THE PRESIDENT: Please, please, have a seat. Thank you. Thank you so much. Good evening. And thank you, President Clinton, for the extraordinary brief introduction which (laughter) — during the U.N. General Assembly week does not happen that often. (Laughter.) I want to acknowledge Bob Harrison and the outstanding work that he’s doing as CEO of CGI -- (applause) -- as well as Ed Hughes, the deputy director of CGI, for their excellent work. Some of you are aware that last week President Clinton and I were here in New York together, we were having lunch in a small Italian restaurant. And we talked about the economy, we talked about health care, we talked about pressing global challenges. And then he said to me, "Would you pass the Parmesan?" (Laughter.) And then he said to me, "Would you speak to our annual meeting?" Now, I think everyone knows what it's like when Bill Clinton asks you to make a commitment. (Laughter.) He looks you in the eye; he feels your pain. (Laughter.) He makes you feel like you're the only person in the room. What could I say? I was vulnerable just as all of you have been vulnerable to his charms. (Applause.) So I am happy to be here and honored by the invitation. And I've always appreciated President Clinton's valuable advice and the ideas he's offered my administration. I do understand that the President has been having trouble getting a hold of my Secretary of State lately. (Laughter.) But I hope he doesn't mind, because Hillary Clinton is doing an outstanding job for this nation and we are so proud of her. (Applause.) I also want to just very briefly take this opportunity to thank President Clinton for his service. In his eight years in office, he helped swing open the doors of opportunity and prosperity to millions of Americans. And as the first U.S. President to face the full force of globalization, he worked to share that prosperity with people around the world -- from promoting trade to expanding education to forging a historic...
THE PRESIDENT: Please, please, have a seat. Thank you. Thank you so much. Good evening. And thank y...
