Administration of William J. Clinton, 1998 / Dec. 10 2461 Remarks on the Unveiling of a know and respect Mike Espy in that endeav- Portrait of Former Secretary of or. Agriculture Michael Espy I knew we also shared a vision for America, a new approach to government rooted in our December 10, 1998 most enduring values, changed and shaped to meet the challenges of the 21st century. Oh, happy day. [Laughter] I'd like to begin The need for change was nowhere more evi- by thanking Deputy Secretary Rominger, dent than at the Department of Agriculture, who has served so well both Secretary Espy which has, as Dan Glickman said, since the and Secretary Glickman. I thank Dan Glick- time of President Lincoln, nurtured the man and Rhoda for being a part of our ad- seeds of renewal for America. ministration's family. On Christmas Eve I said, ``The Depart- Dan Glickman pointed out when I dis- cussed this appointment with him that he ment of Agriculture can't simply be a stolid would be in the proud tradition of my com- representative of the interests of the past. It mitment to a Cabinet that looks like America has to be a real force for family farmers in and to diversity because there were even our country, for the agricultural issues of fewer Jewish farmers than black farmers. today and tomorrow.'' Mike understood that. [Laughter] As the first African-American to become the I want to thank my friends Reverend Secretary of Agriculture, he was the very em- Wintley Phipps, Reverend Walter Fauntroy, bodiment of change. Not only here but in Reverend Beecher Hicks, and the Howard many other areas of administration policyÐ Gospel Choir here. They are wonderful. I one of eight African-Americans who have thank the members of the Cabinet and now served in the President's Cabinet in the former members of the Cabinet who are last 6 years. And I am very grateful for that. here, Secretary Herman, Secretary Richard- And I'm grateful to Senator Leahy and son, Secretary O'Leary, EPA Administrator Senator Carol Moseley-Braun for confirming Browner, Ambassador Barshefsky. John Po- them all. desta and Bob Nash and a whole slew of peo- In his 2 years at the helm Mike changed ple from the White House are here; Senator the Department of Agriculture as profoundly Leahy, Senator Carol Moseley-Braun, Con- and beneficially as any Secretary in its his- gressmen Clyburn, Jefferson, Eddie Bernice tory. It is fitting today we raise his portrait. Johnson, Stenholm, Congressman Thomp- He made history, and today we honor him son. We're glad to see former Congressmen for it. Montgomery and Coelho and many other I'd like to talk a little bit about his record former Members of Congress here. And Rev- as Secretary of Agriculture. His first great erend Jackson, thank you for coming; and to challenge came only a few days after he start- the Espy family and all the members of Mike ed on the job, when an outbreak of e-coli Espy's extended family here. from tainted meat took the lives of three chil- Six years ago, on Christmas Eve, I an- dren in Washington State. Mike went to nounced that I would nominate, and I quote, Washington, promised the victims' families ``my neighbor, my friend, and my supporter, strong action, and he delivered. Mike Espy'' to be Secretary of Agriculture. The new science-based inspection proce- He was a young Congressman from Mis- dures developed during his tenure and put sissippi when I served as Governor of Arkan- into place under Secretary Glickman have sas. We shared a passion for many issues, in- cut incidents of salmonella contamination in cluding rural development. pork by a third, in poultry by nearly 50 per- As a Congressman, Mike worked with my cent, according to the preliminary data we Senator, Dale Bumpers, to set up the Lower have. The Department of Agriculture has no Mississippi Delta Development Commission, higher responsibility than ensuring the safety a commission I had the honor to chair. It of America's food supply. Today it is fulfilling brought jobs and growth to one of America's that responsibility, thanks in no small meas- poorest, least developed regions. I came to ure to Mike Espy's leadership. VerDate 14-DEC-98 08:54 Dec 17, 1998 Jkt 010199 PO 00000 Frm 00031 Fmt 1244 Sfmt 1244 M:\TERRI\P50DE4.TXT TXED01 PsN: TXED01 2462 Dec. 10 / Administration of William J. Clinton, 1998 Mike's second great challenge came in Mike left the USDA in 1994 to face a dif- 1993 also. It was a challenging year, when ferent kind of challenge, one no person could floods of biblical proportion struck the Mid- have chosen, but