    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1996, Book I)]
    [March 25, 1996]
    [Pages 507-508]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Remarks to the National Association of Attorneys General and an
    Exchange With Reporters
    March 25, 1996

        The President. Please sit down, everybody. The Attorney General and
    I are delighted to be here. I understand that the Vice President has
    already been in this morning. Mr. Udall and Mr. Harshbarger and to all
    the attorneys general here, you're very welcome in the White House, and
    I'm very glad to see you.
        I want to, if I might--I know we're going to have some time later
    for questions--but I wanted to just speak about two things this morning,
    especially while our friends in the media are here, that directly affect
    the work that you do. First of all, I want to applaud those of you who
    have been in the forefront of dealing with the consequences of tobacco
    to young people in your States.
        As you know, this administration has worked on that very hard. We
    promulgated the Synar regulation to try to help you do what you are
    trying to do in your States. And we will do everything we can to help
    you implement those Synar rules as easily and effectively as possible.
        No matter how hard we work on that, I'm convinced that it won't be
    enough. Young people are barraged constantly by messages that glamour
    and grit can be found in a package of cigarettes. And we believe that we
    must act much more strongly to make cigarettes less accessible and to
    make children less subject to the lures of the advertising. And in that
    connection, I know that 27 of you wrote to the FDA in support of those
    objectives. I want to thank you for that. It seems to me that all the
    evidence clearly indicates that we have to continue to move on this
    front. It is the most serious public health problem that our young
    people face; 3,000 of them a day begin to smoke illegally, and 1,000
    will have their lives shortened as a result.
        The second thing I want to mention is to thank you for the
    partnership we've enjoyed in the fight to reduce crime and violence. The
    police program is continuing apace. We're actually slightly ahead of
    schedule in the goal of putting 100,000 more police officers on the
    street. There is now broad recognition in the country that the community
    policing strategy is central to the successful efforts that many, many
    communities have enjoyed in bringing down the crime rate. It's one of
    the good news stories of the United States in the last few years. And we
    will continue to do that.
        We also have worked hard with you on a number of other areas in the
    crime bill. I want to mention, if I might, one other thing that's
    especially important, and that is the issue of gun violence. The Brady
    bill, which became the Brady law, has now directly resulted in over
    60,000 people with criminal records being denied access to guns. And it
    is working well, and I think it has proved, beyond even some of us who
    supported it--even beyond our expectations, that it can make a
    difference.
        As you know, we've had a recent controversy here in Washington with
    the attempt in the House of Representatives, which was successful in the
    House, to repeal the assault weapons ban. It is not presently scheduled
    for a vote in the Senate yet, but the people who got it voted on in the
    House certainly haven't given

    [[Page 508]]

    up, and there are a lot of people on record in support of repealing it
    in the Senate. So I ask you for your support on that. It would be a
    mistake. This country needs a lot of things, but it does not need more
    assault weapons. And we now have been through one good set of hunting
    seasons in every State in America, and so every hunter who was told that
    that assault weapon ban represented some threat to his or her ability to
    go out and hunt deer in the deer seasons, or ducks in my home State, now
    knows that was not true.
        And if it does get to my desk, of course I will veto it, and I'm
    confident the veto will be sustained. But this should not be brought
    back up. This should not even be a subject of debate in the United
    States. But it is still very much alive and well, and so I ask you for
    your help and your support in that regard.
        We have got to continue to work on this crime problem until--
    everybody knows we will never totally eliminate crime in America; we
    can't transform human nature. But I do believe if we work at it we can
    get back to the time when people turn on the evening news and they see a
    horrible crime story, they're surprised instead of numb to it. And that
    is, I think, the goal we ought to set for ourselves, that it should
    become the exception rather than the rule.
        And again--I know that I speak for the Attorney General--we have
    enjoyed working with all of you, and we're glad to be here, and we want
    to answer some of your questions. I think we'll have a chance to visit
    after we conclude the public portion of this meeting, but I thank you
    very much.
        I asked the Attorney General if she wanted to give a speech. She
    said, no, you're coming to see her this afternoon. [Laughter]
        Terry [Terence Hunt, Associated Press].

    China and Taiwan

        Q. Mr. President, do you think that China and Taiwan are at a
    turning point now?
        The President. Do you mean, do I think the tensions are going down?
        Q. Right, where do you think this is going?
        The President. Well, I hope they are. I was encouraged by some
    statements that came out of both sides in the aftermath of the election.
    And so I hope that is what is going on.

    Note: The President spoke at 11:36 a.m. in the Roosevelt Room at the
    White House. In his remarks, he referred to Tom Udall, New Mexico
    attorney general, and Scott Harshbarger, Massachusetts attorney general,
    association president and president-elect, respectively.