For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
March 20, 2001
Press Briefing by Ari Fleischer
The James S. Brady Briefing Room
Listen to the Briefing
- Personnel Announcements
- Remaining
Positions to Fill/Process
- The
Economy
- Interest
Rates
- Stimulus
Package
- President/Prime
Minister Sharon's Meeting
- Possible Meeting with
Chairman Arafat
- Comair Labor
Situation
- Federal Judge
Appointments
- Tomorrow's Trip to
Orlando
- Small
Business
- Ergonomics
- Energy
2:27 P.M. EST
MR. FLEISCHER: Good afternoon. Let me begin with a
couple of brief announcements.
The
President intends to nominate Peter F. Allgeier to be Deputy to the
United States Trade Representative. The President intends to
nominate Linnet Deily to be Deputy United States Trade
Representative. And we have paper on that, that will be
available shortly.
With that,
I'm pleased to take questions.
Q Do
you know how many positions you've got left to fill?
MR.
FLEISCHER: Several hundred. The President has
nominated -- actually, there are three stages of the nominations,
Jim. The President intends to name -- that is the first step
where the President -- people have already gone through a sufficient
level of the background clearances that the President puts their
announcement out publicly.
The second
step is the formal nomination to the United States Senate, and
typically there is about four to five weeks that is done prior to the
President's intention to name. Following that is the Senate
nomination after all security investigations are complete, and then you
await confirmation by the Senate.
The
President is very pleased with the progress that he has made, given the
fact we had a shortened transition, and we anticipate, as you have been
able to see in the last week to two, an accelerating pace of
nominations.
Q But
you still have several hundred left to fill, you say?
MR.
FLEISCHER: To name, correct. But, again, the
President's pleased with the pace. It's an accelerating
pace, and it's a reflection of the shortened transition.
Q Do
you have a number for how many you have named?
MR.
FLEISCHER: I don't have a hard number on that. We
can get that for you; I'd be more than happy to. Anne Womack
will have that available.
Q Is
the President likely to revisit his stance on offshore drilling, in
light of the California energy crisis?
MR.
FLEISCHER: I have not heard any such discussion about that.
The President said clearly during the campaign that Californians
opposed having offshore oil off their coast, and he supported that, and
that is his position then. I've heard nothing that would
indicate a change would be coming.
Q Ari,
let me try this on you since I tried it on the President and he didn't
play -- he did say yesterday that he was very confident about the
economy. He said today that our economy is slowing
down. Was he, yesterday, trying to placate Democrats who
accuse him of talking the economy down and reverting back to form
today? What's going on?
MR.
FLEISCHER: I urge you to roll the tapes, and you will find
very frequent references by the President of the United States to the
fact that he has faith in the long-term growth of the
economy. When he talked about the projections in his budget,
he indicated that he believes -- he's said this for weeks -- that he
believes that the actual results of the economy will out-pace that
which he has projected. And he has repeatedly stressed his
confidence in the long-term growth of the economy, while also
understanding and emphasizing with the concerns of people right now who
are suffering in today's weak and weakening economy.
But the
President has been very consistent about it. I just think
there are people who, from time to time, are uneasy with some of the
progress the President is making, and so they criticize the process
because the substance is moving forward. And I think that's
a case of what you have here. But the President has said the
same thing repeatedly and will continue to say it.
Q But
if the economy is slowing down, as he says, then that means that
receipts in the future will be slowing down and, in fact, there was
evidence of that yesterday, which you may have seen.
MR.
FLEISCHER: Well, again, reality is different. The
actual amount of money coming into the United States treasury for the
first five months of this year, even with the slowdown, was $42 billion
more than it was last year. And so receipts continue to come
in at a faster rate than last year, despite the
slowdown. And that's, frankly, a sign that people are just
underestimating receipts.
So, on the
one hand, I know it sounds incongruous to say that in time of economic
slowdown, revenues are coming in faster than projected. But the
reality is it means the projections were wrong and the money, the
revenues are coming in faster than projected. That's a
pattern that the President anticipates will continue under his 10-year
budget plan, because his estimates are so conservative in the amount of
revenue coming in the out-years, that we see no empirical evidence in
the economics or in the data suggesting it would be otherwise.
Q
At least not until you leave office?
MR.
