[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 30, Number 9 (Monday, March 7, 1994)]
[Pages 402-403]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Exchange With Reporters Prior to Discussions With Members of the House 
Budget Committee

March 1, 1994

The Economy

    Q. How do you like the economy, Mr. President?
    The President. Well, I'm encouraged by the growth figures and by the 
fact that all the indicators are that there's no significant increase in 
inflation. So it's good to have that information.
    I think it's plain--if you look at what happened in the fourth 
quarter of last year, we had the normal increase in consumer spending 
because of the holidays, and the accumulated impact of low interest 
rates bringing more and more investment. And so what we've got to try to 
do is to keep working to bring the deficit down, to keep interest rates 
down, to make targeted investments with public money where our country 
needs it the most, and to try to keep this climate down.

[[Page 403]]

We have more investments coming in so we've created more jobs. It's very 
encouraging. It's a good sign.

Northern Ireland

    Q. Have you given any second thoughts about having Gerry Adams come 
to this country since what he has said, since he has made his comments, 
since----
    The President. No, I don't know yet, I don't think we can draw a 
conclusion yet that it will in the long run be a positive thing for the 
peace process, but I don't think we can say it's negative, either. I 
think that we made a judgment call that we ought to try to encourage 
them to move towards the joint declaration and to try to make peace. I 
think it was a good judgment call. I think it was well-founded, and I 
still believe that.

Health Care Reform

    Q. Are you beginning to have a sense of where Congress is going now 
on the health care plan? And do you have any ideas about where some of 
the major compromises are coming right now?
    The President. No, because they're still in the subcommittees. I 
don't, but I will before long.

Balanced Budget Amendment

    Q. Have you got the votes to beat the balanced budget?
    The President. I don't know. We've got a record that ought to defeat 
it. I mean, the problem with the amendment if you read it is, on its 
terms, if it's carried out, it will require either a large tax increase 
or big cuts in defense and domestic programs critical to our job growth 
or both. And if it's ignored, it will--by ignoring it, that is if you 
say, ``Well, we can't do this; we're going to suspend it,'' then you put 
the whole future of the country in the hands of the 40 percent plus one 
vote in both Houses of Congress. And I don't think that's a very good 
thing.
    Under the plan we're now following, if the Congress adopts this 
budget with its spending limits, we'll have the first 3 years since the 
Truman Presidency a declining deficit. We're moving in the right 
direction. I think that's very important. So I hope that the Senate will 
not adopt it. I know it's politically popular, but I don't think it's 
good policy.
    And I'd like to point out for the point of view of the American 
people who say, ``Well, State and local governments do it,'' all State 
and local governments make sharp distinctions between long-term capital 
investments and current expenditures. And this balanced budget amendment 
makes absolutely no distinction. So it would be far more severe than 
State and local balanced budget laws and with a very uncertain economic 
impact. So I'm hoping the Senate will reject it.

Note: The exchange began at 11:21 a.m. in the Roosevelt Room at the 
White House. A tape was not available for verification of the content of 
this exchange.