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With Inserts
I am pleased that Mayor Daley and the city of Chicago has moved aggressively to stop
social promotion once and for all, and to take over schools that are failing. I am a strong
supporter of public education, but I do not think we must defend or accept schools that aren't
making the grade. We need to turn them around, not just in Chicago, but all over the country.
Sixth, we must do more to deal with issues of public health that continue to threaten the
lives of our citizens. Let me especially mention the scourge of AIDS that has gripped so many of
our cities. Last month I issued a call to find an AIDS vaccine within the next ten years.
Yesterday in Denver, the other leading industrialized nations pledged to help us meet that
challenge. Last week, the Department of Health and Human Services announced comprehensive
Trealize
new guidelines to help people with HIV and AIDS get the most up-to-date information on the
our
dramatic new drug combination therapies including protease inhibitors that are helping to
you
of
find a cure for those with HIV and to bring a permanent end to this epidemie.
prolong lives. These guidelines and our vaccine initiative bring us closer to our ultimate goals: to effective
Today I have outlined our urban agenda for the 21st Century, and I look forward to
working with you in the coming years to put it into action. More initiatives and details are laid
out in Secretary Cuomo's State of the Cities Report. And let me say that as we work to do this,
we will continue to streamline our own efforts, the way you have streamlined city governments.
Before I took office, HUD was a symbol of overblown bureaucracy a poster child for the failed
policies that sapped our cities of their vitality.
We have started to change that, and six months ago, I directed Secretary Cuomo to
undertake a complete overhaul of HUD and transform it into an engine of empowerment. I am
proud to say that he has developed an exciting and thorough plan to make HUD smaller, leaner,
and better. We are already seeing real results in the elimination of waste, fraud, abuse, and in the
coming months, I know that Secretary Cuomo will make the new HUD the best partner you have
ever had.
Finally, I want you to think about one more reason why it is so important that we continue
to renew our cities. In the 21st century we know that America will be more multiracial,
multicultural and multireligious than at any time in our past. This growing diversity is already
taking root in our cities. And it must be a source of strength, not division.
Just nine days ago in the city of San Diego, I called on the people of this country to begin
a great national conversation on race, and to bridge our racial divisions so we can come together
as One America. This initiative will combine forthright dialogue, serious study, and real action.
And nowhere is the challenge to build One America more pronounced than in our cities -- the
gateways to our nation. So we are counting on every one of you to join us, to step forward and
share with us what you know, show us what works, and help ensure that we meet burdows this great lile
Weavill national challenge. services Weantinue tothooe work condertiff whose to provide the allady HIV infected best frod, this
AIDS CRAIS that Turen enalls e peden Sheft localCommunts of HIN the betross substaw options to abuse address where alverdyunted spreads and
vital we Identify Lound PH strateges the
Draft 6/19/97
PRESIDENT WILLIAM J. CLINTON
U.S. CONFERENCE OF MAYORS SPEECH
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA
JUNE 23, 1997
Acknowledgments: Sec. Cuomo; Mayor Daley; Mayor Willie Brown
Hmerige are
I want to congratulate the Conference of Mayors for choosing San Francisco as the site America
for this year's meeting. SANFRANCISCO STUFF
neighburds
years welfore 41/2
that
future
citie
We are here today to talk about the vitally important ole our cities will play as we prepare
Othi country to meet the challenges of the 21st century Working together, wehave strengthened
our families and our communities, and we have begun to turn back the tide of violent crime that
threatens too many of our cities. Our strategy of more police, tougher punishments and fewer
guns in the hands of criminals is making a difference. Last year we saw the largest drop in violent
crime in more than three-and-a-half decades. Murders dropped a stunning 11 percent in 1996.
Cities all around the country, including San Francisco are experiencing dramatic declines in their
crime rates. And the Brady Bill, which you fought so hard with us to pass, has been critical to
our success.
This morning, I was disappointed to learn that the Supreme Court ruled part of the Brady
Law unconstitutional. But let me be clear: Today's ruling should not mean an end to the
defension
background checks that have kept 186,000 felons and fugitives from purchasing handguns.
Twenty-seven states [including California] nine more than when the Brady Law first passed
now conduct background checks as a matter of state law and will continue to do so. And today, I
have instructed Attorney General Reno and Treasury Secretary Rubin to make sure police
departments across the country know that they can keep conducting Brady background checks
voluntario
Flasis Our goal is clear: No background check, no handgun. And I urge all of you to continue
to do everything in your power to keep handguns out of the hands of criminals and to keep our
communities safe.
Throughout our history, cities have been the gateway to hope and opportunity for millions
of Americans and millions of immigrants who came to our shores in search of a better life. The
Industrial Revolution saw our cities become the engine of the economic progress and cultural
achievement that defined the American century And foday, one in every four Americans lives in
a city of more than 100,000 people. Those cities and the suburbs around them are home to
almost 80% of the American people, and they contain close to 85% of America's jobs.
Why? Becaus citas matter admin
Cities have always mattered, and in the information age and the global economy of the
21st century they will matter more than ever before. That is why we must do everything we can to
atly
Draft 6/20/97 9:00pm
PRESIDENT WILLIAM J. CLINTON
U.S. CONFERENCE OF MAYORS
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA
JUNE 23, 1997
Acknowledgments: Sec. Cuomo; Sec. Herman; Sec. Slater; Sen. Barbara Boxer; Rep.
Zoe Lofgren; Mayor Daley; Mayor Willie Brown; Mayor Helmke; Tom Cochran. Announce
intention to nominate Sol Ramierez, mayor of Laredo Texas, to be Assistant Secretary of HUD
for Community Planning and Development.
I want to congratulate the Conference of Mayors for choosing San Francisco as the site
for this year's meeting. It isn't very hard to see why year after year, San Francisco is one of the
world's most visited cities. From the Moscone Center to 3Com Park, from Twin Peaks to Coit
Tower, from its thriving waterfront to its stunning coastline, San Francisco is a great city in a
nation of great cities.
I want to talk to you today about the vitally important role all of our nation's cities will
play as we prepare our country to meet the challenges of the 21st century. Throughout our
history, cities have been the gateway to hope and opportunity for millions of Americans, and for
millions of immigrants who came to our shores in search of a better life. Our cities have always
envy of the world.
been symbols of the economic progress and cultural achievement that Rame has made America the
Today, our cities are still centers of commerce and culture, science and technology,
education and the arts. New waves of immigrants are starting new businesses and bringing new
energy to many of our largest urban centers. Our cities and the suburbs around them are home to
almost 80% of the American people, and they contain close to 85% of America's jobs.
Now, at the dawn of a new century, we must make sure that our cities are the engines of
opportunity and progress that will drive our success in the global economy of the 21st century.
And the key is empowerment giving cities and citizens the tools they need to succeed.
[Over the last four-and-a-half years, we have worked together to revitalize our cities.
One of the things we should be most proud of is the progress we have made in turning back the
tide of violent crime that threatens too many of our cities. Our strategy of more police, tougher
punishments and fewer guns in the hands of criminals is making a difference. Last year we saw
the largest drop in violent crime in more than three-and-a-half decades. Murders dropped a
stunning 11 percent in 1996. Cities all around the country, including San Francisco, are
experiencing dramatic declines in their violent crime rates.]
[The Brady Bill has kept 250;000 felons, fugitives and stalkers from purchasing
handguns. You stood with us to pass this important legislation, and it has been critical to our
PRESERVATION PHOTOCOPY
success. This morning, the Supreme Court ruled part of the Brady Law unconstitutional. I am
deeply disappointed by the Court's decision. But let me be clear: Today's ruling should not
mean an end to the background checks that are helping keep our streets safe. Twenty-seven
states, including California, now conduct background checks as a matter of state law and will
continue to do so. Today, I have instructed Attorney General Reno and Treasury Secretary
Rubin to make sure police departments across the country know that they can keep conducting
Brady background checks on a voluntary basis.
[Our goal is clear: No background check, no handgun. And I will continue to do
everything in my power to keep handguns out of the hands of criminals and to keep our cities
safe.]
OR [The Brady Bill has kept 250,000 felons and fugitives from purchasing handguns.
You stood with us to pass this important legislation, and it has been critical to our success. This
morning, the Supreme Court upheld the Brady Law. This is a victory for all Americans.]
Safe streets are only one part of our strategy to make our cities thrive. We must create the
economic conditions that will bring business, jobs and people back to our cities
and keep
them there. Our economic strategy is simple: reduce the deficit, invest in our people, and open
the world to trade. It is designed to stimulate private sector growth, to help America-move from
the industrial age to the information age, and to make sure all of our people could benefit from
the new opportunities of the new economy.
Today, our economy is the strongest in a generation -- and for the first time, the effects of
this economic revival are being felt all around the country. Unemployment has dropped below
5% for the first time in 24 years, with the largest decline in income equality since the 1960s. We
have cut the deficit by 77% from $290 billion the day I took office to less than $70 billion this
year. And now, with the balanced budget agreement I have reached with the leaders of Congress,
the deficit is heading to zero.
[The Supreme Court's decision today to strike down the line item veto deprives the
President of a valuable tool to help keep the budget in balance and ensure that we put our public
funds to the best possible uses. It will make the job of balancing the budget more difficult, but it
will not deter us from that goal].
OR [The Supreme Court's decision today to uphold the line item veto gives the President
a valuable tool to help keep the budget in balance and ensure that we put our public funds to the
best possible uses. It is a victory for all Americans.]
America's cities reflect the progress we have made in the last four and a half years.
Today, Secretary Cuomo has released a "Report on the State of American Cities" that documents
the real progress our cities have made, but also identifies the real problems that we still face. It
lays out a comprehensive urban agenda that will empower citizens and local governments to
meet their challenges and bring our cities into the 21st century, stronger than ever.
2
Instead of imposing solutions from Washington, we are empowering communities and
people to work with us as they solve their own problems. This strategy is working. As Secretary
Cuomo's report makes clear, after decades of decline, the last four years have shown the first real
economic resurgence in our cities since World War II. In America's 50 largest cities, the
unemployment rate has been cut by nearly a third. Because of the disciplined leadership of so
many people in this room, the fiscal health of our cities is stronger than it has been in decades.
More downtowns are coming back to life, with sports and tourism and local business all
booming.
move the
caso
There is much to be proud of but there is much to do. America has produced more than
12 million jobs in the last 4-1/2 years, but more and more of those jobs are being created in the
suburbs, not in our cities. At the same time, hundreds of thousands of people in our cities are
struggling to move from welfare to work. And our cities are still a gateway to opportunity for
new waves of immigrants all in need of jobs. Meanwhile, the migration of middle class families
of all races from cities to suburbs continues.
The first thing we must do to make sure that our cities can overcome these problems is
give them the tools to attract businesses and jobs. We have already created 105 Empowerment
Zones and Enterprise Communities providing a powerful combination of tax incentives and
freedom from government red tape to leverage the power of the private sector, and create jobs
and opportunity where both have been absent for too long.
Our Community Development Financial Institutions initiative is infusing our cities with
the capital that entrepreneurs need to start new businesses, expand existing ones, and create jobs.
And our Brownfields National Partnership is creating jobs and attracting new businesses by
cleaning contaminated sites that were the shame of our cities and converting them into
productive assets.
The historic bipartisan budget agreement we reached with Congress last month expanded
Empowerment Zones, Enterprise Communities, and Brownfields tax incentives. These
initiatives are essential to the health of our cities. But the tax plans put together by the House
and Senate fail to live up to this deal. That is wrong. I want every one of you to make it clear to
the people who represent you in Congress that you expect them to honor this agreement and their
commitment to the health of your cities.
The second thing we must do to revitalize our cities is create jobs for the one million
people who we have pledged to move from welfare to work by the year 2000. That is why I
fought for a $3 billion welfare-to-work job challenge fund in our balanced budget that
specifically gives cities the resources they need to help get and keep good jobs. I also fought for
a new welfare-to-work tax credit that will give private employers extra incentive to hire long-
term welfare recipients.
I am very pleased that working together with Members of Congress of both parties, we
have made sure that funds will go directly to cities and other communities where so many
3
PRESERVATION PHOTOCOPY
welfare recipients live. I am also pleased that we reached bipartisan agreement to restore benefits
to legal immigrants who work hard and play by the rules, and I strongly urge the Congress not to
renege on any part of this deal.
The third thing we must do is to make our cities places that anyone would be proud to
call home
and make it easier for people to buy homes in our cities. Homeownership is one of
the best ways to empower local residents, to give them a stake in the community, and to increase
the bonds that tie people together. So far, our successful economic strategy has helped 2.5
million people across America to become new homeowners. But, not enough of these homes are
in our cities.
In the last four years, we have reduced FHA mortgage premiums three times to lower the
average closing cost on a new home by $1,200. Today, I am happy to announce that we are
cutting the premium by an additional $200 for families who buy in our central cities, bringing the
total reduction in closing costs to $1400. This could make all the difference to a family
struggling to escape the spiral of renting.
