For Immediate Release Office of the
Press Secretary September 25, 2002
White House Press Briefing James S. Brady
Press Briefing Room
Audio
3:40 P.M. EDT
MR. FLEISCHER: Good afternoon. I'd like to give you a report on the President's day, and then I have
an opening statement I'd like to make about homeland security. The
President this morning spoke with President Kim Dae Jung of South
Korea. The President welcomed the September 18 North-South
groundbreaking ceremony for construction of two railroad lines
across the DMZ. The two leaders agreed that real progress with the
North depends on full resolution of the security issues on the
Korean Peninsula, including the North possession and pursuit of
weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missiles.
The President told President Kim that the United States would be
sending an envoy to the North at an early date. President Kim
expressed full support for the President's U.N. speech and the
U.S.-led effort to establish necessary resolutions on Iraq in the
U.N. Security Council.
Following the President's early morning call to President Kim,
the President received his briefings from the CIA and the FBI. And
then the President had a meeting with the President of Colombia.
During the meeting the President informed President Uribe that he
will be providing the enhanced benefits of the Andean Trade
Preferences Act to Colombia, as well as to Bolivia and to Peru. This
action will further promote U.S. commercial relations with these
nations.
The administration is working with the government of Ecuador in
order to be able to recommend Ecuador for designation in the near
future. The administration is working closely with the government of
Ecuador in order to be able to recommend Ecuador for designation, as
I said.
President Bush reaffirmed the administration's strong commitment
to helping Colombia meet its financial needs, underscoring that we
are working with the IMF, the World Bank, and the InterAmerican
Development Bank to assure an increased flow of financial and
developmental assistance.
And then the President had a variety of meetings with members of
Congress today to help broker an agreement on the energy legislation
that is in conference on the Hill. The President has urged the
conferees to continue to work together so that we can make America
more energy-independent and have more conservation programs.
And then, finally, the President will, this evening, speak to the
National Republican Senatorial Committee Annual dinner.
On the question of homeland security, this
is an issue that the President would very much like for the Congress
to be able to complete. He believes it is vital for the protection
of our nation to have a homeland security bill put in place. And he
wants to work with Democrats and Republicans alike to make this
happen.
There is an amendment that has been offered that is known as the
Nelson-Breaux-Chafee amendment, that in the President's judgment,
does not match the reality of the amendment's language. It's been
described as a compromise; it is not. It is exactly what the special
interests are trying to persuade, or tried to persuade the House of
Representatives to pass in July, an effort which was defeated in the
House on a bipartisan vote.
Under this amendment, the President would have less national
security authority in the Department of Homeland Security than he
has in every other department or agency of the federal government
today. For as long as there have been unions in the federal
government, the President has had the authority to exclude certain
offices from collective bargaining for reasons of national security.
Every President since John Kennedy has exercised the authority with
discretion and with care.
A few government unions have been trying to roll back this
longstanding presidential authority, using the homeland bill as
their vehicle. This amendment would accomplish this rollback by
dramatically restricting the President's existing authority. The
proposal is a rollback and a restriction at a time when the
President needs flexibility and authority to fight terror.
And with that, I'm happy to take your questions. Ron.
Q The President, whenever he talks about homeland defense on the
stump, says something to the effect of the Senate is
more interested in special interests than in the interests
of the security of the American people. On Monday, and at least one
other time this month, he has said instead that the Senate is more
interested in special interests in Washington, and not interested in
the security of the American people. When he said that Monday, and
he said it in Kentucky, did he misspeak? Or does he really believe
that Democrats are not interested in the security of the American
people?
MR. FLEISCHER: Ron, this is a policy debate, where people have
said of the President, in terms of his positions on these
flexibility measures that I just cited, they have differences with
the President. And the President has differences, and he's working
with the Democrats and Republicans to bring people together so that
we can have a homeland security department. And that's where the
President is on this.
Now, in terms of what the President said, I'm aware of the debate
that is taking place on Capitol Hill, and the accusations that have
been made about the President on this. And now is a time for
everybody concerned to take a deep breath, to stop finger-pointing,
and to work well together to protect our national security and our
homeland defense.
That's how the President approaches this issue. And I'm aware of
what was said on the floor by Senator Daschle and in his news
conference, as well. And at his news conference, Senator Daschle
admitted that his floor statement was not based on what the
President or the Vice President had said, but instead was based on
newspaper accounts, not the actual statements made. And the Senator
cited a headline -- I'm going to go through this, Ron -- the Senator
cited the headline saying, "Cheney talks about war, electing Taff
would aid war effort."
