of freedom. We note that freedom is never guaranteed to and it must be protected. Today, we honor a leader who did more to advance liberty than almost anyone else in our lifetime. My amazing wife, suzanne, and i are blessed with four children. A few weeks ago, our youngest son wrote a paper on leadership. It just so happened that he chose president reagan to write about. Lets be clear, he chose on his own accord, and he did not choose me. [laughter] it made me so proud to read his paper. He wrote that president reagan built a thriving economy by unleashing free enterprise. He brought peace by projecting strength. He explained that president reagan to how to be tough new how to be tough but communicate with warmth. The High School Senior in 2023 understands that this was Ronald Reagans brilliance. The only match for his vision and courage was his wit, his humor. The only way of making people believe in themselves again was president reagans way that he saw he made american see a Bright Future again. At a time when it was easy for us to lose faith, the worried that we are indeed one generation where freedom becomes extinct. There are lights shining across america. I see them every day in virginia, and there are flights of encouragement that the shared values at the foundation of this Great American experiment and the policies and decisions informed by them will prevail. These lights convinced me that we can usher in a new era of not just republican values, but american values. A champion and future grounded in the confidence that our best days are indeed in front of us. Confidence built on restoring safety and our community and sanity and our schools and individual rights to our citizens. Especially to our parents, confidence builds on fiscal discipline, for taxpayers. Because its their money. Not the government. Not the governments. Confidence built on the stage of the support of our friends and allies. Confidence built on unleashing American Ingenuity and unbridled opportunity for every man, woman and child. I am an unabashedly proud virginian. And i am surrounded by daily reminders, daily reminders like a capital that is designed by Thomas Jenison Thomas Jefferson and his statue reminders like the house that suzanne and i live and that was procured by james monroe. When i see the capital and thank the lord that he is with us, i take a right and go to work in the Patrick Henry building. These are your daily reminders that this noble republic formed in pursuit of a more perfect union, required our Founding Fathers to confront a time of choosing like none other. A time to choose a life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness over oppression, dictator oil dictatorial rule, and so many others brief into a new nation, it requires recommitment, time, and time again. Of course, that commitment was reconfirmed during the 1980 election. When the United States and the soviet union were locked in a cold war, and inflation stood at near record highs. Gas prices were off the chart. For the first time in decades, people were beginning to feel that the American Dream was out of reach. And that time for choosing, americans chose a new direction for our country. A direction based on or so of more jobs, fewer taxes and greater opportunity. A course of speaking truth with refreshing candor. It and confronting threats to our freedom. It was a choice for courage, and conviction. It wasnt under entirely different circumstances that virginians chose a new path in the fall of 2021. The commonwealth couldnt fact shine as one of those bright lights of encouragement, for some time, aggressive policies had empowered a government to encroach on the freedom of virginians. The cradle of american democracy. Tax burdens climbed, jobs disappeared and could not return. Parents lost faith in declinings include in declining schools. Virginia was pushed off the rails. Virginians economy has stalled, eight years of growing at 1 per year. People were leaving. For 9th street years, or virginians moved away than moved to virginia, from the other 49 upper state. In other states taxes were lower and businesses grew fast and opportunities were greater. The erosion of hope came to a head during the pandemic when democrat leadership locked schools, businesses, colleges of worship, and that one point they kept churches closed while opening liquor stores. Stores in Bristol Tennessee were open, while across the street in bristol, virginia they were loctite. Locked tight. Parents were told that watching a screen was a quality education. Virginias virginians were staring a choice in the face. My appointment my opponent made it clear, parents should not have a say as to whats being taught in schools. Loudoun county in virginia became ground zero for the parents movement. For school board coverups. Parents were labeled terrorists, standards and expectations were lowered. Parents pushed out of their childrens lives and out of the most important decisions that they would make. On november 2, virginians made a different choice. They made a choice for the first time in over one decade to elect a republican governor, a Republican Attorney governor, and eight republican majority in our house of delegates. It was a choice [applause] it was a choice to restore parents rights because parents matter. It was a choice to reestablish excellence to honor merit. It was a choice to stop the dangerous rise in crime. It was a choice to back the brave men and women who serve in law enforcement. It was a choice to break the burden on Small Businesses and bring more jobs. It was a choice for common sense. It was an election. A choice to reject the notion that we are the generation that loses read him, and that loses freedom, and instead virginians turned on the bright light. Conservative policies when because they are win because they are grounded in timeless truths and common sense. Common sense policies work. Virginia is the Proof Positive case, a state that could lurch left and fall behind, made a choice and is now winning. Despite having a divided legislator we went to work on day one, tax cuts, education reform, Public Safety d investment, and regulatory streamlining. Overall, overhauling 80 our state. We can get conservative policies done in egg in a divided government. We can do this. [applause] today, more than 4. 5 Million People are part of virginias workforce. The highest number recorded in more than 50 years. If you look at uhaul data. [laughter] come on. [laughter] it is extraordinary to look at uhaul data, i do it all of the time. What you will see is that virginia was ranked 31st in 2021 , with oneway moves out of virginia. And one year later, inch 2022 we are in 2022 we are ranked fifth with oneway moves into virginia. And we have forbidden davids family from renting a uhaul. It may be the businessman and me, it may be the virginian, but i think it has to do with the basketball player and me. But i love competition and i bring it to governing. If you are resting, someone else is working. If you are raising taxes and putting criminals first and neglecting education, people are going to leave for states with lower cost, Better Safety and better opportunity. We are seeing, across our nation , republican led to state. The right lights of state government, demonstrate that opening schools faster, bringing back jobs faster results in states performing better. States are the destination for people. American families are making