    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1994, Book II)]
    [November 2, 1994]
    [Pages 1959-1960]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    [[Page 1959]]

    Interview With John Bachman and Laurie Groves of WHO Television,
    Des Moines, Iowa
    November 2, 1994

        Mr. Bachman. Mr. President, thank you very much for joining us.
        The President. Thank you.

    Agricultural Policy

        Mr. Bachman. When you were last here, you were at the midst of the
    floods of '93. You saw Iowa's flooded farm fields. And this year, by
    contrast, farmers have record crops. But that in turn, as you know, has
    depressed prices, and the farm recovery is in jeopardy. What can be
    done, Mr. President?
        The President. Well, when I get to Iowa tomorrow, I want to discuss
    that in greater detail. I have tried to be a good President for the
    farmers of this country. And our Agriculture Department, our Agriculture
    Secretary has done a very good job not only in the flood but afterward.
    I'm sure you know that there was an announcement today that the
    Agriculture Department will give export enhancements to seven states of
    the former Soviet Union to try to increase the export of livestock,
    particularly the pork exports to those countries. And we supported
    ethanol production; we still do. And we're doing a number of other
    things that I believe will really help the farm economy in Iowa. And
    I'll have some more to say about it tomorrow when I get there.
        Ms. Groves. Well, I hate to push my luck with that in mind, Mr.
    President, but I would like to ask you about the export enhancement
    program, the EEP. Now, I know Iowa Secretary Dale Cochran has expressed
    his interest in getting some changes there, at least, that will combat
    some of the glut in the pork market. Would you like to give us a hint on
    perhaps what you think you could do to help Iowa pork producers in
    overseas trade?
        The President. Well, we're looking at that, as well. And again, I
    will have more to say about all that when I get there tomorrow.

    Secretary of Agriculture

        Mr. Bachman. Let me give you one more opportunity, Mr. President:
    Have you named, or have you decided in your own mind, at least, a new Ag
    Secretary? And is Ruth Harkin still on your short list?
        The President. No, I haven't made a decision. She has been
    unbelievably good where she is. And she would be good in any position, I
    think, in the Government, including that one. She's a very able person.
    She's really done more with the Overseas Private Investment Corporation
    than anybody has in a long time. And I think any American businessperson
    that's worked with us in trade and expansion would tell you that the
    Export-Import Bank, Ruth Harkin's agency, the Overseas Private
    Investment Corporation, and the Commerce Department under Secretary
    Brown, along with the Agriculture Department, have done more for
    American business than any administration has in a long time.
        Mr. Bachman. Is Ruth Harkin still interested in the post? Has she
    given you any indication that she'd like it?
        The President. No, I've gone out of my way not to talk to anybody
    about this right now because I'm not ready to deal with it. Secretary
    Espy will be there until the end of the year. He has done a superb job
    for the farmers of this country, and I think virtually every
    agricultural commissioner in every State in the country agrees with
    that.

    Midterm Elections

        Ms. Groves. President Clinton, unemployment is the lowest now it's
    been nationwide in years, you know this, and the economy is strong. And
    yet your approval rating is under 50 percent here in Iowa. Now, with
    that in mind, how do you think that your visit tomorrow will influence
    Iowa's undecided voters?
        The President. Well, what we have to do is get the record out there.
    All the opinion surveys show that there's literally almost no awareness
    among the voters of what this administration has accomplished but that
    it's changed rather dramatically in the last 10 days to 2 weeks as
    Congress has gone home and people have been able to focus on the fact
    that there are more jobs, a lower deficit, a smaller Federal Government,
    less regulation, more help for ordinary working families: the family and
    medical leave law; the Brady bill; the crime bill; immunizations for all
    the kids in the country under 2; middle

    [[Page 1960]]

    class college loans; apprenticeships for people who aren't going to
    college; an expansion of Head Start.
        It's been a very long time since there has been such a productive
    relationship. But the people don't know it because this has been a
    contentious 2 years. The Republicans have been more partisan than any
    party has against a President of the opposing party since World War II.
    There's no precedent for it. And I've taken on a lot of tough issues, a
    lot of special interest groups. I've tried to change the direction of
    this country. And when you do that, you have to be willing to make
    enemies and you have to be willing to see your approval ratings go down
    in the short run as people are, at least, confused by all the conflict
    which is engendered. Plus, everybody knows that the nature of the way
    Americans get their information today is more contentious, more
    divisive, more adversarial than ever before.
        So I've been given an opportunity now in the last week or 10 days of
    this campaign to get out and talk to the American people and make my
    case. The people of Iowa are fair-minded people. And I was there when
    you needed me and so was everybody in my administration, in a hurry, in
    the flood. And we stayed, and we've seen this through. I have been a
    good President for the farmers of this country and good for the Iowa
    economy and good for the ordinary working people of this country. And
    when the record comes out, the people will make the right decision.
        Plus, the Republicans are offering us an unbelievable journey into
    the past that got us in so much trouble. I mean, they want to go back to
    trickle-down economics. They're making a trillion dollars' worth of
    promises: big tax cuts for the wealthy, more defense expenditures, a
    balanced budget. The only way to do it is to have a 20 percent across-
    the-board cut in Social Security, Medicare, and everything else. And if
    they don't intend to do it, they're going to explode the deficit and put
    our economy in deep trouble once again.
        Mr. Bachman. Mr. President, I know you'll be saying more of that
    tomorrow right here in Des Moines. Thank you very much for joining us.
        The President. Thank you.
        Mr. Bachman. And have a safe trip.
        The President. Thanks.

    Note: The interview began at 5:50 p.m. The President spoke by satellite
    from the Rhode Island Convention Center in Providence, RI.