For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
March 1, 2004
Press Briefing by Scott McClellan
The James S. Brady Briefing Room
1:20 P.M. EST
MR. McCLELLAN: Good afternoon. I will begin with one update on a
world leader call. The President spoke earlier today with President
Aznar of Spain. This is part of the continuing consultation among
close friends. The President discussed the situation in Haiti and
President Aznar discussed his recent trip to Colombia, as well as the
situation in Venezuela and transatlantic relations.
And with that, I will be glad to take your questions. Yes, sir,
Terry -- you can go first today.
Q Thank you. Can you describe what the United States knows
about the conditions under which President Aristide left Haiti? Do we
know, did he leave of his own? Was he forcibly --
MR. McCLELLAN: No, that's nonsense. I would just say -- I've seen
some of the reports. Conspiracy theories do nothing to help the
Haitian people move forward to a better, more free and more prosperous
future. Mr. Aristide said in his statement -- it was a little bit
more than this, but he said, "Tonight I'm resigning in order to avoid a
bloodbath. I accept to leave with the hope that there will be life,
and not death."
We took steps to protect Mr. Aristide and his family so they would
not be harmed as they departed Haiti.
Q So it's your understanding it was entirely his decision?
MR. McCLELLAN: Yes.
Q It was not -- and did the United States at any point say that
it would not protect him if he stayed? And that there was -- you know,
as this threat closed in, that withdrew any idea of supporting him?
MR. McCLELLAN: I don't know what that's referring to, Terry. I
have no idea what that's referring to.
Q Well, the idea is that some of his security people were told
the United States would not protect him if there was trouble.
MR. McCLELLAN: As you will recall, we were actively engaged with
our international partners to bring about a democratic, constitutional
and peaceful solution to the situation in Haiti. That's where we
were. Obviously, there are a lot of events that were of Mr. Aristide's
own making that led to the political crisis in Haiti to begin with.
Q Just following on Terry's point, Congresswoman Maxine Waters
told us that she had spoken directly with Aristide, who claims that --
over and over again saying he was kidnapped, that the coup was
completed by the Americans, they forced him out, they disabled his
American security force; basically saying that he did not resign, he
was forced out, America completed the coup. How would you characterize
those statements?
MR. McCLELLAN: I think I just answered Terry's question to that
effect. As I said, it's nonsense. And conspiracy theories like that
do nothing to help the Haitian people realize the future that they
aspire to -- which is a better future, a more free future, and a more
prosperous future. We took steps to protect Mr. Aristide. We took
steps to protect his family as they departed Haiti. It was Mr.
Aristide's decision to resign, and he spelled out his reasons why.
Q Yes, but there were some third-party reports that were coming
out of Haiti, which could be specious, as they go up the telephone
chain, but this is coming directly from Aristide. What do you think
he's up to here? Is he trying to save face?
MR. McCLELLAN: I don't speak for Mr. Aristide, I speak for the
President and this administration.
Q Are you denying -- are you denying that he was kidnapped?
MR. McCLELLAN: Yes, I just said it's complete nonsense.
(Laughter.)
Q Why don't you just say it didn't -- it's not true?
MR. McCLELLAN: I think I just did. I just said it's complete
nonsense.
Go ahead.
Q What steps were taken to protect him? And could this have
been -- well, misconstrued by Aristide?
MR. McCLELLAN: One, again, I've only seen the report that John
referenced, so you all might want to check further into that
yourselves. But it was Saturday evening that President Aristide's
office contacted Ambassador Foley, our ambassador in Haiti. And they
asked at that point if Mr. Aristide resigned, would the United States
be able to protect him, his family, and his property. And they also
asked if we could help facilitate his departure.
Ambassador Foley, at that point, contacted the Department of State
and consulted with both Secretary Powell and Assistant Secretary
Noriega. And following that consultation, Ambassador Foley called back
to Mr. Aristide's office to say that if he decided to leave, the
United States could facilitate his departure, and we did.
Q Scott, given the failure of U.S. policy in the past -- not
this administration necessarily, but others going way back -- in Haiti
to make that a stable, prosperous country, is the President more
hopeful now? Has the United States learned lessons from the past?
