For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
November 9, 2001
Press Briefing by Ari Fleischer
1:27 P.M. EST
MR. FLEISCHER: All right. Let me give you an
update on the President's day, and if you would, at the end we'll get
into the week ahead for next week.
The President this morning spoke with Nicaraguan President Enrique
Bolanos to congratulate him on his electoral victory on Sunday, and the
President underscored the importance of strong ties between the United
States and Nicaragua. Following the President's phone call,
he had his morning briefings with the Central Intelligence Agency and
the Federal Bureau of Investigation to go over the latest events abroad
and on the homeland.
And then the President began the first of four meetings he is
having with foreign leaders today. He met in the Oval Office
with the Foreign Minister of Morocco to discuss ongoing cooperation in
the war against terrorism. He met in the Oval Office with
the Prime Minister of India, and has just concluded a lunch with the
Prime Minister of India, to discuss the war on terrorism and
U.S.-Indian relations. The President will, later this
afternoon, meet with the Prime Minister of the Czech Republic, as well
as with the Foreign Minister of Saudi Arabia.
The President also, this afternoon, will sign a proclamation in
honor of the National Guard, and he will also announce a series of
additional steps to help protect the traveling public through a
beefed-up presence of the National Guard at the nation's airports
through the holiday season.
One final announcement: As a result of the actions the
President announced on Wednesday, and the seizing of assets and the
shutting down of several terrorist financial fronts in the United
States, since Wednesday over $1 million has been frozen in the United
States as a result of those actions.
And with that, I'm more than happy to take your questions.
Q Can you give us a readout on the meeting
with General Franks? And specifically, did he, as expected, ask the
President for an expansion of the war?
MR. FLEISCHER: Ron, as you know, any meeting that takes
place involving the President and his generals, particularly those that
are part of the National Security Council meetings that the President
holds each morning, are topics I won't get into.
Q Ari, in an interview with The New York
Times, Prince Saud al-Faisal, who will be here later on today, seemed
to really chide the administration, saying that Saudi Arabia was
angrily disappointed that the administration hadn't come out with a
peace plan for the Middle East that it had promised, and also saying
that the President could not be an honest broker in the Middle East
peace process until he meets with Yasser Arafat. Does the President
think such language is helpful as he's trying to build this coalition?
MR. FLEISCHER: Well, the President noted that newspaper
report and, of course, he has a meeting directly with the Foreign
Minister shortly. And from the President's point of view, he looks
forward to hearing directly from the Foreign Minister any thoughts that
are on the Foreign Minister's mind. And they will have a
conversation about events in the Middle East.
Q Does he believe that such language is
divisive?
MR. FLEISCHER: I think the President is going to listen
to the Foreign Minister, himself, and hear what language the Foreign
Minister -- what the message of the Foreign Minister is. But
the President is pleased with the cooperation of Saudi Arabia, and he
looks forward to this afternoon's meeting.
Q Well, Ari, what about India? I
mean, we have another newspaper article in which the Indian Prime
Minister described the military effort as "slackening." Did
he knock that out in the meeting with the President, and how did the
President respond? Because that seemed to be -- they seemed
to be unresponsive when questions were posed today.
MR. FLEISCHER: David, I know that question was posed to
the President just an hour, an hour and a half ago, and I would refer
you to the President's answer to that question.
Q But actually, he didn't
answer. The question was, is it helpful when you have
coalition members --
MR. FLEISCHER: Well, the meeting -- I can tell you that
the meeting in the Oval Office was a very positive meeting, where the
Prime Minister talked about India's support for the United States'
effort, standing shoulder to shoulder.
Q We understand that, but you're being
nonresponsive, just like the President was nonresponsive. So
is there a response or isn't there?
MR. FLEISCHER: Well, I'm sharing with you what took
place in the meetings. So, obviously, whatever you may have
read in the papers did not influence the meeting.
Q But how is that possible? I
mean, if you've got a leader who is giving --
MR. FLEISCHER: Maybe they didn't read everything that
you read. They had their meeting, and the Prime Minister
told the President that India stands shoulder to shoulder with the
United States. And it was a very positive, productive
meeting.
