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�Draft 1/18/99 12 pm
sotu99.18
PRESIDENT WILLIAM J. CLINTON
STATE OF THE UNION ADDRESS
UNITED STATES CAPITOL
January 19,1999
4'
%
it
�Mr. Speaker, Mr. Vice President, Members of
Congress, honored guests, my fellow Americans:
Tonight, I have the honor of reporting on the State of
the Union.
Let me begin by saluting the new Speaker of the
House, and thank him for extending invitations to two
special guests who are sitting in the gallery with Mrs.
Hastert. Lyn Gibson and Wei Ling Chestnut are the
widows of the two brave Capitol Police Officers who
gave their lives to defend freedom's house.
�Speaker Hastert: At your swearing in, you asked us
to work in a spirit of civility and bipartisanship. Mr.
Speaker, let's do exactly that.
Tonight, we begin our work together for the people
of America.
I stand before you to report that America has created
the longest peacetime economic expansion in our history
~ with nearly 18 million new jobs, wages rising more
than twice the rate of inflation, the highest
homeownership in history, the smallest welfare rolls in 30
years — and the lowest peacetime unemployment since
1957.
�For the first time in three decades, the budget is
balanced. From a deficit of $290 billion in 1992, we had
a budget surplus of $70 billion last year. We are on
course for budget surpluses for the next 25 years.
Violent crime is the lowest in a quarter century — and
our environment is the cleanest in a quarter century.
America is a strong force for peace from Northern
Ireland, to Bosnia, to the Middle East.
Thanks to the pioneering leadership of Vice
President Gore, we have a government for the
Information Age.
�Once again, our government is a progressive instrument
of the common good - offering opportunity to all,
demanding responsibility from all, building a community
of all Americans. A modem government, devoted to
fiscal responsibility and determined to give our people the
tools they need to make the most of their own lives. A
21st Century government for 21st Century America.
My fellow Americans, I stand before you to report
that the state of our union is strong.
�America is working again. The promise of our future
is limitless. But we cannot realize that promise if we
allow the hum of our prosperity to lull us into
complacency. How we fare as a nation far into the 21st
Century depends upon what we do as a nation today.
With our budget surplus growing, our economy
expanding, and our confidence rising, let's get to work.
Now is the moment for this generation to meet our
historic responsibility to the 21 st Century.
�THE AGING OF 21 ST CENTURY AMERICA
Our fiscal discipline gives us an unsurpassed
opportunity to address a remarkable new challenge: the
aging of America.
With the number of elderly Americans set to double
by 2030, the Baby Boom will become a Senior Boom.
So first and above all, we must save Social Security
for the 21 st Century. Early in this century, being old
meant being poor.
�When President Roosevelt created Social Security,
thousands wrote to thank him for eliminating what one
woman called the "stark terror of penniless, helpless old
age." Even today, without Social Security, half our
nation's elderly would be forced into poverty.
Today, Social Security is strong. But by 2032, the
Trust Fund will be exhausted, and Social Security will be
unable to pay out the full benefits older Americans have
been promised.
�The best way to keep Social Security a rock-solid
guarantee is not to make drastic cuts in benefits; not to
raise payroll tax rates; and not to drain resources from
Social Security in the name of saving it.
Instead, I propose that we make the historic decision
to invest the surplus to save Social Security.
Specifically, I propose that we commit half the
budget surplus for the next 15 years to Social Security,
investing a small portion in the private sector just as any
private or state government pension would do. This will
earn a higher return and keep Social Security sound for
50 years.
�But we must aim higher. We should put Social
Security on a sound footing for the next 75 years. And
we should reduce poverty among elderly women, who are
twice as likely to be poor as other seniors ~ and eliminate
the limits on what senior citizens on Social Security can
earn.
These changes will require difficult but achievable
choices. They must be made on a bipartisan basis. They
should be made this year. Tonight, together, let us say:
We will Save Social Security now.
10
�Last year, we wisely reserved all of the surplus until
we knew what it would take to save Social Security.
Although our best analysis is that we will need just half of
the surplus, again this year we should not spend any of it
until after Social Security is truly secure. First things
first.
