President Discusses the Future Technology at White House Forum
Remarks by the President at the 21st Century High Tech Forum
Presidential Hall
Dwight David Eisenhower Executive Office Building
THE PRESIDENT: Thank you all. So I give Kvamme a salary, and he
leads a standing ovation. Thank you. (Laughter.)
Thank you all very much. I'm honored you're here. I particularly
want to thank our panelists for sharing their wisdom. And I want to
thank you all for taking time to come and visit about how to make sure
our nation is secure and strong and hopeful. I want to thank the
members of my Cabinet who are here, Evans and Elaine Chao. I want to
thank John Marburger for being here, as well.
You know, we -- these are extraordinary times. I remember
campaigning and somebody said, would you ever deficit spend? I said,
only if there was a war, or a recession, or a national emergency.
(Laughter.) I didn't think we were going to get the trifecta.
(Laughter.) But there's no doubt in my mind we can and will solve all
three. And one of the keys to recovery on the economic side is a
strong and vibrant high-tech industry. I know that; I understand the
importance of productivity gains and what it means for average
Americans.
My attitude is as long as somebody's not working, we've got a
problem. I know people here in Washington like to look at statistics,
and that's fine. But so long as somebody wants to work and can't find
work, people in government need to think about ways to expand economic
opportunity.
And one way to do so is to make sure that our country is still on
the cutting edge of productivity gains. There's a practical
application to high-tech, by the way, one that's really come home to
roost recently. And that is, you know, when it comes to the defense of
our country, our high-tech gains have made an enormous difference.
Let me take a step back. We fight an enemy which is cruel and
heartless and relentless. You just need to know that. And even though
we've made some progress -- and we have; as I said the other night,
we and our friends have hauled in about 2,400 of them -- there's
still a lot of them out there, which means this country is in for a
long war. Particularly -- and it's necessary because we're defending
freedom. That's what you've got to know. And it's real, and we're
going to have to deal with it.
And we can deal with it diplomatically, which we'll do. We've got
a great coalition we've put together, and we'll keep the coalition
together. We'll share intelligence, which we will continue to do, to
make sure that we can find these killers wherever they try to hide.
And at the same time, we'll continue to fight a guerilla war with
conventional means, because we're the best in the world with high
technology.
The first battle in the war -- the first war of the 21st century
-- was in Afghanistan, as you know. And a lot of people said, well,
it's impossible to fight that war there because of past experiences.
And, of course, we were somewhat mindful of history. And yet what
people didn't realize was that, because of precision-guided weapons, we
were really accurate, which was bad news for the enemy, good news for
the civilian population and coalition forces.
We fly a Predator airplane. Probably some of you all designed the
programming and all the materials that make it work. We fly a Predator
airplane now that has got the capacity on a real-time basis to send
signals back to the United States about what's going on on the ground.
It can fly at night, it flies at day. It gives people a pretty good
look about what the enemy may or may not be doing.
This Predator saves time, saves lives, is an incredibly important
part of fighting a guerilla war with conventional means. It means our
targeting is a heck of a lot more accurate. It means the information
to people in the field receive is timely and real and fast, thanks to
the high-tech industry of America.
Our high-tech advantage will make it easier for us to keep the
peace. We talk about weapons of war, but I want you to know, they are
used to keep the peace. That's the dream of this administration, is to
make the world more peaceful. And we're going to have to continue to
use high-tech means and high-tech equipment to chase the killers down
one by one.
It is fortuitous that America is on the cutting edge of high
technology at this time in history, because of the nature of the war.
In the old days, there would be columns of tanks and artillery moving
here and airplanes flying there. And now we're facing sophisticated
killers who hide in caves, who communicate in shadowy ways, and who are
plenty lethal. And we're going to win the war because of our resolve
and our determination and our love for freedom. But we're also going
to win the war, thanks to the incredible technology and technological
breakthroughs that we have achieved here in America.
And we're going to win -- protect our homeland in a better way,
as well, because of technology. And that's important for Americans to
know. Listen, I fully - you probably can tell by now, I believe the
best defense is a good offense. So we're going after them. But in the
mean time, we've got to do a better job of securing the homeland.
And I can envision a lot of new technologies that enable us to
communicate with first responders, and to be able to communicate
between the federal and state and local governments. As you probably
have read, we've had a -- we can do a better job of gathering
intelligence and sharing intelligence between different agencies of our
government. All of this is going to require, by the way, in order to
do so, new technologies within the FBI and the CIA, and the ability to
communicate with each other, and the ability to filter out what
information should go from one agency to the next, all aimed at
protecting the homeland.
And so when you hear me talk about homeland security, and the new
Department of Homeland Security, it's -- one of the missions is going
to be to make sure it's a modern agency that actually functions the way
modern corporate America functions. And that's one of the reasons I
have asked for the Congress to put all the agencies under one head. I
mean, this is 100 different groups here in Washington trying to defend
the homeland. You can imagine, there's not a lot of accountability
when they're scattered all over D.C. And I'd like to streamline this
agency, not to create bigger government, but to create a government
that actually work, and work in a way that protects the homeland.
