-
https://clinton.presidentiallibraries.us/files/original/63c75b8ef6e73548c135a956905b94d4.pdf
dbad324d9e1e05457497fb637750b92e
PDF Text
Text
FOIA Number: 2006-0462-F
FOIA
This is not a textual record. This is used as an
administrative marker by the William J. Clinton
Presidential Library Staff.
Collection/Record Group:
Clinton Presidential Records
Subgroup/Office of Origin:
Speechwriting
Series/Staff Member:
Terry Edmonds
Subseries:
10987
OA/ID Number:
FolderiD:
Folder Title:
Ethnic Leadership Day
Stack:
Row:
Section:
Shelf:
Position:
0
0
0
0
�To:
6517~
From: EOP PUB. FAX LINE
B-89-96
3:22 pm
Page
1 of
3
THE WHITE HOUSE
Office of the Press Secretarv
(New York, New York)
-
REMARKS BY THE PRESIDENT
AT THE IRISH AMERICAN OF THE YEAR AWARDS
The Plaza Hotel
New York, New York
6:58P.M.
EST
THE l?RESIDfNT:
Senator Kennedy Ambassador Kennedy Smith Niall
O'Dowd, ladies and gent emen.
Senator Kennedy just told me thaE I cou1d keep th<
~if~ under th~ new ethlcs law passed by Congress.
(Laughter.)
And I 1ntend to
o 1t.
(Lauqnt.er.)
.
To John H~me ~nd Albe~t Reynolds and all mv many friends in the
aud1ence, all the d1st1ngulshed Ir1sh Amerlcans who are-here -- mayors, other
public officials, leaders of business, to Anjelic? Huston ?nd Liam Neeson.
It's
a great tr1bute, don't you th~nk, to ~he versat1+1ty of Ir1shmen that Llam Neeso:
could make such a big impress1on wear1ng a Scott1sh k1lt?
(Laughter.)
I fe~l a great deal of gratitude to many here in this audience.
It's a q~eat 8r1y1leae to me to accept th~s aw?rd from one o~r nation's most
e~traor01narv· Ir1sh ~er1cans,
Jean Kennedy Sm1th, and your last year's honoree.
Sne had a large hand 1n the pos1t1ve developments of the last three years.
Her
commitment wa$ tireless and so was her will1ngness to pick UP. the telephone and
call U1e l?resl.dent.
(Laughter.·)
She has earned the gratituae of everyone here.
! also want to thank S~nator Kennedy, not only fpr his work on t.h.i.:c
issue, but fc·r stat;~dinq uo for tte J.nterests of ord1nary Amer1cans and :forgotte::
oeople here and al~ ov~r the wor ~ for more than three oecades now.
Th1s countr·
1s fuore 1n h:s debt than most w1 I ever know.
·
I thank Senato1· Do(id and Cong1·essman King and Congressman Manton
and the othec· member~$ of the Un.1.ted States Congress wno have $Eood fo.r the <;:ause
of Ireland.
:: 'm del1ghted to be here w1th a number of the Ir1sh Amer1cans 1n my
adminl$trati<;:n who are a!Tionq those beinq honored ton;ight:
Secretary of
Educat1on" D1ck R1ley; the Peace Cor]:)$ Director, Mark Gearan; those on the White
House staLf, ~:ittv Hlgg1ns, Kat1e McG1nty, Susan Brophyl Nancy Soderberg -- who
wanted to put an "o" and an apostrophe in front o:f her ast name so as not to b<
quest1oned.
I want to thank N1all for what he $ald about Nancy ~oderberg and
Tony (>ake . . '!"hey also had a very profound role 1n the work that our
admlnlstratlon was able to do.
I would ~lso, since I'm here in New York, liKe to begin with
some~Qing that'- not 1n my note$.
I was a young student ln.England when the
Trouoles beuan.
And as an funer1can acutely aware of h1s Ir1sh roots, I was
deeplv intei··_csted .in it and troub.).ed by it.
But tir11e took 111e in a dlfferent
d1rection.
: wenr. back home, I lJ.ved a d1fferent l1fe, I m1ssed a lot of what
happened bet~een then and four years ago.
>ly second Irish Journey really beqan here in New YOfK Citv, and at
least_thre~ c~ those.who took me on it are here tonight.and I~d
1k~ t6 thank
them toL wnar~ <:hey d1d.
My law school fr1end and longt1me fr1end, Lorme.r:
Congn"ssman 3ruce MurL·ison, Congressman Tom Manton ana Paul O'Dwyer -- thank ·.;o>.• ,
Bruce; thank ·;ou, Torn; r.hank you, Paul.
(Applause.)
~e all know that we come tonight in celebration that is not as
unambiguous as we mi2ht have hoped.
We come he~e to face the continuing
challenge of 0u~ Ir1~h herltage.
Tonight, 1n the land of our ancestors, the
future one~ a~a.tn .ts at a crossroads.
And, once again, each of us must do our
part to saf<::r,;u ..Hd Uh:? promise, the p1·ecious promise of peace.
This matter;;; to Ame[ica, to all who believe that thqse children
have a right to grow up tree of ear.
That is why we have worked so closelv wit~
all of the pa~ties and the peoele on all $ides of the conflict -- the Catholics,
the P~otestar:ts, the Nationall~ts, the UnlOnlsts, the Irish and the Brltlsh -tha~ lS why I :.J_rated a v1sa to Ger1·y Adams and wnv I l)osted toe.Wh1te.House
Conrerence en trade ~nd Investment; why we were ~ne f1rst adm1n1strat1on ever tc
suppo;-t: the :nr.ernar.1onal Fund for~ lr~e1and; V::hY 1 Has '-"J.ll1ng to ask qut· .
rem~r~able na~ur~l resource~ former Senator Gebrqe_Mltche.).lL.to go ana.st:lck h~5
hana ::: the ·.-::ceel; and why .t became the t1rst pres1dent s1tc.1ng 1n off1ce to
·; isi t !lorther~, I.::eland last year.
~s Senator Kennedy was t:alkinu about !?resident Kennedy's trip
r.here,
~ouldn't. help reme~beting those d~ys,
even.though_they depr1ved me
.
because ot ~hat we were try1ng to dQ to make peace J.n Bosn1a, of the opportun1t~
to play Ball~·bunion --they were st1ll the best days of my l1fe.
(Laughter.)
·
MORE
�To:
6517~
from:
EOP PUB. fAX LIHE
B-89-96
3:22 pm
Page
2 of
2
.;nd when I ca1;11e home with the seafl'!d, vivid memories of the faces
of the people 1n the Shank1lls and the Falls,
1n1nq the roads to greet us as we
made our way throuqh tOWD, the men and women of botn traditions on the floor at
Mackie's Plant, the two llttle children -- one C9thol1c and one Protestant who
introduced me ;:;nd •..vho have now been to visit me 1n the Oval Office -- the crowd :
s<;~w in D~rry, all t:he music I heaL·<;!, all the things I saw,
I L·eali:;::ed that in mv
llfe I m1qht never· have two days llKe that again.
But I also reallzed that the"
romance of the moment cannot strip us of the keen awareness that the work ls not
yet done.
.rhe people of ~o~tnern Ireland have clearly chosen peace.
They
have chosen a1alouue over dlVlSlOn.
They do not deserve to have a small grouo
choose bloodshed and v1olence and shatter their dreams.
And we must not allow
those who have ~een hardened by the past to hijack the future of the children of
Northern Ireland.
(Applause.)
I •.-.~ant to say, as I have on wany occasions, how much I ap_preciate
th~ risks that have been taken and the efforts that hav~ been made by oath the
Ir.).sh a!).d. Br1tish .•Jovernments,_ by AlbeL·t Reynolds and hls successor, John Bruc.on,
E'rlme M1n1ster :'1a1or.
The F'eoruary 28th announcement by the governments was a
~ilestone achievemenc..
A firm date has b~en .set for all party talks.
An<;! tha~
lS, after all, ·.·:hac. w~ have all been work1nq for.
Violence has no place 1n thls
process.
The cease-flre has got to be restOred.
(Applause.)