Q Did the President -- I'm sorry, did the
Prime Minister mention anything about the pace of the war slackening,
that the U.S. wasn't prepared for this kind of war? Did
anything of those statements that came up in the Post interview, did he
mention them to the President?
MR. FLEISCHER: Not in the portion of the meeting that I
attended, which was in the Oval Office.
Q Ari, can the White House say anything or
confirm claims by the Northern Alliance rebels that they have captured
or taken control of Mazar-e-Sharif?
MR. FLEISCHER: I would ask you to talk to the Department
of Defense about anything involving operations in Afghanistan.
Q Well, can I ask, when the President was
meeting with General Franks earlier, were there reports coming
in? Was he briefed about these reports that were coming in?
MR. FLEISCHER: Again, I understand the level of interest
in anything involving the war councils that the President has with his
top generals in the National Security Council, but this is going to be
a matter of routine policy -- you've heard this from the beginning --
it's just not a topic that I'm going to describe what takes place in
the private councils the President has with his war planners.
Q But any reaction, if it is
true? The Pentagon is saying it would be an encouraging
development.
MR. FLEISCHER: Again, I'd refer you to the Pentagon.
Q Ari, back to the Prime Minister of
India. What kind od discussions were there about Kashmir in
that meeting? We've heard from the Prime Minister, we didn't
hear from the President on that.
MR. FLEISCHER: On the topic of Kashmir, the President
believes that it's very important for both parties to engage in a
peaceful dialogue, to have a peaceful resolution of any of the disputes
involving Kashmir. That's the President's message.
Q Did he talk about the Pakistanis and the
cross-border terrorism? Did he talk about that at all in the meeting?
MR. FLEISCHER: The President has made it very clear to
India. He has said it repeatedly, he said it publicly, he
said it privately -- he condemned the October 1st attack in
Kashmir. And I think the Prime Minister understands the
President's position.
Q Did they discuss that today, further?
MR. FLEISCHER: That did not come up in the Oval Office
portion of the meeting. The Oval Office portion of the
meeting was a much smaller portion. They had the lunch
meeting, and the lunch meeting was just breaking up as we gather here.
Q Was there any hint of concern on the part
of India that the United States is growing increasingly allied with
Pakistan, which, let's face it, has been hostile to India and has been
a breeding ground for terrorism?
MR. FLEISCHER: No. It was a very positive
discussion. Again, I was in the Oval Office portion of it,
but it was a very positive discussion and I think the President and the
Secretary made it very clear to both President Musharraf and to Prime
Minister Vajpayee about the importance of promoting stability in the
region. And both nations understand the importance of
winning this war against terrorism, and both nations have supported the
United States and the President is gratified by that.
Q So Vajpayee expressed no qualms about our
growing relationship with Pakistan in that meeting?
MR. FLEISCHER: Not in the portion of the meeting I was
in. But again, in previous meetings, there is a general
understanding about the sensitivities in the region, the need for
stability in the region. If you remember, Secretary Powell
visited the region, and in all the conversations the President has had
and that he will have, including tomorrow at the United Nations with
President Musharraf, the President will discuss the need for stability
in the region and for a peaceful resolution between India and Pakistan
over any other disputes.
Q Does that mean that the President will ask
President Musharraf to cut off support, tacit or otherwise, for
terrorists in Kashmir?
MR. FLEISCHER: The President has made it clear to
leaders around the world that terrorism anywhere needs to be prevented
and stopped.
Q But specific to that question?
Q Back to the National Guard. I
know the President hasn't made the announcement yet, but I guess I
would like to understand something about the genesis of
it. Have the governors been clamoring for additional
resources that they didn't get last time the President made his
announcement, and was there some lack of flexibility in what -- I don't
recall any restrictions on how they were to be used when the President
last announced --
MR. FLEISCHER: It's not a question of
restrictions. What the President will announce today are
additional resources to help the states with deployment of additional
Guard personnel. The deployment decisions about how best to
use the Guard is, as always in these cases of a state decision, left up
to the governors to decide how much -- where they want to deploy them,
exactly where, at what airports.
