President Clinton spoke the following words when he presented the Medal to Eddy Arnold:

     "As a boy growing up on a Tennessee farm, Eddy Arnold learned to plow fields with
     teams of mules and to play country music on the guitar.  Fortunately for us, when it
     came time to pick a career, he made the same decision that a lot of us young
     southerners made -- he did not want to work that hard with the mules.  He chose the
     guitar, and country music has never been the same.

          In his career, he's made records that broke all records.  His Bouquet of Roses stayed
     on the charts longer than any country song in history, even down to today.  And he's
     had more hits than any other country artist.  He brought music into millions of homes
     across America.  I told him this morning when I met him, I could still remember when I
     was a very young boy listening to him sing on the radio before my family even had a
     television.

          He has earned the title, The Ambassador of Country Music, and we are honored to
     honor him today,  Mr. Eddy Arnold."

(I am disappointed that President Clinton did not mention the fact that Eddy Arnold is the only singer
     who has charted on the Billboard Charts for seven consecutive decades.  Bill Comer)