[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1993, Book I)]
[July 14, 1993]
[Pages 1081-1082]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]



Interview With Wolf Blitzer of CNN in Des Moines, Iowa
July 14, 1993

Economic Summit

    The President. [Inaudible]--revised upward in about 5 days.
    Mr. Blitzer. Significantly?
    The President. Could be.
    Mr. Blitzer. And tomorrow you're supposed to go up to Capitol Hill 
to meet with some Members of the House and Senate, I take it, to discuss 
this issue or the whole G-7 Tokyo summit?
    The President. Well, I will certainly give them a briefing on this 
issue, and I want to talk about what happened on our trip and what 
happened at the Tokyo summit and how important it is for us now to pass 
this budget. This is our part of the bargain. We got a new trade 
agreement with Japan. We got an agreement to lower tariffs historically 
with the other major industrialized countries. We're trying to restore 
growth to the world economy, but to do it we've got to bring the 
American budget deficit down, too.
    Mr. Blitzer. You come to this area here--helicopters are flying 
overhead even as we speak--to see the devastation. The G-7 summit must 
seem like 100 years ago, doesn't it?
    The President. It's a long way away, but the focus of those high-
flung summits is to affect the lives of people like the folks on this 
street for the better. So in a way, it's a good way to come home, and I 
should be here.

Midwest Flooding

    Mr. Blitzer. Now, as a former Governor, you seem to be so 
comfortable dealing with these natural disaster type of situations, and 
you get really immersed into it right away. Am I wrong? Is that just my 
impression?
    The President. No, you're right----
    Mr. Blitzer. In certain areas you seem uncomfortable, but in this 
kind of area you seem very comfortable.
    The President. Well, I think in every new job there's a learning 
curve, but I don't have much of one here. Most people who would become 
President, who would come out of the Congress, for example, might not 
have anything like the experience that I've had dealing with disasters. 
But my State, on a per capita basis, suffers from tornadoes more than 
any other. We've had major floods. We've had huge droughts. I've dealt 
with a lot of these, and I know what's been wrong in the past. And I'm 
glad that a lot of people think we're trying to put it right here. I 
feel good about it.
    Mr. Blitzer. You're going to go back to Washington tonight. Any 
plans to come back to this area, visit other devastated areas in the 
Midwest?
    The President. Well, I don't want to rule it in or out. I've got to 
go back and see where we are, first of all, on the aid package, and 
secondly, where we are with the budget negotiations, and thirdly, where 
we are in dealing with the States and the localities. That's the big 
issue. That's the thing we're trying to do a better job of, make sure 
everybody is sort of on board and we're all doing things together, 
singing out of the same hymnal. And I wouldn't rule it out, but I don't 
want to commit yet. I've got to go back and see what the job is, what we 
have to do in Washington.

Homosexuals in the Military

    Mr. Blitzer. And on top of everything else, this week the Pentagon 
is supposed to give you

[[Page 1082]]

its recommendations on the whole issue of gays in the military.
    The President. They are.
    Mr. Blitzer. What's your sense? Is it falling into place right now?
    The President. My sense is there's still some difference of opinion 
even among the service chiefs about what they want. But I hope they'll 
come up with something that everyone can agree is fair and we can all 
live with. We'll just have to see.
    Mr. Blitzer. How much after you get that recommendation do you think 
you will finally act on some decision?
    The President. Oh, I won't take long, won't take long at all. No, I 
won't take long.
    Mr. Blitzer. Have you basically made up your mind already?
    The President. Well, I want to see what they say first. I think 
they're still debating it a little among themselves, and I want to see 
what they say.
    Mr. Blitzer. Okay, Mr. President. Thank you very much once again for 
joining us.
    The President. Thanks, Wolf. Thank you.
    Mr. Blitzer. Pretty devastated area.
    The President. It is.

Note: The interview began at 3:20 p.m. at the intersection of Fleur and 
Valley Drives. A tape was not available for verification of the content 
of this interview.