pd06no95 The President's Radio Address...

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have got to fix this problem once and for all.
    Now, let me say that these are my ideas for what the National 
Government can do to support you in what you're trying to do. I'm sure 
that you have some ideas about that, too. I never met a group of people 
that I thought had more consistently higher levels of energy and more 
consistent openness to new ideas than the people I work with throughout 
my career who are in tourism and travel.
    One big point of a White House Conference on Travel and Tourism is 
for us to listen to you, not for you to listen to us. I came here to 
make a report to you because you're entitled to that and it will help 
you to know where we are and how we're thinking. But when you leave, I 
want you to report back to me and tell me what more you think we can do 
to help you to succeed.
    I will say again: Next year the whole world will be looking at the 
United States when the Olympics open in Atlanta. They may let the Braves 
carry the torch in now. [Laughter] But the world will be lookng at us. 
It will give us a new opportunity, an even greater opportunity, as 
billions of people all over the world look at the United States, to 
enhance the chances that more and more and more of them will want to 
come here; to see what America's like up close; to share in all the 
things that too many of our fellow countrymen sometimes take for 
granted.
    We want to be ready for that. We want to keep this country on a 
roll. We want to keep coming back to our values, and we want to keep 
pushing our economy forward. And we want to keep being a leading force 
in the world for peace and freedom and prosperity.
    In order to do that, we have to have a healthy travel and tourism 
industry. And by next year when the eyes of the world are on America in 
a clear and focused and open-hearted way, I want to know that you and I 
together have done everything we can to make sure that one of the things 
those eyes take away from the sight of the Olympics is a deep, yearning 
desire to come to America, and to be with us in friendship and 
partnership as we pave the way for greater opportunity for these young 
people in the 21st century.
    Thank you, and God bless you all.

Note: The President spoke at 10:35 a.m. in the Grand Ballroom at the 
Sheraton Washington Hotel.


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[Page 1961-1962]
 
Monday, November 6, 1995
 
Volume 31--Number 44
Pages 1951-1982
 
Week Ending Friday, November 3, 1995
 
Statement on Signing Legislation Rejecting U.S. Sentencing Commission 
Recommendations

October 30, 1995

    Today I reject United States Sentencing Commission proposals that 
would equalize penalties for crack and powder cocaine distribution by 
dramatically reducing the penalties for crack. The Sentencing Commission 
would also reduce the penalties for money laundering by combining the 
guidelines on money laundering with those on transactions in unlawfully 
acquired property. I am opposed to both of these changes.
    Since I took office, my Administration has fought to stop drug abuse 
and to stamp out the crime and violence that are its constant 
companions. We are battling drug traffickers at every level of their 
networks--from the very top to the very bottom.
    The Cali Cartel, which pumped drugs into America with seeming 
impunity, is now on the run. We have intensified our efforts to work 
with drug producing countries to stop drugs from coming into the United 
States and to capture major drug traffickers. We told criminals 
convicted time and again for serious violent crimes or drug trafficking 
that from now on, it's three strikes and you're out. And we established 
the death penalty for drug kingpins, because they should reap what they 
sow.

[[Page 1962]]

    We are putting 100,000 police officers on America's streets. We 
banned assault weapons because America doesn't want drug dealers to be 
better armed than police officers. We are helping schools to rid 
themselves of guns, and we are also helping schools to prevent teenage 
drug use by teaching children about the dangers of drugs and gangs. And 
we support schools who test student athletes for drugs.
    All of this is beginning to work. For the first time in a very long 
time, crime has decreased around the country. But we cannot stop now. We 
have to send a constant message to our children that drugs are illegal, 
drugs are dangerous, drugs may cost you your life--and the penalties for 
dealing drugs are severe. I am not going to let anyone who peddles drugs 
get the idea that the cost of doing business is going down.
    Trafficking in crack, and the violence it fosters, has a devastating 
impact on communities across America, especially inner-city communities. 
Tough penalties for crack trafficking are required because of the effect 
on individuals and families, related gang activity, turf battles, and 
other violence.
    Current law does require a substantial disparity between sentences 
for crack as compared to equal amounts of powder cocaine. Some 
adjustment is warranted, and the bill I am signing today, S. 1254, 
directs the Sentencing Commission to undertake additional review of 
these issues and to report back with new recommendations.
    Furthermore, the sentencing structure should reflect the fact that 
all crack starts as powder. When large-scale cocaine traffickers sell 
powder with the knowledge that it will be converted into crack, they 
should be punished as severely as those who distribute the crack itself. 
I have asked the Attorney General to immediately develop enforcement 
strategies to bring about this result. As I said before, we are going 
after drug traffickers at every level of their networks.
                                            William J. Clinton
The White House,
October 30, 1995.

