in their own words
 |
|
|
 Subscribe to the WHPC RSS Feed
|
Press Briefing by Tony Snow 1/29/07 (Topic: Libby Trial)
— Tuesday, January 30, 2007 — Q How closely is the President following the Libby trial? MR. SNOW: Not that closely really. I know there's this perception that we're all sitting around buzzing about it, but we really aren't. Q Well, I mean, you've got Rove and Bartlett both subpoenaed, and you've got the Vice President testifying. I would think there would be some interest in the White House. MR. SNOW: Yes, but it's just -- look, it is what it is, it's an ongoing trial, and we're not going to comment on it further. Q What is the President's response to seeing the White House portrayed as being at war with itself? MR. SNOW: Well, again, as I said, as tempting as it is to jump into that, we're not commenting. Q Are you glad you were not press secretary then? (Laughter.) MR. SNOW: I am glad I'm press secretary now. White House Press Corps | Press Briefing | Tony Snow | News Media | Bush Administration | Scooter Libby
Posted by WhiteHousePressCorps.org @ 12:05 AM  Press Briefing on the State of the Union Speech 1/23/07 (Topic: Iraq) — Tuesday, January 23, 2007 — Q Steve, if you could talk broadly about what he's talking about the global war on terrorism and Iraq. Does he really say anything new in talking about what effect it would have in the region and the world if there was failure in Iraq? And also I know you said he wants to look forward in this, but does he again acknowledge mistakes or failures in the past? Just basically, is there anything new on Iraq and global war on terrorism and the mistakes? MR. HADLEY: Well, I think it is. I think you'll find it's a very good statement about the consequences in the region. We've been doing a lot of outreach to members of Congress over the last two weeks. And one of the things we've heard is that Americans don't understand the connection between what is happening and the war on terror, and doesn't understand the connection between the outcome of the war on terror and security here at home. And what the President is going to do is sort of walk through those connections. And I think you'll -- I'll let you hear it from the President tonight. Q Is he going to do the mistakes part? Is he going to talk about any failures in the past again? MR. HADLEY: Well, he's covered a lot of the specific issues about Iraq, what our strategy was, what we've learned, particularly in terms of describing how the new Baghdad security plan differs from what we did in the past. This is an effort, really, to step back and paint a broader picture. So in some sense, he did that in the speech he gave two weeks ago Wednesday. I think it's a different speech with a different purpose tonight. MR. BARTLETT: I think just to amplify on that just for a second, Steve, the way he will talk about the kind of -- how this war has transpired, he'll talk about where we went from 2005 to 2006. In 2005, there were a lot of advancements in the democracy agenda -- and Steve can talk more to this -- and in 2006, the enemy fought back across the fronts, whether it be in Iraq, whether it be in Lebanon, whether it be in Afghanistan and elsewhere. And it's a good way to have -- the President can use this as an opportunity to discuss the nature of the enemy we're facing, why it is -- like I said, the interconnectedness between Iraq and the other elements of extremism, whether it be Shia-Sunni, as Steve described. So there will be some difference, some new language and new context to something you've heard him talk a lot about. White House Press Corps | Press Briefing | Tony Snow | News Media | Bush Administration | Iraq | State Of The Union
Posted by WhiteHousePressCorps.org @ 11:23 PM Press Briefing by Tony Snow 1/22/07 (Topic: Iraq) Q Over the weekend we just had the third worst day in the war in terms of U.S. casualties, and then today I think there were 70 people killed in Baghdad. Is the President going to talk about the extent, the increase in violence and what can be done about it? MR. SNOW: Well, he has talked about it. And the President also noted the other day that what's really going on is that you can expect as there is push-back that there is going to be some increase in violence. But on the other hand, what's been going on, on the ground -- and you've seen the Prime Minister being more assertive when it comes to dealing with militias; you've seen the Prime Minister being more assertive when it comes to political reconciliation -- the benchmarks and the kinds of things that people have identified as absolutely necessary to the long-term progress of democracy in Iraq the Maliki government has been addressing. We do not yet have the Iraqi brigades into Baghdad, but they are on the move. We do not have the U.S. battalions deployed, but they will be ready to support when the Iraqis get there. So I think what you're seeing is a clear signal that the Maliki government is very serious about addressing, on a non-sectarian basis, the problem of those who are trying to operate outside the law. You also understand, Terry, that they know that the media will focus on body counts and will focus on large acts of violence because that for the terrorists is a victory. But what is a defeat are some of the things going on behind the scenes right now in terms of the political reconciliation efforts, in terms of you saw Muqtada al Sadr saying to the members of his party and the council representatives, get back to doing business. It's one of the reasons why they had a quorum yesterday in the meeting of council representatives. So we're at the beginning stages now of this new way forward. And, certainly, what we have seen on the part of the Iraqi government are affirmative actions in terms of security and in terms of political reconciliation that I think satisfy conditions that members of both parties wanted to see. White House Press Corps | Press Briefing | Tony Snow | News Media | Bush Administration | Iraq