MR. McCLELLAN: Well, I think you point out something. One, right
now, our focus remains on bringing about a democratic and
constitutional resolution to the situation in Haiti, and helping to
bring about order and stability in the country. We are working on what
is in the best interest of the Haitian people, as expressed by the
Haitian people.
I think the events that you referenced have been a long time in the
making -- the political stalemate which followed the flawed 2000
legislative elections was central to the crisis. But at the most basic
level, recent events were rooted in Mr. Aristide's choices as a leader,
in the way he exercised the power of his office. And so that's why we
pointed out over the weekend that this was a long-simmering crisis,
largely of Mr. Aristide's making. He failed to adhere to democratic
principles, which contributed to the deep polarization and violence in
Haiti, and his own actions called into question his fitness and ability
to continue to govern Haiti.
Go ahead.
Q Speak now to -- not to Haitian policy, but to American policy
in Haiti. Has the President looked back and said, well, you know, my
predecessors, maybe even I have made some mistakes? Many people say
that the Clinton administration pulled out of Haiti too soon, and that
led to the unrest there, enabled Aristide to be more corrupt. Are
there lessons that George Bush has learned from the past? Are things
going to be done differently now? Is there a reason for more optimism
now?
MR. McCLELLAN: Certainly, we learn from the past. We have
contributed significant manpower, time and resources to Haiti over the
past 10 years, as you pointed out. From 1995 to 2003, we provided more
than $850 million in direct bilateral assistance to Haiti, and more
than $50 million in assistance is planned for this year. We have been
an active partner in international efforts to help facilitate the flow
of international development funds to support an ORGANIZATION OF
AMERICAN STATES -- Organization of American States -- presence in Haiti
and to stand up a Haitian national police force and the Haitian Coast
Guard, and to hold and monitor a series of elections, as well as
improving the human rights situation and provide humanitarian
assistance to the Haitian people.
And that's why now we are continuing to focus on moving forward
toward a better future for the Haitian people. We're working closely
with our international partners -- I mentioned the Caribbean Community,
and they had a prior action plan, which called on specific steps to be
taken to improve the situation.
We'll be working with the Organization of American States. We'll
be working with the United Nations. The United Nations just yesterday,
passed a Security Council resolution calling for support for these
efforts. And so we're all working together to help the Haitian
people.
Q And there's not something about Haiti that just makes it a
hopeless case?
MR. McCLELLAN: We believe that working with the international
community, we can help bring about a more lasting democracy for Haiti's
future.
Q Scott, three weeks ago, the administration was stressing the
fact that Aristide's was a democratically-elected government. Two days
ago, you began saying that Aristide had failed as a leader. What
changed over that time period to shift your focus?
MR. McCLELLAN: Well, Wendell, I think we always said from the
outset, we were working closely with the international community to
bring about a constitutional, negotiated and democratic solution to the
situation in Haiti. You can go back to the -- at the very beginning
when we started talking about this very issue.
And I would point out that our diplomatic efforts, working closely
with international partners and through multilateral institutions --
like CARICOM and the Organization of American States and the United
Nations -- helped preserve Haiti's constitutional government, stemmed
the tide of an armed rebellion, saved lives through humanitarian
assistance and quick interdiction and repatriation of migrants, and
strengthened the international community's commitment to democracy in
Haiti
Q I'm not sure -- I'm not sure that's what I asked. What I'm
asking is what changed over that time period to shift your focus?
MR. McCLELLAN: I'm sorry?
Q Your focus initially was on?
MR. McCLELLAN: Our focus was always on a political solution. And
it was important -- we always said that it's important that there be a
viable, political solution in place. I think other nations stressed
the importance of having that in place, and as soon as that was in
place, we were prepared to act with our international partners, and
they were prepared to act, as well. We achieved a peaceful, democratic,
and constitutional resolution to the situation in Haiti.
Q Okay, and if I can go back to --
MR. McCLELLAN: Obviously, there were -- there was -- the rebels
had started moving throughout the country. There was ongoing
violence. There was an inability to stem the flow of that violence,
and the rebels moving on Port-au-Prince. There was actions by Mr.
