For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
April 1, 2002
President Discusses Middle East with Reporters
Remarks by the President in Photo Opportunity with New York Governor George Pataki and New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg
The Oval Office
11:15 A.M. EST
THE PRESIDENT: I have just informed the Governor and the
Mayor, the Governor of New York and the Mayor of New York City, that
the federal government will transfer Governor's Island to the people of
New York. I'll never forget choppering over Governor's
Island with George and Rudy Giuliani, Mike Bloomberg's predecessor, and
the two leaders talking about what good use Governor's Island could be
put to.
Since that time, I've studied the statements of Mayor Bloomberg,
who extensively talked about Governor's Island and how to improve
Governor's Island and how to make it a center of educational
excellence, something dear to George Pataki's heart. I
looked at the law, looked at the circumstances and decided this morning
that this was the right thing for the U.S. government and it's the
right thing for the people of New York.
I appreciate so very much the vision of these two leaders and I
appreciate their heartfelt concern for the citizens of New York City
and the region. And so I want to welcome to the Oval Office
with this piece of news. George, why don't you say a few
words?
GOVERNOR PATAKI: Mr. President, first, on behalf of the
people of New York, thank you. This is great news for New
York. For decades, New Yorkers have sought to have control
over Governor's Island so we could use it in an intelligent way to
advance the interest of New Yorkers. And now you are doing
it.
And I remember very well that flight in the helicopter and that
very sad and emotional day, and how you took the interest in Governor's
Island. And, Mr. President, we have said to you that we're
going to bring back Lower Manhattan stronger than it was on September
11th, with the resources you've provided, with having kept your word on
what you're going to do for New York, and now going beyond that to
transfer Governor's Island to the people of New York. I'll
tell you, it's just a tremendous thing.
Mike and I had the chance Friday afternoon to go over and tour
Governor's Island. And we have a vision as to a bold
educational use for that island that will be tremendous for the people
of New York, for the school children of New York. And, Mr.
President, again, thank you. You have done more for New York
than I believe any President in memory.
THE PRESIDENT: Thank you. Mike?
MAYOR BLOOMBERG: Mr. President, thank you so much for
this. I think not only is it a commitment to New York, but
it is a commitment to education. You have the right to claim
to be the education President as much as anybody in modern
memory. I think the Governor has been phenomenally
supportive of education throughout New York State and been very helpful
in New York City. It is my big concern.
We need more trained teachers and we need more
classrooms. We need to improve our university
system. This will allow us to do all three by putting part
of City University, one of the flagships of New York, over on
Governor's Island. That will free up space so that we can
solve some of our space problems throughout the public school system,
where we have just too big class sizes for the children's good.
The Governor has for a long time tried to do something to reduce
class sizes. We've never had the space
before. This will go to ameliorate that problem to a great
extent. It will let us focus on teacher
training. It will let us focus on smaller class
sizes. It will improve our City University and the public
school system where we educate America's future.
So on behalf of the governor and I, thank you. You could
not make a bigger impact, I don't think, on America going forward than
you can by this gesture. And we will use it wisely.
THE PRESIDENT: I know you will. Thanks.
I'll be glad to answer a few questions.
Q Mr. President, what specifically would you like for
Chairman Arafat to do, what specific action you'd like him to take in
the Middle East? And, in light of the current situation in
Israel, does the Bush doctrine on terrorism not apply in this case?
THE PRESIDENT: Well, first of all, there will never be
peace so long as there's terror. And all of us must fight
off -- fight terror. And you asked
about Chairman Arafat. I'd like to see Chairman Arafat
denounce the terrorist activities that are taking place, the constant
attacks.
We've got a plan that will lead to peace, the security plan called
Tenet, there's a political plan called Mitchell. Both sides
have agreed to this plan. And we urge the parties to accept
the Tenet plan so that we can bring some -- a
peaceful resolution to an issue that's affecting the lives of
Palestinians and Israelis alike. There's a lot of innocent
people who hurt in the region because of the senseless violence and
senseless murder.
Q Mr. President, I'd like to follow up on
Sonya's question. Under your doctrine, a
terrorist or someone who aids a terrorist is the equivalent of a
terrorist. So what's keeping Chairman
Arafat -- what's keeping you from labeling
Chairman Arafat a terrorist?
