Clinton:
Keep eyes
on world
KEARNEY from page t
degree.
Johanns, who in August proudly
announced on the floor of the
Republican National Convention that
Nebraska was the only state Clinton
had not visited as president, wel
comed Clinton to Nebraska on Friday.
*1 can only assume this may be one
of your last visits to a state as presi
dent,” he said. ”In recognition of this,
we are proud to provide you with
some of your last memories - your
best memories - as 42nd President of
the United States.”
Mendez, president of die Hispanic
student organization at UNK, then
introduced Clinton. She praised him
for promoting diversity, expanding
free trade, intervening to stop violence
■m Bosnia and Kosovo and seeking
peace m the Middle East
“As the first post-Cold War presi
dent, he has had no obvious signposts
for foreign policy,” she said. “But he
has unquestionably met these chal
lenges.”
When Clinton took die podium, he
said: “Didn't Casey do a good job? She
was great”
Before beginning his foreign poli
cy remarks, Clinton talked about the
50th state he had visited as president, a
state which voted overwhelmingly for
his Republican opposition in both
1992 and 1996.
“When I came in here and I looked
at this crowd, one of my staff members
joked that we had found a building in
Nebraska that would hold every single
Democrat - and a few charitable
Republicans, to boot,” he said to
laughter. “Let me say, I’m glad that I
finally made it to Nebraska. There
were a lot of signs outside that said,
you saved the best until last
“And I saw the patriotism and the
spirit of the people, all the children
holding the American flags. It was
very, very moving coming in.”
Clinton told a story about a move
ment in the 1870s to relocate die capi
tal from Washington to a more central
location. A Kearney publisher started
a national campaign to make Kearney
the new U.S. capital, promising to
rename it New Washington, use the
real estate profits to pay off the nation
al debt and convert the government
buildings in Washington into asylums.
“Well, history took a different
course, except for that part about
turning those buildings into asylums,’*
Clinton said. “I have occupied one for
the last eight years.
“And we are finally paying off the
national debt, which is good,” he said.
“But since half of Washington is in
Kearney today, maybe we should
think again about moving the capital. 1
rather Like it here.”
Clinton urged Americans to care
deeply about foreign affairs because,
as the world grows more interdepen
dent, events around the world will
affect everyone’s lives. No longer is
there a “clear, bright line dividing
America’s domestic concerns and
America’s foreign policy concerns,” he
said.
He touted the country’s successes,
including the longest economic
expansion in history, the lowest
unemployment in 30 years, the lowest
crime rate in 27 years and three years
of budget surpluses and debt reduc
tion. As a military and economic
power, the United States is unrivaled,
he said.
"But die really important question
is, what do we intend to make of this
moment?" Clinton asked. “Will we be
grateful, but basically complacent,
being the political equivalent of couch
potatoes? Will we assume that in this
era of the Internet, peace and prosper
ity will just spread? That all we have to
do is kind of sit back, hook the world
up to AOL and wait for people to beat
their swords into shares on the NAS
DAQ?”
Instead, Clinton said, the country
must recognize the world’s changes
and steer the “train of globalization” to
its proper destination.
“If we want America to stay on the
David Gasen/DN
Two counter-snipers watch for unusual activity from the rooftop of a hangar during President
Chiton's stop at Offutt Air Force Base in Bellevue on Friday. Every person who came to see Clinton
had to walk through a metal detector or be checked by the Secret Service.
7f we want America to stay on the right track, if we
want other people to be on that track and have the
chance to enjoy peace and prosperity, we have no choice
but to try to lead the train”
President Bill Clinton
right track, if we want other people to
be on that track and have the chance
to enjoy peace and prosperity, we have
no choice but to try to lead die train,”
he said.
As he recounted what he consid
ered his presidency's foreign policy
successes, Clinton outlined five broad
principles that, he said, should guide
U.S. foreign policy after he leaves
office on Jan. 20.
First, he said, the United States
must maintain its alliances and adapt
diem to face future challenges.
NATO, created to counter the
expansion of Soviet communism in
Europe, now must address crises like
the ethnic warfare it faced in the for
mer Yugoslavia.
In Asia, the United States should
maintain its military presence, pre
serve its alliance with Japan, work to
prevent war between China and
Taiwan, monitor North Korea’s devel
opment of weapons of mass destruc
tion and continue to support the dem
ocratic South Korea, Clinton said.
In addition, the United States
should build strong relationships with
countries in Latin America, South Asia
and Africa.
“America cannot lead if we walk
away from our friends and our neigh
bors,” he said.
Second, the United States should
try to build strong relationships with
former Cold War adversaries Russia
and China, Clinton said.
In Russia, he said, the United
States should support the country's
move toward democracy and the rule
of law, while expressing its objection
when it disagrees with Russian policy,
as in its war in Chechnya.
With China, the United States
should continue to pursue free trade
because it will promote openness,
improving freedom’s chance to flour
ish there, he said.
Third, the United States must not
ignore local conflicts that have raged
in places like the Balkans, Cyprus,
India and Pakistan and Ethiopia and
Eritrea, Clinton said. The United
States must continue to press for
peace in Northern Ireland and the
Middle East, he said.
