[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 34, Number 30 (Monday, July 27, 1998)]
[Pages 1456-1458]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Remarks on the Nation's Heat Wave and the Resignation of Press Secretary 
Mike McCurry and an Exchange With Reporters

July 23, 1998

    The President. I have not become the White House Press Secretary--
yet. [Laughter] I have two announcements to make today; one involves the 
gentlemen on my--plural--right and left. But first I'd like to make an 
announcement about the heat wave.
    All Americans have been deeply concerned and troubled by the human 
toll of the record heat wave that has spread across many parts of the 
United States. Already this summer in many Southern and Southwestern 
States, temperatures have been 20 percent higher than normal. This 
scorching heat shows no signs of abating. It has destroyed crops, led to 
widespread power outages, and worst of all, has resulted in the deaths 
of over 100 people. The most vulnerable--the very old, the very young, 
people with disabilities--are at greatest risk. Those who cannot afford 
air-conditioning are at real peril of further health risks as the heat 
wave goes on.
    In times of human crisis we have an obligation to act, to strengthen 
the ties that bind us as one nation. When fire or flood or earthquakes 
strike, we step in. When blizzards and high energy costs put elderly and 
poor citizens at risk, we step in. When smothering heat threatens the 
lives of people, we can step in, and that is what I am doing today.
    The Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program, LIHEAP, makes funds 
available for emergency use to help at-risk families in times of weather 
distress. Today I am directing the Department of Health and Human 
Services to release $100 million in emergency funds for the 11 hottest 
Southern and Western States, to help families pay for air-conditioners, 
fans, electric bills, and other ways to beat the heat.
    This emergency relief was paid for in the bipartisan balanced budget 
agreement reached with Congress last year. It reflects the longstanding 
commitment by both parties to help citizens protect their families in 
severe weather conditions.
    It is, I might say, in light of these terrible weather conditions--
and I would point out, I believe--I saw one television program yesterday 
that pointed out that the 9 hottest years on record have occurred in the 
last 11 years; that 1997 was the hottest year on record; that in each 
and every month in 1998, it has beaten the previous record month. So 
this will be the hottest year on record if something doesn't happen.
    Therefore, it is all the more disturbing that Republican leaders in 
the House of Representatives are attempting to entirely eliminate the 
LIHEAP program. If Congress proceeds to try and eliminate all funding 
for this vital emergency assistance, it would be an act of political 
irresponsibility. It would put partisanship ahead of the progress and 
the people of our country.
    Now, only a few days remain in this session of Congress. We can 
still make it a time of progress. We can fund the LIHEAP program. We can 
enact a Patients' Bill of Rights. We can continue our policy of fiscal 
discipline by reserving the surplus until we fix the Social Security 
system. We can strengthen education. We can save our children from the 
dangers of tobacco. There is still time to choose people and progress 
over partisanship and division.
    For my part, I am determined to take every action within my power to 
help our people, and I look forward to working with lawmakers of both 
parties to restore LIHEAP funding and to make further progress. 
Meanwhile, I hope these funds will be of help to people in those 11 
States. I know there are many volunteer efforts going on, and I would 
encourage them.
    This is an especially difficult time in a lot of these States. I was 
home in Arkansas last weekend, and the temperature was above 100 degrees 
on both days. There are an awful

[[Page 1457]]