THE PRESIDENT: Chairman Arafat has agreed to a peace
process. He's agreed to the Tenet plan. He's
agreed to the Mitchell plan. He has negotiated with parties
as to how to achieve peace. And, of course, our hope is that
he accepts the Tenet plan. That's what General Zinni is in
the Middle East doing, working to get this Tenet agreement in place,
which is a series of concrete steps to reduce the violence in the
Middle East.
Q There were various calls on the Sunday talk shows for you
to become more actively involved in this process, sir. Is
there any way you would do that?
THE PRESIDENT: You know, they must have not been with me
in Crawford when I was on the phone all morning long talking to world
leaders. We've just come from a National Security Council
meeting where Colin Powell was recounting his phone
conversations. We've got General Zinni in the
region. We've got a Tenet plan, a Mitchell plan, a road map
to what will be a peaceful resolution to this issue.
I hope that the world community will continue to condemn
terror. And if they haven't condemned terror yet, start
condemning terror. It's essential for the peace of the
region and the world that we rout out terrorist activities, that we
condemn those activities. Suicide bombers in the name of
religion is simple terror. And the free world, the civilized
world must band together to stop this kind of activity if we expect
there to be peace and resolution in the Middle East.
Q You've made clear, sir, that you believe that Chairman
Arafat needs to do much more. Do you believe that Prime
Minister Sharon is doing all he can to foster peace in the region?
THE PRESIDENT: I think it's very important for the Prime
Minister to keep a pathway to peace open, to understand that on the one
hand, Israel should protect herself, and on the other hand, there ought
to be a pathway, the capacity to achieve a peaceful resolution to this
issue. It's important for Israel to understand
that. They've signed on to the Tenet agreement, and they
signed on to the Mitchell plan. And that is the pathway to
peace. And I believe Prime Minister Sharon still accepts
Tenet, and still accepts Mitchell as the way to achieve a peaceful
resolution.
I was very heartened a couple of weeks ago by the Saudi Arabia
Crown Prince, when he talked about the need for the Arab world to
recognize Israel's right to exist. It was a positive
development. There were some positive things that were
taking place in the region, until the terrorist suicide bombers start
killing innocent people.
Q Mr. President, why give the island now? Can you
tell us what --
THE PRESIDENT: Why now, right this second?
Q Well, why did you make the announcement today, and what
persuaded you to transfer the island to the city? And also,
was this in any way to help Governor Pataki in his reelection?
THE PRESIDENT: Well, listen, he doesn't need my help to
get re-elected, for starters. He's got a great
record. The people of New York are discerning
voters. Well, most of the time they're discerning
voters. (Laughter.) If you know what I
mean. (Laughter.)
Q No, what do you mean? (Laughter.)
THE PRESIDENT: Well, you're a smart guy. Read
between the lines. No, George Pataki has been a great
Governor for New York. I made the announcement today,
because I had finished the necessary study of the issue, to make sure
that we could transfer this property without congressional
action. And I believe I can do that. It took a
while to take a look at it.
It also requires -- I wanted to make sure
that the Governor and Mayor would be using this property for education
purposes. That's what the Mayor said he would do, the
Governor said he wanted to do that. They took a look at it
and decided this is what they wanted to do. And it makes a
lot of sense to me. And using it for education purposes will
make it easier for me to facilitate the transfer, by the way.
Q Mr. President, the previous administration didn't
want -- I was just wondering, what specifically
persuaded you?
THE PRESIDENT: Well, I took a look at it. I
mean, it's a good question. I took a look at
it. I listened to what George said; he's my
friend. I trust his judgment. I've known him for
a long time, and Rudy Giuliani as well, both of them were passionate in
their appeal for us to consider transferring Governor's Island.
And I knew Mike was very interested in enhancing the quality of
education in New York City. And I took a look at
it. I came back -- obviously, things
didn't happen quickly after September the 15th trip, because we had a
lot on our mind. But it took a while to work it through the
White House staff.
And it arrived on my desk sometime last week. And the
recommendation was that we could transfer this property, if that's what
I wanted to do. And it's something I want to do, because I
think it's going to make the life of a city that has been tragically
affected by killers and murderers better. And I think it
will enhance the quality of education for the people of New
York. And to me, that is a worthwhile and noble cause.
END
11:25 A.M. EST
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