We .Z\mer icans who so proudly call ourselves Irish must speak with
one voice on this is3ue,
Those o
you who stood with me when we tooR the first
steps h~re c.hat no Amerlca!). government has taken before -- you, especially, .~ust
speak w1th one vo1ce on th1s 1ssue.
The future must belong to those who bu11a,
not fhose who ma1m and destroy.
All the :tr1sh Am~r1can conununity 11!Ust, must urg.c
ou~
r1ends on the other s1de of the ocean to ban1sh the specter ot v1olence once
and or all.
foL ouL part, we will continue to work closely with the Irish and
British government~, and the p9rt1es 1nvolved to support tneir efforts to eod. ~h~
v1olence and to acn1eve a last1ng peace.
from our battle of 1ndependence r1cnt
doW!). to the f~~sent d<;~y the Irish ~ave defe!).ded and built and blessed our
!).atlon.
Ot
II :he l!ts we can of er them 1n return, per a s the most precious
lS the examp e of wh~t can happen w en people flnd strengt~ ~nstead of weakness
in their diversity.
We know 1t is hard to do, but we also reaped the richness or
the pL·lze.
We are proud to walk with those who seek peace, from Northern
I,reland to the ~l.iddle I;:ast, to Bosnia, to Haiti, all ac~oss this planet . . Our air.
there, as evervwnere, 1s (lOt to 1mpose peace -- we coul-dn't <;io that even .J.f ·.,.;e
·
were asked to -::o s:::>, people mu.;;t make thelr own p~ace 1n the1r mind.;; and 1n c.hei;
hearts.
Sut •..v-c r:now that 1\meL·lca ?t this moment .;.n time, and espe<;aally with
regard to ILccl-:ino, ~an pl9y a SQec1al role.
We Wlll keeR our corrun.j.tment to cc
al-I we can to c~eate ~ cl1mate tor peace to take hold an~ to flour1sh, to scand
w1th those who :ake r1sks for peace through the good t1mes and the bad, to
counter the !crces of hatred and division wherever they appear.
Since the first settlers came to our shores, Irish, Protestant ~~d
Catholic r:oy<=theL !:.Jve added to ouL· strength.
Tomorrow, as I '.m sure most of ·:ou
know I leave~ or: '-' different mission of peace.
I'm yoing to Sha.t:m el-Sheikh :.n
Egypt, where i eadet·.s from the M1dd.l.e F~ast and around the world w1ll stand as 0ne
for peace 1n the M1ddle EastL toqether tQ yOmbat the merchants of hatr~d wich
every means at our command, c.oqether to J oln our strength and our conun1 tment t:.·:·
carry the peace process forwara there.
We rnuc;t not let the terrorists in the Middle East have the victo.:.v
they s~ek -- the death ot the v~ry hope for peace.
I ask fo.t: your Rrayers on that m1ssiont a:; well.
The sol1.dar:i.t.y of peace-maker:s 1n thls worl~ today mc.:3r.
be st.r;:o(lger ~'".ar: !:;,Jllets or bo~b.;;.
The wi,ll of the people for peace 1s more
powerful ~han r:~e l~pulse to d1v1sion, and we must not stop untll peace has ::een
secured.
:
:: •• ·J·~ -.1 betteL· undeLst:andin<,J
now th<:~n I d1d when I went to Ireld:'d
of the lonu :.·. .:. .. •J•Jl<.: Wltrlln the. souls of t:he I11sh people over the last few
decad~s.
\1Jh~n
. .~arne nome
hav1ng had the oppot·tunJtV to meet Seamus Heanev, :os
he sa1d 1:1 h::o ~et:e1_; t.o the P..rnbassador
:J: was pro.(oundly i:)onored that he
·
avtograpbep a :;:;py at "Th~ Cure At Troy'1 to~ my Wlte, not tor me-- (laughte~)
w1sely plCKln~ :ne more llterate 1n our fam1ly.
(Laughter.)
;:.u:_ ~-:.H me he hand-:-wL·ote out the lines from tnat magnificent ·'C_Ig;:~:.
that I spoke:~ I)err:,;.
And so I. framed them and put them 1n my personal ottlce
at the White :-;c:ou:o;~,
The moment whece hop~ and histor·y r:hyme." And after I Got.
back I asked a ~~lend of m1ne who l$ a wr1ter to qet.me a copy of Seamus Heariey'
address upon ~ece1~1ng the Nobel E'r1ze.
An~ I read 1t.
And lf you have not ~ea,
it, I commend ~: : : 'fOU,.
It is an asto!).ishlnq journey of the. soul, a. journey ·:·f
personal coura~e, a_ Llgnt aga1nst cynlolsm.ana glVl!).g up, a f1ght aga1nst the
angeL· ano .Jn•,:·~~~·:: :_nar: comes fL·om teel1ng _lmpotent 1n the face of larger ever;:_~:.
MOI\E
�To:
6517~
from: EOP PUB. FAX LIHE
B-89-96
3:cc pm
Page
3 of
3
- 3 -
.
I imaqine it d~scr~bes the same journey of the heart that our
fr~end John Hume has taken ~n h~s own way over the last several years.
I say
tbat Qecause the truth is, no one know$ whether human nature c~aves dominan~e an(
d~v~s~on over peace.and hope, but we all believe we know, and ~n the believ~ng wE
can make a new realJ.ty.
We cannot let our ~hildren grow up ~n the world toward which we are
moving, wh~re events are un!old~ng at svch a ~ap~d pace and people are being
thr9wn aga~nst ~ach other w~th great~r ~ntens~ty than ever before and huqe
dec~sions that ~nvolve the ve~y surv~v?l of the ecostructvre of the planet will
have tQ b~ made.
We cannot Qt!ord to let another generat~on of young people gro'
up belJ.eV.j.n'J that it's more ~mportant to def~n~ themselves in teL·rns of who thev
are not, 1nstead of what they are.
ADd that, 1n the end, i$ the great struggle
that every qenerat1on, that every nat1on, that every commun~ty, tnat every
fam~ly, tnat every person must wage.
.
If we believe we are children ot God, th~n what is important is
what we are
not what '"e are not.
Ano that ~s the q~tt that Irish Amer~cans mus·
give to Ireland in our lifetime.
Thank you, and Goa bless you all'.
(Applause.)
E:ND
MORE
7:13
P.M.
ES'.
�President William J. Clinton
Prepared Remarks
Italian-American Dinner
October 21, 1995
[Acknowledgments: Frank Stella, Chairman of the National Italian
American Foundation; Frank Guarini, President of the foundation;
Arthur Gajarsa [guy-AR'-suh], Vice Chairman of the Foundation;
Senator Domenici, Dinner Chairman; the Ambassador from the Holy
See, the Most Reverend cacciavillan [kaht'-cha-vee-LAHN']; the
Italian Ambassador, Boris Biancheri [bee-ahn-KER'-ee); our
ambassador to Italy, Reginald Bartholomew; tonight's
distinguished honorees; members and friends of the foundation,
some of whom have come here tonight from Italy. ]
..- ··. ·-
...... ·-
Thank you for your warm welcome.
I am honored to be with you
again this year and happy to see so many friends again.
Just last Monday, I was in Los Angeles with one of· tonight's
honorees, Tony Bennett, who. was the headliner for ·a wonderful
concert put· together to inform young people of the dangers of
illegal drugs.
And earlier this month, I was with Cardinal Bevilacqua [beh-vilLAH'-quah], when I had the great honor to welcome Pope John Paul
II in Newark, New Jersey, for our third meeting since I've been
President.
I am not Roman Catholic, but I see some interesting parallels
between the pontiff and myself.
For example, he came from Poland
to the Vatican; I came from Arkansas to the White House. - So,
we're both outsiders in jobs that often go to insiders.
And
then, when I first met the pontiff in 1993, I noticed that when
he named a chief of staff, he chose an Italian.
It was soon after that I had a talk with Leon Panetta about
taking a new job at the White House.
It just seemed the right
thing to do. And Leon has been a great chief of staff.
There are many Italian-Americans playing important roles in our
Administration.
I want to recognize a few of them.
