Interviews With the News Media Exchanges with reporters Sheraton Washington Hotel-2503 News conference with President De Leon of President Gaviria of Colombia, message on Continuation of Libyan Emergency-2492 National Drunk and Drugged Driving See also Appointments and Nominations; Bill Implementation of the North American Free Technology reinvestment project-2505 Acts approved by the President-2508 Checklist of the White House press Digest of other White House announcements-2506 releases- Nominations submitted to the Senate-2507 Editor's Note: The President traveled to Albuquerque, NM, on December 3, the closing date Published every Monday by the Office of the Federal Reg- ister, National Archives and Records Administration, Washing- ton, DC 20408, the Weekly Compilation of Presidential Docu- ments contains statements, messages, and other Presidential materials released by the White House during the preceding The Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents is pub- lished pursuant to the authority contained in the Federal Reg- ister Act (49 Stat. 500, as amended; 44 U.S.C. Ch. 15), under regulations prescribed by the Administrative Committee of the Federal Register, approved by the President (37 FR 23607; Distribution is made only by the Superintendent of Docu- ments, Government Printing Office, Washington, DC 20402. The Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents will be furnished by mail to domestic subscribers for $58.00 per year ($96.00 for mailing first class) and to foreign subscribers for $68.75 per year, payable to the Superintendent of Documents, Government Printing Office, Washington, DC 20402. The charge for a single copy is $2.00 ($2.50 for foreign mailing). Week Ending Friday, December 3, 1993 The President's Radio Address Good morning. This week my family celebrated Thanksgiving as most American families did. We gathered around a table filled with the bounty of our great country, and we thanked the Lord for all we have and all we can hope for. No holiday tradition is more American than Thanksgiving. Indeed, no people have better reasons to give thanks, because no people have been more blessed. This holiday also signals the beginning of the end of the year, a time that of many will use to take stock and to reflect. By any measure this has been an eventful year for our Nation. us On the road and in letters from my fellow Americans, I've been touched and buoyed by the words of support for the changes we have put in place and the progress we've made. It's been a good beginning: Inflation is down; interest rates are down to historic lows; the deficit is down; investment is up. Many of you listening today are among the millions of Americans who've refinanced your homes or your businesses in just the last year because of the drop in interest rates. And in the last 10 months, the economy has produced more private sector jobs than in the previous 4 years. And now that Congress has approved the North American Free Trade Agreement and I have gone to Seattle to meet with the leaders of all the Asian-Pacific economies, I know we can stimulate our jobs machine even more with increased exports. There's so much else that we've been able to do to help our workers and our families. Congress also passed and I signed into law the family and medical leave law. Now workers have a right to take some time off to take care of a sick family member or newborn child without losing their jobs. It will help to make America a place where you can be a successful worker and a successful parent. We've also moved to help our students by reforming the college loan law so that loans are easier to get, with lower interest rates and better repayment terms and stiffer requirements to pay the loan back. We signed into law the National Service Act, which 3 years from now will allow 100,000 young Americans to earn some money against their college education while rebuilding their communities from the grass roots up. We won passage of our reforms in each House in campaign finance. And when the Congress comes back, if the House and Senate can agree, we can do a lot more to take special interest politics out of our congres sional elections and therefore our decisionmaking process. We passed an economic program, which will give a real tax break to working families with children to try to make sure that everybody who works 40 hours a week in this country with a child in the home will be lifted well above the poverty line. But there's still a lot to do. Under the leadership of the First Lady, we've now got a health security proposal. And it's my fond hope that before the end of next year, Congress will pass a plan that will give every American comprehensive health care that can never be taken away. The crime bill has been passed in both Houses. It will put more police officers on the street, up to 100,000 of them, build more prisons, establish boot camps for young firsttime offenders, it will ban assault weapons. But we have to resolve those two differences and pass that crime bill early next year. We're making progress in the fight against crime. Just before the Congress left, it adopted legislation requiring a 5-day waiting period before anyone can purchase a handgun, so there can be a check for someone's age, mental health history, and criminal record. This action was a