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SOTU [State ofthe Union 1999] 1/27/98 [2]
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sotu99.16
PRESIDENT WILLIAM J. CLINTON
STATE OF THE UNION ADDRESS
UNITED STATES CAPITOL
January 19,1999
�Mr. Speaker, Mr. Vice President, Members of
Congress, honored guests, my fellow Americans:
First, let me recognize two individuals who are
sitting in thefe^feteaprtwith Mrs. Hastert, Lyn Gibson
and Wei Ling Chestnut — the widows of the two brave
Capitol Police Officers who gave their lives to defend
freedom's house.
Tonight, we begii^our worktegg&ierfor the people
of America. Let me start by saluting the new Speaker.
At your swearing in, you asked us to work in a spirit of
civility and bipartisanship. Mr. Speaker, let's do exactly
that.
�Tonight, I have the honor of reporting on the State of / r?
our Union.
I stand before you to report that America has created
the longest peacetime economic expansion in our history
— with wages rising at nearly twice the rate of inflation
and nearly 18 million new jobs.
I stand before you to report that homeownership is
the highest in history — welfare rolls are the smallest in
29 years -- and peacetime unemployment is the lowest it
has been since 1957.
c^orji
�I stand before you to report that for the first time in
three decades, the budget is balanced. From a budget
deficit of $290 billion in 1992, we now have a budget
surplus of $70 billion this year. We are on course for a
budget surplus eaokpsaaF for the next 25 years.
Violent crime is the lowest in a quarter century ~ and
environment is the cleanest in a quarter century.
America stands-strong—a-peaeemaker 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, and
building a community of all Americans — a flexible,
•ereativer government, devoted to fiscal responsibility and
determined to give %^-Am^r4ean people the tools they
need to make the most of their own lives. A 21 st
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 fiat^o the 21st
Century
depends|^rg^^^f1^e^5^t^=^^
upon what we do today. [The prosperity we have built
and the progress we have made are proof that this
generation has begun to fulfill its duty. But to face the
challenges and seize the opportunities of the new century,
we have work to do.] So with our budget surplus
f\f^ 1 growing, our economy expanding, and our confidence
^
\ risingile^-get-tcrw^k:.
L^^'
�AGING OF 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 21st 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 2013,
payroll taxes will not cover retirement obligations. And
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.
8
�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 of the surplus kUhe private
rsseter ^usLas_aiay^nva^e-of state government pension
would do. That 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 25 years. And
we should reduce poverty among elderly widows, 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
�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.
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 Medicare panel
chaired by Sen. John Breaux and Rep. Bill Thomas.
n
�If we do this, we can Improve the quality of Medicare by
covering seniors' greatesWnd growing need, affordable
prescription dm^f^^^AjsQCuvQ Medicare for the ne
two decades.
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
• i
Medicare, I propose a new pension initiative for
retirement security in the 21st Century. I propose that we
use 10% of the surplus to establish Universal Savings
Accounts — USA Accounts .^Americans who save in
these new accounts can-4nvest^s they choose, and receiv
funds to match a portion of their savings, with extra help
for those least able to save.
USA Accounts will give all Americans the means to
save, to share in the nation's wealth, and enjoy a more
secure retirement.
13
�Fourth, we must invest in long-term care. I propose a
tax credit of $1,000 for those who care for aged, ailing,
or disabled loved ones. This kind of care is invaluable.
Let ^ show that we honor and reward it.
I was bom in 1946, in the first year of the Baby
Boom. XDur 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 the surplus than lifting that burden.
14
�With these four measures ~ saving Social Security,
strengthening Medicare, establishing USA Accounts, and
providing the long-term care tax credit ~ we can begin to
meet our historic responsibility to establish true security
for 21st Century seniors.
STRONG SCHOOLS FOR THE 21 ST CENTURY
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 so they can thrive in the new
economy.
15
�Today we can say something«abggrtScir fimire we
could not say six years ago: with more affordable student
loans, more Pell grants, ^ million new 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.
Nearly every state has set higher academic standards
for public schools, and we will soon have a voluntary
national test to measure the progress of our students.
Schools are cracking down on drugs and gangs and guns
and violence^ Mas^fc&Fe- improving learning and
discipline with school uniforms, teaching values, finding
a proper place for religious faith.
16
�We are supporting these developments. And 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. Jrhis year, with over one
billion dollars in discounts to make Internet connections
affordable, we can meet our goal: every classroom and
every library connected to the Internet by the dawn of the
new century.
17
�Last fall^ you passed our proposal to start hiring
100,000 new highly-trained teachers to reduce class size
in the early grades. But we need more than a start. Now I
call on Congress to finish the jo^ of^mirig 100,600^teachers.
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 developed countries in math and science, our
eighth graders are around average, and our twelfth
graders rank near the bottom.
18
�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.
1
•ft? ''
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 iffyUr steps.
First, all schools must end social promotion.
19
�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. We-havc a moral
ition tainsist4hat-0urxhildren le£m.
But we can't just hold students back when the system
fails them,-^Se^3U^alanced budget triples the funding for
summer school and afte\school program^ 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
20
�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.
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. We^mrsT.
dgjAjs^
21
�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. All new teachers
should be required to pass skills tests and to know the
subject they are teaching. My balanced budget contains
new resources to help all 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 thanyjhe quality of local schools. Every
school district should issue report cards on every school.
And parents and students should have more choice in
selecting 4fagirpublic 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.
Fifth, all states and school districts must adopt and
23
�enforce a strict discipline code. Classrooms must be
places of learning.
<—V
If we do these things ~ end social promotion, tum
around failing schools, demand and support qualified
teachers, and promote innovation, competition and
discipline — we will begin to meet our generation's
historic responsibility to create 21st Century schools.
Let's do one more thing for our children. Today, too
many of our schools are so old that they're falling apart,
or so overcrowded students must leam in trailers.
Last fall, Congress missed the opportunity to change that.
\
24
�This year, for the sake of our 53 million schoolchildren,
Congress must not miss that opportunity again. I ask you
to pass our program to build or modernize 5000 schools.
BIIILDTNG STRONG FAMTLTES FOR THE 21st
CENTURY
We must do more to help the millions of working
American parents who give their all every day at home
and at work.
The most basic tool of all is a decent income. Let's
raise the minimum wage by one dollar an hour over the
25
�next two years.
One of the greatest needs for working parents is
quality child care. Again, I ask the Congress to support
our plan for tax credits for working families, child care
subsidies for families and small business, high standards
and 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.
The Family Medical Leave Act - the first bill I
signed into law ~ has helped nearly 20 million Americans
26
�care for a new baby or an ailing relative without risking
their jobs, at minimal cost to employers. 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.
We have begun testing the first drugs to prevent
27
�cancer. Medical researchers have introduced the first
effective drugs to treat AIDS. They have made new
discoveries about the process of aging itself - nearing
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. Let's make all Americans a promise:
This year, we will pass a strong and enforceable Patients'
28
�Bill of Rights ... so every American can have the right to
the best care, not just the cheapest. The right to see a
specialist. And the right to emergency care.
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. [I ask Congress to pass the
Patients' Bill of Rights by [date]/
As more of our medical records are stored
29
�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.
Two years ago, we extended health insurance to up to
5 million children. Now, we should give people between
the ages of 55 and 65 who lose their health insurance the
chance to buy in to Medicare. We should make it easier
for small businesses to offer health insurance to their
employees.
And we should pass the historic bipartisan legislation,
30
�introduced by Senators Jeffords, Kennedy, Roth and
Moynihan, to allow people with disabilities to keep
Medicaid health insurance when they go to work. No one
should have to choose between keeping health care and
taking a job.
And I ask the Congress to increase support for
community health centers and public hospitals so that
they better provide basic care for families who lack
coverage altogether.
We must step up our efforts to treat and to prevent a
31
�condition that brings pain to millions of families ~ mental
illness. No American should ever be afraid to recognize
and treat this disease. This year, we will host the firstever 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 - whom the
tobacco industry has called "replacement smokers" ~ are
targets of a massive media campaign to hook them on
cigarettes. I ask this Congress to resist the tobacco lobby
and pass a bipartisan bill that safeguards our children
while protecting farmers.
32
�For decades the tobacco industry has passed too
much of the real cost of smoking ~ medical care for
illnesses from cancer to emphysema — onto you, the
taxpayers. It is time to recover those costs, as the states
have done.
Tonight, I am directing the Department of Justice to
prepare and bring a lawsuit against the tobacco
companies for the costs to Medicare of tobacco-related
illnesses.
In all these areas ~ minimum wage, child care, health
care, family leave and the safety of our children - we can
begin to meet our historic responsibility to strengthen our
33
�families for the 21st Century.
A 21st CENTURY ECONOMY
Next, we must build a 21st Century economy for all
Americans.
Today, America is the most dynamic, competitive,
job creating economy in history.
But we can do better.
We must make a place for all our people in the new
economy.
34
�Today's income gap is largely a skills gap. Last
year, I signed bipartisan legislation to transform our
worker training system. Now, with a simple skills grant,
eligible workers can choose the training they need. This
year, I recommend a five year investment in this new
system so that we can provide that training for all
Americans who lose their jobs. And let us launch a
national campaign to increase adult literacy for the
millions of working people who read at less than a fifth
grade level.
35
�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
the welfare rolls. 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
indignity of welfare to the dignity and pride of work.
