[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 29, Number 49 (Monday, December 13, 1993)]
[Pages 2522-2523]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
The President's Radio Address

 December 4, 1993

    Good morning. Today I'm in Los Angeles to hold a meeting on the 
economy and its impact on southern California. A year ago this month, I 
hosted a national economic summit to get the best ideas from all across 
America on how to implement the economic strategy I ran for President to 
implement, a strategy to regain control of our economic destiny; to put 
confidence back into our people; to strengthen our families; a strategy 
to rebuild the American dream by restoring middle class values of 
opportunity, responsibility, and community, rewarding work and family 
and faith.
    For too long the Government in Washington ignored roadblocks that 
stood in the way of an economic recovery: our investment deficit that 
hurts workers caught in changing times and communities plagued by crime, 
a budget deficit that drains money from our economy, a trade deficit 
that keeps us from selling our products and services around the world. 
All these roadblocks have kept America from moving and have hurt 
California especially, because California had so many high-tech 
employees in the defense industry, which as all of us know has been cut 
back a lot since 1987 and the end of the cold war in 1989. And now 
California, like the rest of America, is paying the price but even more 
so, not only because it's our biggest State but because one in five jobs 
lost permanently in our economy in the last few years has been lost in 
the southern part of this State.
    But during the time I've been President, we've tried to take these 
roadblocks head-on for all America. Let me say how. First, the strength 
of our economy and the security of our jobs is now tied to our ability 
to sell our products abroad. More and more Americans are becoming more 
productive. That means fewer people can produce more goods and services. 
That's a good thing to compete in the global economy, but only if we 
have more customers to buy those goods and services. That's the only way 
we can grow our economy, increase jobs, and increase incomes of working 
people.
    That's why we just passed the North American Free Trade Agreement. 
With NAFTA we'll sell more products stamped ``Made in the USA.'' We're 
also working hard on a world trade agreement between now and December 
15th in the GATT talks. And we've established better trade relations 
with Japan specifically and with the Asian countries in general.
    California is our strategic link to the economies in Latin America 
and to the Pacific rim. This State exports more than any other State. 
One in every 10 jobs out here is now tied to exports. We've launched our 
country's first national export strategy. It will benefit all the States 
in America. We've cut back Government export controls on $37 billion 
worth of high-tech communications products. It's good for trade. It's 
good for workers in high-tech industries in places like California, New 
York, and many States in between.
    Just yesterday we announced the third round of grants in our 
technology reinvestment project. This plan helps defense firms to make 
the transition to a commercial economy. It takes military technologies 
developed with American tax dollars during the cold war and puts them to 
use in the civilian economy. It will create thousands and thousands of 
jobs in the years ahead all across our Nation. It's just part of a 
national defense conversion plan that totals $20 billion in new 
investment over 5 years.
    We've taken other steps to strengthen the value of work, our 
families, and the communities we live in. For all of you who work and 
raise children and still live near the poverty line, we've expanded your 
earned-income tax credit. About 20 million of you will pay lower income 
taxes next April 15th. For American families, this is a signal that we 
value work over welfare. We've also passed the family and medical leave 
law so that people can care for a sick parent or a new baby without fear 
of losing their jobs. We've redesigned dramatically the student loan 
program, lowering interest rates and making it easier for more of you to 
get student loans and to pay them back on better terms. And we've also 
made it much simpler and easier for people to get small business loans.
    Our economic plan has brought the deficit down. Interest rates are 
down. Inflation is down, and people are beginning to benefit.

[[Page 2523]]

People are beginning to buy their first homes, and over 5 million 
Americans have refinanced their home mortgages. Single family housing 
starts are at their highest level in 6 years, and existing home sales 
are at a 14-year high.
    Maybe you've borrowed money to expand your business. Economic 
indicators from durable goods to business spending on equipment to auto 
sales show manufacturing and consumer confidence picking up. Personal 
income is up. And more jobs have been created in the first 11 months in 
this administration than in the entire 4 years of the previous 
administration in the private sector, about 50 percent more now.
    Now, all that is encouraging news. But frankly, it hasn't reached 
everyone yet. It hasn't reached into every family with economic 
benefits. And way too many people still lack good jobs. As I said 
earlier, of all the jobs lost nationally since 1990, one in five are 
right here in southern California.
    This afternoon I'm going to Canoga Park in the western part of the 
San Fernando Valley for a meeting on the economy with business and 
community leaders. We'll meet face to face in an informal setting to go 
over their ideas, to see what's working, and to identify what we could 
all be doing to create more jobs and more opportunity.
    But our goal in California is the same as our goal nationwide: to 
build an economic recovery that will carry us through the changes in our 
economy and put us on the road to lasting economic growth in a global 
climate that is very tough and highly competitive. For our Nation to 
stay strong, every American must have a chance to compete and win. We've 
still got a lot of work ahead of us, but we're working hard. And all of 
you will have to work hard, too.
    None of what we do in our economic session today will matter if 
people aren't ready to seize opportunities, take responsibility to 
rebuild their communities. This simply cannot be done by Government 
alone, certainly not just at the national level. Leaders can't protect 
the economic interest of our middle class if our people aren't living 
and working by middle class values, rebuilding our communities from the 
ground up, home by home, street by street, and block by block. I need 
all of you to help me so that we can do this together.
    In times of change, we've always sought the new opportunities, the 
new opportunities for ourselves, our families, and our neighbors. That 
expansive, forward-looking spirit is what brought people out here to 
California in the first place, across wagon trails and over highways on 
the open road. Well, times have changed; they always do. But we're 
trying to put America on the right road to reach a better tomorrow. 
Unemployment is down, and jobs are up. We're moving in the right 
direction. But there is so much more to do. To move forward we have to 
go down the road together.
    Thanks for listening.

Note: The President spoke at 10:06 a.m. from the Beverly Hills Hotel in 
Los Angeles, CA.