    [Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 40, Number 25 (Monday, June 21, 2004)]
    [Pages 1062-1064]
    [Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

    <R04>
    Remarks on the Unveiling of the Official Portraits of President William
    J. Clinton and First Lady Hillary Clinton

    June 14, 2004

        Good morning. Thank you, Henry. Laura and I appreciate you all
    coming. President Clinton and Senator Clinton, welcome home. All who
    live here are temporary residents. The portraits that are presented
    today will be held permanently in the White House collection for all the
    ages. And so beginning today, the likenesses of President William
    Jefferson Clinton and First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton will take their
    place in a line that began with George and Martha Washington.
        Laura and I are pleased to welcome members of the Clinton and Rodham
    family. Thank you all for coming. It's great to see Chelsea. The fact
    that you survived your teenage years in the White House--[laughter]--
    speaks to the fact that you had a great mom and dad. We are pleased that
    Mrs. Dorothy Rodham is here. Welcome. We're glad you're here and those
    two boys you're still trying to raise. [Laughter] Hugh and Tony, thank
    you for coming. We're glad you're here.
        It's good to see so many who served our Nation so ably in the
    Clinton administration. Thank you all for coming back. Thanks for your
    service to the country, and welcome back to the White House. We're
    really glad you're here, and I know the President is as well.
        As you might know, my father and I have decided to call each other
    by numbers. [Laughter] He's 41, I'm 43. It's a great honor to--it's a
    great pleasure to honor number 42. We're glad you're here, 42.
        The years have done a lot to clarify the strengths of this man. As a
    candidate for any office, whether it be the State attorney general or
    the President, Bill Clinton showed incredible energy and great personal
    appeal. As chief executive, he showed a deep and far-ranging knowledge
    of public policy, a great compassion for people in need, and the
    forward-looking spirit that Americans like in a President. Bill Clinton
    could always see a

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    better day ahead, and Americans knew he was working hard to bring that
    day closer.
        Over 8 years, it was clear that Bill Clinton loved the job of the
    Presidency. He filled this house with energy and joy. He's a man of
    enthusiasm and warmth, who could make a compelling case and effectively
    advance the causes that drew him to public service.
        People saw those gifts very early in Bill Clinton. He is remembered
    in Hope, Arkansas, and other places along the way as an eager, good-
    hearted boy who seemed destined for big things. I was particularly
    struck by the story of a nun at St. John's School in Hot Springs who
    decided that Billy Clinton should get a C in deportment. That was a rare
    grade for the future Rhodes scholar and President. [Laughter] So Bill's
    mother gave the nun a call to see what was wrong. The Sister replied,
    ``Oh, nothing much. But let me tell you, this boy knows the answer to
    every question, and he just leaps to his feet before anyone else can.''
    [Laughter] She went on, you know, ``I know he'll not tolerate this C,
    but it'll be good for him. And I promise you, if he wants to be, he will
    be President someday.''
        People in Bill Clinton's life have always expected him to succeed,
    and more than that, they wanted him to succeed. And meeting those
    expectations took more than charm and intellect. It took hard work and
    drive and determination and optimism, and after all, you've got to be
    optimistic to give 6 months of your life running the McGovern campaign
    in Texas. [Laughter]
        He won his first statewide office at age 30, sworn in as Governor at
    32. He was a five-time Governor of Arkansas, the first man from that
    State to become the President. He's also the first man in his party
    since Franklin Roosevelt to win a second term in the White House. And I
    could tell you more of the story, but it's coming out in fine bookstores
    all over America. [Laughter]
        At every stage in the extraordinary rise of Bill Clinton, from the
    little ranch house on Scully Street to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, he and
    Roger had a wonderful, loving mother, and I am certain that Virginia
    Kelley would be filled with incredible pride this morning.
        And so would Hugh Rodham, Senior. Mr. Rodham did have the joy of
    seeing his only daughter become America's First Lady. And I know he
    would not be surprised to see her as she is today, an elected United
    States Senator and a woman greatly admired in our country.
        From the earliest days of her youth in Park Ridge, Illinois, Hillary
    Rodham impressed her family and friends as a person of great ability and
    serious purpose. At Maine Township High School South, at Wellesley
    College, and at Yale Law School, classmates saw her not just as an
    achiever but as a role model and as a leader. She inspires respect and
    loyalty from those who know her. And it was a good day in both their
    lives when they met at the library at Yale Law School.
        Hillary's commitment to public service continued when she left this
    house. Listen, New York politics is a serious business--[laughter]--it's
    rough business. It takes an extraordinary person to campaign and win the
    United States Senate. She has proven herself more equal to the
    challenge, and she takes an interesting spot on American history today,
    for she is the only sitting Senator whose portrait hangs in the White
    House.
        The paintings of the Clintons are the work of a fine American
    artist, Simmie Knox. Mr. Knox has rendered portraits of a Supreme Court
    Justice, a Cabinet minister, a mayor, and Members of Congress. And today
    we thank him for putting his skilled hand to the portraits that are
    about to be unveiled.
        More than 40 years have passed since a boy of 16 came here to the
    White House with a group from the American Legion Boys Nation. On that
    day in the summer of 1963, Bill Clinton of Arkansas looked into the face
    of John F. Kennedy and left the Rose Garden feeling very proud that he
    had shaken the hand of a President. Today he can be even prouder of
    decades of service and effort and perseverance that brought him back to
    this place as the 42d President of the United States.
        My congratulations to you both, and now will you join me on the
    stage for the presentation.

    Note: The President spoke at 10:35 a.m. in the East Room at the White
    House. In his remarks, he referred to Henry A. Dudley, Jr., chairman,
    White House Historical Association.

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