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regarding the designation criteria set forth in in conformity with the designation criteria. The section 203 of the ATPA. Peru has demonstrated United States will keep abreast of developments to my satisfaction that its laws, practices, and in Peru that are pertinent to the designation policies are in conformity with the designation criteria. criteria of the ATPA. The Government of Peru This Administration looks forward to working has communicated on these matters by a letter closely with the Government of Peru and with to the Office of the United States Trade Rep- the private sectors of the United States and Peru resentative and in so doing has indicated its to ensure that the wide-ranging opportunities desire to be designated as a beneficiary. opened by the ATPA are fully utilized. On the basis of the statements and assurances Sincerely, in Peru’s letter, and taking into account informa- WILLIAM J. CLINTON tion developed by the United States Embassy and through other sources, I have concluded NOTE: Identical letters were sent to Thomas S. that designation is appropriate at this time. Foley, Speaker of the House of Representatives, I am mindful that under section 203(e) of and Albert Gore, Jr., President of the Senate. This the ATPA, I retain the authority to suspend, letter was released by the Office of the Press Sec- withdraw, or limit the application of ATPA ben- retary on August 12. The related proclamation of efits from any designated country if a bene- August 11 is listed in Appendix D at the end of ficiary’s laws, policies, or practices are no longer this volume.

Remarks on Signing Flood Relief Legislation at a Tribute to Flood Heroes in St. Louis, August 12, 1993

Thank you very much. Please be seated, and neighbors. But in this time of crisis, they risked good morning, to our distinguished host, Gov- their lives to save children and parents, to pull ernor Carnahan; and majority leader of the people from troubled waters or trapped vehicles, United States House, ; Secretary to feed the hungry, to provide water to people Espy; Secretary Shalala; James Lee Witt; the who literally could not have had safe living con- distinguished other Members of Congress who ditions otherwise. And most importantly, a lot are here, Congressmen , , of them are committed to staying involved in Jerry Costello, , and . this for the long haul. It is so easy to forget To the distinguished Governor of Kansas, Joan that much of the work is still to be done. Finney, my good friend, welcome, and to all Today we salute them and others like them. of you from all the States who were affected And to be sure, there are hundreds, indeed by this terrible flood. thousands of others that we might have just We’re going to begin today by awarding 19 as well recognized today who took on the raging outstanding Americans Presidential Certificates rivers to stick up for their friends and neighbors of Commendation. These recipients are everyday and total strangers. people, but what they did was most extraor- Now I’d like to ask the FEMA Director, dinary. Hillary and Chelsea and I just had the James Lee Witt, to come here and present the opportunity to meet them all and to talk with commendations to the individuals as they are them a little bit about their experiences during introduced and to thank him and all the State the flood. Because of their efforts, lives were FEMA directors and all the local emergency saved and larger disasters were averted. In some management people for the wonderful work that cases, they provided the support that kept all they have done also in dealing with this flood. the other volunteers going, and that’s what made Mr. Witt. the difference. In their communities, they are mothers and fathers, business owners, police officers, and [At this point, Director Witt presented the Presi-