Aristide, as I pointed out, that was largely responsible for leading to
the current crisis in Haiti.
Q And if I can follow Terry's question just one more time, did
Aristide leave Haiti of his own free will?
MR. McCLELLAN: Yes.
Q Scott, on that same issue, at least three highly respected
persons say they've talked to Jean-Bertrand Aristide, and he said
things like, forced to leave by U.S. military, he was kidnapped. We're
hearing this on that side. Can you give us the description, the
details of everything that happened, since you're saying that he was
not kidnapped, or he was not --
MR. McCLELLAN: I just did. I talked about how Ambassador Foley
reported back to Mr. Aristide's office. After that, Mr. Aristide
consulted with his family about his decision, and it was around 11:00
p.m. when Mr. Aristide -- or his office, at least -- informed us that
he would be resigning and leaving the country. He drafted and signed
his letter of resignation, which was passed on to the Haitian supreme
court. And then he went from the palace to his residence, and then to
the airport in the company of his personal security.
Q Under his personal security, no U.S. military presence at
all?
MR. McCLELLAN: Well, again, the military presence that we had in
Haiti at the time was at the embassy. He went through his own personal
security. That's the way I would describe it.
Q He's saying U.S. military physically forced him --
MR. McCLELLAN: And I just said that's nonsense, April. I've
answered this question three times now.
Q Okay, I have another question, somewhat linked. Many persons
are saying that the United States government promotes democracy all
around the world, but when it came to Haiti, we just walked away.
MR. McCLELLAN: No, actually, we came to a democratic and
constitutional resolution of the situation in Haiti. And now we are
working to move forward to help the Haitian people realize a better
future and a more free future. It was the actions of Mr. Aristide, in
large part, that led to the current political crisis in Haiti. I just
talked about some of the actions by Mr. Aristide. He failed to adhere
to the democratic principles and his obligations called for under the
CARICOM plan.
Q After meeting with President Bush last week, the
Congressional Black Caucus is now saying they're disappointed, because
they did not expect for Aristide to leave.
MR. McCLELLAN: Well, we have worked with the international
community and with multilateral organizations to help bring about a
peaceful and democratic and constitutional resolution to the situation
in Haiti.
I think you have to -- again, let's put this in context. Sometimes
people lose faith in their leaders. Sometimes people lose faith in the
ability of their leaders to govern effectively. This is not the first
time that this has happened. It certainly happened in our own
country.
Q I have two questions for you, Scott. First of all, you say
you provided security to get him to the airport. Did he fly out of
Haiti in an American plane?
MR. McCLELLAN: It was a contract -- the plane was contracted for,
but the United States funded it.
Q Second question: Did the United States decide where to fly
him to? I understand he's in the Central African Nation -- and was
that his own choice?
MR. McCLELLAN: Yes, that is his choice, and the choice of the
country to which he would choose to travel.
Q Scott, so is that his final destination, then? And did he at
any point request to exile in the United States? And, if so, would we
have granted it?
MR. McCLELLAN: Well, one, in terms of his final destination,
that's a decision for Mr. Aristide and the country to which he would
choose to travel.
Q Did he ask -- ever request exile in the United States?
MR. McCLELLAN: You can check with the State Department to see if
there's anything of that nature. That's not my understanding, but I
would double-check that with the State Department.
Q Just on the same time line thing, not to go over it for yet
another time, but the resignation letter appears to have been dated
Saturday. Is it your understanding that his resignation actually took
place Saturday and that the evacuation of him then took place on
Sunday? And, secondly, did I understand you correctly to say that at
no point were U.S. forces involved in actually escorting him from the
palace or the residence to the airport?
MR. McCLELLAN: It's my understanding that he was in the company of
his own personal security team.
Q And only in their company?
MR. McCLELLAN: Well, you can double-check with State Department if
there's any more, but the whole issue of what you're getting to I've
already addressed, I think.
Q And there were no U.S. forces with him on the plane on the
way out?
MR. McCLELLAN: I do not believe so. And I would double-check with
State Department or others to make sure on that.
Q His resignation took effect when?