Vice President Cheney's totally innocuous quote, delivered at the
end of a lengthy speech about President Bush's entire agenda
included the economy, national and homeland security, trade
promotion authority, energy, common-sense judges and fiscal
restraint. The last sentence of the Vice President's speech was the
following: "President Bush and I are very grateful for the
opportunity to serve our country. We thank you for your support --
not just for our efforts, but for candidates like Adam Taff, who
will make a fine partner for us in the work ahead." That's what the
Vice President said. Hardly the stuff of politics.
Senator Daschle, citing another press account said -- and this is
what you just referred to, Ron; this is why I go through this --
this is the quote that was given on the floor of the Senate earlier
today. "The President is quoted in the Washington Post this morning
as saying that the Democratic controlled Senate is not interested in
the security of the American people." Despite the assertion that
Senator Daschle was quoting precisely -- as he said at his news
conference -- from the press, that's a misstatement of what the
President said. The President never in that speech referred to the
Democratic controlled Senate.
Here is what the President said, and this is what the President
believes: "So I ask Congress to give me the flexibility necessary to
be able to deal with the true threats of the 21st century by being
able to move the right people to the right place at the right time,
so we can better assure America that we're doing everything
possible. The House responded, but the Senate is more interested in
special interest in Washington and not interested in the security of
the American people. I will not accept a Department of Homeland
Security that does not allow this President, and future Presidents,
to better keep the American people secure."
And the President continued. "And people are working hard in
Washington to get it right in Washington, both Republicans and
Democrats. See, this isn't a partisan issue, this is an American
issue, this is an issue which is vital to our future. It will help
us determine how secure we'll be."
That's what the President thinks. And make no mistake, he feels
very strongly about the need for the Senate, the complete Senate,
everybody in it -- Democrat, Republicans, independents -- to join
together to protect our national security and to pass it. If it is
not passed, it will have implications for our homeland security, and
that's what the President feels very strongly.
Q I appreciate that. But the question wasn't about what Senator
Daschle said; it's what the President said in that speech and in one
in Kentucky, where he says -- I'm taking his words literally -- "the
Senate is more interested in special interests in Washington, and
not interested in the security of the American people." Did the
President mean to say that the Senate is not interested in the
security of the American people, or did he misspeak?
MR. FLEISCHER: There is no doubt about it. If this
does not pass into law because special interest provisions
will have prevailed, the Senate will not have acted in the best
interests of the American people. And the interests of the special
interests will have been put ahead, and the result will be that the
Senate will not have acted in that interest, for the national
security.
Q Sorry, I don't want to be argumentative here, but you're not
responding to the question, because that's not what the President
said. The President said, "the Senate is more interested in special
interests in Washington, and not interested in the security of the
American people." Did he mean to say that the Senate is not
interested in the security of the American people, or did he
misspeak? It's one of the two.
MR. FLEISCHER: The President is stating the fact that unless and
until this passes, the Senate will not have acted in the interests
of the security of the American people. Homeland security is just
that; it is the security of the American people.
Q That's not what he said. He said, "the Senate is not interested
in the security of the American people." He didn't say "if" or
"whether" or "but."
MR. FLEISCHER: He made that --
Q He said, "the Senate is more interested in special interests in
Washington, and not interested in the security of the American
people." Did he mean to say that, or did he misspeak?
MR. FLEISCHER: I think there's no question that in the event that
this does not pass because the special interests, who are fighting
to take away the flexibility that every agency currently has in
terms of the President's ability to act for national security -- if
that is deprived and taken away from the President, and rolled back,
then the President's conclusion will have been that the special
interests prevailed over the security of the American people, and
that in that Senate action, that the Senate action will have shown,
by failure to pass it, that the special interests prevailed over the
security interests of the country.
Q Will that show that special interests have prevailed over the
interests of the American people? Or will it show that, again, in
the President's own words, "the Senate is more interested in special
interests in Washington, and not interested in the security of the
American people"?
MR. FLEISCHER: We won't know until the vote takes place.
Q But does he stand by that remark or not? He didn't --
MR. FLEISCHER: I think it's clear --
Q -- he didn't qualify it. He said --
MR. FLEISCHER: What the President wants to --
Q -- "the Senate is more interested in special interests in
Washington, and not interested in the security of the American
people." Does he stand by that comment, or not?
MR. FLEISCHER: What the President is trying to do is bring the
Democrats and Republicans together, as he said in the rest of his
remarks, when he said that this is not a partisan issue, it is an
issue vital to our future. It will determine how secure we will be.
And there's no getting around the fact that if the Senate does not
pass it --
Q That's why I'm wondering if he misspoke --
MR. FLEISCHER: -- that the security of our country will not have
been protected.
