    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1997, Book II)]
    [July 1, 1997]
    [Pages i-xiii]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    [[Page i]]

    PUBLIC PAPERS OF THE PRESIDENTS OF THE UNITED STATES

                       PUBLIC PAPERS OF THE PRESIDENTS
                                     OF THE
                                  UNITED STATES

    [[Page ii]

    [[Photographic insert]]

    photographic portfolio

    [[Page iii]]

                         PUBLIC PAPERS OF THE PRESIDENTS
                                     OF THE
                                  UNITED STATES

                               William J. Clinton

    [[GRAPHIC TIFF NOT AVAILABLE]]

                                       1997
                                 (IN TWO BOOKS)

                       BOOK II--JULY 1 TO DECEMBER 31, 1997

                    _____________________________________________
                      United States Government Printing Office
                                 Washington : 1999

    [[Page iv]]

                                Published by the
                         Office of the Federal Register
                  National Archives and Records Administration

                                 For sale by the
                           Superintendent of Documents
                         U.S. Government Printing Office
                              Washington, DC 20402

    [[Page v]]

                                    Foreword

        Nineteen hundred and ninety-seven was a year of great and growing
    confidence for our Nation. America moved forward, forging a new vision
    of how Government can best equip our people for a time of great change.
    After years of partisan division and decades of deficits, the two
    political parties worked together to enact a balanced budget that
    reflected our values and protected our priorities--the first balanced
    budget in a generation.

        This achievement meant much more than numbers on a ledger. Our
    balanced budget heralded a new era of fiscal discipline. It accelerated
    a virtuous cycle of rising economic growth and falling interest rates.
    It did nothing less than save Government from its own excesses, making
    it again a progressive force--one that lives within its means while
    making historic investments in our people. The budget contained the
    biggest increase in aid to higher education since the passage of the GI
    Bill 50 years ago and will open the doors of college to every person
    willing to work for it. The budget also made the largest single
    investment in health care since the creation of Medicaid in 1965 and
    will help provide health coverage for up to 5 million uninsured
    children.

        As I said in September at American University, after years in which
    the two parties seemed capable of little more than conflict, we finally
    found a way for Democrats and Republicans to work together for the
    national interest. America is working again; and now, at long last,
    Washington proved that it could, too.

        I also sought to find common ground and lead our Nation to higher
    ground on another challenge we face at the end of the 20th century, the
    dilemma of race. My Initiative on Race sought to promote a dialogue in
    every community about this issue and develop concrete solutions to
    enduring problems of prejudice and discrimination. For me, the most
    powerful reminder of the distance we can travel together as a Nation
    came on a sunny morning in Little Rock, Arkansas, when we celebrated the
    achievement of the Little Rock Nine. Four decades earlier, on September
    4, 1957, when they tried to enter the doors of Central High, the Little
    Rock Nine were turned away by jeers, threats, and the implacable
    resistance of institutional racism. But on this day, 40 years later,
    when those same individuals walked up the steps of that imposing brick
    building, a President of the United States was there to welcome them and
    hold the door open. We have many steps to climb as we approach the new
    century. But as the Little Rock Nine reminded us, our Nation moves
    forward and upward when we move together, as one America.

    [[Page vii]]

                                     Preface

        This book contains the papers and speeches of the 42d President of
    the United States that were issued by the Office of the Press Secretary
    during the period July 1-December 31, 1997. The material has been
    compiled and published by the Office of the Federal Register, National
    Archives and Records Administration.

        The material is presented in chronological order, and the dates
    shown in the headings are the dates of the documents or events. In
    instances when the release date differs from the date of the document
    itself, that fact is shown in the textnote. Every effort has been made
    to ensure accuracy: Remarks are checked against a tape recording, and
    signed documents are checked against the original. Textnotes and cross
    references have been provided by the editors for purposes of
    identification or clarity. Speeches were delivered in Washington, DC,
    unless indicated. The times noted are local times. All materials that
    are printed full-text in the book have been indexed in the subject and
    name indexes, and listed in the document categories list.

        The Public Papers of the Presidents series was begun in 1957 in
    response to a recommendation of the National Historical Publications
    Commission. An extensive compilation of messages and papers of the
    Presidents covering the period 1789 to 1897 was assembled by James D.
    Richardson and published under congressional authority between 1896 and
    1899. Since then, various private compilations have been issued, but
    there was no uniform publication comparable to the Congressional Record
    or the United States Supreme Court Reports. Many Presidential papers
    could be found only in the form of mimeographed White House releases or
    as reported in the press. The Commission therefore recommended the
    establishment of an official series in which Presidential writings,
    addresses, and remarks of a public nature could be made available.