36
�The largest untapped markets are not overseas — they
are right here at home, in the central cities and towns that
are gateways of opportunity for millions. I ask Congress
to support tax credits, incentives and loan guarantees to
help businesses raise uo to $ 15 billion to expand and
bring jobs to underserved areas. For years, OPIC, the
Overseas Private Investment Corporation, has helped
promote growth abroad. It's time we had an APIC to
promote investment and growth in America.
37
�And we must bring prosperity back to rural America
-- back to the family farm that remains a powerful symbol
of American plenty. Dropping prices and the loss of
foreign markets, have led to dire economic conditions
for too many family farmers. The safety net for rural
America should include crop insurance reform and farm
income assistance. I am ready to work with lawmakers of
both parties to get it done.
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 computer research.
38
�We must be ready for the 21st Century from its very
first moment, by solving the "Y2K" computer problem.
We have already made sure Social Security checks will
keep coming on time. But every government department,
every business, every state and city, every university must
be ready — so the "Y2K problem" will be remembered as
the last headache of the 20st Century, not the first crisis
ofthe 21st.
And we must recognize: Economic growth at home
also depends upon economic growth abroad.
39
�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. Across Asia,
an entire generation that worked its way into the middle
class has plunged into poverty.
This is the most critical financial crisis in a half
century. To meet it, America has reduced interest rates,
met our obligations to the International Monetary Fund,
and worked with other nations to contain the crisis. The
turmoil is not over, but thanks to lawmakers of both
parties, we have a chance to contain it.
40
�Now we must build a global financial system for the
21st Century that tames the cycles of boom and bust.
This spring, I will meet with other world leaders to lay
plans for a system with clear, 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 turmoil.
We must also build a freer and fairer trading system
for the 21st Century. Trade has divided Americans for
too long. We must find the common ground on which
business, workers, environmentalists and government can
stand together.
41
�We must do more to help American manufacturers
hit hard by the present crisis. I ask Congress to boost
U.S. manufacturing exports with $2 billion in new credit.
When imports unlawfully flood our nation, we must
enforce our trade laws. Free trade must be fair trade. I
have already informed the government of Japan that if
Japan's sudden surge of steel imports into our country is
not reversed, I will respond.
But let me make clear: the best course for the United
States and the world is increased trade. Therefore, I call
for a new round of global negotiations to expand our
exports of farm products, services and manufactures.
42
�We must also press for trade that promotes the
dignity of work and the rights of workers. We must insist
that international trade organizations be open to public
scrutiny, and that trade rules never be used as a pretext to
destroy environmental protections. We must never let
vigorous international competition become a race to the
bottom among nations.
I ask Congress to join me in this common approach
and pass legislation granting the President the trade
authority long used to advance our prosperity.
43
�We will work with the International Labor
Organization on a new initiative to lift labor standards
around the world. And we must act to end the most
abusive trade practice of all: This year I will sign a new
international agreement to ban child labor everywhere in
the world.
If we do these things, then we can begin to meet the
historic responsibility of this generation to build a 21st
Century prosperity for America.
44
�A STRONG AMERICA IN A NEW WORLD
No nation in history has had the opportunity and the
responsibility we now have to help shape a world more
peaceful, secure, and free.
All Americans should be proud that our leadership
helped to bring peace in Northern Ireland — and America
should help them build it.
45
�All Americans can be proud that our leadership has
put Bosnia on the path to peace. This year, we will help
that peace take deeper root - as we continue to bring our
troops home. And in Kosovo we will work to stop the
bloody repression and find a peaceful path to self
government.
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 support the Wye Agreement
46
�. . . to protect Israel's security, stimulate the Palestinian
economy, and support our friends in Jordan. We must
not, we cannot, let them down.
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 fight terror and
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. They
deserve protection, recognition and support. Let's give
them the resources they need so America can continue to
lead.
47
�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.
We will work to restrain the spread of nuclear
weapons, from North Korea to India and Pakistan.
My balanced budget will expand our work with
Russia, Ukraine, and the other former Soviet nations to
safeguard their weapons and technology so they never fall
into the wrong hands.
48
�There is another vital step Congress can take. In
1963, the Senate approved the Limited Nuclear Test Ban
Treaty just two months after President Kennedy signed it.
It's been two years since I signed the Comprehensive Test
Ban Treaty. By acting now, the Senate can make it
harder for new nations to develop nuclear arms, and we
can end nuclear testing forever.
And with Russia, we must continue to reduce our
nuclear arsenals. 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.
49
�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, when America struck at Saddam's war
machine, our troops were superb. Their mission was so
flawlessly executed that we risk taking for granted the
bravery and skill it required. Captain Jeff Taliaferro
TAH-la-ver], pilot of an XX fighter, destroyed
Republican Guard barracks in XX city. He is here with
us tonight. Let us all honor the 10,000 men and women
of Desert Fox.
50
�It is time to reverse the decline in defense spending
that began in 1985. Last year, I asked and Congress
agreed to add nearly $6 billion to maintain our readiness.
My balanced budget calls for an increase of $12 billion
for readiness and modernization. It will ensure that our
troops can deploy rapidly, with the best training and
weapons in the world. And it will provide for them and
their families.
We are the heirs of a legacy of bravery that spans the
generations — including 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.
51
�They always come through for America. We must come
through for them.
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. We will welcome
Hungary, Poland and the Czech Republic as our first new
allies from Central Europe. And we will reaffirm our
determination that Europe must never again be divided by
concrete and barbed wire.
52
�More than ever, we know the security of America is
also bound to the stability of 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 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.
But we must reaffirm that 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.
53
�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
peace and democracy — nowhere more important than in
Nigeria. And because trade and investment are the keys
to African prosperity — we must finally pass the Africa
Growth and Opportunity Act.
We are strengthening our ties to the Americas — to
educate children, fight drugs, deepen democracy and
increase shared prosperity, with a Free Trade Area ofthe
Americas and increased trade with our neighbors in
Central America and the Caribbean.
54
�In our own hemisphere, every government but one is
(
V
freely chosen by its people. We are determined that Cuba,
too, will know the blessings of liberty.
The American people have opened their arms and
their hearts to our neighbors in Central America and the
Caribbean in the wake of devastating hurricanes. More
than 5000 American troops have helped rebuild roads and
homes and lives. Many are still at work. I am proud of
them — and proud of the generosity of the American
people. I will work with Members of Congress of both
parties to help our neighbors rebuild.
55
�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.
And if we do all these things, then we can meet the
historic responsibility of our generation to build a safer
and more secure 21st Century America in a freer and
more peaceful world.
56
�21ST CENTURY COMMUNITIES [10 minutes]
As the world has changed, so have our own
communities. We must continue to strengthen them for
these new times.
Strong communities are safer communities.
We are months away from 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. The murder rate is the lowest in 30
years, and last year, the crime rate dropped for the sixth
straight year.
57
�Tonight, I propose a 21 st Century crime bill to
marshall the latest technologies and tactics to make our
communities even safer.
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 21st Century 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 handguns.
And we must make our schools the safest places in
our communities.
Last year, our nation was 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 parent ever has to live through their loss.
59
�Suzann Wilson lost her daughter, Brittheny, when a
student opened fire on his classmates in Jonesboro.
When she came to visit me at the White House, she
issued a powerful plea to us all: "Please, please, for the
sake of your children, lock up your guns. Don't let your
gun become an instrument of murder. Don't let what
happened in Jonesboro happen in your town." Suzann is
here with us in the First Lady's box. In her presence, and
in memory of all the children who lost their lives this year
to school violence, let us pledge tonight to redouble our
efforts to make our schools safe.
60
�I ask Congress to pass my plan to strengthen the Safe
and Drug-Free School Act, and to hire and train 2,000
new community police and school resource officers to
keep our children safe.
Strong communities are livable communities.
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.
61
�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.
So tonight, I propose a new clean air fund to help
communities reduce both pollution; new funds for clean
energy technology; tax cuts for energy-efficient cars and
homes and appliances; and vigorous diplomatic efforts to
involve other countries. And I will work with Congress
to reward companies that take early, voluntary action to
reduce greenhouse pollution.
62
�Our next challenge is visible today in every
community. As more citizens buy new homes and share
in the American Dream, the frontier recedes; 7,000 acres
of farmland and open space are lost every day.
In response, Vice President Gore and I propose two
major initiatives: first, a 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 historic 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.
63
�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.
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.
64
�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.
As we work to strengthen our community, we must
work to renew our national democracy.
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 reform again, quickly. And to the Senate: Say
no to big money and yes to a strong democracy in the
Year 2000.
65
�Most important, to build strong communities, we
must be truly One America.
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 gap that
deepens the divides between the races. 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.
Discrimination or violence because of race or
66
�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.
That means learning English, and learning about our
democratic system of government. There are now long
67
�waiting lines of immigrants seeking to do just that.
Therefore, my budget contains a substantial increase in
funds to help them exercise their responsibility. That's
part of our 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.
PERORATION: THE MILLENNIUM [5 minutes]
68
�Barely more than 300 days from now, we will cross
that bridge into a new millennium. This is a moment, as
the FirstLady has said, to honor the past and imagine the
future.
I honor her — for leading our Millennium Project ~
for all she has done to represent our country at home and
abroad ~ for all she has done for our children -- and for
her historic role in serving this nation and advancing our
best ideals.
Last year, I called on the Congress and every citizen
to mark the millennium by saving America's treasures.
69
�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.
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 must preserve the 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
and prepare our children for the 21st Century.
We must keep alive, in ways large and small, what
George Washington called "the sacred fire of liberty."
70
�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.
I had no doubt then of what we Americans could do
for our countiy.