Second, once we have set aside sufficient funds from
the surplus to save Social Security, we must fulfill our
obligation to save and improve Medicare. Already, we
have extended the life of Medicare by 10 years — but it
should be extended for at least another decade. Tonight I
propose that we use one out of every five dollars in the
surplus over the next 15 years to guarantee the soundness
of Medicare, until the year 2020.
ii
�But again, we should aim higher. We must be
willing to work in a bipartisan way and look at new ideas,
including the upcoming report of the bipartisan Medicare
commission. If we work together, we secure Medicare
for the next two decades and Medicare's quality by
covering seniors' greatest need, affordable prescription
drugs.
Third, we must help all Americans, from their first
day on the job, to save, to invest, to create wealth. From
its beginning, Social Security has been supplemented by
private pensions and savings. Yet today, tens of millions
of people retire with little to live on other than Social
Security. Americans living longer than ever must save
more than ever.
12
�Tonight, in addition to saving Social Security and
Medicare, I propose a new pension initiative for
retirement security in the 21 st Century. I propose that we
use 10% of the surplus to establish Universal Savings
Accounts ~ USA Accounts ~ to give all Americans the
means to save. With these new accounts, Americans can
invest as they choose, and receive funds to match a
portion of their savings, with extra help for those least
able to save.
USA Accounts will help all Americans to save, to
share in the nation's wealth, and to enjoy a more secure
retirement.
13
�Fourth, we must invest in long-term care. I propose a
tax credit of $ 1,000 for the elderly or disabled, or the
families who care for them. This kind of care is
invaluable. Let us show that we honor and reward it.
I was bom in 1946, the first year of the Baby Boom.
Our generation is determined not to let our growing old
place an intolerable burden on our children and their
ability to raise our grandchildren. There is no better use
for America's surplus than lifting that burden.
14
�With these four measures — saving Social Security,
strengthening Medicare, establishing USA Accounts, and
supporting long-term care — we can begin to meet our
historic responsibility to establish true security for 21 st
Century seniors.
21st CENTURY SCHOOLS
There are more children, from more diverse
backgrounds, in our public schools than at any time in our
history. Their education must provide the knowledge and
nurture the creativity our nation needs for the new
economy.
15
�Today we can say something we could not say six
years ago: with more affordable student loans, more Pell
grants and work-study jobs, education IRAs, and the new
HOPE scholarship tax cut that more than 5 million
Americans will receive this year, we have opened the
doors of college to all.
With our help, nearly every state has set higher
academic standards for public schools, and we are
developing a voluntary national test to measure the
progress of our students. We are marshaling a volunteer
army of college students to teach young children to read,
and to mentor middle school children and prepare them
for college.
�With the leadership of Vice President Gore, we have
helped communities connect more than one million
classrooms to the Internet. And with over one billion
dollars in discounts available this year, we can meet our
goal of connecting every classroom and library to the
Internet.
Last fall, you passed our proposal to start hiring
100,000 new teachers to reduce class size in the early
grades. Now I call on Congress to finish the job.
17
�Our children are doing better. SAT scores are up.
Math scores have risen in nearly all grades. But there is a
problem: While our fourth graders outperform their peers
in other countries in math and science, our eighth graders
are around average, and our twelfth graders rank near the
bottom.
We must do better. Each year the national
government invests over $20 billion in our public
schools. I believe we must change the way we invest that
money, to support what works and stop supporting what
doesn't.
�Later this year, I will send Congress a plan that for
the first time holds states and school districts accountable
for progress and rewards them for results. The plan
would require every school district receiving federal help
to take the following five steps.
First, all schools must end social promotion.
No child should graduate from high school with a
diploma he or she can't read. We do our children no
favors when we allow them to pass from grade to grade
without mastering the material.
19
�But we can't just hold students back when the system
fails them. So my balanced budget triples the funding for
summer school and after school programs. We can keep
one million students learning beyond regular school
hours, when parents work and juvenile crime soars.
If you doubt this will work, look at Chicago, which
ended social promotion and made summer school
mandatory for those who don't master the basics. Math
and reading scores are up three years running ~ with
some of the biggest gains in some of the poorest
neighborhoods.
20
�Second, all states and school districts must tum
around their worst-performing schools -- or shut them
down. That is the policy established by Gov. Jim Hunt in
North Carolina, where test scores made the biggest gains
in the nation last year. My budget includes $200 million
to help states tum around their failing schools.
