    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1996, Book II)]
    [August 31, 1996]
    [Pages 1437-1438]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    The President's Radio Address
    August 31, 1996

        Good morning. On this bright Labor Day weekend I'm speaking to you
    from America's heartland, where Vice President Gore, Hillary, Tipper,
    and I are traveling by bus through the small towns and lush farmland of
    Missouri, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, and my home State of Arkansas.
        I took my train trip to Chicago and this bus trip after Chicago
    because I wanted to look into the faces, the eyes, the hearts of the
    people of our country who work so hard every day, the people I've been
    working hard for and fighting for the last 4 years. I just wish every
    American could have been with me--could have been with me just to see
    the hope and the courage of the people I've met. We're meeting a lot of
    people with big dreams, American dreams. And our American community
    should help these people to realize their dreams. Today I want to talk
    to you about what we can do to help America's working families make the
    most of their own lives.
        It is clearer to me than ever before we are on the right track to
    the 21st century. Our economy is growing, creating opportunity for
    people. Just this week we got new news of how our economy is moving
    forward and creating opportunity. Consumer confidence is the highest in
    years, and in the most recent statistics, economic growth hit 4.8
    percent.
        In the past couple of weeks we've made real progress for working
    families. Ten million Americans got an increase in their incomes when we
    increased the minimum wage law. The same law also protected the pensions
    of small-business people and made it easier for employees of small
    businesses to get retirement security and to keep it when they move from
    job to job.
        We passed a $5,000 tax credit to encourage people to adopt children.
    We passed the Kennedy-Kassebaum bill so you don't lose your health
    insurance if you move from job to job or if a member of your family has
    been sick. This Labor Day, it's a time of real progress

    [[Page 1438]]

    and real opportunity for America's working people.
        But all this progress doesn't mean we can stand still. We still have
    a lot to do to get ready for the 21st century. As I told our Nation
    Thursday night, we can have an America with safe streets, good schools,
    thriving businesses, healthy families, and a strong, clean environment.
    That's the America that I want to build a bridge to, a bridge to the
    21st century.
        We should make college available to all young Americans. Now that
    we've ended welfare as we know it, it must be a national mission to
    provide jobs for the people who will move off welfare. We must clean up
    two-thirds of the toxic waste sites in America, so our children live
    near parks, not poison.
        We can do more, much more, to give every American family the
    security that comes from owning their own home. A home of your own has
    always been at the center of American life. It gives families security
    and pride. For most families it's the main form of financial savings.
    Owning a home gives every young couple a stake in the American dream.
        Our administration has put in place a comprehensive strategy to
    increase homeownership, including dramatically bringing down mortgage
    rates. In the last 4 years, 4.4 million more Americans became
    homeowners; that's the highest level in 15 years. Home sales are rising
    over twice as fast this year as in each of the past 3 years. I'm
    especially pleased by this good news because it shows that our
    comprehensive strategy for homeownership is working.
        By cutting paperwork at the FHA and giving families a break, we're
    cutting the average closing costs for first-time homebuyers by about
    $1,000. By cutting the Federal budget deficit by more than 60 percent,
    we've had on average the lowest home mortgage rates in 30 years. And as
    interest rates dropped, 10 million homeowners refinanced their
    mortgages, all of them together saving as much as $25 billion.
        This week I propose to do even more. We should say that if a couple
    sells their home and the increase in value is up to $500,000, they will
    not have to pay any tax on the gain from the sale of that home. This can
    help millions of American older couples selling their homes to retire,
    middle class families who have to move from community to community for
    work, residents in inner-city neighborhoods where home prices are low
    but may go higher. It will spur home sales in an already strong housing
    market.
        For working families, their home is the most important asset, their
    biggest financial investment. Our tax cut means that working families
    will never have to pay taxes when they sell their homes. That's the
    right kind of tax cut for America.
        This tax cut, like every one I've proposed, is fully paid for in my
    balanced budget plan. We won't bust the budget to pay for tax cuts.
    We'll cut spending and close corporate loopholes. That way we'll keep
    interest rates coming down as we balance the budget, so the economy can
    grow even faster and stronger.
        We should cut taxes to help working families meet their real needs
    for education, for medical expenses, to help raise children, and for
    homebuying. These tax cuts will help our economy. It will help to keep
    America growing. I look forward to taking our argument for opportunity,
    responsibility, and community to the American people.
        On this Labor Day weekend, I know that our values are strong, our
    confidence is high, and hope is back in America. We are on the right
    track. This will be an age of great possibility for our people. If we
    give every American the tools to thrive, the chance to own their own
    home, this coming century can be the greatest moment in American
    history. We need to build a bridge to it.
        Happy Labor Day, and thanks for listening.

    Note: The address was recorded at 4:30 p.m. on August 30 aboard the
    President's bus, Greyhound One, in Capaha Park in Cape Girardeau, MO,
    for broadcast at 10:06 a.m. on August 31.