THE WHITE HOUSE

                     Office of the Press Secretary
                       (Burgdorf Junction, Idaho)
________________________________________________________________________
For Immediate Release                                     August 8, 2000

STATEMENT BY THE PRESIDENT

Today's announcement that productivity rose at a 5.3 percent annual rate last quarter is a remarkable confirmation of the continued strength and vitality of the U.S. economy. Over the past three years, productivity has grown 3.3 percent annually -- more than twice the growth rate of the previous two decades. Rising productivity has been the key to the combination of strong growth, rising wages, and low core inflation underlying our record economic expansion. Today's news is further evidence that our commitment to fiscal discipline, opening markets, and investing in people has helped lead to an unprecedented era of business investment, innovation and technological advance that is providing new opportunities for millions of Americans.

This continuing productivity growth underscores the importance of maintaining the fiscal discipline that has been so crucial to this investment-led economic expansion. The majority in Congress continues to pursue a series of misguided tax breaks which, taken together, would bring America back to the era of deficits and knock us off the path of fiscal discipline that has led to this prosperity. Their approach is wrong for America. Let's work together to ensure that our strong economy will continue to grow.

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