-
https://clinton.presidentiallibraries.us/files/original/0e95c6f81f11cecaad8e0cc6cfefbce6.pdf
d0d3be6125d1d1f9471bd6ad2dcfcb51
PDF Text
Text
"
�·~'':IV I:
" I
'.'
i
~
,
"
THE WHITE HOUSE
Office of the Press Secretary
For Internal
Use~Only
Monday, January 15, 1996
INTERVIEW OF THE FIRST LADY
CONDUCTED BY DIANE REHM
THE DIANE REHM SHOW
WAMU RADIO
WASHINGTON, D.C.
Q
From WAMU in Washington, I'm Diane Rehm.
First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton is embarking on a
tour to talk about the book she has written on children's
issues, tal led It Takes a Village, and Other Lessons Children
Teach. Ms. Clinton:has been an advocate for children all her
life.
In her book she speaks her mind about child-rearing
topics from early education to teen pregnancy, and she also
writes forcefully about what children need from the family
and the broader community.
Mrs.
controversy in
related to her
Office and her
loan.
Clinton herself has become the center of
recent days with the release of documents
role in the matter of the White House Travel
legal work for a failed Arkansas savings-and
She joins me in the studio to talk about It Takes a
Village, and other issues on her mind and yours.' Throughout
the hour you can JOln us:
(800) 433-8850, if you're calling
from around thec9untrYi here in the Washington area or from
abroad, (202) 885-8850.
Mrs. Clinton, thanks for joining us.
MRS. CLINTON: Thank you, Diane.
having me back.
I'm, delighted to be here.
Q
Always
a
Thank you for
pleasure.
I wondered, considering all the controversy that's
been going on, wh~ther at any point you considered canceling
your tour.
MORE
D~versified
Reporting Services, Inc.
918 16TH STREET, N.W. SUITE 803
WASHINGTON, D.C.
(202) 296-2929
20006
�2
MRS. CLINTON: Oh, not at all. You know, this book
is about what I believe America should do for its children,
and the idea of It :Takes a Village is that each of us has a
responsibility for the raising of our children. You know,
that means maybe mentoringor tutoring a child, or trying to
shield children from the violence and destructive information
in our media, or', you know, maybe the importance of imparting
values and standards in the home, in the school, in the
church.
I think there is something for each of us to do, and
in my book I try: to talk about some of the lessons that I
have learned, over about 25 years, that I see working in
people's lives to help our children.
Q And, of course, all the while you were planning
this tour. Then. emerge all these new details, and people -
some people -- actually speculated, IIWell, of course she'll
cancel h~£ tour,.because she doesn't want to be asked these
other questions. II
MRS. CLINTON: Oh, of course not. You know, I
expect to be asked questions.
I must say, it's a little bit
bewildering to me that these things would occur at the time
when I want to star~ my book tour, but that's all part of it.
It sort of goes with the territory, and, in an odd sort of
way, maybe becau~e of the interest and all of the storm over
Whitewater, more people will pay attention to what I'm
saying, and, when they work through what people are saying
back and forth about Whitewater, they might say to
themselves, IIWell, you know, that'll be done and gone.
It
doesn't affect my life. Let's think about what we can do for
our children, and let's maybe think about this book and some
of the ideas it'promotes. 1I
Q You take on some of the -- really, the most
difficult issues -- regarding children, right from prenatal
care, on through their intellectual development and the care
for children,into the teenage-years. Your policies sound -
I mean, when'you talk about Head Start for all children, you
,talk about health care for all children -- those are really
liberal visions, are they not, when you yourself describe
yourself as really rather conservative?
MRS. CLINTON: Well, this book really tries to
focus on what each of us can do in our various roles,
starting with the .home . and the .family ..
I think there's been
a false debate p~tting the family against the government, and
rarely do we stand back and say, "There are many institutions
MORE
~iversified
Reporting Services, Inc.
918 16TH STREET, N.W. SUITE 803
WASHINGTON, D.C.
(202) 296-2929
20006
�•
3
that actually have more of an impact on our children than the
government does. II ,Certainly the family is the most
important, but every parent I know needs some help.
I
certainly do and did.
,
You know, I tell the story about, you know,trying
to breast feed Chelsea in the hospital in those first days of
life, and I had rea9. the books; I had had people show me what
)1 was supposed to do; but I really didn't know what 'I was
doing, and I needed, some hands-on help.
So I think there are ways in which, if we kind of
cut through the political and ideological rhetoric and
honestly ask what is best for children, yes, there's a role
for government, but in my view it's a relatively minor role.
There
a much bigger role not only for the family, but for
business, which affects so dramatically how people live their
lives and whether working parents are able to be both good
parents and good workers.
I think the media, more than any
other single institution in our society, has affected how
children are raised and how they see themselves and what they
think of their f~tures.
I think churches and synagogues and
mosques and every other religious institution affect our
children. And certainly, those child-oriented institutions,
like schools and,child-care centers, have a big role to play.
So, yes, there is a role - and I think we should
define it carefully, -- for government, but I believe there is
a role for the rest'of us, too.
Q I was interested in what you wrote about your
mother: that, in fact, her mother had had her when she was
just 15.
MRS. CLINTON: That's right. One of the other
debates we've had, which I don't think is very useful, is,
you know, who is a proper family; who has the right to raise
children.
I say very forthrightly in the book~ I would wish
that every family were stable and dependable under stress and
that a mother anq a father raised every child, and I think we
should do some things, like making it more difficult to get
divorced for families with children, in order to create a
better situation" so that could occur. But
Q Does that -- excuse me -- does that mean that
you would favor Michigan's doing away with no-fault divorce?
MORE
Diversified Reporting Services, Inc.
