[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 37, Number 14 (Monday, April 9, 2001)]
[Pages 580-581]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Remarks on Presenting the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Awards in 
Crystal City, Virginia

April 6, 2001

    Thank you, Mr. Secretary. Mr. Secretary, thank you very much for 
that kind introduction, and thank you for agreeing to serve your country 
once again. My friend Don Evans couldn't make it, but we have a pretty 
darn good replacement with Norm Mineta.
    Dr. Wood, thank you very much, sir, for your leadership. You may 
wonder why Dr. Wood has got such white hair. My mother's

[[Page 581]]

on his board. [Laughter] And if she were here, she would say she has 
white hair because of me. [Laughter]
    I'm thrilled to see the Baldrige family. Thank you all for being 
here, and thank you for staying with this award. They tell me you never 
miss, Midge, and that's important.
    I want to congratulate the winners who are here, the CEO's, the 
leaders, the employees, the rowdy Texans. [Laughter]

[At this point, the audience whistled and cheered.]

    I rest my case. [Laughter] It's an honor to be here.

U.S. Navy Aircraft Incident

    Before I begin, I would like to update you on the situation in 
China. Earlier this morning I talked with General Sealock who, once 
again, visited with our crew for about an hour today and reports that 
they are doing just fine. They are housed in officers' quarters, and 
they are being treated well. We're proud of these young men and women 
who are upholding the high standards of our Armed Forces. We know this 
is a difficult time for their families, and I thank them for their 
patriotism and their patience. We're working hard to bring them home 
through intensive discussions with the Chinese Government, and we think 
we're making progress.

Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Awards

    And now, to the business at hand. It's an honor to be here, to be a 
part of an award ceremony that has stood the test of time. And the 
reason why is that it's based on principles, such as high standards, 
quality, and excellence.
    The philosophy of Malcolm Baldrige and the Baldrige Awards make 
clear that everyone in an organization has a voice, a philosophy which 
trusts everyone with responsibility. Quality comes from giving people 
the tools and training their jobs require, the authority they need to do 
their work the way they think is best, the dignity that comes with 
knowing that their views matter. To do good work, we need great workers 
and great companies, such as those represented here, treat great workers 
with respect and fairness.
    The Baldrige way is good business. The hypothetical Baldrige Index, 
a stock market index composed of the shares of those Baldrige winners 
that are publicly traded, has outperformed the S&P 500 for 7 years in a 
row. As the example of Los Alamos National Bank shows, caring for our 
communities is a form of quality, as well. And that quality will be 
rewarded with customer satisfaction and customer loyalty.
    The Baldrige quality message is coming to health care and to 
education. Health care and education were added as categories in 1999. I 
realize there are no winners yet, but 25 organizations applied in '99 
and 19 more in the year 2000. I look forward to presenting the first 
Baldrige Award in these categories soon.
    We thank the Baldrige Foundation, the examiners, the judges, the 
foundation members, all the volunteers who work so hard. And thank you 
for your devotion to the highest ideals of American business.
    These efforts do justice to the memory of an extraordinary man, 
Malcolm Baldrige, one of this country's outstanding public servants. He 
served as Commerce Secretary at a time when many doubted that American 
goods could compete in world markets. He dedicated himself to proving 
the doubters wrong. He succeeded, and America is stronger thanks to him 
and the award established to honor him.
    Thank you for having me.

 Note: The President spoke at 1:52 p.m. at the Crystal Gateway Marriott 
Hotel. In his remarks, he referred to Secretary of Transportation and 
former Secretary of Commerce Norman Y. Mineta; Michael Wood, president, 
Foundation for the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award, Inc.; 
Margaret ``Midge'' Baldrige, widow of 
Malcolm Baldrige; and Brig. Gen. Neal Sealock, USA, U.S. Embassy Defense 
Attache in Beijing.