MR. McCLELLAN: Well, I don't know the exact time, but he certainly
-- it was around 11:00 p.m. when he informed us that he would be
resigning and leaving the country. And that's when he drafted and
signed his letter of resignation, sent it to the Haitian Supreme Court,
as the constitution calls for. And then that was -- after that period
was when he left his residence and went to the airport in the company
of his security team.
Q Did Ambassador Foley see him personally that night, Saturday
night?
MR. McCLELLAN: You can double-check with State Department. He was
certainly in contact with his office that night. The plane arrived at
approximately 4:30 a.m. in the morning to take Mr. Aristide and others
out of the country. And it departed sometime after 6:30 a.m., Sunday.
That's the time line that I have.
Q You said that forces were -- U.S. forces were not involved as
he left the --
MR. McCLELLAN: Are we now coming -- we're now taking questions
coming back to the same person? Or are we going to keep going around
the room?
Q Scott, I'm a little confused, because you said we took steps
to protect him as he left Haiti. If our forces were not around him as
he left, then what were the steps we took to protect him?
MR. McCLELLAN: You can talk to the State Department about some of
those specifics.
Go ahead.
Q Can we stay on Haiti?
Q Can we stay on this topic?
MR. McCLELLAN: Yes.
Q You said earlier that sometimes people lose faith in their
leaders. Can you say at what point and on what basis the
administration concluded that faith had been lost in Aristide?
MR. McCLELLAN: Well, I think the Haitian people expressed the loss
of faith. It was the Haitian people that were expressing a lost faith
in the leader of Haiti.
Q And you talked about the principals meeting Saturday --
MR. McCLELLAN: President Aristide acted -- decided to act in the
best interest of the Haitian people.
Q Scott, on Haiti?
Q Scott, you talked about the principals meeting Saturday
morning. Was the decision made at that meeting, it was time to pull
the plug on him?
MR. McCLELLAN: Time to -- I'm sorry. You have the statement that
was put out by, under my name on Saturday. And I think that addressed
the question at that time.
Q Scott, in --
MR. McCLELLAN: Is this on Haiti?
Q Yes, it is. Yes.
MR. McCLELLAN: Okay.
Q Yes. In 1994, a fleet of what I recall was more than 50
U.S. Navy ships, including carriers, was sent to Haiti to restore the
exiled President Aristide, who was a public advocate of "necklacing."
And my question, has the White House heard any expression of regret or
apology for this from President Clinton? And I have a follow-up.
MR. McCLELLAN: Les, we're focused on this administration, and
moving forward for the Haitian people. That's where our focus is. If
you have questions about a previous administration, you can direct it
to other people.
Q Scott, how does the President believe we can stop the problem
of out-sourcing that is sending --
MR. McCLELLAN: We're staying on Haiti. I'll come back to you if
you have other questions. Do you have Haiti --
Q Yes, it's on -- back on your time line. Who is it that gave
permission for the plane to land in Haiti? Was that Aristide,
himself?
MR. McCLELLAN: Gave permission for the plane to land at the
airport?
Q Gave permission, presumably, yes.
MR. McCLELLAN: You can double-check with our embassy or with State
Department on that matter.
Q Well, it would be a crucial question, if it was done with the
Aristide or his government's --
MR. McCLELLAN: Well, look -- but, I mean, the question here goes
to the larger question that Terry asked at the very beginning, which I
said was absolute nonsense, and how that does nothing to help bring
about a more free and better and more prosperous future for the Haitian
people.
If you have more detailed specifics like that, you can direct it to
the embassy or the State Department.
Q Scott, on Haiti, there are stories that he's going be going
to South Africa, ultimately. Do you have any information?
MR. McCLELLAN: I think I just addressed that, but I said that
that's a decision for Mr. Aristide and the country to which he would
want to travel.
Q Also, there are numerous reports that he's absconded with
quite a bit of money. Does the U.S. know anything about that?
MR. McCLELLAN: I don't have any details on that.
Haiti?
Q Yes.
MR. McCLELLAN: Go ahead.
Q You said -- two questions, one of them factual. You said
that to your knowledge there were no U.S. forces on the plane with him
as he left.
