    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1999, Book I)]
    [June 3, 1999]
    [Pages 872-873]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Remarks Following a Cabinet Meeting
    June 3, 1999

        Good afternoon. I have just completed a very good meeting with the
    Cabinet. We discussed many issues; three in particular I would like to
    discuss with you.

    Situation in the Balkans

        First, with regard to Kosovo: As you know, we have been working
    closely with President Ahtisaari and Mr.
    Chernomyrdin to try to achieve an
    agreement that would allow the refugees to go home with security,
    safety, and self-government. Movement by the Serbian leadership to
    accept these conditions established by NATO and the international
    community is, of course, welcome, but based on our past experience, we
    must also be cautious.
        First, we must have clarity that the Serbian leadership has fully
    accepted these conditions and intends to fully implement them. Until
    then and until Serb forces begin a verifiable withdrawal from Kosovo, we
    will continue to pursue diplomacy, but we will also continue the
    military effort that has brought us to this point.
        In a few moments, I will meet with the Joint Chiefs of Staff to
    speak about the progress of our campaign and our planning for the force
    that would enter Kosovo when NATO's conditions are met. NATO and our
    military have been working hard to ensure that we can sustain our
    campaign and deploy KFOR quickly and effectively when that is necessary.
    We have worked to ensure that we can do this while maintaining our
    overall military posture around the world. They have my complete
    confidence and support as we move forward.

    Legislative Agenda

        The second thing we discussed today was the budget and the
    importance of maintaining fiscal discipline, which has helped our Nation
    reach historic levels of prosperity, honored our values of opportunity,
    responsibility, and community, and enabled us to begin to meet the
    challenges of America in the 21st century.
        Last fall my Cabinet and I worked very hard to put together a budget
    that reduces the publicly held debt to its lowest point since before
    World War I, safeguards the solvency of Social Security and Medicare and
    makes improvements in both programs, offers targeted tax cuts for long-
    term retirement savings, stays within the budget caps, and makes
    substantial new investments in the benefit of the American people, from
    education to the environment to new technology.
        Unfortunately, the Republican majority in Congress is moving ahead
    with a budget plan that, in the end, may do none of these things. It
    fails to extend the solvency of Social Security and Medicare. It fails
    to make new, crucial investments. It requires deep cuts in areas of
    great national need, from law enforcement to education to the
    environment. These cuts would be so damaging that Congress, itself, to
    date has been unwilling and unable to move some

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    of the most basic and normally noncontroversial spending bills out of
    their committees.
        The majority budget plan is simply not realistic. It is a blueprint
    for chaos, and we can do better. I urge Congress when it returns to work
    with me in a bipartisan way for a budget that is both fiscally
    responsible and honors our values and prepares for our future.

    Federal Energy Policy

        I also discussed with the Cabinet new actions to deal with what, in
    my State of the Union Address, I said was our most fateful environmental
    challenge, global warming. Almost every month, we see disturbing new
    evidence of climate change. Scientists now believe that last year, 1998,
    was very likely the warmest year in a millennium. Whole species of frogs
    are disappearing from forests in Costa Rica because the air there is
    getting hotter and drier. In the Arctic, the permafrost has started to
    warm and the sea ice is shrinking. These are alarming signs for what it
    means to biodiversity and the potential of a rising water level around
    the globe.
        Yet some still insist that the vast majority of scientists are
    simply wrong, and that we should do nothing. Others call for a raft of
    new regulations and new taxes. I believe there is a third way here, a
    better way, to invest in technologies that reduce greenhouse gases while
    also spurring economic growth. Many of those technologies are on hand
    right now.
        As the single largest consumer of energy in our country, the Federal
    Government should be leading the way. That is why today I am directing
    all Federal departments and agencies to take steps to markedly improve
    the energy efficiency of our buildings. With new technologies and
    contracts with private companies, the Federal Government will cut its
    greenhouse gas emissions by 30 percent. That is the equivalent of taking
    1.7 million cars off the road. By taking these steps, we will also save
    the taxpayers over $750 million a year when they are fully implemented.
        I'm also pleased to announce that the Defense Department will award,
    by the end of this month, the largest energy-saving contract in the
    history of the Federal Government. Under this contract, the Government
    pays no up-front costs, the contractor wins a share of the energy
    savings; greenhouse pollution is reduced; and taxpayers will save over
    $200 million.
        I want to express my thanks to Secretary Cohen and Secretary Richardson for
    turning the idea of these win-win energy contracts into a reality. And I
    want to urge Congress, again, to pass the new research investments and
    the new tax incentives I have proposed in my balanced budget, so that
    America's consumers and businesses can reap the benefits of energy-
    saving technologies that exist today, and the new, better technologies
    that are soon to be developed.
        So, in closing, let me say we have some encouraging news on Kosovo,
    but we should be cautious, and we should see real results.
        We have presented a good budget to the Congress; the one they have
    come back with won't work. We've got to work together to give the
    American people one that will. The problem of climate change and global
    warming is real, but we don't have to have an economic breakdown to deal
    with it; what we need is a vigorous embrace of effective technologies,
    first by the Federal Government and then by all the American people.
        Thank you very much.

    Note: The President spoke at 2:52 p.m. in the Rose Garden at the White
    House. In his remarks, he referred to President Martti Ahtisaari of
    Finland and Special Envoy and former Prime Minister Viktor Chernomyrdin
    of Russia. The Executive order on Government energy management is listed
    in Appendix D at the end of this volume.