FLEISCHER: Well, for the 10 year window.
Q Could
you give us a comment on the Fed's action today?
MR.
FLEISCHER: No, I can't. As you know, the
administration will not comment on monetary policies announced the
Federal Reserve.
Q Was
there hope here at the White House that they would lower the interest
rate by a greater amount than a half point?
MR.
FLEISCHER: Again, the White House is not engaged in any such
speculation about the actions of the Fed.
Q Is
the President keeping tabs on the moves that the Fed made
today? Was he watching news reports? Was he
trying to keep up with it? Does he even know that this has happened?
MR.
FLEISCHER: The announcement was made by the Fed about five,
10 minutes ago. I was so actively preparing to face you all
that I have not talked to the President since the announcement.
Q But
I mean --
MR.
FLEISCHER: I'm sure he will. If he didn't watch
it or know it as it took place, he will find out, I'm sure.
Q Ari,
one of the things the Fed said today in cutting interest rates was
concern about the global economy slowing down. How big a
concern is that here at the White House, particularly when the tax
package that the President has presented is also being presented as a
stimulus package, to help the economy?
MR.
FLEISCHER: It is a concern of the President's. As
he indicated yesterday in his meeting with Prime Minister Mori, the
United States and Japan economies account for 40 percent of the world's
GDP. And the President discussed yesterday his concern about
the slowdown of the United States' economy, the slowdown in the
Japanese economy. And clearly, anytime you have a slowdown
in two economies that make up 40 percent of the world, you are talking
about -- the impact of a slowdown crosses borders.
That's
another reason the President feels so strongly that the Congress needs
to pass his economic recovery plan. Today he referred to it
as a stimulus plan, because he does think it will help create growth in
America. Growth in America has historically driven growth
around the world.
Q The
President did use the word stimulus package today, but as now crafted
by the House, his tax plan would put about $5.6 billion into the
economy this year, a pretty modest amount. To make it a real
stimulus package, as the Senate deals with this, and the President said
he's open to suggestions, how much money does he think should be
frontloaded in the tax cut? How much would it take to make
it a true stimulus package?
MR.
FLEISCHER: The President thinks the most powerful stimulus
is certainty that people will have more money in their pockets each and
every paycheck. It's not driven only by the amount of money
that is made retroactive in the tax cut. It's also driven by
the fact that consumers, business people, will have certainty that
people will have more money to spend to buy goods, to pay down their
credit card bills.
The
President believes that signal that the government is going to signal
tax relief for sure will help create stimulus that will get the economy
going again.
Q He
doesn't want it any bigger than the $5.6 billion in rate cuts in the
House plan that would go into the economy this year?
MR.
FLEISCHER: The President called for retroactive tax cuts to
help stir the economy. And that is obviously what the House
of Representatives did. And the President was pleased by
that. He's going to continue to work with the Senate on
retroactivity. He hopes the Senate will take a similar
step.
Q Same
amount? Keep it right about the same, or make it bigger?
MR.
FLEISCHER: He's going to continue to work with the Senate on
that, and looks forward to the Senate passing the tax cut that includes
a retroactive portion, and then we'll see how close it is or if it's
identical, or if it's different to the House, and the President wants
to keep working the process through so he can get an agreement.
Q Can
I follow up on that, Ari? In the past, he said absolutely
$1.6 trillion; that's it, no more, no less, this is just right. Is
there some give on this now because you're not sure the Senate and the
House are going to be able to hit that mark?
MR.
FLEISCHER: The President continues to believe that the
Congress should pass the proposal that he has advocated, which is a
$1.6-trillion tax cut.
Q But
in terms of the amount, I mean, he's now open to a slightly different
amount on the tax cut? Is it clear to him that Congress is
not going to be able to hit $1.6 trillion on the money?
MR.
FLEISCHER: No. The President continues to believe
$1.6 trillion is the right number.
Q A
two-part question, Ari.
MR.
FLEISCHER: They always are. (Laughter.)
Q Since
Secretary Powell testified to the House International Committee that
Jerusalem is the capital of Israel, does the President believe
Secretary Powell was wrong? Because Agence France Presse
reported yesterday U.S. diplomats cringe as Powell gets standing
ovation for Jerusalem slip. And I have a follow-up.
MR.