And there is even more that we can do to promote homeownership in our cities. Many of
the hard-working families who receive Section 8 rental assistance are ready to assume the
responsibility of owning their own homes and they deserve a chance to do it. There is now
bipartisan legislation before Congress to allow many of those families to use their Section 8
vouchers to help buy a home. And today, I am happy to announce that Freddie Mac will help us
launch this important initiative by financing up to 2,000 of these mortgages.
Fourth, we have made remarkable progress in reducing crime and restoring peace and
security to our cities. [IF NO BRADY ANNOUNCEMENT: Our strategy of more policé, tougher
punishments and fewer guns in the hands of criminals is making a difference. Last year we saw
the largest drop in violent crime in more than three-and-a-half decades. Murders dropped a
stunning 11 percent in 1996. Cities all around the country, including San Francisco, are
experiencing dramatic declines in their violent crime rates].
You and I know that community policing and our efforts to fight violent youth gangs
have been critical to our success. That is why we are moving forward toward our goal of putting
100,000 new police officers on our streets. And that is why I will continue to push for real
juvenile crime legislation that guarantees more prosecutors, probation officers, and afterschool
programs for at-risk young people.
The "every day" presence of police on our streets has made a huge difference to the safety
of our communities. We can increase that presence even more by encouraging police to live in
the communities they serve. Today, I am pleased to announce that we are taking steps to do just
that. In the coming year, we will offer law enforcement officers in designated areas a 50%
discount on 2,000 HUD-owned single family homes in our central cities. More police on the
beat have made our neighborhoods feel like home again -- just think what it will be like when
more of our police make our neighborhoods their homes.
4
PRESERVATION PHOTOCOPY
city
The fifth thing we must do is to improve our cities schools and make sure that all of our
children no matter where they live get the best education in the world. That is why I made
education my number one priority. But one of the main reasons families leave our cities is
because they don't believe that city schools are doing a good enough job. We have challenged
all of our schools to set and meet high national standards -- and our cities' schools are no
exception. Each of us has an obligation to help our children reach those standards. That is why
cities must have the flexibility to close down schools that aren't meeting those standards.
I am pleased that Mayor Daley and the city of Chicago has moved aggressively to stop
social promotion once and for all, and to take over schools that are failing. I am strong supporter
of public education, but I do not think that we must defend or accept schools that aren't making
the grade. We need to turn them around, not just in Chicago, but all over the country.
Finally, we must do more to deal with the scourge of AIDS that has gripped so many of
our cities. Last month I issued a call to find an AIDS vaccine within the next ten years.
Yesterday in Denver, the other leading industrialized nations pledged to help us meet that
challenge. Last week, the Department of Health and Human Services announced comprehensive
new guidelines to help people with HIV and AIDS get the most up-to-date information on the
dramatic new drug combination therapies including protease inhibitors that are helping to
prolong lives. People with IIIV and AIDS deserve the best possible care: this guide will help
to them get ultimate golds. to cure fatherse with HIL to briga
it these guidelines and dus vacience us closer
permanent our end to expremic.
Today I have outlined our urban agenda for the 21st Century, and I look forward to
working with you in the coming years to put it into action. For 4-1/2 years, the Department of
Housing and Urban Development has been your partner as we have worked to make our cities
better and brighter than they have ever been. But it wasn't always that way. Before I took
office, HUD was a symbol for overblown democracy a poster child for the failed policies that
sapped our cities of their vitality. We changed all that and we are not through yet.
Six months ago, I directed Secretary Cuomo to undertake a complete overhaul of HUD
and transform it into an engine of empowerment. I am proud to say that he has developed a plan
to make HUD smaller, leaner, and better. And I know that he will make the new HUD the best
partner you have ever had.
Economic empowerment, jobs for all who can work, citizen involvement in fighting
crime, good schools, homeownership these are the best ways to create equal opportunity and a
sense of community. And they are key to our mission of creating One America in the 21st
century.
America's cities are clearly at a crossroads. If we do nothing, they will surely fall into
decline and despair. But if we act with vision and courage, we will make them flourishing
examples of America at its best. In the 21 st century we know that America will be more
multiracial, multicultural and multireligious than at any time in our past. This growing diversity
is already taking root in our cities. And it must be a source of strength, not division.
5
PRESERVATION PHOTOCOPY
[We must do everything we can to promote greater tolerance and freedom, including
religious freedom. That is why I am pleased by today's Supreme Court decision upholding the
Religious Freedom Restoration Act. Throughout our history, men and women have come to this
nation to escape religious persecution and secure the precious freedom to choose whether and
how to worship. This legislation assures that the religious liberties of all Americans will be
strongly protected.] or
[We must do everything we can to promote greater tolerance and freedom, including
religious freedom. Today the United States Supreme Court held part of the Religious Freedom
Restoration Act unconstitutional. We will study that opinion closely. Religious freedom is
central to the American system of liberty. Throughout our history, men and women have come to
this nation to secure the precious freedom to choose whether and how to worship. This
legislation reaffirmed that right. Although we are disappointed by the Supreme Court's ruling,
we will continue to work to protect religious liberty to the fullest extent the Constitution allows.]
In this new era, our cities must be the wellspring of a renewed sense of citizenship that
unites us across all our differences. We must define what it means to be an American by the duty
we owe one another, and by the values and dreams we all share. It would be a terrible mistake
for any group of Americans -- one city, one neighborhood, even one block -- to build walls of
division, separating neighbor from neighbor.
It will take all of us, working side by side, to build the cities of our future. America's
great mayors and great cities will lead the way. You are already showing us in so many ways
how to live and work and grow together. You are sending a message to all Americans -- and to
all the world -- that America's cities are on the rise, united in their diversity, providing
opportunity for all of their people, and poised for greatness in the 21st Century.
Thank you and God bless you all.
6
PRESERVATION PHOTOCOPY
With Inserts
Draft 6/21/97 4pm
PRESIDENT WILLIAM J. CLINTON
U.S. CONFERENCE OF MAYORS
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA
JUNE 23, 1997
Acknowledgments: Sec. Cuomo; Sec. Herman; Sec. Slater; Sen. Barbara Boxer; Rep.
Zoe Lofgren; Mayor Daley; Mayor Willie Brown; Mayor Helmke; Tom Cochran. [Announce
intention to nominate Sol Ramierez, mayor of Laredo Texas, to succeed Secretary Cuomo as
Assistant Secretary of HUD for Community Planning and Development.]
This is the [x]th time I have had the pleasure of speaking to the Conference of Mayors.
And it is clearer than ever that our cities are at a crossroads -- that, thanks to the visionary, hands
on leadership of so many of you, America's cities have turned a corner and are prepared to play
the central role in our society in the next century that they have in this century. Throughout our
history, cities have been the gateway to hope and opportunity for millions of Americans, and for
millions of immigrants who came to our shores in search of a better life. Our cities have always
been symbols of the economic progress and cultural achievement that have made America the
envy of the world. That can be more than our history: you are making it our present, and it can
be our future as well.
For far too long, many Americans wondered if our cities were in permanent decline,
battered by seemingly inexorable economic dislocation, seemingly unstoppable waves of crime,
seemingly intractible problems of poverty and inner-city decay. Today, America's cities are
back. Today, Secretary Cuomo released a compelling "Report on America's Cities." We are
seeing the first economic resurgence in our cities since World War II. In America's 50 largest
cities, the unemployment rate has been cut by nearly a third. More downtowns are coming back
to life, with sports and tourism and local business all booming. We are taking back our streets
from the worst ravages of crime. New waves of immigrants are starting new businesses and
bringing new energy. Because of the disciplined leadership of so many people in this room, the
fiscal health of our cities is stronger than it has been in decades. And dozens of mayors have
changed the way city governments serve the people, providing services with less cost, less
bureaucracy, fewer rules and regulations.
Now, we have a choice. We as a nation can continue that progress -- or let it slip from our
grasp. New times bring new challenges: the need to create more jobs for those on welfare; the
challenge of absorbing new immigrants; the rising tide of juvenile violence. We have made so
much progress, but if we do not act now, we could look upon this time not as the beginning of a
rennaisance for America's cities, but a missed opportunity.
During my time as President, we have worked with you, helping you help your cities and
putting some of the best local ideas to work nationwide.
1
With Inserts
Our urban strategy reflected a revolutionary new philosophy of bottom-up empowerment.
It was different from the old big government approach that sought to solve the problems of our
cities with massive spending that sought to pave over the problems with billions of dollars and
billions of tons of concrete. And it was just as different from the new philosophy that would tell
our cities and thoses who live in them: "You're on your own." Instead of imposing solutions
from Washington, we are giving communities the support and the tools they need to solve their
own problems. The key is empowerment. Recognizing that the people on the front lines -- in
citiy halls, in police precinct houses, and on city streets -- know best what the challenges are and
how best to meet them. And recognizing that our oldest values of work and neighborhood, faith
and family, safe streets and good schools, hold the answers to the newest problems we face.
And this must be the approach we take as we press forward with our urban strategy.
First, doing more to take back our streets from crime. Second, extending private sector
prosperity so it touches every neighborhood in America. Third, finishing the job of welfare
reform by creating more jobs for all who can work. Fourth, extending the benefits of
homeownership even more widely. Fifth, raising standards in our schools. And sixth, meeting
public health challenges like AIDS.
Let me begin by talking about crime. Everyone here knows that safe streets are a
precondition for every other thing we must do. So we must continue the remarkable progress we
have made in the last four and a half years to reduce crime and restore peace and security to our
cities.
As you all know so well, the strategy pioneered in our cities of more community police,
tougher punishment and fewer guns in the hands of criminals is making a difference. Last year
we saw the largest drop in violent crime in more than three-and-a-half decades. Murders dropped
a stunning 11% in 1996. Cities all around the country, including San Francisco, are experiencing
dramatic declines in their violent crime rates.
Now we must continue with this tough-and-smart approach. We are well on the way
toward meeting our goal of 100,000 new community police on our streets. I will fight to make
sure that the national government meets this commitment. And I will continue to push for real
juvenile crime legislation that guarantees more prosecutors, probation officers, and afterschool
programs for at-risk young people.
And we must continue to forge the partnership between police and citizens that we see in
the success of the block-patrols and neighborhood watch groups that are the essence of what I
mean by "empowerment." The "every day" presence of police on our streets has made a huge
difference to the safety of our communities. We can increase that presence even more by
encouraging police to live in the communities they serve. Today, I am pleased to announce that
we are taking steps to do just that. In the coming year, The Officer Next Door program will
make it possible for up to 2,000 police officers and their families to buy HUD-owned single
family homes in our central cities at a 50% discount. More police on the beat have made our
2
With Inserts
neighborhoods feel like home again -- just think what it will be like when more of our police
make our neighborhoods their homes.
[IF BRADY BILL RULING: And we cannot turn back in our campaign to take guns off
our streets. The Brady Bill has kept 250,000 felons, fugitives and stalkers from purchasing
handguns. You stood with us to pass this important legislation, and it has been critical to our
success. This morning, the Supreme Court ruled part of the Brady Law unconstitutional. I am
deeply disappointed by the Court's decision. But let me be clear: Today's ruling should not
mean an end to the background checks that are helping keep our streets safe. Twenty-seven
states, including California, now conduct background checks as a matter of state law and will
continue to do so. Today, I have instructed Attorney General Reno and Treasury Secretary
Rubin to make sure police departments across the country know that they can keep conducting
Brady background checks on a voluntary basis.
[Our goal is clear: No background check, no handgun. And I will continue to do
everything in my power to keep handguns out of the hands of criminals and to keep our cities
safe.]
OR [The Brady Bill has kept 250,000 felons and fugitives from purchasing handguns.
You stood with us to pass this important legislation, and it has been critical to our success. This
morning, the Supreme Court upheld the Brady Law. This is a victory for all Americans.]
The second thing we must do is to create the economic conditions that will bring
business, jobs and people back to our cities and keep them there.
Our national economic strategy is this: reduce the deficit, invest in our people, and open
the world to trade. It is designed to stimulate private sector growth, to help America move from
the industrial age to the information age, and to make sure all of our people can benefit from the
new opportunities of the new economy.
Today, our economy is the strongest it has been in a generation -- and for the first time,
the effects of this economic revival are being felt all around the country. Unemployment has
dropped below 5% for the first time in 24 years, with the largest decline in income inequality
since the 1960s. We have cut the deficit by 77% -- from $290 billion the day I took office to less
than $70 billion this year. And now, with the balanced budget agreement I have reached with the
leaders of Congress, the deficit is heading to zero:
[Let me say one thing about how we will balance the budget. The Supreme Court's
decision today to strike down the line item veto deprives the President of a valuable tool to help
keep the budget in balance and to ensure that we put our public funds to the best possible uses.