Third, all states and school districts must be held
responsible for the quality of their teachers. The great
majority of teachers do a fine job. But in too many
schools, teachers don't have college majors ~ or even
minors ~ in the subjects they teach.
21
�All new teachers should be required to pass performance
exams and to know the subject they are teaching. My
balanced budget contains new resources to help teachers
reach these high standards.
To attract talented young teachers to the toughest
assignments, I recommend a five-fold increase in
scholarships for college students who commit to teach in
the inner cities, in isolated rural areas and in Indian
communities.
22
�Fourth, we must empower parents, with more
information and more choices. In too many communities,
it is easier to get information on the quality of local
restaurants than the quality of local schools. Every
school district should issue report cards on every school.
And parents should have more choice in selecting
their public schools. When I became President, there was
one independent, public charter school in all of America.
With our support, there are 900 today. My budget
assures that early in the next century, there will be 3000.
23
�Fifth, all states and school districts must adopt
discipline policies to ensure our classrooms are places of
learning.
Let's do one more thing for our children. Today, too
many of our schools are so old they're falling apart, or so
overcrowded students must leam in trailers. Last fall,
Congress missed the opportunity to change that. This
year, with more than 53 million children in our schools,
Congress must not miss that opportunity again. I ask you
to pass our program to build or modernize 5000 schools.
24
�If we do these things -- end social promotion, tum
around failing schools, build modern ones, support
qualified teachers, and promote innovation, competition
and discipline — we will begin to meet our generation's
historic responsibility to create 21st Century schools.
21st CENTURY SUPPORT FOR AMERICAN
FAMILIES
We must do more to help the millions of parents who
give their all every day at home and at work.
25
�The most basic tool of all is a decent income. Let's
raise the minimum wage by one dollar an hour over the
next two years.
And let's make sure women and men get equal pay
for equal work by strengthening enforcement of equal pay
laws.
Working parents also need quality child care. Again,
I ask the Congress to support our plan for tax credits and
subsidies for working families, training for child care
providers, and expanded after school programs. Our plan
also includes a new tax credit for stay-at-home parents.
They need support too.
26
�The Family Medical Leave Act ~ thefirstbill I
signed into law
has helped millions of Americans care
for a new baby or an ailing relative without risking their
jobs. We should extend Family Leave to 10 million more
Americans working in smaller companies.
Parents should never face discrimination in the
workplace. I will ask Congress to prohibit companies
from refusing to hire or promote workers simply because
they have children.
America's families deserve the world's best medical
care.
27
�Thanks to federal support for medical research, we
have begun testing the first drugs to prevent cancer, and
introduced the first effective drugs to treat AIDS. With
new discoveries about the process of aging itself, we are
on the verge of new treatments to prevent or delay
diseases from Parkinsons to Alzheimers to arthritis.
As we continue our advances in medical science, we
cannot let our health care system lag behind.
Managed care has transformed medicine in America
- driving down costs, but threatening to drive down
quality as well. Every American should have the right to
the best care, not just the cheapest. The right to see a
specialist. And the right to emergency care.
28
�I am now extending these rights by executive
authority to the 85 million Americans served by
Medicare, Medicaid, and other federal health plans. But
only Congress can enact the Patients' Bill of Rights for all
Americans. Last year, Congress missed that opportunity.
This year, for the sake of our families, Congress must not
miss that opportunity again.
As more of our medical records are stored
electronically, the threats to our privacy increase. Either
by an act of Congress or by executive authority we will
protect the privacy of medical records, this year.
29
�Two years ago, we extended health insurance that
will cover up to 5 million children. Now, we should
make it easier for small businesses to offer health
insurance, and give people between the ages of 55 and 65
who lose their health insurance the chance to buy in to
Medicare.
No one should have to choose between keeping
health care and taking a job. We should pass the historic
bipartisan legislation, proposed by Senators Jeffords,
Kennedy, Roth and Moynihan, to allow people with
disabilities to keep Medicaid health insurance when they
go to work.
30
�Many employers and working families still can't
afford health insurance. We need to enable community
health centers and public hospitals to provide basic,
affordable care for families without coverage. My budget
makes a down payment toward that goal.
