[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 29, Number 24 (Monday, June 21, 1993)]
[Page 1071]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Remarks to Volunteers for Presidential Correspondence

 June 12, 1993

    Thank you. Good morning. I want to thank you all for coming here and 
for being willing to help us with what is really a great problem for 
democracy. But as all of you know, we get a lot of mail at the White 
House. What a lot of people don't know is we're getting a lot more than 
anyone ever has. And by the time we had been here 3\1/2\ months, more 
letters had come to the White House than came to the White House in all 
of 1992.
    We're getting about 40,000 letters a day. We are desperately working 
to try to answer those letters with very limited staff. We've had 
already about 450 young people from the area agree to come in and help 
us in the past. But today I'm proud to say that there are over 800 young 
people who will be working today to help open and staple the mail that 
comes in here, so that then it can be read and sorted and answered.
    We have gotten over 3 million pieces of mail, with more coming. And 
that's good. But we have to answer all those letters. We have to let the 
American people know that they are being heard, and we're working very 
hard on it. And I might say, that's after we opened an E-mail channel, 
so we've got a lot of people coming in through E-mail. We've got extra 
phone lines on for people to call in, and we're still getting this much 
mail.
    So you are really going to help make democracy work today. And all 
over America, people will have their letters read and their letters 
answered more quickly because you've agreed to come here and help us 
open and staple the mail so it can all be processed more quickly.
    I am personally very, very grateful to you for doing this. You've 
made a real contribution to helping the White House work for America 
better. I hope it's also a great fun day for you. And I'm delighted to 
see all of you here.
    Thank you very much. Have a good day. Thank you very much.

Note: The President spoke at 11:42 a.m. on West Executive Drive at the 
White House.