Remarks at the Swearing In of Stanley K. Hathaway as Secretary of the Interior.

Thank you very, very much, Kent. Governor and Mrs. Hathaway, distinguished Members of the Congress and the Cabinet, members of the Department of Interior family, ladies and gentlemen:

It's a great thrill and a wonderful privilege for me to be here and to participate in the swearing in of Stan Hathaway as Secretary of the Interior.

Stan's swearing in will be another important piece in the putting together of a first-class Cabinet of men and women who will be extremely helpful to me and to the Congress and to the country in policy-advising responsibilities, in working with the Congress, in making this country a better place for all of us to live. He is another important ingredient in a team that we're going to have for the betterment of all of us.

Stan comes to this new responsibility after 8 years as an extremely able and effective Governor of the great State of Wyoming. He was not only popular but he got things done, and his record will go down in the history of the State of Wyoming as an outstanding one.

He was a good administrator, and he had a great desire and an effective one to do what was right for his people in that State. He brings to this position as Secretary of Interior the skills that he developed in 8 years as Governor of that State, and he brings with it the same desire to do a first-class job as Secretary of Interior. And I believe that the Department and the country will be the beneficiaries.

Governor Hathaway has assured me that as Secretary of the Interior, he has the highest possible commitment to a balanced program for the preservation of our environmental heritage. He brings, also, the wise management of our natural resources, and he brings with his swearing in a dedication to support our national energy goals.

And I have assured the Governor that whether it's in the field of environment, administrative management, or our energy goals, that I will give him total support.

During my lifetime, I've been privileged--both as a public official and before--to travel the length and the breadth of our country. And a good many years ago, Stan, I was a 90-day wonder as a ranger in the National Park Service. And I served in Yellowstone at the Canyon Station, and I learned there for the first time the tremendous beauty that you have in your State and that our country has in one of our great natural heritages.

I assure you, as you have assured me, that we're going to work together for the preservation of these amazing natural resources that we have. It is really a part of the majesty of America. We never want to lose that dedication to it. We never will.

And I can assure all of you here, as I would assure our fellow Americans, that in Stan Hathaway we have a man, as Secretary of Interior, who will do the job for all of us. And now, it's my privilege to ask Justice Rehnquist to perform the function of swearing in our new Secretary of Interior, Governor Stan Hathaway.