And we must continue to ensure access to family
planning and reproductive health care — free from the fear
of violence.
31
�We must step up our efforts to treat and prevent
mental illness. No American should ever be afraid to
recognize and treat this disease. This year, we will host a
White House Conference on Mental Health. With
sensitivity and commitment, Tipper Gore is leading our
efforts here - and I thank her.
As everyone knows, our children are targets of a
massive media campaign to hook them on cigarettes. I
ask this Congress to resist the tobacco lobby. Together,
let's reaffirm the FDA's authority to protect children
from tobacco, hold the tobacco companies accountable,
and protect tobacco farmers.
32
�Smoking has cost taxpayers hundreds of billions of
dollars under Medicare and other programs. Tonight, I
am announcing that the Department of Justice is
preparing a litigation plan to take the tobacco companies
to court. American taxpayers shouldn't pay for the costs
of lung cancer, emphsyzema and other tobacco related
illnesses - the tobacco companies should. And with the
funds we recover, we should strengthen Medicare.
In all these areas — minimum wage, family leave,
child care, health care and the safety of our children ~ we
can begin to meet our historic responsibility to strengthen
our families for the 21st Century.
33
�A 21st CENTURY ECONOMY
Today, America is the most dynamic, competitive,
job creating economy in history. A century ago, the
average American had to work a week to earn what the
average American now makes in a day.
But we can do better — if we act to build a 21 st
Century economy for all Americans.
34
�Today's income gap is largely a skills gap. Because
of a law I signed last year, workers now can get a skills
grant to choose the training they need. This year, I call for
a half a billion dollar investment for training Americans
who lose their jobs and a national campaign to increase
adult literacy for the millions of working people who read
at less than a fifth grade level.
In the last six years, we have cut the welfare rolls
nearly in half. Two years ago, from this podium, I asked
five companies to lead a national effort to hire people off
welfare.
35
�Tonight, our Welfare to Work Partnership includes
10,000 companies who have hired hundreds of thousands
of people. My budget provides funds to help another
200,000 people move from the dependency of welfare to
the dignity and pride of work.
We also must bring the spark of private enterprise
into inner cities, remote rural areas, [and Indian
reservations], with more support for community
development banks, empowerment zones and 100,000
vouchers for affordable housing.
36
�I ask Congress to support our new plan to help businesses
raise up to $ 15 billion of private sector capital to bring
jobs and oportunity to our inner cities and rural areas with tax credits and loan guarantees, including new
American Private Investment Companies modeled on our
Overseas Private Investment Corproation. Our greatest
untapped markets are not overseas — they are right here at
home.
We must bring prosperity back to the family farm.
Dropping prices and the loss of foreign markets have
hurt too many of our farmers. I am ready to work with
lawmakers of both parties to create a farm safety net
including crop insurance reform and farm income
assistance.
37
�We must strengthen our lead in technology.
Government investment in information technology
led to the creation of the Internet. I propose a 30%
increase in long-term computing research.
We must be ready for the 21 st Century from its very
first moment, by solving the "Y2K" computer problem.
We have already made sure Social Security checks will
come on time. If we work hard and work together —
business and government at all levels ~ the "Y2K
problem" can be remembered as the last headache of the
20th Century, not the first crisis of the 21 st.
38
�For our own prosperity, we must support economic
growth abroad.
Until recently, one third of our economic growth
came from exports. But over the past year and a half,
financial turmoil overseas has put that growth at risk.
Today, much of the world is in recession, with Asia hit
especially hard.
This is the most serious financial crisis in a half
century. To meet it, the U.S. and other nations have
reduced interest rates and we strengthened the
International Monetary Fund. While the turmoil is not
over, we are working with other nations to contain it.
39
�This June, I will meet with other world leaders to
continue to build a global financial system for the 21 st
Century that tames the cycles of boom and bust. Our new
rules will call for open accounting, stronger international
bank regulations, an aggressive response to prevent
regional problems from becoming global crises, and a
strong social safety net for the most vulnerable victims of
financial upheaval.
We must also create a freer and fairer trading system
for the 21 st Century. Trade has divided Americans for
too long. We must find the common ground on which
business, workers, environmentalists and government can
stand together.
