[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1996, Book II)]
[October 4, 1996]
[Pages 1752-1753]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]



Exchange With Reporters in Chautauqua, New York
October 4, 1996

Middle East Peace Process

    The President. Good morning, everyone.
    Q. Is Christopher going to the Middle East this weekend, Mr. 
President?
    The President. It's entirely possible. We discussed it, and I think 
he's probably finalized his plans by now. I told him that I wanted him 
to go there for the beginning of the talks, which start, as you know, on 
Sunday morning. And he's supposed to go to Africa, and I asked him not 
to cancel the trip to Africa but to go to the Middle East first. So I'm 
assuming that those plans were made and that he'll be there in the 
beginning.

Presidential Debate

    Q. Mr. President, how's the debate training going, sir? And what 
makes you think you need much training after all the speeches you make 
and the news conferences you've been through over the last 4 years?
    The President. Debates are different, because it's not just 
answering tough questions. You--basically, there's the person you're 
debating, the other candidate, plus the interlocutor, plus the time 
constraints, so that really I'm--Senator Mitchell won last night. 
[Laughter] I am badly out of shape on this, but I'm trying to get 
better. And I woke up this morning and sort of massaged my bruises, and 
I'm ready to go at it again. [Laughter]

Presidential Pardons

    Q. When Mr. Dole asks you whether you're going to give Whitewater 
pardons and why your administration has been clouded by ethical 
problems, what will your response be?
    The President. Well, tune in tomorrow. I'm going to answer the same 
thing I have already.

[[Page 1753]]

There aren't any under consideration, and I haven't given any thought to 
giving any. That's not the issue. I just said I think that nobody should 
be singled out for special treatment one way or the other, including 
discrimination against them or discrimination in favor of them. There's 
a procedure for that that everyone follows, and there is absolutely no 
consideration being given to that.

Presidential Debate

    Q. Sir, they tell us they are going to----
    Q. Mr. President, do you expect Senator Dole to go on the attack? Do 
you expect Senator----
    Q. ----tell us that they're going to help you, in that sense, 
control your temper if you should get some of these. Is that a problem 
for you, do you think?
    The President. No, but I think--what we do often is I give the 
answer I'd like to give, and then I go back and give the answer I should 
give if somebody takes a real broadside at me. [Laughter] No, we're--I 
think the most important thing is to remember that this debate is as 
much about the American people and their lives and their future as it is 
about Senator Dole and me. And so what I want to be able to do--and my 
objectives are fairly straightforward and basically quite simple--I want 
to make sure that the voters know what the record is, they know what the 
contrasts are between Senator Dole and me, and most important of all, 
that they know what I intend to do for the next 4 years. And then they 
can make up their own minds.
    I think my goal here is to make sure that the people actually get 
something out of this debate other than just sort of an exercise in who 
does a better job in outwitting someone else. That's--I think it ought 
to be something that's genuinely informative, and I'm going to try to 
make it that way.
    Press Secretary Mike McCurry. Thank you, Mr. President.
    Q. Mr. President, the polls being the way they are, a lot of people 
are wondering how much importance this debate really is. What do you 
think?
    The President. Oh, I think it's quite important. I think the 
American people care a lot about their country. I think they know we're 
going through a period of real, profound change, and that these 
decisions we're going to make in the next couple of years will affect 
our country well into the 21st century.

1996 Election

    Q. Do you think you're going to carry western New York, Chautauqua 
country, if you will?
    The President. I hope so. I've met some awful nice people here who 
say they're working for us up here and trying to help us win here. It's 
unusual, as you know, for a Democrat to carry here, but I'm hoping we 
will, and I feel pretty good about it.

Presidential Debate

    Q. Senator, is the President low-balling us when he tells us you 
beat him yesterday?
    Former Senator George J. Mitchell. Well, I'll say----
    The President. Tell the truth, George. You beat me like a drum. 
[Laughter] You kicked me all over the place last night. Tell the truth.
    Senator Mitchell. Well, let me say this: I served as majority leader 
in the Senate for 6 years while Senator Dole was minority leader, so I 
debated him probably more than any other person, and I know just how 
effective he is. Senator Dole is a highly skilled debater, and I think 
he's going to be tough in this debate coming up on Sunday. But the 
President, I think, will do all right.
    Q. Mr. President, what do you remember most from the debates 4 years 
ago? What sticks out in your mind--the last time you went through this?
    The President. Oh, no question about it, the townhall debate, the 
citizens debate, and the richness and variety and the relevance of the 
questions that the citizens asked, and how little they were into 
politics and positioning and how much they were into the substance of 
their own lives and the future. I was very, very impressed by the 
questions that the American people asked who were part of that debate. 
That's the thing I will always remember.

Note: The exchange began at 10:30 a.m. outside the Hotel Athenaeum. A 
tape was not available for verification of the content of this exchange.