918 16TH STREET. N.W. SUITE 803
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20006
(202) 296-2929
�4
MRS. CLINTON: Not at this point. What I would
favor is what I :call braking mechanisms and required
education and counseling for couples with children.
Iknow
that divorce will continue.
I do believe that we're starting
.to see it level of~, as the results of divorce on children
are honestly evaluated, but I believe that we could do more
to encourage couples to weather some of the difficulties in
marriage that ar'e inevitable in any marriage that I'm aware
of, with more in'formation about what divorce does for kids.
There was a myth in the '70s and '80s that, you
know, a bad marriage was, you know, worse than a good
divorce. Well, we 'now know that most divorces are not good
for children.
.
But what I was saying about my mother -- and I
write about this in the book,and it was one of the things
that I really had to think carefully about and ask her
permission, because she is also a very private person -- but
I wanted to make the point that '-,- sl).e had a very 'difficult
childhood: a 15-year-old mother, a 17-year-old father.
They
were married, but that was a mere formality.
They were
immature, not ready. for parenthoqd, very neglectful of her.
When she was 5, she had a little sister. Her little sister
was mistreated.
And finally, her father, who then was about 25, did
make a good decision on her behalf, which was to get her out
of the family environment, but he sent her and her little
sister to California from Chicago, on a train, alone, and
when I first heard that story I could not believe it. To
think about, you,know, my child, at 8, taking care of a
three-year-old.little sister, being alone on a train
unfortunately, the destination was not what one would hope.
Her grandparents were very severe, very rigid and
arbitrary -- again, I think any fair reading would be
"mistreated,1I both my mother and her sister.
So when my mother was, I think, 14, she left her
grandparents' home and went to work taking care of someone
else's children. She was able to finish high school, but it
was a very difficult childhood.
So I think ariyone of us, if we l~ok honestly at
our own families, knows there's no.picture-perfect family_
. What's important is.>that the adults know what it takes to
. raise healthy, resilient children, and we do the best we can.
MORE
Diversified Reporting Services, Inc.
918 16TH STREET, N.W. SUITE 803
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20006
(202) 296-2929
�5
Q First :Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton is with me,
and we do invite'your calls:
(800) 433 8850, or here in the.
Washington area,. (2:02) 885-8850.
In a chap~er you call "The Best Tool You Can Give a
Child is a Shovel," you talk about how you~ve equipped
Chelsea for dealing, with criticism of her parents.
Talk
about that and how hard that has been for her.
MRS. C~INTON: Well, it has been hard, and I'm very
grateful to my parents, because people ask me, sometimes, how
I get through what I get through on a daily basis, and I give
my parents enormous' credit for really giving me the tools
that I needed.
And in that chapter, "It Takes a Shovel," I tell
the story of how, when Chelsea was about 6, it was the first
time she was really old enough, beginning to read, to follow
politics, although her father had been in politics since her
birth. And Bill and I decided that it would be unfair to her
not to bring her in as as much of a participant as a child
could be, so that she wouldn't hear things or pick up things
from someone
se.
So we started at the,dinner table to say to her
that an election was happening, explained it to her in terms
a 6-year-old could understand, and then tell her that, in
elections, people say things about each other that are not
very nice, sometimes, even mean, and I remember her eyes just
getting wide and ~el1ing up with tears, like "Why would
anybody do that, II', because, of course, we had always told her
that, you know,she 'should tell the truth and all that we
thought was important. And it was very difficult, but I am
so grateful we diP. it.
We actually staged little mock debates, where I
would say, nChelsea" I want you to pretend to be your daddy
and say why you should be governor again,nand, you know, she
didn't know what to say. She'd say, "I'm Bill Clinton, and
I'm trying to help people, so please vote for me." Then I'd
say, "Well, now your daddy's going to be one of his
opponents," and Bill would say, "Bill Clinton's a terrible
person. He is mean to people," and Chelsea would say,
II That ' s
not true ,ii and I said, "Well ,honey , that's what's
going to happen."
So during the, you know, last nearly ten years, she
MORE
I
Diversified Reporting Services, Inc.
918 16TH STREET, N,W. SUITE 803
WASHINGTON, D.C, 20006
(202) 296-2929
�6
has been part of every, you know, experience we've had. We
ask her, if she has any questions, to come to us. So that's
one of the shovels we've tried to give her.
Q In the last week or so, there have been some
questions raised about whether you actually wrote the book.
Yesterday, Maureen'Dowd commented that Barbara Feinman, who
Simon & Schuster apparently paid a certain amount of money,
felt bad that somehow she had not been acknowledged. To what
extent did she hel~ you on this book?
MRS. CLINTON: Well, she was one ofa number of
people who helped me. As I say in the acknowledgements, it
took a village to write this book. She helped me in the .
early stages to ,- - she conducted conversations with me so
that I could get my ideas out, and then they were
transcribed. She offered suggestions.
I appreciated her
help. She really d~idn't help much beyond August, and the
bulk of the book was really writteri from August forward -
from September forward.
But I am grateful for her help, .as I am for the
superb editor I had' at Simon & Schuster, Becky Salitan.
I
started a list of everybody I wanted to acknowledge, and in
my life I have contact with so many people.
I sent drafts of
chapters to friends' to read and comment and criticize.
I,
you know, stopped people.
I called people.
I remember, when
Daniel Goldman's book, Emotional Intelligence, came out, it
was right down the alley of what I was thinking.
In fact, he
sent me an early galley of it.
I called and had
conversations with him.
There were so many people who contributed to this
book that, when the.list got to be about 60 people and was
still growing, I thought, "I'm sure to leave somebody out,"
and there were people who helped me a great dealt but there
were also people,' like those who helped me in the past 25
years, who in many ways were even more influential in this
. book.
