    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1996, Book I)]
    [January 30, 1996]
    [Pages 116-117]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Remarks on the Budget Negotiations and the Debt Ceiling and an
    Exchange With Reporters
    January 30, 1996

        The President. I'm glad to have these Members here, and we are about
    to begin a discussion about how we can make progress in our effort to
    get the right kind of balanced budget. Let me also say I think it is
    terribly important that Congress pass a clean debt ceiling and do it
    immediately, so that we can honor the full faith and credit of the
    United States and so that those Social Security checks can go out at the
    first of March. It's getting close, and we just have a month left, and I
    think it's imperative that this be done. But in the meanwhile, we're
    going to keep working on the budget, trying to find a solution that both
    parties can embrace and that I can sign.
        Q. What about the House saying it's going to adjourn for a month at
    the end of the week? Are you going to be able to make any progress while
    they're gone?
        The President. Well, I can only tell you that I think that we've got
    to deal with the debt ceiling. I'm more optimistic--I think we can
    clearly make progress on the budget whether they're in session or out of
    session. It depends upon who's available to meet and what kind of
    conversations can be held over the telephone. So I'm not so concerned
    about that, but it is imperative that we understand what the timetable
    is on the debt limit and that we not play games with that. That's an
    emergency. We can deal with the budget over the telephone. But Congress
    has to be here and actually pass an act to lift the debt ceiling.
        Q. Mr. President, some Republicans say that it was your Treasury
    Secretary who played games and said that the debt ceiling was going to
    run out the last time, and that in fact it didn't, and that there are
    ways to kind of correct this that he's talking about.
        The President. No, he didn't play any games. He was deft and adroit
    and did the best he could to keep this country afloat. And he has
    notified them that he is out of options, just like he notified them
    before that we had some options. And I don't think anything has happened
    to change his mind. So he has explained to them what the situation is;
    that's what it is.
        This country has not one time in its entire history refused to honor
    the obligations that it has committed to. And I don't believe we should
    now, and I don't believe we will. But I want to urge Congress to deal
    with this in a prompt manner.
        Q. Why won't the Social Security checks go out? What--is this a
    separate----
        The President. Because if the country cannot honor its debt
    obligations, it won't be able to keep its cash flow up.

    Welfare Reform

        Q. Would you sign the Senate welfare bill?
        The President. Well, let me say, as you know, we got the bill out of
    the Senate, and it was much improved over the House. Then they didn't
    send it back to me. I think the discussion is recently moot because we
    made some advances beyond the Senate welfare bill in our budget
    negotiations.

    [[Page 117]]

        And the Republican leadership is not bound by anything that we
    agreed to in the budget negotiations, because we had an understanding
    that nothing was agreed to until everything was. But I thought we had
    reached a common understanding that, among other things, there ought to
    be more money put into the child care portion of the Senate bill and
    that there should be a little more sensitivity to what might happen to
    families with children with disabilities.
        And so I would like to see at least the common understanding that
    came out of our discussions in the budget negotiations incorporated into
    that bill, and I would imagine they would be. But I don't know any more
    than you do about that. I know what I read this morning.

    Imia/Kardak Islet

        Q. Mr. President, you were on the phone with the leaders of Greece
    and Turkey this afternoon?
        The President. Yes, I was.
        Q. Could you tell us about what the situation was there? Have you
    been able to make any progress on that?
        The President. Well, I talked to the President and the Prime
    Minister of Turkey and the new Prime Minister of Greece and asked them
    to move their forces away from that little island and to find a
    diplomatic solution to the issue. And I heard them out at some length,
    and we discussed some options. And then the Secretary of State,
    Secretary of Treasury--I mean, the Secretary of Defense, Secretary of
    State, and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff have all been
    involved in this. We have been working hard on this today.
        Greece and Turkey have too much in common, too much to gain from
    getting along with each other, and we have too many other important
    issues in that area that affect both their interests for this small
    piece of land to be allowed to develop into a crisis for the two of
    them. So the United States is doing everything we possibly can, and I
    have some hope that the crisis will abate over the next 24 or 48 hours.
    But there's still one or two issues remaining in the air as we speak.

    Note: The President spoke at 5:16 p.m. in the Cabinet Room at the White
    House, prior to a meeting with congressional leaders. In his remarks, he
    referred to President Suleyman Demirel and Prime Minister Tansu Ciller
    of Turkey and Prime Minister Konstandinos Simitis of Greece. A tape was
    not available for verification of the content of these remarks.