MR. McCLELLAN: That's right.
Q You also said that the United States took steps to protect
him as he left.
MR. McCLELLAN: Right, right.
Q I know Kathleen asked you this and you said check with State,
but obviously --
MR. McCLELLAN: That was one of the things that he asked,
initially, when I spelled out the time line.
Q But you must -- you wouldn't have said it if you didn't have
some knowledge of what those steps were --
MR. McCLELLAN: I've talked to the State Department and our embassy
folks about this, and so --
Q I'm asking what --
MR. McCLELLAN: And you can direct that -- well, you can direct
that question to the State Department or the embassy about specific
steps. But I think, obviously, you have to get a plane in there and
get a plane out of there safely. So --
Q So he was directly protecting the plane, not the person?
MR. McCLELLAN: Well, no -- no, as I said, Ken, you can talk to the
State Department and get more specifics on that, or to the embassy.
Q Second question on Haiti, a little -- a short time ago you
said that -- you said that Aristide departed from the democratic path.
That could certainly be said with equal justice of the opposition that
has been opposing him violently over the last two weeks.
MR. McCLELLAN: Well, there's -- let's make a distinction here.
You have some of the gangs and armed thugs, then you also have the
democratic opposition, and then you have the government of Haiti. So
let's make that distinction. And I would point out that it was Mr.
Aristide, himself, who armed some of the gangs to help -- in order to
bring -- you know, to have more control over the Haitian people.
Q I understand that. All I'm saying is that there is an armed
opposition that's been trying to drive him out of power. Why wasn't
the United States' message to that armed opposition, look, we may share
some of your concerns about Aristide, but you need to wait two years
for the next presidential election, put down your --
MR. McCLELLAN: We continue -- well, no, we urged an end to the
violence. We urged all parties to work together to bring about a
peaceful, political solution. We worked very closely with the
Caribbean Community, with the Organization of American States, with
France and Canada and the United Nations. There is an international
community team that was working together on these efforts to bring
about a viable political solution, so then we could send a team in
there and provide a security presence as we worked to bring about more
order and stability in the country for the Haitian people, and help to
provide humanitarian assistance. That remains a high priority for us,
as well.
Q Why wasn't a part of that political solution waiting until
the next election? A lot of other things, as well -- but wait until
the next election --
MR. McCLELLAN: Well, I think I pointed out how sometimes people
lose faith in their leaders. And I think you saw the Haitian people
losing faith in their leader. It was a leader that was not adhering to
his obligations under the CARICOM plan, was not adhering to his
democratic principles that were enshrined in the constitution. You
have now a democratic constitutional process that is working, that is
moving forward. So we helped preserve a democratic and constitutional
government by the action that we took, along with the international
community.
And I would point out that the request for the security presence
was at the request of the interim government of Haiti.
Q Scott?
MR. McCLELLAN: Go ahead, Nora.
Q If Aristide resigned at 11:00 p.m., why didn't Dr. Rice call
the President until 1:30 a.m.?
MR. McCLELLAN: Again, this -- I think you're talking about the
time in Haiti at the point -- and, obviously, she called him a short
time after that.
Q But that's several hours afterwards. Was there something in
between --
MR. McCLELLAN: No, I don't think so. I think it was -- again,
contacts were being made and she informed him pretty soon after.
Q So you mean 11:00 p.m., Haiti time?
MR. McCLELLAN: I believe so, but I would have to double-check
that, Bob.
Q Scott, why did President Aristide contact the United States
about his decision to resign and not the OAS or the U.N. and ask for
them to --
MR. McCLELLAN: Well, he did inform the embassy. As I pointed out,
he talked to Ambassador Foley. His office talked to Ambassador Foley.
Q Why the U.S. and why not one of the international agencies
that's been working --
MR. McCLELLAN: Well, I think for the reasons that I stated, that
he wanted to make sure that his family -- he and his family would be
protected, his property would be protected. For the reasons that I
stated.
Q Couldn't those other agencies have protected him?
MR. McCLELLAN: You would have to ask -- you can ask him.