I thought :the safest thing to do was not acknowledge
anyone by name t but to acknowledge, in general and by
categories, everyone who helped me, because I could never
have done this book without the help I was able to receive.
Q And now, if we can, let's turn to Whitewater.
,.A number of .people have .wondered .in .the last several days
whether you might actually offer to go before Senator
D'Amatots committee and talk about Whitewater. Will you do
MORE
Diversified Reporting Services, Inc.
918 16TH STREET, N,W, SUITE 803
WASHINGTON, D.C. ·20006
(202) 296-2929
�that?
MRS. CLINTON: Well, you know, Diane, I have said
repeatedly that I will cooperate in any way at all, and if
there were an opportunity, when I thought. that the
partisanship was not there, when the questions were ones that
you could predict -~ they weren't, you know, just coming out
of left field -- certainly I would consider that.
I would
consider anythin~ to bring this matter to a close.
But I a1so believe that what we have here is a
repeat of what has gone on for the last four years, beca~se
the fundamental facts have not changed. We said we lost
money.
It took four years and an independent study by the'
RTC -- that cost" I think, $4 million -- to say, "Yes, the
Clintons did not lose money." That committee won't release
that study.
Then th~re was an allegation that we somehow were
channeled money, either to us personally or through the
President's gubernatorial. campaigns ,. from Madison Savings· and
Loan. We said, "Abs,olutely not." Now, we did not have any
documents in our possession to prove that. All we could say
was the truth.
It ~id not happen.
Now, after four years and $4 million, that
independent study; says, indeed, we were telling the truth.
The committee won~t release that, either. So we'r:e in a very
difficult position, because we are asked questions that are
not wholly within our knowledge. We try to answer them the
best way we can, theh the ground shifts, the questions
change, and we're asked new questions.
Nobody wants this over with more than I do.
I was
delighted when those documents showed up.
I want everybody
to know everything, };Jecause, frankly, there's a lot about
this I don't remember.
It happened la, 11 years ago.
I've
done the best I can.
I will continue to do that.
Q And on that line of thinking, couldn't you in
fact put a great ~any of these questions to rest if you were
to volunteer to go up to Senator D'Amato's committee and tell
your story?
MRS. CLINTON: Well, i't may come to th~t.
I don't
know. But I think that it would be very helpful if we had an
atmosphere where what the committee knows was better
available to the public. Where are the RTC reports that
verify what the President and I have said for four years?
MORE
Diyersified Reporting Services, Inc.
918 16TH STREET, N.W. SUITE 803
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20006
(202) 296-2929
�•
8
It would be very helpful if we could have a very
honest attempt to get to the real truth, not the
gamesmanship, not the gotcha stuff that, you know, somebody
says the word, "is," and somebody says the word, "are," and
there's a conflict, when the bottom line is there is no
conflict.
So I will do whatever it takes to continue to try
to get this matter resolved.
Q With all due respect, it would seem to me that
listeners hearing that comment might say, "Well, there's
Hillary Clinton bei'ng·a lawyer again."
MRS. CLINTON: That's one of my problems, Diane.
You know, I was
lawyer for 20 years.
I think like a
lawyer.
That is not often the best thing for somebody in my
position.
I recQgnize that.
a
But I also know that there are many things at stake
here, and if everything. could come out -- you know, if this
were a fair inquiry instead of a partisan inquiry, as I think
it has now unfortunately taken that direction, there would '
have been a press conference holding up those reports which
said we had told Ithe truth.
I find it -- I mean I want the
truth to come out.
Now, if, I have made mistakes in the way we have
handled this, as opposed to, you know, ,what I've done, but in
how it has beem handled, I am the first to admit that. You
know, I did not understand a lot of what would be expected,
and I have paid a price for that, but what I have said
repeatedly has been truthful. 'And so, part of my dilemma is,
how do I get a fair ~hance?
You know, when this first started four years ago,
and they said to us, "You did not lose money in that real
estate deal," and.we said, "Yes, we did."· They said, "Prove
it." We said, "Well, based on the documents we have, here's
what we can prove;" and in fact' we showed what we had.
And then we were told, "Well, that's not good
enough.
You have'to, you know, prove that you didn't take
money from somebody else." Well, we couldn't disprove it
other than by saying truthfully, "We did not do that." So
this has been a tragedy, if not a comedy, of back and forth
all the .time.
Q
In the last few days, it has been reported a
MORE
Diversified Reporting Services, Inc.
918 16TH STREET, N.w. SUITE 803
WASHINGTON, D.C.
(202) 296·2929
20006
�I'
9,
number of times ,that, early on in the administration, David
Gergen, advisor to President Clinton, advised you both to go
to the Washington Post, layout all the documents, and just
put it all out on the table. Number one, did he advise you
that? And number two, do you now think maybe that would have
been a good idea?
'
MRS. CLINTON: Yes,David did, and I certainly
understood why he gave us that advice, and I have a very high
regard for him .• David was not with us in the '92 campaign.
We actually did that with the New York Times. We took every
document we had ,- which, agaln I have to say, were not many.
We laid them all out.
But the New York Times was getting documents; they
were getting stories; they were getting, you know, '
accusations from ,other people.
So when they would ask us a
follow-up question, we would have to 'say, IIWe don't know
anything about that,ll andtheri they would say, IIWell, then,
maybe you can't answer our questions. II And of course we
later were able to prove that what we said was truth, but at
the time; all we could do was to say what we knew.
We were concerned about the same problem. We only
have what we know. We have no responsibility for the Madison
Savings 'and Loan' ,s conduct during the years in question. We
have no responsibility for what Mr. McDougall when we were
passive investors~ We could not answer questions.
