    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1995, Book II)]
    [November 5, 1995]
    [Pages 1721-1722]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Exchange With Reporters Aboard Air Force One
    November 5, 1995

    Middle East Peace Process

        Q. This is quite a President gathering, Mr. President, your thoughts
    as the flight of this----
        President Clinton. We're all going to pay our respects to Prime
    Minister Rabin. We all knew him. And we're going to express our support
    for Israel and for the peace process.
        Q. President Carter said the other day when he was being interviewed
    that he thought, given the circumstances, there logically enough would
    be a pause, not a pause in peacemaking but a reflective pause, and then,
    of course, the process should gather again. How quickly do you think the
    Israelis can pull themselves together?
        President Clinton. I don't have any idea. We don't know yet. We are
    going to have meetings when we're there. We're going to visit and then
    maybe we'll have some more--some better thoughts for you then.
        Q. Mr. President, collectively when you look at the manifest of this
    trip, what message does it send to the Israelis, Middle East, and the
    entire world for that matter?
        President Clinton. Well, I think it should send, first of all, the
    message that the United States still stands as a genuine friend and a
    partner to the people of Israel, Republicans and Democrats alike. We
    have decades of dedication to the cause of peace here, from the work
    President Carter did with the Camp David accords to the work President
    Bush did in starting this process that has been consummated in the last
    couple of years, the Secretaries of State that are here, the leaders of
    both parties in the Congress. The United States is standing with Israel
    and standing for the cause of peace. And we're standing strong and deep.
        Q. President Bush, what goes through your mind, sir, as you consider
    all the familiar faces on this trip and the message that it may be
    sending to the rest of the world?
        President Bush. Well, of course, I'm very grateful to President
    Clinton for personally inviting me. Barbara and I felt close to Prime
    Minister Rabin, as do the others here, very close to him. I remember
    when he visited us in our home up in Maine and all of that.

    [[Page 1722]]

        And so I would simply leave the policy to President Clinton but
    simply say I'm sure it will be a very emotional event, and I hope that
    it conveys that the Republicans, Democrats, whatever, are together in
    the support of Israel and clearly in support of the peace process. And
    that's all I think we can expect from this.
        Q. The Syrian track seems awfully tough, even before this. Various
    approaches have been tried; President Carter actually mediated 16 tough
    days. You've talked to us on it. Do you have some new tactic? I don't
    know how many ways there are to go about it, but have you thought of
    some way to break this stalemate that might work?
        President Clinton. I think I should defer all substantive
    conversations about this until after the funeral and after the meetings.
    Then I will--on the way back perhaps I'll have something more to say
    about it. But I think it would be inappropriate--this is a time of
    national mourning for the people of Israel and a time when all of us who
    knew Prime Minister Rabin feel a great sense of loss and an enormous
    sense of respect, even awe, for what he did and for the sacrifice he
    paid. I'd like for us to take the time to properly honor that, and then
    on the way back perhaps something will emerge from our meetings which
    will be useful for me to comment on.
        Q. Will you be seeing Mr. Netanyahu, or can you give us an idea of
    who you will see?
        Press Secretary Mike McCurry. We'll do that for all of you here.
        President Clinton. Mike has that.
        Q. President Carter, we haven't heard from you. What are your
    thoughts about the message that should be sent by this delegation that
    includes people who were in your administration--yourself of course?
        President Carter. Well, I've known Prime Minister Rabin for 24 years
    and admired him personally and as a great leader. I'm honored to be
    invited by President Clinton to participate. I think it was a very wise
    thing on the part of the President to put together this tremendously
    impressive delegation because in this time of sorrow and grief and
    uncertainty, I think it is very important to every Israeli to know the
    United States stands beside us with full support.
        I wasn't insinuating that the peace process should be delayed, but
    the comment I made was that the Israelis would have to make this
    decision, and for a few days at least we shouldn't be pushing them on an
    exact schedule for the peace process.
        But I think it's important, too, for the Israelis to not only know
    that we are supportive of Israel but also supportive of the peace
    process. And our coming, I think, is closely related to that.
        So I hope that President Clinton's ideas for this mission, burdened
    as we are with sadness and the personal loss, will be productive for
    Israel and for the peace process.
        Q. People have said that one of the causes of this is the
    polarization that has occurred in Israel because of the peace process
    and the very vigorous opposition to it. Is there any lesson for us in
    the United States with what happened yesterday?
        President Clinton. Well, of course we've dealt with some
    polarization of our own. And I think the lesson is that in a free and
    vital society, you want the widest range of freedom of speech. But words
    can have consequences; people can be driven to extremes. And our society
    only works when--any democracy only works when freedom is handled
    responsibly. And I think that's the lesson here.
        The Israelis have been through all these wars, all this tension for
    all these decades and never had a political assassination before. And I
    hope, I hope, it will never happen again. I admire their flourishing
    democracy; I like the big and raucous arguments they have. But they
    should do it respecting one another's innate patriotism and dignity and
    fundamental right to participate. We've got to keep this thing within
    proper bounds.
        But you know, that's something we all have to work on; all
    democracies have to work on that. Israel doesn't--that's not just a
    comment about Israel. I'm sure they'll have the time to reflect on all
    of that. And they are a very great people, a very great democracy, and
    I'm sure they'll work it out.

    Note: The exchange began at 6:05 p.m. aboard Air Force One en route to
    Tel Aviv, Israel. Former Presidents George Bush and Jimmy Carter were
    members of the U.S. delegation attending Prime Minister Rabin's funeral.
    A reporter referred to Likud Party leader Binyamin Netanyahu.