Tonight, as I deliver the last State of the Union
message of the 20th Century, no one can doubt the
enduring resolve of Americans to work toward that "more
71
�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 up the largest middle
class in history, winning two world wars, and the "long
twilight struggle" of the Cold War.
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.
72
�A hundred years from tonight, an American President
will stand in this place to report on the State of our 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.
Let us lift our eyes as one nation, and from the
mountaintop of this American century, look ahead to the
73
�next one.
Let us join our spirits and our wills for the work
before us. We ask God's blessing on our endeavors and
our beloved country.
74
�Draft 1/16/99 2:30pm
sotu99.14
PRESIDENT WILLIAM J. CLINTON
STATE OF THE UNION ADDRESS
UNITED STATES CAPITOL
January 19,1999
Mr. Speaker, Mr. Vice President, Members of Congress, honored guests, my fellow
Americans: [intro 4 minutes]
Tonight, we begin anew our work together for the people of America. Let me start by
saluting the new Speaker. At your swearing in, you asked us to work in a spirit of civility and
bipartisanship. Mr. Speaker, let's do exactly that.
Tonight, I have the honor of reporting on the State of our Union.
I stand before you to report that we have created the longest peacetime economic
expansion in American history - with nearly 18 million new jobs and wages rising at twice
the rate of inflation.
I stand before you to report that homeownership is the highest in history - welfare
rolls are the smallest in 29 years - and peacetime unemployment is the lowest it has been
since 1957.
I can report to youthat for the first time in three decades,the budget is balanced. From
a budget deficit of $290 billion in 1992, we now have a budget surplus of $70 billion this year.
We are on course for a budget surplus over the next 25 years.
Violent crime is at its lowest point in a quarter century - and the environment is the
cleanest in a quarter century.
America stands strong - a peacemaker from Northern Ireland, to Bosnia, to the Middle
East.
I stand before you to report that thanks to the pioneering leadership of Vice President
Gore, once again our government is a progressive instrument of the common good, devoted to
fiscal responsibility and determined to give the American people the tools they need to make
the most of their own lives. A 21st Century government for 21st Century America.
RESTORE A BIT
My fellow Americans, I can report that the state of our union is strong. America is
working again. The promise of our future is limitless. But we cannot realize our 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 on not what we enjoy today,
but on what we do today. So with our budget surplus growing, our economy expanding, and
�our confidence rising, let's get to work.
AGING OF AMERICA [7 minutes]
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 21st 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 2013, payroll taxes will not cover retirement
obligations. And 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 of the surplus in the private sector as any private or
state government pension would do. That will earn a higher return and keep Social Security
sound for 50 years without benefit cuts or tax rate increases.
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 widows, who are twice as likely to be poor
as other seniors ~ and eliminate the earnings test which limits 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.
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.
But again, we should aim higher. If we are willing to work in a bipart way and look at
new ideas, including the Medicare panel chaired by Sen. John Breaux and Rep. Bill Thomas in
March, we can then take steps to to improve the quality of Medicare by covering seniors' greatest
and growing need, affordable prescription drugs ~ and still secure Medicare for two decades.
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 joined by private pensions and
savings. 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.
Tonight, in addition to saving Social Security and Medicare, I propose a new initiative
for retirement security in the 21st Century. I propose that we use 10% of the surplus to establish
Universal Savings Accounts - USA Accounts. Americans can set up these new accounts, 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 give all Americans the means to save, to share in the nation's wealth,
and enjoy a more secure retirement.
Fourth, we must invest in long-term care. I propose a tax credit of $1,000 for those who
care for aged, ailing, or disabled loved ones. The care our families can provide at home is
invaluable, and we should support the families that give it.
I was bom in 1946, in 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 our surplus than lifting that burden.
With these four measures ~ saving Social Security, strengthening Medicare, establishing
USA Accounts, and providing the long-term care tax credit - we can begin to meet our historic
responsibility to establish true security for 21st Century seniors.
STRONG SCHOOLS FOR THE 21 ST CENTURY
[9 minutes]
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 prized by the new economy.
Today we can say something about their future we could not say six years ago: with
more affordable student loans, more Pell grants, 1 million new 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.
Nearly every state has set has set higher academic standards for public schools, and we
will soon have a voluntary national test to measure the progress of our students. Schools are
cracking down on drugs and gangs and guns and violence.
Many are improving learning and discipline with school uniforms, teaching values, finding a
proper place for religious faith. We are supporting these developments. And 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 9 times as many
classrooms connect to the Internet as there were just six years ago. This year, with over one
billion additional dollars to make Internet connections affordable, we can meet our goal: every
classroom and every library connected to the Internet by the dawn of the new century.
Last fall, we began to hire 100,000 new highly-trained teachers to reduce class size in
the early grades. We know this will improve learning. And we have to finisht the job.
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
developed 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 four steps.
NOTE - HS students read/add rahm
First, all schools must end social promotion.
But we just can't 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 whodon't master thebasics. Math and reading scores are
up — three years running -- with some of the biggest gains in some of the poorest
neighborhoods. RAHM
�Second, ail states and school disricts 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 adopt this policy and tum around their failing schools. We must do this.
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. Our balanced budget
contains new resources to help make sure teachers know the subjects they are teaching. All
teachers should be required to know the subjects they are teaching - and all new teachers
should be required to pass a performance test.
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 on Indian reservations.
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 and students 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.
Fifth, there can't be learning int he classroom if there is not order int he classroom.
School districts must xxxxx.
If we do these things - end social promotion, mm around failing schools, demand and
support qualified teachers, and promote accountability, innovation, competition and discipline
- we will begin to meet our generation's historic responsibility to create 21st Century schools.
Let's do one more thing for our children. Today, too many of our schools are so old
that they're falling apart, or so overcrowded students must learn in trailers. Last fall.
Congress missed an opportunity to create a tax break to modernize or build 5000 schools.
This year, for the sake of our 53 million schoolchildren, Congress must not miss that
opportunity again.
BUILDING STRONG FAMILIES FOR THE 21st CENTURY [8 minutes]
We must do more to help the millions of working American parents who give their all
every day at home and at work.
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.
One of the biggest needs working parents face is quality child care and after school
programs. Again, I ask the Congress to support our plan for tax credits for working families,
child care subsidies for small business, and high standards and training for child care providers.
Our plan also includes a new tax credit for stay-at-home mothers. They need help too.
The Family Medical Leave Act - the first bill I signed into law - has helped nearly 20
million Americans care for a new baby or an ailing relative without risking their jobs, at minimal
cost to employers. 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.
We have begun testing the first drugs to prevent or reduce risk of cancer. Medical
researchers have introduced the first effective drugs to treat AIDS.
They have made new discoveries about the process of aging itself - increasing the odds of
developing 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. Let's make all Americans a promise: This year, we
will pass a strong and enforceable patient's bill of rights ... so every American can have the right
to the best care, not just the cheapest. The right to see a specialist. And the right to emergency
care.
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 theprivacy of
medical records, this year.
Two years ago, we extended health insurance to up to 5 million children. Now, we
�should give people between the ages of 55 and 65 who lose their health insurance the chance to
buy in to Medicare. We should make it easier for small businesses to offer health insurance to
their employees.
And we should pass the historic bipartisan legislation, introduced by Senators Jeffords, Kennedy,
Roth and Moynihan, to allow people with disabilities to keep Medicaid health insurance when
they go to work. No one should have to choose between keeping health care and taking a job.
In the past six years, one of the few things thta's gone in the wrong direction
#. of
uninsured ppl up - use existing networks... use the places getting fed $ to provide he to ppl who
don't have ins mybudg contians funds to begin to move us in that dir We should increase support
for the community health centers providing basic care for families who lack health coverage
altogether.
We must step up our efforts to treat and to prevent an illness that brings pain to millions
of families - mental illness. No American should ever be afraid to recognize and treat this
disease. This year, we will host a first-ever 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 - whom the tobacco industry has called "replacement
smokers" — are targets of a massive media campaign to hook them on cigarettes. I ask this
Congress to resist the tobacco lobby and pass a bipartisan bill that safeguards our children while
protecting farmers.
For decades the tobacco industry has passed too much ofthe real cost of smoking —
medical care for illnesses from cancer to emphysema ~ onto you, the taxpayers. It is time to
recover those costs, as the states have done.
Tonight, I am directing the Department of Justice to prepare and bring a lawsuit against
the tobacco companies for the costs to Medicare of tobacco-related illnesses.
In all these areas ~ minimum wage, child care, health care, family leave and the safety of
our children — we can begin to meet our historic responsibility to strengthen our families for the
21st Century.
A 21st CENTURY ECONOMY [10 minutes - 6 minutes of which is international]
Next, we must build a 21st Century economy for all Americans.
Today, America is the most dynamic, competitive, job creating economy in history.
7
�But we can do better.
We must make a place for all our people in the new economy.
Today's income gap is largely a skills gap. Last year, I signed bipartisan legislation to
transform our worker training system. With a simple skills grant, Americans eligible for training
assistance can choose the training they need. This year, I recommend a five year investment in
this new system so that we can provide that training for all Americans who lose their jobs. And
let us launch 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 the welfare rolls.
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
welfare to work.
We also must bring the spark of private enterprise into inner cities and remote rural areas.