the choice every day as to where they want to build their lives. The road to prosperity runs straight through economic freedom. Prosperity, economic growth, must be fueled not smothered. And when unleashed, we see sick sass we see success realtime. But the future is ultimately builds on our youngest generation and we must unleash the inherent weakness, the godgiven spark in every virginia, and in every american student. For years, progressive leaders through the misguided belief that lowering expectations would lead to something other than lowered result. And that bureaucrats and politicians should replace parent. We must go back to the basics, the basics of reading, writing and math. We need to prepare our children for lives of unparalleled accident. In virginia we pass the largest k12 budget in our states history. With a focus on improving literacy, and paying teachers more. We introduced avenues for choice with tax driven scholarships and we are reforming accreditation and restoring high standards. If we erode our educational system, and allow the call for all students to have equal outcomes at any cost to prevail, we quickly will see socialism overwhelm our students. Friends, we are the United States of america. We need to cultivate a vibrant economy. Our adversaries include communist china, and they have one goal and that is world domination. Which we know that they will use any tool at their disposal, ranging from spy balloons to tiktok. To economic coercion, to military intimidation. From intellectual property theft, we must stay strong stand strong. We need an American Revolution in order to no longer depend on chinese manufacturing. We need to bring semiconductors, pharmaceuticals, Automotive Supply Chains here to the United States. It would strengthen our business and diplomatic ties with friends and allies. The stakes are high. The consequences couldnt be greater. It is why i band tiktok and we chat why i band in why i banned tiktok and we chat on the devices. State devices. And i took virginia out of the running for a battery manufacturing plant, because we knew it was a trojan horse for a company under the communist party some in china. [laughter] communist party some in china. Tumb in china. [laughter] its also why virginians should reject that california will write our vehicle laws. [laughter] [applause] next year, virginia faces a mandate to buy electric vehicles. This policy not only attacks our personal freedoms but it plays into the hands of the ccp. It is hard seeing an economic shift into another industry that is dominated by companies controlled by the Chinese Communist party. Our legislature did last year come together to pass a bill preventing the sale of virginia farmland and real estate to entities controlled by foreign adversaries. [applause] we should own the rich agricultural lands that god has blessed us with. Not the ccp. And we must also [applause] we must also support our allies. Our allies who share common values, common values of dignity and freedom. In fact, we must welcome Economic Cooperation with trusted International Companies and countries, building a shared and robust Economic Future. Together. As you know, last week, i signed an executive order to establish a Virginia Trade Office in taiwan. I also met with leaders in japan and south korea to fortify a new relationship in building these trusted supply chains, in factors that are critical not just for our Economic Future but to our National Security future. We must advance to peace through strength, and our choice is clear. Our results prove that our common sense policies wrapped in conservative values work. We do not have to rely on who yells the loudest to win. You see, we can win with result s. And by communicating a message of hope. These results, and these messages are not just republican values, they reflect virginia and california and american values. We together represent hardworking americans. Hardworking americans like joe and should need a langford shanita langford just celebrated the anniversary of their barbershop. Which is so appropriately in the Patrick Henry mall outside of newport news virginia newport news, virginia. They both grew up in broken homes and through their grit and determination they started their own barbershop with plans to turn it into a chain. Joe is a veteran and he said he wanted to each of his stories to them bother to embody strength and integrity just like the military. The future of our country belongs to joe and shanita who have division and gripped grit to step into the unknown and pursue their dreams. They dont want a handout they just want a thicker Playing Field with the government out of their way. The Republican Party is a big tent. And we are filling it. Which we do through addition and multiplication. Not through subtraction and division. Our 2020 r 2021 election proved that virginians our 2021 election proved that virginians were ready for change and they elected a former business owner, mother of three, about a veteran and the first black female naturalized citizen elected to the state office in the commonwealth of virginia. They also elected a cubanamerican, and the first hispanic american elected to statewide office, ours our attorney general. This is the fate of the Republican Party. The republican be home to hispanic americans, africanamericans, asian americans, americans from all walks of life. Americans with the belief that freedom and liberty are at the foundation of our shared future. I was in high school, and in college when Ronald Reagan was our president. As i told leo, i started as i told you i started doing dishes and taking out the trash and yet i chased my dreams with confidence. Without being deterred because i had seen my president believe in hard work and a strong country. He inspired hope for a better future. President Ronald Reagan changed lives and now its our turn to do the very same. This is beyond republican politics. This is americans future. And yes, as i warned, its easy to lose faith and think that we are the one generation that will lose freedom but there are shining lights. One of those is virginia. I want to encourage each and every one of you, we can fulfill the opportunity and the march to destiny that we all feel. We can be the party of education, we can be the party of safe communities, we can be the judge the party of jobs and unbridled opportunity. We are the party of common sense. And i witnessed this every day as i see the power of the spirit of virginia, and the spirit of america come to life and brief hope into the American Dream. We will chart the future of hope. A vision of optimism, strength, and d and opportunity for all. So that when our children look back, they will say at our time of choosing together we, like generations before us chose the path that in president reagans own words, not only preserves the flame of freedom, but casts its warmth and light farther than those that came before us. I have no doubt that our best days are ahead of us. God bless you, thank you for having me. May god bless the United States of america. [applause] thank you. [applause] ladies and gentlemen, please remain seated as our special guest leave the building. Tonight, we will be dining in our air force one pavilion. You may exit through our doors to the right. We will wait until our special guest leaves through the south hall doors. Thank you for coming and we hope to see you at our next event. [captions copyri