    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: WILLIAM J. CLINTON (1999, Book II)]
    [December 7, 1999]
    [Pages 2221-2222]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    [[Page 2221]]

    Remarks at a Reception for Senator Tim Johnson
    December 7, 1999

        Thank you very much, ladies and gentlemen, I'm honored to be here. I
    was trying to think of some one thing I could say that would illustrate
    the esteem in which I hold Tim Johnson and Barbara, and how valuable they are to the United States
    Senate. And I think that the best example is that Pat Moynihan and I are here, and we're not running for
    anything. [Laughter] We're here because we like and admire Tim Johnson,
    and we think he should be reelected, and we appreciate what he's done.
        I enjoyed meeting all of you when you went through the line and we
    had a chance to visit. A lot of you expressed various concerns, which I
    appreciate. I want to thank Vic Fazio and Jim
    Slattery for coming. They served in the House
    with Tim; they were there when I became President. And I want to thank
    all of you for being here.
        I just want to say a couple of serious words in this holiday season.
    First, our country is greatly blessed. We have been very fortunate. Last
    week I announced that we went over 20 million jobs since January of
    1993, the most rapid job growth we've ever had and the longest peacetime
    economic expansion in our history.
        It is now commonly agreed that the strength and the duration of this
    expansion was propelled by the 1993 vote that Congress took on a strict
    party line vote, much to my regret, in favor of the economic package I
    presented, which reduced the deficit dramatically, put us in a position
    to pass the Balanced Budget Act of '97, and has now given us the first
    back-to-back surpluses we've had in 42 years, low interest rates, high
    investment, and an amazing run of economic growth.
        Tim Johnson was in the House. He knew he wanted to run for the
    Senate. It was an immensely controversial vote. Everybody that took it
    was told by our Republican friends that it would bring the economy
    crashing down and be the end of civilization as we knew it. And they
    were wrong, and he was right. But he couldn't have known at the time,
    when he put his political life on the line, that it would all come out
    the way it has. And I wouldn't be here, if for no other reason than
    that. If it hadn't been for his vote--we passed it by one vote in the
    House and the Senate; if it hadn't been for his vote, we wouldn't be
    here tonight. And if we were here, we wouldn't be nearly so well off as
    most of you are. So thank you, Senator, for what you did.
        I also want to thank Tim for his devotion to using this moment,
    which is truly remarkable. At least in my lifetime, our country has
    never had these conditions where we've had as much economic prosperity
    and as much social progress. In addition to the economic statistics,
    which you all know, we have a 25-year low in crime, a 30-year low in
    welfare rolls, a 20-year low in poverty; the lowest African-American and
    Hispanic unemployment rates ever recorded; the lowest female
    unemployment rate in America in 40 years; the lowest poverty rate
    among--single-parent households poverty rate in 40 years. We are moving
    forward. And this is the first time we've ever had these conditions with
    the absence of internal crisis and external threat.
        And I think it imposes a great challenge on us, because very often
    individuals, families, businesses, and nations are most likely to mess
    up at times of great prosperity and high comfort, because it's easy to
    be distracted, it's easy to be divided, it's easy to take your eye off
    the ball.
        You know, Samuel Johnson said that nothing concentrates the mind so
    much as the prospect of your own destruction. The flip side of that is
    also true: It's easy to lose your concentration when things are going
    very well. And I just want to say to all of you, I think it's very
    important that we look at the big challenges facing this country: that
    we save Social Security beyond the life of the baby boom generation;
    that we extend the life of Medicare and add a prescription drug benefit
    to the 75 percent of our seniors that don't have adequate prescription
    drug coverage; that we do something to give economic opportunity to the
    people and places that have been left behind in this country, like the
    Native Americans in Senator Johnson's home State that he has shown such
    remarkable concern for; that we deal with the long-term challenges of
    the environment in a way that continues to grow this economy--a lot of
    you are involved in that; I talked to some of you about

    [[Page 2222]]

    ethanol production tonight; we're about to get the science worked out,
    we get the technology worked out to reduce the number of gallons of
    gasoline it takes to make more gallons of ethanol; you're going to see
    an explosion there that will change the whole economic and environmental
    future of the United States--that we continue to press for peace and
    reconciliation and the reduction of the threats of weapons of mass
    destruction around the world.
        Many people here tonight are Pakistani-Americans. I told somebody
    about 4 months ago that we were making progress on peace in Ireland,
    progress on peace in the Middle East, progress on peace in the Balkans.
    But the two places that I have been stymied, since I became President,
    were in relationships between Greece and Turkey and relationships
    between India and Pakistan. And just a couple of weeks ago the Greeks
    and the Turks announced they were going to have talks on Cyprus, and in
    a few days they're going to meet and discuss whether they will accept
    Turkey as a candidate for the European Union. So that leaves Kashmir.
    [Laughter]
        And let me say to all of you, and to my good friend Senator
    Moynihan, who, in one of his many
    former lives, was our Ambassador to India--I have told many people
    this--of all the hundreds--we literally have in America now
    representatives of well over 150 different ethnic groups, I think
    something like 185. In education and income, Pakistanis and Indians rank
    in the top five. They often meet together, work together, do things
    together in the United States. The Indian subcontinent would have a
    limitless potential for the 21st century if the differences between the
    two nations could be reconciled. There would be less need to spend vast
    amounts of money on military expenditures and more funds available for
    education, for social development, for all kinds of challenges that are
    out there facing people. So I look forward to making a real stab at that
    next year, and I see some hopeful signs there. But many of you can help,
    and we need your help.
        The last thing I want to say is that in this coming election season,
    which is already well underway, I think it's very important that we not
    forget that we all still have to do the people's business. We all get
    paid; we're expected to show up for work every day. And I expect to
    accomplish a great deal next year, with the help of Senator Johnson and
    Senator Moynihan. And I am comforted
    by the thought that when term limits take me away, he'll still be here,
    thanks to you.
        Thank you very much.

    Note: The President spoke at 7:55 p.m. at the Westin Fairfax Hotel. In
    his remarks, he referred to Senator Johnson's wife, Barbara, and former
    Representatives Vic Fazio and Jim Slattery.