    [Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 31, Number 21 (Monday, May 29, 1995)]
    [Pages 871-872]
    [Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

    <R04>
    The President's Radio Address

    May 20, 1995

        Good morning. Today the Secretary of the Treasury, who oversees the
    Secret Service, will announce that from now on the two blocks of
    Pennsylvania Avenue in front of the White House will be closed to motor
    vehicle traffic.
        Pennsylvania Avenue has been routinely open to traffic for the
    entire history of our Republic. Through four Presidential assassinations
    and eight unsuccessful attempts on the lives of Presidents, it's been
    open. Through a civil war, two world wars, and the Gulf war, it was
    open. But now it must be closed. This decision follows a lengthy review
    by the Treasury Department, the Secret Service, and independent experts,
    including distinguished Americans who served in past administrations of
    both Democratic and Republican Presidents.
        This step is necessary in the view of the Director of the Secret
    Service and the panel of experts to protect the President and his
    family, the White House itself, all the staff and others who work here,
    and the visitors and distinguished foreign and domestic guests who come
    here every day.
        The Secret Service risk their lives to protect the President and his
    family. For 130 years, they have stood watch over the people and the
    institutions of our democracy. They are the best in the world at what
    they do. Though I am reluctant to accept any decision that might
    inconvenience the people who work or visit our Nation's Capital, I
    believe it would be irresponsible to ignore their considered opinion or
    to obstruct their decisions about the safety of our public officials,
    especially given the strong supporting voice of the expert panel.
        Clearly, this closing is necessary because of the changing nature
    and scope of the threat of terrorist actions. It should be seen as a
    responsible security step necessary to preserve our freedom, not part of
    a long-term restriction of our freedom.
        First, let me make it clear that I will not in any way allow the
    fight against domestic and foreign terrorism to build a wall between me
    and the American people. I will be every bit as active and in touch with
    ordinary American citizens as I have been since I took office.
    Pennsylvania Avenue may be closed to cars and trucks, but it will remain
    open to the people of America. If you want to visit the White House, you
    can still do that just as you always could, and I hope you will. If you
    want to have your picture taken out in front of the White House, please
    do so. If you want to come here and protest our country's policies, you
    are still welcome to do that as well. And now you will be more secure in
    all these activities because it will be less likely that you could
    become an innocent victim of those who would do violence against symbols
    of our democracy.
        Closing Pennsylvania Avenue to motor vehicles is a practical step to
    protect against the kind of attack we saw in Oklahoma City, but I won't
    allow the people's access to the White House and their President to be
    curtailed. The two blocks of Pennsylvania Avenue in front of the White
    House will be converted into a pedestrian mall. Free and public tours
    will continue as they always have. For most Americans, this won't change
    much beyond the traffic patterns here in Washington. For people who work
    in Washington, DC, we will work hard to reroute the traffic in
    cooperation with local officials in the least burdensome way possible.
        Now let's think for a minute about what this action says about the
    danger terrorism poses to the openness of our society or to any free
    society. The fact that the Secret Service feels compelled to close
    Pennsylvania Avenue is an important reminder that we have to come
    together as a people and hold

    [[Page 872]]

    fast against the divisive tactics of violent extremists.
        We saw in the awful tragedy of Oklahoma City and the bombing of the
    World Trade Center that America, as an open and free society, is not
    immune from terrorists from within and beyond our borders who believe
    they have a right to kill innocent civilians to pursue their own
    political ends or to protest other policies. Such people seek to instill
    fear in our citizens, in our whole people. But when we are all afraid to
    get on a bus or drive to work or open an envelope or send our children
    off to school, when our children are fixated on the possibility of
    terrorist action against them or other innocent children, we give
    terrorists a victory. That kind of corrosive fear could rust our
    national spirit, drain our will, and wear away our freedom.
        These are the true stakes in our war against terrorism. We cannot
    allow ourselves to be frightened or intimidated into a bunker mentality.
    We cannot allow our sacred freedoms to wither or diminish. We cannot
    allow the paranoia and conspiracy theories of extreme militants to
    dominate our society.
        What we do today is a practical step to preserve freedom and peace
    of mind. It should be seen as a step in a long line of efforts to
    improve security in the modern world that began with the installation of
    airport metal detectors. I remember when that started, and a lot of
    people thought that it might be seen as a restriction on our freedom.
    But most of us take it for granted now, and, after all, hijackings have
    gone way down. The airport metal detectors increased the freedom of the
    American people, and so can this.
        But more must be done to reduce the threat of terrorism, to deter
    terrorism. First, Congress must pass my antiterrorism legislation. We
    mustn't let our country fight the war against terrorism ill-armed or
    ill-prepared. I want us to be armed with 1,000 more FBI agents. I want
    the ability to monitor high-tech communications among far-flung
    terrorists. I want to be able to have our people learn their plans
    before they strike. That's the key. Congress can give us these tools by
    passing the antiterrorism bill before them. And they should do it now.
    Congressional leaders pledged to pass this bill by Memorial Day, in the
    wake of the terrible bombing in Oklahoma City. This is a commitment
    Congress must keep.
        On a deeper level, we must all fight terrorism by fighting the fear
    that terrorists sow. Today the Secret Service is taking a necessary
    precaution, but let no one mistake: We will not relinquish our
    fundamental freedoms. We will secure the personal safety of all
    Americans to live and move about as they please, to think and to speak
    as they please, to follow their beliefs and their conscience, as our
    Founding Fathers intended.
        Thanks for listening.

    Note: The address was recorded at 9:28 a.m. in the Oval Office at the
    White House for broadcast at 10:06 a.m.