Q That's why I'm wondering if he misspoke, because it doesn't
jibe with what he said a couple sentences later.
MR. FLEISCHER: I can only interpret it for you as I have.
Terry. Terry, and then we'll go to Bill.
Q He's trying to bring Democrats and Republicans together
essentially by saying if you don't agree with me, then I'm going to
use the bully pulpit and tell America you don't want to protect the
American people.
MR. FLEISCHER: Terry, the President has also, in this debate, met
with a policy difference with the Democrats, as well, who say about
the President that he is stopping homeland security from going
through if the President sticks to his position. This is a policy
debate, it's a legitimate policy debate, and the President wants to
make certain that in the end that a compromise can be reached. And
that's why he's working with the Democrats and Republicans to do so.
Q Well, that's a heck of a way of trying to reach a compromise
with somebody who disagrees with you, by finger-pointing and saying,
those guys don't want to protect the security of the American
people.
MR. FLEISCHER: If homeland security is not passed in the Senate,
it will be true that the Senate will not have acted to protect the
American people's security. That's why it is such a vital matter,
and that's why there are leaders in the Senate in both parties who
have joined with the President to get it passed. The President has
indicated what he did not out of any malicious feelings about the
Senate or any senators, but out of an overriding desire to make
certain that the Senate finishes its business, because protecting
the homeland is our top priority. And it has security implications.
Q So the President has not second thoughts about using the
terminology, the security of the American people? Does he wish he
had put it differently?
MR. FLEISCHER: The President, again, said that -- you can just
quote him -- the House responded, but the Senate is more interested
in the special interests in Washington, and not interested in the
security of the American people. He won't accept it if it doesn't
protect security. And then he praised the Democrats and Republicans.
This is a choice that the House -- the Senate has to make about the
votes that they cast.
Ivan.
Q It's very hard to get passed the notion that he's not
interested in the security of the American people.
MR. FLEISCHER: We have a lot of people with their hands up.
Q I know, but --
MR. FLEISCHER: I'm happy to keep it in the front row. If
everybody agrees, we'll just stay in the front row.
Campbell.
Q No apology, Ari --
Q We can go back to that in a minute. I have another question.
Yesterday in the briefing, you said that the information you have has said al Qaeda is operating in Iraq. Secretary
of Defense Donald Rumsfeld was asked about linkages between al Qaeda
and Saddam Hussein this morning. He said very definitively that,
yes, he believes there are. And then the President said, talking
about al Qaeda and Saddam Hussein, the danger is that they work in
concert. Is the President saying that they are working in concert,
that there is a relationship? Do you have evidence that supports
that?
MR. FLEISCHER: No, the President is saying that's the danger. The
President has repeatedly said that the worst thing that could happen
is for people -- the world's worst dictators with the world's worst
weapons of mass destruction to work in concert with terrorists such
as al Qaeda, who have shown an ability to attack the United States.
And that's what the President has said.
Q So why -- when Rumsfeld was saying, yes, there is a linkage
between the two, what is he talking about?
MR. FLEISCHER: Clearly, al Qaeda is operating inside Iraq. And
the point is, in the shadowy world of terrorism, sometimes there is
no precise way to have definitive information until it is too late.
And we've seen that in the past. And so the risk is that al Qaeda
operating in Iraq does present a security threat, and it's cause for
concern. And I think it's very understandably so.
If you're searching, Campbell, again, for the smoking gun, again
I say what Secretary Rumsfeld said -- the problem with smoking guns
is they only smoke after they're fired.
Q I'm not looking for a smoking gun. I'm just trying to figure
out how you make that conclusion, because the British, the Russians,
people on the Hill that you all have briefed about all this stuff
say that there isn't a linkage, that they don't believe that al
Qaeda is there working in conjunction in any way with Saddam
Hussein. And there is a mountain of comments, both public and
private statements that Osama bin Laden has made about Saddam,
calling him a bad Muslim, suggesting that there would be no way that
the two would ever connect. So I just -- if there's something, if
you have some evidence that supports this, I'm just wondering why --
MR. FLEISCHER: What supports what I just said is that the
President fears that the two can get together. That's what the
President has said, and that's one of the reasons that he feels so
strongly about the importance of fighting the war on terror.
Q So does Rumsfeld have some information that the President
doesn't, that they are, in fact, working together now?
MR. FLEISCHER: Well, I'm going to take a little more detailed
look at anything that you've got there. I haven't seen a verbatim
quote, so I'll take a look at that.
