Remarks to the Crew of the U.S.S. George Washington in Portsmouth, United Kingdom June 5, 1994
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Administration of William J. Clinton, 1994 / June 5 America. And that's why Congress must and will more and more and more than any other part ratify the world trade agreement soon. of our budget, not for new health care but to When we create these good export jobs, we pay more for the same health care. As you must make sure our people are ready to fill know, I am fighting hard to guarantee health them. These days, what you earn depends on care for every American in a way that can never what you learn. Skills and knowledge are the be taken away but that will bring costs in line most important asset of all. That's why we're with inflation. working on a lifetime learning system to train So there's still a lot more to do. But let's every citizen from the first day of preschool be proud of what Americans have done. America to the last day before retirement. is going back to work. Unemployment is down. Now we have to fix our broken unemploy- Jobs are up. Inflation is down. Growth and new ment system to replace it with a reemployment business is up. Our economy is clearly leading system so that when someone loses a job, he the world. We've made this world better by or she can find a good new job as quickly as making the tough choices. That's what we've possible. I am fighting for Congress to pass this got to keep doing. reemployment act this year, too. Thanks for listening. Finally, our deficit will grow and our expan- sion will sputter if we don't reform our health NOTE: The President spoke at 3:06 p.m. from care system. Health care costs are going up Hartwell House in Aylesbury, England. Remarks to the Crew of the U.S.S. George Washington in Portsmouth, United Kingdom June 5, 1994 Thank you very much. And thank you, Cap- that you continue to have what you need to tain Sprigg. Thank you, gentlemen, for that wel- do your job. You deserve it. Our security de- come. It's nice to be here. mands it. Just a few moments ago, my wife and I were Let me also say that it has been one of the on the royal yacht Britannia with the heads of great honors of my life for me to be able to 15 nations around the world. And when we went come here to represent our entire country in by the George Washington, they were all ec- commemorating D-Day and the other great bat- static. They asked me questions about this mag- tles of World War II. Yesterday, I was near nificent carrier, and thankfully, I'd done my Cambridge, England, at the magnificent ceme- homework and I could answer them. So you tery which has over 3,800 Americans buried now have 15 more fans around the world, thanks there who were part of the air war against Ger- to this wonderful day. many, and on the wall a list of 5,000 others Exactly 50 years ago at this very time, young who never returned. I was with a man from people just like you were right here in this chan- my home State who flew 149 missions in that nel on some 5,000 ships preparing for the most difficult endeavor. important battle of this century. Imagine how This has been a very emotional time for Hil- they must have felt, in choppy seas and bad lary and me. Her father was in the Navy during weather. Imagine how they must have looked the Second World War; my father was in the to the enemy when they came across the hori- Army in part of the Italian campaign. Yesterday zon. Imagine what the enemy forces would have and the day before, when we commemorated thought then if they had seen this magnificent the landings at Anzio and Nettuno, were incred- ship. ible experiences. You are beyond question the best trained, the Just before I came aboard here I met some best equipped fighting force the world has ever other proud veterans of World War II who known. And I want you to know that I am made the crossing on the U.S.S. Jeremiah committed unequivocally, absolutely, to ensuring O'Brien, a World War II Liberty ship. You've 1029 June 5 / Administration of William J. Clinton, 1994 seen it, I'm sure. It's right here near you. It another D-Day. That is what you are guaran- was one of the many ships that were part of teeing, and your country is deeply in your debt. the lend-lease program, bringing aid to the Brit- Let me also say, as I conclude my remarks ish even before the United States formally en- and congratulate those who are reenlisting, I tered the war. know this has been a difficult time for many As I met with them, and now as I look out young people who wanted to commit their ca- at all of you and hear your enthusiasm and reers to our Armed Forces because of the your strength, I am reminded that for all of downsizing that inevitably came. I want you to our incredible technological advances, the know, number one, we're more than halfway strength of our military is not really in our ships, through; number two, it will be over in 2 years; our tanks, or our aircrafts, it is in you, the dedi- number three, there will be more advancements cated professionalism of the men and women this year than last year, more advancements next of the United States Armed Forces. year than this year. We still need you. We need Even though the cold war is over, we are your devotion. We need your talent. And the still on the eve of great endeavors, not to turn military of the United States is still going to back armies of oppression which threaten our be an important and good place to make a ca- very existence but to protect our safety and se- reer because it's still defending the security of curity and to expand the blessings of liberty. the greatest nation in the history of the world. This work will not be done in a day or year. And now I would like to introduce, to con- It will not be finished during the term of your tinue the reenlistment, the new Chief of Naval service. It may not be finished in the life of Operations, a man who has done a terrific job this great Nation, but it must continue. It will for our country in dealing with the problems take you all across the globe, from the Adriatic in Bosnia and elsewhere throughout his naval to the Indian Ocean, from the Persian Gulf to career, a man who has come a long way since the Sea of Japan. he started, Admiral Mike Boorda. Please wel- As we honor those who served in World War come him. II, we must also honor those of you who serve now, who are continuing the legacy they left us. For if we learned any lesson from the mag- NOTE: The President spoke at 3:01 p.m. aboard nificent, heroic, almost unbelievable endeavor of the ship. In his remarks, he referred to Capt. Rob- D-Day, it was that if the allies would stay to- ert Sprigg, USN, captain of the U.S.S. George gether and stay strong, we would never need Washington. Interview With Wolf Blitzer of CNN June 5, 1994 Foreign Policy Mr. Blitzer. Where is the most likely spot Mr. Blitzer. Mr. President, did you ever think in the world today for the next war? that you'd be going on this 50th anniversary The President. I don't want to say that, be- commemoration of D-Day, a past war, and have cause if I do it'll only be interpreted as pre- to focus at the same time on a potential new dicting American involvement. Our interests are one? at stake obviously in a number of places. I will The President. Well, I never thought I'd be say this, the possibility of a war that can be going on the D-Day thing, and it's been a great damaging to our existence is significantly less honor to do it. But even as we honor the past, now. We concluded this agreement with the we know the only way we can ultimately honor Russians and the Ukraines, the Kazakhs and the the past is to keep faith with it in the present. people from Belarus, so they're moving nuclear So I have to continue to deal with the problems weapons out of those other three states into that are here. Russia. The Russians and the Americans are no longer pointing their nuclear weapons at each 1030.