[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1996, Book II)]
[August 16, 1996]
[Pages 1298-1299]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]



Exchange With Reporters in Jackson Hole
August 16, 1996

Republican Convention

    Q. Mr. President, what did you think of Dole's speech last night?
    The President. I didn't watch it. I haven't watched any of it.
    Q. How come?
    The President. Because I've been on vacation. I want to let them 
have their convention. I'm looking forward to ours.

President's Vacation

    Q. Are you enjoying your stay here?
    The President. Oh, I'm having a wonderful time, thank you.

Chelsea Clinton's Rock Climbing

    Q. I was the ranger with Chelsea yesterday. She's a good climber.
    The President. Were you there with her?
    Q. Yes.

[[Page 1299]]

    The President. She loved it. You know, she loves that so much.
    Q. She looked pretty good.
    The President. She loves to do it. And I think she'd really like to 
take some more training. She spent 30 days out here in the West last 
summer, and she did some climbing. She was in the mountains; she was in 
valleys and rivers; she did a lot of work. I think she'd like to get 
pretty serious about this climbing business. She's strong, and she's 
flexible.
    Q. Her mother might not be that interested.
    The President. She's strong, and she's flexible and--what?
    Q. Her mother might not be that interested.
    The President. Yes, but she's a pretty prudent person. She's pretty 
safe. But I think if you're strong and flexible and have good balance--
all that ballet training prepared her.
    Q. Yes.
    The President. Well, thanks for saying that.

Republican Convention

    Q. Mr. President, since you didn't see the speech would you like us 
to tell you about it? [Laughter]
    The President. I have an idea that you would edit in a way designed 
to elicit a response. And I wouldn't want to see it in the paper the 
next day. [Laughter]
    Q. There's a risk of that.
    The President. Come on, we can afford to have 2 more days of 
enjoyment, then we can go back and deal with all that. [Laughter]

Note: The exchange began at approximately 10:30 a.m. at the Jackson Hole 
Golf and Tennis Club. A tape was not available for verification of the 
content of this exchange.