My balanced budget provides supports community banks, and provides tax credits to create
venture capital funds, and 100,000 vouchers so people can find affordable housing. We already
have an Overseas Private Investment Corporation, to help develop untapped markets abroad. I
propose an American Private Investment Corporation to develop untapped markets at home,
[together these initiatives 15 billion private sector dollars ] investing in jobs abroad - now invest
in jobs at home
And we must bring prosperity back to rural America. Farmers - the backbone of our
country — are in trouble. Dropping prices and the loss of foreign markets have led to dire
economic conditions for too many of our hardworking family farmers. We need to craft a better
farm safety net for rural America, with crop insurance reform and income assistance. I am ready
to work with lawmakers of both parties to get it done.
We must strengthen our lead in technology.
Government investment in computers led to the creation of the Internet. I propose a 30%
increase in long-term computer research.
We must be ready for the 21st Century from its very first moment, by solving the "Y2K"
computer problem. We have already made sure Social Security checks will keep coming on time.
But every government department, every business, every city and county, every university must
be ready, so the "Y2K problem" will be remembered as the last headache of the 20st Century, not
the first crisis of the 21st.
Economic growth at home also depends upon economic growth abroad.
8
�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. Across Asia, an entire generation that worked its way into the middle class has
plunged into poverty.
This is the most critical financial crisis in a half century. To meet it, America has
reduced interest rates, met our obligations to the International Monetary Fund, and worked with
other nations to keep the crisis from spreading. The turmoil is not over, but thanks to lawmakers
of both parties, we have a chance to contain it.
Now we must build a global financial system for the 21st Century that tames the cycles of
boom and bust. This spring, I will meet with other world leaders to lay plans for a system with
clear, 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 turmoil.
We must also build afreerand fairer trading system for the 21st Century ~ one that spurs
growth, expands opportunity for ordinary citizens, and supports basic labor and environmental
standards. Trade has divided Americans for too long. We must find the common ground on
which business, workers, environmentalists and government can stand together.
We must do more to help American manufacturers hit hard by the present crisis. I ask
Congress to provide the funds to spur $2 billion in new credit to promote U.S. manufacturing
exports. When imports unlawfully flood into our nation, we must enforce our trade laws. Free
trade must be fair trade. I have already informed the government of Japan that if Japan's sudden
surge of steel imports into our country is not reversed, I will respond.
But let me make clear: the best course for the United States and the world is increased
trade. Therefore, I calif or a new round of global negotiations to exports of farm products,
services and manufactures.
We must also press for trade that promotes the dignity of work and the rights of workers.
We must insist that international trade organizations be open to public scrutiny, and that trade
rules never be used as a pretext to destroy environmental protections. We must never let
vigorous international competition become a race to the bottom among nations.
I ask Congress to join me in this common approach and pass legislation granting the
President traditional trade authority to advance our prosperity.
We will work with the International Labor Organization on a new initiative to lift labor
standards around the world. And we must act to end the most abusive trade practice of all: This
year I will sign a new international agreement to ban child labor everywhere in the world.
�If we do these things, then we can begin to meet the historic responsibility of this
generation to build a 21st Century prosperity for America.
A STRONG AMERICA IN A NEW WORLD
[11 minutes]
No nation in history has had the opportunity and the responsibility we now have to help
shape a world more peaceful, secure, and free.
All Americans should be proud that our leadership helped to bring peace in Northern
Ireland -- and America should help them build it.
All Americans can be proud that our leadership has put Bosnia on the path to peace. This
year, we will help that peace to take deeper root - as we continue to bring our troops home. And
in Kosovo we will work to stop the bloody repression and find a peaceful path to self
government.
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 support 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.
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 fight this plague of terror
wherever it arises, and defend our security wherever it is 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 reminded us of the risks faced every day by those who represent America to the
world. They deserve protection, recognition and support. Let's give them 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.
We will work to restrain the spread of nuclear weapons, from North Korea to India and
Pakistan.
My balanced budget will expand our work with Russia, Ukraine, and the other former
Soviet nations to safeguard their weapons and technology so they never fall into the wrong
hands.
There is another vital step Congress can take. In 1963, the Senate approved the Limited
10
�nuclear Test Ban Treaty just two months after President Kennedy signed it. It's been two years
since I signed the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty. By acting now, the Senate can make it
harder for new nations to develop nuclear arms, and we can end nuclear testing forever.
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, when America struck at Saddam's war machine, our troops were superb.
Their mission was so flawlessly executed that we risk taking for granted the bravery and skill it
required, [x] flew [x] missions, destroying [x] that made [chemical weapons or whatever]. He is
here with us tonight. Let us all honor the 10,000 men and women of Desert Fox.
It is time to reverse the decline in defense spending that began in 1985. Last year, I asked
and Congress agreed to add nearly $6 billion to maintain our readiness. My balanced budget
calls for an increase of $12 billion for readiness and modernization. It will ensure that our troops
can deploy rapidly, with the best training and weapons in the world. And it will provide for them
and their families.
America's defenders 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.
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 mission of the next 50 years. We will welcome Hungary, Poland and the
Czech Republic as our first new allies from Central Europe. And we will reaffirm our
determination that Europe must never again be divided by concrete and barbed wire.
More than ever, we know that the security of America is also linked to the stability of
Asia. I have worked to strengthen relationships with our allies Japan and Korea. Last year, I
also traveled to China because our relationship with the world's largest country will help
determine prospects for peace and security all across Asia. I spoke candidly about our shared
interests as well as our differences. 1 said to the leaders of China, and 1 say again tonight:
Stability can no longer be bought at the expense of liberty.
But we must reaffirm that 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
11
�still held back by the scars of violence and scourge of disease. We must strive to end conflict
and to fortify African democracy, especially in Nigeria. And because trade and investment are
the keys to African prosperity ~ we must finally pass the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act.
We are strengthening ties to the Americas ~ to educate children, fight drugs, deepen
democracy and increase shared prosperity, through increased trade with our neighbors in Central
America and the Carribbean, and through the establishment of a Free Trade Area of the
Americas.
In our own hemisphere, every government but one isfreelychosen byour people. We are
determined that Cuba, too, will know the blessings of liberty. We have taken new steps to help
the Cuban people without helping the regime.
The American people have opened their hearts and their hands to our neighbors in Central
America and the Carribbean in the wake of devasting hurricanes. More than 5000 American
troops have helped rebuild roads and homes and lives. Many are still at work. 1 am proud of
them ~ and proud of the generosity of the American people. I will do my best to work with
Members of Congress of both parties to help our neighbors rebuild.
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.
And if we do all these things, then we can meet the historic responsibility of our
generation to build a safer and mores ecure 21st Century America in afreerand more peaceful
world.
21ST CENTURY COMMUNITIES [10 minutes]
As the world has changed, so have our own communities ~ we must continue to
strengthen them for this new time.
Strong communities are safer communities.
[Chestnut & Gibson tribute]
This year, we will 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. The murder rate is the lowest in 30 years, and
last year, the crime rate dropped for the sixth straight year.
Tonight, I propose a 21st Century crime bill to marshall the latest technologies and tactics
to make our communities even safer.
12
�My budget provides funds to put up to 50,000 more police on the beat in the areas hardest
hit by crime, and gives them 21st Century 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 out on parole: If you want to keep yourfreedom,you have to keepfreeof
drugs.
Congress should restore the mandatory 5-day waiting period for buying a handgun that
expired last year, and extend the Brady Bill to prevent juveniles who commit violent crimes from
ever buying handguns.
And we must make our schools the safest places in our communities. Last year, our
nation was horrified and heartbroken by the tragic killings in our schools ~ in Jonesboro,
Arkansas, Paducah, Kentucky, Pearl, Mississippi, in Edinboro, Pennsylvania, Springfield,
Oregon. We will never forget the courage of the parents who have dedicated themselves to
keeping guns out of the hands of children ~ so no parent ever has to live through their loss.
Suzann Wilson lost her daughter, Brittheny, when a student opened fire on his classmates
in Jonesboro. WTien she came to visit me at the White House, she issued a powerful plea to us
all. "Please, please, for the sake of your children, lock up your guns. Don't let your gun become
an instrument of murder. Don't let what happened in Jonesboro happen in your town." Suzann
is here with us in the First Lady's box. In her presence, and in memory of all the children who
lost their lives this year to school violence, let us pledge tonight to redouble our efforts to make
our schools safe. I ask Congress to pass my plan to strengthen the Safe and Drug-Free School
Act, and to hire and train 2,000 new community police and school resource officers to keep our
kids safe.
Strong communities are livable communities.
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.
So tonight, I propose a clean air fund to help communities reduce both greenhouse
pollution and smog; new funds for clean energy sources; tax cuts for energy-efficient cars,
homes, and appliances; and vigorous diplomatic efforts to involve other countries. I want to
work with Congress to rewarad companies that take early voluntary action to reduce
greenhouse pollution.
13
�Our next challenge is visible today in every community. As more citizens buy new
homes and share in the American Dream, communities are losing about 7,000 acres of farms
and open space every day.
In response, Vice President Gore and I propose two major initiatives: first, a
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 historic one billion dollar Lands
Legacy Initiative to preserve places of natural beauty across America ~ from remote
wilderness to city parks.
To get the most out of your community, you have to give something back to it. That's
why I fought to create AmeriCorps ~ our national service program that gives today's
generation a chance to serve their community and earn money for college.
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 with us tonight. I thank them for their service ~ and I ask Congress
to give more young Americans the chance to follow their lead.
As we work to strengthen our communities, we must work to renew our democracy.
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 reform again, quickly. I ask
the Senate: say no to big money and yes to a strong democracy in the Year 2000.
Most important, to build strong communities, we must be truly One America.
Since 1997, our Initiative on Race has sought to bridge the divides between our people.
In its report, issued last September, 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 gap that deepens the divides between the races. 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.
