Bill Clinton: “Thank you very much. Cathy, it may be your birthday, but I would say that everybody here feels that you have given us a…”

“Thank you very much. Cathy, it may be your birthday, but I would say that everybody here feels that you have given us a great gift today by reminding us about what this is all about. And we wish you and your fine children well. And I don't think being in the band will hurt them a bit. I'm glad you're going to do that. [Laughter] I want to thank the members of our administration who are here: Secretary Reich, Small Business Administrator Phil Lader, and others. I want to thank all the Members of Congress who are here, especially Senator Kennedy who, himself, probably broke the wage and hour laws by working so hard to pass this bill. If we'd been paying him by the hour, we'd be underpaying him in the last year. Thank you very much. There are a lot of people who worked hard on this bill who aren't here: Senator Daschle, Congressman Gephardt, Congressman Bonior, Congressman Clay in particular did. I want to join with others and thank the countless labor unions who have championed this bill, led by the truly tireless John Sweeney. I'd like to remind the American people of something, because sometimes our unions are criticized for looking out for their members too much. There are very few unions in America that have minimum wage workers. Most of these unions did this because they thought it was the right thing to do. They spent their time and their money and their energy trying to help other people who do not belong to their organizations, and I thank you for that.…”