So I
don't think it would have put the matter to rest.
That's why we have a special counsel. They have
subpoena power. They can get documents we could not get.
They can put people under oath. We thought this whole matter
would be left to the special counsel, and instead we now have
congressional inquiries that are kind of doing the same thing
that we hoped to avoid, you know, telling half the story, not
telling the whole :story.
So thisha~ not been an easy matter for us to
respond to, and maybe we, you know, have missed some chances.
But, looking back on'it, I think there were reasons why
people kept asking questions even when we couldn't answer
them. That's why I think this matter should be left to the
special counsel to resolve.
Q What Ch~nces do you think you missed that could
have made the difference in people's perception of Whitewater
,
MORE
Diversified ReportinlJ Services, Inc.
,918 16TH STREET, N.W. SUITE 803
WASHINGTON, D.C.
(202) 296-2929
20006
�10
and the Travel Office affair?
MRS. CLINTON: Well, with respect to Whitewater, I
think that -- I'm not sure we could have done this, but we
were always answering questions on the fly, especially during
the '92 Presidential campaign, and we answered them the best
we could, but them something else would come up.
We originally, for example, thought we had lost
$60,000. Thab was just our best guess. We didn't have the
time to stop and 'go through everything. When we finally went
through everything, and when the RTC went through everything,
we lost a little :over $40,000. So someone could say, "Oh,
she said 60 first, and then it turned out to be 40," when we
were acting in good faith both times.
But we didn't stop everything in the middle of a
Presidential campaign to prove how much we lost. We knew we
had lost money. rhat was the fundamental fact, and that has
never changed. So maybe if we .could have figured out how to
stop things 'and take more time to answer questions, we might
have avoided some things.
I also believe that I sometimes
again, this· may
be my lawyerly training - I always tried to answer the
question I was asked. Then people later come back and say,
"Well, but she should have answered an additional question,
or she should have known we would have asked that, even
though we didn't ask, it." That'has been something that, if I
could have maybe foreseen everything everybody wanted to
know, even if they didn't ask it, that might have helped, as
well.
Q Which is why it comes back once again to the
idea of voluntary testimony before that Senate committee.
MRS. CLINTON: Well, as ,I have said and will say
again, if that is ,the kind of cooperation that is needed to
end this matter, I am more than willing to do whatever it
takes.
Q So ar.e you saying, as you sit here, that you are
considering volunteering to go up to Capitol Hill and speak
before Senator D'Amato's committee?
MRS. CLINTON:
I'm considering everything,
including going to· the South Pole.
(Laughter.)
I mean
MORE
Diversified Reporting Services, Inc.
918 16TH STREET, N.W. SUITE 803
WASHINGTON, D.C.
20006
(202) 296-2929
�,
.,
'
11
everything is on my plate to be considered.
Q And at, 29-1/2 past the hour; you1re listening to
the Diane Rehm Show. We1ve got a lot of callers, Mrs.
Clinton. Let's open the phones.
800-433-8850 or here in
the Washington area, 202-885-8850.
1
In Arlington, Virginia, Oliver, you're on the air.
CALLER:
Mrs.
MRS. CLINTON:
C~inton.
Yes, sir.
CALLER:
± believe you are perfectly capable of
standing on your ,own two feet and defending yourself, but
President Clinton and the natiOnal media are seeking to hide
you behind Eleanor Roosevelt and make you Eleanor the Second.
I think this strategy is not complimentary to you, and it is
not a strategy of. truth.
As a 21-year-old youngster, I cast my first vote
for Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt, and by chance, I knew
Eleanor Roosevelt, an'd Hillary Clinton, you are no Eleanor
Roosevelt.
'
'
Q
All right, Oliver.
Thanks.
MRS. CLINTON: Well, Oliver, I've never said I was,
and I cannot imagine anyone for whom I have higher regard
than Mrs. Roosevelt, but I do think it's fair to say that she
engendered quite a lot of controversy and criticism. Her
husband gave her a job during the war, and congressional
opposition drove her from that job. So, although I make
absolutely no claim to in any way approach the model and the
work that she did, I do believe that there are some
similarit
that 'historians have pointed out.
Q
And to Amy in D.C., you're on the air.
CALLER: Mrs. Clinton, I applaud your new book, and
I'm looking forward to the good that will come from it.
I
certainly appreciate 'you and your husband's compassion for
children and families.
Our country's tendency to elect and
then tear down our leaders trulX distresses me.
I'm concerned, though, about the effect that the
constant visualizations of sex and violence have on our
MORE
Diversified Hl,lportinl) Services, Inc.
, 918 16TH STREET. N.W. SUITE 803
WASHINGTON, D.C.
(202) 296-2929
20006
�12
youth, the visualizations that are constantly pushed on us by
today's movies, videos, records, soap operas, and television
programs.
It se~msso hypocritical to me that certain
politicians and do-gooders rail against violence and babies
having babies as :though they and today's climate have nothing
to do with it, arid I just wonder what you would say we can do
to prevent some of the garbage from bombarding our children.
MRS. CLINTON: Well, Amy, thank you for asking that
question.
I write about this in the book, in a chapter
called, "Seeing Is Believing," because I believe that our
children are being damaged by what they see, particularly on
television, starting at a very early age.
I recommend there
that parents start turning off the television sets, and by
that I mean start with an evening and think of other things
to do with your children.
Put some restrictions on what
children can see.
I also think paren'ts and groups representing
parents need to band together to issue ratings about what'
programs are appropriate for children, in anticipation of
what I hope will be a V chip that will allow parents to
control what: their children can actually watch on television.
I am not at all opposed to parents and other
groups, on their own, exercising their First Amendment rights
to boycott certain advertisers and programming which they'
believe is harmful to children.