national victory in the fight against crime and violence and a very per sonal victory for Jim and Sarah Brady, a family touched by violence who turned tragedy into triumph by fighting for 7 long years to pass this important legislation to protect the rest of us from individuals who shouldn't be permitted to possess or use handguns. We've waited a long time to pass the Brady bill, but it's just the latest example of how we brought to Washington the change we promised in the last campaign. In 10 months we've broken the gridlock. We've won much of what I set out to do in my first year. Much of the change that I talked about when I ran for President is beginning to be accomplished now. The fact is, according to the highly respected Congressional Quarterly, this administration, working with both parties, has had more of its major legislation adopted in this first year than any other administration in the last 40 years. Every one of these changes, every step we take, has to be measured in a job that a mother or father finds or an opportunity a child gains or in better prospects for a business owner or in safer streets and a more secure future. Every step forward, if it helps to invigorate our economy, our community, our families, is a step worth taking. But ultimately these steps will be steady only if we begin together to do more to fix America from the inside out. We have to be concerned with the number of families that have totally broken down, the number of young women giving birth to children out of wedlock. It's sweeping the country upward and offward-upward and all across racial lines. We have to be concerned that without the structure, the discipline, the love of families, too many children face a future stripped of hope. Too many kids now live without enough hope or enough love or enough discipline. We have to be concerned that in both our cities and our rural areas, the value of life has been cheapened. Too many children are killing children with weapons of destruction that are even more efficient and sophisticated than the police, who are supposed to protect the people, have. For our part, we're working hard to provide economic security, health care security, and safety in community and in this way to remove some of the stress that hurts our families. We're working hard to open opportunities to make the changes sweeping the world friendly to the American working family. It's been said that the family is the test of freedom. It tests our freedom and our sense of responsibility. And that's the best reason to try to preserve families and to try to alleviate some of the terrible, terrible burdens that have aggravated the strains on family life for nearly 30 years now. So, my fellow Americans, on this most treasured of holiday weekends, as we give thanks for what we have, let's remember what so many millions of Americans don't have. Let's remember how much both work and family mean to civilized life. We can restore and repair the basic fabric of our society only if we build up both: work and family. Together, I believe we can do that. Thanks for listening. NOTE: The address was recorded at 12:15 p.m. on November 24 in the Oval Office at the White House for broadcast at 10:06 a.m. on November 27. Proclamation 6630-National Hospice Month, 1993 and 1994 November 29, 1993 By the President of the United States of America A Proclamation As Americans work together to reform our Nation's health care system, I am pleased to proclaim November 1993 and 1994 as National Hospice Month. Hospice is an eminently successful program, a vital health care service that allows the terminally ill to die with dignity. It addresses the importance of being in a warm, familiar, and comforting environment in our last days. This care helps not only in preserving and enhancing the patient's quality of life during an illness, but also in giving support to the family following the death of a loved one. This attention underscores the importance of the needs of the entire family and highlights the dedication of this supportive and knowledgeable interdisciplinary team. The public and private sectors have forged a unique partnership in the development of high standards and new programs for hospice care. These and other changes to be brought about by health care reform hold the promise for even greater accomplishments as we try to improve the quality of life of those most in need. Thus, my Administration is deeply committed to maintaining and strengthening these efforts in our health care system. In recognition of the importance of hospice programs and in honor of the many dedicated volunteers and professionals who care for the terminally ill and their families, the Congress, by House Joint Resolution 159, has designated November 1993 and 1994 as "National Hospice Month" and has authorized and requested the President to issue a proclamation in observance of these months. Now, Therefore, I, William J. Clinton, President of the United States of America, do hereby proclaim November 1993 and 1994 as National Hospice Month. I encourage all Americans to recognize the importance of hospice care and to observe these months with appropriate activities and pro grams. In Witness Whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this twenty-ninth day of November, in the year of our Lord nineteen hundred and