    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1993, Book I)]
    [March 12, 1993]
    [Pages 279-280]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Remarks on the Swearing-In of Attorney General Janet Reno
    March 12, 1993

        Thank you very much. Please be seated. We are honored here in the
    White House to be joined today by distinguished Members of the Senate
    and the House: Senator Biden, Senator Hatch, Senator Kennedy, Senator
    Sarbanes, one of Janet Reno's Senators, Senator Connie Mack. Senator
    Graham called me last night. He's in Florida today with the First Lady
    at a health care hearing. And he said he had an excused absence from the
    Attorney General. [Laughter]
        The Speaker and Congressman Edwards are here, and we're delighted to
    see all of them. I also would say we're delighted to be joined by Mr.
    Justice White and Mrs. White. Thank you very much for coming. Let me say
    that it is a great honor for me to be able to be here at this ceremony
    today with Janet Reno, her family, and a few of her many friends.
        I'd like to say a special word of thanks to Stuart Gerson, who has
    served ably and honorably as Acting Attorney General since the
    Inauguration. I think we owe him a round of applause. [Applause]
        Somehow I don't think any of my other proposals will pass the Senate
    by the same vote margin--[laughter]--that Janet's confirmation did. I
    especially want to thank Senator Biden and Senator Hatch and the members
    of the Judiciary Committee for waiving the normal waiting period between
    hearings and the confirmation vote, making this event possible today and
    making it possible for us to proceed immediately with the urgent tasks
    at hand.
        But more than anything else, I think it is clear that Janet Reno
    made her own swift confirmation possible, showing the Senate and all who
    followed the hearings the qualities of leadership and integrity,
    intelligence, and humanity that those gathered in this room have
    recognized for a very long time.
        You shared with us the life-shaping stories of your family and
    career that formed your deep

    [[Page 280]]

    sense of fairness and your unwavering drive to help others to do better.
    You showed us that your career in public service, working on the
    frontlines in your community, fighting crime, understanding the impact
    on victims and on neighborhoods, mending the gritty social fabric of a
    vibrant but troubled urban area, is excellent preparation for carrying
    forward the banner of justice for all the American people.
        You'll help to guide the Federal Government to assist State and
    local law enforcement in ways that really count. You demonstrated that
    you will be a formidable advocate for the vulnerable people in our
    society and especially for our children.
        Most of all, you proved to the Nation that you are a strong and an
    independent person who will give me your best legal judgment whether or
    not it's what I want to hear. [Laughter] It's an experience I've already
    had, I'm glad to say. That is the condition upon which you accepted my
    nomination and the only kind of Attorney General that I would want
    serving in this Cabinet.
        As Janet Reno begins her work at the Justice Department, she will
    enter a building that symbolizes our Nation's commitment to justice, to
    equality, to the enforcement of our laws. On the side of that building,
    carved above one of the portals, is the inscription, ``The halls of
    justice are a hallowed place.'' With Janet Reno serving as our Nation's
    Attorney General, those words will have great meaning for all Americans.

    Note: The President spoke at 9:21 a.m. in the Roosevelt Room at the
    White House. Following the President's remarks, Justice Byron White
    administered the oath of office.