[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1997, Book I)]
[March 19, 1997]
[Pages 324-326]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]



Remarks Announcing the Nomination of George J. Tenet To Be Director of 
Central Intelligence and an Exchange With Reporters
March 19, 1997

    The President. Good afternoon. I have just completed a very 
productive meeting with the Senate and House chairs and ranking minority 
members of the Budget Committee, and all of you know I'm about to leave 
in a few hours for Helsinki for my meeting with President Yeltsin. But 
before we discuss those things, I want to announce my intention to 
nominate George Tenet, who is standing here with me with his family, 
currently the Acting Director of the CIA, as the Director of Central 
Intelligence.
    He brings a wealth of experience and skill to the challenge of 
leading our intelligence community into the 21st century. Beginning in 
1995, he served with real distinction as Deputy Director under John 
Deutch. Prior to that, he was my senior aide for intelligence at the 
National Security Council. He did a superb job of helping to set out our 
intelligence priorities for new challenges. And at the CIA, he has 
played a pivotal role in putting these priorities into place and leading 
the intelligence community in meeting the demands of the post-cold-war 
world.
    As the longtime staff director of the Senate Select Committee on 
Intelligence, George Tenet understands the essential role Congress must 
play in the intelligence community's work. Since joining our 
administration, he has maintained a strong relationship in Congress. He 
knows well the concerns of the intelligence community as well. He knows 
that I must have the unvarnished truth. He knows how critical timely, 
reliable intelligence is to our Nation's security. I'm proud to nominate 
him for this vital job and very grateful for the service that he has 
rendered to our administration and to our country.
    George.

[At this point, Director-designate Tenet thanked the President and made 
brief remarks.]

    The President. Thank you.
    Mr. Tenet. Thank you.
    The President. Congratulations. Thank you.
    Q. Do you think he will be confirmed?
    The President. I do.
    Q. Why?
    The President. Well, because he's well-known to the Senate and well-
respected by Republicans as well as Democrats.
    Q. Mr. President----

Efforts To Balance the Budget and Summit in Helsinki, Finland

    The President. Let me finish my statement.
    Our first order of business when I get back from Helsinki must be to 
finish the job of balancing the budget. We have to do it this year. 
Recent statements by the leaders of the Republican Party in both the 
Senate and the House have given new impetus to this hope, and today we 
began to build on that momentum.
    When I met with the Republican chairs and the ranking Democratic 
members of the Senate and House Budget Committees, along with our budget 
team, including Erskine Bowles, Secretary Rubin, Director Raines, NEC 
Chair Sperling, Legislative Director Hilley, and the Council of Economic 
Advisers Chair, Janet Yellen--of course, along with the Vice President--
we agreed that, during the recess, they will begin an effort to reduce 
the differences among us in topics including Medicare and Medicaid, 
other entitlements, national defense, domestic spending, revenues, and 
other issues relevant to the budget, so that when I meet with the 
bipartisan leadership after Congress' Easter recess, we will be ready to 
make rapid progress until we reach a balanced budget agreement.
    We agree on the goal. We have agreed on a schedule to start 
discussion. Now comes the hard work of writing the agreement, dollar by 
dollar, program by program, issue by issue. We have circled these issues 
long enough. It's time now to give the American people a balanced 
budget, and I believe we will do it and do it this year.
    Tonight I'm leaving for Helsinki for my 11th meeting with Boris 
Yeltsin, Russia's President. Not too long ago, it was historic whenever 
the President of the United States and the leader