Throughout our federal-state system, airports have a mix of
personnel in the security field, and many of those decisions are local
matters, state matters. It depends on the jurisdictions for
the airports.
Q Does the President think that not enough
was done after his last announcement, that they weren't used well
enough?
MR. FLEISCHER: No, not at all. But I think
it's a reflection that there are always additional things that can be
done, and this is one of those times the President, looking at the
upcoming travel season, sees the ability to give the states more
resources to help with the Guard deployments at their airports, and
he's pleased to make the announcement he will.
Q Ari, what has been the reaction the White
House received to his speech last night? And has there ever
been a time when there have been so many foreign leaders coming to the
White House, especially in one week? Is this historic?
MR. FLEISCHER: Well, of course, I've only been here for
a very long 11 months. But I can't compare it to previous
administrations. Of course, there is the meeting at the
United Nations this weekend, which is bringing together many foreign
ministers and leaders from around the world, so there is that
confluence that I referred to earlier in the
week. Obviously, Prime Minister Blair, President Chirac
arrived for the purpose of their meetings this week. They've
returned to Great Britain and to France.
But I think it's a strong sign of encouragement to the world of how
many nations stand with the United States in the fight against
terrorism and are ready, willing and able, and looking forward to
talking to the President of the United States about what their nations
can do. And the President has been very encouraged by that.
The second part of your question?
Q The reaction to the speech.
MR. FLEISCHER: Reaction to the speech last
night. The President has been very encouraged by
it. He spent a lot of time on the flight back last night
talking about it. I think he appreciated the warm reception
he got, and I think he also takes tremendous comfort in knowing how the
American people have reacted to an attack on the
homeland. No matter which way you look in this country,
people are reacting to the anthrax attacks with a sense of calm, with a
sense of determination. There is some -- a level of anxiety,
obviously, but there is a real sense that America, as always in our
history, has responded to an attack with the country that stands
prepared and a country that will not be intimidated.
Governor Ridge I think explained at the beginning of this briefing
the level of volunteer interest. And I can tell you from a
report I got earlier this morning, the White House phones were ringing
with people who phoned and wanted to volunteer. And I would
not be surprised if volunteer agencies around the country had a similar
response in the wake of the President's speech.
Q Ari, the President said this morning that
he was going to, tomorrow at the United Nations, say that the time for
condolences is over, it's a time for action. What action is
he not seeing that he would like to see?
MR. FLEISCHER: Well, in the speech tomorrow at the
United Nations, the President is going to thank the United Nations for
its strong support, and he will praise the role played by the Secretary
General of the United Nations and he will talk to rally the world on
behalf of the cause of freedom. And I think what you can
expect tomorrow is a fuller explanation of the Bush doctrine in which
those who harbor terrorists will also be held accountable for their
actions, just as guilty as the terrorists.
The President made that clear on the night of September 11th in an
address in the Oval Office when he returned from Florida, where he was
when the attacks took place, and in his first remarks from the Oval
Office that same night, he announced a new doctrine for the United
States, which is those nations that harbor the terrorists are just as
guilty as the terrorists. And I think tomorrow in the United
Nations, you will hear the President put the world on notice that he is
appreciative of the fact that some nations have expressed sympathy, but
sympathy only is not good enough, that nations need to take actions.
Q Ari, but what specific actions?
MR. FLEISCHER: I think the President will describe that
tomorrow in his speech to varying degrees and you'll be able to hear
that yourself tomorrow.
Q Ari, back to airport security for a
minute. A number of airline executives and security experts
have proposed this idea of a national airline passenger ID
card. People would undergo a security check and they'd get
this special ID card. Supposedly, it would expedite them
through lines and cause shorter lines at airports. What's
the administration's view of that?
MR. FLEISCHER: No plans for anything of that type.
Q The administration rejects that out of
hand?
MR. FLEISCHER: There are no plans for anything of that
type. Obviously, the administration is going to keep an open mind
about any productive or positive ideas, but based on what we know now,
that does not fit that category.