We've got a lot of work to do, but I'm confident if we're wise
about how we use technologies and the advantages of e-government, that
the country will be more secure.
So I want to thank you for your contributions to national defense.
You probably never dreamt, by the way, a year and a half ago, or two
years ago that a President of the United States would be addressing a
high-tech conference, thanking you for your contributions to the
defense of the United States and the defense of our homeland. But
that's the realities of the new world. And, fortunately, our country
has been smart about how we have -- how our economy has developed.
I was interested to read that our government plans to spend $53
billion on information technology next year. Now, if you're one of the
recipients of that $53 billion, make sure that the product actually
works, please. (Laughter and applause.) It is important. It's
important to make sure government functions better, but more
importantly, it will help our taxpayers have better response to
democracy and get better information more quickly. And so I'm pleased
that we're working on e-government. I just urge people to focus on
results and not process.
The other thing that I want you all to understand is I think I've
got a pretty clear vision of the role of government. And it's not to
create wealth; that's not the role of the government. The role of
government is to create an environment in which people who've got a
good idea and are willing to work for it can make a living, and expand
their businesses and employ people.
I've met many of you before, and I told you if you gave me a chance
to be here in Washington, I would work to cut taxes. Fortunately, I
kept my promise, and it was good for the American economy that I did so
and that the Congress acted. The tax relief came at the right time.
Now, some don't subscribe to that theory here in Washington, but
they read a different economic textbook than I do. Their view is we
ought to not lower taxes in times of recession. In essence, their view
is we ought to keep as much money in Washington, D.C., as possible.
That doesn't lead to economic recovery. My view is -- and you know
what it is, which is if you let people keep more of their own money,
they'll spend it. And when they spend it, they're going to demand a
good and service and then somebody's got to provide the good and
service. This tax cut was the right thing to do.
It's important that the Congress now make the tax cuts permanent.
I saw we had a setback when the Senate unwisely didn't make the
elimination of the death tax permanent. The death tax is a bad tax.
It's a bad tax for entrepreneurial America. It's a bad tax for people
from all walks of life. It's a bad tax if you're worried about urban
sprawl. It's a bad tax if you're a farmer or a rancher. And yet they
don't want to make it permanent. I don't know why; I guess it's
politics. I think the reason why you make tax relief permanent is
because it's important that there be predictability in the tax code.
The other thing that was interesting about this tax relief package
is that most small businesses in America, a lot of start-ups are
unincorporated businesses or limited partnerships. They pay tax, the
people involved with the corporation pay tax on the personal income tax
level. And by cutting taxes on everybody who pays taxes, it is a
stimulus to economic vitality in many sectors of our economy in which
we want there to be economic vitality, particularly in the minority
sectors, where business ownership is increasing dramatically. Tax
relief was good for the entrepreneurial spirit of America.
In order to enhance the ability for people to make a living, we
must open up markets around the world. We've had a battle here on
trade. There are people who don't believe in free trade, people who
believe that kind of walling off America from the world would lead to
more job growth. I completely disagree. The more we trade, the more
jobs there will be in America. The more we are willing to sell our
markets and work where we've got a competitive advantage, the better
off the work force will be. The more likely it is an entrepreneur will
be able to succeed. And so I have worked hard to get Congress to pass
what they call trade promotion authority, which will give me the
ability to negotiate trade treaties. And we're making progress.
Now, I'd like your help to convince both the members of the Senate
and the House to reconcile their differences in the conference
committee and get me a trade promotion authority as quickly as
possible. And with that trade promotion authority, not only will I
work to expand free trade throughout our hemisphere, my attitude is
good foreign policy starts with a neighborhood which is democratic,
free, prosperous, and strong. But I will work in other parts of the
world to open up markets -- markets for high-tech products, markets
for our agricultural people. And I'll be aggressive at it. I will.
And if I find unfair trade practices, by the way, I'm going to enforce
the law, the laws on the books.
And so I want to thank you for your support on trade promotion
authority. We're also working to reform the Export Administration Act,
known as the EAA. We've got a bill out of the Senate; we're working to
get a bill out of the House. And I want you all to understand --
you've probably been told this already, but I want to tell you what
else we've done. We've raised the control limits for computer systems,
and I'm eliminating outmoded controls on computer chips. The idea is
to understand the difference between national security and free trade.
And I think we've brought some common sense to this issue.
One of the things I spent a lot of time listening about was
education. And many of you all have been very much involved in
education reform; I want to thank you for that. And the bill we passed
is a good bill, it really is, because it sets high standards, it
refuses to accept the fact that -- we challenge the idea that certain
kids can't learn -- let me just put it to you that way.