Laura
D'Andrea Tyson, head of our National Economic Council; Patrick
Griffin, head of Congressional Liaison; Louis Freeh, director of
the FBI; Bob Blancato, executive director of the White House
Conference on the Aging; and in our office of Public Liaison,
Marilyn DiGiacobbe (dee-jah-KOH'-bee), who did such a wonderful
job coordinating for us during the pope's visit, as she has
tonight and too many other times to count.
These people and so many others have worked very hard to help us
l
�achieve all that our Administration has done in less than three
years, all the things that Frank Guarini was so kind to mention
in his introduction.
As Frank said, many times the stands we've taken have not been
popular, but I believe they have been the right thing to do.
I
thank NIAF and its friends for the support you have given us on
so many issues as we've worked to do right by America and by our
families.
Thank you.
I felt it was especially important to spend this time with you
this year for many reasons:
Italian-Americans have given us a
model for valuing our families, for tending to our communities
and for celebrating our unique cultures while still respecting
others.
Italian Americans have given so much to our country.
And Italian Americans have shown us the importance of preservirvJ .. __
and creating opportunity for the generations that follow.
~ · .-It's these values that have guided and must continue to guide our
decisions as we work to prepare America for the future. The 21st
century can be a time when every American has the chance to live
up to the fullest of his or her God-given abilities.
It can be a
time when families grow stronger. It can be a new era for America
·as a force for freedom and peace and decency and prosperity in
the entire world.
All that depends on the job done today.
We have begun the work.
We've created a strong economy and a government that is smaller
and less bureaucratic. But it still fulfills our basic values -giving people the chance to make the most of their own lives,
strengthening families, building up communities, helping people
-- the elderly, the poor children, those who, through no fault of
their .own, need some help to get along in life. This is-part of
having a good society.
Make no mistake: Our country is in much better shape than it was
when I took office. We have 7.5 million more jobs, millions of
more small businesses, the so-called Misery Index, the
combination of unemployment and inflation is at its lowest point
in 25 years. Many of our exports of capital goods and consumer
goods are at an _all-time high.
And we see the American people
coming back together and reasserting a sense of responsibility
for themselves and their families and their communities.
The welfare rolls are down, the food stamp rolls are down, the
poverty rate is down, the crime rate is down, the teen pregnancy
rate is down. Our country is moving in the right direction.
I want to keep it moving that way.
Right now, we are at a point when decisions are being made that
will affect the direction we take as a nation. They will affect
2
�all Americans for a long time to come.
But the consequences of
the wrong decisions will be felt hardest by our families. And I
am here to tell you that we must do all that we can, working
together, to see that the decisions are good for our working
families.
My friend Cardinal Bernardin once said: "Families give life, and
giving life means more than procreation.
It means educating and
nurturing children to their full status as sons and daughters of
God and as citizens of their country and their world. The United
Nations calls the family the smallest democracy at the heart of.
society. Where will new generations learn about democracy's
rights and responsibilities, if not at home?"
Where, indeed?
~
··.·-
So, we must take into account 'our smallest democracy in the
~ ... debate we are having now on the federal budget.
All sides agree:
The budget should be balanced. I've actually done something to
move us that way.
In three years, we took the deficit from $290
billion down to $160 billion, the biggest drop in ·American
history.
So the question is not whether to balance the budget ... but how?
It is a part of our basic value structure that we believe people
should be able to strengthen their families and make the most of
their own lives.
It is part of our values to protect our
environment and make sure it's going to be around for our
grandchildren, and our grandchildren's grandchildren.
It is part
of our values to want affordable student loans- And it goes to
our deepest values to want to care for our seniors and our
poorest children, and the disabled, who depend on Medicar~ and
Medicaid.
So I have tried very hard to work with this Congress, and I will
continue to try to do that.
But I wi.ll not allow the trampling
of the things we value.
I do not believe America would be stronger if we denied tens of
thousands of young children the chance to be in the Head Start
program.
I do not believe America would be stronger if we deny
poor school districts the chance to have small classes and
computers in their schools.
I do not believe America would be
stronger if we hamper the ability of the national government to
provide for clean air and clean water and safe drinking water and
pure food.
·
I do not believe America would be stronger if we say to the
elderly in our country,who have worked their entire lives: "It's
all right with us if you are forced to clean out your bank
account, sell your car and sell your home before you or your
spouse can go into a nursing home.
An America that would do that
3
�/
is not the kind of America I want to live in; it's not the kind
of America our forebears envisioned when they came to this
country.
And I do not believe America would be stronger if we are not
allowed to stand up for basic decency and peace and fr~edom and
prosperity around the world.
This is what America is all about.
If you look at the future, there is no nation in the world as
well-positioned as the United States for the 21st century. But
we need to remember our basic values.
on Monday;h~ of L~uxmdsgathered in this city in a remarkable
march. And tney had a simple message: We want to take
~
responsibility for ourselves, for our families, and for our
~
communities. But we want the rest of America to join hands with
us in making this great country what it ought to be. The
marchers were saying: "We want America to live up to its ideals
and up to its potential, and we'll do our part to get there."
And we should applaud that.
We are a multi-racial, multi-ethnic country. Tonight we
illuminate one beautiful, important part of our national mosaic
where all the pieces come together to make a picture that is the
envy of the world.
In a global village where people relate to each other across
national lines, nothing could give us a greater asset for the
21st century than our racial and ethnic diversity.
It is a
Gods en
But there remain great differences in the way we view the world
based on our racial or ethnic background. When I spoke at ·the
University of Texas this week, it was as much a family speech as
a speech on race, because we are all, in America, part of one
family, like it or not.
I asked that day that we each make sure that we have taken the
time to really know and care about and understand somebody who is
of a different race.
In our great conversation on race, we must
be truthful, we must talk and we must listen. When we can do all
that, we'll be on our way to bridging the differences that can
divide us.
The future we aspire to for ourselves and for our children can be
the best ever. But we must get there together. And at this
juncture, we dare not ever turn away from the values that we
learned from our parents and they learned from their parents.
These are the values that have
su~tained
4
and lifted the Italian-
�American community. They will continue to sustain and lift
America. Let us work together to make it happen.
Thank you and God bless.
~
5
..
·-
�Clinton Presidential Records
Digital Records Marker
This is not a presidential record. This is used as an administrative
marker by the William J. Clinton Presidential Library Staff.
This marker identifies the place of a publication.
Publications have not been scanned in their entirety for the purpose
of digitization. To see the full publication please search online or
visit the Clinton Presidential Library's Research Room.
�Measure for Measure
In an MBE magazine exclusive
interview, President Bill Clinton
speaks with Weldon H. Latham
about the future of minority
Weldon H. Latham
business development.
hen he took
office
1n
January
1993, President
Bill
Clinton
promised to appoint an administration
that "looks like America." Today, Americans can meas·ure how he has lived up to
that promise.
Hazel O'Leary and Jesse Brown, both
African Americans, serve as Secretaries
of Energy and Veterans' Affairs, respectively. Until his untimely death in April,
Ron Brown, also an African American,
�National Ethnic Coalition of
nizations F oll.llndation
TO:
Marilyn DiGiacobbe
Page 1 of 2
FROM:
Rosemarie Taglione
FAX #202/456-6218
DATE: April 10, 1997
•
•
•
The National Ethnic Coalition of Organizations, Inc., with more than five
million family members, is the largest organization of its kind in the United
States. NECO serves as an. umbrella group for 75 organizations that span
the spectrum of ethnic heritage, culture, and religion. The NECO mandate
is universal in scope and humanitarian in purpose: to preserve ethnic
diversity, promote equality and tolerance, combat injustice, and bring about
harmony and unity among all peoples. NECO stands as a bastion against all
biased and discriminatory practices and fights to preserve the rights,
heritage, and culture of aJJ ethnic groups and races.
Established in 1986 by William Denis Fugazy and Richard A. Grace, the
Ellis Island Medals of Honor are presented to outstanding American citizens
who have distinguished themselves by their contributions to this country
while preserving their ethnicberitage and values and ensuring that they are
passed on to the generations yet to come. By honoring these individuals, we
honor all those who share their origins; and we acknowledge the
contributions they and other groups have made to our country.