I cannot stress' too much
that, if I could do one thing to help children in our
country, it would be to change what they see in the media,
day in and day out.
Q We are going to take just a short break, and
when we come back, weill take more of your calls for First
Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton, so stay with us.
(Interruption to interview.)
Q Welcome .back. I'm Diane Rehm, along with First
Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton. We'll try to take just as many
calls as we can through the hour.
Join us on 800-433-8850 or
202-885-8850.
Mrs. Clinton; we talked earlier about those shovels
that you provided to Chelsea early on as to handle the kind
of comments and questions that might come her way.
How about
you? What are you using for inner strength? What kind of
MORE
Diversified Reporting Services, Inc.
918 16TH STREET. N.W. SUITE 803
WASHINGTON. D.C. 20006
, (202) 296-2929
�"
"
,
14
be, a great big ,ugly man came up and tied his horse to me.
You know, things happen to you no matter how hard you're
trying and no matter how, you know, you're t'rying to treat
people and the l~ke.
II
So the shovels that I have,in addition to a very
positive upbringing with good discipline and a lot of love
and expectations, are my religious faith, which has" really
helped me enormously throughout my Ii ,but particularly in
the last several.years. I also read a lot of literature and
history. I start the shovel chapter talking about Nelson
Mandela. I will never face what he faced, but each of us, in"
our own way, faces challenges.'
.
One thing, that really did help me, that I also
write about, was a phrase in a book about the parable of the
prodigal son, written by Honore Nouin (phonetic), a Jesuit
priest, and there was ·this one phrase that leapt out at me.
It's called thelldiscipline of gratitude.
You know, no
matter how hard times get for me or for anyone, there is so
much to be grateful for, and that may be the greatest gift
you can give a child.
"
II
Q
800-433-8.850.
Peter in Dallas, Texas, you're on
the air.
CALLER:
Good morning.
I'm so glad you took my
call.
Q
Sure.
CALLER:" It's an honor to speak with the First
Lady. I think that if folks will just watch what is being
said by D'Amatoaqd his allies and listen to how it is said,
I think it's easy to see an orchestrated effort to demonize
the Clintons and to score political points.
And I just wanted to say that I also think that you
may not be Eleanor Roosevelt, but you are a revolutionary
First Lady, and I hope you'll be the First Lady for four more
years, and thanks 'so much, on Martin Luther King Day, for all
"that you've done for civil rights for all Americans, and we
do appreciate it. I'm 26, and the 20-something crowd really
likes the Clintons:, and we're going to help reelect the
Clintons.
'
MRS. CLINTON:
Thank you very much, Peter.
MORE
Diversified Heporlinl) Services, Inc.
918 16TH STREET, N.W. SUITE 803
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20006
(202) 296-2929
�15
CALLER':
'Thanks.
Q Peter, thanks for calling.
Baltimore, you're on the air.
CALLER:
Q
And to Beara in
Good morning.
Hi.
CALLER: Mrs. Clinton, I would just like to say how
gratifying it is ,to have an honest, intelligent, strong
advocate for children in the White House.
I think it's very,
very necessary.
I would like to speak to early childhood education.
I believe so strongly that, before kids get to school, their
lives and their emotions and their intelligence levels are
pretty much determined, and a lot of that is ignored by our
educational establishment and parents in general.
I wonder
if you could speak to how ,'we could rectify that, maybe
through parent education or any other thing that we could
possibly come up wit,h. Tharik you again.
Q
Thank you.
MRS. CLINTON: Beara,I think that's the most
important question my book addresses, because I agree with
you that so much Qf what happens in a child's life happens in
the first three years, and there are many things I think can
be done.
I write 'in the book about what we have learned
about brain development that I was surprised by, and I think
a lot of parents would be, and how important it is to talk to
your baby from the moment that baby is born. Many parents
don't know that, but ,it is building that vocabulary that
really helps prepare:a child for learning. Reading to a
child, even if a parent is not a good reader. The child
doesn't know.
It',s the experience of reading that is so
important.
I also believe parents often need help in educating
their own children'. Although a parent is a child's first
teacher, I believe~ there are program - and again, I write
about them -- that I've been involved in that can help
parents know how to t,each their children. There isn't any
better investment we could make as a nation in helping
MORE
Diversified Reporting Services, Inc.
918 16TH STREET, N.W. SUITE 803
WASHINGTON, D.C.
(202) 296-2929
20006
�· i
16
parents become their child's first teachers.
Q
In Kensington, Maryland, Russell, you're on the
air.
CALLER:
Q
Thank you, Diane.
Sure.
CALLER:
I love your show.
when it's a federal ,holiday, though.
Q
I only get to call in
Well, I'm glad to have you.
CALLER:
I have a question and a comment for the
First Lady. The question, about her new book, I tried to
find it in the bookstores on Saturday and couldn't find it.
,
Q
there.
Probably all sold out already, but it will be
Check back.
CALLER:' I hope sO'. But my question was, what sort
bf public policy would the First Lady advocate to make it
easier for men to be more involved in rearing their children,
especially in the very early years from birth to two or three
years of age, when it seems to me that women get to spend,
most of the quality time with children.
MRS. CLINTON: Russell, I love that question, and I
actually write about it in the book, in a chapter called,
"Kids Are an Equal Employment Opportunity, II because I firmly
believe fathers need, to be more involved in the raising of
their children, especially during the early years~
I think
there are two big :obstacles.
'
The fir~t is that society doesn't really support
that.