Q Scott, this is related to Haiti. The President has made a
very big deal in the context of the war on terrorism to promote
democracy around the world. Given the administration's track record on
Haiti, on Venezuela, when Hugo Chavez was in some difficulty, on Taiwan
and others, isn't there a contradiction that needs to be explained?
MR. McCLELLAN: How?
Q In terms of not sufficiently supporting democratic
government.
MR. McCLELLAN: We are supporting democracy, and we are supporting
the constitutional process in Haiti by the actions that we're taking.
In fact, we're working through the international community. This is a
multinational effort that has been underway. The United Nations
Security Council passed a resolution supporting the efforts. It was
important that there be a viable political solution in place before we
could go in with the international community in a multinational
security force to bring about order and stability in the country.
Q Scott, one more on Haiti?
MR. McCLELLAN: Go ahead.
Q How safe do you think Ambassador Foley and the Americans at
the embassy are?
MR. McCLELLAN: We take all those precautions. That's why we had a
team of Marines that went in there -- over a week ago, I guess -- to
provide security to the embassy and to the people in the embassy.
Q Do you have a count on how many Marines are in there now?
MR. McCLELLAN: You can direct those questions to the Pentagon.
Haiti still?
Q Yes, Scott, on Haiti. You mentioned that about $50 million
in aid was planned for Haiti this year. Is there any thought being
given to increasing that amount to beef-up its economic structure, or
anything? Or anything as a result --
MR. McCLELLAN: There's nothing to report at this point, Roger. I
just would reemphasize to everybody here that this marks a new chapter
for the people of Haiti, and it marks a new opportunity for the people
of Haiti to build a better, more hopeful, more free and more prosperous
future. This is a time for the Haitian people, with the help and
support of the international community, including the United States, to
seize this opportunity to rebuild their country and end years of deep
polarization and violence. And that's where our focus is.
Q Do you know what kind of aid that is, $50 million?
MR. McCLELLAN: The State Department could give you a breakdown of
that.
Haiti? Are we off Haiti? Okay, we're off Haiti, go ahead.
Q Do you have any reaction to the European Union imposing
millions of dollars in sanctions, beginning today, on U.S. goods, until
the Congress repeals the export tax break bill?
MR. McCLELLAN: I'm not sure if they -- I mean, they are scheduled
to be imposed today -- the tariffs, that is, that you referenced. And
over the next year they grow and impose an increasing burden on
American exporters and their workers. We urge Congress to act quickly
and replace the FSC ETI with tax provisions that end the threat of
these tariffs and promote the competitiveness of American manufacturers
and other job-creating sectors of the United States economy.
The relevant congressional committees have reported out legislation
to comply with the WTO ruling. The Senate Majority Leader will attempt
to bring this legislation to the floor, beginning this week. And we
commend the efforts and support in moving this process along. We've
been working closely with Congress to comply with the ruling.
Q Do you think there's a consensus in Congress on how to move
on this -- from the Senate?
MR. McCLELLAN: Well, they're two different chambers, as you know,
that have acted on legislation to comply with the ruling, and now we
will continue working closely with Congress and we urge them to act
quickly and replace those -- the FSC ETI with tax provisions that end
the threat of these tariffs.
Q Scott, talk about democracy in Iraq as they go for the new
constitution, which countries are playing a role, and also what role
the United Nations is playing, after all those spying roles - against
the U.N. Secretary General and all that.
Also, finally, there's hardly any democracy in the Muslim or Arab
worlds. Why then going after those countries or kingdoms that's
pressing their people by force and under dictatorships, under
kingdoms?
MR. McCLELLAN: Well, actually, we are working with other countries
to promote freedom and democracy in the Middle East. I'd refer you
back to our greater Middle East initiative that the President
outlined.
In terms of Iraq, I think it's important to point out the recently
agreed to transitional law, the interim constitution, by the Iraqi
Governing Council. They will sign this interim constitution on
Wednesday. It represents a significant step forward toward a free and
democratic Iraq. Democracy is taking root in Iraq, and this is a major
step forward for the Iraqi people.