        The Commission's recommendation was incorporated in regulations of
    the Administrative Committee of the Federal Register, issued under
    section 6 of the Federal Register Act (44 U.S.C. 1506), which may be
    found in title 1, part 10, of the Code of Federal Regulations.

        A companion publication to the Public Papers series, the Weekly
    Compilation of Presidential Documents, was begun in 1965 to provide a
    broader range of Presidential materials on a more timely basis to meet
    the needs of the contemporary reader. Beginning with the administration
    of Jimmy Carter, the Public Papers series expanded its coverage to
    include additional material as printed in the Weekly Compilation. That
    coverage provides a listing of the President's daily schedule and
    meetings, when announced, and other items of general interest issued by
    the Office of the Press Secretary. Also included are lists of the
    President's nominations submitted to the Senate, materials released by
    the Office of the Press Secretary that are not printed full-text in the
    book, and proclamations, Executive orders, and other Presidential
    documents released by the Office of the Press Secretary and published in
    the Federal Register. This information appears in the appendixes at the
    end of the book.

        Volumes covering the administrations of Presidents Hoover, Truman,
    Eisenhower, Kennedy, Johnson, Nixon, Ford, Carter, Reagan, and Bush are
    also included in the Public Papers series.

    [[Page viii]]

        The Public Papers of the Presidents publication program is under the
    direction of Frances D. McDonald, Managing Editor, Office of the Federal
    Register. The series is produced by the Presidential and Legislative
    Publications Unit, Gwen H. Estep, Chief. The Chief Editor of this book
    was Karen Howard Ashlin, assisted by Scott Andreae, Brad Brooks, Anna
    Glover, Margaret A. Hemmig, Maxine Hill, Michael Hoover, Alfred Jones,
    Jennifer S. Mangum, Michael J. Sullivan, and Karen A. Thornton.

        The frontispiece and photographs used in the portfolio were supplied
    by the White House Photo Office. The typography and design of the book
    were developed by the Government Printing Office under the direction of
    Michael F. DiMario, Public Printer.

    Raymond A. Mosley
    Director of the Federal Register

    John W. Carlin
    Archivist of the United States

    [[Page ix]]

                                    Contents

         Foreword . . . v

         Preface . . . vii

         Cabinet . . . xi

         Public Papers of William J. Clinton,
         July 1--December 31, 1997 . . . 895

         Appendix A
         Digest of Other White House Announcements . . . 1829

         Appendix B
         Nominations Submitted to the Senate . . . 1845

         Appendix C
         Checklist of White House Press Releases . . . 1857

         Appendix D
         Presidential Documents Published in the Federal Register . . . 1869

         Subject Index . . . a1

         Name Index . . . b-1

         Document Categories List . . . c-1

    [[Page xi]]

                                   Cabinet

       Secretary of State..............   Madeleine K. Albright

       Secretary of the Treasury.......   Robert E. Rubin

       Secretary of Defense............   William S. Cohen

       Attorney General................   Janet Reno

       Secretary of the Interior.......   Bruce Babbitt

       Secretary of Agriculture........   Dan Glickman

       Secretary of Commerce...........   William M. Daley

       Secretary of Labor..............   Alexis M. Herman

       Secretary of Health and Human...   Donna E. Shalala
       Services

       Secretary of Housing and Urban..   Andrew M. Cuomo
       Development

       Secretary of Transportation.....   Rodney E. Slater

       Secretary of Energy.............   Federico Pena

       Secretary of Education..........   Richard W. Riley

       Secretary of Veterans Affairs...   Hershel Gober, Acting

       United States Representative....   Bill Richardson
       to the United Nations

       Administrator of the............   Carol M. Browner
       Environmental Protection Agency
            Protection Agency

       United States Trade.............   Charlene Barshefsky
       Represenatative

       Director of the Office of.......   Franklin D. Raines
       Management and Budget

    [[Page xii]

       Chief of Staff to the President.   Erskine B. Bowles

       Counselor to the President......   Thomas F. McLarty III

       Chair of the Council of Economic   Janet Yellen
       Advisers

       Director of National Drug Control  Barry R. McCaffrey
       Policy

       Administrator of the Small.......  Aida Alvarez
       Business Administration

       Director of Centeral Intelligence  George J. Tenet

       Director of the Federal Emergency  James Lee Witt
       Management Agency

    [[Page xiii]]

                      Administration of William J. Clinton

                                     1997