It will make the job of balancing the budget more difficult, but it will not deter us from that
goal].
3
With Inserts
OR [The Supreme Court's decision today to uphold the line item veto gives the President
a valuable tool to help keep the budget in balance and to ensure that we put our public funds to
the best possible uses. It is a victory for all Americans.]
There is much to be proud of -- but there is also much to do. America has produced more
than 12 million jobs in the last 4-1/2 years, but more and more of those jobs are being created in
the suburbs, not in our cities. At the same time, hundreds of thousands of people in our cities are
struggling to move from welfare to work. Meanwhile, the migration of middle class families of
all races from cities to suburbs continues. And while our national unemployment rate is below
5%, we know this masks continuing inequalities. For example, Nebraska has unemployment of
2.5% -- while many cities still have unemployment of 15%. {CHECK}
So above all, our urban development strategy revolves around attracting businesses and
jobs to the cities. We have already created 105 Empowerment Zones and Enterprise
Communities -- providing a powerful combination of tax incentives and freedom from
government red tape to spark private enterprise in poor neighborhoods. We have created a
network of Community Development Financial Institutions that is infusing our cities with the
capital. And we recognized that a major barrier to economic growth are sites contaminated by
toxic chemicals. We are taking those "Brownfields" that were the shame of our cities and
converting them into productive assets.
When I reached our historic bipartisan budget agreement with the leaders of Congress,
they pledged to work with us to expand Empowerment Zones, Enterprise Communities, and
Brownfields tax incentives. These initiatives are essential to the health of our cities. But the tax
plans put together by the House and Senate fail to live up to this commitment. That is wrong. I
want every one of you to make it clear to the people who represent you in Congress that you
expect them to honor this agreement and their commitment to our nation's cities.
The third thing we must do to revitalize our cities is create jobs for the one million people
we must move from welfare to work by the year 2000. That is why I fought for a $3 billion
welfare-to-work job challenge fund in our balanced budget that specifically gives cities the
resources they need to help get and keep good jobs. I also fought for a new welfare-to-work tax
credit that will give private employers extra incentive to hire long-term welfare recipients.
We are working with Members of Congress of both parties to make sure that funds will
go directly to cities and other communities where so many welfare recipients live. I ask you to
let the Congress know how important this is. I am pleased that we reached bipartisan agreement
to restore benefits to legal immigrants who work hard and play by the rules, and I have made
clear that I will not sign any legislation that reneges on any part of this deal.
The fourth thing we must do is to make our cities places that anyone would be proud to
call home
and make it easier for people to buy homes in our cities. Homeownership is one of
the best ways to empower local residents, to give them a stake in the community, and to increase
4
With Inserts
the bonds that tie people together. So far, our successful economic strategy has helped 2.5
million people across America to become new homeowners. But, not enough of these homes are
in our cities.
In the last four years, we have reduced FHA mortgage premiums three times to lower the
average closing cost on a new home by $1,200. Today, I am happy to announce that we are
cutting the premium by an additional $200 for families who buy only in our central cities. This
special discount will bring the total reduction in closing costs to those families to $1400. This
city homeownership plan could make all the difference to a family deciding where to buy a
home.
There is even more that we can do to promote homeownership in our cities. We know
that many hard-working families who receive Section 8 assistance are ready to assume the
responsibilities of owning their own homes, but need help to take the first step. There is now an
innovative HUD proposal before Congress to allow those families to use their rent vouchers to
help buy a home. And today, I am happy to announce that Freddie Mac will help us launch this
homeownership empowerment voucher initiative by financing up to 2,000 of these mortgages.
Together with the "Office on Your Block" initiative I mentioned earlier, this represents a
$1 billion downpayment toward our number priority of strengthening our cities, family by family,
house by house, neighborhood by neighborhood.
The fifth thing we must do is to improve our city schools and make sure that all of our
children -- no matter where they live -- get the best education in the world. That is why I have
made education my number one priority as President. We know one of the main reasons families
leave our cities is because they don't believe city schools are doing a good enough job.
There are many things we must do to reform eductaion. We are working to connect every
classroom in America to the internet by the Year 2000, so that children in the inner city will have
accesst to the same universe of knowledge as children in the suburbs. We are mobilizing 1
million volunteers in our America Reads initiative, to meet our goal that every 8 year old will be
able to read independently. And above all, we have challenged all of our schools to set and meet
high national standards -- and city schools are no exception. I have challenged our nation to set
high national standards for reading and math. We know that this won't be easy; we will have to
demand more from our students, our teachers and our schools. But we know that if we don't do
this -- if we accept the false idea that some children just can't learn, and should be moved from
grade to grade before they learn the basics -- then we cheat them and our nation.
I am pleased that Mayor Daley and the city of Chicago has moved aggressively to stop
social promotion once and for all, and to take over schools that are failing. I am a strong
supporter of public education, but I do not think we must defend or accept schools that aren't
making the grade. We need to turn them around, not just in Chicago, but all over the country.
5
With Inserts
Sixth, we must do more to deal with issues of public health that continue to threaten the
lives of our citizens. Let me especially mention the scourge of AIDS that has gripped so many of
our cities. Last month I issued a call to find an AIDS vaccine within the next ten years.
Yesterday in Denver, the other leading industrialized nations pledged to help us meet that
challenge. Last week, the Department of Health and Human Services announced comprehensive
new guidelines to help people with HIV and AIDS get the most up-to-date information on the
dramatic new drug combination therapies -- including protease inhibitors -- that are helping to
prolong lives. People with HIV and AIDS deserve the best possible care; this guide is an
important step in raising the standards for that care.
Today I have outlined our urban agenda for the 21st Century, and I look forward to
working with you in the coming years to put it into action. More initiatives and details are laid
out in Secretary Cuomo's very compelling State of the Cities Report. And let me say that as we
work to do this, we will continue to streamline our own efforts, the way you have streamlined
city governments. Before I took office, HUD was a symbol of overblown bureaucracy -- a
poster child for the failed policies that sapped our cities of their vitality. We have started to
change that -- but we still have far to go.
Six months ago, I directed Secretary Cuomo to undertake a complete overhaul of HUD
and transform it into an engine of empowerment. I am proud to say that he has developed an
exciting and thorough plan to make HUD smaller, leaner, and better. We are already seeing real
results in the elimination of waste, fraud, abuse, and in the coming months, I know that Secretary
Cuomo will make the new HUD the best partner you have ever had.
Finally, I want you to think about one more reason why it is so important that we continue
to renew our cities. In the 21 century we know that America will be more multiracial,
multicultural and multireligious than at any time in our past. This growing diversity is already
taking root in our cities. And it must be a source of strength, not division.
Just nine days ago in the city of San Diego, I called on the people of this country to begin
a great national conversation on race, and to bridge our racial divisions so we can come together
as One America.
[We must do everything we can to promote greater tolerance and freedom, including
religious freedom. That is why I am pleased by today's Supreme Court decision upholding the
Religious Freedom Restoration Act. Throughout our history, men and women have come to this
nation to escape religious persecution and secure the precious freedom to choose whether and
how to worship. This legislation assures that the religious liberties of all Americans will be
strongly protected. or
[We must do everything we can to promote greater tolerance and freedom, including
religious freedom. Today the United States Supreme Court held part of the Religious Freedom
Restoration Act unconstitutional. We will study that opinion closely. Religious freedom is
6
With Inserts
central to the American system of liberty. Throughout our history, men and women have come to
this nation to secure the precious freedom to choose whether and how to worship. This
legislation reaffirmed that right. Although we are disappointed by the Supreme Court's ruling,
we will continue to work to protect religious liberty to the fullest extent the Constitution allows.]
[And] [I]n this new era, our cities must be the wellspring of a renewed sense of
citizenship that unites us across all our differences. We must define what it means to be an
American by the duty we owe one another, and by the values and dreams we all share. It would
be a terrible mistake for any group of Americans -- one city, one neighborhood, even one block --
to build walls of division, separating neighbor from neighbor.
It will take all of us, working side by side, to build the cities of our future. America's
great mayors and great cities will lead the way. You are already showing us in SO many ways
how to live and work and grow together. You are sending a message to all Americans -- and to
all the world -- that America's cities are on the rise, united in their diversity, providing
opportunity for all of their people, and poised for greatness in the 21st Century.
Thank you and God bless you all.
7
With Inserts
Draft 6/22/97 7am
PRESIDENT WILLIAM J. CLINTON
U.S. CONFERENCE OF MAYORS
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA
JUNE 23, 1997
Acknowledgments: Sec. Cuomo; Sec. Herman; Sec. Slater; Sen. Barbara Boxer; Rep.
Zoe Lofgren; Mayor Daley; Mayor Willie Brown; Mayor Helmke; Tom Cochran. [Announce
intention to nominate Sol Ramierez, mayor of Laredo Texas, to succeed Secretary Cuomo as
Assistant Secretary of HUD for Community Planning and Development. /
This is the [x]th time I have had the pleasure of speaking to the Conference of Mayors.
And it is clearer than ever that our cities are at a crossroads -- that, thanks to the visionary, hands
on leadership of so many of you, America's cities have turned a corner and are prepared to play
the central role in our society in the next century that they have in this century. Throughout our
history, cities have been the gateway to hope and opportunity for millions of Americans, and for
millions of immigrants who came to our shores in search of a better life. Our cities have always
been symbols of the economic progress and cultural achievement that have made America the
envy of the world. That can be more than our history: you are making it our present, and it can
be our future as well.
For far too long, many Americans wondered if our cities were in permanent decline,
battered by seemingly inexorable economic dislocation, seemingly unstoppable waves of crime,
seemingly intractable problems of poverty and inner-city decay. Today, America's cities are back.
Today, Secretary Cuomo released a compelling "Report on America's Cities." We are seeing the
first economic resurgence in our cities since World War II. In America's 50 largest cities, the
unemployment rate has been cut by nearly a third. More downtowns are coming back to life, with
sports and tourism and local business all booming. We are taking back our streets from the worst
ravages of crime. New waves of immigrants are starting new businesses and bringing new energy.
Because of the disciplined leadership of so many people in this room, the fiscal health of our cities
is stronger than it has been in decades. And dozens of mayors have changed the way city
governments serve the people, providing services with less cost, less bureaucracy, fewer rules and
regulations.
Now, we have a choice. We as a nation can continue that progress or let it slip from our
grasp. New times bring new challenges: the need to create more jobs for those on welfare; the
challenge of absorbing new immigrants; the rising tide of juvenile violence. America has produced
more than 12 million jobs in the last 4-1/2 years, but more and more of those jobs are being
created in the suburbs, not in our cities. At the same time, hundreds of thousands of people in our
cities are struggling to move from welfare to work. Meanwhile, the migration of middle class
families of all races from cities to suburbs continues. And while our national unemployment rate
perchet s deep
With Inserts
is below 5%, we know this masks continuing inequalities. For example Nebraska has
we theirthere Hurd
unemployment of 2.5% while many cities still have unemployment of 15% CHECK
We have made so much progress, but if we do not act now, we could look upon this time not as
is problem
the beginning of a renaissance for America's cities, but a missed opportunity.
(wors
ininersity
v. mail
Best unterpred Markets
During my time as President, we have worked with you, helping you help your cities and
putting some of the best local ideas to work nationwide.
growth
from
Our urban strategy reflected a revolutionary new philosophy of bottom-up empowerment.
in ban
It was different from the old big government approach that sought to solve the problems of our
cities with massive spending that sought to pave over the problems with billions of dollars and
billions of tons of concrete. And it was just as different from the new philosophy that would tell
our cities and those who live in them: "You're on your own." Instead of imposing solutions from
Washington, we are giving communities the support and the tools they need to solve their own
problems. The key is empowerment. Recognizing that the people on the front lines -- in city halls,
in police precinct houses, and on city streets know best what the challenges are and how best to
meet them. And recognizing that our oldest values of work and neighborhood, faith and family,
safe streets and good schools, hold the answers to the newest problems we face.
, INvest MOS IN Jw you, peiple
And this must be the approach we take as we press forward with our urban strategy.
First, doing more to take back our streets from crime. Second, extending private sector
prosperity so it touches every neighborhood in America. Third, finishing the job of welfare reform
by creating more jobs for all who can work. Fourth, extending the benefits of homeownership
even more widely. Fifth, raising standards in our schools And sixth, meeting public health
challenges like AIDS.
envire
Let me begin by talking about crime. Everyone here knows that safe streets are a
precondition for every other thing we must do. So we must continue the remarkable progress we
have made in the last four and a half years to reduce crime and restore peace and security to our
cities.
As you all know so well, the strategy pioneered in our cities of more community police,
tougher punishment and fewer guns in the hands of criminals is making a difference. Last year we
saw the largest drop in violent crime in more than three-and-a-half decades. Murders dropped a
stunning 11% in 1996. Cities all around the country, including San Francisco, are experiencing
dramatic declines in their violent crime rates.