, __ This year's event will be dedicated to the memory of 1995 medalist, Albert
~hanker. As President of the American Federation of Teachers and a Vice
,,President of the AFL-CIO, he was a well-known leader in educational
reform. Albert Shanker marched with Dr. Martin Luther King in Alabama
to support voting rights, and he established Freedom Schools in Virginia to
further integration.
The first teacher to become a member of the AFL-CIO Executive Council,
Mr. Shanker was Senior Vice-President of the AFL-CIO, Chairman of the
General Board of its department for Professional Employees, and Chair of
its International Affairs Committee. He was founding President of
NECO, representing the largest ethnic and heritage organi2.ations in the United States,
with over five million family members, is dedicated to universal brotherhood and to the
advancem£nt, protection and encouragement of all ethnic groups and races.
555 M.ldison Avenue, 12th Floor • New York, New York 10022 • (212) 755-1492 • FAX: (212) 755-3762
Web Site http://www.neco.o~
cO 'd
c9LESSLclc 'ON
X~j
line.
�Page 2
Education International, a federation of some 20 million teachers from
democratic countries around the world.
He had established AFf projects to assist teacher unions and other
democratic political groups in South Africa, Chile, Hungary~ Poland and
Russia. He was a member of the Labor Advisory Board of the Holocaust
Museum in Washington. ·
Above all, he will be remembered as a chief organizer of teachers into the
labor movement and for having touched the lives of millions of school
children by elevating the standards of public school education.
+
Acclaimed Ellis Island honorees have included Presidents Ronald Reagan,
George Bush, Jimmy Carter, Gerald Ford, and Richard Ni"'Con; Walter
Cronkite, General Colin Powell, Coretta Scott King, Rosa Parks, Eric
Severeid, General Norman Schwarzkopf, Barbara Walters, Elie Wiesel, Dr.
Michael DeBakey, Dr. Anthony Fauci, His Eminence Jriseph Cardinal
Bernardin, Rep. Barbara Jordan, Joe DiMaggio, Rep. Charles Rangel, Bob
Hope, Lou Holtz, Helen Hayes, Dr. Henry Kissinger, Danny Thomas, Itzhak
Perlman, John Cardinal Krol, Fred Lebow, and Barbara Walters.
+
Because President Ointon, like Chairman William Denis Fugazy, has such
strong feelings about keeping America's doors open to immigration, we
suggest he speak about the important contributions immigrants have made,
and continue to make, to the United States. His words will be particularly
effective since they will be beard right there ... on Ellis Island ... where
millions of Americans can trace the entty of their ancestors to this great
country.
20 'd
G9LESSLGIG 'ON
X~3
9I:vi OHl
LB-OI-~d~
�..... ·
:
....... .
.. .......
.. ...
:·:··
..~.:
I
~
I
[
t
r.
CRITERIA
ISLAND MEDALS OF HONOR will be
.Tv~rarded ro a group of distinguished living American cirizens
who meet one or more ofihe following criteria:
* EXempli[y the ideal of living a life dedicated ro the
American way while preserving the values of a particular
heritage group.
"*"EXpend efforts to suppon, defend or highlight me
values associared -...ith Ameriam life: preserve and expand
rhe values assodared with a particular ethnic group.
* Contribltte extraordinary service ro a particular
heritage group enabling rhe growth and preservation of
that group's participation in the diversity of American l.ife..
* Air.ain achievement in reinforting the bonds between
a heritage group and i[S land of ori~.
..-Contribute distinguished service to humanity in any
Reid. profession or occupation.
Il
THE EIJJS ISLAND MEDAL OF HONOR
I
i
BACKGROUND
NOMINATIONS FROM THE PUBUC are the flrst step
in the selection process. Anyone may nominattc any
living U.S. dtizen. native or naturalized.· for considcratiDn
for the Ellis Island Medal of Honor.
AFTER ALL NOMINATIONS ARE RECEivED from
the public. the baOots will be sorted by ancesay group and
Screening Committees from each group will selea their
ovm fJ..nal nominees to receive the Ellis Island Medal
of Honor.
By honoring these individuals. we 11ooor all chose who
share their origins and we
by unmigr.mt:s &om many
adcnow11!dge the conlriliutions
Ew-opean nations. Emigration continues today with people from
they and other groups have made
to our cournry. The Ellis Island
~an.
and other
nations of r:he world sertling in the
United Stares of America. Our
unique and diverse sociery iS
drawn from r:he di!Jerent culrures
brought here from nur aiJd fiU'.
The Ellis Island Medal of
Honor was created ln 1986 to
honor the many ancestral groups
who through struggle. saaifia!
and success hel~ build this gre<~t
nation. Five Presidents. many
Senators and Congressmen and
Nobd Prize Winners are among
the :emark.able group of indiViduals rn receive the .Ellis Island
Med~ of Honor for their outstanding contributions to America.
This year the prestigious Medals
wiU again be prcserued rn Out·
standing Americans who have
distir.guished thc:nselves as
~···
·:
X~j
i
Citizens of thi! United State$
of America can tracE: their ancestry to many nation. The Native
American-Indians were the firs{
group on r:he continent followed
Asian.
NOTE: Do NOT nominate past recipients for the
Ellls Island Medal of Honor.
G9LESSLGlG 'ON
1.
1
NOMINATIONS
vo 'd
!
I
t
citizens of the United States.
I
I
Medal'! of Honor will be p~nr.
ed at a gala event on Ellis l'iland
planned for Sunday. May 4. 1997.
Il
l
t
I
i
I
I
The Ellis Island Medal~ of
Honor celebrate the richness and
diversity of American life. The
award honors not only individuals
but also the pluralism and ~emoc·
II
1
racy that have enabled our ances·
try groups rn malntain their i<lenti·
ties while becoming integral parts
of the American way of life. Thf:
Ellis Island Medals of Honor
are sanctioned on each occaSion
by the United States Congress and
;
I
I
recipients' names are listed in the
Congressional Reeord.
Please fill in lhe Nomination
Fonn or complete the form by
visiting our Web Site at
hnp:IIWIINI.neco.org/
....
Bl:vl nHl
L6-0I-~d~
,.
�"""'J\tl=-=E=D=:A-=L=I,.,S'"""""'T.--""S:....__~l9~9:.....:..7__,t;_ll.i.$
F.Name
L.Name
Island Nominees By Alpha
Title
Companv
=~======~-==========;-====~=======;-=============~~===~~--====
Ben¥
Manfred
Denis
Stuart
Edward F.
Ralph:\.
Raphael
Herbert F.
William
J. Frank
Young In
Hon. Nicholas
Ala gem
Altstadt
Andreozzi
Appelbaum
Arrigoni
Balzano
Baron
Boeckmann, ll
Bolster
Brown
Chung
CofTinas
Chairman, President & CEO
Chief Financial Officer
President
Secretarr-Treasurer
Packard Bell Nee, Inc.
Mutual of America
Andreuzzi Associates
Retail Wholesale & Dcpt.StoJ"e Union
Chairman
New York Bus Service
Comm. & Chief Information Offi NYC Deot/of Jnfonnation
CEO
Polyglot International
Owner & President
Galpin Motors, Inc.
President
C:NBC-TV
Price Waterllou~e Ll,P New York
Managing Partner
President
Turbo Sportswear• Jnc.
.Judicial Hearing Officer
�Joseph M.
Gen·eos Pete
.Jem•
Hon ..Mm;tin K
Daniel F.
Gerald T.
Sr. Catherine
Richard E.
J. Morton
Ron. Vincent A.
Michael J.
Ralph
George
Irma B.
Ralph D.
Cohen
Cokinos
Colangelo
Connor
Cremins
Crotty
Crumlish, RSM
Oauch
})avis
Oelorio
DelGiudice
Destino
Douris
Madison Square Garden Net_wo~r~k_ _ _ _ _ __
Executive Vice President
President & Petroleum Engineer Cokinos Oil Company
President/CEO
Phoeni.-< Suns
New York State Senator
H.J. Kalikow & Co., LLC
Executive Vice President
ITT Information Services, Inc.
Chairman/President/CEO
Mercy Home for Children
Executive Director
American Axle & Manufacturing, Inc.
