White House Press Corps.org: Air Force One Press Gaggle by Tony Fratto 10/12/07 (Al Gore and the Nobel Prize)

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Air Force One Press Gaggle by Tony Fratto 10/12/07 (Al Gore and the Nobel Prize)
— Friday, October 12, 2007 —

Q Tony, does the President have any reaction to Al Gore's winning the Nobel Prize?

MR. FRATTO: Yes, the President learned about it this morning. Of course, he's happy for Vice President Gore, happy for the International Panel on Climate Change scientists, who also shared the Peace Prize. Obviously it's an important recognition and we're sure the Vice President is thrilled.

Q Is he going to call him?

MR. FRATTO: I don't know of any plans to make calls to any of the winners at this point.

Q (Inaudible.)

MR. FRATTO: Well, obviously Vice President Gore has helped to bring attention to climate change. The IPCC scientists have done remarkable work to bring scientific rigor to the questions surrounding climate change. And obviously the next step for -- and really the most difficult step is implementing climate change strategies that are effective and practical, and that allow for continued economic development and for countries to do the work that they need to do to lift people out of poverty.

And that's a challenging task. That's why the President brought together the major economies -- the announcement he had prior to the G8 and then the summit meeting last week -- I guess it was two weeks ago now -- to discuss a strategy for climate change. And that's the next step and that's an important step.

Q Given that his approach on climate is so different from Al Gore's, does he feel that this award is in any way sending a message about his own policies?

MR. FRATTO: I'm not sure what -- no, I don't see it that way at all. No.

Q Does he think, though, that the award will place pressure on him and on the Bush administration to do more quickly, and to maybe fall into line with what other countries want, which are mandatory caps on emissions?

MR. FRATTO: No.

Labels: Air Force One, Al Gore, Global Warming, Nobel Prize, President Bush, Press Gaggle, Tony Fratto

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