Q It seems that Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon is ignoring
the recently passed Security Council resolution, and he is
maintaining his siege around Yasser Arafat's headquarters. Why does the President continue to support Israel,
even though tacitly saying that he condemns Israel, but in short, on
the bottom line, he continues to support Israel -- why does he
continue to support him when Iraq is being blamed by the President
for doing exactly the same thing, for violating the Security Council
resolutions?
MR. FLEISCHER: I think you have to be very careful when you
equate Iraq with any other nation, and say Israel and Iraq are the
same, when they are not. If you look at Resolutions 242 and 338,
Resolution 242 and 338 explicitly call for a political settlement, a
political dialogue as the underpinning of all the resolutions that
subsequently followed that refer back to 242 and 338. Not the case
in Iraq. In Iraq's decade of defiance of the U.N. resolutions which
explicitly called on Iraq not to have a political settlement with
their weapons of mass destruction, but disarm and destroy them. You
cannot equate the two.
The President does feel strongly, however, about the need for
Israel to listen and to heed the call and to make certain that its
efforts don't hurt the cause of reform in Palestinian Authority. The
President has spoken out about that, directly in opposition to
Israel on that matter.
Q Ari, after the President met with energy conferees, Congressman
Tauzin outlined a possible compromise that he sees on
the ANWR issue that would involve scaling back the area to
be explored and increasing the amount of land that would be
protected. What was the President's reaction and is there a
compromise that the White House is pursuing on the issue?
MR. FLEISCHER: The President's reaction is that he wants to help
the conferees to come together and get an agreement. Other people
said that not one acre of ANWR can be opened, not one. People talked
about if they could scale back the ANWR proposal so it was just one
acre, would it be acceptable to the other side in this debate. And
people on the other side of the debate said, no.
And so this remains an issue -- as many issues do typically
become at the end of the year, issues in the conferences that, as
the end of the year pressures build and as Congress gets ready to
finally adjourn, many of these issues do get resolved at the last
minute. We'll see if this is one, or not. There are many interesting
debates underway in that energy conference, in addition to the
electricity title and Price Anderson concerning nuclear authorities,
nuclear development, in addition to the renewables and the
conservation provisions that the President has asked the Congress to
pass.
Q Is there a compromise that the President is pursuing in the
ANWR --
MR. FLEISCHER: We'll see. The President hopes that they will be
able to reach an agreement. Certainly I am not going to, in public,
discuss anything they may be discussing as part of an effort to
bring people together. That's best done in the conference in order
to resolve these differences.
Q Two questions. First of all, you said the President believes
that now is the time for everyone involved to stop
finger-pointing. Does that also apply to the President?
MR. FLEISCHER: I don't believe the President has finger-pointed.
The President has talked about the importance of getting Democrats
and Republicans to work together to resolve the differences on
homeland security. There are policy differences and the policy
differences should be resolved and they should be resolved without
acrimony.
Q Saying the Senate is not interested in the security of the
American people is not finger-pointing?
MR. FLEISCHER: The President again has talked about the vital
importance of passage of homeland security. I think there's no
question and no doubt about it, if the Senate was not to pass
homeland security, do you think there would be a newspaper in the
country that would say, Senate fails to pass homeland security?
Homeland security is now equated with protecting the country, and
that's stating the obvious.
Q Would there be a paper in the country that --
MR. FLEISCHER: I'm sorry. Ron, we'll come back if we have time.
Q One other thing on another topic. This week, the President had
his second fundraiser for John Thune, and I'm wondering why does
there seem to be a focus on this race? Is it possibly because the
result could be damaging to Daschle, who is a possible presidential
contender? Or is there a particular focus on --
MR. FLEISCHER: No, I think the President believes very strongly
in working to elect people who share his agenda. The President
thinks it's very important to elect people in both the House and the
Senate who will support what he is focusing on with the Congress, to
pass legislation to secure the economy, to create more jobs, to pass
welfare reform, to pass a budget, which the Senate has not done this
year. Every vote makes a difference, and the President is hoping to
elect people who support his agenda.
Q Ari, can I come back to what seems to have emerged as the
sticking point in the homeland security legislation in the Senate?
Senator Durbin on the floor brought up the point that no one asked for union cards when New York City
police and firefighters were rushing up into the World Trade Center.
As you know, the Secret Service -- there's about two dozen law
enforcement agencies here in this town. All of them are unionized.
Most municipal police and fire departments are unionized.
MR. FLEISCHER: Right.
Q Can you tell us why public safety among the first responders
seems to function in an organized labor environment, but what the
concern would be on the federal level if these people were unionized
in the Office of National -- excuse me -- Homeland Security?