Q What specific nations was the President
talking to or referring to when he says these expressions of sympathy
is nice, but it's time for action? And also --
MR. FLEISCHER: I'm not sure the President is going to
want to go down a list of nation by nation tomorrow. I do
not expect that. But I would just urge you to listen to
tomorrow's speech.
Q And also as a follow-up, Governor Whitman
talked about talks with the chemical industry. What specific
steps can the industry take to protect chemicals?
MR. FLEISCHER: Well, I wish you could have asked that of
Governor Whitman when she was here. I know that EPA has been
working since the very beginning on a plan with the chemical industry,
on protection of vital infrastructure. It's a reminder that
when it comes to homeland defense, there are several areas out there --
you have heard talk before about nuclear power plants; there are other
facilities that also could be targets. And as a result of
that, security is being stepped up at many such
facilities. And that is being done by these private
organizations, in concert and at the urging of the EPA and other
relevant government agencies.
Q Has the President spoken to Musharraf
about cross-border terrorism in Kashmir? And the other
question is on the naval agreement that the Indians and the United
States was working on, it wasn't announced today. Where are
the discussions right now? And if you can elaborate on what
the United States was seeking? There's a report in an Indian
magazine, USA Today, that really outlines a lot of details, including
basing in Rajasthan.
MR. FLEISCHER: Okay. I think I've already
addressed the question of Kashmir. And if there are any
additional --
Q -- whether or not he spoke about
cross-border terrorism with Musharraf.
MR. FLEISCHER: No, I think I've addressed the issue of
Kashmir involving both the President's conversations with President
Musharraf and Prime Minister Vajpayee.
Why don't we do this: On any other questions that came
out of the lunch -- which I mentioned just ended as I was coming in
here -- we'll see if we can get an additional readout later.
Q I think you tried to answer this
earlier. Did you say earlier that the President will not be
singling out any nations for criticism tomorrow?
MR. FLEISCHER: I think that's what you can
expect. The President will make his message very plain and
clear.
Q And just to follow up, we already know --
he's already made very clear what actions he wants countries to take --
do what you can on intelligence, finances, the war in
Afghanistan. Will there be any other actions that we don't
know about that he will outline --
MR. FLEISCHER: If you could wait until the President's
speech tomorrow.
Q I still have one question on the National
Guard. Is the purpose here to have a more visible presence
for reassurance? Or are they to be involved in crowd
control? What is it -- or some job in
screening? What is it that they're actually doing, that you
envision them doing?
MR. FLEISCHER: Well, right after the President made his
initial announcement about making the Guard available to the states for
employment, training began for the Guard in screening and supervising
the screening. And that has already been done and in effect, and the
Guard has been posted at airports.
But, as Governor Ridge is going to talk to the nation's governors a
little later today, he indicated they have flexibility on
this. And I think you can anticipate the Guard being
involved in such things as monitoring passenger and baggage screening,
monitoring gate activity, perimeter control, security for vehicles,
garages, air traffic control facilities -- all of that can come under
the purview of what the Guard can do to help the local law enforcement
community, which already has that under their watch, under their
jurisdiction. They are additional helping hands for local
law enforcement.
Proceeding in the order which I announced ten minutes ago --
Jacobo, then Keith, Kelly, then Elizabeth.
Q Ari, I would like the reaction of the
White House, White House reaction to the following
statement: The Cuban government has welcomed the U.S.
government offer of hurricane relief after Michele has struck the
island, but the Foreign Minister of Cuba said he would rather have
approval to buy, in cash, American food and medicine, but to be able to
pick it up in Cuban vessels. Havana said it would be more
useful if Cuba was allowed to acquire on an expedited basis a quantity
of food, medicine, and raw materials --
MR. FLEISCHER: Jacobo, I have nothing to add further
beyond what the President has always maintained about the policies
vis-a-vis Cuba. And in the case of any aid, in the event of
anything beyond that, I refer you to the appropriate agency.
Q But there is a law right now that allows
Cuba to buy food and medicine.
MR. FLEISCHER: I have nothing further to add beyond
that.
