[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1994, Book I)]
[July 20, 1994]
[Pages 1293-1294]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]



Remarks on the 25th Anniversary of the Apollo 11 Moon Landing
July 20, 1994

    Thank you very much, Mr. Vice President, Members of Congress, 
veterans of the Apollo program, the friends of the space program in 
America, and most of all, to those whom we honor here today.
    Just a day before he died, President Kennedy compared our space 
program to a boy who comes upon a wall in an orchard. The wall is tall. 
It looks insurmountable, but the boy is curious about what lies on the 
other side. So he throws his cap over the wall, and then he has no 
choice but to go after it.
    Twenty-five years ago today, our Nation, represented by these three 
brave men, made that climb. And so, today we are gathered to celebrate 
their voyage and, I honestly hope, to recommit ourselves to their spirit 
of discovery. Apollo 11, Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, and Michael 
Collins were our guides for the wondrous, the unimaginable at that time, 
the true handiwork of God. They realized the dreams of a nation. They 
fulfilled an American destiny. They taught us that nothing is impossible 
if we set our sights high enough.
    Today we're honored to have them and all the other Apollo astronauts 
who are here with us. For every American who followed your journey, 
especially for those of us who were young on that fateful day 25 years 
ago, and for the young Americans who still dream dreams of a future in 
space, we thank you all.
    Looking back on that mission, one thing is clear that we ought to 
remember today. It wasn't easy. The ship to the heavens measured just 13 
feet in diameter. The destination was 3 days and a world away. On the 
third day as the tiny module descended to the Moon, it came dangerously 
close to a crash landing--that happens around here all the time--
[laughter]--but Neil Armstrong took over the controls from the computer 
and landed safely. Man had not been rendered obsolete by the mechanical, 
and that hasn't happened yet. Not long after that when he stepped on the 
Moon, Mr. Armstrong marked the outer limit of the human experiment with 
those simple words, ``One small step for man, one giant leap for 
mankind.''
    These men and the other astronauts who came before and after have 
helped us to step into another world right here on Earth. They've shown 
us that we can harness the technology of space in areas from the economy 
to the environment, to education, to information and technology. The 
products and knowledge that grew out of our space missions has changed 
our way of life forever and for the better. And in our quest we have 
relearned a sense of confidence that has always been an essential 
ingredient of our American dream. Today, that journey continues. Our 
commitment to the space program is strong and unwavering. The best way 
to honor these men and all the others who have helped it so much is to 
continue that quest.
    Many have risked their lives and some have given their lives so that 
we could go forward. Today I ask that we remember, especially, the crews 
of Apollo 1 and the Challenger. On this day of celebration we must never 
forget the deep debt we owe to those brave Americans. And our thoughts 
should also be with their families and their loved ones, for the 
sacrifice they have given helped to bring us all to new horizons.
    Our space explorations today are important models for cooperation in 
the new post-cold-war world. The Vice President described that 
eloquently a moment ago. Sergei's mission was an important first step 
toward full Russian partnership in what must be our next great mission, 
the international space station. This permanent orbiting space 
laboratory, to be built with help from 14 nations, will hasten 
discoveries in fields from the environment to medicine, to computers. We 
should also remember that the space station holds great promise for us 
here at home,

[[Page 1294]]

as it strengthens our largest export sector, aerospace technology.
    All these reasons explain why the House has fully funded already the 
space station. I want to thank many people who are responsible for that 
bipartisan victory, but let me mention especially George Brown, Lou 
Stokes, Bob Walker, and Jerry Lewis. I know the Vice President and Dan 
Goldin and a lot of other people burned up the phone lines before the 
House vote.
    Let me say that we've fought a lot of battles for the future around 
here in the last 18 months, and sometimes it seems that the most 
important ones are decided by the narrowest of margins. The economic 
plan passed by a vote. The assault weapons ban passed by two votes. Last 
year the space station survived by the vote of a single Member of the 
House of Representatives who changed his mind on the way down the aisle. 
But this year, thanks to the common endeavors of all of us and thanks to 
the promise of cooperation with Russia and with other nations, the House 
of Representatives voted to fund the space station by 122 votes, a 
bipartisan commitment to America's future.
    I thank the Members of the Senate who are here today who are pushing 
for passage. I know they won't miss this great opportunity which is 
coming on them very soon. I thank you, Senator Mikulski, and all the 
other Members of the Senate who are here, for the work that will be done 
in the Senate.
    As we work toward building a better world, we also have to preserve 
the one we've got here. William Anders of the Apollo 8 was the first to 
see the entire Earth at a glance. He said it looked like a fragile 
``little Christmas tree ornament against an infinite backdrop of space, 
the only color in the whole universe we could see. It seemed so very 
finite.'' Well, because we are so very finite, our responsibility to our 
planet must not be limited. That's why NASA's Mission to Planet Earth is 
also a very important part of our future in space. We have to continue 
to monitor the global environment from space and to act on what we 
learn.
    Above all, let us never forget that all this work is about renewing 
our hopes and the hopes of generations to come, about the ability of 
Americans and the ability of human beings everywhere to conquer the 
seemingly impossible. I don't think anybody can look at the faces of 
these young people here with us today, and we ought to take a little 
while and look at them and welcome them here, without seeing again in 
their eyes dreams that those of us who are older could not have dreamed. 
The explorations we continue in space are clear evidence to them that 
they will grow up in exciting times without limits; times that demand 
their imagination, their vision, their courage; times that will reward 
them, too, for believing in themselves and their possibilities.
    One of our Young Astronauts, 13-year-old Wayne Gusman from New 
Orleans, sees a future where being an astronaut will be like, and I 
quote, ``driving a car; everyone will do it.'' That's a great dream. But 
that and our other dreams are clearly the natural extensions of the 
space program which began a generation ago, the direct descendants of 
the dreams of the three men we are here to honor today. We can get 
there.
    No one who was alive then will ever forget where they were as 
Michael Collins traveled his solitary vigil around the Moon and Neil 
Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin landed that tiny craft on the surface. The 
world was captivated not only by the risk and the daring, although they 
were risking and daring, they were captivated because the landing meant 
again that the human experiment in conquering new and uncharted worlds 
was reborn. In that sense it was not an end but a beginning.
    So to you gentlemen, we say: For your valor, your courage, your 
pioneering spirit, and for being here today to remind us again that all 
things are possible, we are deeply in your debt.
    Thank you very much.

Note: The President spoke at 2:50 p.m. in the East Room at the White 
House. In his remarks, he referred to Sergei Krikalev, Russian cosmonaut 
who flew aboard the space shuttle Discovery in February.