    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1995, Book I)]
    [June 24, 1995]
    [Pages 938-940]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    The President's Radio Address
    June 24, 1995

        Good morning. Today I'm talking to you from the Convention Center in
    Pine Bluff, Arkansas. The Arkansas firefighters are meeting here, and
    I'm the first sitting President ever to visit Pine Bluff. Zachary Taylor
    planned to come in 1849, but he had to cancel. It's a record I'm proud
    to set. I'm also proud to be here with Dr. Henry Foster, who was born
    here and grew up here.
        Just under 5 months ago, I nominated this fine man to be our Surgeon
    General. And this week, a majority of the United States Senate was
    clearly prepared to confirm him as Surgeon General. But he wasn't
    confirmed. He wasn't confirmed because the Senate was never even allowed
    to vote on his confirmation, because they were blocked by a group, a
    minority group, of willful Senators who abused the procedure to keep his
    nomination from coming to a vote for their own political ends.
        Let me tell you a little bit about Dr. Foster. He's been a doctor
    for 38 years, including 3 years in the United States Air Force. He has
    delivered thousands of babies and trained hundreds of young doctors.
    He's ridden dusty country roads in Alabama to bring health care to
    people who never would have gotten it otherwise. He has labored to
    reduce teen pregnancy, to reduce the number of abortions, to tell young
    people without other role models, in a disciplined, organized way: you
    shouldn't have sex before you're married; you should stay off drugs; you
    should stay in school and do a good job with your life. His efforts to
    give a future to young people without one were recognized first not by
    me but by my Republican predecessor, President Bush.
        Let me tell you something: If more people in America lived their
    lives like Henry Foster,

    [[Page 939]]

    there would be fewer kids on drugs, fewer teen pregnancies, fewer
    abortions, fewer broken families. This is a man our country should be
    proud to call our own.
        So why was a group of Senators determined to stop Dr. Foster? A
    minority of the Senate blocked a vote on him in a calculated move to
    showcase their desire to take away a woman's right to choose. Dr. Foster
    has faithfully performed his duties as a doctor for 38 years. Although
    he has delivered thousands of babies, when the law permitted it, the
    patient requested it, and after appropriate counseling, he did perform
    an average of about one abortion per year.
        Now, I know it is easy to condemn abortion. It's easy to put on
    divisive television ads or pass out inflammatory materials. But it is
    very hard to actually work with children and look at them face to face,
    kids that nobody pays any attention to, and look at them and tell them
    they ought not to have sex, they ought not to get pregnant, they ought
    not to do drugs. That's hard. That's why most of us don't do it. But
    Henry Foster did.
        Unfortunately, in Washington today, pure political correctness and
    raw political power count a whole lot more than actually doing something
    to reduce the tragedies of teen pregnancy and the high number of
    abortions.
        You know, I believe it is clear what the law of the land is, and I
    believe that abortion should be rare but it should be legal and safe.
    The extreme right wing in our country wants to impose its views on all
    the rest of Americans. They killed this nomination with the help of the
    Republican leadership who did as they were told. And they're just
    getting started.
        This week, the House passed a bill which would prevent women who
    serve in our military or who are on military bases with their servicemen
    husbands from getting abortions at base hospitals, even if they pay for
    it and no matter what the circumstances. Imagine a servicewoman in a
    foreign country, a remote location without good medical facilities or
    even a safe blood supply. This House bill would say, ``If you can spend
    thousands of dollars to fly back to the United States for a safe and
    legal procedure, you're all right; otherwise you may have to risk your
    life in a hospital far from home.'' Why? Because she voluntarily
    enlisted to serve her country. So that a woman who's willing to risk her
    life for her country should also have to risk her life for a legal
    medical procedure. This seems to me to be too extreme.
        In a few days, the House will actually try to cut off Federal funds
    for abortions for poor women that arise from rape or incest. Even those
    with strong antiabortion feelings know this is a tough issue, and most
    people think it ought to be left to individual citizens. It's one thing
    to say that the taxpayers should not pay for a legal abortion that
    arises from a poor woman's own decision. That's one thing. Quite another
    to say that the same rules apply to rape and incest.
        This is a big, diverse country. We are deeply divided over many
    issues, none more than the painful and difficult issue of abortion. The
    law now is that the woman, not the Government, makes a decision until
    the third trimester when a baby can live independently of his mother and
    therefore the Government can prohibit abortions.
        There are some who believe that America now must toe their line and
    that every woman must live by their rules, even though the Constitution,
    as interpreted by the Supreme Court, says exactly the reverse. They'll
    stop at nothing to get their way. And this week it looks like the
    Republican leaders in Congress have given them the keys to the store.
    Looks like they'll vote for any bill, oppose any nomination, allow any
    intrusion into people's lives if they get orders to do so from these
    groups.
        Many, many Americans oppose abortion. And everyone agrees it's a
    tragedy. I believe we should all work to reduce the number of abortions
    through vigorous campaigns to promote abstinence among young people;
    reduce out-of-wedlock pregnancy, especially among teenagers; and promote
    more adoptions. I believe, in short, that we ought to all do more of the
    kind of things that Henry Foster has been doing for decades.
        If people in Washington spent less time using abortion to divide the
    country for their own political ends and more time following Dr.
    Foster's example of fighting these problems, there would be a lot fewer
    abortions in America and we'd be a lot stronger as a country.
        We need more citizens like Henry Foster willing to commit their
    time, their energy, and love to fighting for our children, our families,
    and our future.

    [[Page 940]]

        Thanks for listening.

    Note: The President spoke at 9:06 a.m. from the Pine Bluff Convention
    Center in Pine Bluff, AR.