"Local conflicts can become
worldwide headaches if they're
allowed to fester,” Clinton said.
"Therefore, whenever possible, we
should stop them before they get out
of hand.”
Fourth, Clinton said, the world’s
openness has raised new national
security concerns, including terror
ism, the spread of weapons of mass
destruction and the threat of cyberter
rorism. He congratulated the
University of Nebraska for its new
information assurance center.
The United States also must
respond to concerns such as global
warming, the spread of AIDS and the
need for more efficient fuels, includ
ing ethanol and biomass fuels.
Advances in ethanol production even
tually could allow cars to get 500 miles
to the gallon, he said.
“If I were - no offense, Mr.
President, if I were the President of the
University of Nebraska, whatever I
was spending on that, I’d double it,”
Clinton said.
Fifth, Clinton called for further
expansion of free trade, but with “a
more human face.”
He said trade agreements such as
the North American Free Trade
Agreement and the creation of the
World Trade Organization had helped
fuel the strong U.S. economy. More
than 25 percent of the U.S. economy’s
growth has resulted from trade, he
said.
But as the United States pursues
free trade, it should use foreign aid to
address worldwide challenges such as
education, health care, drug traffick
ing, the spread of AIDS and economic
development Urging the country not
to "squander the best moment in our
history on small-mindedness,”
Clinton urged an active U.S. role in the
world that, he said, has the momen
tum of history on its side.
"We can no longer separate
America’s fate from the world any
more than you could separate
Nebraska’s fate from America’s, or
Kearney’s fate from Nebraska’s,” he
said. "So that’s what I came here to say.
"I hope that in the years ahead the
heartland of America will say, America
chooses to be a part of the world, with
a clear head and a strong heart; to
share the risks and the opportunities
of the world; to work with others until
ultimately there is a global communi
ty of free nations, working with us, for
peace and security, where everybody
counts and everybody has got a
chance.
“If we will do that, America’s best
days, and the world’s finest hours, lie
ahead.”
UNK students said that, regardless
of what they thought of Clinton per
sonally, they enjoyed his visit.
Ryan Palmer, a junior biology
major at UNK, said he appreciated
Clinton’s call for Nebraskans to be
interested in foreign policy.
“Love him or hate him, just seeing
the spectacle of a presidential visit is
what it’s all about,” he said. “He’s a very
gifted speaker. Love him or hate him,
you have to respect him.”
Kenda Olson, a freshman teaching
major at UNK, said she enjoyed listen
ing to the substance of Clinton’s
speech rather than focusing on the
scandals that have surrounded his
administration.
“It was good to come and see
everything that comes along with see
ing the president,” she said. “He did a
very good job and didn't let in all the
slander that people have said about
him.”
James Scott, a UNK political sci
ence professor and author of books
about Ronald Reagan’s foreign policy
and foreign policy in the post-Cold
War world, said Clinton’s speech
would guide historians in studying
Clinton's foreign policy record and
ideas.
“It was a nice call to action and a
reminder of America's responsibility
in the world,” he said. “What he’s done
in the speech is lay out the accom
plishments of the last eight years. We
have seen some real progress.”
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Bush challenges
recount decision
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
On the eve of historic U.S. Supreme
Court arguments, A1 Gore’s attorney said
Sunday the vice president urgently needs a
legal victory to recount Florida’s votes or
“that’s the end of the road” for his dogged
drive to the presidency.
A chorus of anxious Democrats agreed.
George W. Bush’s lawyers asked the high
court to overturn a Florida Supreme Court
recount plan, saying it was “virtually guar
anteed to incite controversy, suspicion and
lack of confidence" in the first American
presidential election of the 21st century. In
briefs filed late Sunday, Democrat attorneys
previewed their case for the 90-minute
court session that could bring a close to the
33-day election drama.
“Voters have important rights to have
their ballots counted, and the magnitude of
those rights dwarfs” any legal arguments
raised by Bush, the vice president’s brief
read.
As deeply divided as the country, the
high court justices voted 5-4 on Saturday to
temporarily halt manual recounts in Florida
and consider the Bush v. Gore case.
More than 50 people lined up outside
the court at midday Sunday, pitching tents
and spreading sleeping bags across bone
chilling cement in hopes of snaring a court
room seat
Gore, who trails Bush by less than 200
votes out of 6 million cast wants to recount
about 45,000 disputed ballots throughout
die state. Bush argues there is no fair way to
count the ballots that didn't register votes in
a machine count and the legislative branch
of government - not the courts - should
determine the nation’s 43rd president
Neither side committed to giving up if
the Supreme Court issues an adverse deci
sion, but even Gore’s advisers conceded he
has fewer options than Bush beyond the
high court
“If no votes are counted, then I think
that’s the end of the road," said David Boies,
who will argue the case for Gore. But the
lawyer stopped short of saying his client
would bow out if the Supreme Court ruled
against him, suggesting Gore might await
appeals of failed Democrat lawsuits seeking
to throw out up to 25,000 Florida absentee
ballots.
