    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1995, Book II)]
    [December 2, 1995]
    [Pages 1834-1835]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Interview With Joe Garvey of the Armed Forces Network in Baumholder
    December 2, 1995

        Mr. Garvey. The first question, Mr. President. You have spent the
    entire day talking to soldiers, shaking soldiers' hands. You've been
    briefed by the Task Force Eagle commanders. You've talked to spouses.
    What is the one thing that you'll walk away with here today?
        The President. An immense feeling of gratitude that our country has
    people who are this well-trained, this highly motivated, this patriotic,
    and this good working for us. You know, these people have volunteered to
    serve their country, to go anywhere and do anything that their country
    needs. And they are an exceptional group of people, and their families
    are exceptional people.
        Now, because of the training they've had in Germany, they believe
    that the training probably will be harder than the mission, and of
    course, we all hope it will be. So I think every American should feel an
    immense sense of pride and gratitude that people like the men and women
    of the 1st Armored Division are out there serving our country.
        Mr. Garvey. Changing gears just a little bit, has having a U.S.
    forward-deployed force in Europe been an advantage for the planning and
    potential and ultimate execution of this Bosnia mission?
        The President. Absolutely. It's been a huge advantage. For one
    thing, we are here, obviously part of the unified NATO Command, but we
    can do our planning not just through General Joulwan and the NATO
    Command Headquarters but right down through the Americans that are
    expected to do it and have it here in close proximity. It's made a big
    difference, and the training has made a huge difference.
        We've been able, as you know, to recreate the conditions that our
    people will face in Bosnia here in Germany. We're fairly close by; we
    can get the same sort of topography, the same kind of weather
    conditions, and I think that that has made a huge difference.
        I'm not sure we have ever sent a group of our men and women in
    uniform into a situation where they were better prepared in advance in
    almost on-site training. Neither of those things would have been nearly
    as good had we not had a forward deployment in Germany.
        Mr. Garvey. I know you're a busy man. I have nothing else to ask
    you, Mr. President, unless you have something yourself you would like to
    add.
        The President. Well, the only other thing I would like to add is
    that I think it's important for the American people to understand that
    with our volunteer Army now, it's more and more

    [[Page 1835]]

    of a family place. It's more and more a place full of exceptional people
    with good values and deep ties, either to their spouses and children who
    are with them while they're in the service or to their parents back
    home.
        And so when we make a decision, when I make a decision, like the
    decision to deploy our troops to carry out the peace mission in Bosnia,
    it's a family decision, it affects families, and I am very mindful of
    that. And one of the things that I really appreciate is the extent to
    which caring for the families, thinking about their needs, making sure
    that they're treated in the proper way is a big part of the mission now.
    And I think that's something that we have gotten better at and something
    I hope we will continue to get better at, because if we're going to have
    a volunteer Army, we want the very best people in it and we want people
    to be able to succeed in uniform but also in their family roles. And
    that is very, very important to me--especially at Christmastime I guess
    I'm thinking a lot about it, but all year long we have to be better and
    better and better at that, because this is a family commitment as well
    as an American commitment.
        Mr. Garvey. Thank you. I appreciate your time.
        The President. Thank you.

    Note: The interview began at 4:40 p.m. at the Rheinlander Club.