Keith?
Q Ari, does the President think that
Republican National Chairman Jim Gilmore did a good job in the election
--
MR. FLEISCHER: He does.
Q -- in the period leading up to the
election?
MR. FLEISCHER: Yes, he does.
Q He does?
MR. FLEISCHER: The President has faith and confidence in
Governor Gilmore and the job he did. As I think most
analysts have pointed out, the elections were decided mostly on local
issues, and it was, all in all, when you look across the country, I
think both parties have things that they can brag about. It
was, I think, a non-conclusive event for either party. Both parties
had wins, both parties had losses.
Q And so he wants him to stay as chair?
MR. FLEISCHER: Yes, he does. The President
has support in Governor Gilmore.
Q Ari, two on airline
security. One, why -- the President had this big audience
last night, prime-time address -- why wouldn't
he announce the initiative about the National Guard troops last
night? If he wants to increase confidence in the airlines, I
wonder why he chose not to in his speech.
And the second question is, he expressed -- he seemed optimistic
about the House and Senate working out their differences. Is
he sort of getting to the point of kind of giving them a little time
line? If they don't resolve differences by a certain date,
he's going to use his executive powers to do the actions that he can?
MR. FLEISCHER: The President will actually be signing a
proclamation today. And it will be in honor of National
Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve Week. And so I
think that's a unique event, it's befitting to the Guard and to the
employers. And I think it would have been a little -- it's a
little different to have a signing at a large speech like that last
night. And so the President's looking forward to doing that
today.
Your second question was on the aviation security
bill. On the aviation security bill, as you know, the
President last night did call on Congress to resolve this
issue. And the President believes it is the ultimate test of
if-there's-a-will-there's-a-way. And he has a will to get
this done.
And the administration has been meeting with conferees, discussing
how to bridge the gap between the House and the Senate. And
the President has called on the House to move toward to the Senate
position, and the Senate to move toward the House. And the
President is very hopeful that Congress will listen to the call, and
will get it done.
Q On the same subject, I mean the story in
the Times this morning about Argenbright security was fairly
horrifying, about these people hired with past criminal records, people
who have been convicted of kidnapping. Is he still going to not budge
on the federalization of the work force, given what --
MR. FLEISCHER: It's precisely because of those type of
stories that the President thinks it's important for a federal standard
to be set. That way there are rules that the private sector
employees have to follow in terms of their hiring.
But I would remind you, I think if you did a search of the database
of everybody who is on the federal payroll, I dare say you're going to
find people who have records in the federal payroll, as
well. So replacing one employer with another employer is not
a substitute for having standards in place that make sure that nobody
violates those standards.
And that's why the President thinks the key to airport security is
to have tough federal standards in place for hiring and for background
checks, and then to allow a flexible match of federal and state
involvement, just as Europe and Israel have done.
Q What particular concerns prompted the
Attorney General to issue his order last week allowing attorney-client
privileges, I guess, to be breached?
MR. FLEISCHER: Well, this is part of the ongoing
operation of the United States government, to prevent any future
terrorist attacks, and to make certain that anybody who is in this
country for the purpose of conducting one will be fully
prosecuted. What the Attorney General announced in terms of
attorney-client privilege, as Justice Department has informed me,
applies to a very narrow number of people, people who the intelligence
community will formally certify that conversations are a potential
threat to the national security of the nation. And from a
legal point of view, according to the Department of Justice, as well,
those conversations cannot be used in a court of law against those
people unless a court reviews them and specifically allows them.
Q The President has said some countries will
do more than others, you're either with us or you're against us,
there's no such thing as a good terrorist, and if you don't freeze
assets you can't do business with the United States. Which
column does Lebanon fall into, now that they've said they will not
freeze the assets of Hezbollah?
MR. FLEISCHER: Well, the President has clearly called on
nations to seize the assets of those nations -- entities that support
terrorism. And I think you can expect the President to, as
he will tomorrow, to make clear that neutrality is not an acceptable
position, that you can't, on the one hand, condemn the al Qaeda and hug
the Hezbollah, or hug the Hamas, as Condi Rice said the other day.