FLEISCHER: The President addressed that question today in
his meeting with Prime Minister Sharon --
Q He
didn't say anything about Powell.
MR.
FLEISCHER: -- and the President said -- one at a time -- and
the President said at that time at the meeting in the Oval Office, that
the status of Israel be a part of the final stage negotiations.
Q Status
of Israel or --
MR.
FLEISCHER: I'm sorry, status of Jerusalem as the capital --
the status of Jerusalem will be dealt with in the final stage
negotiations, as the President said. I would refer you back
to Secretary Powell's comments. He expressed himself
following those comments, and I don't need to say anything further.
Q And
my follow up is, the Zionist Organization of America pointed out in a
full-page ad this morning the despite Palestinian murders of 16
American citizens in Israel in the past eight years, $100 million a
year in taxpayers' money is given every year to Yasser Arafat's
preventative security forces, who include five of these murders of
Americans.
My question
is, isn't this another Clinton measure that the President thinks should
be ended, and if not, why not?
MR.
FLEISCHER: Let me -- on that question, on any specific
questions, what I'm going to do -- there will be a background briefing
immediately following my briefing by the National Security Council, and
so on any of the more specific questions --
Q Are
you going to refer it to them?
Q Could
I ask you to -- not that specific, but more broadly, with respect to
the President's views on the Middle East, Prime Minister Sharon has
laid the blame for the violence squarely at Arafat's
feet. The President has invited Mubarak here, Abdullah, but
not Arafat. I'm wondering if the President thinks that
putting distance between the United States officially and Arafat is one
way to put pressure to tone down the violence?
MR.
FLEISCHER: Let me just say, the President was very pleased
today to meet with Prime Minister Sharon, and the United States enjoys
a special relationship with Israel. I want to remind you
that the President spoke on the phone recently with Yasser Arafat, and
Secretary Powell visited with Yasser Arafat.
The
President will have additional announcements to make, and as events
warrant, we will keep you informed about who is coming to visit. You
accurately point out that the President will be hosting meetings with
President Mubarak and King Abdullah.
Q You
mean, he's considering inviting Arafat to the White House?
MR.
FLEISCHER: As with any invitation with a foreign leader,
when we have something to announce, we will inform you.
Q How
close is it?
Q When
did he speak on the phone with Arafat?
MR.
FLEISCHER: Several weeks ago.
Q But
not in recent days?
MR.
FLEISCHER: We announced it the day he did it. I
don't recall off the top of my head what day it was.
Q But
not since?
MR.
FLEISCHER: That's correct.
Q But
senior officials have made clear they believe Arafat has a
responsibility to condemn the violence. Is the meeting with
the President conditioned on the public statement condemning the
violence?
MR.
FLEISCHER: We will keep you informed of all meetings.
Q How
closely is the administration following the Comair labor situation, and
can we expect to see an emergency board order from the President if
they don't reach a final agreement on Monday?
MR.
FLEISCHER: Let me take that on the specific of that one
strike and try to get back to you. You're asking
specifically on that, or on the series of potential strikes?
Q Well,
I think the first one we come up against is Comair.
MR.
FLEISCHER: Okay. As you know -- let me just
address it in one important sense -- the President cannot appoint a
presidential emergency board unless and until the National Mediation
Board concludes that parties in the negotiation are at an
impasse. Now, only at that point can the NMB recommend to
the President that he appoint a presidential emergency
board. Without such a recommendation, without such a
conclusion from the National Mediation Board, the President may not
appoint a presidential emergency board.
Q Ari,
could you tell us publicly about what the process is going to be for
appointing federal judges? There was this question about the
ABA yesterday. Assuming that they're put on the outside, or
whatever, what system or process is the President planning on using?
MR.
FLEISCHER: Well, Judge Gonzalez met yesterday with the
President of the American Bar Association, to discuss the
administration's selection of justices and judges, and the ABA's
role. And a point that they discussed is prior to the
President making a nomination, should the American Bar Association have
a role unlike anybody else's role? Should they have a
special role, a unique role, a preferential role?
And the
American Bar Association made its case to the White House why they
should be treated differently than any other organization that is
equally caring about who a President appoints to
judgeships. The President and Judge Gonzalez will have some
follow-up conversations, and as soon as we have something to report, we
will advise you.