Now we must continue with this tough-and-smart approach. We are well on the way
toward meeting our goal of 100,000 new community police on our streets. I will fight to make
sure that the national government meets this commitment. And I will continue to push for real
juvenile crime legislation that guarantees more prosecutors, probation officers, and afterschool
programs for at-risk young people.
2
With Inserts
And we must continue to forge the partnership between police and citizens that we see in
the success of the block-patrols and neighborhood watch groups that are the essence of what 1
mean by "empowerment." The "every day" presence of police on our streets has made a huge
difference to the safety of our communities. We can increase that presence even more by
encouraging police to live in the communities they serve. Today, I am pleased to announce that
we are taking steps to do just that. In the coming year, The Officer Next Door program will
make it possible for up to 2,000 police officers and their families to buy HUD-owned single family
homes in our central cities at a 50% discount. More police on the beat have made our
neighborhoods feel like home again -- just think what it will be like when more of our police make
our neighborhoods their homes.
[IF BRADY BILL RULING: And we cannot turn back in our campaign to take guns off
our streets. The Brady Bill has kept 250,000 felons, fugitives and stalkers from purchasing
handguns. You stood with us to pass this important legislation, and il has been critical to our
success. This morning, the Supreme Court ruled part of the Brady Law unconstitutional. / am
deeply disappointed by the Court's decision. But let me be clear: Today' ruling should not
mean an end to the background checks that are helping keep our streets safe. Twenty-seven
states, including California, now conduct background checks as a matter of state law and will
continue to do SO. Today, / have instructed Attorney General Reno and Treasury Secretary
Rubin to make sure police departments across the country know that they can keep conducting
Brady background checks on a voluntary basis.
[Our goal is clear: No background check, no handgun. And / will contime to do
everything in my power to keep handguns out of the hands of criminals and to keep our cities
safe.]
OR [The Brady Bill has kept 250,000 felons and fugitives from purchasing handguns.
You stood with us to pass this important legislation, and it has been critical to our success. This
morning, the Supreme Court upheld the Brady Law. This is a victory for all Americans.]
The second thing we must do is to create the economic conditions that will bring business,
jobs and people back to our cities
and keep them there.
Our national economic strategy is this: reduce the deficit, invest in our people, and open
the world to trade. It is designed to stimulate private sector growth, to help America move from
the industrial age to the information age, and to make sure all of our people can benefit from the
new opportunities of the new economy.
Today, our economy is the strongest it has been in a generation -- and for the first time,
the effects of this economic revival are being felt all around the country. Unemployment has
dropped below 5% for the first time in 24 years, with the largest decline in income inequality since
the 1960s. We have cut the deficit by 77% from $290 billion the day I took office to less than
3
With Inserts
$70 billion this year. And now, with the balanced budget agreement I have reached with the
leaders of Congress, the deficit is heading to zero.
[Let me say one thing about how we will balance the budget. The Supreme Court's
decision today to strike down the line item veto deprives the President of a valuable tool to help
keep the budget in balance and to ensure that we put our public funds to the best possible uses.
11 will make the job of balancing the budget more difficult, but it will not deter us from that
goal].
OR [The Supreme Court's decision today to uphold the line item veto gives the President
a valuable tool to help keep the budget in balance and to ensure that we put our public funds to
the best possible uses. It is a victory for all Americans.]
CRA)
The centerpiece of our urban development strategy is an aggressive plan to attract
businesses and jobs to the cities. We have already created 105 Empowerment Zones and
Enterprise Communities providing a powerful combination of tax incentives and freedom from
government red tape to spark private enterprise in poor neighborhoods. We have created a
capifes
network of Community Development Financial Institutions that is infusing our cities with the
capital. And we recognized that a major barrier to economic growth are sites contaminated by
toxic chemicals. We are taking those "Brownfields" that were the shame of our cities and
converting them into productive assets.
When I reached our historic bipartisan budget agreement with the leaders of Congress,
they pledged to work with us to expand Empowerment Zones, Enterprise Communities, and
Brownfields tax incentives. These initiatives are essential to the health of our cities. But the tax
plans put together by the House and Senate fail to live up to this commitment. That is wrong. I
want every one of you to make it clear to the people who represent you in Congress that you
expect them to honor this agreement and their commitment to our nation's cities.
The third thing we must do to revitalize our cities is create jobs for the one million people
we must move from welfare to work by the year 2000. That is why I fought for a $3 billion
welfare-to-work job challenge fund in our balanced budget that specifically gives cities the
resources they need to help get and keep good jobs. I also fought for a new welfare-to-work tax
credit that will give private employers extra incentive to hire long-term welfare recipients
portru
We are working with Members of Congress of both parties 10 make sure that funds will go
directly to cities and other communities where SO many welfare recipients live. I ask you to let the
Congress know how important this is. I am pleased that we reached bipartisan agreement to
restore benefits to legal immigrants who work hard and play by the rules, and I have made clear
that I will not sign any legislation that reneges on any this part of this deal.
The fourth thing we must do is to make our cities places that anyone would be proud to
call home
and make it easier for people to buy homes in our cities, Homeownership is one of
4
With Inserts
Draft 6/22/97 8:00pm (pacific time)
PRESIDENT WILLIAM J. CLINTON
U.S. CONFERENCE OF MAYORS
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA
JUNE 23, 1997
Acknowledgments: Sec. Cuomo; Sec. Herman; Sen. Barbara Boxer; Rep. Zoe Lofgren;
Mayor Daley; Mayor Willie Brown; Mayor Helmke; Tom Cochran; the new Director of
Intergovernmental Affairs at the White House, Mickey Ibarra. I also want to take this
opportunity to welcome one of your own to my Administration. I am pleased to announce my
intention to nominate Saul Ramirez, mayor of Laredo, Texas, to fill Secretary Cuomo's former
job as Assistant Secretary of HUD for Community Planning and Development.
I always look forward to the opportunity to speak to the Conference of Mayors. Today, it
is clear, that because of the visionary, hands on leadership of so many of you, America's cities
have turned a corner and are prepared to play the central role in our society in the next century
that they have in this century. Throughout our history, cities have been the gateway to hope and
opportunity for millions of Americans, and for millions of immigrants who came to our shores in
search of a better life. Our cities have always been symbols of the economic progress and cultural
achievement that have made America the envy of the world. That can be more than our history:
you are making it our present, and it can be our future as well.
POSSIBLE INSERT ON BRADY BILL IF STRUCK DOWN
[I want to begin with a word about something that is very important to the work of
everybody in this room, and the safety of every citizen in America. The Brady Bill has kept
250,000 felons, fugitives and stalkers from purchasing handguns. You stood with us to pass this
important legislation, and it has been critical to our success. This morning, the Supreme Court
ruled part of the Brady Law unconstitutional. I am deeply disappointed by the Court's decision.
But let me be clear: Today's ruling should not mean an end to the background checks that are
helping keep our streets safe. Twenty-seven states, including California, now conduct
background checks as a matter of state law and will continue to do so. Today, I have instructed
Attorney General Reno and Treasury Secretary Rubin to make sure police departments across
the country know that they can keep conducting Brady background checks on a voluntary basis.
[Our goal is clear: No background check, no handgun. And I will continue to do
everything in my power to keep handguns out of the hands of criminals and to keep our cities
safe.]
For far too long, many Americans wondered if our cities were in permanent decline,
battered by seemingly inexorable economic dislocation, seemingly unstoppable waves of crime,
seemingly intractable problems of poverty and inner-city decay. Today, America's cities are back.
1
With Inserts
Today, Secretary Cuomo released a compelling report on the "State of the Cities." We are seeing
the first economic resurgence in our cities since World War II. In America's 50 largest cities, the
unemployment rate has been cut by nearly a third. More downtowns are coming back to life, with
sports and tourism and local business all booming. We are taking back our streets from the worst
ravages of crime. New waves of immigrants are starting new businesses and bringing new energy.
Because of the disciplined leadership of so many people in this room, the fiscal health of our cities
is stronger than it has been in decades. And dozens of mayors have changed the way city
governments serve the people, providing services with less cost, less bureaucracy, fewer rules and
regulations.
But it is clear that real, serious challenges remain. Some are the new challenges brought
by new times: the need to create more jobs for those on welfare; the challenge of absorbing new
immigrants; the rising tide of juvenile violence. Some, like the continued flight of middle-class
families from central cities to the suburbs, are persistent problems that must be overcome for the
long-term health of our cities. As a nation, we face a simple choice. We can face these challenges
head-on, and continue the great progress of the last four years -- or we can let this opportunity
slip from our grasp, and risk all that we have built, and more.
During my time as President, we have worked with you, helping you help your cities and
putting some of the best local ideas to work nationwide.
Our urban strategy reflects a revolutionary new philosophy of bottom-up empowerment.
It is different from the old big government approach that sought to solve the problems of our
cities with massive spending, that tried to pave over problems with billions of dollars and tons of
concrete. And it is just as different from the approach of others who would tell our cities and
those who live in them: "You're on your own." Instead of imposing solutions from Washington,
we are giving communities the support and the tools they need to solve their own problems. The
key is empowerment. Recognizing that the people on the front lines -- in city halls, in police
precinct houses, and on city streets -- know best what the challenges are and how best to meet
them. And recognizing that our oldest values of work and neighborhood, faith and family, safe
streets and good schools, hold the answers to the newest problems we face.
We must continue this approach as we press forward. First, extending private sector
prosperity so it touches every neighborhood in America. Second, doing more to take back our
streets from crime. Third, finishing the job of welfare reform by creating more jobs for all who can
work. Fourth, extending the benefits of homeownership even more widely. Fifth, raising
standards in our schools and investing more in our young people. And sixth, meeting public
health challenges like AIDS.
The first and most important thing we must do is press forward to create the economic
conditions that will bring business, jobs and people back to our cities
and keep them there.
2
With Inserts
Our national economic strategy is this: reduce the deficit, invest in our people, and open
the world to trade. It is designed to stimulate private sector growth, to help America move from
the industrial age to the information age, and to make sure all of our people can benefit from the
new opportunities of the new economy.
Today, our economy is the strongest it has been in a generation -- and for the first time,
the effects of this economic revival are being felt all around the country. Unemployment has
dropped below 5% for the first time in 24 years, with the largest decline in income inequality since
the 1960s. We have cut the deficit by 77% -- from $290 billion the day I took office to less than
$70 billion this year. And now, with the balanced budget agreement I have reached with the
leaders of Congress, the deficit is heading to zero.
[Let me say one thing about how we will balance the budget. The Supreme Court's
decision today to strike down the line item veto deprives the President of a valuable tool to help
keep the budget in balance and to ensure that we put our public funds to the best possible uses.
It will make the job of balancing the budget more difficult, but it will not deter us from that
goal].
OR [The Supreme Court's decision today to uphold the line item veto gives the President
a valuable tool to help keep the budget in balance and to ensure that we put our public funds to
the best possible uses. It is a victory for all Americans.]
The centerpiece of our urban development strategy is an aggressive plan to attract
businesses and jobs to the cities. We have already created 105 Empowerment Zones and
Enterprise Communities -- providing a powerful combination of tax incentives and freedom from
government red tape to spark private enterprise in poor neighborhoods. We have created a
network of Community Development Financial Institutions that is infusing our cities with capital.
We reformed the Community Reinvestment Act so that it works better to steer private capital
from mainstream commercial banks into poor inner city and rural communities. This amounts to a
multi billion dollar investment in our cities -- bringing private sector jobs and hope to our hardest
pressed citizens. And we recognized that a major barrier to economic growth are sites
contaminated by toxic chemicals. We are taking those "Brownfields" that were the shame of our
cities and converting them into productive assets.
When I reached our historic bipartisan budget agreement with the leaders of Congress,
they pledged to work with us to expand Empowerment Zones, Enterprise Communities, and
Brownfields tax incentives. These initiatives are essential to the health of our cities. But the tax
plans put together by the House and Senate fail to live up to this commitment. That is wrong. I
want every one of you to make it clear to the people who represent you in Congress that you
expect them to honor this agreement and their commitment to our nation's cities.
The second thing we must do is to push forward in the fight against crime and violence.
Safe streets are a precondition for the success of every other thing we must do. We must
3
With Inserts
continue the remarkable progress we have made in the last four and a half years to restore peace
and security to our cities.
As you all know so well, the strategy pioneered in our cities of more community police,
tougher punishment and fewer guns in the hands of criminals is making a difference. Last year we
saw the largest drop in violent crime in more than three-and-a-half decades. Murders dropped a
stunning 11% in 1996. Cities all around the country, including San Francisco, are experiencing
dramatic declines in their violent crime rates.