40
�We must tear down barriers, open markets, and press
for expanded trade. At the same time, we must assure that
ordinary citizens in all countries benefit from trade —
pressing for trade that promotes the dignity of work, the
rights of workers and protection of the environment. And
we must insist that international trade organizations be
open to public scrutiny.
With this new consensus, we can enact legislation
granting the President the trade authority long used to
advance our prosperity. [We can pass the Africa Trade
and Growth Initiative. We can pass our Carribbean Basin
Trade Initiative.] [Gene and I believe these should go
back here -- to help bolster Democratic support for Fast
Track. We can discuss tomorrow^
41
�Tonight, I issue a call to the nations of the world to
join the United States in a new round of global
negotiations to expand exports of services, of
manufactures, and most of all, of our farm products.
We will work with the International Labor
Organization on a new initiative to lift labor standards
around the world. And this year, we will lead the
international community to conclude a treaty to ban
abusive child labor everywhere in the world.
42
�As we do this, we must act now to help American
manufacturers hit hard by the present crisis — with loan
guarantees to increase U.S. exports by $2 billion. And
when imports unlawfully flood our nation, we must
enforce our trade laws. I have already informed the
government of Japan that if Japan's sudden surge of steel
imports into our country is not reversed, America will
respond.
If we do these things ~ invest in our own people,
invest in our own communities, invest in our technology,
and lead in the global economy — then we can begin to
meet the historic responsibility of this generation to build
a 21 st Century prosperity for America.
43
�A STRONG AMERICA IN A NEW WORLD
No nation in history has had the opportunity and the
responsibility we now have to shape a world more
peaceful, secure, and free.
All Americans can be proud that our leadership
helped to bring peace in Northern Ireland.
All Americans can be proud that our leadership has
put Bosnia on the path to peace. And we are working
with our NATO allies in Kosovo to stop the bloody
repression and find a peaceful path to self government.
44
�All Americans can be proud that our leadership
renewed hope for lasting peace in the Middle East.
Some of you were with me in December as we watched
the Palestinian National Council completely renounce its
call for the destruction of Israel. I ask Congress to act
now to provide resources to implement the Wye
Agreement . . . to protect Israel's security, stimulate the
Palestinian economy, and support our friends in Jordan.
We must not, we cannot, let them down.
45
�As we work for peace, we must also meet threats to
our nation's security - including increased dangers from
outlaw nations and terrorism. We will defend our
security wherever we are threatened ~ as we did this
summer when we struck at Osama bin Laden's network
of terror. The bombing of our embassies in Kenya and
Tanzania remind us of the risks faced every day by those
who represent America to the world. Let's give them our
support, the safest possible workplaces, and the resources
they need so America can continue to lead.
We will work to keep terrorists from disrupting
computer networks, to prepare local communities for
biological and chemical emergencies, and to support
research into vaccines and treatments.
46
�We must increase our efforts to restrain the spread of
nuclear weapons, from North Korea to India and
Pakistan.
We must expand our work with Russia, Ukraine, and
the other former Soviet nations to safeguard
nuclear weapons and technology so they never fall into
the wrong hands. My balanced budget will increase
funding for these critical efforts by 70% for the next 5
years.
47
�With Russia, we must continue to reduce our nuclear
arsenals. With START II, the framework we have
already agreed to for a START III Treaty could cut them
by 80% from their Cold War height. We must keep
moving forward.
There is another vital step Congress can take. It's
been two years since I signed the Comprehensive Test
Ban Treaty. If we don't act, other nations won't. By
acting to ratify it now, the Senate can make it harder for
new nations to develop nuclear arms, and we can end
nuclear testing forever.
48
�For nearly a decade, Iraq has defied its obligation to
destroy its weapons of terror and the missiles to deliver
them. America will continue to contain Saddam ~ and
we will work for the day when Iraq has a government
worthy of its people.
Last month, in our action over Iraq, our troops were
superb. Their mission was so flawlessly executed risk
taking for granted the bravery and skill it required.
Captain Jeff Taliaferro [tolliver], pilot of an XX fighter,
flew xx nightime missions as we attacked Saddam's war
machine. He is here with us tonight. Let us him and all
the 10,000 men and women of Desert Fox.
