Vice President George H.W. Bush to President Ronald Reagan, August 16, 1988:
Well, Mr. President and Nancy, hail and farewell. You know, a great scientist, Isaac Newton, once said: “If I’ve seen further, it’s because I’ve stood on the shoulder of giants.” And by the time you leave office—you’ve graced—you will have done for America the greatest thing that a President could do: You will have left this country better than you found it.
And today America can see further because of your vision. And now it’s time to extend that vision into the next century, and it’s time to accept the challenge that you’ve left for us and made possible: to build a better America. And we accept that challenge, and we look forward to writing the next chapter in America’s freedom story because America’s mission is greatness. And I do not intend to fail.