President & CEO
o.H. Blair Investment Banking Corp.
Chairman
Vincent A. Deiorio Law Finn
Millennium Capital Markets
Managing Director
Cartier, Inc.
Chairman
(Po~1.humously)
Elder
Farkas
President
President
Kenneth
Feld
George
Edward
Peter C.
Peter A.
Kenneth J.
Sah·at.ore ''Sonny''
Rajat
Marife
Rev. Theodore M.
Thomas Y.
Rarn G.
Hirnir
Filios
Frcdkin
Gazes, MD
Georgescu
Gonnan
Grosso
Gupta
Chairman & CEO
Vice President
CEO
Professor of Cardiolosa
Chairman & CEO
Chninnun & CEO
Hernandez
Hesburgh, CSC
Hobart, Jr.
Hohn
Hovnanian
Troy Ford
PSCH, Inc.
Exccuth·e Producer
Managing J)irector
Prh·nte Investor
President Emeritus
President
Chairman & CEO
President
Feld Entertainment, Inc.
The Spanos Corporation
Radnet Inc.
· Medical Univcrsitv of South Carolina
Young & Rubicam, Inc.
Atlantic Mutual Companies
Grosso-Jacobson
McKinsev & Companv, Inc.
University of Notre Dame
NYS United Teachers, AFT AFL-CIO
New York Life Insurance Company
Hovsons, Inc.
~-mas~~~~~---------Err~~ia~·k~--------N~at~i~on~a~I~Pr~es~id~e~n~t____________F~inrt~-~C~a~th~o~l~ic~S~l~o~v~a~k~U~n~i~o~n~----------------
Denis M.
Michael
Hughes
Ditch
Exec. Assistant to the Pre<~.
New York State AFL-CIO
Chainnan of the Board & Owner Little Caesar Enterprises
Elham~----------J~a~b~i~ru~·~S~h~a~y~ot~a~~P~r~~~id~e~n~t~&~C~E~·O~------------~S~ig~m~a~A~~~so~c~ia~t~~~--~I~n~c~·----------------------
Caroline R.
Mvong, Y.
Charles
Constantine N.
Adih
Henn'
John H.
Jones
Juch
President & CEO
Owner/Operator
Herbert V.
Kamil
Andreas C.
J olm
Hon. John J.
Pamela Ana2.nos
DaYid W.
TonY J.
Leonard A.
Ronald Joseph
William J.
William T.
Jim
Kohler, .J r.-"-"----"C"-'hc!!a,._i,_,rm~a""n_,&=..Prcs'-"-"""i..,d,_,_c,._nt,.__________;:K!~o~)}:.:.:l~e:..r..::C:;;.O:.:.:m:.:.Jpo:::a::.:n""y'---------------------Kubik
Artist
Kvprianides
Hon. Consul General
Lam Fa-.hion Group
Lam
Chainnan
Leskovvansky
Judge
Liapakis
Manaeine Partner
Sulli>an & Liavakis,P.C.
Longaberger
CEO & Chairman
The Longaberger Compam·
Mafoud
Vice President
Damascus Bakeries, Inc.
New York City Comptroller's Office
Mancusi
Senior Assistant Comptroller
Mannino
Chairman & Co-Founder
Interchem Corpo.-ation
Marino
President & CEO
Blue Cross/Blue Shield of NJ
McCaffrev
Sr. Vice President & COO
Equitable Life Ass. Soc. of the US
McCann
President
1-800 Flowers
Kanakis, Jr., MD
Kangles, Esg.
President
Kassis
Director
Kaufman
Klein
President
Chairman & CEO
Caroline Jones Inc.
McDonalds
Consultants in Cardiology Ltd.
Constantine N. Kangles, Ltd.
Middle East Airlines
Henry Kaufman & Co., Inc.
MTM Corporation
Primed on April 10. 1997 at 3:11PM
Page l
so 'd
G9LESSLGlG 'ON
Xij~
8t:vt OHl LB-01-Hdij
�!.'-'M=E=D=~=L=I=S~T-=S----""-'19~9:....:.7--=E=lljs
Hon. William A.
:'llorman P.
Edward J.
Michael A.
Jem·D.
Dennis
Robert
Frank
Ernest S.
Nicholas G.
Nikos
Paul H.
Thomas V.
Andrew Patrick
McClain
McClelland
McElrov
M~nu..:;,.Jr.
McMorris
Mehiel
Meister
Mercede
Micek
Moore
Mouyiarls
Mullan
Murnhy
O'Rourke
Island Nominees By Aloha
Senior Counsel
.Chainnan & CEO
Secrebrv /Treasurer
President & CEO
Chairman, PrcsideQt & CEO
Chairman & CEO
Vice Chainnan
Developer
Chairman, President & CEO
Chairman & CEO
Manley, Burke, Lipton & Cook
Shamrock Foods CompauY
American Federation of Teachers
0
New York Bancorp
NW Transport Service, lnc & Colorado Rockies Ba
The Four M Corporation
AON Corporation
Merccde Construction
Cargill, Jnc.
Coo~&Lybran~
President
Mana Products, Inc.
Chairman & CEO
Del Monte Foods
Director of Legislation/Political A United Federation of Teachers
County Executive
Westchester County
�Frank A.
. Hori. Louis J.
Pamrriotis
Stephen L.'
Hon. Jeanine 1!-.
Carlos P.
Patrick J.
NidoR.
Jameo; H.
Edward
Daniel
Walter G.
Dennis
Valerie B ..
Naseeb M.
Marvin
Dr. Joseph V.
Richard Dale
Karen Silberman
JohnJ.
Stephen B.
Albert .1.
Olson
Papan
Papanicolaou
Paulu~
Pirro
Portes
Purcell
Qubein
Quello
Quinones
Rappaport
Rich
Rivera
Salembier
Saliba
Samson
Scelsa
Schultz
Scott
Shalam
Siegel
Simmons
Anwa1·
Soliman
Hon. John D.
Spencer
Nicholas Anthonv
Spilotro
His Eminence Archbi Spyridon
Jose
Suquet
Dennis D.
Swanson
Paul
Tagliabue
Martin Jam~
Tandler
:Michael E.
Tennenbaum
Albert N.
Thompson
Thomas Ralph
Tizzio
Robert J.
Tomsich
Louis R.
Tomson
Richard
Torrenzano
Sava.;; C.
Tsivicos
James G.
Charles
Hon. Dennis C.
Peter L.
Tsuuis
Uribe
Vacco
Venetis
Wallace, £sq.
Walshin
Watterson
Zakhem
Herbert N.
Iris
Scott R.
Sam Hanna
CEO
California State Assemblyman
Supreme President
Vice Pr~ident, News
DistriL't AttorneY
President & CEO
President & Publisher
Chairman
Commissioner
Executi,·e Vice Prec;ident
Chainnan
President & CEO
The JJertz Corporation
California State Legislature
Cyprus Federation of Amer., Inc.
NYl News
Westchester County Courthouse
The Portcs Group
Boston Herald
Creative Sen·ke;
Federal Communications Commission
M.S. Lines Inc.
New York Mercantile Exchange
Delaware Otsego Corporation
Pr~ident
Local #1199
Publisher
Esquire Magazine
President
Marsam Pharmaceuticals
ExecutiYe Director
.John D. Caland{a Ital. Amer. Institute/CUNY
Executive Director
United States Olvmpic Committee
TV News Director
WPIX·TV
CEO & President
Audiovox Cory.
President
Insignia/Edward S. Gordon Co .. Inc.
Sr. Account Executive
H.I.P.
CEO
American Restaurant Group
Mavor
City of YonkerS
Executive Director & V .P.
Italian-American Labor Council
Primate, Greek Orthodox Church Greek Ortho9_ox Archdioccs of Amer
Exec. VP & Chief Agencv Officer Equitable Life Assurance Society of the US
President/Gweral Manager
WNBC
Commissioner
National Football League
President
Tandler Textile, Inc.
Tennenbaum & Co .. LLC
Managing Member
Pr~ident & CEO
Consolidated Beverage Corp
President
American Int 'I Group Inc.
