Remarks to a Group of Italian Journalists

Ladies and gentlemen:

I particularly appreciate the remarks of the distinguished Ambassador who, along with his lovely lady, is held in such high esteem in my country.

We have an old saying that a man's judgment on any given question is no better than the information he has on that question.

So I feel that we in America are very fortunate that you should be interested enough in us and in our way of life, in our hemisphere, in our ideals and our programs that you would want to come here and mingle with us and take with you the information about America, because if that is good, why then your judgments can be good. If the information is not good, then we will have to improve it.

You follow a very long line of distinguished Italians who have come to this country since its founding. In fact, only 10 days ago we had one of the most pleasant state visits that I have ever been involved in when your distinguished President and his First Lady were here.

We enjoyed discussing the problems of the free world with your President and your Foreign Minister. They brought home to all of us here the warm understanding and the close relationship which exists between Italy and the United States.

I therefore am delighted to welcome you as citizens of Italy, as close allies of the United States, as old and dependable friends.

Very frankly, I have a glowing feeling for your country, for your homeland. One of the happiest memories of my life is the brief--unfortunately too brief--visit that I had in your land. I do not believe that any human being who is sensitive can fail to be moved by the glory of eternal Rome or the warmth of friendly Naples. I shall never forget my car being stopped time and time again for good, genuine, sincere people to tell us how they wanted to get along with the United States; how they appreciated our working together; about some of their relatives who had already come here.

Incidentally, the first man I appointed to my staff when I became President was Jack Valenti whose grandfather came from Italy and who, incidentally--I hate to let you get puffed up--is about the best fellow with me. He gets up with me every morning. He stays up with me until I go to bed at night, around midnight, and he is the only one who can really take it. The rest of these fellows are sissies.

Now I am told by the Ambassador that all of you in one way or another are connected with outstanding journalistic enterprises-as managers, as reporters, as writers, as financial supporters. If the Italian scene is anything like the American scene--and somehow or other I feel or have the impression that it is--you are connected with one of the most important and one of the most essential institutions in a democratic society.

The fourth estate wields tremendous power. In fact, sometimes we have the impression that government only provides the background for the operation of the press; that we are just silent witnesses.

As great events occur, you produce hundreds of thousands of words and, despite great periodic cries from the press, the fact is that no one really manages the press. It is you gentlemen of the press who decide which words and which events reach the eyes and the ears of millions of readers and listeners. Of course, in your profession, there are people of all kinds. Some of them are witty, some of them are serious, some dispense news, others advise. Many a time though a reporter has come to me in search of a story and he has ended up telling me what I ought to do.

Of course, we do have a paparazzi constantly searching for new shots and angles, and usually they find both easily because they have been with us a long time.

I admit that this is a vital contribution to the thinking of a democratic nation. We are glad that all of you came here. You are among friends. I hope that when you leave that you will feel that you have seen your friends.

I am pleased that you came to the White House. I know you will be looking for news and uncovering a variety of interesting items, but I hope all the news you uncover here will be good news.

I thank you very much for coming. I enjoyed seeing you.

I want to emphasize again the real confidence that we have in the friendship of your people and the association of the last 17 years--the most intimate workings of the alliance together--and I believe that your future is our future, and conversely. If we can just realize that and follow the Golden Rule of "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you," we would certainly both come out stronger nations and preserve our freedom.

We have so much to be thankful for. Sometimes I think a cynical press just points out the weaknesses and the bad things. People concentrate on the things that they want to correct. And we should do that. We should improve ourselves every day, but we should never go to bed at night that we don't get down on our knees and thank our good Lord for the blessings that are ours, for the standard of living that is ours, for the freedom that is ours, for the opportunity that our children have that children of other nations do not have, and we ought to get up in the morning and dedicate ourselves to the objective that someday all peoples in all places in the world can live with freedom and happiness and prosperity as the people of Italy and the people of the United States do.

As I was driving down the streets of Rome, two priests stopped my car. They had 200 or 300 little boys behind them. They said, "We want you to go back to the United States and tell them what we think of them. We like you. Look at that skyline there," and they pointed back to the smoke stacks in the background. They said, "After we were prostrate following the war, all of us together helped build that, and never have the victors and the vanquished worked together as we are working together now to perfect a more perfect union of the world, and if your people will understand and if ours will understand, we just give a little of each other, my, what a glorious world this will be."

I was never touched by anything that happened to me more than that.

So, I say to you people, we will try to be worthy of your friendship. We will try to be grateful for your cooperation. We will try to work with your nation to settle the minor differences that come between us-settle them at the conference table--and we will try to lead the entire world to the most bountiful future that any civilization has ever known.

Thank you so much for coming this morning.

[Following a translation of the President's remarks, he resumed speaking.]

Before you leave, if Mr. Crespi will come here, I have something I want to talk to him about.

First, I am sorry that we did not have more advance notice because I would have liked for you to see some of our most out-standing Congressmen and Senators of Italian extraction whose fathers and grandfathers came here, because we owe to you a great debt for some of our ablest people, particularly people like Senator John Pastore, Peter Rodino, and others, but they could not be here this morning. I will tell them of my meeting with you.

Mr. Crespi, I would like for you to pick two men besides yourself. I want to give them a little present that is pretty representative of your group. I asked the Ambassador but he does not want to make all of you mad.

Will you interpret for me?

This is a picture of the Acting Mayor of Washington welcoming your President to the Blair House. Now pick me another. This is a picture welcoming him at the White House. And this is for you.

Now will you pick me three of the girls. I believe I will give the Ambassador this one.

You have one of the finest Ambassadors and one of the loveliest ladies of any embassy here in Washington. And tell them I am going to send that one to the Ambassador's wife.

[At this point Mario Crespi Morbio, co-owner of the Corriere Della Sera, presented the President with a small bronze facsimile of the first page of the newspaper, dated 1870, founded by Mr. Crespi's family. The President then resumed speaking.]

It is a great honor to me and I appreciate this beyond words, and I will always treasure it and have thoughts of a fine, aggressive group of friends from Italy who came here this morning.

Thank you very much.