Q What kind of government is that -- is it Afghanistan style,
or Europe style, or American style, or Asia --
MR. McCLELLAN: That's up to the Iraqi people to decide the future
of their government. But this interim constitution, that was approved
unanimously by the Iraqi Governing Council, is an historic day for the
people of Iraq. It has a bill of rights that is the cornerstone of
that constitution, and it protects individual rights. It provides for
freedom of religion and worship, the right to free expression, to
peacefully assemble, to organize political parties, and to form and
join unions. It guarantees the right to peacefully demonstrate, and it
calls for people to be treated equally under the law. So it's an
historic day for the Iraqi people, and you're seeing democracy take
root in Iraq now.
Q Do you think that will be the end of violence and terrorism?
MR. McCLELLAN: Well, again, there is still some former regime
members and foreign terrorists who are in the country who are enemies
of freedom and democracy in Iraq. They're enemies of the Iraqi
people. We continue to take the fight to those holdouts and foreign
terrorists and bring them to justice. The Iraqi people, themselves,
are doing more and more to provide for their own security and they are
the leading contributor to their own security.
Q In Ed's question about Haiti, he brought up Venezuela. The
pro-Castro government of Hugo Chavez in Venezuela is coming under
increasing pressure to agree that recall election or to resign. Chavez
has complained of American meddling in internal Venezuelan affairs and
has threatened to cut off oil to -- oil shipments to the United
States. What is it that we are doing to -- that he is accusing us
of? Are we doing any of these --
MR. McCLELLAN: Well, talking about democracy, there is a
democratic constitutional process underway in Venezuela. And that's
where the focus should be. The focus should remain on the efforts by
the Venezuelan people to exercise their constitutional and democratic
rights, and on the efforts to try to resolve the political polarization
through a transparent and internationally monitored presidential recall
referendum.
The Organization of American States, including the United States,
is working in Venezuela to monitor those events. And that's where the
focus should be.
Q It seems like the observers have kind of reached their limit
now, and it's my understanding that they're going to leave.
MR. McCLELLAN: We continue to support the democratic
constitutional process in Venezuela --
Q Are we going to help Hugo Chavez the same way that we helped
Aristide?
MR. McCLELLAN: Different situations.
Q Scott, let me just briefly ask you about tomorrow's homeland
security observance. Can you give us an idea what to expect there?
And does the President think that establishing Homeland Security has
really transformed America's ability to defend the homeland in the way
that he really intended when it started out?
MR. McCLELLAN: The Department of Homeland Security has taken some
significant steps to make America more secure and make -- and protect
the American people. The best way to win the war on terrorism
continues to be to take the fight to the enemy and bring them to
justice before they can carry out their attacks. But we also must work
to make sure that we are doing everything we can to protect the
American people here at home. And we are taking unprecedented measures
to secure the homeland and be prepared to respond to any terrorist
attack that may come.
That is why the Department of Homeland Security was created. It
was the largest reorganization of federal government in 50 years. And
what it did was take 22 agencies and put them together to make sure
that their number one priority was protecting the homeland and
protecting the American people.
And so we have made significant progress in our efforts to secure
the homeland. Our Homeland Security officials are working 24/7 to make
sure we are doing everything we can to protect the American people. We
will not rest. And this is our highest responsibility, the protection
of the American people.
Q Scott, how does the President believe we can best stop the
very serious problem of outsourcing and sending so many American jobs
overseas? And what is the reaction to the Clinton $160 million
Presidential Library's ordering nearly $1 million worth of cabinets
from Scotland?
MR. McCLELLAN: Well, you just stated something, I'll let that
stand where it is. The President is focused on creating as robust an
environment for job creation here at home. Our focus is -- our focus
--
Q But he's focused on jobs --
MR. McCLELLAN: Les, let me finish. Let me finish. Our focus is
on creating jobs here at home. And one way to do that is to promote
free and fair trade around the world. Free trade is an important part
of strengthening our economy and expanding job growth here at home. So
the President is committed to opening markets around the world.
American workers are the best in the world and they can compete with
anybody in the world when there is a level playing field.
I would point out to you that because of the policies that we are
pursuing, you have more companies coming to -- foreign companies coming
to America, investing here, and hiring American workers because they
are the best workers in the world.
