Statement by Assistant to the President for Press Relations Fitzwater on the Report of the President's Commission on Privatization

Today the President received the report of the President's Commission on Privatization. Chairman Linowes and members of the Commission worked hard to prepare this final report, and they are to be congratulated on an excellent achievement. The Commission's spirit of bipartisanship, as well as the diverse backgrounds of its members, make the Commission's forward-looking recommendations especially useful as we consider what steps are needed to attain an appropriate division of responsibilities between the Federal Government and the private sector.

The work of the Commission on Privatization is close to the President's philosophy of government. He campaigned for the Presidency on a platform of limited government, and one of the earliest priorities of this administration was to reestablish the proper relationship between the Federal Government, which had grown too big and powerful, and the private sector. We are continuing those efforts, and the Commission's report today is an important contribution to them. The Commission's recommendations on privatization will prove greatly helpful to this and future administrations and to the Congress in achieving a proper balance between the public and private sectors. The President commends the members of the Commission for an excellent achievement.