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 the Congress to make
the Employment Non-Discrimination Act and the Hate Crimes Prevention Act the law of the
land.
14
�Our newest immigrants must be part of One America. They are revitalizing our cities,
energizing our culture, building our new economy. Vile have a responsibility to make them
welcome here. And they have a responsibility to enter the mainstream of American life. My
balanced budget will help many more immigrants leam English and to learn about our
democratic system.
There are long waiting lists of immigrants waiting to learn English.
Whether our ancestors came here on the Mayflower or on slave ships, whether they
landed on Ellis Island or at Los Angeles International Airport, whether they arrived yesterday
or walked to our land thousands of years - we can be, and we must be One America. We
have no greater obligation to the 21st Century.
PERORATION: THE MILLENNIUM [5 minutes]
Barely more than 300 days from now, we will cross that bridge into a 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 to represent
our country at home and abroad — and for all she has done for our children — for her historic
role in serving this nation and advancing our best ideals.
Last year, I called on the 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.
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
must preserve the 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 and prepare our children for the 21st Century. We must keep 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
America's 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.
I had no doubt then of what we Americans could do for our country.
Tonight, as I deliver the last State of the Union message of the 20th Century, no one can
doubt the enduring resolve of Americans to work for that "more perfect union" of our founders'
dreams.
15
�We are near the end of a century when generations of Americans answered the call to
greataess, overcoming Depression, lifting up the dispossessed, bringing down barriers of racial
prejudice, building up the largest middle class in history, winning two world wars, and the "long
twilight struggle" ofthe Cold War.
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 our 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.
Let us lift our eyes as one nation, and from the mountaintop of this American century,
look ahead to the next one.
Let us join our spirits and wills for the work ahead, and ask God's blessing on our
endeavors and our beloved country.
16
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box x & y - the widows of the officers who gave their lives to defend freedom's house Second, I
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PRESIDENT WILLIAM J. CLINTON
STATE OF THE UNION ADDRESS
UNITED STATES CAPITOL
January 19,1999
Mr. Speaker, Mr. Vice President, Members of Congress, honored guests, my fellow
Americans:
First, let me recognize two individuals who are sitting in the box tonight with Mrs.
Hastert, Lyn Gibson and Wei Ling Chestnut - the widows of the two brave Capitol Police
Officers who gave their lives to defend freedom's house.
Tonight, we begin our work together for the people of America. Let me start by saluting
the new Speaker. At your swearing in, you asked us to work in a spirit of civility and
bipartisanship. Mr. Speaker, let's do exactly that.
Tonight, I have the honor of reporting on the State of our Union.
I stand before you to report that America has created the longest peacetime economic
expansion in our history — with wages rising at nearly twice the rate of inflation and nearly 18
million new jobs.
I stand before you to report that homeownership is the highest in history — welfare rolls
are the smallest in 29 years — and peacetime unemployment is the lowest it has been since 1957.
I stand before you to report that for the first time in three decades, the budget is balanced.
From a budget deficit of $290 billion in 1992, we now have a budget surplus of $70 billion this
year. We are on course for a budget surplus each year for the next 25 years.
Violent crime is the lowest in a quarter century — and the environment is the cleanest in a
quarter century.
America stands strong - a peacemaker 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 ofthe common
good — offering opportunity to all, demanding responsibility from all, and building a community
of all Americans — a flexible, creative government, devoted to fiscal responsibility and
determined to give the American 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 [not upon what we enjoy today, but] upon what we do
�today. [The prosperity we have built and the progress we have made are proof that this
generation has begun to fulfill its duty. But to face the challenges and seize the opportunities of
the new century, we have work to do.] So with our budget surplus growing, our economy
expanding, and our confidence rising, let's get to work.
AOTNC. OF 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 21st 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 2013, payroll taxes will not cover retirement
obligations. And 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 of the surplus in the private sector just as any private or
state government pension would do. That 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
25 years. And we should reduce poverty among elderly widows, 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.
�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.
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 Medicare panel chaired by Sen. John
Breaux and Rep. Bill Thomas.
If we do this, we can improve the quality of Medicare by covering seniors' greatest and
growing need, affordable prescription drugs — and still secure Medicare for the next two decades.
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.
Tonight, in addition to saving Social Security and Medicare, I propose a new pension
initiative for retirement security in the 21st Century. I propose that we use 10% ofthe surplus to
establish Universal Savings Accounts — USA Accounts. Americans who save in these new
accounts 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 give all Americans the means to save, to share in the nation's wealth,
and enjoy a more secure retirement.
Eomlh, we must invest in long-term care. I propose a tax credit of $1,000 for those who
care for aged, ailing, or disabled loved ones. This kind of care is invaluable. Let us show that
we honor and reward it.
I was bom in 1946, in 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 the surplus than lifting that burden.
With these four measures - saving Social Security, strengthening Medicare, establishing
USA Accounts, and providing the long-term care tax credit — we can begin to meet our historic
responsibility to establish true security for 21st Century seniors.
STRONG SCHOOLS FOR THE 21 ST CENTURY
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
so they can thrive in the new economy.
�Today we can say something about their future we could not say six years ago: with more
affordable student loans, more Pell grants, 1 million new 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.
Nearly every state has set higher academic standards for public schools, and we will soon
have a voluntary national test to measure the progress of our students. Schools are cracking
down on drugs and gangs and guns and violence. Many are improving learning and discipline
with school uniforms, teaching values, finding a proper place for religious faith.
We are supporting these developments. And 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. This year, with over one billion dollars in discounts
to make Internet connections affordable, we can meet our goal: every classroom and every
library connected to the Internet by the dawn of the new century.
Last fall, you passed our proposal to start hiring 100,000 new highly-trained teachers to
reduce class size in the early grades. But we need more than a start. Now I call on Congress to
finish the job of hiring 100,000 teachers.
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
developed 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 four 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. We have a moral obligation to insist that our children leam.
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 ofthe biggest gains in some of the poorest neighborhoods.
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. We must do this.
Third, all states and school districts must be held responsible for the quality of their
teachers. The great majority of teachers do afinejob. But in too many schools, teachers don't
have college majors — or even minors — in the subjects they teach. All new teachers should be
required to pass skills tests and to know the subject they are teaching. My balanced budget
contains new resources to help all 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.
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 and students 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.
Fifth, all states and school districts must adopt and enforce a strict discipline code.
Classrooms must be places of learning.
If we do these things ~ end social promotion, tum around failing schools, demand and
support qualified teachers, and promote innovation, competition and discipline — we will begin
to meet our generation's historic responsibility to create 21st Century schools.
Let's do one more thing for our children. Today, too many of our schools are so old that
they're falling apart, or so overcrowded students must leam in trailers.
Last fall, Congress missed the opportunity to change that. This year, for the sake of our
53 million schoolchildren. Congress must not miss that opportunity again. I ask you to pass our
program to build or modernize 5000 schools.
�BUILDING STRONG FAMILIES FOR THK 21st CENTURY
We must do more to help the millions of working American parents who give their all
every day at home and at work.
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. fi]i~A fe/^ i ^ ^ U ^
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One of the greatest needs for working parents is quality child care. Again, I ask the
Congress to support our plan for tax credits for working families, child care subsidies for families
and small business, high standards and 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.
The Family Medical Leave Act - the first bill I signed into law - has helped nearly 20
million Americans care for a new baby or an ailing relative without risking their jobs, at minimal
cost to employers. 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 medicaLcare. ^
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We have begun testing the first drugs to prevent cancer. Medical researchers have
introduced the first effective drugs to treat AIDS. They have made new discoveries about the
process of aging itself - nearing 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 doyra quality as well. Let's makeyau Americans a promise:
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This year, we will pass a strong and enforceable Patients' Bill of Rights ..^p'fozEry
American mn have the right to the best care, not just the cheapest. The right to see a specialist.
And the right to emergency care.
I am now extending theserightsby executive authority to the 85 million Americans
served by Medicare, Medicaid, and other federal health plans. But only Congress can enact the
tients' Bill of Rights for aU Americans. Last year. Congress missed that opportunity. This
yea^feftheTake ot our farmhe^>Congress must not miss that opportunity again. [I ask Congress
to passThe Patients' Bill of Rights by [date].]
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�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.
Two years ago, we extended health insurance to up to 5 millionchildren. Now, we
should give people between the ages of 55 and 65 who lose their healtn insurance the chance to
buy in to Medicare. We should make it easier for small businesses to offer health insurance to^
their employees.
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AnH~wrTThoHl{Knri';'] the historic bipartisan legislation, introduced by Senators Jeffords,
Kennedy, Roth and Moyftihati. to allow people with disabilities to keep Medicaid health
insurance-wli£iiJliey_go to_work>No one should have to choose between keeping health care and
taking a job.
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And I ask the Congress to increase support for community health centers and public
hospitals so that they better provide basic care for families who4aekcoverage altogether:
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We must step up our efforts to treat and to prevent a condition that brings pain to millions
of families — mental illness. No American should ever be afraid to recognize and treat this
disease. This year, we will host the first-ever 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 - whom the tobacco industry has called "replacement
smokers" — are targets of a massive media campaign to hook them on cigarettes. I ask this
Congress to resist the tobacco lobby and pass a bipartisan bill that safeguards our children while
protecting farmers.
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In all these areas - minimum wage, child care, health care, family leave and the safety of ^3'
our children -- we can begin to meet our historic responsibility to strengthen our families for the
21st Century.
A 21st CENTURY ECONOMY
"we must build a 21st Century economy for all Americans.