49
�It is time to reverse the decline in defense spending
that began in 1985. Since April, together we have added
nearly $6 billion to maintain our readiness. My balanced
budget calls for an increase of $12 billion for readiness
and modernization, and for more support for our troops
and their families.
We are the heirs of a legacy of bravery represented
today by millions of veterans. America's defenders today
stand ready at a moment's notice to go where comforts
are few and dangers are many, doing what needs to be
done as no one else can. They always come through for
America. We must come through for them.
50
�The new century demands new partnerships for
peace and security.
This spring, I will convene the leaders of NATO in
Washington for its 50th anniversary summit, to prepare
for the missions of the next 50 years, to welcome
Hungary, Poland and the Czech Republic as our first new
allies from Central Europe, and to reaffirm our
determination that Europe must never again be divided by
concrete and barbed wire.] [cuttable"
51
�The United Nations plays a crucial role in so many of
the areas I have mentioned tonight. America needs a
strong relationship with an effective UN. I want to work
in this new year with this new Congress to pay our dues
and our debts.
We must also support stability in Asia. I have
worked to strengthen the bonds with our allies Japan and
Korea. Last year, I also traveled to China because our
relationship with the world's largest country helps
determine prospects for peace and security all across
Asia. I said to the leaders of China, and I say again
tonight: Stability can no longer be bought at the expense
of liberty.
52
�And I say again the American people: it is important
not to isolate China. The more we bring China into the
world, the more the world will bring change and freedom
to China.
Last spring, with some of you, I traveled to Africa,
where I saw democracy and reform rising, but still held
back by violence and disease. We must fortify African
democracy and peace ~ and support transitions to
democracy, including in Nigeria. And because trade and
investment are the keys to African development ~ we
must finally pass the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act.
53
�We are strengthening our ties to the Americas — to
educate children, fight drugs, deepen democracy. We
must increase shared prosperity with a Free Trade Area of
the Americas and increased trade with our neighbors in
Central America and the Caribbean.
In our own hemisphere, every government but one is
freely chosen by its people. We are determined that Cuba,
too, will know the blessings of liberty.
54
�The American people have opened their arms and
their hearts to our Central America and Caribbean
neighbors in the wake of devastating hurricanes ~ and
working with Congress, we will help them rebuild. When
the First Lady led a mission there, she saw thousands of
American troops and volunteers. And she rededicated a
hospital, rebuilt by Dominicans and Americans workign
arm in arm - and led by Sammy Sosa. Sammy represents
our oldest traditions and the best of the new America. He
has been taken into our hearts ~ and he has not forgotten
where he came from. Thank you, Sammy, for your
remarkable example, on the field and off.
55
�And if we do all these things ~ pursue peace, fight
terrorism, increase our strength, and renew our alliances
for shared progress — then we will begin to meet the
historic responsibility of our generation to build a safer
and more secure 21 st Century America in a freer and
more peaceful world.
21ST CENTURY COMMUNITIES
As the world has changed, so have our own
communities. We must make them safer, more livable,
and more united.
56
�We will soon reach our goal of putting 100,000
community police officers on the street ~ ahead of
schedule and under budget. The Brady Bill has stopped a
quarter million felons, fugitives, and stalkers from buying
guns. Now, the murder rate is the lowest in 30 years, and
the crime rate has dropped for six straight years.
Tonight, I propose a 21st Century Crime Bill to
marshall the latest technologies and tactics to make our
communities even safer.
57
�My budget provides funds to put up to 50,000 more
police on the beat in the areas hardest hit by crime, and
equips them with new tools, from crime-mapping
computers to digital mug shots.
We must break the deadly cycle of drugs and crime.
My budget strengthens support for drug testing and
treatment. It says to prisoners: If you stay on drugs, you
must stay behind bars. And it says to those on parole: To
keep your freedom, keep free of drugs.
58
�Congress should restore the mandatory 5-day waiting
period for buying a handgun, and extend the Brady Bill to
prevent juveniles who commit violent crimes from ever
buying a handgun again.
And we must keep our schools the safest places in
our communities.
Last year, we were horrified and heartbroken by the
tragic killings in our schools — in Jonesboro, Paducah,
Pearl, Edinboro, Springfield. We will never forget the
courage of the parents who have dedicated themselves to
keeping guns out of the hands of children — so no other
parent ever has to live through their loss.
