    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1995, Book II)]
    [September 24, 1995]
    [Pages 1472-1473]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Remarks on Arrival in Avoca, Pennsylvania
    September 24, 1995

        Thank you very much. Good morning, and thank you for coming out. I
    want to say, first of all, how very much I appreciate the kindness that
    so many of you have shown to my wife and to the members of our family.
    And if we ever cause an interruption in ordinary flow of life here when
    the Rodham family comes back to its roots, I apologize for that. But you
    can't imagine how much they all love it.
        We're going back to Lake Winola today for the first time since our
    daughter was not quite 2 years old. So she doesn't have much of a memory
    of the first time we took her up there. We were talking about that this
    morning, getting ready to come up here.
        Let me also give you a little good news. I'm sorry we're a few
    minutes late this morning, but I got up early this morning at the White
    House and was on the phone for a couple of hours because this morning,
    or morning our time, not very long ago, the Israelis and the
    Palestinians have reached agreement on the next

    [[Page 1473]]

    phase of their peace process. It's a big step forward toward ending the
    long, long state of siege in the Middle East. And on this day of
    worship, a thanksgiving for so many of us, I thought that would be a
    good way to get this Sunday off to the right kind of start.
        I want to thank you also for the support that you have given to me
    and to our administration. We are doing everything we possibly can to
    try to lift up the values of work and family and freedom and
    responsibility and community in this country, to move the economy
    forward, to tackle the tough problems, and to bring the American people
    together.
        And I am gratified that with all of our difficulties, we see the
    unemployment rate dropping, more jobs being created. The crime rate,
    believe it or not, now is going down in all 50 States. And we seem to be
    coming together again as a country and looking toward the future again.
        And so I want to say that, for me at least, every day is an enormous
    opportunity as we go through this period of historic change for
    America's economy and in the whole world, to try to elevate the things
    that all of you live by day-in and day-out here, to try to restore
    economic opportunity where it was taken away in the 1980's, and to try
    to give people the opportunity to make the most of their own lives and
    families and communities the chance to solve their own problems and
    realize their own possibilities. It is a great honor, a great joy. And
    for every day you have given me to be your President, I thank you.
        God bless you all.

    Note: The President spoke at approximately 10:55 a.m. at Wilkes-Barre/
    Scranton International Airport.