one he faced with char- west. In the past, the Federal Government acteristic resolve, integrity, and strength. I'd had earned a reputation for slow and inad- like to sayÐI don't know if this is appropriate equate responses to natural disasters. But or not, but I think we ought to give Mr. Mike Espy, along with James Lee Witt at Weingarten and Mr. Wells a hand and ask FEMA, helped set a new, higher standard them to stand. They did a heck of a job. [Ap- of Government service, providing thousands plause] Thank you. of communities and millions of Americans Mike drew inspiration from his family, his with the aid they needed swiftly and effi- friends, the Holy Scripture. With his head ciently. held high, he persevered, and he triumphed. His third great challenge at USDA was to Often, Mike talks fondly of his late father help our economy and our farm sector by Henry, who was a USDA Agricultural Exten- expanding markets for America's agricultural sion Agent in Arkansas in the early 1940's, bounty. When we negotiated the GATT ac- back in the days when black extension agents cords in later 1993, some of the greatest ob- only served black farmers. The pride Henry stacles were agricultural issues. Nobody Espy would feel if he could see this portrait worked harder, with greater success, to work of his son hanging in this room is something through those issues and pave the way for we can only imagine. But the pride that we the passage of GATT than Secretary Espy. can feel, for Mike, for the USDA, and for His fourth great challenge was to make the progress of our Nation, is every bit as USDA smaller, stronger, more responsive to real. farmers and consumers. In just 2 short years, I think all of us have been deeply moved Mike put in motion a process, which Sec- to see this good man grow in mind, body, retary Glickman has carried through, that has and spirit through this difficult ordeal. He reduced the work force by 18,000, closed and often said he read the 27th Psalm. When I consolidated over 1,000 field offices, saved saw him outside the courtroom, I thought the taxpayers of our country $4.8 billion, all of the wonderful passage from Isaiah: ``Be the while, thanks to the employees here, im- not afraid. I have redeemed you. I have proving services to farmers, many of whom called you by my name. You are mine.'' Well, can now visit one location instead of driving Mike, the jury redeemed you, and you belong from one USDA field office to another. I to the American people, and we are very thank him, and I thank all of you who work proud of you. here, for doing that. Now I would like to ask Mike's children, The list of the good things he did for Jamilla and Mike, to join me in unveiling this America goes on and on. He set higher nutri- fine portrait by the Mississippi artist, Jason tional standards for school lunches. He Bouldin, who is also here. I would like to helped end the gridlock over logging on Fed- ask Mr. Bouldin to come up and stand on eral lands in the Northwest. He spearheaded the stage with us, so we can appreciate his the Water 2000 effort to make sure that, by handiwork. the end of the century, no American is with- out fresh, clean drinking water. Starting in [At this point, the portrait was unveiled.] Congress, continuing as Agriculture Sec- Now, ladies and gentlemen, I think it's retary, Mike worked to win more resources high time we heard from the man we came for minority farmers and to fight discrimina- to honor, Secretary Mike Espy. tion in USDA programs, a fight that Sec- retary Glickman has energetically continued. NOTE: The President spoke at 12:52 p.m. at the I thank both of them for that. Department of Agriculture. In his remarks, he re- This year, finally, we fought for and won ferred to Rhoda Glickman, wife of Agriculture legislation to allow minority farmers discrimi- Secretary Dan Glickman; civil rights leader Rev. nation claims from almost the last two dec- Jesse Jackson; and attorneys Reid H. Weingarten ades finally to be heard. and Ted Wells, Jr. VerDate 14-DEC-98 08:54 Dec 17, 1998 Jkt 010199 PO 00000 Frm 00032 Fmt 1244 Sfmt 1244 M:\TERRI\P50DE4.TXT TXED01 PsN: TXED01 Administration of William J. Clinton, 1998 / Dec. 11 2463 Statement on the National Education Over the past decade, Central Americans Goals Report have transformed their countries. Nations December 10, 1998 where freedom once was denied, where there was once fear and violence, have now Today's release of the annual National joined their neighbors as democracies in Education Goals Report shows that America peace.