“I’m not going to say what’s going to
7 believe that probably is the
last word, and it’s the last
chance to have this issue not
go to the United States
Congress
Robert Torricelli
New Jersey Democratic senator
happen,” die lawyer said.
House Minority Leader Richard
Gephardt, a steadfast Gore supporter since
Election Day, told ABC, “I believe he will”
concede if the court rules against him-and
Bush should do the same if the tables are
turned.
A spokeswoman later said the Missouri
lawmaker would defer to Gore's judgment if
the vice president thought he had other
legal options.
“I believe that probably is die last word,
and it’s the last chance to have this issue not
go to the United States Congress,” Sen.
Robert'Ibrricelli, D-N.J. said of the court
The GOP-led Florida Legislature, under
guidance from the Bush camp, is preparing
to appoint its own slate of Bush electors -
raising die possibility of two separate slates
for a divided Congress to sort out
Gore's own advisers said privately the
pressure to concede would be unbearable if
die Democrat lost the Supreme Court fight
They discussed worst-case scenarios in
small groups over the weekend, including
the possibility that Gore would suspend his
campaign with a high-minded speech that
stopped just short of a concession.
That would leave his options open in
the unlikely event that Democrats prevail in
the absentee ballot cases or the Supreme
Court ruling is viewed as partisan and polit
ical pressure builds against Bush, senior
advisers said. They stressed that no recom
mendations have been made to Gore, a sen
ator’s son who first ran for president in 1988.
They said their boss appeared to be confi
dent of victory in the high court
The Supreme Court is pressing against
deadlines set in the U.S. Constitution. States
must assign electors Itiesday, and those
individuals meet Dec. 18 as the Electoral
College to name the nation’s next president
Constitutional glitch
delays Israeli election
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
JERUSALEM - Hours after Prime
Minister Ehud Barak resigned on Sunday
to run for re-election, his predecessor,
Benjamin Netanyahu, declared his own
candidacy and called on parliament to
pass legislation to allow him to run.
Barak’s resignation plunged Israel
into a sudden election campaign, and the
hard-line Netanyahu quicldy took up the
challenge - even though it might not be
technically possible for him to run.
“I present my candidacy today for
prime minister and head of the Likud
party," Netanyahu said a news confer
ence.
In calling special elections to be held
in February, Barak, who lags far behind
Netanyahu in opinion polls, took advan
tage of a law that prevents the former
prime minister from running because he
is not a member of or candidate for par
liament.
Barak’s resignation made possible a
special election for the prime minister
ship only. This replaces an earlier plan,
which called for general elections that
were expected next spring and would
have enabled Netanyahu to run concur
rently for parliament and prime minister.
Netanyahu denounced Barak for
what he called “the most cynical trick in
the history of the nation.”
He appealed directly to members of
parliament, saying, “Allow the people to
choose a new leadership to replace those
who have run the situation down.”
Barak will remain in office until the
election and was formally re-nominated
as the Labor Party candidate only hours
after he resigned.Still, he faces a difficult
battle to win re-election. Ongoing vio
lence with the Palestinians, which has
claimed more than 300 lives, is pushing
the Israeli public toward right-wing par
ties such as Likud.
It’s not clear, however, who that
party’s candidate will be.
Current Likud leader Ariel Sharon is
running even with Barak in the polls,
while Netanyahu, the former party chief,
holds a double-digit lead over Barak that
has expanded as the violence drags on.
A cold Offutt crowd
warms to the president
OMAHA from page 1
said.
Much of the United States’ foreign
involvement is carried out by its armed
forces, a fact that was not lost on the visit
ing commander in chief.
With his visit to Offutt, Clinton said he
had visited more military installations
than any other president.
He thanked the ranks of Offutt per
sonnel, including members of the
“Fightin’ 55th” reconnaissance wing
headquartered at Offutt, as well as those
associated with the U.S. Strategic
Command, the nuclear command center
also headquarters at the Bellevue base.
Clinton's praise didn’t fall on deaf ears
- many of those in attendance were uni
formed military personnel, who clapped
enthusiastically.
The president encouraged all
Americans to embrace the country’s eco
nomic and social progress, and to make
sure that every person has a chance to
work to better himself and his communi
ty
The country’s “true greatness” lies in
its ordinary citizens, Clinton said, not in
its leaders.
U.S. Sen. Bob Kerrey, who traveled
with Clinton all day, said Nebraskans set
aside any partisan differences they had
with the president to show respect for the
office.
Despite the high schoolers’ charge
that Clinton would have rather been any
where than the Midlands on Friday,
Clinton seemed sincere in his fondness
for a state he’d avoided for nearly eight
years.
“I may have been late, but I was sure
glad when I got here,” Clinton said.
Sorbello, the Omaha Democrat, said
Clinton’s reception was “wonderful,” but
said it wouldn't have been possible had
Democrats not stuck together.
At last, she said, it was their time to
bask in the sun - albeit a cold sun.
“We haven’t had it easy,” she said.
