Bill Clinton 1996 On The Issues
Preventing Teen
Pregnancy
"Ultimately, what is needed to stop teen pregnancy is
a revolution of the heart. We must all work to instill in every young man and
woman a sense of personal responsibility. Having a child is the greatest
responsibility any person can assume. It is not the right choice for a teen to
make.”
—President Bill Clinton
President Clinton is fighting to
give more of our young people the opportunity to make the most of their
lives. To address the serious problem of teen
pregnancy, the Clinton Administration is taking actions that recognize the
fundamental obligation of all Americans to exercise personal responsibility,
while expanding opportunities for at-risk young people to make positive life
choices. Government alone cannot solve this complex problem. President Clinton
is challenging our business and community leaders to join together to take
action that will protect our children and strengthen our families.
The President has shown leadership in combating teen pregnancy by:
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Challenging leaders across the nation to come together and
help young people secure a better future for themselves. In response,
the private, not-for-profit National Campaign to Prevent Teen
Pregnancy has been formed. |
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Supporting communities in offering young people positive
alternatives to early sexual behavior and parenting by:
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Improving schooling for disadvantaged students,
coordinating health and social services, and providing
school-to-work opportunities to increase economic
self-sufficiency. |
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Creating the Safe Futures Program (1995) to
provide nearly $8 million per year to six jurisdictions for
delinquency prevention and intervention programs for at-risk
and delinquent youth. |
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Implementing the Safe and Drug-Free Schools Act to
help local school districts in high-need areas to coordinate
violence- and drug-prevention
programs. | |
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Ending welfare as we know it by signing the Personal
Responsibility and Work Opportunity Act. This bill includes
time-limits and work requirements, gives states incentives to create
jobs for welfare recipients, increases funding for child care,
strengthens child support enforcement, and maintains the federal
guarantee of nutrition programs and Medicaid coverage for pregnant
women, children, and the disabled. Even before signing national
welfare reform, the Clinton Administration granted waivers to 43
states to reform welfare on their own -- making work and
responsibility a way of life for 75 percent of all welfare
recipients.
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Collected a record $11 billion in child support in 1995
from non-custodial parents (a 40% increase since 1992) by aggressively
enforcing child support laws. |
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Taken executive action (May 1996) to require teenage
mothers to stay in school and to sign personal responsibility
contracts or lose their welfare benefits. |
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Appointing Dr. Henry Foster (founder of the “I Have A
Future” teen pregnancy prevention program) to serve as Senior Advisor
to the President on teen pregnancy and related youth issues. Dr.
Foster will work with community organizations across the country to
give young people the tools they need to build responsible and
productive lives. |
Building on Our Progress
President Clinton will continue to support policies that promote
responsible behavior on the part of our young people, and he will work to
provide them with greater opportunities by:
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Fighting for his $30 million teen pregnancy prevention
initiative included in his fiscal-year 1997 budget. These funds will
be used to evaluate and implement promising prevention strategies in
communities that have demonstrated a commitment to community problem
solving. |
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Continuing to urge leaders from all sectors of society to
marshal their resources on behalf of America’s youth. The
Administration will work in partnership with the newly formed National
Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy. |
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Continuing to expand educational and economic
opportunities, giving our young people a future they can
say “yes” to and the ability to make wise personal decisions
about their lives. |
Source: Bill Clinton for President 1996 Web Site |
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