    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1997, Book II)]
    [December 2, 1997]
    [Pages 1688-1690]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Remarks Announcing the Appointment of Togo D. West, Jr., as Acting
    Secretary of Veterans Affairs and an Exchange With Reporters
    December 2, 1997

        The President. Good morning, everyone. Togo and Gail West, and
    Hershel Gober and the distinguished representatives of our veterans
    organizations--we have people here from the American Legion, the VFW,
    Disabled American Veterans, Am-Vets, Paralyzed Veterans of America,
    Vietnam Veterans, Gold Star Mothers and Gold Star Wives, Retired
    Officers Association, and the G.I. Forum. I thank you all for coming.
        Before I begin I think it is important that I say just a few words
    about the tragic killing of the three high school students in Paducah
    yesterday. Like all Americans, I was shocked and heartbroken by the
    terrible news, which I followed very closely when it broke. Of course,
    we still don't know all the facts surrounding the tragedy or why a 14-
    year-old boy would take a pistol and open fire on his classmates in a
    prayer group. We may never know, but we must redouble our efforts to
    protect all our children from violence and to make sure our schools are
    free from violence and the means to wreak it.
        I believe that I speak for every American in sending our thoughts
    and prayers to the parents of Kayce Steger, Jessica James, Nicole
    Hadley, and the wounded children and the entire community of West
    Paducah.
        Today I have the pleasure of appointing Togo West to be Acting
    Secretary of the Department of Veterans Affairs. When Congress
    reconvenes, I will nominate him to become Secretary. I know he will
    bring the same excellence and leadership to the Department we saw under
    the stewardship of Secretary Jesse Brown and Acting Secretary Hershel
    Gober. These men are truly dedicated to our Nation's veterans. They help

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    us every day to do right by the men and women who have served the United
    States.
        Togo West's entire life has been dedicated to excellence and
    commitment. From his experience as an Army officer, to his work in the
    Ford and Carter administrations, to his outstanding work as Secretary of
    the Army, he has always understood the special responsibility we owe to
    our men and women in uniform both during and after their years of
    service.
        Three years ago, Secretary West told the graduating class at West
    Point, ``You teach the life you live.'' As long as I have known him he
    has lived this idea, teaching all around him by his example of his
    devotion to family, church, and country.
        I'm grateful for his exceptional service as Secretary of the Army.
    So are the men and women in the Army. His leadership helped make the
    Army part of the greatest, best prepared, most modern fighting force in
    the world. And he's made sure we take good care of our Army families.
    They, too, serve with our soldiers.
        Having supported our men and women in uniform, Togo West will now
    turn to the equally important task of taking care of the veterans whose
    deeds ensured the survival of America's ideals. I'm confident he'll
    bring a strong voice to the Cabinet on these and other matters and that
    he will ably champion the enduring interests of our veterans.
        Would you like to say a word?

    [At this point, Secretary West thanked the President and made brief
    remarks.]

        The President. Thank you, Togo.

    Attorney General Reno's Decision

        Q. Mr. President, have you already been informed of Janet Reno's
    decision on whether to recommend that an independent counsel be named?
        The President. No.
        Q. Well, could you tell us how you feel, in these hours before
    you're officially informed, over this apparent rift between two of your
    appointees, Janet Reno and the FBI Director, Louis Freeh, who seem to be
    disagreeing strongly on whether or not there should be an independent
    counsel?
        The President. I don't have any particular feelings about it. All I
    know about it is what I've seen in the press. I think what I would like
    to emphasize to you is what I have said all along here: This is a
    decision of law vested in the Attorney General, which should be made
    based on the law. I don't believe people outside the Department should
    attempt to influence the decision, and I have not. And I think that the
    Attorney General just has to make the decision, consulting with anyone,
    including the FBI Director, whom she chooses, and then making the
    decision she believes is right.
        That's what a lot of these jobs involve. I've made a lot of
    decisions that not everybody who works for me agrees with. That's part
    of life. And I think we should let her make the decision and then,
    whatever the decision is, we should get on with the business of America,
    and the Justice Department should get on with the business of protecting
    the people of America.