Today, America is the most dynamic, competitive, job creating economy in history.
^e-mnst make a place for all our people in the new economy
Today's income gap is largely a skills gap. Last year, I signed bipartisan legislation to
transform our worker training system. Now, with a simple skills grant, eligible workers can
choose the training they need. This year, I recommend a five year investment in this nsw'systern
so that we can provide that training for all Americans who lose their jobs. And let us launch a
7
�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 Ite* welfare rsB&r
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 kidiimit¥-of welfare to the dignity and pride of work.
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and bring jobs to underserved areas. For yprs, OPIC, the Overseas Private Investment
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And we must bring prosperity backto-ruralAmcrioe—back- to the family farm that
I i , ^._Vl jemains a powerful symbol of American plenty. Dropping prices and the loss of foreign markets.
' :e ' ' have led to dire economic conditions for too many family farmers. The safety net for rural
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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 computer research.
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We must be ready for the 21st Century from its very first moment, by solving the "Y2K"
computer problem. We have already made sure Social Security checks wtti-keep-comi^ on time.
But every government department, every business, every state and city, every university must be
ready -- so the "Y2K problem" will be remembered as the last headache of the 20st Century, not
the first crisis of the 21st.
And we must recognize: Economic growth at h o m ^ ^ s o dnpHiiik i i p n T T f ^ n o m i n - g m ^ h
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. Across Asia, an entire generation that worked its way into the middle class has
plunged into poverty.
This is the most Baikal financial crisis in a half century j To meet it, America has
reduced interest rates, met our obligations to the International Monetary Fund^ and worked with
other nationsjtoeontain the crisi^jfaie turmoil is not over, but thanks lo lawmakets-efbothi^g. « —e_
.parti^jwehayfljwckance to contain 4 t ^ ^ ,
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8
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�iust build a global financial system for the 21st Century that tames the cycles of
boom and bust. This spring, I will meet with other world leaders to lay plans for a system with
clear, 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 -tufmoil. ^
We must also build a freer and fairer trading system for the 21st Century. Trade has
divided Americans for too long. We must find the common ground on which business, workers,
environmentalists and government can stand together.
We must do more to help American manufacturers hit hard b^fne present crisis. I ask
Congress to boost U.S. manufacturing exports with $2 billion in/fiew^redit. When imports
unlawfully flood our nation, we must enforce our trade laws. Free trade muat bc fttir trade. I
have already informed the government of Japan that if Japan's sudden surge of steel imports into
our country is not reversed, ^will respond
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But-let mc makfrcloor: the best course for the United States and the world is increased
trade. Therefore, I call for a new round of global negotiations to expand our exports of farm
products, services and manufactures.
.
We must also press for trade that promotes the dignity of work-a&d the rights of w o r k e r ^ r c - < J ' q/egilisHHsistt^
that trade
rules never be usedjg-a^rgtgrtjojto^^
never let
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vigorous international competition become a race to the bottom among nations.^) p
I ask Congress to join me in this common approach and pass legislation granting the
President the trade authority long used to advance our prosperity.
We will work with the International Labor Organization on a new initiative to lift labor
standards around the world. And we must act to end the most abusive trade practice of all: This
year I will sign a new international agreement to ban child labor everywhere in the world.
If we do these things, then we can begin to meet the historic responsibility of this
generation to build a 21st Century prosperity for America.
A STRONG AMERICA IN A NEW WORLD
No nation in history has had the opportunity and the responsibility we now have to help
shape a world more peaceful, secure, and free.
All Americans should be proud that our leadership helped to bring peace in Northern
Ireland ~ and America should help them build it.
All Americans can be proud that our leadership has put Bosnia on the path to peace. This
year, we will help that peace take deeper root - as we continue to bring our troops home. And in
�Kosovo we will work to stop the bloody repression and find a peaceful path to self government.
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 support 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.
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 fight terror and 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. They deserve protection,
recognition and support. Let's give them 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.
We will work to restrain the spread of nuclear weapons, from North Korea to India and
Pakistan.
My balanced budget will expand our work with Russia, Ukraine, and the other former
Soviet nations to safeguard their weapons and technology so they never fall into the wrong
hands.
There is another vital step Congress can take. In 1963, the Senate approved the Limited
Nuclear Test Ban Treaty just two months after President Kennedy signed it. It's been two years
since I signed the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty. By acting now, the Senate can make it
harder for new nations to develop nuclear arms, and we can end nuclear testing forever.
And with Russia, we must continue to reduce our nuclear arsenals. Theframeworkwe
have already agreed to for a START III Treaty could cut them by 80% from their Cold War
height. We must keep moving forward.
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, when America struck at Saddam's war machine, our troops were superb.
Their mission was so flawlessly executed that we risk taking for granted the bravery and skill it
required. Captain Jeff Taliaferro [TAH-la-ver], pilot of an XX fighter, destroyed Republican
Guard barracks in XX city. He is here with us tonight. Let us all honor the 10,000 men and
women of Desert Fox.
10
�It is time to reverse the decline in defense spending that began in 1985. Last year, I asked
and Congress agreed to add nearly $6 billion to maintain our readiness. My balanced budget
calls for an increase of $12 billion for readiness and modernization. It will ensure that our troops
can deploy rapidly, with the best training and weapons in the world. And it will provide for them
and their families.
We are the heirs of a legacy of bravery that spans the generations — including 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.
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. We will welcome Hungary, Poland and
the Czech Republic as our first new allies from Central Europe. And we will reaffirm our
determination that Europe must never again be divided by concrete and barbed wire.
More than ever, we know the security of America is also bound to the stability of 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 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.
But we must reaffirm that 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 peace and democracy
- nowhere more important than in Nigeria. And because trade and investment are the keys to
African prosperity ~ we must finally pass the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act.
We are strengthening our ties to the Americas — to educate children, fight drugs, deepen
democracy and increase shared prosperity, with a Free Trade Area ofthe 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.
The American people have opened their arms and their hearts to our neighbors in Central
America and the Caribbean in the wake of devastating hurricanes. More than 5000 American
troops have helped rebuild roads and homes and lives. Many are still at work. I am proud of
them — and proud ofthe generosity ofthe American people. I will work with Members of
Congress of both parties to help our neighbors rebuild.
11
�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.
And if we do all these things, then we can meet the historic responsibility of our
generation to build a safer and more secure 21st Century America in a freer and more peaceful
world.
12
�21 ST CENTURY COMMUNITIES [10 minutes]
As the world has changed, so have our own communities. We must continue to
strengthen them for these new times.
Strong communities are safer communities.
We are months away from 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. The murder rate is the lowest in 30 years, and
last year, the crime rate dropped for the sixth straight year.
Tonight, I propose a 21st Century crime bill to marshall the latest technologies and tactics
to make our communities even safer.
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 21st Century 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.
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
handguns.
And we must make our schools the safest places in our communities.
Last year, our nation was horrified and heartbroken by the tragic killings in our schools —
in Jonesboro, Paducah, Pearl, Edinboro, Springfield. We will never forget the courage ofthe
parents who have dedicated themselves to keeping guns out ofthe hands of children — so no
parent ever has to live through their loss.
Suzann Wilson lost her daughter, Brittheny, when a student opened fire on his classmates
in Jonesboro. When she came to visit me at the White House, she issued a powerful plea to us
all: "Please, please, for the sake of your children, lock up your guns. Don't let your gun become
an instrument of murder. Don't let what happened in Jonesboro happen in your town." Suzann
is here with us in the First Lady's box. In her presence, and in memory of all the children who
lost their lives this year to school violence, let us pledge tonight to redouble our efforts to make
our schools safe.
I ask Congress to pass my plan to strengthen the Safe and Drug-Free School Act, and to
hire and train 2,000 new community police and school resource officers to keep our children
safe.
13
�Strong communities are livable communities.
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.
So tonight, I propose a new clean air fund to help communities reduce both pollution;
new funds for clean energy technology; tax cuts for energy-efficient cars and homes and
appliances; and vigorous diplomatic efforts to involve other countries. And I will work with
Congress to reward companies that take early, voluntary action to reduce greenhouse pollution.
Our next challenge is visible today in every community. As more citizens buy new homes
and share in the American Dream, the frontier recedes; 7,000 acres of farmland and open space
are lost every day.
In response, Vice President Gore and I propose two major initiatives: first, a 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 historic 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.
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
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.
As we work to strengthen our community, we must work to renew our national
democracy.
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 reform again, quickly. And to the Senate: Say
no to big money and yes to a strong democracy in the Year 2000.
14
�Most important, to build strong communities, we must be truly One America.
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 gap that
deepens the divides between the races. 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.
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 Non-Discrimination Act and the Hate Crimes Prevention Act the law ofthe 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.
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 exercise their responsibility. That's part of our
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.
PERORATION: THF. MILLENNIUM [5 minutes]
Barely more than 300 days from now, we will cross that bridge into a 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 to represent our
country at home and abroad — for all she has done for our children — and for her historic role in
serving this nation and advancing our best ideals.
Last year, I called on the 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.
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
must preserve the treasures in every community. I invite every American town, city, and county
to become nationally recognized "Millennium Communities" by launching projects that save our
15
�history and prepare our children for the 21st Century. We must keep 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.
I had no doubt then of what we Americans could do for our country.
Tonight, as I deliver the last State ofthe Union message ofthe 20th Century, no one can
doubt the enduring resolve 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 up the largest middle class in history, winning two world wars, and the "long
twilight struggle" of the Cold War.
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 our 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.
