[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 34, Number 47 (Monday, November 23, 1998)]
[Pages 2341-2342]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Proclamation 7149--National Great American Smokeout Day, 1998

November 19, 1998

By the President of the United States

of America

A Proclamation

    One of the greatest public health threats facing Americans today is 
tobacco addiction and all the related health disorders that come with 
it. More Americans die every year from tobacco-related diseases than 
from AIDS, illegal drugs, alcohol, fires, car accidents, murders, and 
suicides combined. Although we have heard for decades the Surgeon 
General's warning that smoking kills, each day more than 3,000 young 
Americans become regular smokers--and more than 1,000 of them will die 
prematurely as a result.
    This past April, the Surgeon General issued a new report on tobacco 
that underscores the urgent need for comprehensive legislation to reduce 
youth smoking. Over the past 6 years, youth smoking has grown by one-
third, increasing by an alarming 80 percent among African American 
youth. Currently, more than 36 percent of high school students smoke, 
and recent statistics released by the Centers for Disease Control also 
reaffirm what we already know: nicotine creates an addiction that is 
extremely difficult to overcome. Unfortunately, 86 percent of our young 
people who smoke daily and try to quit are unsuccessful, and casual 
teenage smokers--even those who smoke as few as three cigarettes a 
month--often go on to become regular smokers.
    My administration has worked hard for comprehensive and effective 
tobacco legislation that will cut teen smoking. We will continue our 
efforts until the Congress has acted to pass such legislation. Our 1999 
budget also includes an unprecedented increase in funding for research 
at the National Institutes of Health, and the National Cancer Institute 
plans to allocate millions of those dollars for research into prevention 
and cessation programs to reduce tobacco use.
    Each year, the Great American Smokeout gives us the opportunity to 
do what we should do every day: raise awareness among all Americans--but 
especially among children and teens--of the dangers of smoking. Through 
such youth-related promotions as the Great American SmokeScream and the 
Great American Smokeout Pledge, we can encourage young people who smoke 
to stop, and we can convince those who don't smoke that they should 
never start. Adult smokers should also remember the power of personal 
example and make a sincere effort to stop smoking on this special day, 
taking an important step toward a better, healthier future.
    Now, Therefore, I, William J. Clinton, President of the United 
States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the 
Constitution and laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim November 
19, 1998, as National Great American Smokeout Day. I call upon all 
Americans to join together in an effort to educate our children about 
the dangers of tobacco use, and I urge both smokers and nonsmokers to 
take this opportunity to begin healthier lifestyles that set a positive 
example for young people.
    In Witness Whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this nineteenth day 
of November, in the year of our Lord nineteen hundred and ninety-eight, 
and of the Independence

[[Page 2342]]

of the United States of America the two hundred and twenty-third.
                                            William J. Clinton

[Filed with the Office of the Federal Register, 8:45 a.m., November 23, 
1998]

Note: This proclamation will be published in the Federal Register on 
November 24.