You know, there's a state trooper in Maryland who,
under the Family and Medical Leave Act, took leave to try to
take care of his newborn because his wife had had a very
difficult pregnancy, and he was:only given 10 days, even
though, under the law, he was entitled to much more time,
because the attitude was, you know, "That's not men's work,
and so get back to, your real work. II
So, under leave laws, particularly the one that the
President signed, whe,re at least some employees. are eligible,
we can begin to change the attitude about our society's
MORE
, Diversified Reporting Services, Inc.
: 918 16TH STREET, NoW. SUITE 803
WASHINGTON; D.C. 20006
(202) 296-2929
�17
feelings
concer~ing
fathers.
But I think there are less tangible obstacles.
I
would have to admit that many women are not encouraging of
their husbands' ~o ,be involved in child rearing, and I had to
really learn this,because, you know, men don't always do it
the way that you want it done, and, you know, the diaper may
falloff, or, yo~ know, there may be a stomach ache the next
day because junk food was fed inst~ad of what you think
should have been eaten.
So I think women -- us, we, mothers -- have to
lighten up a little, because helping to create that
relationship between a father and his children is one of the
greatest gifts a mother can give a child.
Q Thanks for calling. And you know as well as I
that one in four children now born out of wedlock. You
recommend abstinence for young'people until age 21.
Nevertheless, you do recommend sex education. What's the
line there? What's the balance, and how do we encourage kids
to think about sex as something for adults, as opposed to
children?
MRS. CLINTON: Well, 'I think if we leave the media
in the role of teaching our children, then we're nqt going to
reverse these statiatics, because sex is presented in an
unrealistic and often totally irresponsible way. You don't
see the follow-up to jumping into bed with the baby crying at
2:00 a.m. in the morning, and so there's a lot of really
unfortunate messages our children get.
Most parents, I believe, support the idea
sex
education, but feel a little bit squeamish about it, and I
think it needs to be both in the home and in the school and
in other institutions, including religious institutions,
community institutions, ,so that we kind of demystify sex and
make it part of the life cycle at an appropriate, responsible
stage.
That can only happen if, when children are very
young, their questions are answered; they're given, you know,
straight talkj they're taught how to say nOj they're given
the feeling that parenting is a gift that they need to
exercise responsibly.
And then, when they get older, peers have to be
MORE
Diversified ReportinlJ Services, Inc.
918 16TH STREET, N.W. SUITE 803
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20006
(202) 296-2929
�18
given tools to support each other in saying no to early
sexual activity,' and adults have to give young teenagers
other things to do under adult supervision than just wander
the malls or the video arcades.
Q
In Newport News, Jay, you're on the air.
CALLER:
Q
:Good morning.
Hi.
CALLER:
How are you doing, Mrs. Clinton?
MRS. CLINTON:
I'm fine.
CALLER: Let me say, first of all, that that
D'Amato character, he is a nasty individual, and I do hope
that you get through this.
Being in public office must be
awful, having to, so to speak, air all your dirty linen in
public, and I have a lot of sympathy for both you and your
husband.
I think that you've both done ,a very good job.
I
wish you well for your book.
'
However, one thing that really is not on this
subject, one thing that I am really concerned with that's
happening in this country, is what the corporations in this
country are doing:. ,Specifically, I'm talking about the
40, 000 people who', were laid off just recently at AT&T.
It
seems in this country what we come down to is the corporate
bottom line. There is no compassion in this country anymore
for the workers of·this country.
How can you raise children
in this country when you can't have a job?
MRS. CLINTON:
Jay, I think you've asked what will
be the most important issue, politically and economically, in.
the next couple of years, and again, I've written about it in
a chapter in my book called, "Every Business Is a Family
Business."
And in each. of my chapters, I have a little
aphorism, and here's the one for this chapter.
"The Golden
Rule does not mean that gold shall rule."
I believe that if
business leaders do riot understand that they have a
responsibility to the social stability of our country and,
particularly, working families, I fear for our future.
You know; much of the talk in the last few years
MORE
Diversified Reporting Services, Inc.
918 16TH STREET, N.W. SUITE 803
WASHINGTON, D.C.
(202) 296-2929
20006
�19
has been all of the problems government has caused, and I am
not an apologist for government.
I think that government has
. done a lot of things right, but it has also done things
wrong, and those need to be corrected.
I want a conversation
about what business has done right and wrong and what
business could do, better to help families, and I have some
specific suggestions about that in thi~ chapter.
But I agree with you that if we do not have our
business leaders understanding that workers are also
consumers, and if workers don't have stable jobs and rising
incomes, then all ' of our goods and services will not be
bought, and the entire economy will not grow, and we will
have a two-tier sbciety, which is not good for children or a
democracy.
.
Q I'd pe interested in your own outlook
financially, Mrs. Clinton. Money magazine has reported you
and your husband are. going to pe bankrupt because of all the
legal bills you're facing.
MRS. CLINTON: Well, ·that is apparently true,
Diane. You know, . one of sort of the undercurrents of this
series of questions about us is that I somehow must have used
my law practice inappropriately, to make money for my family.
Well, as I have said, if I intended to do that, which I
certainly did not, I didn't do a very good job of it. We do
not have many fin~ncial resourc~s, but we don't care about
that.
I mean, we feel lucky to have our health, and we,
despite all the slings and arrows of public life, enjoy and
appreciate this opportunity.
But given the legal bills that we are running up,
we certainly, on paper, are bankrupt.
Q
How will you address that?
MRS. CLINTON: Well, you know, we have a legal
expense fund, and ·many Americans have contributed to that,
for which I'm very grateful, but ultimately, you know, I was
raised to believe you pay your debts. We've paid every loan
we've ever had. We've paid every credit obligation we've
ever had. And whe'n we're able to make money again, we will
payoff every penny that we ow~.
I, you know, couldn't live
with myself if I didn't. But I do think it's kind of a sad
commentary about what·, s 'going .on today.