Note: S. 1254, approved October 30, was assigned Public Law No. 104-38.


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[Page 1962-1964]
 
Monday, November 6, 1995
 
Volume 31--Number 44
Pages 1951-1982
 
Week Ending Friday, November 3, 1995
 
Remarks on the Balkan Peace Process and an Exchange With Reporters

October 31, 1995

    The President. Good morning. I have just met with Secretary 
Christopher and our Bosnia negotiating team, led by Ambassador 
Holbrooke. As you know, they are preparing to leave for Dayton, Ohio, in 
just a few moments. There, the Presidents of Bosnia, Croatia, and Serbia 
will start direct negotiations which we hope will lead to a peaceful, 
lasting settlement in Bosnia.
    I want to repeat today what I told President Tudjman and President 
Izetbegovic when we met in New York last week. We have come to a 
defining moment in Bosnia. This is the best chance we've had for peace 
since the war began. It may be the last chance we have for a very long 
time. Only the parties to this terrible conflict can end it. The world 
now looks to them to turn the horror of war to the promise of peace.
    The United States and our partners, Russia, Germany, France, and the 
United Kingdom, must do everything in our power to support them. That is 
what I have just instructed Secretary Christopher and our team to do in 
the days ahead in Dayton. We will succeed only if America continues to 
lead.
    Already our military strength through NATO and our diplomatic 
determination have advanced the possibility of peace in Bosnia. We can't 
stop now. The responsibilities of leadership are real, but the benefits 
are greater. We see them all around the world, a reduced nuclear threat, 
democracy in Haiti, peace breaking out in the Middle East and in 
Northern Ireland. In Bosnia, as elsewhere, when the United States leads 
we can make progress. And if we don't, progress will be much more 
problematic.
    Making peace in Bosnia is important to America. Making peace will 
end the terrible toll of this war, the innocent lives lost, the futures 
destroyed. For 4 years the people of Bosnia have suffered the worst 
atrocities in Europe since World War II, mass executions, ethnic 
cleansing, concentration camps, rape and terror, starvation and disease. 
We continue to learn more and more even in the

[[Page 1963]]

present days about the slaughters in Srebrenica.
    The best way--the only way to stop these horrors is to make peace. 
Making peace will prevent the war from spreading. So far, we have been 
able to contain this conflict to the former Yugoslavia. But the Balkans 
lie at the heart of Europe, next door to several of our key NATO allies 
and to some of the new, fragile European democracies. If the war there 
reignites, it could spread and spark a much larger conflict, the kind of 
conflict that has drawn Americans into two European wars in this 
century. We have to end the war in Bosnia and do it now.
    Making peace will advance our goal of a peaceful, democratic and 
undivided Europe, a Europe at peace with extraordinary benefits to our 
long-term security and prosperity, a Europe at peace with partners to 
meet the challenges of the new century, challenges that affect us here 
at home like terrorism and drug trafficking, organized crime, and the 
spread of weapons of mass destruction. A peaceful, democratic, undivided 
Europe will be that kind of partner.
    In Dayton, our diplomats face a tremendous challenge. There is no 
guarantee they will succeed. America can help the parties negotiate a 
settlement, but we cannot impose a peace. In recent weeks, thanks to our 
mediation efforts, the parties to the war have made real progress. The 
parties have put into effect a Bosnia-wide cease-fire. They have agreed 
to the basic principles of a settlement. Bosnia will remain a single 
state comprised of two entities but, I repeat, a single state. There 
must be free elections and democratic institutions of government at the 
national and regional levels.
    Now, beyond this, many difficult issues remain to be resolved. These 
include the internal boundary between the Bosnia-Croat Federation and 
the Serb Republic, the status of Sarajevo, the practical steps that need 
to be taken to separate hostile forces, and the procedures for free 
elections. That's just a few of the difficult issues this team will have 
to confront beginning today.
    I urge the parties to negotiate seriously for the good of their own 
people. So much is riding on the success in Dayton, and the whole world 
is watching. If the parties do reach a settlement, NATO must help to 
secure it, and the United States, as NATO's leader, must participate in 
such an effort.
    Again I say, there is no substitute for American leadership. After 
so many years of violence and bloodshed, a credible international 
military presence in Bosnia is needed to give the parties confidence to 
live up to their own agreements and to give them time to begin the long, 
hard work of rebuilding and living together again. NATO is the one 
organization with the track record and the strength to implement a 
settlement.
    And as I've said many times, the United States, the source of NATO's 
military strength, must participate. If we don't participate in the 
implementation force our NATO partners, understandably, would reconsider 
their own commitments. We would undermine American leadership of the 
Alliance. We would weaken the Alliance itself. And the hard-won peace in 
Bosnia could be lost.
    American troops would not be deployed--I say this again--would not 
be deployed unless and until the parties reach a peace agreement. We 
must first have a peace agreement. And that is what I would urge the 
American people and the Members of Congress to focus on over the next 
few days. They would, if going into Bosnia, operate under NATO command, 
with clear rules of engagement and a clearly defined mission. They would 
not be asked to keep a peace that cannot be kept. But they would make 
sure we do our part in helping peace to hold.
    As the peace process moves forward I will continue to consult 
closely with Congress. If a peace agreement is reached I will request an 
expression of support in Congress for committing United States troops to 
a NATO implementation force. Our foreign policy works best when we work 
together. I want the widest possible support for peace.
    But now it would be premature to request an expression of support 
because we can't decide many of the details of implementation until an 
agreement is clearly shaped and defined. Let me stress again, we aren't 
there yet; there are still difficult obstacles ahead. The focus on 
Dayton must be on securing the peace. Without peace there will be 
nothing for us to secure.

