Bill Clinton: “When the movie ``Urban Cowboy'' came out, Ramblin' Jack Elliot must have laughed, because even though he sings like he…”

“When the movie ``Urban Cowboy'' came out, Ramblin' Jack Elliot must have laughed, because even though he sings like he was raised on the range, he was actually born, as he puts it, ``on a 45,000- acre ranch in the middle of Flatbush.'' [Laughter] He left home at 15 to join the rodeo, where he learned to sing cowboy songs. But it was hearing his first Woody Guthrie record that transformed him into the man Sam Shepard called a ``wandering, true American minstrel.'' Since then, he's traveled the world with his guitar and recorded more than 40 albums, winning a Grammy and fans from Bob Dylan to Mick Jagger. In giving new life to our most valuable musical traditions, Ramblin' Jack has, himself, become an American treasure. Ladies and gentlemen, Ramblin' Jack Elliot. [The President and the First Lady presented the medal and congratulated Mr. Elliot.]”