    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1993, Book II)]
    [November 13, 1993]
    [Pages 1980-1981]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    [[Page 1980]]

    Remarks on Arrival in Memphis
    November 13, 1993

        Thank you very much for coming out here in the wind and rain and
    braving the elements. It's kind of like what we have to do to get things
    done in Washington. I'm glad to see you here.
        I want to thank my good friend Governor McWherter, Mayor Morris,
    Mayor Herenton. Thank you all for being here today. I want to thank
    these fine Members of Congress who are here. Harold Ford made a great
    statement in support of the North American Free Trade Agreement. I'm
    very grateful to him and to Bob Clement and to Jim Cooper for their
    support. I also want to introduce some other Members of Congress who are
    here: first of all, from our neighboring State of Louisiana, two Members
    who have expressed their support today, Representative Bill Jefferson
    and Representative Jimmy Hayes. I want to thank your Congresswoman
    Marilyn Lloyd for her support for NAFTA. And I want to introduce two
    Members of my congressional delegation from Arkansas, Blanche Lambert
    and Ray Thornton, and thank them for their support.
        Let me ask you something. Were you proud of Al Gore the other night
    in his debate? I mean, was he great or what? I want to tell you
    something, folks. This vote over the North American Free Trade Agreement
    has brought out a lot of feelings and emotions in this country that I
    think probably need to be brought out. We've seen in the opposition to
    NAFTA a lot of the legitimate fears that the American people have
    developed because so many hard-working Americans have worked and worked
    and worked, and they've still lost their jobs. Or they worked harder
    year-in and year-out, and they never got a pay raise. And the global
    economy has been pretty tough on a lot of people in the States
    represented here today, on people in Tennessee and Louisiana and
    Arkansas, and all of us know that.
        Let me tell you, when I was Governor of my State, I saw plants shut
    down and move to Mexico or just disappear altogether or move production
    all the way to Asia. I understand that very well. I want you to know
    that there's not a person on this platform today, including the
    President, who would be supporting this agreement if we weren't
    convinced that it will bring more jobs to Tennessee and Louisiana and
    Arkansas. That's why we're for it.
        I came here today to make a point. I'm wearing a tie that was made
    in Little Rock, Arkansas, and shoes that were made in Nashville,
    Tennessee. I believe we can compete and win in the global economy. You
    heard the Governor say that since 1987, exports to Mexico from Tennessee
    have increased by 300 percent. That's 10,000 jobs due to exports for
    Mexico. In our State, exports have also tripled in the same time period.
    We have 5,000 jobs now based on exports to Mexico. In Louisiana, exports
    have doubled since 1987. Louisiana will be a big winner if all those
    trade barriers come down because of the increased activity around the
    Port of New Orleans. We know that this will mean more jobs for this
    country. Why? Because when the trade barriers come down--their trade
    barriers are 2\1/2\ times as high as ours--as they earn more money and
    make more money, they'll spend more money on American products. Seventy
    cents of every dollar Mexico spends on foreign products is spent on
    American products.
        Why will it also make a difference? Because if we make this
    agreement with Mexico, we'll be able to use it as a basis for similar
    agreements with all the other Latin American countries. Someday we'll
    have a trade bloc going from Canada to the United States to Mexico to
    the rest of Latin America, over 700 million people buying from each
    other, selling to each other, helping each other to grow.
        My fellow Americans, I worked my heart out in this country right
    here for the last 12 years to bring more jobs to the people of my State.
    And one thing I know: You cannot put more people to work at a time when
    productivity is increasing--which means that fewer people can produce
    more things--you can't put more people to work unless you've got more
    people who will buy your products and services. Without expanding your
    customer base, there is no way to create more jobs. It cannot be done.
    And we have got to learn that in America. We cannot let other people
    outtrade us. We can outwork anybody in the world. We still have the most
    productive workers in the world. We've learned

    [[Page 1981]]

    a lot of hard lessons in the last 12 years, but we've got to have more
    customers. And that's what this is about.
        So I ask all of you, all of you, to support the members of the
    Tennessee congressional delegation that have come out for NAFTA, to
    support the members of the delegations from Arkansas and Louisiana and
    from the other States that are supporting this, to give our country a
    chance to compete and win.
        On the day after Congress votes on this agreement, I have to fly out
    to Washington State to meet with the President of China, the world's
    largest country; with the Prime Minister of Japan, the country that had
    the largest growth rate in the 1980's; with 13 other leaders of Asian
    nations. That's the fastest growing part of the world. I'm going to say
    to them, ``We want to be your partner. We will buy your products, but
    we'd like for you to buy ours.'' If we adopt NAFTA, it will be a lot
    easier for me to make that case.
        I want the American people to be confident about the future. I want
    them to believe we can do better. In the last 10 months we've seen
    interest rates come down, inflation down, the deficit's come down.
    Millions and millions of Americans have refinanced their homes and their
    businesses, and this economy has produced more jobs in the last 10
    months than in the previous 4 years. But I'm telling you, you and I know
    there are not near enough jobs, and incomes are not going up near
    enough. And the reason is we don't yet have enough people who will buy
    our products and services.
        We need more growth in the world economy, and we need more
    customers. And Wednesday we're going to take a big first step with
    NAFTA, thanks to the people of Tennessee, your Vice President, your
    congressional delegation, and the other Members who are here.
        Thank you very much.

    Note: The President spoke at 10 a.m. at the Air National Guard Ramp,
    Memphis International Airport. In his remarks, the President referred to
    Mayor William N. Morris, Jr., of Shelby County and Mayor W.W. Herenton
    of Memphis.