Let us lift our eyes as one nation, and from the mountaintop of this American century,
look ahead to the next one.
Let us join our spirits and our wills for the work before us. We ask God's blessing on our
endeavors and our beloved country.
16
�Draft 1/17/99 4pm
PRESIDENT W I L L I A M J . CLINTON
S T A T E OF T H E UNION ADDRESS
UNITED S T A T E S C A P I T O L
January 19,1999
Mr. Speaker, Mr. Vice President, Members of Congress, honored guests, my fellow
Americans:
First, let me recognize two individuals who are sitting in the box tonight with Mrs.
Hastert, Lyn Gibson and Wei Ling Chestnut - the widows of the two brave Capitol Police
Officers who gave their lives to defend freedom's house.
Tonight, we begin our work together for the people of America. Let me start by saluting
the new Speaker. At your swearing in, you asked us to work in a spirit of civility and
bipartisanship. Mr. Speaker, let's do exactly that.
Tonight, I have the honor of reporting on the State of our Union.
1 stand before you to report that America has created the longest peacetime economic
expansion in our history — with wages rising at nearly twice the rate of inflation and nearly 18
million new jobs.
I stand before you to report that homeownership is the highest in history — welfare rolls
are the smallest in 29 years - and peacetime unemployment is the lowest it has been since 1957.
I stand before you to report that for the first time in three decades, the budget is balanced.
From a budget deficit of $290 billion in 1992, we now have a budget surplus of $70 billion this
year. We are on course for a budget surplus each year for the next 25 years.
Violent crime is the lowest in a quarter century — and the environment is the cleanest in a
quarter century.
America stands strong - a peacemaker 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, and building a community
of all Amencans -- a flexible, creative government, devoted to fiscal responsibility and
determined to give the American 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 i f we allow the hum of our prosperity to lull us into complacency. How we fare as a
nation far into the 21 st Century depends [not upon what we enjoy today, but] upon what we do
today. [The prosperity we have built and the progress we have made are proof that this
generation has begun to fulfill its duty. But to face the challenges and seize the opportunities of
the new century, we have work to do.] So with our budget surplus growing, our economy
expanding, and our confidence rising, let's get to work.
AGING OF 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 21st 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 2013, payroll taxes will not cover retirement
obligations. And 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 of the surplus in the private sector just as any private or
state government pension would do. That 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 widows, 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.
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.
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 ofthe Medicare panel chaired by Sen. John
Breaux and Rep. Bill Thomas.
If we do this, we can improve the quality of Medicare by covering seniors' greatest and
growing need, affordable prescription drugs - and still secure Medicare for the next two decades.
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.
Tonight, in addition to saving Social Security and Medicare, I propose a new pension
initiative for retirement security in the 21st Century. I propose that we use 10% of the surplus to
establish Universal Savings Accounts — USA Accounts. Americans who save in these new
accounts 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 give all Americans the means to save, to share in the nation's wealth,
and enjoy a more secure retirement.
Fourth, we must invest in long-term care. I propose a tax credit of $1,000 for those who
care for aged, ailing, or disabled loved ones. This kind of care is invaluable. Let us show that
we honor and reward it.
I was bom in 1946, in 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 the surplus than lifting that burden.
-3 -
�With these four measures — saving Social Security, strengthening Medicare, establishing
USA Accounts, and providing the long-term care tax credit - we can begin to meet our historic
responsibility to establish true security for 21st Century seniors.
STRONG S C H O O L S FOR T H E 21 ST C E N T U R Y
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
so they can thrive in the new economy.
Today we can say something about their future we could not say six years ago: with more
affordable student loans, more Pell grants, 1 million new 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.
Nearly every state has set higher academic standards for public schools, and we will soon
have a voluntary national test to measure the progress of our students. Schools are cracking
down on drugs and gangs and guns and violence. Many are improving learning and discipline
with school uniforms, teaching values, finding a proper place for religious faith.
We are supporting these developments. And 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. This year, with over one billion dollars in discounts
to make Internet connections affordable, we can meet our goal: every classroom and every
library connected to the Internet by the dawn ofthe new century.
Last fall, you passed our proposal to start hiring 100,000 new highly-trained teachers to
reduce class size in the early grades. But we need more than a start. Now I call on Congress to
finish the job of hiring 100,000 teachers.
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
developed 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 four steps.
-4-
�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. We have a moral obligation to insist that our children leam.
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 ofthe biggest gains in some of the poorest neighborhoods.
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. We must do this.
Third, all states and school districts must be held responsible for the quality of their
teachers. The great majority of teachers do afinejob. But in too many schools, teachers don't
have college majors — or even minors — in the subjects they teach. All new teachers should be
required to pass skills tests and to know the subject they are teaching. My balanced budget
contains new resources to help all 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.
Fourth, we must empower parents, with more infomiation 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 and students 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.
Fifth, all states and school districts must adopt and enforce a strict discipline code.
Classrooms must be places of learning.
If we do these things — end social promotion, turn around failing schools, demand and
support qualified teachers, and promote innovation, competition and discipline - we will begin
to meet our generation's historic responsibility to create 21st Century schools.
-5 -
�Let's do one more thing for our children. Today, too many of our schools are so old that
they're falling apart, or so overcrowded students must leam in trailers.
Last fall, Congress missed the opportunity to change that. This year, for the sake of our
53 million schoolchildren, Congress must not miss that opportunity again. I ask you to pass our
program to build or modernize 5000 schools.
BUILDING STRONG F A M I L I E S FOR T H E 21st C E N T U R Y
We must do more to help the millions of working American parents who give their all
every day at home and at work.
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.
One of the greatest needs for working parents is quality child care. Again, I ask the
Congress to support our plan for tax credits for working families, child care subsidies for families
and small business, high standards and 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.
The Family Medical Leave Act — the first bill I signed into law — has helped nearly 20
million Americans care for a new baby or an ailing relative without risking their jobs, at minimal
cost to employers. 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.
We have begun testing the first drugs to prevent cancer. Medical researchers have
introduced the first effective drugs to treat AIDS. They have made new discoveries about the
process of aging itself - nearing 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.
-6-
�Managed care has transformed medicine in America — driving down costs, but
threatening to drive down quality as well. Let's make all Americans a promise:
This year, we will pass a strong and enforceable Patients' Bill of Rights ... so every
American can have the right to the best care, not just the cheapest. The right to see a specialist.
And the right to emergency care.
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 thai opportunity again. [I ask Congress
to pass the Patients' Bill of Rights by [date].]
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.
Two years ago, we extended health insurance to up to 5 million children. Now, we
should give people between the ages of 55 and 65 who lose their health insurance the chance to
buy in to Medicare. We should make it easier for small businesses to offer health insurance to
their employees.
And we should pass the historic bipartisan legislation, introduced by Senators Jeffords,
Kennedy, Roth and Moynihan, to allow people with disabilities to keep Medicaid health
insurance when they go to work. No one should have to choose between keeping health care and
taking a job.
And I ask the Congress to increase support for community health centers and public
hospitals so that they better provide basic care for families who lack coverage altogether.
We must step up our efforts to treat and to prevent a condition that brings pain to millions
of families — mental illness. No American should ever be afraid to recognize and treat this
disease. This year, we will host the first-ever 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 - whom the tobacco industry has called "replacement
smokers" — are targets of a massive media campaign to hook them on cigarettes. I ask this
Congress to resist the tobacco lobby and pass a bipartisan bill that safeguards our children while
protecting farmers.
In all these areas — minimum wage, child care, health care, family leave and the safety of
our children — we can begin to meet our historic responsibility to strengthen our families for tlie
21st Century.
- 7-
�A 21st C E N T U R Y E C O N O M Y
Next, we must build a 21 st Century economy for all Americans.
Today, America is the most dynamic, competitive, job creating economy in history.
But we can do better.
We must make a place for all our people in the new economy.
Today's income gap is largely a skills gap. Last year, I signed bipartisan legislation to
transform our worker training system. Now, with a simple skills grant, eligible workers can
choose the training they need. This year, I recommend a five year investment in this new system
so that we can provide that training for all Americans who lose their jobs. And let us launch 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 the welfare rolls.
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 indignity of welfare to the dignity and pride of work.
The largest untapped markets are not overseas — they are right here at home, in the
central cities and towns that are gateways of opportunity for millions. I ask Congress to support
tax credits, incentives and loan guarantees to help businesses raise uo to $15 billion to expand
and bring jobs to underserved areas. For years, OPIC, the Overseas Private Investment
Corporation, has helped promote growth abroad. It's time we had an APIC to promote
investment and growth in America.
And we must bring prosperity back to rural America — back to the family farm that
remains a powerful symbol of American plenty. Dropping prices and the loss of foreign markets,
have led to dire economic conditions for too many family farmers. The safety net for rural
America should include crop insurance reform and farm income assistance. I am ready to work
with lawmakers of both parties to get it done.
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 computer research.
We must be ready for the 21st Century from its very first moment, by solving the "Y2K"
computer problem. We have already made sure Social Security checks will keep coming on time.
But every government department, every business, every state and city, every university must be
-8-
�ready - so the "Y2K problem" will be remembered as the last headache of the 20st Century, not
the first crisis of the 21st.
And we must recognize: Economic growth at home also depends upon economic growth
abroad.
Until recently, one third of our economic growth came from exports. But over the past
year and a half, financial tunuoil overseas has put that growth at risk. Today, much ofthe world
is in recession. Across Asia, an entire generation that worked its way into the middle class has
plunged into poverty.
