[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1997, Book I)]
[March 11, 1997]
[Pages 284-285]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]



Remarks at a Reception for Senator Byron L. Dorgan
March 11, 1997

    Thank you. I'm delighted to be on the stage with 40 percent of all 
the Democrats from North Dakota. [Laughter] You know, in 1974 it took 
three of them to lose the race for Congress; I did it at home all by 
myself. [Laughter] And I now know why they lost. The only person who 
should have been talking up here was Kim. [Laughter] And she hasn't said 
a word. I made her go out first tonight so I knew we'd get an applause 
instead of a boo. [Laughter]
    I am delighted to be here. I am honored to be here with Senator 
Dorgan and Senator Conrad and Congressman Pomeroy. The three of them 
represent what I hope and believe, philosophically and in terms of their 
commitment to public service and the way they do their work, is not just 
the future of our party but the future of our country, because they have 
repeatedly been willing to stand up and make tough decisions, some of 
which are popular with the electorate back home in North Dakota and may 
not be so popular with people here in Washington, some of which are not 
popular anywhere, but they just think they're right.
    And I have a special feeling for Byron Dorgan. I followed his career 
long before he became a Senator, and I admired mightily what he did in 
North Dakota. Kent said he was voted the most powerful politician in 
North Dakota, and he said that he was sure that the person handling the 
revenues in Arkansas wasn't the most powerful person in the State. 
Actually, he was; I just had sense enough to make sure the folks didn't 
know that. [Laughter] I don't know how he got out of that box.
    I really admire him. He deserves to be reelected. I'm glad you're 
here to help him. And I'd just like to remind you of a couple of things 
that often get lost in the hurly-burly of daily events around here. 
Thanks in no small measure to the leadership that he has exerted and the 
support that he has given, we reversed more than a decade of trickle-
down, supply-side economics and replaced it with invest-and-grow 
economics. And by the narrowest of margin, thanks to his strong support 
and his vote, we reduced the deficit 63 percent, and this economy has 
produced 11\1/2\ million jobs for the first time ever in 4 years and the 
lowest combined rates of unemployment and inflation since the 1960's. 
That's enough to get him reelected. You deserve that.
    In 1992 people talked about problems like crime and welfare as if 
they would always be with us in the same way that they were. But we have 
reversed; trends have declined--working with people all over this 
country--putting 100,000 police on the street; working with States to 
move people from welfare to work, 2\1/4\ million people. Now it will be 
2\1/2\ million when

[[Page 285]]

we get the last total in 4 years, the largest number of people ever to 
move off the welfare rolls. And we have more to do. But that's something 
to be proud of. The crime rate going down every year, that's something 
to be proud of.
    We have reasserted the importance of the family in our social 
policy, with the family and medical leave law, with special tax breaks 
for families with modest incomes, by raising the minimum wage, by 
passing the V-chip legislation and taking on some of these other very 
tough issues. I think it's very important. That's the kind of pro-family 
policy that Senator Dorgan has fought for.
    We have fought for free and for fair trade for America. We're the 
number one exporter in the world again. We had record exports for the 
last 4 years. We've reasserted the leadership role of our country in 
reducing the nuclear threat and taking advantage of the opportunities 
that are out there.
    Now, we've got a lot left to do. We still have to balance the 
budget. People tell me all the time, ``Well, can we keep this recovery 
going?'' The answer is, we can if we do the right things but only if we 
do the right things. The American people are more than doing their part. 
They're willing to keep working. They're willing to keep starting small 
businesses, keep expanding businesses. They're dying to improve their 
education and skills and to become more productive. We have to create 
the conditions and give people the tools to make the most of their own 
lives. If we do it, we'll keep going forward.
    That's what is at stake when Byron Dorgan presents himself to the 
people of North Dakota again. And no one should forget that on the major 
policy questions of the last 4 years, no matter how controversial, no 
matter how tight, no matter how tough, he stood up and cast the right 
vote. And this is a better, stronger country, and his State is better 
and stronger because of it. And he deserves to be rewarded for the 
leadership he's exercised and, most important, for the potential he has 
in the future for balancing the budget, for putting education first 
among our priorities, for doing the right thing to finish the work of 
welfare reform, for dealing with the problems that rural States have 
that are so easy to overlook here in Washington unless you have the kind 
of strong, clear voice that he has exhibited.
    So you're doing a good thing being here for him tonight. And I'm 
glad to be here with him. I am honored to be his friend, honored to work 
with him every day. And I trust that I will have the chance to do that 
until I am term-limited out and he goes on to his just reward. 
[Laughter]
    Thank you, and God bless you all.

Note: The President spoke at 7 p.m. in the John Hay Room at the Hay-
Adams Hotel. In his remarks, he referred to Senator Dorgan's wife, Kim.