Posted by WhiteHousePressCorps.org @ 1:09 AM Press Briefing by Dana Perino 1/19/07 (Topic: Iraq) — Saturday, January 20, 2007 — Connie. Q I think I've been asking a variation on this for four years, but would it be so terrible for the President to accept it if Iraq breaks into three different segments? MS. PERINO: The President does not support that, and, more importantly, the Iraqis don't support that -- 12 million of them voted on a constitution that would unify the country, and I believe even the Iraq Study Group said that that wouldn't be a good idea. White House Press Corps | Press Briefing | Tony Snow | News Media | Bush Administration | Iraq
Posted by WhiteHousePressCorps.org @ 12:23 AM Press Briefing by Tony Snow 1/18/07 (Topic: Iraq) — Thursday, January 18, 2007 — Q Two questions on public perceptions. Are you saying that four years into this war, the American people don't have an accurate picture of what's going on in Iraq? MR. SNOW: I think, Wendell, four years into a war, the picture constantly changes. The picture that we saw in April of 2003 was different than the one we saw a year ago. If you think a year ago, Wendell, there was considerable optimism, Democrats and Republicans both coming back from the region saying, you know, we think things are going okay. We've had the election. They did not anticipate the, I guess, eruption of sectarian violence. What is important is that the American people not only understand the violence, but they also understand the response and the nature of the response and the way in which we're building capacity among the Iraqis, and the assurance that what a lot of Americans want to see, which is going after the sources of violence -- because I think there's been a notion that our guys are just wandering around getting shot at rather than moving aggressively against an enemy, and at the same time, that the Iraqis are carrying their weight, that they're now devoted $10 billion out of $11 billion of their national surplus to reconstruction. That's putting their money where their mouth is, talking about the importance of arming up and being fully equipped and ready, making clear to everybody that they are not going to be permitting anybody to commit acts of violence, and nobody gets a free pass just because of their sectarian belief or affiliation. All of those are important data points that I'm not sure everybody has had a chance to take into account, and therefore, we understand this is going to be important to talk about it a lot. White House Press Corps | Press Briefing | Tony Snow | News Media | Bush Administration | Iraq
Posted by WhiteHousePressCorps.org @ 10:23 PM Press Briefing by Tony Snow 1/17/07 (Topic: Clinton & Iraq) — Wednesday, January 17, 2007 — Q I'd like to get you to elaborate on why you consider Senator Clinton's call for a cap extreme? I think you said the words a pretty "extreme move." Even Gates last week -- Defense Secretary Gates last week suggested you might not send the troops that you offered if the Iraqis don't step up to the plate. MR. SNOW: Well, but that's different than saying you're going to have a cap. The idea of having something that is designed to bind the hands of the Commander-in-Chief or the commanders in the field, is just unusual in a time of war. Q What makes you call it "extreme"? It's a political position -- MR. SNOW: No, that would not be -- and my guess is Senator Clinton would resist having that described as a political position because it, in fact, is a condition that involves an assessment of what it takes to succeed in the field. It's really a military decision -- or it's a piece of military analysis. And it's one where we think it's always important in a time of war to make sure that the Commander-in-Chief, the commanders in the field, and the people in the field have the flexibility to respond as circumstances require. White House Press Corps | Press Briefing | Tony Snow | News Media | Bush Administration | Clinton
Posted by WhiteHousePressCorps.org @ 12:06 AM Press Briefing by Tony Snow 1/16/07 (Topic: Iran) — Tuesday, January 16, 2007 — Q Okay. And, secondly, with regard to the urban legends, everything that's going on in Iraq, the deployment of two battle groups, allegedly there are also four submarines in the area, the tougher language being used -- MR. SNOW: You have submarines as part of carrier battle groups. Q But they're in the area. And you have tougher languages coming from the Vice President and others with regard to Iran, not so much on the nuclear program, but with regard to their operations in Iraq. Everything is indicating to people here in this town that there's something going on -- MR. SNOW: And let me just reiterate what I said from the podium -- we're not planning -- Q And the protests seem to be like "he doth protest too much," with regard to what's going on there, that that -- MR. SNOW: How the hell can it