[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1995, Book II)]
[December 23, 1995]
[Pages 1926-1927]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]



[[Page 1926]]


The President's Radio Address
December 23, 1995

    Good morning. As you know, I have spent the last week in intense 
discussion with congressional leaders over how to balance the budget in 
7 years. It's important to balance the budget to lift the burden of debt 
from future generations.
    In the last 3 years, we've cut our deficit in half, and we need to 
finish the job. But we have to balance the budget in a way that reflects 
our most fundamental values: increasing opportunity; asking everyone to 
assume responsibility; strengthening our families and the economy; and 
recognizing the duty we owe to each other, to our parents, our children, 
and those who need and deserve our help. That's how we've reduced the 
deficit since I took office: cutting unnecessary programs; reducing the 
size of the Federal Government by 200,000; reducing redtape but 
investing in education, the environment, research and technology; 
protecting Medicare and Medicaid; reducing taxes on the hardest pressed 
working families. It's worked. It's given us more jobs, more new 
businesses, low inflation, and record economic performance in the stock 
market and in many other places.
    Now, that's how I want to finish the job of balancing the budget. 
But even as we continue talking, I hope Congress will agree to open the 
Government and open all the agencies that have closed so that we can end 
the financial and emotional turmoil for more than 280,000 furloughed 
Federal employees and 460,000 working-but-not-getting-paid Federal 
employees.
    In the spirit of the holidays, we should do everything we can to put 
these people back to work and to resume critical services the American 
people need and deserve. Just last night, I signed legislation that 
Congress passed yesterday to allow 3.3 million veterans and 13 million 
needy children and their mothers to receive their benefits by January 
1st. That's a good start. I hope we can resume all services as we work 
together to balance the budget.
    Our talks are making progress. Yesterday we agreed to resume our 
negotiations next week with the goal of reaching an agreement as soon as 
possible. I am confident we can end this impasse and pass a 7-year 
balanced budget.
    As we look back at this year, in this season of hope, I think we 
ought to take just a little time to reflect on the progress and 
accomplishment of America. It should give us real optimism that we can 
finish this budget job and go on to greater things in 1996.
    Nineteen ninety-five was a year in which our country had the 
opportunity and the responsibility to play our role as the world's 
premier peacemaker. Our efforts opened the door to peace in places where 
only rancor and war had previously existed. As a peacemaker, not a 
policeman, we have helped the peace process finally begin to take hold 
in the Middle East, while we joined the world in mourning the tragic 
assassination of Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin. We have done what 
Prime Minister Rabin would have wanted us to do: We've kept moving 
forward. And finally it looks like Israel and Syria will sit together in 
the United States to seek a way to resolve their differences and live 
together peacefully.
    We're also helping to bring peace to Bosnia. The Dayton agreement 
and our decision to join in the international effort to secure the peace 
in Bosnia has given the people of the former Yugoslavia a chance to 
rebuild their lives. After 4 long years of horrible violence, America 
now has the opportunity to lead in the effort to bring lasting peace to 
that war-torn country and to stabilize Central Europe as well.
    In Northern Ireland, I saw thousands and thousands of children 
beginning to celebrate their second Christmas season of peace. And in 
Haiti, they will soon celebrate the very first peaceful transfer of 
power from one democratically elected President to another in the 
history of the country. And American leadership helped to make both 
those celebrations possible.
    The seeds of peace are also sinking deeper roots right here in 
America. We just learned that last year our murder rate dropped 12 
percent, the largest decline in 35 years. Violent crime overall is down 
5 percent. Now, we know our work is far from done on too many of our 
mean streets. Too many of our children still are raising themselves, not 
being taught right from wrong. There is still too much crime and 
violence, and it's still rising among teenagers

[[Page 1927]]

in many parts of the country. But we are beginning to turn the tide. And 
we do know what works.
    Much of the success is due to efforts in communities throughout our 
country to get guns off our streets and put more police on the streets 
and to give our young people something to say yes to as well as 
something to say no to. More importantly, it is due to the outpouring of 
grassroots community involvement in all these efforts, in the 
comprehensive fight against crime and violence. People are getting the 
message that community policing works. And it's up to every citizen to 
rise up, reach out, and link arms with local police to keep their own 
neighborhoods safe and their schools safe. Now, the progress we've seen 
is cause for hope. We just have to keep working on it here at home.
    From the Middle East to Northern Ireland, to our troops in Bosnia, 
to our toughest neighborhoods, America is leading the way to peace and 
reconciliation. All around the world billions of people look to America 
as a model of democracy and freedom. And we should see ourselves as 
others see us. We should finish the job of balancing the budget and 
reopening the Government in the spirit of cooperation and unity so that 
we can continue to grow and prosper together and be a force in the world 
for peace and freedom. That is the spirit of the season and the spirit 
of America.
    Let each of us resolve to do what we can to be peacemakers. Let us 
bring peace to every child who deserves to be free from violence and 
full of hope. And as we celebrate the birth of a child whose only 
shelter was the straw of a manger, let us remember the words of the 
Prince of Peace who said, ``Blessed are the peacemakers.'' We ask the 
blessings of this peace for everyone. That is our prayer this Christmas.
    Thanks for listening.

Note: The President spoke at 10:06 a.m. from the Oval Office at the 
White House.