So I think you can anticipate remarks from the President of that
type tomorrow. But the President has also said that he's
involved right now in phase one of the war against
terrorism. And that war is aimed at the al Qaeda, at the
Taliban, at Afghanistan. And he's not prepared at this time
to go beyond that. But he is putting the world on notice
that he is very appreciative for the sympathy that's been expressed,
but it is important for nations to know that the United States,
President Bush, expects them to do more.
Q Well, where do you see Lebanon falling
into? Are they in the category of some countries will be
more comfortable doing certain things than others will, or do they fall
into the you're either with us or you're against us?
MR. FLEISCHER: I think it will be up to the President to
start determining anything on a nation-by-nation basis. And
when he decides to do so, he will share that information.
Q Ari, there are several administration
officials who are still holding out hope that the President's
faith-based package can still get through the Congress in one form or
-- the Senate side this year. Does the President share that
hope? And how realistic is it at this late date, with
everything else on the plate on Capitol Hill, that it will get done?
MR. FLEISCHER: Well, I think the prospects for
legislative action on the Hill, when you go down the line beyond the
immediate needs that the President has called for, which are the
stimulus, so people can get back to work, enacted by November 30th, the
wrapping up of the appropriation bills, the important work of the
education legislation, so that the President can sign it into law, I
think a lot depends on when Congress decides they are going to leave
town. And that's a difficult call, because Congress can do a
lot of good for the country when they go home, by speaking to their
constituents about the war against terrorism, and showing how united
our country is.
The President would like to see the faith-based legislation get
done, and he'll continue to call on Congress to do it. It's
unclear what the Congress will do on that one at this time.
Q What does the White House, particularly
what does the President make of the public debate over whether or not
General Franks is carrying out the war in an appropriate manner and at
an appropriate pace?
MR. FLEISCHER: The President expressed to the American
people last night his satisfaction with the manner in which the war is
being carried out. The President has nothing but high praise
for the men and women of the Armed Forces, from the privates to the
generals, from all those who are waging this war. And I
think the President made that clear last night.
Q It would also be true, would it not, that
the Pentagon is actually in charge of the war plan, not a single
general, even from the Central Command?
MR. FLEISCHER: Well, there's no doubt that it's a team
of people who are involved. And General Franks is a very
good part of that team.
Q How many bilaterals is President Bush
going to have in New York?
MR. FLEISCHER: Have we not released that list
yet? Okay, that list is coming out, and --
Q Approximately?
MR. JOHNDROE: Several.
Q Seven?
MR. JOHNDROE: Several.
Q Oh, several.
MR. FLEISCHER: Yes, and there will be several
pull-asides, there will be some bilateral meetings, there will be
pull-asides. There will be a lot of nations gathering, he'll be meeting
with a lot of people.
Q Thank you.
MR. FLEISCHER: Week ahead?
Q Oh, week ahead. Please, could I
have the week ahead, Ari?
MR. FLEISCHER: The week ahead. Thank
you. Somebody reminded me about the need for the week
ahead. I never would have thought of it myself.
Tomorrow the President travels to New York City, to address the
United Nations General Assembly, and to have several bilateral
meetings. We will release details later
today. Did you two coordinate this? On Sunday,
the President has additional meetings with world leaders. He
will attend a Veterans Day breakfast, and a memorial at the World Trade
Center site.
On Tuesday, the President welcomes Russian Federation President
Vladimir Putin to the White House for an official working
visit. They will have meetings in the Oval Office, lunch in
the residence, and a news
conference in the East Room in the afternoon.
President and Mrs. Bush will welcome President and Mrs. Putin to
their home at the ranch in Crawford, Texas, on
Wednesday. Mr. and Mrs. Putin will remain overnight at the
ranch, and depart on Thursday. We will have additional
details on the Crawford portion of the visit a little later on.
We will see you next week in Texas, and we will see you in New York
this weekend.
Q -- Crawford is a down weekend -- Friday
and the weekend in Crawford?
MR. FLEISCHER: We will have additional --
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1:53 P.M. EST
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