Now we must continue with this tough-and-smart approach. We are well on the way
toward meeting our goal of 100,000 new community police on our streets. I will fight to make
sure that the national government meets this commitment. And I will continue to push for real
juvenile crime legislation that guarantees more prosecutors, probation officers, and afterschool
programs for at-risk young people.
And we must continue to forge the partnership between police and citizens that we see in
the success of the block-patrols and neighborhood watch groups that are the essence of what I
mean by "empowerment." The "every day" presence of police on our streets has made a huge
difference to the safety of our communities. We can increase that presence even more by
encouraging police to live in the communities they serve. Today, I am pleased to announce that
we are taking steps to do just that. In the coming year, The Officer Next Door program will
make it possible for police officers and their families to buy HUD-owned single family homes in
our central cities at a 50% discount. More police on the beat have made our neighborhoods feel
like home again -- just think what it will be like when more of our police make our neighborhoods
their homes.
POSSIBLE INSERT IF BRADY BILL UPHELD
[The Brady Bill has kept 250,000 felons and fugitives from purchasing handguns. You
stood with us to pass this important legislation, and it has been critical to our success. This
morning, the Supreme Court upheld the Brady Law. This is a victory for all Americans.]
The third thing we must do to revitalize our cities is create jobs for the one million people
we must move from welfare to work by the year 2000. That is why I fought for a $3 billion
welfare-to-work job challenge fund in our balanced budget that specifically gives cities the
resources they need to help get and keep good jobs. I also fought for a new welfare-to-work tax
credit that will give private employers extra incentive to hire long-term welfare recipients.
We are working with Members of Congress of both parties to make sure that a significant
portion of the funds will go directly to cities and other communities where so many welfare
recipients live. I ask you to let the Congress know how important this is. I am pleased that we
reached bipartisan agreement to restore benefits to legal immigrants who work hard and play by
4
With Inserts
the rules, and I have made clear that I will not sign any legislation that reneges on this vital part of
the budget deal.
The fourth thing we must do is to make our cities places that anyone would be proud to
call home
and make it easier for people to buy homes in our cities. Homeownership is one of
the best ways to empower local residents, to give them a stake in the community, and to increase
the bonds that tie people together. Since I took office, 4.7 million people across America have
become new homeowners. But not enough of these homes are in our cities.
In the last four years, we have reduced FHA mortgage premiums three times to lower the
average closing cost on a new home by $1,200. Today, I am happy to announce that we are
cutting the premium by an additional $200 for families who buy only in our central cities. This
special discount will bring the total reduction in closing costs to those families to $1400. This city
homeownership plan could make all the difference to a family deciding where to buy a home.
There is even more that we can do to promote homeownership in our cities. We know
that many hard-working families who receive Section 8 assistance are ready to assume the
responsibilities of owning their own homes, but need help to take the first step. There is now an
innovative HUD proposal before Congress to allow those families to use their rent vouchers to
help buy a home. And today, I am happy to announce that Freddie Mac will help us launch this
homeownership empowerment voucher initiative by financing up to 2,000 of these mortgages.
Together with the "Officer Next Door initiative I announced earlier, this represents a
$695 million downpayment toward our priority of strengthening our cities, family by family, house
by house, neighborhood by neighborhood.
The fifth thing we must do is to improve our city schools and make sure that all of our
children no matter where they live -- get the best education in the world. That is why I have
made education my number one priority as President. We know one of the main reasons families
leave our cities is because they don't believe city schools are doing a good enough job.
There are many things we must do to reform education. We are working to connect every
classroom in America to the Internet by the Year 2000, and ensure that all our children have the
skills to master it, so that children in the inner city will have access to the same universe of
knowledge as children in the suburbs. We are mobilizing 1 million tutors in our America Reads
initiative, to meet our goal that every 8 year old will be able to read independently. And above all,
we have challenged all of our schools to set and meet high national standards, beginning with
reading and math -- and city schools must be no exception. We know that this won't be easy; we
will have to demand more from our students, our teachers and our schools. But we know that if
we don't do this if we accept the false idea that some children just can't learn, and should be
moved from grade to grade before they learn the basics -- then we cheat them and our nation.
5
With Inserts
[We must do everything we can to promote greater tolerance and freedom, including
religious freedom. That is why I am pleased by today's Supreme Court decision upholding the
Religious Freedom Restoration Act. Throughout our history, men and women have come to this
nation to escape religious persecution and secure the precious freedom to choose whether and
how to worship. This legislation assures that the religious liberties of all Americans will be
strongly protected. ] or
[We must do everything we can to promote greater tolerance and freedom, including
religious freedom. Today the United States Supreme Court held part of the Religious Freedom
Restoration Act unconstitutional. We will study that opinion closely. Religious freedom is
central to the American system of liberty. Throughout our history, men and women have come to
this nation to secure the precious freedom to choose whether and how to worship. This
legislation reaffirmed that right. Although we are disappointed by the Supreme Court's ruling,
we will continue to work to protect religious liberty to the fullest extent the Constitution allows.]
[And] [I]n this new era, our cities must be the wellspring of a renewed sense of citizenship
that unites us across all our differences. We must define what it means to be an American by the
duty we owe one another, and by the values and dreams we all share. It would be a terrible
mistake for any group of Americans -- one city, one neighborhood, even one block -- to build
walls of division, separating neighbor from neighbor.
It will take all of us, working side by side, to build the cities of our future. America's
great mayors and great cities will lead the way. You are already showing us in so many ways how
to live and work and grow together. You are sending a message to all Americans -- and to all the
world -- that America's cities are on the rise, united in their diversity, providing opportunity for
all of their people, and poised for greatness in the 21st Century.
Thank you and God bless you all.
7
With Inserts
Draft 6/22/97 8:00pm (pacific time)
PRESIDENT WILLIAM J. CLINTON
U.S. CONFERENCE OF MAYORS
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA
JUNE 23, 1997
Acknowledgments: Sec. Cuomo; Sec. Herman; Sen. Barbara Boxer; Rep. Zoe Lofgren;
Mayor Daley; Mayor Willie Brown; Mayor Helmke; Tom Cochran; the new Director of
Intergovernmental Affairs at the White House, Mickey Ibarra. I also want to take this
opportunity to welcome one of your own to my Administration. I am pleased to announce my
intention to nominate Saul Ramirez, mayor of Laredo, Texas, to fill Secretary Cuomo's former
job as Assistant Secretary of HUD for Community Planning and Development.
I always look forward to the opportunity to speak to the Conference of Mayors. Today, it
is clear, that because of the visionary, hands on leadership of so many of you, America's cities
have turned a corner and are prepared to play the central role in our society in the next century
that they have in this century. Throughout our history, cities have been the gateway to hope and
opportunity for millions of Americans, and for millions of immigrants who came to our shores in
search of a better life. Our cities have always been symbols of the economic progress and cultural
achievement that have made America the envy of the world. That can be more than our history:
you are making it our present, and it can be our future as well.
POSSIBLE INSERT ON BRADY BILL IF STRUCK DOWN
[I want to begin with a word about something that is very important to the work of
everybody in this room, and the safety of every citizen in America. The Brady Bill has kept
250,000 felons, fugitives and stalkers from purchasing handguns. You stood with us to pass this
important legislation, and it has been critical to our success. This morning, the Supreme Court
ruled part of the Brady Law unconstitutional. I am deeply disappointed by the Court's decision.
But let me be clear: Today's ruling should not mean an end to the background checks that are
helping keep our streets safe. Twenty-seven states, including California, now conduct
background checks as a matter of state law and will continue to do so. Today, I have instructed
Attorney General Reno and Treasury Secretary Rubin to make sure police departments across
the country know that they can keep conducting Brady background checks on a voluntary basis.
[Our goal is clear: No background check, no handgun. And I will continue to do
everything in my power to keep handguns out of the hands of criminals and to keep our cities
safe.]
For far too long, many Americans wondered if our cities were in permanent decline,
battered by seemingly inexorable economic dislocation, seemingly unstoppable waves of crime,
seemingly intractable problems of poverty and inner-city decay. Today, America's cities are back.
I
With Inserts
Today, Secretary Cuomo released a compelling report on the "State of the Cities." We are seeing
the first economic resurgence in our cities since World War II. In America's 50 largest cities, the
unemployment rate has been cut by nearly a third. More downtowns are coming back to life, with
sports and tourism and local business all booming. We are taking back our streets from the worst
ravages of crime. New waves of immigrants are starting new businesses and bringing new energy.
Because of the disciplined leadership of so many people in this room, the fiscal health of our cities
is stronger than it has been in decades. And dozens of mayors have changed the way city
governments serve the people, providing services with less cost, less bureaucracy, fewer rules and
regulations.
But it is clear that real, serious challenges remain. Some are the new challenges brought
by new times: the need to create more jobs for those on welfare; the challenge of absorbing new
immigrants; the rising tide of juvenile violence. Some, like the continued flight of middle-class
families from central cities to the suburbs, are persistent problems that must be overcome for the
long-term health of our cities. As a nation, we face a simple choice. We can face these challenges
head-on, and continue the great progress of the last four years -- or we can let this opportunity
slip from our grasp, and risk all that we have built, and more.
During my time as President, we have worked with you, helping you help your cities and
putting some of the best local ideas to work nationwide.
Our urban strategy reflects a revolutionary new philosophy of bottom-up empowerment.
It is different from the old big government approach that sought to solve the problems of our
cities with massive spending, that tried to pave over problems with billions of dollars and tons of
concrete. And it is just as different from the approach of others who would tell our cities and
those who live in them: "You're on your own." Instead of imposing solutions from Washington,
we are giving communities the support and the tools they need to solve their own problems. The
key is empowerment. Recognizing that the people on the front lines -- in city halls, in police
precinct houses, and on city streets -- know best what the challenges are and how best to meet
them. And recognizing that our oldest values of work and neighborhood, faith and family, safe
streets and good schools, hold the answers to the newest problems we face.
We must continue this approach as we press forward. First, extending private sector
prosperity so it touches every neighborhood in America. Second, doing more to take back our
streets from crime. Third, finishing the job of welfare reform by creating more jobs for all who can
work. Fourth, extending the benefits of homeownership even more widely. Fifth, raising
standards in our schools and investing more in our young people. And sixth, meeting public
health challenges like AIDS.
The first and most important thing we must do is press forward to create the economic
conditions that will bring business, jobs and people back to our cities
and keep them there.
2
With Inserts
Our national economic strategy is this: reduce the deficit, invest in our people, and open
the world to trade. It is designed to stimulate private sector growth, to help America move from
the industrial age to the information age, and to make sure all of our people can benefit from the
new opportunities of the new economy.
Today, our economy is the strongest it has been in a generation -- and for the first time,
the effects of this economic revival are being felt all around the country. Unemployment has
dropped below 5% for the first time in 24 years, with the largest decline in income inequality since
the 1960s. We have cut the deficit by 77% -- from $290 billion the day I took office to less than
$70 billion this year. And now, with the balanced budget agreement I have reached with the
leaders of Congress, the deficit is heading to zero.
[Let me say one thing about how we will balance the budget. The Supreme Court's
decision today to strike down the line item veto deprives the President of a valuable tool to help
keep the budget in balance and to ensure that we put our public funds to the best possible uses.
It will make the job of balancing the budget more difficult, but it will not deter us from that
goal].
OR [The Supreme Court's decision today to uphold the line item veto gives the President
a valuable tool to help keep the budget in balance and to ensure that we put our public funds to
the best possible uses. It is a victory for all Americans.]
The centerpiece of our urban development strategy is an aggressive plan to attract
businesses and jobs to the cities. We have already created 105 Empowerment Zones and
Enterprise Communities -- providing a powerful combination of tax incentives and freedom from
government red tape to spark private enterprise in poor neighborhoods. We have created a
network of Community Development Financial Institutions that is infusing our cities with capital.
We reformed the Community Reinvestment Act so that it works better to steer private capital
from mainstream commercial banks into poor inner city and rural communities. This amounts to a
multi billion dollar investment in our cities -- bringing private sector jobs and hope to our hardest
pressed citizens. And we recognized that a major barrier to economic growth are sites
contaminated by toxic chemicals. We are taking those "Brownfields" that were the shame of our
cities and converting them into productive assets.
When I reached our historic bipartisan budget agreement with the leaders of Congress,
they pledged to work with us to expand Empowerment Zones, Enterprise Communities, and
Brownfields tax incentives. These initiatives are essential to the health of our cities. But the tax
plans put together by the House and Senate fail to live up to this commitment. That is wrong. I
want every one of you to make it clear to the people who represent you in Congress that you
expect them to honor this agreement and their commitment to our nation's cities.
The second thing we must do is to push forward in the fight against crime and violence.
Safe streets are a precondition for the success of every other thing we must do. We must
3
With Inserts
continue the remarkable progress we have made in the last four and a half years to restore peace
and security to our cities.
