[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: WILLIAM J. CLINTON (2000, Book I)]
[May 8, 2000]
[Pages 862-863]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]
Remarks Following a Meeting With Million Mom March Organizers and an
Exchange With Reporters
May 8, 2000
The President. Hello, everybody. I just finished a meeting with
Attorney General Reno and Secretary
Shalala and Chief of Staff
Podesta, and I have met with all these
folks, these women and their men supporters who are the organizers of
the Million Mom March. They're going to be here and in over 60 other
cities on Mother's Day, marching for commonsense gun safety legislation,
asking Congress to act, building on the grassroots efforts that have
brought success in the petition drive in Colorado and the Legislatures
of Maryland, Massachusetts, and California.
And I think what they're doing is profoundly important. We in the
administration want to do whatever we can to support them. They are
taking a stand for their children. Many of them have lost loved ones.
They have lost children. They have lost spouses. And there will be many
more just like them who are here.
They want Congress to act on the commonsense gun legislation before
it, and of course, they want Congress to go beyond that to licensing,
registration. They have not proposed taking away anybody's gun. They
have proposed making life a lot safer for the American people and their
children. And I think what they're doing is a very noble and good thing.
I hope it will prompt Congress to act.
It is unconscionable--it is now over a year after Columbine and over
10 months since they've had a chance to pass this legislation. And I
hope their presence here will--and throughout the country--will be
successful. I am quite sure they will succeed over the long run if they
stay with it, because they represent the heavy majority of the American
people, and they have borne a heavy burden in their own lives which they
have been willing to put into this effort. And I'm very grateful to
them.
Gun Safety Legislation
Q. What's stopping Congress from acting? At least pressure from the
moms----
The President. Well, we'll see if this makes a difference. I think
that the people in the gun lobby have historically been very effective.
But I think that if you look at the specifics of the legislation before
Congress, there's a huge majority of the American people for it. And I
think what all these folks are going to remind them of on Mother's Day
is that they're watching, and they want action.
And this is not an issue that can be dealt with in business as usual
and buried for the--[inaudible]--interest groups. It needs to be
resolved, and I hope it will be. And if it does, it will be far more
because of them than because of us. The only way we can pass this is if
people have to look into the eyes of parents who have lost their loved
ones, if they have to look into the eyes of people who have lost their
spouses, their brothers, their sisters, and answer, why don't we have
this commonsense safety legislation; why is this the only area of our
national life where we don't have prevention as our primary strategy?
They won't be able to answer that. You can't talk to these folks
that have been talking to us this morning and answer that.
Death of John Cardinal O'Connor
Q. Mr. President, you're going to the funeral of Cardinal O'Connor
today. Can you give us some thoughts this morning on his impact on
America and religious life, and what his passing might mean for the
future?
The President. Well, I'm going because he was a leader of the
Catholics and the biggest Catholic diocese in the country and because,
in particular, he was a devoted chaplain in the
[[Page 863]]
armed services. And I feel particularly grateful for that. And of
course, it will be up to the Church and to the Pope to decide his replacement and what happens after that. But
I think he played a very large role in the life of the Church. Even when
he was controversial and when he disagreed with me, I liked the fact
that he was outspoken, and he stood up for what he believed in.
Middle East Peace Process
Q. Mr. President, the Israeli Foreign Minister said today that the
Gaza is so big that it's clear that there's not going to be an interim
framework agreement. Are you disappointed by that?
The President. I just disagree with it. I think there will be a
framework agreement.
Q. By the deadline, sir?
The President. Well, maybe not by the deadline. But they thought
they might trip the deadline a little. But I think we'll get an
agreement, an overall agreement by September. And I think they'll get
there. There are substantial gaps, but if they want to do it bad enough,
they'll do it.
Zimbabwe
Q. Mr. President, can you comment on the situation in Zimbabwe with
the farmers and squatters there?
The President. Well, I've got Ambassador Holbrooke over there now working on a lot of the troubles in
Africa, including the situation in Zimbabwe, and I hope it can be worked
out in a lawful manner. And I think it's quite sad what's going on
because it's a very important country, and it's very important to South
Africa and South Africa's future, as well as to the future of the people
who live in Zimbabwe. And I hope we can get them--we can do something
that will encourage them to return to a progressive and stable path.
They're working at it.
Sierra Leone
Q. How about Sierra Leone?
The President. We're working now on what can be done to restore the
vigor of the U.N. peacekeeping mission there and make it work. It's very
important. I spent a lot of time on that the last 4 or 5 days, and we're
working on it.
Gun Safety Legislation
Q. You seem very subdued. Do you have a cold?
The President. No. I'm just--if you had been here talking to these
people about all their children's lives and all that, you'd feel
subdued, too. I mean, I feel very sad that I haven't been able to get
this legislation voted on. I think this is a really big deal.
We've gotten--yesterday we got the crime statistics--crime down 8
years in a row, murder at a 30-year low. But it's still one of the most
dangerous countries in the world, only because we have stubbornly
refused to take prevention seriously when it comes to guns, to keep guns
out of the hands of criminals and children. And we've had the crime rate
come down 8 years in a row, so we now know we can turn the crime rate
around. And the next big barrier to bring it way down and make this a
really, really safe country is to take these commonsense preventative
measures.
And yes, I am subdued. I'm frustrated, and I'm very sad because I
don't want any more kids to die. And I want them to come here on
Mother's Day, and I told them before you came in here that if they
didn't get tired, they'd win this fight. I've been watching these kinds
of issues all my life, and it's like civil rights or something where
there's this huge organized resistance. But if they just keep at it,
they're going to win. I think they should have won more already, and I'm
going to do what I can to help them.
Note: The President spoke at 10:15 a.m. in the Roosevelt Room at the
White House. In his remarks, he referred to Minister of Foreign Affairs
David Levi of Israel; and U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Richard
C. Holbrooke. A tape was not available for verification of the content
of these remarks.