[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 32, Number 8 (Monday, February 26, 1996)]
[Pages 335-336]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Message on the Observance of Presidents' Day, 1996

February 17, 1996

    Warm greetings to everyone celebrating Presidents' Day, 1996. I am 
pleased and proud that so many of our citizens gather at this time each 
year to celebrate our nation's rich history and to pay tribute to the 
office of the Presidency.
    America has been blessed with many great and good leaders over the 
past two centuries. The Presidents we honor with special pride on this 
day--George Washington and Abraham Lincoln--accepted the burdens of 
their office at moments of great national challenge and set a shining 
example for those who were to follow.
    As the first President of the United States, Washington played a 
vital part in defining the role of the Presidency in America's 
government and national life. With courage and

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vision, he ensured the steady course of American democracy and, in 
relinquishing his office at the appointed time, established the peaceful 
transition of power that has become the envy of other nations around the 
world.
    Abraham Lincoln preserved the Union that Washington helped to 
create. He guided America through four years of painful and bloody 
conflict, and at the end of his Presidency, we were still one nation 
under God, and government ``of the people, by the people, and for the 
people'' had not perished from our land.
    But Presidents alone cannot ensure America's success or preserve our 
freedom for future generations. It falls to each and every citizen to 
take part in the great experiment of American democracy. As we face the 
unknown challenges and exciting possibilities of a new century, let us 
renew our resolve to participate actively in the process of government, 
to stay informed and committed, and to educate our children about the 
privileges and responsibilities of citizenship. In this way we will keep 
faith with the great men whose service and sacrifice we honor on this 
day.
                                                  Bill Clinton