59
�One of them, Suzann Wilson of Jonesboro, Arkansas,
is with us tonight in the gallery with the First Lady's.
After she lost her daughter, she came to the White House
with a powerful plea: "Please, please, for the sake of your
children, lock up you guns. ... Don't let what happened in
Jonesboro happen in your town." In memory of all the
children who lost their lives to school violence, let us
redouble our efforts to make our schools safe.
Let's pass legislation to require child trigger locks.
Let's strengthen the Safe and Drug-Free School Act.
Let's keep our children safe.
60
�A century ago, President Theodore Roosevelt defined
our "great, central task" as "leaving this land even a better
land for our descendants than it is for us." Today, we are
restoring the Florida Everglades, saving Yellowstone,
preserving the red-rock canyons of Utah, protecting
California's redwoods and our precious coasts.
But our most fateful new challenge is the threat of
global warming. Last year's heat waves, ice storms, and
floods are but a hint of what future generations may
endure if we don't act now.
61
�So tonight, I propose a new clean air fund to help
communities reduce pollution, and tax incentives and
investments to spur clean energy technologies. I will
work with Congress to reward companies that take early,
voluntary action to reduce greenhouse gases.
All communities face a preservation challenge, as
they grow and green space shrinks. 7,000 acres of
farmland and open space are lost every day.
62
�In response, I propose two major initiatives: first, a
one billion dollar Livability Agenda to help communities
save open space, ease traffic congestion, and grow in
ways that enhance every citizen's quality of life; second,
a one billion dollar Lands Legacy Initiative to preserve
places of natural beauty all across America ~ from the
most remote wilderness to the nearest city park. I thank
Vice President Gore for his visionary leadership in
developing this historic proposal.
To get the most out of your community, you have to
give something back. That's why we created AmeriCorps
~ our national service program that gives today's
generation a chance to serve their community and earn
money for college.
63
�So far, in just four years, 100,000 young people have
built low-income homes with Habitat for Humanity ...
helped churches tutor children ... worked with FEMA to
ease the burden of natural disasters ... and performed
countless other acts of service that have made America
better.
Some of them are here with us tonight. I thank them
for their service ~ and I ask Congress to give more young
Americans the chance to follow their lead. And I
challenge more young Americans to give something back
to the country that has given them so much.
64
�We must work to renew our national community for
the 21st Century.
Last year, the House passed the bipartisan campaign
finance reform legislation sponsored by Reps. Shays and
Meehan and Sens. McCain and Feingold. But a partisan
minority in the Senate blocked reform. To the House I
say: Pass it again, quickly. And to the Senate: Say yes to
a strong democracy in the Year 2000.
65
�Since 1997, our Initiative on Race has sought to
bridge the divides between our people. In its report last
fall, the Initiative's Advisory Board found that Americans
want to bring our people together across racial lines ~ but
that we must do more to close the opportunity gaps that
remain. The economic, health care, and education
initiatives in my balanced budget will do a lot to close
those gaps.
But we have more to do.
66
�Discrimination or violence because of race or
religion, ancestry or gender, disability or sexual
orientation, is wrong. It should be illegal. Therefore I
call upon Congress to make the Employment NonDiscrimination Act and the Hate Crimes Prevention Act
the law of the land.
Our newest immigrants must be part of One
America. They are revitalizing our cities, energizing our
culture, building our new economy. We have a
responsibility to make immigrants welcome here, and
they have a responsibility to enter the mainstream of
American life.
67
�That means learning English, and learning about our
democratic system of government. There are now long
waiting lines of immigrants seeking to do just that.
Therefore, my budget contains a substantial increase in
funds to help them meet their responsibility.
Whether our ancestors came here on the Mayflower
or on slave ships, whether they landed on Ellis Island or
at Los Angeles Airport, whether they arrived yesterday or
walked this land for thousands of years ~ we can be, and
we must be One America. We have no greater obligation
to the 21st Century.
68
�PERORATION: THE MILLENNIUM
Barely more than 300 days from now, we will cross
that bridge into the new millennium. This is a moment,
as the First Lady has said, to honor the past and imagine
the future.