lot of people, especially elderly people, living in rural areas without 
access to air-conditioning, or people on limited incomes that can't pay 
their bills that are at real risk. So I hope we can all band together 
and redouble our efforts.
    Now, I now have the privilege of making the second most important 
personnel announcement in the news today. I have no information about 
the status of any of the Chicago Bulls. [Laughter] However, the long-
awaited coup in the Press Office is finally taking place. [Laughter]
    Much to my regret but with my full understanding and support, Mike 
McCurry will be leaving us in the fall. I have also determined to 
appoint Joe Lockhart as his successor.
    Quite simply, Mike McCurry has set the standard by which future 
White House Press Secretaries will be judged. In an age where Washington 
has come to be governed by a 24-hour news cycle and endless cable 
channels with their special niche audiences, Mike has redefined the job 
of Press Secretary in a new and more challenging era.
    Whatever the news, in good times and bad, he is trusted by the 
American people and trusted by our administration to provide accurate 
information about our policies and to be a forceful and effective 
advocate for them. His ability and his eagerness to fight the good fight 
on political or policy issues is well known. And few could hope to match 
his intelligence and wit from the podium.
    But the most difficult and sensitive part of being White House Press 
Secretary is explaining the foreign policy positions of the United 
States to the world. His mastery of foreign policy, his understanding 
not only of broader issues but of the nuances of them, his ability to 
respond to developments precisely--and when necessary, not so 
precisely--have made him a unique and instrumental element of our 
Nation's public diplomacy around the world.
    Hillary and I have both enjoyed and deeply valued Mike's presence, 
not only for his obvious skills but for his wonderful sense of humor and 
his genuine friendship. We've appreciated his hard work, his loyalty, 
and his ability. We will miss him a great deal, and we're glad he's 
going to be around a while longer.
    I am also very fortunate to have in Joe Lockhart an outstanding 
successor for Mike. I've had an opportunity to work with him very 
closely, especially over the last several months, not only on important 
trips to Europe, to Africa, to Latin America but also on our work on 
economic and other domestic issues. He is smart; he knows our policies, 
foreign and domestic. And he has skillfully articulated them.
    Mike and Joe were a great team in our 1996 campaign. Mike served as 
Press Secretary at the White House; Joe did a superb job for Vice 
President Gore and me during our reelection effort. You all know that 
the great teamwork has continued here at the White House, with Joe and 
Barry Toiv serving as Mike's deputies.
    When Mike told me at the beginning of the summer that he would begin 
planning an orderly transition, I knew that Joe would be the ideal 
replacement, not only for me but I believe also for you. Joe knows you 
well, and you know him well, and that's probably half the battle. Joe 
knows that he can only serve my interests well if he takes care of yours 
also by being your advocate here at the White House. He does that well 
already, and I know he will continue to be sensitive to your 
requirements when Mike leaves later this year.
    I'll have more to say about Joe and about Mike this fall when we 
actually make the change. But it's rare in this White House that I get 
to announce my own personnel decisions--[laughter]--especially involving 
the press. So I wanted you to be the first to know--after Mike's Press 
Office staff, who were just told a few moments ago.
    Joe has accepted my offer to be Assistant to the President and Press 
Secretary.
    I also would like to say a word about two very special women who are 
here--Debra McCurry and Joe's wife, Laura Logan. While these guys have 
the pleasure of working until all hours here, it's their families, 
especially their spouses, who make very special sacrifices. We 
appreciate them and their willingness to lend Mike and Joe to the 
American people for a short while.
    Now I'm going to be with you later at a meeting for Congress, and 
I'll be able to answer your questions then. So I'd like to get

[[Page 1458]]

back to our regularly scheduled programming, under the leadership of old 
what's his name over here. [Laughter]
    Q. What does this say for Joe's credibility when I asked him 
yesterday if McCurry was leaving? [Laughter]
    The President. Did he say no or not yet?
    Q. He didn't say no--yes, he said no; he didn't say not yet.
    The President. Well, the answer yesterday was no. [Laughter] The 
answer today is no. But at sometime in the near future, the answer will 
be yes.
    Mike, thank you so much.
    Q. ----sir, is there anything else you can do about the drought 
conditions, the heat wave? Is there other stuff we ought to be thinking 
about?
    The President. Well, we're looking at it. I wish I could seed the 
clouds and make it rain. But this is very disturbing. We're going to be 
looking at it. In all the States, I'm sure there are vigorous efforts 
going on through the State emergency offices, and my understanding is--
I've asked for an update, I didn't get it before I came out here, of the 
volunteer efforts that are going on. This happened to me once when I was 
Governor, and we had to move a lot of seniors into our senior citizen 
centers, because they were air-conditioned, and just set up cots. And we 
were handing out, literally, hundreds and hundreds of fans to people who 
had no air-conditioning in their homes.
    We can give the money out, and we're going to look and see what else 
we can do. We're going to look and see whether we can get some more help 
from other States, perhaps, that aren't so hard-hit. Actually, 
ironically, a few more than half of our States are having temperatures 
slightly below normal this year. But these 11, there are some more above 
the 11 who are a little above average, but these are 20 percent above 
average in the hottest months. So we're looking at it. If I can 
determine anything else I can do, believe me, I will do it, because 
there are an awful lot of people that just cannot take this heat without 
some more help. And we'll do whatever we can.
    Q. Mr. President, how serious is this Iranian missile test?
    The President. I'll answer all the other questions when I--I'll be 
glad to answer the questions, but I just--I want to wait to let you do 
this thing with Mike, and then I'll see you about an hour or whenever.

Note: The President spoke at 1:15 p.m. in the Briefing Room at the White 
House. A tape was not available for verification of the content of these 
remarks.