[[Page 1964]]

    Earlier this month in New Jersey, I had the privilege of spending 
time with His Holiness Pope Paul--Pope John Paul II. At the end of our 
meeting, the Pope said something to me I would like to repeat. He said, 
``You know, I am not a young man. I have lived through most of this 
century. This century began with a war in Sarajevo. Mr. President, you 
must not let it end with a war in Sarajevo.''
    All of us must do our part to hear the Pope's plea. Our conscience 
as a nation devoted to freedom and tolerance demands it. Our conscience 
as a nation that wants to end this mindless slaughter demands it. Our 
enduring interest in the security and stability of Europe demand it. 
This is our challenge. And I'm determined to do everything I can to see 
that America meets that challenge.
    Thank you.
    Q. Mr. President, what is the effect of the House resolution on 
these talks? And do you feel hemmed in by them?
    The President. No. No, I wouldn't expect it to have any effect on 
the talks. I think we have to get the peace agreement first. I expect to 
consult intensively with the leaders of Congress, beginning--I believe 
tomorrow the congressional leadership is coming in, and I expect to talk 
to them about Bosnia in detail and then to keep working with the 
congressional leadership and with Members of Congress who are interested 
in this right along, all the way through the process. And I expect them 
to say that they want to ask questions and to have them answered before 
they would agree to the policy that I will embark on.
    Q. Mr. President, looking back at the advice that General Colin 
Powell gave you on Bosnia when he was Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of 
Staff, was that bad advice, his reluctance to use air power to force the 
parties into negotiations?
    The President. Let me tell you, today we're starting a peace 
process. And we have done things that have brought us to this point. I 
believe we have done the right things. But I think the American people 
should be focused on peace and on the process and the work before us.

Extension of the Debt Limit

    Q. Mr. President, are you going to make peace with the Republicans 
tomorrow and strike some sort of debt extension agreement?
    The President. Well, I look forward to having the opportunity to 
discuss that with them. I know Senator Dole and Leon Panetta have had a 
brief conversation about it. I know that a lot of others are contacting 
the Congress about it. So we'll have a chance to talk about that 
tomorrow as well.
    Q. Are you willing to accept a short-term, through November 29th, as 
has been suggested, extension?
    The President. I think any responsible extension is a move forward. 
I think the main thing is we want to send a message to the world and to 
our own financial markets and to our own people that America honors its 
commitments, that we are not going to see the first example in the 
history of the Republic where we don't pay our bills.
    Thank you very much.

Canadian Referendum

    Q. Mr. President, have you been briefed on the Aldrich Ames damage 
assessment?
    Q. Are you happy about Canada?
    The President. Yes.

Note: The President spoke at 11:35 a.m. in the Roosevelt Room at the 
White House. In his remarks, he referred to President Franjo Tudjman of 
Croatia and President Alija Izetbegovic of Bosnia-Herzegovina.

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