MR. FLEISCHER: They have every right to be unionized, and they
are unionized, and under the new department they would remain
unionized. So I think you've misstated what the debate is about.
They will stay unionized.
Q I understand what the debate is about --
MR. FLEISCHER: The whole issue is -- I'm sorry, the whole issue
here deals with the existing waiver authority for the President at a
time that he, like all his predecessors going back to John Kennedy,
would deem it necessary to have certain waivers for national
security interest. President Carter did that with the defense --
with the Drug Enforcement Agency. It's been done in the past in
terms of previous Presidents' judgments about how to protect the
national interest.
What's really at stake here is these current provisions that the
President is already empowered to have, vis-a-vis, say, for example,
the Border Patrol at the Department of Justice -- if somebody today
shows up for work at the Department of Justice at Border Patrol,
they can belong to a union, they can have the union management, and
the collective bargaining rights can be waived today if the
President determines it's necessary for national security.
What the debate is now about is taking that exact right away from
the President when these very same people who signed up for the
Border Patrol jobs move across the street to the Department of
Homeland Security. Why does it work today for these people and the
unions in which they currently serve the nation well, in the Border
Patrol, the Department of Justice, and every other agency where it's
found, but it would not longer work, it needs to be taken away from
the President and from these workers if they move to the Department
of Homeland Security? That's why it's a rollback of the authority
the President currently has.
Q So if it's done differently, if the language is in there to
preserve the President's right, then he is not opposed to collective
bargaining units; is that what you're saying?
MR. FLEISCHER: That we're trying to work out the appropriate
language now so that a compromise can be reached. And, as I
indicated, the amendment that has been authored is a nonstarter with
the President.
Q Senator Daschle has asked for an apology
from the President. Can we assume that he's not going to get one?
MR. FLEISCHER: That's why I said that this is a time for
everybody concerned to take a deep breath, to stop the
finger-pointing, and to remember why we're all here. And that's to
work together to pass a department of homeland security to protect
the country.
Q So will the President at least clarify what he meant by the
statements? I know you did, but does he feel a need to clarify?
MR. FLEISCHER: Listen, I think people have to understand, it can
happen that somebody misreads the newspapers and has a
misunderstanding of what the President said. And in the Senator's
remarks he clearly was upset because he thought the President was
talking about Democrats when the President was not; he thought the
Vice President was talking about something that the Vice President
did not say.
And so it's important for the President -- and the President
thinks this is important for everybody on the Hill to hear -- is
this is the time, this is the exact time, as the Congress winds
down, for everybody to work together and to take a deep breath.
Q With all due respect, you're misstating what the President
said, Ari.
MR. FLEISCHER: Goyle.
Q You're saying it's a misunderstanding? You're saying it's a
misunderstanding?
MR. FLEISCHER: Well, clearly what Senator Daschle said in his
speech, in which he asked the President to apologize, he had a
misunderstanding of what was in today's papers, and --
Q Not in today's papers, but in statements that the President
made earlier that Ron referred to.
MR. FLEISCHER: Well, I think, again, when the statement was --
that the Senator talked about on the floor, the Senator cited a
headline saying, "Cheney talks about war; electing Taff would aid
war effort." Nobody here writes the headlines. I don't think there's
anything that the Vice President said, as I just read it to you --
he said, "We thank you for your support, not just for our efforts,
but for candidates like Adam Taff, who will make a fine partner for
us in the work ahead." What's wrong with saying that?
And I would encourage anybody who wants to see exactly what the
President said to go to the White House web page, and you can see
the President's remarks in their entirety on the transcripts at
whitehouse.gov. And people can see it and judge it for itself.
Q Ari, two quick questions. One, if President Bush agrees with
the U.S. Ambassador to India, Robert Blackwell, who said that
despite President Bush's meeting with Musharraf in New York and --
in India and Kashmir, especially during especially during elections
-- went up rather than a reduction. And also, he warned Pakistan
that Musharraf is lying by saying that elections were rigged and all
that, and he says I approve the elections -- in Kashmir, and they
are fair and free.
MR. FLEISCHER: Goyle, as you know, when the President met with
President Musharraf in New York -- and I made this point to you
immediately after the meeting last week, and this week as well --
the President reiterated to President Musharraf the importance of
adhering to democracy in Pakistan and supporting the rule of law.
And that remains what the President thinks.
Q Just to follow, on Pakistan --
MR. FLEISCHER: I'm going try to keep it moving, because we have a
lot of people up with hands in the back, and we'll be here for three
hours if we don't get to them.
Q Ari, does the President see or did he read Senator Daschle's
comments on the floor? And, if so, would you please share with us
his reaction?