As you all know so well, the strategy pioneered in our cities of more community police,
tougher punishment and fewer guns in the hands of criminals is making a difference. Last year we
saw the largest drop in violent crime in more than three-and-a-half decades. Murders dropped a
stunning 11% in 1996. Cities all around the country, including San Francisco, are experiencing
dramatic declines in their violent crime rates.
Now we must continue with this tough-and-smart approach. We are well on the way
toward meeting our goal of 100,000 new.community police on our streets. I will fight to make
sure that the national government meets this commitment. And I will continue to push for real
juvenile crime legislation that guarantees more prosecutors, probation officers, and afterschool
programs for at-risk young people.
And we must continue to forge the partnership between police and citizens that we see in
the success of the block-patrols and neighborhood watch groups that are the essence of what I
mean by "empowerment." The "every day" presence of police on our streets has made a huge
difference to the safety of our communities. We can increase that presence even more by
encouraging police to live in the communities they serve. Today, I am pleased to announce that
we are taking steps to do just that. In the coming year, The Officer Next Door program will
make it possible for police officers and their families to buy HUD-owned single family homes in
our central cities at a 50% discount. More police on the beat have made our neighborhoods feel
like home again -- just think what it will be like when more of our police make our neighborhoods
their homes.
POSSIBLE INSERT IF BRADY BILL UPHELD
[The Brady Bill has kept 250,000 felons and fugitives from purchasing handguns. You
stood with us to pass this important legislation, and it has been critical to our success. This
morning, the Supreme Court upheld the Brady Law. This is a victory for all Americans.]
The third thing we must do to revitalize our cities is create jobs for the one million people
we must move from welfare to work by the year 2000. That is why I fought for a $3 billion
welfare-to-work job challenge fund in our balanced budget that specifically gives cities the
resources they need to help get and keep good jobs. I also fought for a new welfare-to-work tax
credit that will give private employers extra incentive to hire long-term welfare recipients.
We are working with Members of Congress of both parties to make sure that a significant
portion of the funds will go directly to cities and other communities where so many welfare
recipients live. I ask you to let the Congress know how important this is. I am pleased that we
reached bipartisan agreement to restore benefits to legal immigrants who work hard and play by
4
With Inserts
the rules, and I have made clear that I will not sign any legislation that reneges on this vital part of
the budget deal.
The fourth thing we must do is to make our cities places that anyone would be proud to
call home
and make it easier for people to buy homes in our cities. Homeownership is one of
the best ways to empower local residents, to give them a stake in the community, and to increase
the bonds that tie people together. Since I took office, 4.7 million people across America have
become new homeowners. But not enough of these homes are in our cities.
In the last four years, we have reduced FHA mortgage premiums three times to lower the
average closing cost on a new home by $1,200. Today, I am happy to announce that we are
cutting the premium by an additional $200 for families who buy only in our central cities. This
special discount will bring the total reduction in closing costs to those families to $1400. This city
homeownership plan could make all the difference to a family deciding where to buy a home.
There is even more that we can do to promote homeownership in our cities. We know
that many hard-working families who receive Section 8 assistance are ready to assume the
responsibilities of owning their own homes, but need help to take the first step. There is now an
innovative HUD proposal before Congress to allow those families to use their rent vouchers to
help buy a home. And today, I am happy to announce that Freddie Mac will help us launch this
homeownership empowerment voucher initiative by financing up to 2,000 of these mortgages.
Together with the "Officer Next Door initiative I announced earlier, this represents a
$695 million downpayment toward our priority of strengthening our cities, family by family, house
by house, neighborhood by neighborhood.
The fifth thing we must do is to improve our city schools and make sure that all of our
children no matter where they live -- get the best education in the world. That is why I have
made education my number one priority as President. We know one of the main reasons families
leave our cities is because they don't believe city schools are doing a good enough job.
There are many things we must do to reform education. We are working to connect every
classroom in America to the Internet by the Year 2000, and ensure that all our children have the
skills to master it, so that children in the inner city will have access to the same universe of
knowledge as children in the suburbs. We are mobilizing 1 million tutors in our America Reads
initiative, to meet our goal that every 8 year old will be able to read independently. And above all,
we have challenged all of our schools to set and meet high national standards, beginning with
reading and math and city schools must be no exception. We know that this won't be easy; we
will have to demand more from our students, our teachers and our schools. But we know that if
we don't do this if we accept the false idea that some children just can't learn, and should be
moved from grade to grade before they learn the basics -- then we cheat them and our nation.
5
With Inserts
I am pleased that Mayor Daley and the city of Chicago has moved aggressively to stop
social promotion once and for all, and to take over schools that are failing. I am a strong
supporter of public education, but I do not think we must defend or accept schools that aren't
making the grade. We need to turn them around, not just in Chicago, but all over the country.
Sixth, we must do more to deal with issues of public health that continue to threaten the
lives of our citizens. Let me especially mention the scourge of AIDS that has gripped so many of
our cities. Last month I issued a call to find an AIDS vaccine within the next ten years.
Yesterday in Denver, the other leading industrialized nations pledged to help us meet that
challenge. Last week, the Department of Health and Human Services announced comprehensive
new guidelines to help people with HIV and AIDS get the most up-to-date information on the
dramatic new drug combination therapies -- including protease inhibitors -- that are helping to
prolong lives. These guidelines and our vaccine initiative bring us closer to our ultimate goals: to
find a cure for those with HIV and to bring a permanent end to this epidemic.
Today I have outlined our urban agenda for the 21st Century, and I look forward to
working with you in the coming years to put it into action. More initiatives and details are laid
out in Secretary Cuomo's State of the Cities Report. And let me say that as we work to do this,
we will continue to streamline our own efforts, the way you have streamlined city governments.
Before I took office, HUD was a symbol of overblown bureaucracy -- a poster child for the failed
policies that sapped our cities of their vitality.
We have started to change that, and six months ago, I directed Secretary Cuomo to
undertake a complete overhaul of HUD and transform it into an engine of empowerment. I am
proud to say that he has developed an exciting and thorough plan to make HUD smaller, leaner,
and better. We are already seeing real results in the elimination of waste, fraud, abuse, and in the
coming months, I know that Secretary Cuomo will make the new HUD the best partner you have
ever had.
Finally, I want you to think about one more reason why it is so important that we continue
to renew our cities. In the 21st century we know that America will be more multiracial,
multicultural and multireligious than at any time in our past. This growing diversity is already
taking root in our cities. And it must be a source of strength, not division.
Just nine days ago in the city of San Diego, I called on the people of this country to begin
a great national conversation on race, and to bridge our racial divisions so we can come together
as One America. This initiative will combine forthright dialogue, serious study, and real action.
And nowhere is the challenge to build One America more pronounced than in our cities -- the
gateways to our nation. So we are counting on every one of you to join us, to step forward and
share with us what you know, show us what works, and help ensure that we meet this great
national challenge.
6
With Inserts
[We must do everything we can to promote greater tolerance and freedom, including
religious freedom. That is why I am pleased by today's Supreme Court decision upholding the
Religious Freedom Restoration Act. Throughout our history, men and women have come to this
nation to escape religious persecution and secure the precious freedom to choose whether and
how to worship. This legislation assures that the religious liberties of all Americans will be
strongly protected. or
[We must do everything we can to promote greater tolerance and freedom, including
religious freedom. Today the United States Supreme Court held part of the Religious Freedom
Restoration Act unconstitutional. We will study that opinion closely. Religious freedom is
central to the American system of liberty. Throughout our history, men and women have come to
this nation to secure the precious freedom to choose whether and how to worship. This
legislation reaffirmed that right. Although we are disappointed by the Supreme Court's ruling,
we will continue to work to protect religious liberty to the fullest extent the Constitution allows.]
[And] [I]n this new era, our cities must be the wellspring of a renewed sense of citizenship
that unites us across all our differences. We must define what it means to be an American by the
duty we owe one another, and by the values and dreams we all share. It would be a terrible
mistake for any group of Americans -- one city, one neighborhood, even one block -- to build
walls of division, separating neighbor from neighbor.
It will take all of us, working side by side, to build the cities of our future. America's
great mayors and great cities will lead the way. You are already showing us in so many ways how
to live and work and grow together. You are sending a message to all Americans -- and to all the
world -- that America's cities are on the rise, united in their diversity, providing opportunity for
all of their people, and poised for greatness in the 21st Century.
Thank you and God bless you all.
7
F
Sandy Thurman
771-1400
1844
//
60
TMI
airmony
THE FAIRMONT HOTELS
AMERICA'S GRAND HOTELS. SINCE 1907
With Inserts
PRESIDENT WILLIAM J. CLINTON
U.S. CONFERENCE OF MAYORS
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA
JUNE 23, 1997
With Inserts
Acknowledgments: Sec. Cuomo; Sec. Herman; Sec.
Slater; Sen. Barbara Boxer; Rep. Zoe Lofgren; Mayor
Daley; Mayor Willie Brown; Mayor Helmke; Tom
Cochran. [Announce intention to nominate Sol Ramierez,
mayor of Laredo Texas; to succeed Secretary Cuomo as
Assistant Secretary of HUD for Community Planning and
Development.]
This is the [x]th time I have had the pleasure of
speaking to the Conference of Mayors.
2
With Inserts
And it is clearer than ever that our cities are at a
crossroads -- that, thanks to the visionary, hands on
leadership of so many of you, America's cities have
turned a corner and are prepared to play the central role in
our society in the next century that they have in this
century. Throughout our history, cities have been the
gateway to hope and opportunity for millions of
Americans, and for millions of immigrants who came to
our shores in search of a better life. Our cities have
always been symbols of the economic progress and
cultural achievement that have made America the envy of
the world. That can be more than our history: you are
making it our present, and it can be our future as well.
With Inserts
For far too long, many Americans wondered if our
cities were in permanent decline, battered by seemingly
inexorable economic dislocation, seemingly unstoppable
waves of crime, seemingly intractable problems of poverty
and inner-city decay. Today, America's cities are back.
Today, Secretary Cuomo released a compelling "Report
on America's Cities." We are seeing the first economic
resurgence in our cities since World War II. In America's
50 largest cities, the unemployment rate has been cut by
nearly a third. More downtowns are coming back to life,
with sports and tourism and local business all booming.
4
With Inserts
We are taking back our streets from the worst ravages
of crime. New waves of immigrants are starting new
businesses and bringing new energy. Because of the
disciplined leadership of so many people in this room, the
fiscal health of our cities is stronger than it has been in
decades. And dozens of mayors have changed the way city
governments serve the people, providing services with
less cost, less bureaucracy, fewer rules and regulations.
Now, we have a choice. We as a nation can continue
that progress -- or let it slip from our grasp.
5
With Inserts
New times bring new challenges: the need to create
more jobs for those on welfare; the challenge of absorbing
new immigrants; the rising tide of juvenile violence.
America has produced more than 12 million jobs in the
last 4-1/2 years, but more and more of those jobs are
being created in the suburbs, not in our cities. At the same
time, hundreds of thousands of people in our cities are
struggling to move from welfare to work. Meanwhile, the
migration of middle class families of all races from cities
to suburbs continues. And while our national
unemployment rate is below 5%, we know this masks
continuing inequalities.
6
With Inserts
For example, Nebraska has unemployment of 2.5% --
while many cities still have unemployment of 15%.
{CHECK}
We have made so much progress, but if we do not act
now, we could look upon this time not as the beginning of
a renaissance for America's cities, but a missed
opportunity.
During my time as President, we have worked with
you, helping you help your cities and putting some of the
best local ideas to work nationwide.
7
With Inserts
Our urban strategy reflected a revolutionary new
philosophy of bottom-up empowerment. It was different
from the old big government approach that sought to solve
the problems of our cities with massive spending that
sought to pave over the problems with billions of dollars
and billions of tons of concrete. And it was just as
different from the new philosophy that would tell our
cities and those who live in them: "You're on your own."
Instead of imposing solutions from Washington, we are
giving communities the support and the tools they need to
solve their own problems.
8
With Inserts
The key is empowerment. Recognizing that the
people on the front lines -- in city halls, in police precinct
houses, and on city streets -- know best what the
challenges are and how best to meet them. And
recognizing that our oldest values of work and
neighborhood, faith and family, safe streets and good
schools, hold the answers to the newest problems we face.
And this must be the approach we take as we press
forward with our urban strategy. First, doing more to
take back our streets from crime. Second, extending
private sector prosperity so it touches every neighborhood
in America.
With Inserts
Third, finishing the job of welfare reform by creating
more jobs for all who can work. Fourth, extending the
benefits of homeownership even more widely. Fifth,
raising standards in our schools. And sixth, meeting
public health challenges like AIDS.
Let me begin by talking about crime. Everyone here
knows that safe streets are a precondition for every other
thing we must do. So we must continue the remarkable
progress we have made in the last four and a half years to
reduce crime and restore peace and security to our cities.