And so we will -- we will continue to work to expand trade. We
will also make sure that -- and this is important -- we are in a
changing economy. We see that our economy is growing strong and
continues to pick up steam. But there is more to do. And in a
changing economy, we need to make sure that our workers are prepared to
fill the jobs of the 21st century. There are a lot of high-growth
sectors in our economy, such as the health care sector. And we need to
make sure workers are trained with the skills to fill those
high-paying, high-skilled jobs. Wages are up. There is still more to
do to strengthen our economy, and that's why the President is
continuing to urge Congress to act on his six-point plan.
Q Scott, following on that, if I could? Does the President
agree with the argument made by some economists that the effect of
outsourcing on the overall job market in America is negligible and may,
in fact, lead to more high-paying jobs in this country?
MR. McCLELLAN: John, I think we've been through this issue, when
this came up a couple weeks ago, and I think I addressed it at that
point.
Q But since then, some economists are going back and looking at
the statements that have been made and saying what's the kerfuffle
about, because this really does have a negligible impact on American
jobs and may, in fact, lead to the creation of more high-paying jobs
here in America.
MR. McCLELLAN: And the President is focused on creating jobs here
at home. And I just talked about where our focus is. That's where the
President's focus is.
Q Does the President take some comfort in that argument? Does
he agree with that argument?
MR. McCLELLAN: The President believes it's important to create
jobs here at home. I'll let economists speak for themselves.
Q Scott, the Supreme Court has referred to Justice Scalia a
request that he recuse himself from a case about Vice President
Cheney's energy task force, because of their recent duck hunting trip.
Have you a reaction to this?
MR. McCLELLAN: I think that I'll leave it to the Justice to
address that matter, as he has.
Q Scott, there have been reports that the White House is
pushing for an athletic summit on steroids, and that the players'
associations have been pushing against that. Do you have anything to
--
MR. McCLELLAN: Well, obviously, you heard the President talk about
that important issue in the State of the Union address, and the
importance of addressing that matter in sports. And he remains
committed to it.
In terms of discussions that may be going on about future events,
those may just be some staff-level discussions. I don't know -- I
don't know of anything that's planned at this point.
Q Is there --
MR. McCLELLAN: I've looked. I don't know of anything that's
planned at this point.
Q Scott, back on the EU tariffs for a moment. You said that
there was an increasing burden on American exporters if it continued
on. Is the White House concerned, is the President concerned, then,
that it might have an impact on port jobs? Or is it large enough, or
have -- would it have a consequence of raising, perhaps, the
unemployment rate? Is it that severe?
MR. McCLELLAN: Well, where our focus is, is on working with
Congress to make sure we're complying with the ruling. That's where
our focus is. So I think others can analyze all the different economic
impacts of it.
Go ahead, Helen.
Q Is the President in favor of extending the ban on assault
weapons? Is he in favor of child-safety locks? And is he in favor of
suing gun manufacturers for injured -- by injured people?
MR. McCLELLAN: There are several questions within that one. I
would point out that when it comes to crimes committed with guns, that
the President believes the best way to crack down on such crimes is to
strictly enforce our laws. And that's exactly what this administration
has done. Federal firearms prosecutions have increased 68 percent in
the past three years. Federal gun prosecutions have increased
significantly every year under Project Safe Neighborhoods, which is an
initiative the President outlined early in this administration. In
fact, he talked about it during the campaign.
But Project Safe Neighborhoods is the President's comprehensive
strategy to vigorously enforce existing gun laws and deter gun
violence. And it is an effort that coordinates with federal, state and
local law enforcement prosecutors and community leaders to reduce
crimes committed with guns. And it provides locally based programs
with the tools and resources they need to succeed.
Now, in terms of -- you brought up the gun manufacturing liability
issue. The President views that as a lawsuit reform issue. It's about
stopping frivolous lawsuits. The President believes that the
manufacturer or seller of a legal product should not be held liable for
the criminal misuse of that product by others. So I think this is part
of our efforts to stop lawsuit abuse and bring some more sanity to our
civil justice system.
Q Thank you.
MR. McCLELLAN: Thank you.
END 2:00 P.M. EST
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