    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1993, Book II)]
    [August 6, 1993]
    [Pages 1346-1347]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    [[Page 1346]]

    Remarks on Senate Action on the Economic Program
    August 6, 1993

        Thank you. Thank you very much. What we heard tonight at the other
    end of Pennsylvania Avenue was the sound of gridlock breaking. It was
    the sound of progress and change which can now resound throughout every
    corner of our great and beloved Nation.
        I want to thank the United States Senators who voted for change
    tonight, especially the Senate majority leader, George Mitchell, for his
    untiring efforts, and all the others who worked so hard for so long to
    see this night come about. I want to thank the Vice President for his
    unwavering contribution to the landslide. I thank the economic team who
    worked so hard on this from last November: Leon Panetta, who is here;
    Secretary Bentsen; Mr. Rubin; and all the people who work with them. I
    thank Mr. McLarty and all the members of the White House staff. I thank
    Mr. Altman and the war room for the work they did in the last several
    weeks. I thank especially Howard Paster and Steve Ricchetti and all
    those who worked for us in the Senate. I hope that they will get some
    well-deserved rest.
        After 12 long years, we can say to the American people tonight we
    have laid the foundation for the renewal of the American dream. The days
    of endless gridlock, rising deficits, and trickle-down economics are
    over. The days of economic growth and real opportunity for the working
    families of this country have begun.
        This was not easy, but real change is never easy. It is always
    difficult. It is always easier to sustain the status quo and to talk as
    if you were changing. But that is not why I was elected President, nor
    is it why we were sent here.
        When we came here, our national debt had quadrupled in 12 years, and
    the incomes of our forgotten working families had been stagnant for
    nearly 20 years. Our heritage of investment in our people and our
    economy had been gradually forsaken and the people of our Nation
    questioned whether anyone here in this city would take responsibility
    for our future, change the direction of our country, and ensure a better
    life for them and their children.
        After a long season of denial and drift and decline, we are seizing
    control of our economic destiny. To be sure, as I have said repeatedly,
    this is just the beginning, just the first step in our attempts to
    assert control over our financial affairs, to invest in our future, and
    to grow our economy, to deal with the health care problems, the welfare
    reform problems, the problems of crime in the streets, and the other
    things that deal with the daily fabric of life for our people. But make
    no mistake about it, this is a very, very important beginning.
        The economic program that Congress passed tonight puts $500 billion
    into a trust fund locked away for deficit reduction; $255 billion in
    specific, real, enforceable spending cuts; tax cuts for 20 million
    working Americans with marginal incomes who are trying to raise their
    children. This will reward their desire to choose work over welfare. It
    is an important advance in the fabric of opportunity and responsibility
    in this country.
        This new direction includes new opportunities for the sons and
    daughters of middle class families to go to college because it reforms
    the student loan programs in ways that make student loans more
    accessible to more people and cuts the cost in the program through waste
    reduction. It provides immunizations to give a healthy start to millions
    of American children. It provides significant new incentives for small
    businesses to grow and expand. In this sharp departure from business as
    usual, this program will create jobs, reduce the deficit, and put the
    American people first.
        In the lifetime of this country, the courage and wisdom of the
    American people in difficulty have always prevailed when we faced a
    challenge and needed a change. Sometimes in the past they have prevailed
    by the narrowest of margins in the beginning but always picking up
    steam, always marching confidently toward the future. That will be true
    in this time as well.
        We are determined not to let the American dream founder. We are
    determined to stop avoiding our problems and start facing them, to
    embrace them as challenges, to turn them into opportunities, to seize
    the future that rightfully belongs to every American willing to work
    hard, play by the rules, and take care of their children. We are
    determined that the next generation of Americans will inherit a brighter
    fu-

    [[Page 1347]]

    ture than we have known, just as we did from our parents. For more than
    two centuries, that has been the promise of the American dream. Tonight,
    because of the bold action taken by courageous men and women in the
    House and the Senate, that dream will not be deferred but rather be
    fulfilled.
        I am profoundly grateful tonight for the opportunity to stand here
    not simply as President but as an American citizen seeing our Nation
    once again roll up our sleeves together, tackle our problems, and march
    to tomorrow.
        Thank you, and God bless you all.

    Note: The President spoke at 11:05 p.m. at the North Portico at the
    White House.