10
With Inserts
As you all know so well, the strategy pioneered in our
cities of more community police, tougher punishment and
fewer guns in the hands of criminals is making a
difference. Last year we saw the largest drop in violent
crime in more than three-and-a-half decades. Murders
dropped a stunning 11% in 1996. Cities all around the
country, including San Francisco, are experiencing
dramatic declines in their violent crime rates.
Now we must continue with this tough-and-smart
approach. We are well on the way toward meeting our
goal of 100,000 new community police on our streets.
11
With Inserts
I will fight to make sure that the national government
meets this commitment. And I will continue to push for
real juvenile crime legislation that guarantees more
prosecutors, probation officers, and afterschool programs
for at-risk young people.
And we must continue to forge the partnership
between police and citizens that we see in the success of
the block-patrols and neighborhood watch groups that are
the essence of what I mean by "empowerment." The
"every day" presence of police on our streets has made a
huge difference to the safety of our communities.
12
With Inserts
We can increase that presence even more by
encouraging police to live in the communities they serve.
Today, I am pleased to announce that we are taking steps
to do just that. In the coming year, The Officer Next Door
program will make it possible for up to 2,000 police
officers and their families to buy HUD-owned single
family homes in our central cities at a 50% discount.
More police on the beat have made our neighborhoods
feel like home again -- just think what it will be like when
more of our police make our neighborhoods their homes.
13
With Inserts
[IF BRADY BILL RULING: And we cannot turn
back in our campaign to take guns off our streets. The
Brady Bill has kept 250,000 felons, fugitives and stalkers
from purchasing handguns. You stood with us to pass
this important legislation, and it has been critical to our
success. This morning, the Supreme Court ruled part of
the Brady Law unconstitutional. / am deeply
disappointed by the Court's decision. But let me be clear:
Today's ruling should not mean an end to the background
checks that are helping keep our streets safe. Twenty-
seven states, including California, now conduct
background checks as a matter of state law and will
continue to do so.
14
With Inserts
Today, / have instructed Attorney General Reno and
Treasury Secretary Rubin to make sure police
departments across the country know that they can keep
conducting Brady background checks on a voluntary
basis.
[Our goal is clear: No background check, no
handgun. And I will continue to do everything in my
power to keep handguns out of the hands of criminals and
to keep our cities safe.]
OR [The Brady Bill has kept 250,000 felons and
fugitives from purchasing handguns.
15
With Inserts
You stood with us to pass this important legislation,
and it has been critical to our success. This morning, the
Supreme Court upheld the Brady Law. This is a victory
for all Americans.]
The second thing we must do is to create the
economic conditions that will bring business, jobs and
people back to our cities and keep them there.
Our national economic strategy is this: reduce the
deficit, invest in our people, and open the world to trade.
16
With Inserts
It is designed to stimulate private sector growth, to
help America move from the industrial age to the
information age, and to make sure all of our people can
benefit from the new opportunities of the new economy.
Today, our economy is the strongest it has been in a
generation -- and for the first time, the effects of this
economic revival are being felt all around the country.
Unemployment has dropped below 5% for the first time in
24 years, with the largest decline in income inequality
since the 1960s. We have cut the deficit by 77% -- from
$290 billion the day I took office to less than $70 billion
this year.
17
With Inserts
And now, with the balanced budget agreement I have
reached with the leaders of Congress, the deficit is
heading to zero.
[Let me say one thing about how we will balance the
budget. The Supreme Court's decision today to strike
down the line item veto deprives the President of a
valuable tool to help keep the budget in balance and to
ensure that we put our public funds to the best possible
uses. It will make the job of balancing the budget more
difficult, but it will not deter us from that goal].
18
With Inserts
OR [The Supreme Court's decision today to uphold
the line item veto gives the President a valuable tool to
help keep the budget in balance and to ensure that we put
our public funds to the best possible uses. It is a victory
for all Americans.]
The centerpiece of our urban development strategy is
an aggressive plan to attract businesses and jobs to the
cities. We have already created 105 Empowerment Zones
and Enterprise Communities -- providing a powerful
combination of tax incentives and freedom from
government red tape to spark private enterprise in poor
neighborhoods.
19
With Inserts
We have created a network of Community
Development Financial Institutions that is infusing our
cities with the capital. And we recognized that a major
barrier to economic growth are sites contaminated by
toxic chemicals. We are taking those "Brownfields" that
were the shame of our cities and converting them into
productive assets.
When I reached our historic bipartisan budget
agreement with the leaders of Congress, they pledged to
work with us to expand Empowerment Zones, Enterprise
Communities, and Brownfields tax incentives. These
initiatives are essential to the health of our cities.
20
With Inserts
But the tax plans put together by the House and
Senate fail to live up to this commitment. That is wrong. I
want every one of you to make it clear to the people who
represent you in Congress that you expect them to honor
this agreement and their commitment to our nation's
cities.
The third thing we must do to revitalize our cities is
create jobs for the one million people we must move from
welfare to work by the year 2000. That is why I fought
for a $3 billion welfare-to-work job challenge fund in our
balanced budget that specifically gives cities the resources
they need to help get and keep good jobs.
21
With Inserts
I also fought for a new welfare-to-work tax credit that
will give private employers extra incentive to hire long-
term welfare recipients.
We are working with Members of Congress of both
parties to make sure that funds will go directly to cities
and other communities where so many welfare recipients
live. I ask you to let the Congress know how important
this is. I am pleased that we reached bipartisan agreement
to restore benefits to legal immigrants who work hard and
play by the rules, and I have made clear that I will not sign
any legislation that reneges on any part of this deal.
22
With Inserts
The fourth thing we must do is to make our cities
places that anyone would be proud to call home
and
make it easier for people to buy homes in our cities.
Homeownership is one of the best ways to empower local
residents, to give them a stake in the community, and to
increase the bonds that tie people together. So far, our
successful economic strategy has helped 2.5 million
people across America to become new homeowners. But,
not enough of these homes are in our cities.
In the last four years, we have reduced FHA mortgage
premiums three times to lower the average closing cost on,
a new home by $1,200.
23
With Inserts
Today, I am happy to announce that we are cutting
the premium by an additional $200 for families who buy
only in our central cities. This special discount will bring
the total reduction in closing costs to those families to
$1400. This city homeownership plan could make all the
difference to a family deciding where to buy a home.
There is even more that we can do to promote
homeownership in our cities. We know that many hard-
working families who receive Section 8 assistance are
ready to assume the responsibilities of owning their own
homes, but need help to take the first step.
24
With Inserts
There is now an innovative HUD proposal before
Congress to allow those families to use their rent vouchers
to help buy a home. And today, I am happy to announce
that Freddie Mac will help us launch this homeownership
empowerment voucher initiative by financing up to 2,000
of these mortgages.
Together with the "Office on Your Block" initiative I
mentioned earlier, this represents a $1 billion
downpayment toward our number priority of
strengthening our cities, family by family, house by house,
neighborhood by neighborhood.
25
With Inserts
The fifth thing we must do is to improve our city
schools and make sure that all of our children -- no matter
where they live -- get the best education in the world.
That is why I have made education my number one
priority as President. We know one of the main reasons
families leave our cities is because they don't believe city
schools are doing a good enough job.
There are many things we must do to reform
education. We are working to connect every classroom in
America to the Internet by the Year 2000, so that children
in the inner city will have access to the same universe of
knowledge as children in the suburbs.
26
With Inserts
We are mobilizing 1 million volunteers in our
America Reads initiative, to meet our goal that every 8
year old will be able to read independently. And above
all, we have challenged all of our schools to set and meet
high national standards -- and city schools are no
exception. I have challenged our nation to set high
national standards for reading and math. We know that
this won't be easy; we will have to demand more from our
students, our teachers and our schools. But we know that
if we don't do this -- if we accept the false idea that some
children just can't learn, and should be moved from grade
to grade before they learn the basics -- then we cheat them
and our nation.
27
With Inserts
I am pleased that Mayor Daley and the city of
Chicago has moved aggressively to stop social promotion
once and for all, and to take over schools that are failing.
I am a strong supporter of public education, but I do not
think we must defend or accept schools that aren't making
the grade. We need to turn them around, not just in
Chicago, but all over the country.
Sixth, we must do more to deal with issues of public
health that continue to threaten the lives of our citizens.
Let me especially mention the scourge of AIDS that has
gripped so many of our cities. Last month I issued a call
to find an AIDS vaccine within the next ten years.
28
With Inserts
Yesterday in Denver, the other leading industrialized
nations pledged to help us meet that challenge. Last
week, the Department of Health and Human Services
announced comprehensive new guidelines to help people
with HIV and AIDS get the most up-to-date information
on the dramatic new drug combination therapies --
including protease inhibitors -- that are helping to prolong
lives. People with HIV and AIDS deserve the best
possible care; this guide is an important step in raising the
standards for that care.
Today I have outlined our urban agenda for the 21st
Century, and I look forward to working with you in the
coming years to put it into action.
29
With Inserts
More initiatives and details are laid out in Secretary
Cuomo's very compelling State of the Cities Report. And
let me say that as we work to do this, we will continue to
streamline our own efforts, the way you have streamlined
city governments. Before I took office, HUD was a
symbol of overblown bureaucracy -- a poster child for the
failed policies that sapped our cities of their vitality. We
have started to change that -- but we still have far to go.
Six months ago, I directed Secretary Cuomo to
undertake a complete overhaul of HUD and transform it
into an engine of empowerment.
30
With Inserts
I am proud to say that he has developed an exciting
and thorough plan to make HUD smaller, leaner, and
better. We are already seeing real results in the
elimination of waste, fraud, abuse, and in the coming
months, I know that Secretary Cuomo will make the new
HUD the best partner you have ever had.
Finally, I want you to think about one more reason
why it is so important that we continue to renew our cities.
In the 21 st century we know that America will be more
multiracial, multicultural and multireligious than at any
time in our past.
31
With Inserts
This growing diversity is already taking root in our
cities. And it must be a source of strength, not division.
Just nine days ago in the city of San Diego, I called
on the people of this country to begin a great national
conversation on race, and to bridge our racial divisions so
we can come together as One America.
[We must do everything we can to promote greater
tolerance and freedom, including religious freedom. That
is why I am pleased by today's Supreme Court decision
upholding the Religious Freedom Restoration Act.
32
With Inserts
Throughout our history, men and women have come
to this nation to escape religious persecution and secure
the precious freedom to choose whether and how to
worship. This legislation assures that the religious
liberties of all Americans will be strongly protected. ] or
[We must do everything we can to promote greater
tolerance and freedom, including religious freedom.
Today the United States Supreme Court held part of the
Religious Freedom Restoration Act unconstitutional. We
will study that opinion closely. Religious freedom is
central to the American system of liberty.
33
With Inserts
Throughout our history, men and women have come
to this nation to secure the precious freedom to choose
whether and how to worship. This legislation reaffirmed
that right. Although we are disappointed by the Supreme
Court's ruling, we will continue to work to protect
religious liberty to the fullest extent the Constitution
allows.]
[And] [I]n this new era, our cities must be the
wellspring of a renewed sense of citizenship that unites us
across all our differences. We must define what it means
to be an American by the duty we owe one another, and
by the values and dreams we all share.
34
With Inserts
It would be a terrible mistake for any group of
Americans -- one city, one neighborhood, even one block
-- to build walls of division, separating neighbor from
neighbor.
It will take all of us, working side by side, to build the
cities of our future. America's great mayors and great
cities will lead the way. You are already showing us in SO
many ways how to live and work and grow together. You
are sending a message to all Americans -- and to all the
world -- that America's cities are on the rise, united in
their diversity, providing opportunity for all of their
people, and poised for greatness in the 2 I st Century.
Thank you and God bless you all.
35
With Inserts
PRESIDENT WILLIAM J. CLINTON
U.S. CONFERENCE OF MAYORS
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA
JUNE 23, 1997
URBAN BUDGET
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With Inserts
Acknowledgments: Sec. Cuomo; Sec. Herman; Sen.
Barbara Boxer; Rep. Zoe Lofgren; Mayor Daley; Mayor
Willie Brown; Mayor Helmke; Tom Cochran; the new
Director of Intergovernmental Affairs at the White House,
Mickey Ibarra. I also want to take this opportunity to
welcome one of your own to my Administration. I am
pleased to announce my intention to nominate Saul
Ramirez, mayor of Laredo, Texas, to fill Secretary
Cuomo's former job as Assistant Secretary of HUD for
Community Planning and Development.
I always look forward to the opportunity to speak to
the Conference of Mayors.