Chairman
Deputy Secretan· to Governor
Chairman & CEO
President
President
Chairman & CEO
Attorney General
Presidc.>:nt & CEO
Vice Preo;ident/Secrctarv
Chairman & CEO
Vice President
Nesco Inc.
State of New York
The Torrenzano Group, Ltd.
Paphian Enterprises, Inc.
Tsunis Hotel Partners
A J Contracting Co.
State of New York
Atlantic Rank of New York
Law Office of Herbert N. Wallace, Esq.
Martin Walshin Inc.
Icon Health & Fitness
Med Link lnt~:nmtional
Printed on April 10. 1997 at 3:11 PM
P~c2
90 'd
Z9LE55LZlZ 'ON XBj
8l:vl
L6-0l-HdB
OH~
--- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ' - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - . . . . 1
�strive to give ali of our citizens, whatever their background, an
opportunity to achieve their own greatness.
We're not there yet. We still see evidence of abiding
bigotry and intolerance, in ugly words and awful violence, in burned
churches and bombed buildings. We must fight against this, in our
country and in our hearts.
Just a few days before my second Inauguration, one of
country's best known pastors, Reverend Robert Schuller, suggested
that I read Isaiah 58:12. Here's what it says:
"Thou shalt raise up
the foundations of many generations, and thou shalt be called, the
repairer of the breach, the restorer of paths to dwell in.'' I placed
my hand on that verse when I took the oath of office, on behalf of
all Americans.
For no matter what our differences -- in our faiths,
our backgrounds, our politics -- we must all be repairers of the
breach.
I want to say a word about two other Americans who show
us how.
Congressman Frank Tejeda was buried yesterday, a proud
American whose family came from Mexico. He was only 51 years old.
He was awarded the Silver Star, the Bronze Star and the Purple Heart,
·Press RETURN to cOntinue, GOLD MENU for options or EXIT to cancel
�fig:;~- i ng for his country in Vietnam.
And he went on to serve Texas
and A1n0rica fighting for our future in this chamber. We are grateful
for ill~ service and honored that his mother, Lillie Tejeda, and his
-------~-------------~-------------NEW
PAGE----------------------~----------~-
sisl0l·, Mary Alice, have come from Texas to be with us here tonight.
And ·~··:' welcome you.
(Applause.)
\
Gary Locke, the newly elected Governor of Washington
Sta;n, is the first Chinese-American governor in the history of our
cou !": t\'.
He 1 s the proud son of two of the millions of Asian-American
immir;c~nts who have strengthened America with their hard work, family
v~lL·cs and good citiz~nship.
He represents the future we can all
achieve.
Thank you, Governor, for being here.
Please stand up.
(Apj.'] i1L1Se.)
Reverend Schuller, Congressman Tejeda, Governor Locke,
alor•'-; with Kristin Tanner and Chris Getsla, Sue Winski and Dr.
Kri·:;t:.cn Zarfos -- they're all Americans from different roots, whose
li vc''· reflect the best of what we can become when we are one America.
We !~~Y not share a common past, but we surely do share a common
.futui··-'.
Pre~s
RETURN to continue, GOLD MENU for options or EXIT to cancel
�In the end, more than anything else, our world
leadership grows out of the power of our example here at home, out of
our ability to remain strong as one America.
All over the world, people are being torn asunder by
racial, ethnic, and religious conflicts that fuel fanaticism and
terror. We are the world's most diverse democracy, and the world
looks to us to show that it is possible to live and advance together
across those kinds of differences.
America has always been a nation of immigrants.
From
the start, a steady stream of people, in search of freedom and
opportunity, have left their own lands to make this land their home.
We started as an experiment in democracy fueled by Europeans. We
have grown into an experiment in democratic diversity fueled by
openness and promise.
My fellow Americans, we must never, ever believe that
our diversity is a weakness -- it is our greatest strength.
(Applause.)
Americans speak every language, know every county.
People on every continent can look to us and see the reflection of
their own great potential ~- and they always will, as long as we
Press RETURN to continue, GOLD MENU for options or EXIT to cancel
�Tonight, I am pleased to announce that five major
corporations -- Sprint, Monsanto, UPS, ~urger King and United
Airlines -- will be the first to join in a new national effort to
marshal America's businesses, large and small, to create jobs so that
people can move from welfare to work.
(Applause.)
We passed welfare reform. All of you know I believe we
were right to do it. But no one can walk out of this chamber with
clear conscience unless you· are prepared to finish the job.
(Applause.)
a
And we must join together to do something else, too -something both Republican and Democratic governors have asked us to
do -- to restore basic health .and disability benefits when misfortune
strikes immigrants who came to this country legally, who work hard,
pay taxes and obey the law. To do otherwise is simply unworthy of a
great nation of immigrants.
(Applause.)
Now, looking ahead, the greatest step of all -- the high
threshold of the future we now must cross -- and my number one
priority for the next four years is to ensure that all Americans have
Press RETURN to continue, GOLD MENU for options or EXIT to cancel
�THE
W~ITE
HOUSE
Office of the Press Secretary
Internal Transcript
.
-
'
June 14, 1996
REMARKS BY THE PRESIDENT
TO PARTICIPANTS OF ETHNIC LEADERSHIP DAY
Old Executive Office Building
10 : 54 P.M. EDT
THE PRESIDENT:
Thank you very much.
Welcome to the
White House. Thank you, Mr. Vice President for all that you do.
I don't think I could get away with telling that stiff joke, do
you?_ (Laughter.)
(Laughter.)
THE VICE PRESIDENT: You don't need to.
THE PRESIDENT:
I was pretty impressed the way he pulle~
it off.
I want to thank Alexis Herman and Marilyn DiGiacobbe, as
the Vice President did. Many others in our White House also work
on these issues.
I'd like to say a special word of thanks to
Melanne Verveer, who's back there-- is on the First Lady's staff.
She was named the Ukrainian American of the Year this year, and I'm
very proud of her.
(Applause.) Thank you.
(Applause.)
;
want
miSSlOn
The truth is that we've been very blessed in this
administration with having -- with a few exceptions along the way
--broad support from the American people for the agenda that we
have pursued here at home. We have, however, had a harder sell to
try to persuade large numbers of our people that the agenda we have
to pursue abroad is not only consistent with what we're doing at
home, but that our success at home depends upon the involvement of
America abroad.
A lot of you have helped us with that. I want to talk
�a little more about it in a minute, but I want you to know that
more than anything else I just want to thank you for that. And I
t to thank you for never forgetting your own roots and for~~~
I don't think I caQ possibly overstate the importance of
your maintaining and i~tensifying that commitment. That is more
important, really, than most of the specific issues that come up.
And whether we're ever in 100 percent or 90 percent agreement on
specific things, the idea that you know that we have to continue
our leadership role in the world for peace and freedom and
prosperity is critically important.
And I do want to urge you to continue to espouse that to
your friends and neighbors and coworkers back home, because that's
a case we still haven't fully and finally succeeded in making with
the great majority of the American people. And I'll say more about
that in a moment.
It's a celebration of American
Today is Flag Day.
itizenship and patriotism.
And also by co1ncidence is the
1x-month anniversary of the signing of the Dayton Accords on
Bosn1a.
And to me those two days represent the very point I'm
trying to make to you. I know, as I said, you've already had some
specific briefings, but I'd like to try to put this in some larger
context.
Three and a half years ago, I came to this office with
a conviction that the campaign we waged was essential and very much
worth the errdeavor because America needed a clear vision of what
kind of country we were going to be in the 21st century and what
our role was in the world.
I thought that we had t~do two things ---we had-to-keep
the American Dream alive for all Americans, without regard to their
background, in a time when there were vast opportunities opening up
at home· and abroad, but when it was obvious that there was no
strategy to make sure that everybody got a chance to se~ze.those
opportunities. And the second thing I wanted ~CL_do was t;o maintain "'
our country's leadership at the end of· the C6ld War as th~·world's
strongest force for peace and freedom and prosperity. And I want
to emphasize, that may seem self-evident to you, but I want to
emphasize what a historical anomaly that will be if we succeed in
pursuing this.
