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. The Honorable Gale Norton Secretary of the Interior Prepared Remarks to the Colorado River Water Users Association Las Vegas, Nevada December 11, 2003 There is always an adjustment when traveling from Washington, D. C. to Las Vegas. Both places make you feel like you have entered another world. At least in Las Vegas you get to gamble with your own money. In Washington, others gamble with your money. President Bush has brought a new spirit to Washington because he trusts each of you to make decisions on how you spend the money you earn. That is why he has been so steadfast about enacting tax cuts for our nation. I appreciate your ability to rearrange today's schedule on my behalf. I've come here from a meeting of the Cabinet - and I did not want to miss this opportunity to review our important accomplishments over the past year. I can tell you the political pundits back in Washington are a very unhappy group right now. They said the President's tax cuts and jobs and growth agenda would never work. The good news is that the economy has created more than 325,000 jobs in the last four months, dropping the unemployment rate to 5.9%. In the third quarter the economy grew at the strongest rate in almost 20 years. Surveys on manufacturing orders show the strongest picture in 20 years as well. Automobile sales and home construction both continue to expand. . The economic growth was driven by strong private sector consumption and investment - exactly the targets of the tax cuts. Best of all is that consumer confidence has risen to its highest level in more than a year. And before I address the issues facing the Colorado Basin - and especially at this time of year - let us all remember the brave members of our armed forces who are at this minute protecting our freedom and protecting us from the ravages of terrorism that grip many parts of the world. What a difference a year can make - on the international front, in the nation=s economy - and also here in the Colorado River Basin. A year ago when we gathered here, the uncertainty and conflict over the future of the Quantification Settlement Agreement was high. Some doubted the Quantification Settlement Agreement would ever be completed. We all understood that we were on the verge of entering uncharted waters on the Colorado River. The potential for chaos was high. With the execution of the Colorado River Water Delivery Agreement that we celebrated at ..