2
With Inserts
Today, it is clear, that because of the visionary, hands
on leadership of so many of you, America's cities have
turned a corner and are prepared to play the central role in
our society in the next century that they have in this
century. Throughout our history, cities have been the
gateway to hope and opportunity for millions of
Americans, and for millions of immigrants who came to
our shores in search of a better life. Our cities have
always been symbols of the economic progress and
cultural achievement that have made America the envy of
the world. That can be more than our history: you are
making it our present, and it can be our future as well.
3
With Inserts
For far too long, many Americans wondered if our
cities were in permanent decline, battered by seemingly
inexorable economic dislocation, seemingly unstoppable
waves of crime, seemingly intractable problems of poverty
and inner-city decay. Today, America's cities are back.
Today, Secretary Cuomo released a compelling report on
the "State of the Cities." We are seeing the first economic
resurgence in our cities since World War II. In America's
50 largest cities, the unemployment rate has been cut by
nearly a third. More downtowns are coming back to life,
with sports and tourism and local business all booming.
We are taking back our streets from the worst ravages of
crime.
6
With Inserts
New waves of immigrants are starting new businesses
and bringing new energy. Because of the disciplined
leadership of so many people in this room, the fiscal
health of our cities is stronger than it has been in decades.
And dozens of mayors have changed the way city
governments serve the people, providing services with
less cost, less bureaucracy, fewer rules and regulations.
But it is clear that real, serious challenges remain.
Some are the new challenges brought by new times: the
need to create more jobs for those on welfare; the
challenge of absorbing new immigrants; the rising tide of
juvenile violence.
7
With Inserts
Some, like the continued flight of middle-class
families from central cities to the suburbs, are persistent
problems that must be overcome for the long-term health
of our cities. As a nation, we face a simple choice. We
can face these challenges head-on, and continue the great
progress of the last four years -- or we can let this
opportunity slip from our grasp, and risk all that we have
built, and more.
During my time as President, we have worked with
you, helping you help your cities and putting some of the
best local ideas to work nationwide.
8
With Inserts
Our urban strategy reflects a revolutionary new
philosophy of bottom-up empowerment. It is different
from the old big government approach that sought to solve
the problems of our cities with massive spending, that
tried to pave over problems with billions of dollars and
tons of concrete. And it is just as different from the
approach of others who would tell our cities and those
who live in them: "You're on your own." Instead of
imposing solutions from Washington, we are giving
communities the support and the tools they need to solve
their own problems.
9
With Inserts
The key is empowerment. Recognizing that the
people on the front lines -- in city halls, in police precinct
houses, and on city streets -- know best what the
challenges are and how best to meet them. And
recognizing that our oldest values of work and
neighborhood, faith and family, safe streets and good
schools, hold the answers to the newest problems we face.
We must continue this approach as we press forward.
First, extending private sector prosperity so it touches
every neighborhood in America. Second, doing more to
take back our streets from crime.
10
With Inserts
Third, finishing the job of welfare reform by creating
more jobs for all who can work. Fourth, extending the
benefits of homeownership even more widely. Fifth,
raising standards in our schools and investing more in our
young people. And sixth, meeting public health
challenges like AIDS.
The first and most important thing we must do is
press forward to create the economic conditions that will
bring business, jobs and people back to our cities
and
keep them there.
11
With Inserts
Our national economic strategy is this: reduce the
deficit, invest in our people, and open the world to trade.
It is designed to stimulate private sector growth, to help
America move from the industrial age to the information
age, and to make sure all of our people can benefit from
the new opportunities of the new economy.
Today, our economy is the strongest it has been in a
generation -- and for the first time, the effects of this
economic revival are being felt all around the country.
Unemployment has dropped below 5% for the first time in
24 years, with the largest decline in income inequality
since the 1960s.
12
With Inserts
We have cut the deficit by 77% -- from $290 billion
the day I took office to less than $70 billion this year.
And now, with the balanced budget agreement I have
reached with the leaders of Congress, the deficit is
heading to zero.
13
With Inserts
The centerpiece of our urban development strategy is
an aggressive plan to attract businesses and jobs to the
cities. We have already created 105 Empowerment Zones
and Enterprise Communities -- providing a powerful
combination of tax incentives and freedom from
government red tape to spark private enterprise in poor
neighborhoods. We have created a network of
Community Development Financial Institutions that is
infusing our cities with capital. We reformed the
Community Reinvestment Act so that it works better to
steer private capital from mainstream commercial banks
into poor inner city and rural communities.
16
With Inserts
This amounts to a multi billion dollar investment in
our cities -- bringing private sector jobs and hope to our
hardest pressed citizens. And we recognized that a major
barrier to economic growth are sites contaminated by
toxic chemicals. We are taking those "Brownfields" that
were the shame of our cities and converting them into
productive assets.
When I reached our historic bipartisan budget
agreement with the leaders of Congress, they pledged to
work with us to expand Empowerment Zones, Enterprise
Communities, and Brownfields tax incentives. These
initiatives are essential to the health of our cities.
17
With Inserts
But the tax plans put together by the House and
Senate fail to live up to this commitment. That is wrong. I
want every one of you to make it clear to the people who
represent you in Congress that you expect them to honor
this agreement and their commitment to our nation's
cities.
The second thing we must do is to push forward in
the fight against crime and violence. Safe streets are a
precondition for the success of every other thing we must
do. We must continue the remarkable progress we have
made in the last four and a half years to restore peace and
security to our cities.
18
With Inserts
As you all know so well, the strategy pioneered in our
cities of more community police, tougher punishment and
fewer guns in the hands of criminals is making a
difference. Last year we saw the largest drop in violent
crime in more than three-and-a-half decades. Murders
dropped a stunning 11% in 1996. Cities all around the
country, including San Francisco, are experiencing
dramatic declines in their violent crime rates.
Now we must continue with this tough-and-smart
approach. We are well on the way toward meeting our
goal of 100,000 new community police on our streets.
19
With Inserts
I will fight to make sure that the national government
meets this commitment. And I will continue to push for
real juvenile crime legislation that guarantees more
prosecutors, probation officers, and afterschool programs
for at-risk young people.
And we must continue to forge the partnership
between police and citizens that we see in the success of
the block-patrols and neighborhood watch groups that are
the essence of what I mean by "empowerment." The
"every day" presence of police on our streets has made a
huge difference to the safety of our communities. We can
increase that presence even more by encouraging police to
live in the communities they serve.
20
With Inserts
Today, I am pleased to announce that we are taking
steps to do just that. In the coming year, The Officer Next
Door program will make it possible for police officers and
their families to buy HUD-owned single family homes in
our central cities at a 50% discount. More police on the
beat have made our neighborhoods feel like home again --
just think what it will be like when more of our police
make our neighborhoods their homes
21
With Inserts
The third thing we must do to revitalize our cities is
create jobs for the one million people we must move from
welfare to work by the year 2000. That is why I fought
for a $3 billion welfare-to-work job challenge fund in our
balanced budget that specifically gives cities the resources
they need to help get and keep good jobs. I also fought
for a new welfare-to-work tax credit that will give private
employers extra incentive to hire long-term welfare
recipients.
23
With Inserts
We are working with Members of Congress of both
parties to make sure that a significant portion of the funds
will go directly to cities and other communities where so
many welfare recipients live. I ask you to let the Congress
know how important this is. I am pleased that we reached
bipartisan agreement to restore benefits to legal
immigrants who work hard and play by the rules, and I
have made clear that I will not sign any legislation that
reneges on this vital part of the budget deal.
The fourth thing we must do is to make our cities
places that anyone would be proud to call home and
make it easier for people to buy homes in our cities.
24
With Inserts
Homeownership is one of the best ways to empower local
residents, to give them a stake in the community, and to
increase the bonds that tie people together. Since I took
office, 4.7 million people across America have become
new homeowners. But not enough of these homes are in
our cities.
In the last four years, we have reduced FHA mortgage
premiums three times to lower the average closing cost on
a new home by $1,200. Today, I am happy to announce
that we are cutting the premium by an additional $200 for
families who buy only in our central cities.
25
With Inserts
This special discount will bring the total reduction in
closing costs to those families to $1400. This city
homeownership plan could make all the difference to a
family deciding where to buy a home.
There is even more that we can do to promote
homeownership in our cities. We know that many hard-
working families who receive Section 8 assistance are
ready to assume the responsibilities of owning their own
homes, but need help to take the first step. There is now
an innovative HUD proposal before Congress to allow
those families to use their rent vouchers to help buy a
home.
26
With Inserts
And today, I am happy to announce that Freddie Mac
will help us launch this homeownership empowerment
voucher initiative by financing up to 2,000 of these
mortgages.
Together with the "Officer Next Door initiative I
announced earlier, this represents a $695 million
downpayment toward our priority of strengthening our
cities, family by family, house by house, neighborhood by
neighborhood.
27
With Inserts
The fifth thing we must do is to improve our city
schools and make sure that all of our children -- no matter
where they live -- get the best education in the world.
That is why I have made education my number one
priority as President. We know one of the main reasons
families leave our cities is because they don't believe city
schools are doing a good enough job.
There are many things we must do to reform
education.
28
With Inserts
We are working to connect every classroom in
America to the Internet by the Year 2000, and ensure that
all our children have the skills to master it, so that children
in the inner city will have access to the same universe of
knowledge as children in the suburbs. We are mobilizing
1 million tutors in our America Reads initiative, to meet
our goal that every 8 year old will be able to read
independently. And above all, we have challenged all of
our schools to set and meet high national standards,
beginning with reading and math -- and city schools must
be no exception. We know that this won't be easy; we
will have to demand more from our students, our teachers
and our schools.
29
With Inserts
But we know that if we don't do this -- if we accept
the false idea that some children just can't learn, and
should be moved from grade to grade before they learn
the basics -- then we cheat them and our nation.
I am pleased that Mayor Daley and the city of
Chicago has moved aggressively to stop social promotion
once and for all, and to take over schools that are failing.
I am a strong supporter of public education, but I do not
think we must defend or accept schools that aren't making
the grade. We need to turn them around, not just in
Chicago, but all over the country.
30
With Inserts
Sixth, we must do more to deal with issues of public
health that continue to threaten the lives of our citizens --
especially the scourge of AIDS that has gripped so many
of our cities. Last month I issued a call to find an AIDS
vaccine within the next ten years. Yesterday in Denver,
the other leading industrialized nations pledged to help us
meet that challenge. But, until there is a vaccine,
prevention is our strongest weapon against AIDS. That is
why we must continue to identify sound public health
strategies that enable local communities to address the
twin epidemics of HIV and substance abuse. We will also
continue to work to provide the best treatment and
services to those who are already infected.
31
With Inserts
These actions and our vaccine initiative bring us
closer to our ultimate goals: to find a cure for those with
HIV and to bring a permanent end to this epidemic.
Today I have outlined our urban agenda for the 21st
Century, and I look forward to working with you in the
coming years to put it into action. More initiatives and
details are laid out in Secretary Cuomo's State of the
Cities Report. And let me say that as we work to do this,
we will continue to streamline our own efforts, the way
you have streamlined city governments.
32
With Inserts
Before I took office, HUD was a symbol of
overblown bureaucracy -- a poster child for the failed
policies that sapped our cities of their vitality.
We have started to change that, and six months ago, I
directed Secretary Cuomo to undertake a complete
overhaul of HUD and transform it into an engine of
empowerment. I am proud to say that he has developed
an exciting and thorough plan to make HUD smaller,
leaner, and better. We are already seeing real results in
the elimination of waste, fraud, abuse, and in the coming
months, I know that Secretary Cuomo will make the new
HUD the best partner you have ever had.
33
With Inserts
Finally, I want you to think about one more reason
why it is so important that we continue to renew our cities.
In the 21 st century we know that America will be more
multiracial, multicultural and multireligious than at any
time in our past. This growing diversity is already taking
root in our cities. And it must be a source of strength, not
division.
Just nine days ago in the city of San Diego, I called
on the people of this country to begin a great national
conversation on race, and to bridge our racial divisions so
we can come together as One America. This initiative
will combine forthright dialogue, serious study, and real
action.
34
With Inserts
And nowhere is the challenge to build One America
more pronounced than in our cities -- the gateways to our
nation. So we are counting on every one of you to join us,
to step forward and share with us what you know, show us
what works, and help ensure that we meet this great
national challenge.
35
With Inserts
In this new era, our cities must be the wellspring of a
renewed sense of citizenship that unites us across all our
differences. We must define what it means to be an
American by the duty we owe one another, and by the
values and dreams we all share. It would be a terrible
mistake for any group of Americans -- one city, one
neighborhood, even one block -- to build walls of
division, separating neighbor from neighbor.
It will take all of us, working side by side, to build the
cities of our future. America's great mayors and great
cities will lead the way. You are already showing us in so
many ways how to live and work and grow together.
38
With Inserts
You are sending a message to all Americans -- and to
all the world -- that America's cities are on the rise, united
in their diversity, providing opportunity for all of their
people, and poised for greatness in the 21st Century.
Thank you and God bless you all.
39