MR. FLEISCHER: I've shared with you his reaction. My statement
reflects what the President thinks.
Q Ari, the President did not specifically answer the question
earlier of whether he was politicizing the war, that Terry put to
him. Can you tell us whether you think -- can you issue in his name
a categorical denial that he's politicizing the
war?
MR. FLEISCHER: Well, first of all, the President's remarks were
about
homeland security. The President's remarks were not about the war
in Iraq. The President's remarks were about homeland security.
Again, I think when you take a look at what was said, it was put
into a context which did not match what the President said.
Q What about the larger question of the degree to which he talks
about the war in political fundraisers? Can we have your assurance
that he's not going to campaign on the war this fall?
MR. FLEISCHER: You've heard the President repeatedly say that he
wants to work with Democrats and Republicans to protect the country.
And the President is going to continue to say that message at all
events that he attends, because he thinks it's important, it's part
of his job, he was elected by the country for the purpose of
providing national security, homeland security now, and economic
security. All of that is what the President does, and the President
will talk about it.
Q Well, does he think it's fair game as a political issue?
MR. FLEISCHER: Well, I don't know what you mean by "a political
issue." The President approaches it as a matter of substance. And
the President approaches that as part of his job duty; that's what
the President does. And I don't think anybody is suggesting that the
President of the United States should be barred from talking about
the duties of his job.
Q Ari, at the beginning of the briefing you mentioned that a U.S. envoy is going the North Korea. And I was
wondering if you could expand on that? What will the envoy be
talking about? In the past, the President has labeled North Korea
part of the axis of evil. Does that mean that we have -- that you
foresee a diplomatic opening to North Korea, that we could negotiate
with them?
MR. FLEISCHER: Nothing has changed in the President's thinking
about President Kim Chong-il and the North Korean leader's
starvation of his own people, the militarization efforts that he's
leading, the massive number of conventional weapons that he has on
the border with South Korea, as well as proliferation of weapons of
mass destruction.
But, as you know, the President has said that the United States
was prepared to meet with North Korea any time, anyplace. And there
could have been earlier progress made with North Korea, until North
Korea attacked a South Korean vessel and sank it last summer.
Secretary Powell met with his counterpart, the North Korean
Foreign Minister, on one of the Secretary's recent trips to Europe.*
And the State Department will have additional information about this
trip. And I think that you can anticipate that the President's
message about North Korea assuming its proper place in the world
community cannot happen until North Korea stops its proliferation,
stops its starvation of its people. But the President has said he'd
talk any time, anyplace, and this is a helpful development.
Q So the initial message will be North Korea should reform its
ways before further progress can be made?
MR. FLEISCHER: Well, in order for North Korea to feed its people,
it would be helpful if they reformed their ways. Their current
system is a failure, and it has failed its own people more than
anybody else. Look at the remarkable, dramatic progress in South
Korea compared to North Korea, and it's a real reflection of what a
difference a form of government can mean to the health and the
welfare of the citizens of each country.
* in Brunei
Q Ari, Daschle also mentioned in his speech this
diskette that was found in LaFayette Park that reportedly
contained advice from Karl Rove to Republican strategists to "focus
on the war." Can you tell us what the context of those comments
were? And if Karl Rove is, in fact, telling Republican strategists
to focus on the war?
MR. FLEISCHER: Listen, I think that within various districts,
people are going to come to their own conclusions and judgments
about what issues they want to talk about. And as I indicated, I
don't think anybody is saying that it is inappropriate for anybody
in either party to talk about issues foreign and domestic, peace and
war, from either side of the issue. If somebody wants to make a
position and say that they oppose what the President is doing, that
is entirely their right in our democratic system. And I think that
you may see candidates in a variety of places in both parties
express their opinions, some for the President, some against the
President, in both parties.
Q But you're not disputing that Karl Rove may have given that
advice?
MR. FLEISCHER: I have not seen this diskette, and so -- I've seen
media stories about it, but I have not seen it. But again, I think
it should not surprise anybody that people in this country are free
to talk about domestic and foreign issues as they see fit in their
campaigns.
Q Ari, why doesn't the President talk about the economy anymore
unless the pool asks him about it?
MR. FLEISCHER: You've been at the President's speeches. How many
times have you heard the President say -- just this week, he made
news by saying that continuing resolutions that the Congress would
have to pass have to be clean, they cannot contain all this new
spending. The President has talked about one of the best ways to help the economy is to stop all the
excessive spending that Congress is trying to do.
The President talks about it every speech, David. You're there,
you hear the speeches. I don't control the coverage of his speeches,
but you know as well as I do, the President always talks about the
economy and economic security in his speeches.