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dential Certificates of Commendation. Gov. Mel which resulted in over two dozen bone- Carnahan and Representative Richard Gephardt breakings in her body before she was born. then made brief remarks.] Years ago she would never have been able to live any kind of life, but because of the medical Thank you very much, ladies and gentlemen. miracles of the National Institutes of Health, Please be seated. I want to thank my friend which she has visited once every 3 months since Congressman Gephardt for that generous intro- she was an infant, she is able to function as duction and Governor Carnahan for his fine re- a student. She is able to have a semblance of marks. I acknowledged Governor Finney here. a normal life. She is a delightful young person. I thank all the others from the other States But she still can easily break major bones in who are here. We have the Lieutenant Governor her body. And yet, she implored her parents of Nebraska, the heads of various States’ Na- to let her leave Wisconsin—she lives in Mil- tional Guards and emergency management pro- waukee—and come to Iowa to help to fight the grams, representing all those who worked. floods, knowing that she had an imminent risk I have been now to the Midwest four times just by carrying a can of water around. since this flood began. The Secretary of Agri- That is the sort of thing that I have seen culture, who was up here with me, Mike Espy, happen. When people say to me, ‘‘Well, FEMA has been here probably twice that many times, really did a great job this time. The Federal if not more. And I have charged him with being Government was here all the way,’’ I say, what responsible for the long-term cleanup efforts, else could we have done in the face of that so I wanted him standing up here. So when kind of contribution by ordinary Americans? you get frustrated with the Federal Government One of the reasons, frankly, that FEMA did 30 days from now, call him—[laughter]—and such a good job, I think, is that the Director harass him. He’ll be good at it. of FEMA has actually spent several years help- I thank also the Secretary of Health and ing ordinary people fight disasters. He is a Human Services, Donna Shalala, who has come friend of mine. He was a county judge in a here with me today. Many members of my Cabi- county where all the Clintons came from. But net have been here to the Midwest, and many he was not a political appointment to FEMA, of them have a role to play. he was somebody who knew what it was like We are here for two reasons. The first was to see people there risking their lives, their busi- to honor these fine people who have received nesses, their livelihoods, putting sandbags against their just recognition. The second is to sign the a swollen river. We need more people like that relief package which will permit the rebuilding in our National Government, people who are to begin with a significant dose of support from related at the grassroots level to the real con- the Federal Government. cerns of people. And we’re going to try to give Throughout human history it has been the you that. way of nature to visit us on occasion with dis- In this disaster, more than 45 lives were lost; aster, without apparent cause, without expla- 70,000 people had to be evacuated. But you nation, often without mercy, always reminding all know it could have been a lot worse if it us that we need to live our lives with a little hadn’t been for folks like you and the many more humility and always understanding that we tens of thousands who fought to make it as are not in full control. How we face these mis- good as possible. fortunes tells us a lot about ourselves and our In just a minute I will sign this disaster relief friends. We know we cannot contain the fury bill, $6.3 billion in Federal assistance to the of a river. But we can and we must allow our victims of the flood here in the Midwest and humanity to overflow as well, to help to reclaim other disasters. This is an extraordinary measure the lives that are shattered. That is what I have taken under extraordinary circumstances with seen happen here in the Midwest, from official real speed, moving through Congress with the responses and from individual responses. help of suffering citizens from the Midwest and The other day I had a young girl from Wis- eloquent advocates for the Midwest. I would consin in the Oval Office. You may have seen be remiss if I did not commend the legislators her story written up. She’s 13 years old, but of both parties who put aside partisan dif- she’s only 4 feet tall. She weighs about 60 ferences and put the people of this area first pounds. She was born with a rare bone disease in passing this bill: people who are not here,

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like Senator Tom Harkin from Iowa and Senator regulators to waive certain legal requirements Paul Wellstone of Minnesota; people who never for financial institutions serving areas hard hit seek the headlines, like Senator Jim Exon of by flooding, by relaxing a few regulations in Nebraska; people who are here represented, response to this emergency. We’ll allow local who quietly work for you day in and day out, banks to make local decisions on how best to again, without regard to party. We finally even speed up aid and credit to those who really found something that Senator Dole and I could need it. agree on, in this bill. [Laughter] Just this week I signed into law the largest These funds will be used across a wide spec- deficit reduction package in the history of Amer- trum and delivered quickly. They’ll help farmers ica, almost $500 billion. There were a lot of who lost their crops. Secretary Espy will see things in that bill, which will become apparent to it that payments are made at the rate of over time, which really help ordinary Americans, 100 percent of approved 1993 crop losses as including tax relief for people who work 40 defined by the 1990 farm bill. The funds will hours a week and have children in their homes also be used to repair public facilities, bridges, and still are living below the poverty line. One highways, levees, and flood control networks; to part of that bill is especially important today. provide for the health and social service needs Under it, flood victims will have more time and of flood victims, and they will be significant. flexibility in replacing their homes and personal I hope we will have heroes who will be attend- property. At the same time, the IRS will ease ing to those who will inevitably suffer from de- tax collection requirements on those who now pression, from an undefinable and almost have to live on their insurance proceeds. uncontainable sense of loss as they go back and You can be sure that we will continue to see their life savings gone, the work of their review the help needed by people in this region. lifetime washed away, even their family albums We are in it for the long run. As I said, Sec- no longer available to them in times of sorrow. retary Espy is our designated leader on long- They’ll be used to provide housing for the dis- term Federal involvement in the rebuilding. And placed; to help homeowners and businesses to if there are further problems, we’ll depend upon clean up and rebuild; to help our dislocated you, directly or through your elected representa- workers to find new work, hopefully with even tives, to let us know. better skills. Will Rogers once said, ‘‘We can’t all be heroes Two billion dollars will go to the Federal because somebody has to sit on the curb and Emergency Management Agency, FEMA, for clap as everybody else goes by.’’ [Laughter] relief of the floods and other disasters and to Well, that may be true. And today we have provide for emergency cash relief for those who applauded 19 heroes. But we have acknowl- qualify for that. I’m proud to say that FEMA edged also that they simply represent the best has enjoyed a new respect as a result of their of what thousands of people demonstrated. I efforts in this flood. I was especially heartened think that we can all be heroes if we learn by the praise given FEMA by the Mayor of something from this that we carry over into the Quincy, Illinois, Chuck Scholz. His city’s brave rest of our lives. stand against the rising waters made all Ameri- Think about Reverend Donna Harris and the cans proud. And they didn’t win all their battles. people of Niota, Illinois—the spiritual nourish- All of the help in this relief package will come ment and the groceries, meals, and fresh water free of the bonds of redtape. Disasters provide that she provided in that tiny town of 200 for enough grief without more coming from Wash- flood victims. Or Al Vogt in Glen Haven, Wis- ington, so we’ve worked as hard as we could consin, who risked his life to save a teenager, to streamline the paperwork, to cut out unneces- a boy being dragged by flood waters through sary delays, to work on flexibility and fairness, the street when Al saw him and pulled him to help in every way that we can. to safety. The town I grew up in had a flash A good example of this flexibility and willing- flood once where waters 10 feet high rushed ness to cut redtape is contained in another bill at 30 miles an hour down the main street of that I will also sign this morning, called Deposi- town. I saw people pull babies flying in that tory Institutions Relief Act. It doesn’t mean a kind of water. It is a terrifying experience. He thing, does it? Washington language. But what braved it. He could have been drowned; he the act will do is important. It will allow Federal could have been pulled away. Sheriff Ken White