This is the most critical financial crisis in a half century. To meet it, America has
reduced interest rates, met our obligations to the International Monetary Fund, and worked with
other nations to contain the crisis. The turmoil is not over, but thanks to lawmakers of both
parties, we have a chance to contain it.
Now we must build a global financial system for the 21st Century that tames the cycles of
boom and bust. This spring, I will meet with other world leaders to lay plans for a system with
clear, 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 turmoil.
We must also build a freer and fairer trading system for the 21st Century. Trade has
divided Americans for too long. We must find the common ground on which business, workers,
environmentalists and government can stand together.
We must do more to help American manufacturers hit hard by the present crisis. I ask
Congress to boost U.S. manufacturing exports with $2 billion in new credit. When imports
unlawfully flood our nation, we must enforce our trade laws. Free trade must be fair trade. I
have already informed the government of Japan that i f Japan's sudden surge of steel imports into
our country is not reversed, I will respond.
But let me make clear: the best course for the United States and the world is increased
trade. Therefore, I call for a new round of global negotiations to expand our exports of farm
products, services and manufactures.
We must also press for trade that promotes the dignity of work and the rights of workers.
We must insist that international trade organizations be open to public scrutiny, and that trade
rules never be used as a pretext to destroy environmental protections. We must never let
vigorous international competition become a race to the bottom among nations.
I ask Congress to join me in this common approach and pass legislation granting the
President the trade authority long used to advance our prosperity.
-9-
�We will work with the International Labor Organization on a new initiative to lift labor
standards around the world. And we must act to end the most abusive trade practice of all: This
year I will sign a new international agreement to ban child labor everywhere in the world.
If we do these things, then we can begin to meet the historic responsibility of this
generation to build a 21st Century prosperity for America.
A STRONG AMERICA IN A NEW WORLD
No nation in history has had the opportunity and the responsibility we now have to help
shape a world more peaceful, secure, and free.
All Americans should be proud that our leadership helped to bring peace in Northern
Ireland — and America should help them build it.
All Americans can be proud that our leadership has put Bosnia on the path to peace. This
year, we will help that peace take deeper root - as we continue to bring our troops home. And in
Kosovo we will work to stop the bloody repression and find a peaceful path to self government.
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 support 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.
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 fight terror and 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. They deserve protection,
recognition and support. Let's give them 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.
We will work to restrain the spread of nuclear weapons, from North Korea to India and
Pakistan.
My balanced budget will expand our work with Russia, Ukraine, and the other former
Soviet nations to safeguard their weapons and technology so they never fall into the wrong
hands.
- 10 -
�There is another vital step Congress can take. In 1963, the Senate approved the Limited
Nuclear Test Ban Treaty just two months after President Kennedy signed it. It's been two years
since I signed the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty. By acting now, the Senate can make it
harder for new nations to develop nuclear arms, and we can end nuclear testing forever.
And with Russia, we must continue to reduce our nuclear arsenals. 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.
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, when America struck at Saddam's war machine, our troops were superb.
Their mission was so flawlessly executed that we risk taking for granted the bravery and skill it
required. Captain Jeff Taliaferro [TAH-la-ver], pilot of an XX fighter, destroyed Republican
Guard barracks in XX city. He is here with us tonight. Let us all honor the 10,000 men and
women of Desert Fox.
It is time to reverse the decline in defense spending that began in 1985. Last year, I asked
and Congress agreed to add nearly $6 billion to maintain our readiness. My balanced budget
calls for an increase of $12 billion for readiness and modernization. It will ensure that our troops
can deploy rapidly, with the best training and weapons in the world. And it will provide for them
and their families.
We are the heirs of a legacy of bravery that spans the generations — including 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.
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. We will welcome Hungary, Poland and
the Czech Republic as our first new allies from Central Europe. And we will reaffirm our
determination that Europe must never again be divided by concrete and barbed wire.
More than ever, we know the security of America is also bound to the stability of 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 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.
-1
�But we must reaffirm that 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 peace and democracy
— nowhere more important than in Nigeria. And because trade and investment are the keys to
African prosperity — we must finally pass the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act.
We are strengthening our ties to the Americas - to educate children, fight drugs, deepen
democracy and 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.
.
' • / ' -'X
A
The American people have opened their arms and their heafts to our neighbors in Central
America and the CaribbeaiTin-the-wake-ofdovastating huiTican<5s^More than 5000 American
troops haye-helped rebuild roads and homes and lives Many-are/sti4I^t-wefk-^^^
4hem— and-prtrnd-of-the-generosiLy of the Amer-ican-people. I will work with Members of
Congress of both parties to help our neighbors rebuild. ,
v
/
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.
And if we do all these things, then we can meet the historic responsibility of our
generation to build a safer and more secure 21st Century America in a freer and more peaceful
world.
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•-•
�21ST CENTURY COMMUNITIES [10 minutes]
As the world has changed, so have our own communities. We must continue to
strengthen them for these new times.
Strong communities are safer communities.
We are months away from 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. The murder rate is the lowest in 30 years, and
last year, the crime rate dropped for the sixth straight year.
Tonight, 1 propose a 21st Century crime bill to marshall the latest technologies and tactics
to make our communities even safer.
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 21st Century 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.
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
handguns.
And we must make our schools the safest places in our communities.
Last year, our nation was 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
parent ever has to live through their loss.
Suzann Wilson lost her daughter, Brittheny, when a student opened fire on his classmates
in Jonesboro. When she came to visit me at the White House, she issued a powerful plea to us
all: "Please, please, for the sake of your children, lock up your guns. Don't let your gun become
an instrument of murder. Don't let what happened in Jonesboro happen in your town." Suzann
is here with us in the First Lady's box. In her presence, and in memory of all the children who
lost their lives this year to school violence, let us pledge tonight to redouble our efforts to make
our schools safe.
I ask Congress to pass my plan to strengthen the Safe and Drug-Free School Act, and to
hire and train 2,000 new community police and school resource officers to keep our children
safe.
- 13 -
�Strong communities are livable communities.
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 i f we don't act
now.
So tonight, I propose a new clean air fund to help communities reduce both pollution;
new funds for clean energy technology; tax cuts for energy-efficient cars and homes and
appliances; and vigorous diplomatic efforts to involve other countries. And I will work with
Congress to reward companies that take early, voluntary action to reduce greenhouse pollution.
Our next challenge is visible today in every community. As more citizens buy new homes
and share in the American Dream, the frontier recedes; 7,000 acres of farmland and open space
are lost every day.
In response, Vice President Gore and 1 propose two major initiatives: firsl, a 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 historic 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.
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.
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.
As we work to strengthen our community, we must work to renew our national
democracy.
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
- 14-
�Senate blocked reform. To the House I say: Pass reform again, quickly. And to the Senate: Say
no to big money and yes to a strong democracy in the Year 2000.
Most important, to build strong communities, we must be truly One America.
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 gap that
deepens the divides between the races. 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.
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 Non-Discrimination 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.
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 exercise their responsibility. That's part of our
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.
PERORATION: THK MILLENNIUM [5 minutes]
Barely more than 300 days from now, we will cross that bridge into a 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 to represent our
country at home and abroad - for all she has done for our children - and for her historic role in
serving this nation and advancing our best ideals.
Last year, I called on the 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.
- 15 -
�The response has been remarkable, arid I thank Gongress and our private sector partners
for their support. Because of you, the Star Spangled Banner will be preserved for the ages. We
must preserve the 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 and prepare our children for the 21st Century. We must keep 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.
I had no doubt then of what we Americans could do for our country.
Tonight, as I deliver the last State of the Union message of the 20th Century, no one can
doubt the enduring resolve 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 up the largest middle class in history, winning two world wars, and the "long
twilight struggle" of the Cold War.
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 our 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.
Let us lift our eyes as one nation, and from the mountaintop of this American century,
look ahead to the next one.
Let us join our spirits and our wills for the work before us. We ask God's blessing on our
endeavors and our beloved country.
- 16-
�.^4c^ 5
=6
�
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
Lowell Weiss
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Lowell Weiss
Office of Speechwriting
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1997-2001
Is Part Of
A related resource in which the described resource is physically or logically included.
<a href="http://clinton.presidentiallibraries.us/items/show/36408">Collection Finding Aid</a>
<a href="https://catalog.archives.gov/id/7431951">National Archives Catalog Description</a>
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
2006-0470-F
Description
An account of the resource
This collection consists of the speechwriting files of Lowell Weiss. Lowell Weiss worked as a Special Assistant to the President, Presidential Speechwriter from June 1997 - August 2000. Weiss traveled and wrote speeches for President Clinton on domestic issues. His speeches cover a broad array of topics. Major issues he wrote on concern the environment, education, the economy, and race relations. He wrote weekly radio addresses; commencement speeches; and remarks for bill signings, events, and conferences. The records consist of speeches, drafts, memoranda, correspondence, schedules, event and travel arrangements, notes, articles, and printed email.
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
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William J. Clinton Presidential Library & Museum
Extent
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464 folders in 36 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
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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
SOTU [State of the Union] Environ 1/27/98 [2]
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Office of Speechwriting
Lowell Weiss
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
2006-0470-F
Is Part Of
A related resource in which the described resource is physically or logically included.
Box 33
<a href="http://clinton.presidentiallibraries.us/items/show/36408">Collection Finding Aid</a>
<a href="https://catalog.archives.gov/id/20761193">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
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William J. Clinton Presidential Library & Museum
Format
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Adobe Acrobat Document
Medium
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Preservation-Reproduction-Reference
Source
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20761193
42-t-7431951-20060470-F-033-001-2015