Clinton/Gore '96





PRESS RELEASE
October, 11 1996

STATE ATTORNEYS GENERAL ENDORSE PRESIDENT CLINTON AND HAIL HIS EFFORTS TO COMBAT DOMESTIC VIOLENCE

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Applauding President Clinton’s "fight to make America safer for our families and children," 23 state Attorneys General endorsed the reelection of President Bill Clinton and Vice President Al Gore. The Attorneys General explained that they "wanted everybody to know about President Clinton’s unprecedented efforts to end domestic violence."

The endorsement of the Attorneys General comes during Domestic Violence Awareness Month, established by the President, which seeks to heighten the country’s awareness of a national problem. President Clinton is the first president in history to make combating domestic violence a priority: signing the Violence Against Women Act, creating the Violence Against Women Office, establishing a national 24-hour hotline (1-800-799-SAFE) for victims of domestic violence, and increasing funding for shelters, counseling, and other efforts. Across the country, communities and neighborhoods today are recognizing the Administration’s accomplishments on domestic violence, and the partnership that now exists between the local, state, and national levels to protect women, children, and the elderly.

The Attorneys General hailed the President’s actions to bolster the ability of states to protect women and their families.

Frankie Sue Del Papa, Attorney General of Nevada, explained that the "Violence Against Women Act, included in the President’s Crime Bill, has already provided $126 million to states to strengthen local law enforcement, prosecution, and victims’ services. No other President has done more to help communities protect their families."

James Doyle, Attorney General of Wisconsin, added that President Clinton has fought to take guns off of our streets. He explained that the "Brady Bill, which President Clinton fought for and signed, has already prevented more than 60,000 felons, fugitives, and stalkers from buying handguns. The President also fought for the Brady Bill’s expansion, so that it now prohibits those convicted of any offense involving domestic violence -- felony or misdemeanor -- from owning or possessing a firearm."

While recognizing President Clinton’s accomplishments, many of the Attorneys General criticized Bob Dole’s lack of support.

Scott Harshbarger, Attorney General of Massachusetts, pointed out that "while President Clinton fought for the Violence Against Women Act, created a national 24-hour crisis hotline and the Violence Against Women Office in the Department of Justice, and proposed the toughest child support enforcement measures ever, Bob Dole opposed President Clinton’s efforts. Bob Dole voted against the President’s Crime Bill, including $1.6 billion in funding for the Violence Against Women Act, and tried to cut the Violence Against Women Act funding by almost 43 percent."

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ATTORNEYS GENERAL THAT ENDORSED THE PRESIDENT
J. Joseph Curran, Jr., Maryland Tom Miller, Iowa Frankie Sue Del Papa, Nevada Mike Moore, Mississippi James Doyle, Wisconsin Dan Morales, Texas Michael Easley, North Carolina Jay Nixon, Missouri Drew Edmondson, Oklahoma Tom Udall, New Mexico Christine Gregoire, Washington



Paid for by Clinton/Gore ’96 General Election Committee, Inc.

Richard Blumenthal, Connecticut Scott Harshbarger, Massachusetts Winston Bryant, Arkansas Heidi Heitkamp, North Dakota Charles Burson, Tennessee Hubert Humphrey III, Minnesota Bob Butterworth, Florida Richard Ieyoub, Louisiana Pamela Carter, Indiana Frank Kelley, Michigan Ben Chandler III, Kentucky Ted Kulongoski, Oregon