But the
President will bring to the selection of judges the same care and
choosing that he brings to all his selections. He will
appoint people who are the best qualified in the
country, regardless of their party. He wants to
appoint people who will strictly interpret the Constitution, not write
new laws from the bench. Those will be his criteria, as he
has enunciated for more than a year. And that will be the
process that we follow.
Q Will
they be -- will it be any different than previous administrations?
MR.
FLEISCHER: Let me wait until Judge Gonzalez finishes the
conversations with the President, and perhaps we can take it all in one
time then.
Q A
follow-up on that, Ari. Does the President believe that the
ABA's ratings of potential judicial nominees are fair and impartial,
and have been fair and impartial?
MR.
FLEISCHER: Well, the President's aware that there are
numerous groups that have meritorious points of view that should be
heard. The question is, is any one group superior to all the
rest? Should any one group have a role that is separate and
apart, distinct, from any of the others, who also have valid points to
make? The President's aware that the selection process for
judges and for others is going to be reviewed by a host of groups who
care. And we will advise you on, as this process unfolds, if
there any changes to an existing procedure. But the question
is, should the American Bar Association have a group -- have a role
separate and apart, distinct and preferential from anybody else, who
also cares.
Q What
is the President's judgment about the way the ABA has been fulfilling
that unique role in recent years? Have they been fulfilling
that unique role in recent years. Have they been fulfilling
it in a fair and impartial manner, in the President's view?
MR.
FLEISCHER: That's not a conversation that I myself have had
with the President. So that's why I was suggesting that
after Judge Gonzalez and the President discuss this matter further,
perhaps we can address that in a little fuller context.
Q Any
comments on the human rights group met at the United Nations and they
criticized U.N. members for failing not to act on the illegal shipment
of international arms trafficking, including by China and many other
countries? What did the -- how the U.S. will deal with the
United Nations?
MR.
FLEISCHER: Mary Ellen, do you have anything on that, or do
you want me to --
MS.
COUNTRYMAN: I didn't understand the question. If
you come ask me after the briefing, I'll try to --
Q Illegal
arms shipments --
MS.
COUNTRYMAN: Human rights group met --
Q Illegal
arms.
MS.
COUNTRYMAN: Come talk to me after, and I'll try to figure
out --
Q Another
note on that, Mary Robinson's intention to resign from the human rights
commission, since the commission is meeting now. Is it going
to make any difference, since the U.S. is taking the case against
China?
MR.
FLEISCHER: Let me -- I think you should have that
conversation with Mary Ellen.
Q Ari,
can I ask you about tomorrow and the trip to Orlando? The patients'
bill of rights apparently is the subject there. Why now?
What does he want to say?
MR.
FLEISCHER: The President will be meeting with a group of
doctors during his visit to Orlando. And the patients' bill
of rights is an issue which the President has spoken out on
before. I think you're familiar with the principles the
President has enunciated for having a successful patients' bill of
rights signed into law. I'll have more information
tomorrow. I haven't looked at his remarks yet for tomorrow.
But we'll have more on that tomorrow.
Q Does
this signal he's trying to advance the legislative calendar on that,
and trying to get something cooking right away on that?
MR.
FLEISCHER: Let's take that tomorrow.
Q He
said he was going to sign ergonomics. Has he done that?
MR.
FLEISCHER: He has not done it yet.
Q Will
this be a public event, or will it be just --
MR.
FLEISCHER: No, that's a private event.
Q Is
there a reason?
MR.
FLEISCHER: We're keeping the focus
today. Obviously the President met with Prime Minister
Sharon. He's going to go over to the CIA with a pool
accompanying him. The focus today is simply going to be on
international affairs.
Q (Inaudible.)
MR.
FLEISCHER: CIA?
Q No,
ergonomics.
MR.
FLEISCHER: Yes.
Q Before
he goes to Langley?
MR.
FLEISCHER: We'll have a statement we'll release.
Q Last
Friday, the President invited small business owners at the White House
to discuss his tax plans and all, including many Indian Americans from
this area. Many of them praised his job handling so far.
But many businesses are going or filing bankruptcies. How is
the President going to deal with those problems that small businesses
are facing?
MR.
FLEISCHER: The President believes the best way to help small
business is to recognize that so many small businesses pay taxes at the
rate of individual income taxpayers. So for many small
businesses, their top rate is 40 percent, and then they have to pay
payroll taxes, which can push them close to 50 percent of a tax rate.
