Bill Clinton

I commend the Commission's work and its contribution to the national dialog on immigration policy.

I urge the Congress to complete action on the remaining FY 1998 appropriations bills as quickly as possible.

I have said that I had no higher priority than getting our children the best education in the world in the 21st century.

Hillary and I extend best wishes that the coming year will be blessed with great abundance, true peace, and lasting joy.

General Shali is a great American with a great American story.

Over the following months, the Administration worked closely with the congressional leadership to enact that Agreement.

I think there are many things we can learn from those living in diverse communities.

The Bank evaluates foreign buyers not U.S. firms.

Shali has filled a résumé that would turn others olive drab with envy.

It is essential that we work together to enact the third element of the Agreement, the appropriations bills for fiscal year 1998.

We grew to love his trademark Benday dots and striking primary colors.

I hereby determine that it is in the national interest of the United States to draw down articles and services.

His service to our Nation, spanning 39 years, rises from the ranks of Army private to the highest military office in the land.

I am convinced that when future students look upon this time, they will rank John Shalikashvili as among the greatest Chairmen of the Joint Chiefs of Staff America ever had.

He had a talent for presenting everyday cultural symbols in ways that attracted our attention and gave these images a new meaning.

I am full of pride but also some regret.

He never expected their gratitude or applause, but he does want to sharpen their capabilities, improve their welfare, and lift their morale.

More than 30 years later, at the edge of the new millennium, we must pledge ourselves anew to meet this challenge.

As Hillary said, as we work up to the millennium, we will be observing it in many ways over the next 4 years that both honor our past and encourage our people to imagine the future.

Let us also rededicate ourselves to that future mission.

America celebrates October as National Arts and Humanities Month to recognize the unique role that the arts and humanities play in the lives of our families, our communities, and our country.

We are, we always have been, and we always will be a nation of creators and innovators.

The arts empower us to express ourselves and to understand and appreciate the expressions of others.

Great writers reveal a world we've never seen but instantly recognize as authentic.

Therefore, it falls to every one of us to make sure that there is a next generation of artists and scholars who have the opportunity to learn and to create.