I honor her ~ for leading our Millennium Project ~
for all she has done for our children « and for her historic
role in serving our nation and advancing our best ideals at
home and abroad.
69
�Last year, I called on Congress and every citizen
to mark the millennium by saving America's treasures.
Hillary has traveled across the country to inspire
recognition and support for saving places like Thomas
Edison's Invention Factory and Harriet Tubman's Home.
We must preserve our treasures in every community.
I invite every American town, city, and county to become
nationally recognized "Millennium Communities" by
launching projects that save our history, promote the arts
and humanities, and prepare our children for the 21 st
Century.
70
�Already, the response has been remarkable, and I
thank Congress and our private sector partners for their
support. Because of you, the Star Spangled Banner will
be preserved for the ages.
We are keeping alive, in ways large and small, what
George Washington called "the sacred fire of liberty."
Six years ago tomorrow, I came to office in a time of
doubt for America, with our economy troubled, our
deficit high, our people divided. Some even wondered
whether our best days were behind us. But across this
nation, in a thousand neighborhoods, I had seen, even
amid the pain and uncertainty of recession, the heart and
character of America.
71
�I knew then we Americans could renew our country.
Tonight, as I deliver the last State of the Union
message of the 20th Century, no one can doubt the
enduring resolve and boundless capacity of Americans to
work toward that "more perfect union" of our founders'
dreams.
We near the end of a century when generations of
Americans answered the call to greatness, overcoming
Depression, lifting up the dispossessed, bringing down
barriers of racial prejudice, building the largest middle
class in history, winning two world wars and the "long
twilight struggle" of the Cold War.
72
�Perhaps in the daily press of events, in the clash of
controversy, we do not see our time for what it truly is - a
new dawn for America.
A hundred years from tonight, an American President
will stand in this place to report on the State of the Union.
He - or she - will look back on a 21st Century shaped in
so many ways by the decisions we make here and now.
Let it be said of us then that we were thinking not
only of our time, but of their time; that we reached as
high as our ideals; that we put aside our divisions and
found a new hour of healing and hopefulness; that we
joined together to serve and strengthen the country we
love.
73
�My fellow Americans, this is our moment. Let us lift
our eyes as one nation, and from the mountaintop of this
American century, look ahead to the next one ~ asking
God's blessing on our endeavors and our beloved
country.
74
�
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
Michael Waldman
Description
An account of the resource
<p>Michael Waldman was Assistant to the President and Director of Speechwriting from 1995-1999. His responsibilities were writing and editing nearly 2,000 speeches, which included four State of the Union speeches and two Inaugural Addresses. From 1993 -1995 he served as Special Assistant to the President for Policy Coordination.</p>
<p>The collection generally consists of copies of speeches and speech drafts, talking points, memoranda, background material, correspondence, reports, handwritten notes, articles, clippings, and presidential schedules. A large volume of this collection was for the State of the Union speeches. Many of the speech drafts are heavily annotated with additions or deletions. There are a lot of articles and clippings in this collection.</p>
<p>Due to the size of this collection it has been divided into two segments. Use links below for access to the individual segments:<br /><a href="http://clinton.presidentiallibraries.us/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=43&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=2006-0469-F+Segment+1">Segment One</a><br /><a href="http://clinton.presidentiallibraries.us/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=43&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=2006-0469-F+Segment+2">Segment Two</a></p>
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Michael Waldman
Office of Speechwriting
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1993-1999
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
2006-0469-F
Extent
The size or duration of the resource.
Segment One contains 1071 folders in 72 boxes.
Segment Two contains 868 folders in 66 boxes.
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
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
MW [Michael Waldman] Personal: [1999 State of the Union] [Folder 1]
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Office of Speechwriting
Michael Waldman
Is Part Of
A related resource in which the described resource is physically or logically included.
Box 37
<a href="http://clinton.presidentiallibraries.us/items/show/36404"> Collection Finding Aid</a>
<a href="https://catalog.archives.gov/id/7763296">National Archives Catalog Description</a>
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
2006-0469-F Segment 2
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.
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
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Preservation-Reproduction-Reference
Date Created
Date of creation of the resource.
6/3/2015
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
7763296
42-t-7763296-20060469F-Seg2-037-020-2015