Bill Clinton: “Thank you very much. I've enjoyed the program. [Laughter] You know, it's pretty nice to go to a lunch like this when…”

“Thank you very much. I've enjoyed the program. [Laughter] You know, it's pretty nice to go to a lunch like this when you're the only one that's not running for anything. Just have a good time. [Laughter] I watched Mike do his thing and Carl do his thing. Joyce and I were over there handicapping the whole deal. It was great. [Laughter] Watched Hillary do her thing. It was great. But let me say to all of you, I want to begin with a series of genuine thank-you's. I thank the people of New York for being so good to me and Al Gore, in two elections and a lot of times in between. I thank you for being so welcoming and open with Hillary. I thank you for setting so many good examples. I want to thank Mike Bragman for his leadership. And I want to thank Carl McCall for his leadership. You know, the comptroller's lunch--I read up on this lunch. [Laughter] And the first thing I read in my notes was, they're not going to give you any food. [Laughter] But anyway, among other things I learned that this luncheon was started by Arthur Levitt, Sr., when he was comptroller of New York. His son is now, by my appointment, the head of the Securities and Exchange Commission and doing a very fine job. I say that because Carl McCall is in that tradition of people who have been trusted to manage the collective wealth of the people of New York. That's what the comptroller does. And in a way, we're here at the State Fair, and it's sort of like being the State's chief farmer.…”