Statement by the President in Connection With the Message on Crime and Law Enforcement.

UNTIL our streets are safe for every woman and every child, we cannot call ourselves a truly civilized nation.

Until we root out drug addiction, we cannot call ourselves a truly healthy nation.

Until we can sleep safely in our homes and work peacefully in our shops, we cannot call ourselves a truly law-abiding nation.

Until we can safeguard all our children from the perils of delinquency, we cannot call ourselves a truly progressive nation.

The cost of crime to our economy is nearly $30 billion a year--more than all of us together spend for medical care. This must and can be stopped.

I call upon every American, as I have today called upon the Congress, to join in a national, unified campaign to reverse the rising tide of crime in American life.