[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: WILLIAM J. CLINTON (2000, Book II)]
[September 12, 2000]
[Pages 1802-1804]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]
Remarks at a Reception for Representative Eddie Bernice Johnson
September 12, 2000
Well, that's not really why we're here. [Laughter] But if you want
to change the Constitution in any way that's good, you're going to have
to change the Congress first. [Laughter] And if you change the Congress
and you have the right outcome in the Presidential election, you won't
need to change the Constitution. [Laughter]
Let me say, first of all, to Bob and
Sheila, how glad I am to be back in their
home. They have been so phenomenally generous to so many people who have
devoted their lives to public service, who, therefore, have to have the
help of people like them to continue to serve. But I'm grateful to them
because a lot of people wouldn't do that, and I thank them.
I will say to you publicly what I said to them privately a few
moments ago. They've enjoyed a great deal of success in life, and God's
been good to them, and they've worked hard to help God along--
[laughter]--and they've done right well. It's a long way from
Mississippi. [Laughter]
But I think their greatest glory is in their two children. And I
expect Brett, one day, to win the U.S. Open in
tennis--[laughter]--and I think his sister
will one day win the gold medal in the Olympics for her equestrian
skills. Whether they do or not, they're really good people, and that's
the ultimate tribute to Bob and
Sheila, because they take all this good
fortune they've had and instead of just thinking about themselves, they
think about their children, and they think about our children, which is
why they're helping Eddie Bernice and why they've helped so many other
people, and I want to thank you for that.
Now, I got Eddie Bernice in a sentimental mood tonight, because we
were in the living room visiting with a few people. I put my arm around
her, and I said, ``Let me ask you something. Do you think there is
anybody here who has known you as long as I have?'' [Laughter] She said,
``You know, come to think of it, I don't believe there is.''
And 28 years ago, when we were working together, it was a pretty
interesting experience. Senator McGovern got 33 votes--percent of the
vote in Texas. I never will forget, one day I was on a plane from Dallas
to Little Rock with a young businessman from Jackson, Mississippi, and
he said, ``What are you doing?'' And I told him what I was doing. He
said, ``You're doing what?'' [Laughter] I said, ``Yes, I'm working for
McGovern in Texas.'' And he looked at me--he didn't crack a smile--and
he said, ``You know, you're the only white man I ever met for
McGovern.'' [Laughter] It's a true story. It's a true story.
Two years later, when Sam Ervin was having his hearings, the phone
rang in my house in Little Rock one day, and it was this guy on the
phone. He had kept my card, and he said, ``I just called to tell you,
you were right, and I was wrong.'' [Laughter]
Well, Eddie Bernice was right on so many things. Look, I can be very
brief. This woman has been a friend of mine for 28 years, and she still
pretty much looks exactly like she did 28 years ago. And since I don't
even look like what I did 8 years ago, I resent that. [Laughter]
But she's the sort of person that I think we need in positions of
leadership in the country and in our party. She is a passionate
proponent of equal rights for everybody. She cares about health care.
She cares about giving everybody a chance, but she also understands how
to run the store. She's fiscally responsible. She's committed to the
global economy. She wants America to run toward it, not run away from
it. She's taken a lot of tough votes to stick with me when I tried to
modernize this economy. When even members of our own party thought I was
wrong, she always stood with me--sometimes when it wasn't easy. And she
understands that if you want to really help working people, you also
have to help business, too. And there's a lot of you here tonight
because of that.
So I think the country would work better if everybody believed that
you could be pro-business and pro-labor, pro-growth and pro-environment,
pro-civil rights and pro-individual opportunity. I think the country
would work better.
So I would have come here regardless, because she's been my friend
for 28 years, but I'm telling you, she is a great Member of Congress.
And she believes the things that I think are important for Americans to
believe and to live by and to work by together if we're going
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to make the most of the phenomenal opportunities that are before us.
You know, I just had an interview with Wired magazine. You all ever
read Wired magazine? [Laughter] And these two young women came in and
interviewed me, and they're miles ahead of me on a lot of this
operational technology. But they think I've been a fairly good friend of
the high-tech sector, and we were talking about it. And they said, ``You
know, it might even be more interesting to be President in the next 8
years than it was in the last.'' [Laughter]
And I just would say this. One of the reasons that I'm so interested
in this election for--I've got a lot of personal stake in this election.
As you know, I voted in New York for my wife for the first time in my life today. It was a big
kick, one of the greatest thrills I ever had. I loved it. And obviously,
I feel a deep personal commitment to Al Gore because he's been the best Vice President the country has
ever had. And I have--Joe Lieberman and
I have been friends for 30 years. I met Joe Lieberman 2 years before I
met Eddie Bernice, when he was 28 years old, running for the State
Senate.
So it's funny how life goes in circles, you know? None of us ever
could have known that we would be where we are today doing what we're
doing today. In spite of what she says, I don't believe that even my
mother thought I could be President in 1973. [Laughter] Most people I
knew just wanted me to get a haircut. [Laughter]
But you know, when Harry Truman went home to Independence, Missouri,
he said he was reclaiming the most important title any American can
have, that of citizen. And I believe that. I've worked as hard as I
could to try to turn this country around, and we're in better shape than
we were 8 years ago.
I think if you listen to the political rhetoric today and compare it
to the rhetoric of 8 years ago, or even 2 years ago, the people have
sent the politicians a clear message: They're tired of hate-mongering
and division; they want to hear people talk about the issues. And they
have figured out again that elections are job interviews. All these
things are jobs. It really matters if you get up and go to work every
day. It matters if you're doing the right things. It matters if you've
got good people around you. It matters if you're not embarrassed to say,
``I don't know, but I'd sure like to learn.''
And I take a lot of pride in that. But what I want you to understand
is that as a citizen, just like I said when I spoke in Los Angeles, I've
waited for 35 years for my country to have the chance again to build the
future of its dreams for our children. All of the best things are still
out there. In spite of every good thing that's happened to us in the
last 8 years, the best is still out there. But we have to make good
decisions, and we have to hire good people for President and Vice
President, for Senator and Representative. And then we've got to make up
our mind we're going to go forward together.
The basic reason I'm a Democrat is because when I was a little boy,
my grandfather told me a story about how he cried one Easter in the
Depression because he couldn't afford $2 to buy my mother an Easter
dress. And when I was a kid, everybody had to have a new outfit at
Easter. And my mother made me get one whether I wanted one or not. And
if you remember the fashions of the fifties, it was fairly painful for
me sometimes to wear some of the things that were mandated just because
my granddaddy had a tough time in the Depression. [Laughter]
But anyway, my grandfather believed everybody deserved a chance
without regard to their race. And he believed that we all do better when
we help each other. I still believe that. And I'm proud to be a member
of the oldest political party of any democracy in the world, and I'm
proud for whatever contribution I was able to make to those two goals.
But the best is still out there.
And so I'm crazy about our candidates for President and for Vice
President. I love my wife more than life, and I've been nuts about Eddie
Bernice Johnson for 28 years. But the real reason we ought to be helping
them is, it's the right thing for America.
Thank you, and God bless you.
Note: The President spoke at 8:35 p.m. at a private residence. In his
remarks, he referred to dinner hosts Robert L. and Sheila Johnson, their
son, Brett, and their daughter, Paige. Representative Johnson was a
candidate for reelection in Texas' 30th Congressional District.
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