    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1997, Book II)]
    [October 4, 1997]
    [Pages 1287-1288]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    The President's Radio Address
    October 4, 1997

        Good morning. Today I want to talk about our responsibility for
    raising our children and strengthening our families. Six years ago
    yesterday, when I announced that I would seek the Presidency, I said
    that our greatness depends upon our ability to create opportunity for
    all, get responsibility from all, and build a community of all
    Americans; and that the role of Government was to give our people the
    tools and establish the environment that would enable them to build that
    kind of America. I also said that nothing would ever replace the
    fundamental role of citizens' responsibility.
        That is nowhere more important than when it comes to the family. The
    family is the cornerstone of our society. It unites us across all our
    faiths. This week, for example, Jewish parents at Rosh Hashana say a
    blessing for the family and over their children. The United States
    Catholic Conference has noted, ``The most important work to help our
    children is done quietly--in our homes and neighborhoods, in our
    parishes and community organizations. No government can love a child and
    no policy can substitute for a family's care, but clearly,'' the
    Catholic Conference has noted, ``families can be helped or hurt'' by the
    actions of government.
        Here we have tried to help families. From improving our schools to
    helping parents reconcile the demands of work and childrearing, to
    expanding access to college and health care, to punishing domestic
    violence, families have always been at the heart of our concerns. We
    have worked hard to help parents take responsibility for their children
    and even to require that as much as we can.

    [[Page 1288]]

        We passed the family leave law to allow parents to take some time
    off to care for sick children or welcome new babies. We've raised the
    minimum wage and increased the earned-income tax credit so that
    Americans who work full time will be able to raise their children out of
    poverty. We cracked down on deadbeat dads, increasing child support
    collection by 50 percent. We're building a new system of welfare that
    promotes work and responsible parenting. And we're doing everything we
    can to punish domestic violence and to reduce it. And of course, the
    strong economy we have helped to build has created millions of high-
    paying jobs, bringing dignity, stability, and opportunity for millions
    of families.
        This has been an important concern of all the members of our
    administration for a long time. Even before we took office, the Vice
    President and Tipper Gore had begun holding their annual family
    conferences in Nashville, exploring all the various challenges facing
    our families in their efforts to stay together and raise their children.
    And the First Lady has been working on these issues for 25 years. Soon
    she'll be holding a national conference here on child care to help
    people get affordable, accessible quality child care. And she's raised
    some brave questions, like whether we ought to toughen our divorce laws
    to make it more difficult for parents to walk away from their children.
        But the most important work always is done in the hearts and homes
    of individuals. And it's clear to everyone that in recent decades too
    many parents, especially men, have not taken their responsibilities
    seriously enough to their families, their children, and themselves. And
    there are serious consequences. We know, for example, that the simple
    failure to pay child support is one of the chief reasons women and
    children are on welfare. And this week, the Vice President and Secretary
    Riley released a report showing that when fathers do take an active
    role, their children do better--much better--in school.
        The need for men to take responsibility for themselves and their
    families is something that unites Americans of all faiths and
    backgrounds and beliefs. A couple of years ago we had a Million Man
    March in the District of Columbia which highlighted the importance of
    African-American men building families and raising their children and
    taking responsibility. There were many people who had a lot of political
    differences with some of the speakers, but no one questioned the need or
    the sincerity of the hundreds of thousands of men who came from all
    across America to reaffirm their personal responsibility for their
    children.
        Today, thousands of members of a Christian men's organization,
    Promise Keepers, are meeting on The Mall in Washington. Again, there are
    those who have political differences with some of the statements which
    have been made by some leaders of the organization. But again, no one
    can question the sincerity of the hundreds of thousands of men who have
    filled football stadiums across our country and who are willing to
    reassume their responsibilities to their families and to their children
    and, therefore, to our future. Their presence here is yet another
    example of the Nation's understanding and attention to the need to
    strengthen our families. There is nothing more important.
        When all of us, men and women, take responsibility for raising our
    children and passing on our values, our families are strengthened. And
    when our families are stronger, America is stronger.
        When I think of how many parents there are out there like my mother
    who sacrifice to raise their children, when Hillary and I look with
    bittersweet pride at our own daughter going off to college now, I'm more
    acutely aware than ever of the special responsibilities and the
    wonderful rewards of parenthood. For me, there has been no job, even the
    Presidency, that is more important. And that should be true for all
    mothers and fathers. The future of our children is truly in our hands.
        Thank for listening.

    Note: The President spoke at 10:06 a.m. from the Oval Office at the
    White House.