MORE
Diversified Reporting Services, Inc•
. 918 16TH STREET, N.w. SUITE 803
WASHINGTON, D.C.
(202) 296-2929
20006
�•
20
Q And it could mean - sort of signal -- the
future for other incumbents of the White House.
MRS. CLINTON: Well, if anyone is in public life
today, they are ,certainly more of a target than any time in
our history for legal cases being brought, for accusations
being made. And if you stop and think about what that does
to the capacity of the people to perform their jobs, you
know, it is kind of discouraging.
I want to see a return to,
you know, more of a sense of· trust in our society, giving
each other the benefit of the doubt.
Everybody makes
mistakes, but that ~oesn't mean people intentionally do
wrong. We ought to just lighten up a litt
and let people
live their lives, and then, together t I think we can build a
better society.
Q And at 10 minutes before the hourt you're
listening to The Diane Rehm Show.
Patricia is on a car. phone.
Are you still there,
Patricia?
CALLER:
Q
.
Thank you.
.
Thanks for waiting.
CALLER:
Q
Yes, I'm here.
Thank you very much t and good 'morning.
Good morning.
CALLER: First of all t I really want to applaud
Mrs. Clinton for your work, your courage, and your strong
leadership as a woman t an intelligent t independent thinker.
And I hope my two daughters are.able to lead in the same way
you do.
My question -- I'm a mental-health professional,
and my question t Mrs. Clinton -- I haventt read your book
yet, but my question is, what do you propose as a solution to
violent marriages~ where children are victims, and spouses
are victims t and parents are unable or unwilling to get helpt
and social services are unable to protect the children? And
how can you discourage divorce in those situations?
MRS. CLINTON: Well, Patricia, in the book I talk a
lot about my own mother-in-law's marriage, which was very
violent. And she 'did divorce her husband and then remarried
•
MORE
Diversified Reporting Services, Inc.
918 16TH STREET, N.W. SUITE 803
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20006
(202) 296-2929
�•
21
him, out of pity, and I don't think that was a very good
decision.
I certainly understand situations, particularly
where there is abuse and violence, where divorce is
absolutely necessary, and probably should be taken sooner
instead of later, to remove. both the children and the spouse
from a very violent environment.
So I t'hink that that's one approach:
that, yes,
where there's violence, let's move on divorce. But I think
there's a bigger, problem, and that is, we still don't take
abuse seriously enough in our country.
I think that we have
overburdened our' social-welfare system in trying to make
difficult decisions about abuse, trying to reunify families
when, actually, there's not a family to reunify. So when
abuse occurs with respect to children, I believe that you
should move quickly to remove the children, criminally
prosecute every adult involved, both the perpetrators and
those who were accessories.
I believe that we have to move
more quickly to make a decision whether children should be
returned to a home or freed for adoption, and I advocate that
we should literally view the numbers of children -- about
100,000 -- in our foster-care system, who are eligible to be
adopted but are left in limbo, as a national emergency, and
do everything it takes. to find new homes' for those children.
As a mental-health professional, I know you know
that we do not have enough services for famil
who need
counseling, and that of~en can make a huge difference in
someone's life. So, again, I would urge that we try to
provide help for people who are trying to help themselves.
Q
And Randy, in Dalias, quick question, please.
CALLER: Yes. Ms. Clinton, I really respect you.
Both my wife and I are student-ministers in the United
Methodist Church. We wanted to know how John Wesley's
teachings and Methodism itself has informed your life and
your approach to policy.
Thanks.
Q
I'll hang up and listen on the radio.
Thank you.
MRS. CLINTON: Randy, they've had a very big effect
on me. You know, trying to do all the good that I can do was
drummed into me at a very early age. And, you know, I wrote
about religion in my book. Some people urged me not to; they
MORE
Diversified Reporting Services, Inc.
918 16TH STREET, N.W. SUITE 803
WASHINGTON"D.C. 20006
(202) 296-2929
�22
said, you know, "That's not an issue that has broad public
appeal," or, you know, "You'll say something that will
alienate somebody. II But I don't think we can talk about
what's happening in America today without talking about our
spiritual challenges.
And so, in my chapter about. religion, I talk about
how I was raised in my church~ the experiences I had, and how
important it was as a basis, both for dealing with life's
challenges, but .also understanding where I stood in the
world, and not to feel any sense of superiority because I was
lucky enough to be born a privileged white
in America in
the middle 20th century, but to realize that, you know, part
of what God's mission for all of us is to
more to one
another, to love each other.
And that's a real challenge for me, many days, but
I try to practice what I was taught.
Q Mrs. Clinton, you and your husband will be
moving into high gear as the campaign heats up.
On that
point, have your actions in the past three years, do you
believe, helped or hindered your husband's chances for
reelection?
.
MRS. CLINTON: Well, I hope that they have not
hindered my husband's chances, because, not only do I love my
husband, but I think he's been a very good president in a
difficult time for our country. And I believe, if what I
have done is truthfully and factually conveyed to the
American public, the American public is fundamentally fair,
and they will judge me on what I have done, and they will
judge my husband on what he has done, and that's all anyone
can ask for.
Q lBut ,the questions remain, and, as you say, the
questions keep coming, and I'm sure, in the campaign, his
political opponents will make a large issue of you.
MRS. CLINTON: Well, they may, but in a political
campaign, unlike in the sort of daily back-and-forth of
public service, you 'can focus people's attention, and, if
worst comes to worst', you can pay to advert
what the facts
are.
I don't think 10 percent of the American public know
that an independent investigation, run by an independent law
firm, headed by a Republican former u.S. attorney, found that
we were telling the truth. Well, if people want to accuse us
MORE
Diversified Reporting Services, Inc.