The Cold War was the only period in American history
where our nation was able to muster majority support for continued
American leadership. And the only reason we were able to do it
after the rigors of World War II is because we solved the reality
of the Soviet threat; because we soLved the reality of the nuclear
threat, as well as the expansion of the Soviet empire into Central
7
�and Eastern Europe. And that made possible much of what we did,
right or wrong, in Central and Latin America, in Asia, and
throughout the world. But it certainly made possible the larger
right, which was that America had to take responsibility for.
preserving freedom in the world.
It had never happened in peacetime before, but it
happened because we characterized that period as a war -- as the
Cold War.
So that when the Cold War went away, in all kinds of
ways tne traditional impulses of the American people ~- to tend to
our own knitting and take care of our business here at home -began to reassert themselves in ways that were -- some good. We
had ignored a lot of problems at home. But there was a lot of very
great danger there over the long run.
So to me, in '92, we had to find a way to both recommit
America to a domestic agenda of opportunity and recommit America to
trying to shape the post-Cold War world.
The strategy that I (Eilt..we h·a'ct._to pursue I. eri~j'B's:ti'})teci, _
in three words,· which embody the experience of immigrant .AIDeriC'ans·:-- ~
·'"'responsibility, and community. America's immigrants
from all over the world came here to seize the opportunity of
America's bounty; demonstrated enormous personal and family
responsibility, which we need more and more of in America today;
and did so in a way that built our communities, recognizing that
individuals could not succeed divorced from strong families and
strong communities and ultimately a strong country.
opportuii"'fty~
And so I do believe that the immigrant experience in
America, embodying as it does these three great, simple ideas,
opportunity, responsibility, and community, is what we need to
continue to reassert this mission as we move not only through this
election but through the rest of this century and into the new
millennium.
ow, we've had a lot of success here. And obviously the
case I'm taking to the American people is -- basically has three
points. One is, we had a program in '92. We implemented most of
it and that we didn't implement we got caught trying. (Laughter.)
And the results were good for America. America is better off than
it was four years ago.
Secondly, you now have to competing visions for the
future, and I believe ours is right; and I believe theirs is wrong,
because their vision is embodied in our conflicting budget
proposals, our conflicting proposal on the environment, our
conflicting proposals on education, and our conflicting world
views, at least with some of the Majority Caucus in the Congress,
our very different.
But neither one of them is a status quo. I want to give
the Republicans that and compliment them. There is no status quo
option anymore, but there are very different paths to the future.
1
J.
fl1
�Apd I -~~..l~~ve .. ,the path we have chose.~-~ i.s }~\o,r:~~J~;-~-~-ly_ ~9..,.P.E.~!..~r-~e i:
opportun~ ty, enhanc.e responsibi 1 ~ ty_ and r.!!warg~.-;\;~:~L-~n4,.,.,!:~.f.~~9"""~l:l~.~~'"J!1ti
the. Ame;-.~9e~ .COfiUl\Un:L ty_,. }?~ca.use. I•.-<:iQrt.'J;~ttunk any:c:grea t _c;o~Il~Y~,~ c.~n ~aa:~~- 1
o fOrward without a strong middle class and without trying to~·~giv~-
everybody a chance to participate
in the bounty~ of the c~un~_ry.
.
. .. -.. ... .
. ~,
Finally, and most importantly perhaps, I think that we
have a better agenda for the future. Most elections are fought out
on tomorrow, not yesterday.
If you _tell people you should get
reelected because you did a good job, they're likely to say, well,
that's what I hired you to do; what else is new.
You got a
paycheck for that yesterday. So I think there has to be a future
agenda.
~~
Now, very briefly, let me say -- I know a lot of you
know this, but I think one of the lasting contributions of this
administration is that we put in place a c~mprehensive economic
strategy for the lob
· a way that had never been done
ore.
ere had never been a National Economic Council in the
White House. There had never been a system for rigorously working
through the economic challenges facing the country and making sure
every single resource of the federal government was coordinated to
that end.
I was very surprised, and I think even the Vice
President, having served in the Senate was somewhat surprised, when
we actually began to analyze what our predecessors had done. For
example, the policies of the Treasury Department had never been
reconciled with the policies of the Conunerce Department or the
Trade Ambassador or the economic portion of the State Department's
mission. And we have done that. And the results have been quite
good.
We made a commitment to ~ducing the deficit, to
increasing our investment in technology, in the environment, in ne
opportun1 t1es or tne ruture, a no to I ncr ea Ing ra e or thi_s
c~ We have had 200 trade agreements,
had the broadest
expansion of trade in the history of the world. And if you look at
the results, we've cut the deficit by more than half. We've had
the biggest expansion of trade in history, and the results have
been pretty satisfactory-- 9.7 million new jobs, an all-time high
in new business formation, an all-time high in exports, 3.7 million
new homeowners, and the lowest combined rates of unemployment and
inflation in 27 years. Those are pretty good results. And I think
those are things that you can relate to.
(Applause.)
I want to -- I know Secretary Riley was here and he has
already talked about this -- but I want to compliment him for
pursuing a comprehensive education
agenda,_ starting with
pre-school, to raising standards in the high schools, to trying to
increase access to college.
And we've had a comprehensive anti-crime agend~ which
has resulted in the passage of the Brady Bill, the assault weapons
ban, 100,000 more police on the street, prevention programs for
communities. And it's working. The crime rate is going down. You
__
�may -- you know, a couple of days ago I went to this little-bitty
town in South Carolina, the scene of a church burning to celebrate
the opening of a new church.
And this 1 itt le town in South
Carolina had gotten two police officers under our program. And
they said, you know, Mr. President, we never got any help from the
federal government before and now, as these big cities lower their
crime rates, all these drug dealers are coming out in the little
towns -- in the suburbs. And if it hadn't been for this program,
we'd have a crime rate two or three times what it is here. So that
initiative is working.
We've worked very hard on reforming welfare. There are
1.3 million fewer people on welfare today than there were the day
I became President. And I'm very proud of that.
(Applause.) And
it happened because we gave 38 of the 50 states that asked for it
permission to move people from welfare to work in ways that would
be pro-work and pro-family.
And let.me just say parenthetically again, you can have
an impact on this. The biggest thing we have to do for all these
peo le that have been tra ed in welfare . is tQ.-r~create the
con 1 1ons that made imrni r ts success u
r1ca.~'Thar-~~~--peop e wor ed like crazy, but they were a e o o 1
n~ways that
still supported families. And if we put people in a position in
this country today -- and I hate to say it, but increasing numbers
of working families are in that position today, where in order to
succeed at work, they have to shortchange their children -- we're
in deep trouble.
On the other hand, if people are in the position where
they say -- as some -- because of the way the welfare system too
often works, well if I go to work, I'll give up health care
coverage for my kids, and I won't be able to afford child care, and
Lord knows what they'll get.
So that in order to protect their
children, they stay out of the work force.
That's also crazy
because, in the end, they can't be good role models for their kids;
they can't be productive citizens; they can't be contributing
instead of taking from our society. So that's the great dilemma
there. But we're moving on that. We're making progress. And I
feel good about all that.
Now there's a lot to do. Secretary Riley talked about
our initiative to open the doors of college to everyone, a $10,000
tax deduction for the cost of tuition and then, under that, if you
will, a $1,500 tax credit for each of the first two years of
college.
That would effectively guarantee access to community
college to every American. It would take American education from
12 years to 14 years, which is something we know, from the census
data, we need to do just to make sure people can get jobs'with
growing incomes. Huge initiative.
The other thing that the Vice President's taken a lead
on is our determination -- if the voters renew our contract -- to
hook up every classroom and every library in this country to the
�internet by the year 2000 -- every single, solitary one. So that
we will, in effect, radically democratize education. So that kids
living in poor mountain counties, in the hills of Arkansas and
Tennessee, and kids living in underfinanced and even dilapidated
urban school districts that are in trouble will still be able to
have access to all the information, all the learning that anybody
anywhere in the world would. It's a dramatic idea to democratize
educational . opportunity in America.
(Applause.}
We have to
continue to do it.
The Vice President talked about America's role in the
world. We did have the Irish President here yesterday. I also had
King Hussein here yesterday.