And the way
the President believes we can help small business the most is to
provide tax relief, so they're paying at a rate no where near as
high. And that's why he's proposed lowering that top rate
from 39 to 33 percent, and lowering the intermediate rates from 36
percent and 31 percent down to 25 percent.
So the
President believes that tax relief is one of the best ways to help
small businesses, along with regulatory relief. Similarly,
to help the economy, and I want to give a reason behind Deborah's
question too, when the President signs the legislation on ergonomics,
the President will sign that legislation because he believes that we
can protect the health and safety of workers without passing a
regulation that is terribly burdensome to the economy and to the small
businesses on which their growth depends.
Particularly
in this time of fragile economic circumstances, he does not want to
take any action that would hurt economic growth and cost small
businesses and other businesses billions of dollars. He will
also -- of course, he has directed the Secretary of Labor to work on
making sure that we can protect the health and safety of workers
without hurting small businesses and others.
Q Why
he invited two group differently Friday --
MR.
FLEISCHER: In a minute. You've had
four. We've got to get to people who haven't had one yet.
Q Ari,
both Newsweek and Time are reporting this week about President Bush's
relationship -- strong relationship with corporate America, business
America.
MR.
FLEISCHER: Yes. I noticed that.
Q And
Robert Reich wrote an op-ed in Sunday's New York Times dealing with
that issue. Is this administration fulfilling the agenda of
corporate America while ignoring the needs or minimizing the needs of
labor?
MR.
FLEISCHER: The President thinks that we are all in this
together, business, labor, consumer, and that's his
approach. And his approach is a cooperative one on how to
bring people together. And that's why, as you heard the
President himself say repeatedly, in regard to his tax plan, that the
businesses who are trying to tack on special business tax cuts, he
believes that this tax cut should be for the people, and he is not
supporting that this year.
As far as
the labor agreements that the President entered into with the executive
orders he announced, that's to ensure neutrality in government
contracting, for example. The President does not think that
the federal government should tilt toward or against organized
labor. He believes that the government position should be
neutrality, and that's what he's done, and that's what he'll continue
to do.
Q Ari,
on ergonomics, what is the time frame or time table as far as getting
something out of the Labor Department? And what has the
President directed the Labor Department to do --
MR.
FLEISCHER: Jim, I haven't discussed the timing with the
Department of Labor. You may want to give a call over there,
and see how Secretary Chao is undertaking it.
Q What
about the content? I mean, what are some of the President's
ideas for dealing with what appears to be pretty serious?
MR.
FLEISCHER: The President just thought the regulation was too
onerous. It was one of the most massive, costly regulations
ever promulgated. And it did so in a way that went beyond
what was reasonable to bear. And that's why the President
believes that we can protect the health and safety of workers without
hurting the economy and harming small businesses and other businesses.
Q How
does he believe we can make those regulations less onerous but still --
MR.
FLEISCHER: By not having them be as far-reaching and
burdensome.
Q Does
the President realize that it's a -- the repetitive motion that it's
actually --
MR.
FLEISCHER: As I indicated, the President does think that we
can protect the health and safety of workers. I addressed
that specifically in regard to ergonomics. But to do so in a
manner that doesn't harm small businesses and other businesses,
particularly in a time of economic difficulty.
Q Does
the President feel that his father's approach to dealing with the S&L;
problem might form a template for the Japanese government to solve its
own banking problems?
MR.
FLEISCHER: I haven't heard the President discuss it in terms
of what his father did. But I do know that the President
thinks that it's important to take resolution action. And
that was a part of the discussions that he had with the Prime Minister
of Japan.
Q On
energy. Yesterday, the President mentioned that he had been
discussing with the Mexican President about letting the foreign capital
to explore the national gas and oil resources in Mexico. My
question is, what the President of Mexico has been told to the
President of the United States about?
MR.
FLEISCHER: About allowing foreign capital in?
Q Yes.
MR.
FLEISCHER: I think those discussions are ongoing between the
United States and Mexico. I know that Secretary Abraham met
last week with his counterpart in Mexico to discuss energy
issues. And so those are ongoing discussions.
Thank you.
END
3:50 P.M. EST
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