[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1993, Book I)]
[April 2, 1993]
[Pages 387-389]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]



Remarks at the Conclusion of the Forest Conference in Portland
April 2, 1993

    I want to thank all of you for being here and for sitting through 
this long day, and all of the participants for everything you've done. 
I'd like to thank the Cabinet for coming and participating and the Vice 
President and our staff for all the work they did to put this meeting 
together.
    One of the things that has come out of this meeting to me loud and 
clear is that you want us to try to break the paralysis that presently 
controls the situation, to move and to act. I hope that as we leave here 
we are more committed to working together to move forward than perhaps 
we were when we came.

[[Page 388]]

    I tell you, I'll never forget what I've heard today, the stories, 
the pictures, the passion from all of you. In a funny way, even when you 
were disagreeing, every one of you was a voice for change. Every one of 
you was saying we can't possibly do any worse than to stay within the 
framework which has now undermined our ability to work together and to 
build a sense of common community. Too many people are being hurt, and 
too many resources are being threatened. And we're going to do our best 
to turn this away from at least the short-term politics of just trying 
to avoid the tough decisions.
    I intend to direct the Cabinet and the entire administration to 
begin work immediately to craft a balanced, a comprehensive, a long-term 
policy. And I will direct the Cabinet to report back to me within 60 
days to have a plan to end this stalemate.
    In the meanwhile, I want each of our Cabinet to look within the 
departments to determine which policies are at odds with each other. It 
is true, as I've said many times, that I was mortified when I began to 
review the legal documents surrounding this controversy to see how often 
the departments were at odds with each other, so that there was no voice 
of the United States. I want the Cabinet members to talk with each other 
to try to bring these conflicts to an end, which at their extreme have 
had our own agencies suing one another in courts, often over issues 
which are hard to characterize as monumental. I want everyone to examine 
his or her approach to existing legal and administrative proceedings to 
see if inadvertently any of us are hampering the march toward a solution 
of the larger issues or even toward the particular ones now in 
litigation.
    Regardless of what we are doing, our efforts must be guided, it 
seems to me, by five fundamental principles: First, we must never forget 
the human and the economic dimensions of these problems. Where sound 
management policies can preserve the health of forest lands, sales 
should go forward. Where this requirement cannot be met, we need to do 
our best to offer new economic opportunities for year-round, high-wage, 
high-skill jobs.
    Second, as we craft a plan, we need to protect the long-term health 
of our forests, our wildlife, and our waterways. They are, as the last 
speaker said, a gift from God, and we hold them in trust for future 
generations.
    Third, our efforts must be, insofar as we are wise enough to know 
it, scientifically sound, ecologically credible, and legally 
responsible.
    Fourth, the plan should produce a predictable and sustainable level 
of timber sales and non-timber resources that will not degrade or 
destroy our forest environment.
    And, fifth, to achieve these goals, we will do our best, as I said, 
to make the Federal Government work together and work for you. We may 
make mistakes, but we will try to end the gridlock within the Federal 
Government. And we will insist on collaboration, not confrontation. We 
will do our best to do our part. We will act with a single purpose and a 
single agenda once we have a chance to get all these departments working 
on their respective responsibilities.
    But I want to say, too, that all of you have demonstrated to me 
today your willingness to do your part. I ask you not to let this be the 
end of it. This conference has established a dialog. Even when it was 
somewhat funny between Mr. Kerr and Miss Mater, it was still a dialog. 
And it's got to continue between us and you, and among yourselves. You 
have got to be a part of this solution. Even if we make the most 
enlightened possible decisions under the circumstances, they will be all 
the more resented if they seem to be imposed, without a continuing 
mechanism for people whose lives will be affected here to be involved.
    So when you leave here today, I ask you to keep working for a 
balanced policy that promotes the economy, preserves jobs, and protects 
the environment even as you may disagree, as Mr. Thomas said, over how 
the word ``balance'' should be defined. When you hit an impasse, I plead 
with you not to give up. And don't turn against your neighbors. You 
don't have to fight in a court of law anymore. You can work with us to 
try to have a long-term solution. If you feel frustrated at times--all 
of us will--I ask you to stay at the table and to keep talking and keep 
trying to find common ground. I don't want this situation to go back to 
posturing, to positioning, to the politics of division that has 
characterized this difficult issue in the past. I hope we can stay in 
the conference room and stay out of the courtroom. If we don't give up 
or give in to deadlock or divisiveness or despair, I think we can build 
a more prosperous and a more secure future for our communities and for 
our children. And I think we'll be proud years from now that we were 
here today.

[[Page 389]]

    I thank you for caring and for coming, for speaking out and for 
reaching out. And I ask you to continue to work with us so that this 
Forest Conference is the beginning, not the end, of a solution. But we 
will move. We will move. And I will do my best to assume the 
responsibility the American people have given me to try to break this 
deadlock in a responsible way. I just ask you to remember that this 
listening cannot be a one-shot deal. We've got to continue to work 
together. And I think, if we do, we'll all be pleased with the results.
    Thank you very much.

Note: The President spoke at 6:10 p.m. at the Oregon Convention Center. 
In his remarks, he referred to Andy Kerr, conservation director, Oregon 
Natural Resources Council, and Jack Ward Thomas, scientist, U.S. Forest 
Service Pacific Northwest Research Station, La Grande, OR.