And we had a very good talk about
peace in the Middle East. So many of you have supported what we've
tried to do to resolve the problems from Northern Ireland, to
cyprus, ··to the Middle East, to Bosnia,. to work. on . ~~~·~~~:Surea
expansion of NATO in a way that supported· the unification of··Europe
around the principles of democracy and security. \
Many of you have supported our efforts not only to end
the fighting in Bosnia, but do the rebuilding. And I want to say,
again, I will, for the rest of my life, be grateful to Ron Brown
and those people who perished on that mission in Bosnia, and I know
that all of you are.
(Applause.}
We are determined to send
another mission. And I won't be satisfied until I see an airplane
with an American flag on it landing at that airport in Dubrovnik.
We have got to do that -- (applause.}
After the G-7 Summit, in the next couple of weeks, I've
asked the First Lady to go the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary,
Poland, Romania and Slovakia to reaffirm the corrunitment of the
United States with the people of Central Europe -- (applause}
and to the integrity and the independence of those peoples.
Now we all know America can't be everywhere, and we
can't do everything. But there are a lot of things we can do and
a lot of things that we must do because we can do them, because
there are·
the risks are either minimal or are certainly
acceptable, and the stakes are so very, very high.
And let me just make one final statement about that.
One of the ·.-~ays the new isolationism in America has manifested
itself that really troubles me in the Congress -- even among people
who supported me on GATT and NAFTA, even among people in the
Congress and the Republican leadership who supported my wildly
unpopular decision to help Mexico -- absolutely the right thing to
consider where we'd be today if Mexico had collapsed
economically, politically and socially and how many million illegal
immigrants we'd have in our borders and all the other problems that
would have happened.
Even among those people, there is a
determination to give the Pentagon more money than they've asked
for, in the short run; and to starve the political developmental
resources the United States needs to help the world go forward -not just the United Nations budget, but our contributions to the
�International Development Fund; our ability to have flexible funds
to do things like continue to support the movement to reduce the
number of nuclear weapons in the former Soviet Union; and our
ability to have funds to support the economic development efforts
in Central and Eastern Europe; and to support the economic
development efforts that are so desperately needed in the Middle
East now.
And this is very troubling to me, because, if__ you just
let me, for a moment, take the Middle East. The Israeli economy,
thank God, is growing very rapidly. And I believe it will help to
keep the peace process alive because the Israelis will be able to
see that they don't want to cut off their ties to their neighbors
and others around the world who are relating to the region more
because there's a peace process going.
But there are still
desperate economic problems in Gaza and the West Bank. And as I've
told everyone, when this peace process started three and a half
years ago, the United States had an interest in peace in the Middle
East, when the Bush administration started the Madrid talks. But
we had an obligation to the security of Israel.
Today the United States has an interest in peace in the
ddle East, an obligation to the security of Israel, and an
ligation to the peace-loving Arabs who have stuck their necks out
d risked their lives to try to promote the peace.
(Applause.)
d that's what King Hussein and I were talking about yesterday.
ij
So I would ask all of you, particularly those of you who
have friends and ties in the Republican Congress -- or people back
home who do, who are part of your associations and your groups -it is a great mistake to say that America must lead in the world,
to say to the Pentagon, you don't know you're own interests, we're
going to make you take more money in the next three years than you
say you need, and then cut $3 or $4 billion out of our
developmenta 1 assistance, our abi 1 i ty to help the Central and
Eastern Europeans, our ability to help people in the Middle East,
our ability to help resolve, you know, some of the other problems
that we might be able to resolve if we had some developme'ntal
assistance in the Balkans and in other areas where there are all
these tensions.
That is
can do an enormous
problems, as well
between India and
talk about.
a great mistake. With a little bit of funds we
amount. I haven't even mentioned the potential
as the potential upside, of the difficulties
Pakistan. There are other things that I could
It also undermines our ability to have influence with
our European friends ahd with our Japanese friends if the idea is
America can't pay it's own way, but it's going to have a military
bigger than the general has asked for that won't ever do anything.
Now, we will do some things. So I say to you, I'm prepared to make
unpopular decisions. The majority of the people were against what
I did in Haiti, were against what I did in Bosnia, were against
�·'
what we did in Mexico.
But in the end, people came around.
But there are a lot of things which could be done which
would not rise to that level of conflict that would have an
enormous impact on these regions of the world. And so L·:·say to y_ou·~ _
if we are going to fulfill the mission that America ·has in the ·
future,·"' we heed not only a commitment to stay involved in the
world, w~"''need to understand that American involvement r~quires
something :more than a looming mili tar·y pz:.esence that sometimes can
be brought to bear in a very positive way -- as it has been in
Bosnia, as it has been in Haiti, for example.
And you can do that. A lot of you can have an impact oh
that. So I ask you to think about that. .~ reall believe the best
days of this country ar~ ahead of us. I e ieve that we can expan
~am of opportunity to all Amer·
ns, .. I believe that
we can so v
s ·
ems; we 1 ve pro ed that. You
know, when you 1 ve got the cr ir:ne rate, the welfare rate and the
poverty rate all going down, that 1 s a pretty good sign in this
country .
__
.__
And I believe we can move the wor d in the right
direct ion.
I don 1 t think
ever be abl
to solve all the
problems; we 1 11
be
to keep
rybody
r-ev€Lrybody else. -B
. _rogres
·sut we have to have the tools to make
gress and we have.<. to~ hav
z
an a'tftt.lide ·'in the American peopie"f'••· t understands tha'f~we~can-rio". '
preser£.~-:.EJ}~~~. is ·spe.ci?l" aboUt--;~ .. 1ca ~nd ~.~thdraw. ~J;2.~:.,~9.il
-- th'e~ ·two th1ngs are 1nherentl . 1ncons1stent. ·-You know that, y_o
live 'tl1af·~·--
.y
--·--·--··--·· --· ·
we
Thank you very much.
END
11:15 A.M.
EDT
�
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Terry Edmonds
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Office of Speechwriting
James (Terry) Edmonds
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1995-2001
Is Part Of
A related resource in which the described resource is physically or logically included.
<a href="http://clinton.presidentiallibraries.us/items/show/36090" target="_blank">Collection Finding Aid</a>
<a href="https://catalog.archives.gov/id/7763294" target="_blank">National Archives Catalog Description</a>
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
2006-0462-F
Description
An account of the resource
Terry Edmonds worked as a speechwriter from 1995-2001. He became the Assistant to the President and Director of Speechwriting in 1999. His speechwriting focused on domestic topics such as race relations, veterans issues, education, paralympics, gun control, youth, and senior citizens. He also contributed to the President’s State of the Union speeches, radio addresses, commencement speeches, and special dinners and events. The records include speeches, letters, memorandum, schedules, reports, articles, and clippings.
Provenance
A statement of any changes in ownership and custody of the resource since its creation that are significant for its authenticity, integrity, and interpretation. The statement may include a description of any changes successive custodians made to the resource.
Clinton Presidential Records: White House Staff and Office Files
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
William J. Clinton Presidential Library & Museum
Extent
The size or duration of the resource.
635 folders in 52 boxes
Text
A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text.
Original Format
The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data
Paper
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Ethnic Leadership Day
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Office of Speechwriting
James (Terry) Edmonds
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
2006-0462-F
Is Part Of
A related resource in which the described resource is physically or logically included.
Box 35
<a href="http://www.clintonlibrary.gov/assets/Documents/Finding-Aids/2006/2006-0462-F.pdf" target="_blank">Collection Finding Aid</a>
<a href="https://catalog.archives.gov/id/7763294" target="_blank">National Archives Catalog Description</a>
Provenance
A statement of any changes in ownership and custody of the resource since its creation that are significant for its authenticity, integrity, and interpretation. The statement may include a description of any changes successive custodians made to the resource.
Clinton Presidential Records: White House Staff and Office Files
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
William J. Clinton Presidential Library & Museum
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
Adobe Acrobat Document
Medium
The material or physical carrier of the resource.
Reproduction-Reference
Date Created
Date of creation of the resource.
12/9/2014
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
42-t-7763294-20060462F-035-009-2014
7763294