Remarks to the Granoff Forum at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents, Feb 28, 2000

Now, there is a real opportunity here. And I think we ought to--my basic theory is this: We ought to give the same tax incentives to Americans to invest in poor areas in America we give them to invest in poor areas of Latin America or Africa or Asia. I think it's very important. And it's a real opportunity.

We've had great success in our enterprize zones, one of which is here, with our community development financial banks, which make loans to people who couldn't get them otherwise, one of which is in Philadelphia, with vigorous enforcement of the Community Reinvestment Act, which has been on the books for 22 years but over 95 percent of all the investments have occurred in the last 7 years, because it's good business to invest in honest people with skills and ideas and markets, who are in places that are underserved. And it will help the rest of us to keep this economy going.

Final thing I'd like to say is, we've got to continue to deal with the full implications of this revolution that we're in-one, to stay on the far frontiers of science and technology in every way. Sooner or later, even the most hardheaded rejectionist will have to acknowledge that the problem of climate change is real and that we had better find a way to grow our economy and improve our environment at the same time, including reducing the amount of greenhouse gases we put into the atmosphere. When we do that, we will realize that there is a $1 trillion potential market out there that will do wonders for the American economy if we are out there with the products and services necessary to save the planet.

The same thing will be true with all the incredible discoveries that will be made in biology in this century. So we-that's why I recommended a $3 billion increase in our 21st century research fund and why I hope and pray and believe that there will be a bipartisan support for it in Congress.

And the last point I want to make in this regard is that we have to close the so-called digital divide. When I mentioned to you that I bought those Christmas gifts from the Indian reservation through E-commerce, that's closing the digital divide. I mentioned to you that we're trying to hook up every classroom and library; that's closing the digital divide. We're going to try to train huge numbers of new teachers in all the schools in our country so their kids don't know more about the Internet than they do; that's closing the digital divide. We're going to establish 1,000 community centers so adults can have access to the Internet who don't have it now; that's closing the digital divide. We're doing to take a whole tour on that this spring.

But I believe that not only within the United States but beyond it, we could skip years and years it would otherwise take to bring poor areas up to standards and educational opportunities and economic opportunities if we maximize the use of technology. And again, I think it's a great economic opportunity. But it won't happen by accident. We'll have to make a deliberate decision to do it.