Bill Clinton: “Good morning. Before I leave for Sarajevo, I'd like to say just a word about our country's continuing prosperity and…”

“Good morning. Before I leave for Sarajevo, I'd like to say just a word about our country's continuing prosperity and what we have to do to keep it going. It was 6 years ago this summer that America made a visionary decision to set a new course for our economy; to abandon the large deficits and high unemployment of the previous 12 years; and to pursue an economic strategy of fiscal discipline, investing in our people, and expanding trade in American goods and services abroad. The strategy is working and has lifted our Nation to an unprecedented level of prosperity. Now we have nearly 19 million new jobs, the lowest unemployment rate in 29 years, the highest homeownership ever. From a $290 billion deficit in 1993, we're moving toward a record high surplus of $99 billion in 1999. The Senate is about to make a pivotal choice--whether to move forward with a sound strategy that led us to this point, or to return to the reckless policies that threw our Nation into stagnation and economic decline. Congress must decide whether to invest our surplus, to honor our obligations to the future--saving Social Security and Medicare, continuing to invest in education, and paying down the debt--or to squander the surplus on a shortsighted, irresponsible, overlarge tax plan. The right choice for me is clear, putting first things first. First, we must maintain our strategy of fiscal discipline and seize this moment to address the large, long-term challenges of the Nation.…”