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helped to rescue two people, in two separate The best way for the United States to reward operations, from drowning. Once he had to tie that courage is not only for me to sign this himself to a truck so he could save a woman flood relief bill and to work with you for the hanging onto a telephone pole. long haul but for all of us to try to learn some- Hearing these people, I’m reminded of what thing that we can take into our daily lives from President Kennedy said of his own heroism in the example you set in this emergency. World War II. He said, ‘‘It was involuntary; A couple of nights ago, Hillary and I had they sank my boat.’’ [Laughter] To be sure, for the incredible honor of hosting at the White all these people heroism was involuntary. Maybe House all the commanders in chiefs of all of that’s why the courage of daily life, in a way, our military commands all over the world, all is all the more to be admired, when there is the four-star generals and admirals that—some- no life-threatening danger, when we just are one said it was a 76-star dinner, but I don’t required to get up every day and to go about think it was because I’m not sure you can divide our business and to try to face our challenges 76 by 4 and get an even number. [Laughter] and seize our opportunities. That, in a way, is But at the dinner, the Vice Chairman of the the enduring heroism of the American people. Joint Chiefs of Staff, Admiral David Jeremiah, It’s the heroism that I believe will be em- who’s become quite a good friend of mine, came bodied when the Congress comes back to town up to me and said, ‘‘You know, you can’t roll next month and passes the national service corps up your sleeves if you’re wringing your hands.’’ bill to give young people a chance to serve their An interesting statement, isn’t it? When the communities and earn some credit toward a col- floods were coming no one had time to wring lege education, the heroism embodied in people their hands, so they just automatically rolled up like the local VISTA volunteers here in St. their sleeves. When the floods go away, we have Louis. I want to single out Delores Despiwa. time to wring our hands, so a lot of us don’t She’s here somewhere. Please stand, Delores. roll up our sleeves. Let us honor the heroes Stand up there. Her home’s under water, and here today by firm resolve to go back about she’s still working for other people. I want to the business of our daily lives as Americans, recognize the Iowa Conservation Corps. There rolling up our sleeves and not wringing our are some members here from the Iowa Con- hands. servation Corps. Would they stand? I think Thank you very much. they’re here. Yes. Thank you. I would like now to ask the Members of the That is the sort of sustained service that all who are here to come of us need to think about providing to our coun- up on the stage and join me as I sign this try, and the attitude of cooperation, the deter- bill. mination to bridge the gaps that divide us, gaps of party and religion and philosophy, to struggle for common values. In the face of a 500-year flood, that’s what millions of you did here in NOTE: The President spoke at 10:20 a.m. at the the Middle West. And you gave us an enduring Henry VIII Hotel. H.R. 2667, approved August vision of your courage. 12, was assigned Public Law No. 103–75.

Statement on Signing Flood Relief Legislation August 12, 1993

Today I have signed into law H.R. 2667, the to develop a bill that helps those who are suf- ‘‘Emergency Supplemental Appropriations for fering as a result of the Midwest floods. Relief From the Major, Widespread Flooding H.R. 2667 provides an estimated $2.35 billion in the Midwest Act of 1993.’’ This Act provides for disaster payments to farmers through the $6.3 billion of Federal assistance to the victims Commodity Credit Corporation. Pursuant to this of the Midwest floods and other disasters. I Act, I am informing Secretary of Agriculture commend the Congress for acting expeditiously Mike Espy that extraordinary circumstances exist

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