918 16TH STREET, N.W. SUITE 803
WASHINGTON, D.C.
(202) 296·2929
20006
�•
23
of t.hings that are not true, then we will make sure that the
truth gets out.
Q What about David Watkins and his testimony,
expected this week?
MRS. CLINTON: Well, as I have said\repeatedly, I
expressed concern about the stories of financial
mismanagement in the White House Travel Office.
Q
What form did that concern take?
MRS. CLINTON: Well, the best that I remember, it
was "I have heard these ,stories. What is happening?"
Q
And to whom did you say that?
.MRS. CLINTON: Well, I had two conversations with
Mack McLarty.
I had a few conversations with Vince Foster.
And I did not seek out Mr. Watkins. He called me, at Mr.
Foster's suggestion, to tell ~e that an accounting firm had
been engaged to investigate these reports that I and others
had expressed concern about. And I said, "That sounds 'like a
good idea."
But I in 'no way directed any particular action to
be taken.
Q Why, do you think that he has said what he has
said, somehow casting doubt on your version of things?
MRS .. CLINTON: Well, I think, if you read his
memo -- and I will" you know, obviously listen to what he
says - he doesn't say I directly told him anything. He says
that, you know, the fact that I expressed concern had an
impact on him.
You know, Diane, one of the things I have learned
is th~t, before I came to the White House, I dealt with
people in a very direct way.
If something was on my mind, I
said it. That il:? an entirely different environment, and the
mere expression of concern could be, I guess, taken to mean
something more than it was meant to.
Q First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton -- her new
book is called It Takes a Village~
Thank you so ,much for
joining us.
It was a pleasure.
•
MORE
Diversified ReportinlJ Services, Inc.
918 16TH STREET, NW. SUITE 803
WASHINGTON. D.C. 20006
(202) 296-2929
�24
MRS. CLINTON:
Thank you very much, Diane.
Q Dorsey Bacon and Carol Beach, Sandra Pinkard and
Dorothy Buckhagen, produced the program. Jada White's been
on the phones for us.
Bruce Youngblood and Toby Shriner are
the engineers.
Thanks for listening.
I'm Diane Rehm.
Cassettes of this progr~m are ava
information, cal'l (202) 885-1200.
able.
For
If you'd like to write us with your comments, our
e-mail address is drehm@wamu.brandywine. american,. edu.
ANNOUNCER:
Diane Rehm Show.
From Washington, D.C., this is The
Q Tuesday on The Diane Rehm Show, we examine a new
approach to solve the shortage of human organs for
transplants, using pigs. Then we begin a regular feature on
the media, with Howard Kurtz, of the Washington Post. And
Colleen McCullough,' author of The Thorn Birds, talks about
her latest novel on the women in the lif of Julius Caesar.
That's all coming up Tuesday on The Diane Rehm Show .
•
Diversified Reporting Services, Inc.
918 16TH STREET. N,W. SUITE 803
WASHINGTON. D.C. 20006
. (202) 296-2929
�
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
Lissa Muscatine - Press Office
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
First Lady's Office
Press Office
Lissa Muscatine
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1993 - 1997
Is Part Of
A related resource in which the described resource is physically or logically included.
<a href="http://clinton.presidentiallibraries.us/items/show/36239" target="_blank">Collection Finding Aid</a>
<a href="http://catalog.archives.gov/id/7431941" target="_blank">National Archives Catalog Description</a>
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
2011-0415-S
Description
An account of the resource
<p>Lissa Muscatine first served in the Clinton Administration as a speechwriter. Within the First Lady’s Office, she served as Communications Director to the First Lady.</p>
<p>Lissa Muscatine’s records consist of materials from First Lady Hillary Clinton’s Press Office, highlighting topics such as health care, women’s rights, the Millennium Council, Hillary Clinton’s 2000 Senate campaign, and deal extensively with press interviews given by the First Lady; her domestic and foreign travel; and speeches and remarks, on a wide variety of topics, given by her before and during her time as First Lady. The records include interview transcripts, press releases, speeches and speech transcripts.</p>
Provenance
A statement of any changes in ownership and custody of the resource since its creation that are significant for its authenticity, integrity, and interpretation. The statement may include a description of any changes successive custodians made to the resource.
Clinton Presidential Records: White House Staff and Office Files
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
Clinton Presidential Library & Museum
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
Adobe Acrobat Document
Extent
The size or duration of the resource.
1,324 folders in 27 boxes
Text
A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text.
Original Format
The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data
Paper
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
FLOTUS Press Office Interview Transcripts Volume V 10/19/94 - 04/10/97 [Binder]: [01/15/96 Rehm, Diane WAMU Radio]
Is Part Of
A related resource in which the described resource is physically or logically included.
Box 6
<a href="http://clintonlibrary.gov/assets/Documents/Finding-Aids/Systematic/2011-0415-S-Muscatine.pdf" target="_blank">Collection Finding Aid</a>
<a href="http://catalog.archives.gov/id/7431941" target="_blank">National Archives Catalog Description</a>
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
First Lady's Office
Press Office
Lissa Muscatine
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
2011-0415-S
Provenance
A statement of any changes in ownership and custody of the resource since its creation that are significant for its authenticity, integrity, and interpretation. The statement may include a description of any changes successive custodians made to the resource.
Clinton Presidential Records: White House Staff and Office Files
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
Clinton Presidential Library & Museum
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
Adobe Acrobat Document
Medium
The material or physical carrier of the resource.
Reproduction-Reference
Date Created
Date of creation of the resource.
11/26/2012
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
2011-0415-S-flotus-press-office-interview-transcripts-volume-v-10-19-94-04-10-97-binder-01-15-96-rehm-diane-wamu-radio
7431941