ninety-three, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and eighteenth. William J. Clinton [Filed with the Office of the Federal Register, 4:29 p.m., November 29, 1993] NOTE: This proclamation was published in the Federal Register on December 1. Proclamation 6631-National Home Care Week, 1993 and 1994 November 29, 1993 By the President of the United States of America A Proclamation Home care, the oldest form of health care, traditionally has been provided by families for their loved ones for centuries. It is also a new form of health care, as modern technology has developed to the point where virtually anything available in a hospital can now be provided in the home, a secure and comforting environment. Each day, thousands of hardworking men and women bring vital home health care services to Americans who are incapacitated by illness, age, or disability. Working in association with more that 12,000 home care agencies across the country, these dedicated professionals and volunteers form a core of caring support in our Nation's vast health care system. This week, we honor them and express our deepest appreciation for their many contributions. The administrators and employees of home health care agencies work closely with government agencies and with concerned private organizations, including hospitals, to give patients a welcome alternative to institutionalized care. Home health care treats the patient and his or her family members, attending to needs both physical and spiritual, in an atmosphere that fosters dignity, healing, and independence. Secure in familiar surroundings, patients find comfort in the support of their loved ones, while receiving efficient, effective health services, free from institutional constraints. For the nine to eleven million Americans of all ages who currently require long-term care, there is a unanimity of voice in the choosing of home health care as an alternative to hospital stays. At a time when we are striving to reform our health care system and make it work for all of our citizens, home care is an excellent and cost-effective method. Thousands of nurses, therapists, social workers, home health aides, and others provide our Nation's home care services, and each of them deserves our recognition and heartfelt thanks. With understanding and compassion, they do more than prolong life-they enhance its quality. For this priceless gift, we honor their service. To increase public awareness of and support for our Nation's home care agencies, the Congress, by Senate Joint Resolution 55, has designated the weeks beginning November 28, 1993, and November 27, 1994, as "National Home Care Week" and has authorized and requested the President to issue a proclamation in observance of these weeks. Now, Therefore, I, William J. Clinton, President of the United States of America, do hereby proclaim the weeks of November 28 through December 4, 1993, and November 27 through December 3, 1994, as National Home Care Week. I encourage all Americans to observe these weeks with appropriate programs and activities. In Witness Whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this twenty-ninth day of November, in the year of our Lord nineteen hundred and ninety-three, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and eighteenth. [Filed with the Office of the Federal Register, 4:27 p.m., November 29, 1993] NOTE: This Executive order was published in the Federal Register on December 1. Letter to Congressional Leaders on Iraq November 29, 1993 Dear Mr. Speaker: (Dear Mr. President:) Consistent with the Authorization for Use of Military Force Against Iraq Resolution (Public Law 102-1), and as part of my effort to keep the Congress fully informed, I am reporting on the status of efforts to obtain Iraq's compliance with the resolutions adopted by the U.N. Security Council. Inspections and sanctions have significantly debilitated Iraq's ability to reconstitute its weapons of mass destruction (WMD) programs in the near future. The U.N. Special Commission on Iraq (UNSCOM) and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) have effectively put the Iraqi nuclear weapons program out of business in the near term. The United Nations has destroyed Iraqi missile launchers, support facilities, and a good deal of Iraq's indigenous capability to manufacture prohibited missiles. It has reduced Iraq's ability to produce chemical weapons; UNSCOM teams continue to inventory and destroy chemical munitions. The United Nations has inspected, and will monitor, several facilities identified by Iraq as capable of supporting a biological weapons program. Continued vigilance is necessary, however, because we believe that Saddam Hussein is committed to rebuilding his WMD capability, especially nuclear weapons, and is most likely continuing to conceal likely continuing to conceal weapons-related activities from the U.N. It is therefore extremely important that the international community maintain current sanctions and continue its efforts to establish the long-term monitoring regime required by U.N. Security Council Resolution 715. Although Iraq has said that it is ready to comply with that Resolution, it still must take significant steps, including the provision of new data about the suppliers of its WMD program. Rolf Ekeus, the Chairman of UNSCOM, has told Iraq |