    Medicare Commission

        Q.  Mr. President, how do you view this ``no new tax'' pledge that
    Speaker Gingrich is demanding of those that he has chosen for the
    Medicare commission?
        The President. Well, I don't know exactly what to make of it and
    exactly what it covers. In terms of taxes, per se, I personally don't
    know that we need any taxes to reform the Medicare system. I hate to see
    the commissioners themselves have their hands tied at the outset,
    because I think we want them to be free to look at this Medicare system
    over the long run.
        After all, we now have--in the balanced budget agreement and with
    the savings incurred back in '93, we now have put more than a decade of
    life on the Medicare system. The Trust Fund is secure now for a decade,
    and perhaps more, depending on how well the reforms that we enacted this
    year work. And so what we want this commission to do is take a look at
    what the impact of the retirement of the baby boomers will be, what the
    impact of increasing lifespans will be, and the new technologies and all
    the opportunities also to save money with preventive strategies under
    Medicare and take a long look at it.
        I had not assumed that they would actually recommend any tax
    increases in Medicare, which, to me, is different from the cost that
    consumers have when they buy into the program. But I don't want to tie
    their hands unduly. I want them to look at it and be free to look at it,
    and I hope that that's what they'll do.
        I think we're going to have an interesting commission of a large
    number of Members of

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    Congress, because both the Republicans and the Democrats appointed
    significant numbers of Members of Congress but also some from outside as
    well. And we've all pretty well had our members, I think, for some time.
    We've been trying--I haven't named mine yet, by and large, because we
    were trying to reach agreement on exactly how the chairmanship would be
    handled. We haven't quite got that done yet, but I expect it to be done
    within the next day or two.

    Attorney General Reno's Decision

        Q. Mr. President, when you said you didn't think that any outsiders
    should impact on Attorney General Reno's decision, whom were you
    referring to? Were you referring to Freeh or to Members of Congress or--
    --
        The President. No, no. No, he's an insider. I mean, he--and of
    course, there is the Justice Department division; there's a whole
    division of professionals who deal with these kinds of cases all the
    time. And I'm sure that--at least I assume that they've made
    recommendations to her as well. They should all make their
    recommendations, and then she has to decide.
        But I believe it should be a decision based strictly on the law and
    not outside political pressure. And I have scrupulously avoided saying
    anything one way or the other, publicly or privately, that would be that
    kind of thing. I just don't think the rest of us should be involved in
    this. This is a legal question.
        Q. Are you still uncertain on whether you made any calls from the
    White House--fundraising?
        The President. I've met with the Justice Department, as you know;
    I've answered them all. I don't have anything to add to what I've
    already said on that.
        Press Secretary Mike McCurry. Thank you, Mr. President.
        Q. Mr. President, can I just elaborate--despite Mike McCurry's
    suggestion that I--[laughter]--on this relationship that you have with
    Louis Freeh and with Janet Reno. You've in the past suggested that the
    strains resulting from all these investigations has hampered your
    ability as President to deal with the other chief law enforcement
    authorities in the country. Has this become a real problem, and how will
    it play out irrespective of Janet Reno's decision?
        The President. Well, after the decision is over, when she makes a
    decision, whatever the decision is, I would expect that things will
    return to normal because we'll go back to work. I just want everybody to
    go back to work here. We've got serious law enforcement challenges both
    beyond our borders and within our country. And the most important thing
    is that everybody does the people's work up there, that we get back to
    the business of protecting the American people and dealing with those
    challenges.
        And I think that that's what we're expected to do, that's what we
    got hired to do, and we shouldn't let anything interfere with that. And
    I don't intend to let anything interfere with my efforts there. But I
    thought it was appropriate to limit any personal contacts I had during
    this period of time because I didn't even want the appearance to be out
    there that there would be any attempt to influence a decision. I don't
    think that's right. This is a legal decision; it ought to be made on the
    facts.
        And a lot of the political rhetoric that's been in the press in the
    last several months I think is entirely inappropriate because there is a
    legal--there's a statute here, and we cannot get in the position in this
    country of basically bringing politics to bear on every legal decision
    that has to be made. That's not the right way to do this.
        Thank you.

    Note: The President spoke at 10:50 a.m. in the Roosevelt Room at the
    White House. In his remarks, he referred to Kayce Steger, Jessica James,
    and Nicole Hadley, Heath High School students killed by gunfire
    following a prayer meeting in West Paducah, KY; and Michael Carneal, the
    alleged gunman.