ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1997, Roanoke Times
DATE: Monday, January 6, 1997 TAG: 9701060125
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: A-5 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: ST. THOMAS, U.S. VIRGIN ISLANDS
SOURCE: Associated Press
President Clinton vowed Saturday to step up federal efforts to stop ``the epidemic of teen pregnancy'' and credited his policies for new evidence that teen birth rates are declining.
``Let me be clear: The teen pregnancy rate is still intolerably high in America,'' Clinton said in his weekly radio address, beamed from this Caribbean island. ``Too many children are still having children. So we must do more.''
In the Republican Party's radio response to the presidential talk, Sen. Paul Coverdell, R-Ga., described teen-age drug abuse as a national tragedy fueling a rise in violent juvenile crime.
He urged tougher measures to allow authorities to prosecute juvenile offenders as adults, greater efforts to educate youth about the dangers of drug use, more parental supervision and legislation on schools.
``Upon its return, Congress should enact legislation that will allow students who attend a failed or dangerous school an opportunity to attend another school - public, private or religious,'' he said. ``Government bureaucrats should not force children into bad schools.''
Though the president's vacation on St. Thomas has been a mixture of fun and official business, he and his wife, Hillary Rodham Clinton, have kept the emphasis mostly on rest and relaxation.
The president and Hillary Clinton are due to return to Washington today.
In his radio address, which he taped Friday evening, Clinton said that in his second term, his administration will take these steps to try to further reduce teen pregnancies:
* Increase support for local programs such as the one at Atlanta's Emory University ``where young people teach their peers about abstinence and responsibility.''
*``Spread the word about these programs so that what works in one community can be tried quickly in more communities.''
* Forge stronger partnerships with businesses, religious leaders and community groups ``who are committed to dealing with this problem.''
Clinton also promised strong enforcement of last year's welfare overhaul to require teen-age mothers who receive welfare to live at home and stay in school.
``All of you,'' Clinton said, ``need to help us send the strongest possible message: It's wrong to be pregnant or father a child unless you are married and ready to take on the responsibilities of parenthood.''
Clinton said government statistics show the national teen-age birth rate dropped 8 percent between 1991 and 1995, and in the three years ended in 1994 the rate dropped by 10 percent or more in Alaska, Washington, Idaho, Utah, Montana, Wyoming, Wisconsin, Michigan, Vermont and Maine.
LENGTH: Medium: 57 linesby CNB