Remarks to employees at the Chrysler jeep plant in Toledo

Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents, Sept 2, 1996

The second thing I want to tell you is this: As hard-working people, I know that all of you support the idea that we ought to reform welfare in a way that enables poor folks to go to work and raise their kids just like you're trying to do. Now, we have reduced the welfare rolls by a million and a half in 4 years - and I'm proud of that - by moving people from welfare to work and requiring people who can work to go to work.

Now, I just signed a bill that changes structurally the way welfare works. It says at the national level we're going to guarantee poor families the health care that they need. We're going to guarantee poor children the nutrition they need. We're going to guarantee that there will be more money put into child care for working poor people, because they can't afford to pay it. But we're going to take what used to be the welfare cheek itself, the Federal portion and the State portion, we're going to let the State decide how to spend that money to try to spend it in a way that will move more people from welfare to work and put strict time limits on the limit of time that able-bodied people can stay on welfare.

Now, that's good, but if they're going to do that, if you're going to require people to go to work, they have to have work. They have to have a job to go to. So I want you, just the way you fought for the minimum wage, to say what we want for poor families in this country is what we want for ourselves. We want people to have the dignity of work and the success of raising their kids, and we are committed to real welfare reform. Yes, require people to work, but make sure you require them to do work because the work is there.

If we will continue to work together to create an America where everybody has a chance to live up to their God-given capacities and live out their dreams, this country's best days are still ahead. If you ever doubt that this country's days are still ahead, think about your story. Think about your two-millionth Jeep. Think about all the right-hand drive vehicles you're selling all over the world. Think about how far you've come. Think about the success stories that you represent. Any one of you could have done what Todd did last night, and we want every American to be able to tell that same story.

Thank you, and God bless you all.

NOTE: The President spoke at 10 a.m. in the courtyard. In his remarks, he referred to Dennis Pawley, executive vice president, manufacturing, and Rob Liberatore, vice president, Washington affairs, Chrysler Corp.; Lloyd Mahaffey, region 2B assistant director, United Auto Workers; Bruce Baumhower, president, and Ron Conrad, chairman, Jeep unit, UAW Local 12; and James J. Blanchard, former Governor of Michigan.