New York, New York Remarks at a Reception for State and Local Officials.

Let me say first of all, that for a President of our great country to walk into this room and look into the faces and shake the hands of friends who've meant so much to me in 1976 and throughout my entire administration so far, who helped to guide the policies of this Nation, who've let your voices be heard, who've bound together in a true spirit of federalism in local, State, and Federal Government, who've represented so many millions of Americans who want a better life, who want our Nation to be free and strong-I'm deeply grateful to you. And I'm looking forward to 4 more years in the same kind of relationship.

I've been observing the convention with a great deal of attention and personal interest, as you can well imagine. [Laughter] I've been particularly excited to see the reception which the people of New York City have given to the delegates from all over the Nation.

I was also pleased with the vote Monday night when the Democratic conventioneers reconfirmed legally our recognition that the ultimate voice and the ultimate base for the authority of the Democratic Party were the 19 million Democrats who went to the polls and voted this year. And I was also pleased last night, and I called Senator Kennedy to tell him that that was one of the greatest political speeches I have ever heard, and I think it'll go a long way toward unifying our Nation and guaranteeing a victory in November.

And finally let me say that I could not have a better partner than Fritz Mondale to serve with me during this next administration, as he has so well for the last 3 1/2 years. We will have an opportunity in the next, I think, 83 days, to let the American people clearly see the sharp, stark difference between the Republican Party today and what it stands for and the Democratic Party today and what it stands for, between two men who represent such a brutal difference in their concept of America now and the concept of our future, and to let the Republicans try to explain some of the ridiculous attitudes they've already assumed and the promises that they've made to the American people that can never by carried out and, even worse, the promises that they've made to the American people that you and I will see will never be carried out, because they'll never serve in this White House the next 4 years.

And finally, let me say that I'll be with you tomorrow night at the convention. I want to have some good votes today on the platform issues and a good vote tonight on the nominations. Don't forget us and I won t forget you.

Thank you very much. God bless you.