It's easy to quit on kids. It's easy to say, well, there's a
certain group of kids that can't learn, so why don't we just shuffle
them through the system? And for the first time, the federal
government said, in return for federal money, you must measure. You
must show us.
Some people were squawking about that because they didn't want to
be held accountable. You know, if you believe every child can learn,
then you have no problem saying, show us if every child is learning.
And so we've done that, and it's a good, it's a really, really
interesting reform.
I know many of you are involved with the reform movement in your
respective states, whatever that may mean -- charter schools or
choice programs. The best way to stimulate reform is to demand
accountability. It's hard to cover up failure. And it's hard to
justify failure.
The bill also passes power out of Washington. It really --
pretty darn good job of aligning authority and responsibility at local
levels. So I'm proud of the piece of legislation, and we'll continue
to stay focused on education.
We're also spending a lot of money on research and development,
which I believe is a legitimate federal function. We spend a lot of
money at the NIH, which is good for health care in America, and we're
spending over about $100 billion in research and development for your
fields.
And one of the things I hope Congress joins me on is making the R&D;
tax credit permanent, as well. You see, research has made a huge
difference for product development. And I like to remind our fellow
Americans that research -- expending their research -- their tax
dollars on research will yield the interesting jobs, interesting
opportunities.
And so, which really leads me to an interesting question that I
know is on your mind, and that is broadband technology. This country
must be aggressive about the expansion of broadband; we have to.
(Applause.) I used to travel around our state of Texas a lot. I saw
some really innovative health programs. I remember going to the Texas
Tech Medical Center, and seeing a fellow have his ear examined by a
nurse practitioner in I think it was Alpine, Texas. And the picture
was clear and the specialist was able to diagnose the disease.
We have virtual classrooms in Texas, virtual school districts in
Texas, where we've hooked up a fairly wealthy school district with
rural or poor school districts. It made a huge difference. It would
have been a heck of a lot better if there had been broadband
technology, however, to make the process move a lot quicker.
I get -- when I'm down at Crawford, I'm in constant contact with
our administration. We've got secure teleconferencing capacity there.
And it's pretty good. It can be better. (Laughter.) It can be more
real-time. It's an important part of life and it's time for us to be
-- time for us to move, move with an agenda.
Hopefully, we're doing a pretty good job of working to eliminate
hurdles and barriers to get broadband implemented. I've fought off
-- or worked with Congress, is a better way to put it -- (laughter)
-- to prevent access taxes on the Internet. It ought to be a tax-free
environment in order to encourage use. And, of course, a lot of the
action is going to come through the FCC. I know that, you know that.
And I'm confident that the chairman and the board is focusing on
policies that will bring high-speed Internet service, will create
competition, will keep the consumers in mind, but to understand the
-- kind of the economic vitality that will occur when broadband is
more fully accessible.
And so I want to thank you for giving me a chance to come and talk
about how to make America safer and more prosperous. But I also want
to spend some time talking about another important subject, and that's
how to make America a better place.
On my wall, there's a painting that says -- the painter, a guy
named Tom Lee -- he's a friend -- he says, "Sarah and I lived on
the east side of the mountain. It is the sunrise side, not the sunset
side. It is the side to see the day that is coming, not to see the day
that has gone."
I have that on the wall because it's a fine Texan who wrote it, and
the painting is a beautiful painting. But that's how I see things. I
believe that a tough and strong America will lead to peace. And I
think we're going to be able to achieve peace in parts of the world
where people don't believe peace is possible. I believe that. And
it's going to require a kind of patient, steadfast strength. And the
good news is, our country is patient and steadfast and strong. We
really are.
I also believe that out of the evil done to America will come some
incredible good, particularly as our fellow Americans love their
neighbor like they'd like to be loved themselves. And we spent time
today talking about how people in corporate America can lend a hand
about attacking pockets of hopelessness and despair, which exist in
America.
If you run your business, encourage your employees, through wise
incentives, to mentor a child or to build a home, to give time
consistently to loving your neighbor. It is a central part of making
America a complete and whole country. It is a key ingredient to
winning the war against terror. We can fight evil with military might
and weapons devised by high-tech world. As significantly, we can fight
evil by doing acts of kindness and decency.
Out of this evil will come, I believe, a culture which is going to
herald personal responsibility, and shift the culture of some of our
generation, which has said if it feels good just go ahead and do it,
and if you've got a problem it's somebody else's -- where each of us
are responsible for the decisions -- we're responsible for loving our
children if you're lucky enough to be a mom or a dad. You're
responsible for the misery in the community in which you may live, of
doing something about it.
If you're running your company, by the way, you're responsible for
fully disclosing your assets and your liabilities. And that's what --
and it's happening, it's happening.
The enemy hit us. They must have thought we were so weak and
self-absorbed, so materialistic, that all we would do was file a couple
of lawsuits, if you know what I mean. (Laughter.) Instead, they found
that this mighty nation will defend our freedom at all costs. And this
mighty nation is going to show the world the true heart of a great
country.