Q Isn't there a difference, though, between talking about the
budget in a political context? He doesn't talk about, any more that
I've heard, about ways to improve the economy, the economy's in
trouble, we need to fix it. It's all about the budget.
MR. FLEISCHER: Well, the President talks about passage of
terrorism insurance, which is legislation that is pending in the
Congress that would create jobs. I think the quote the President
uses in his speeches, that I know you heard just two days ago, is
the need to help hard-hats find jobs. So I'm sorry, but I do think
the premise of your question doesn't quite match what the
President's been saying.
Q Can you talk about tomorrow's speech?
MR. FLEISCHER: Sarah.
Q Ari, the Congressional Hispanic Caucus is opposing the nomination of Miguel Estrada to a judgeship on
the Federal Court of Appeals. Since the members of the Hispanic
Caucus are all Democrats, is this just partisan politics?
MR. FLEISCHER: Well, unfortunately, the nominating process for
judges has become increasingly partisan, and the President regrets
that. Miguel Estrada is an outstanding nominee. The President
strongly supports him, and he hopes that he will be passed. This is
very unfortunate, that a group of Democrats have taken this
position.
Q A few days ago, Senator Lott said that because of the focus on
needing to get appropriations bills completed
and homeland security, as well as an Iraq resolution, he did not
think it would be possible to address pension security, nor any tax
incentives this year. Do you agree with his assessment that because
of the focus on foreign policy issues, it has to be done at the
expense of domestic priorities?
MR. FLEISCHER: I think there has been plenty of time all year for
the Senate to focus on these matters. And the Senate has,
unfortunately, let the clock run down so much to the end that they
are even talking about the need to come back in a lame duck session.
The Senate was scheduled, by law, to pass a budget by April 15th.
For the first time in the 28 years that the Senate has had a rule
mandating a budget, they have failed to pass one. First time since
1974 the Senate has failed to pass a budget. So the Senate has had
plenty of time for these important domestic and economic issues. And
when it comes to passage of a budget, when it comes to welfare
reform, when it comes to a ban on cloning, when it comes to
terrorism insurance, faith-based legislation -- these are all issues
that progress can be made and should have been made. And the Senate
has done it to itself, and has run out of time.
Q With respect to the energy conferees --
sorry -- Senator Baucus indicated that he believed a deal could be
struck in the tax incentive area in the $15 billion range, which is
about half what the House has in its version and about $5 billion
more than you would like. Would that be acceptable?
MR. FLEISCHER: Well, again, I'm not going to negotiate the terms
of a conference agreement in public. That's something that is best
done by the conferees, along with the administration. But the
President did make clear that he does support -- the tax provisions
that the administration sent up were focused on conservation and the
development of renewable energy. And that's what the President has
asked the conferees to focus on.
Q Ari, you were just saying that the President understands that
candidates on the stump want to talk about the
war in various guises, opposing or supporting, perhaps, what the
administration is doing. I want to make sure I understand -- is
there some difference between the way they want to talk about the
war and the way senators may want to talk about making a better bill
for homeland security, in terms of the President's willingness to
accept that as an idea that's not necessarily against the security
of the American people, or the security --
MR. FLEISCHER: No, on the resolution that's currently being
drafted on the Hill, the Senate leadership, including Senator
Daschle, has been working very well with the administration on
something that is vitally important to the country's future. And so
we will continue on these efforts, on the development of the
language of the resolution, that the President, as he said in the
Cabinet Room yesterday and as he said last night at his event for
John Thune, he believes that the Democrats would want to be very
supportive of his efforts and join with him. And there are
candidates who belong to the opposite party as the President who,
themselves, are coming out and saying, I am with President Bush.
Which, I think, is proof perfect of the fact that the President is
leading in a nonpartisan way and a bipartisan way that's attracting
support from Democrats and Republicans alike.
Q Aren't you worried that something quite different is happening
with homeland security? That if there are members of the Senate who
want to make a better bill or amend a bill that maybe is not to his
liking, that that means that they are not in favor of security for
the American people?
MR. FLEISCHER: Again, the President has said -- well, we're going
over what the whole briefing was about at the top and there's
nothing I'm going to say any differently. I can repeat it.
Q Why is his tolerance for one area different than for homeland
security?
MR. FLEISCHER: Well, because obviously, on homeland security,
it's bogged down and going nowhere. It's been four weeks now that
the Senate has been debating the bill. The action on the resolution
is of a different nature. People are working very well together on
the resolution and the President hopes that will remain the case and
expects that it would be.
