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Both amendments were rejected, partly because the Landmine Conference was determined to pass the strongest possible treaty in the wake of the death of its most famous champion, Princess Diana, and partly because some people at the conference just wanted to embarrass the United States or bully us into signing the treaty as it wasI hated not to be part of the international agreement because it undermined our leverage in trying to stop the manufacture and use of more land mines, some of which could be bought for as little as three dollars each, but I couldnt put the safety of our troops or the people of South Korea at risk
On September 18, Hillary and I took Chelsea to StanfordWe wanted her new life to be as normal as possible and had worked with the Secret Service to make sure she would be assigned young agents who would dress informally and be as unobtrusive as they could beStanford had agreed to bar media access to her on campusWe enjoyed the welcoming ceremonies and visits with the other parents, after which we took Chelsea to her dorm room and helped her move inChelsea was happy and excited; Hillary and I were a little sad and anxiousHillary tried to deal with it by scurrying around and helping Chelsea organize things, even lining her drawers with Contac paperI had carried her luggage up the stairs to her room, then fixed her bunk bedAfter that, I just stared out the window, as her mother cartier pasha crono got on Chelseas nerves with all the fixing upWhen the student speaker at the convocation, Blake Harris, had said to all the parents that our children would miss us in about a month and for about fifteen minutes, we all laughedI hoped it was true, but we sure would miss herWhen it was time to go, Hillary had pulled herself together and was readyNot me; I wanted to stay for dinner
On the last day of September, I attended the retirement ceremony of General John Shalikashvili and gave him the Presidential Medal of FreedomHe had been a superb chairman of the Joint Chiefs, supporting the expansion of NATO, the creation of the Partnership for Peace, and the deployment of our troops in more than forty operations, including Bosnia, Haiti, Iraq, Rwanda, and the Taiwan StraitI had really enjoyed working with himHe was intelligent, straight-talking, and completely committed to the welfare of our men and women in uniformAs his replacement I named General Hugh Shelton, who had so impressed me with his handling of the Haiti operation
The early fall was largely devoted to foreign affairs, as I took my first trip to South AmericaI traveled to Venezuela, Brazil, and Argentina to express the importance of Latin America to Americas future and to keep pushing the idea of a free trade area covering all the AmericasVenezuela was our number one oil supplier and had always made more petroleum available to the United knockoff gucci handbags States when we needed it, from World War II to the Gulf WarMy visit was brief and uncomplicated; its highlight was a speech to the people of Caracas at the tomb of Simn Bolvar
Brazil was a different storyThere had long been tensions between our two countries; many Brazilians had long resented the United StatesBrazil was the leader of the Mercosur trading bloc, which also included Argentina, Paraguay, and Uruguay, and which had a larger volume of trade with Europe than with the United StatesOn the other hand, the Brazilian president, Henrique Cardoso, was a modern, effective leader who wanted a good relationship with the United States and who understood that a stronger partnership with us would help him to modernize his countrys economy, reduce its chronic poverty, and increase its influence in the world
I had been fascinated by Brazil since the great jazz saxophonist Stan Getz popularized its music in America in the 1960s, and ever since then I had wanted to see its cities and beautiful landscapesI also respected and liked CardosoHe had already been to Washington on a state visit, and I thought he was one of the most impressive leaders I had metI wanted to affirm our mutual dedication to a closer economic partnership and to support his policies, especially those to sustain Brazils vast rain forest, which had been severely reduced by overclearing, and to improve educationCardoso had initiated an chanel handbag knockoffs intriguing program called bolsa escola, which made monthly cash payments to poor Brazilians if their children attended school at least 85 percent of the time
There was an interesting moment in our press conference, which, besides several questions on American-Brazilian relations and climate change, included four from the American press on the ongoing controversy back home over the financing of the 96 campaignA reporter asked if it embarrassed me or the country to have such questions asked on a foreign tripI replied, Thats a decision for youYou have to decide what questions youre going to askI cant be embarrassed about how you decide to do your job
After a visit to a school in a poor neighborhood in Rio de Janeiro with Brazils soccer legend Pel, Hillary and I went to Braslia for a state dinner at the presidential residence, where Henrique and Ruth Cardoso gave us a taste of the Brazilian music I had loved for more than thirty years, a womens percussion ensemble playing pulsating rhythms on different-sized metal plates tied to their bodies, and a fabulous singer from Bahia, Virginia Rodrigues
Argentinas President Carlos Menem had been a strong ally of the United States, supporting America in the Gulf War and in Haiti and adopting a strong free-market economic policyHe hosted a barbeque at the Rural Center in Buenos Aires that included tango lessons for Hillary and me and a demonstration of fake rolex watches wholesale Argentine horsemanship: a man riding around the rodeo arena standing atop two broad-shouldered stallions
President Menem also took us to Bariloche, a beautiful resort town in Patagonia, to discuss global warming and what I hoped would be our common response to the problemThe international conference on climate change was coming up in December in Kyoto, JapanI strongly favored setting aggressive targets for the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions for both developed and developing nations, but I wanted to achieve the targets not through regulations and taxes but through market incentives to promote energy conservation and the use of clean energy technologyBariloche was a perfect site to highlight the importance of the environmentJust across the cold, clear lake from the Llao Llao Hotel where we stayed, Hillary and I walked through the magical Arrayanes forest, with its barkless myrtle treesThe trees were stained orange by tannic acid and were cool to the touchTheir survival resulted from perfect soil, clean water, clean air, and a moderate climateThe right action against climate change would preserve the fragile, unique trees and the stability of much of the rest of our planet
On October 26, back in Washington, Capricia Marshall, Kelly Craighead, and the rest of Hillarys staff put together a big fiftieth birthday celebration for her under a tent on the South LawnChelsea came home to surprise rolex oyster watch he
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