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of Russia met. Today, our meetings have become almost routine as we work 
through problems and build cooperation. The increasing normalcy of our 
ties make it easy to lose sight of the great opportunity that lies 
before us now. We will focus on three important areas: first, on moving 
forward with our work to build a Europe that is undivided, democratic, 
and at peace for the first time in the history of the Continent; second, 
on continuing to reduce the danger of weapons of mass destruction; and 
third, on expanding the economic partnership that is good for Americans 
and Russians alike.
    In Europe, we can complete the work that was only half-finished a 
half-century ago by bringing stability and prosperity to all the people 
on that continent. That work begins with NATO, the anchor of Europe's 
security. We are adapting NATO to take on new missions, enlarging NATO 
to take in new members, strengthening NATO's partnership with 
nonmembers, and seeking to build a robust partnership between NATO and 
Russia, a relationship that makes Russia a true partner of the alliance.
    In Helsinki, we'll discuss the outlines of a NATO-Russia charter 
that NATO Secretary General Solana and Foreign Minister Primakov are 
negotiating. I believe NATO and Russia should consult regularly and 
should act jointly whenever possible, just as we are doing today in 
Bosnia.
    Our two nations have a responsibility also to continue to lead the 
world away from the nuclear threat. We have already made remarkable 
progress, from signing the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty to extending 
the Non-Proliferation Treaty to bringing START I into force. Now we hope 
to see the Russian Duma ratify START II. Together with START I, it will 
cut arsenals by two-thirds from their cold war height. Just think about 
it; we will, with START I and START II, cut our arsenals by two-thirds 
from their cold war height. But we also want to do more. President 
Yeltsin and I will discuss possible guidelines for further reductions 
under START III.
    Finally, we will focus on Russia's efforts to build a stable and 
prosperous market economy. The Russian people have made remarkable 
strides in a short time. They have created a private sector where once 
there was none. They've slashed inflation and stabilized the ruble.
    Now the challenge is to create a climate that actually attracts more 
investment and promotes more trade so that Russia will have real 
economic growth and that that real growth will reach ordinary citizens. 
President Yeltsin and I will discuss the steps both of us will take to 
create that climate.
    I'm encouraged by the new economic team President Yeltsin announced 
this week. It underscores Russia's commitment to continued reform. This 
is a time of extraordinary opportunity for America and for Russia, 
indeed, for the entire world.
    I look forward to my meetings with President Yeltsin and to our 
common efforts to build a broad foundation for progress, prosperity, 
partnership, and peace in the 21st century. I look forward to balancing 
the budget, and I look forward to George Tenet becoming the next 
Director of Central Intelligence. This is a good day.

Director of Central Intelligence Nomination

    Q. Mr. President, your decision to move so quickly with this 
announcement--is that a sign that you are concerned about the morale 
within the intelligence community?
    The President. No, but it is a sign that I believe that we should 
not leave these positions vacant long, particularly in the national 
security area, but throughout the Government. You know, the Vice 
President and I have worked very hard to reform and to reduce the size 
of Government, and the Federal employees have taken on increasing 
responsibilities. But we believe where there is a mission, it ought to 
be done and done well, and we ought to keep the morale high and keep the 
direction clear.
    You can't have a ship without a captain, and we need to get after 
it. And I think George Tenet is clearly the best qualified person to 
move quickly into the leadership. He has been the Acting Director, he 
did an outstanding job as John Deutch's deputy, he did a terrific job 
here for us in the National Security Council on intelligence matters, 
and he has the confidence of many, many in the Congress in both parties. 
So I didn't see any point in waiting around. We need to get this done 
and go on.

Russia and NATO

    Q. Mr. President, if you want an undivided Europe, why are you 
leaving Russia out? Why

[[Page 326]]

don't you take her into NATO and make it all one big, happy family?
    The President. First of all, I have never left Russia out. I have 
explicitly said in every speech that I have made about this subject that 
I do not believe Russia should be excluded from NATO membership. I'm not 
sure that Russia would not prefer a special charter between Russia and 
NATO; that's what we're trying to achieve now. But I would be the last 
person to try to exclude them. I don't believe anybody should be 
excluded.
    Q. Do you think she would join?
    The President. I don't know. As I said, it's my belief that at this 
moment in time, Russia would prefer to have a charter setting out a 
relationship between NATO and Russia. But I would never exclude them 
from membership.
    Look, I am trying to build a world for our children and 
grandchildren that will not repeat the worst of the 20th century and 
will take advantage of the best that the future offers.
    Q. That's my point, that the two World Wars were started by nations 
being isolated, Versailles, Yalta, and so forth.
    The President. That's why we've tried to get--right now, it's so 
hard to have a special charter between Russia and NATO, that's why we 
have made it clear that NATO is not an aggressive organization trying to 
limit, restrict, or undermine anyone who wants to treat their neighbors 
with respect and work in concert the way Russia and NATO and the United 
States particularly are working together in Bosnia.
    I'll see you in Helsinki.
    The Vice President. Mr. President, Helen [Helen Thomas, United Press 
International] played Madeleine at the Gridiron, and I think she's still 
in the role. [Laughter]
    The President. Just come get on the plane. Believe me, I missed you, 
and I missed him, and I'm really sorry I missed you both.
    Q. He was fabulous.
    The President. I ought to----
    Q. And you did pretty good.

Note: The President spoke at 4:49 p.m. in the Red Room at the White 
House. In his remarks, he referred to NATO Secretary General Javier 
Solana and Minister of Foreign Affairs Yevgeniy Primakov of Russia.