But on homeland security, it has come down to a four-week effort
that, despite the bipartisan vote in the House, the Senate does
appear to be lining up differently. And when you ask the President's
position on something, he expresses it.
Q Senator Inouye and Senator Byrd also responded to these remarks
today. Senator Inouye said he was saddened by them, and Senator Byrd
said he was disgusted and accused the President of making a
bumper-sticker slogan out of the war on Iraq. Did they
misunderstand, as well, or is this political opportunism --
MR. FLEISCHER: Again, the President's remarks were not about the
Democratic Senate, as people may have been led to believe. The
President's remarks were not even about the war in Iraq. The
President's remarks were about homeland security. So, again, the
President urges everybody to take a deep breath and remember why
we're here, and that's to work together.
Q Could I follow, sir? Both of these men suggested -- Byrd said
there are a lot of serious questions out there that haven't been
answered. "We here in the Senate have an obligation to investigate
those questions before we vote on the resolution." Inouye said just
as much. He said it's American to question the President, it's
American to raise these questions. Does the President think there's
something wrong with the Senate asking questions about this policy?
MR. FLEISCHER: That's why the President invited leaders of the
House and the Senate down to the White House in early September, as
soon as the Senate returned from its recess, as soon as the House
returned from its recess, to meet with them, to talk to them, to get
their ideas and thoughts and to say that he was going to work with
them on this. And the process has been a very productive one and the
resolution is moving along and we'll see what the language says. But
it's been a very collaborative process.
Q Just to follow up on the question about the economy, there
hasn't been anything said about the economic
conditions in the airline industry around here, and I just
wondered what the White House reaction to more financial assistance
for the airlines is.
MR. FLEISCHER: Well, as you know, the Congress passed, and the
President signed into law last October a package of approximately --
I think it was $15 billion to help the airline industry. And many of
the airlines are still availing themselves of the funds in this
program. This program remains in existence to help the airlines. And
that was part of the reaction the Congress took that the President
signed into law.
Q -- loan guarantee program or making any changes to help them?
MR. FLEISCHER: Again, the program remains in place currently for
the airlines.
MR. FLEISCHER: Ari, yesterday on C-SPAN Congressman Filner and
Congressman Wilson got into it on the war on Iraq. Congressman
Filner said that the -- Saddam Hussein during the Iraq-Iran war
obtained biological and chemical weapons technology from the United
States. And Congressman Wilson then accused Filner of hating America
and being viscerally anti-American. I'm wondering if you believe
that people who oppose this war are in any
sense anti-American or hate America?
MR. FLEISCHER: Russell, I appreciate the you're giving me the
opportunity to referee somebody else's dispute. But as I said, the
President is going to continue to work with Democrats and
Republicans alike. He respects the opinions of those who agree with
him and who intend to vote for him, and he respects the opinions and
the judgments of those who disagree with him and may vote against
him.
Q You indicated that the President has nothing to apologize for.
Will he then perhaps contact Senator Daschle,
who seems to be very upset, to try to explain to him the
misinterpretation he sees that Senator Daschle --
MR. FLEISCHER: I think I've just explained the President's
position.
Q Will he directly contact Senator Daschle --
MR. FLEISCHER: As always, if there are any calls, I'll do my best
to keep you filled in. But you now know what the President believes.
Q Does he have any concern that this disagreement or
misunderstanding is going to cause problems with either the homeland
security resolution or the Iraq --
MR. FLEISCHER: No, I think that's hard to imagine, because it
would be so against the interest of what everybody has come to
Washington to do, which is to remember that our first responsibility
as Democrats and Republicans alike is to work for the protection of
the country. And that's what the President has called on the
Congress to do, and that's what he is doing, himself.
Q On North Korea, who are you sending as an
envoy? And does "early date" mean next month?
MR. FLEISCHER: The State Department will have any additional
details at the time that they are ready to announce them. I'm not
prepared to get into that today.
Q Ari, could you set up tomorrow's event a little bit, corporate responsibility, I think?
MR. FLEISCHER: The President tomorrow is going to have a meeting
with the U.S. Attorneys and others involved in the corporate
corruption task force that the President has created. This task
force has been busy, it's been hard at work, and has already moved
on a number of fronts to bring to justice and prosecute people who
have stolen, who have engaged in criminal conduct as the head of
corporations or in positions of responsibility in corporations.
The Security and Exchange Commission has moved aggressively to
force them to give back the money they took that was not theirs to
begin with. And the President tomorrow looks forward to highlighting
what this task force is working on and why it is so important to
sending a signal that corporate misconduct will not be tolerated in
this administration.
THE PRESS: Thank you.
END 4:17 P.M. EDT
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