    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1995, Book I)]
    [February 2, 1995]
    [Pages 154-155]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Statement on Naming Aircraft Carriers for Presidents Truman and Reagan
    February 2, 1995

        Today I approved Secretary of the Navy John Dalton's recommendation
    to name CVN-75 and CVN-76, Nimitz-class aircraft carriers currently
    authorized for construction, the U.S.S. Harry S. Truman and U.S.S.
    Ronald Reagan, respectively. Protecting our Nation's security--our
    people, our territory, and our way of life--is a President's foremost
    constitutional duty. It is therefore most appropriate to name two great
    warships after two former Presidents who exemplified the ideals of
    patriotism, camaraderie, and courage found in the service men and women
    they led as they discharged their highest duty.
        Our military today is the best equipped, best trained, and best
    prepared fighting force in the world. These two aircraft carriers
    represent my pledge to ensure our security is underpinned with military
    forces that are ready to fight. But our Nation can only address this
    era's dangers and opportunities if we remain actively engaged in the
    world. The two Presidents we honor today knew that there is no security
    for America in isolationism, no prosperity in protectionism. They worked
    with a Congress led by the other party in order to foster the broad,
    bipartisan understanding and support necessary to sustain U.S.
    international engagement.
        As President Truman said, ``We face a clear-cut choice between two
    courses of action. We can either isolate ourselves from the rest of the
    world, or we can take constructive steps to build lasting world peace.''
    And that is exactly the same challenge we take up today. It is therefore
    most appropriate to name CVN-75 in honor of the President who
    courageously led us out of the Second World War and prepared us to win
    the peace through international engagement. It was the courage and
    wisdom of President Truman's decisions which provided the foundation for
    40 years of peace and stability throughout the cold war.
        I also find it most fitting to name CVN-76 in honor of President
    Ronald Reagan, an American leader unsurpassed in his boundless
    patriotism and love for the Armed Forces and someone who still inspires
    us with his courage and grace. As I said in my State of the Union
    Address, Ronald Reagan exhorted us to carry on until

    [[Page 155]]

    the twilight struggle against communism was won.
        It is because of their enduring contributions in protecting our
    Nation's security that we honor these two Presidents of different
    parties and different times. These two aircraft carriers will bear their
    names overseas as an instrument of power behind our determined
    diplomacy. Once again, the names Truman and Reagan will lend themselves
    in pursuit of our national security in an effort to secure the peace
    they won during the cold war. Together, they will join the finest forces
    this Nation has ever known.