be, "he doth protest too much" when I say it's not true? Do you want me to say, well, it's kind of not true, it's almost not true, it's sort of, kind of not -- it's not true. I'm trying to give you a straight and clear answer. Q We're looking at two things -- one is the words, one are the deeds. And the words seem to say, no, we're not going to do anything provocative against Iran, but the deeds are saying something is going on. MR. SNOW: Two things. When you talk about provocation, the movement toward the development of a nuclear program with the public pronouncements of President Ahmadinejad, those are provocative. When you have been traveling the world and talking about killing large masses of people, that's provocative. When you have the presence of Iranians on Iraqi soil killing Americans, that is provocative. What the United States is doing in Iraq is protecting -- is doing force protection; we're protecting our people, which is not only what you'd expect, it's the smart and wise thing to do. But as for the -- your suspicion, I believe -- I don't want to read anything into it. Do you suspect that we are planning to invade Iran? White House Press Corps | Press Briefing | Tony Snow | News Media | Bush Administration | Iran
Posted by WhiteHousePressCorps.org @ 12:03 AM Press Briefing by Tony Snow 1/12/07 (Topic: Iraq) — Friday, January 12, 2007 — Q Tony, if, indeed, there needs to be more of a political component, why not keep the troops as they were, instead of increasing the troop effort there to support the Iraqis? Why not just focus mostly on the political aspect? MR. SNOW: Well, as I said, it's very difficult to focus on the political aspect when you have violence and bloodshed occurring all about you. You do have to have a certain amount of peace so that people can calmly and in good will work through some of the tougher issues before them. That's not an atmosphere -- I think you'll agree -- because I get question after question every day, what about the escalating violence in Baghdad; how can you possibly survive? The question then is, do you think that is an atmosphere in which you are going to be able to move forward on political matters? The answer is, believe it or not, they've been managing to do it anyway. But on the other hand, it is important to be able to build trust so that people are not worried about their life and livelihood. And, furthermore, April, one of the key elements in political reconciliation is the belief on the part of the Iraqis that their government is going to represent their interests and defend their rights regardless of who they are -- it's not going to pick favorites. There is skepticism in some parts of Iraq that the government is protecting some and not protecting others, and in that atmosphere you cannot move forward, you have to build the baseline confidence in the government and its institutions in order to proceed with those talks. I think that's a matter of common sense. Q But, Tony, the President in his speech said words like "failed." And if there was a failure militarily, why send more U.S. troops into harm's way, instead of just taking that component, realizing there's a failure there, and moving -- MR. SNOW: Because if you do not have an improvement in the situation, you will not have the necessities and the basics for doing the political. The two work together. You have to make the -- you have to address the security situation so you can complete the work of security. Look, it appears that the Iraqis are moving rapidly toward passing the hydrocarbon law. That is great. It appears that they are working on deBaathification. It appears that they are working on the election reforms. But you still have the ultimate question of legitimacy, are they going to protect me or are they going to protect my interests? And if you have some people in the country who believe that their own government is not going to protect them, so that they have to rely on a militia for their safety, or they have to rely on armed bands, or they have to rely on armed groups of Saddamists and rejectionists, then you don't have the basis for the kind of political reconciliation you have to have, and you have to develop that fundamental faith that the government that you are talking about you view as your government, and not as a hostile force. White House Press Corps | Press Briefing | Tony Snow | News Media | Bush Administration | Iraq
Posted by WhiteHousePressCorps.org @ 9:03 PM Press Gaggle by Gordon Johndroe 1/11/07 (Topic: Iraq) — Thursday, January 11, 2007 — Q Gordon, Democrats were already complaining about the planning before it came out. But some of these same Democrats -- like Reid, Pelosi, Biden, Kerry -- had all called for an increase in troops over the last couple of years. What does the White House think about the tone of the debate so far, with Democrats disliking the plan even before it came out? MR. JOHNDROE: I'm sorry, what was the last part of your question? Q Just the tone of the debate so far. I mean, the tone -- you know, will there be bipartisan support? How will -- how will the White House handle what's happening already with the Democrats? MR. JOHNDROE: You know, President Bush and the White House engaged in extensive consultations. Over 100 members of Congress came down to the White House in the last few weeks. These are consultations that really began right after the election. And we want to work with the Congress on the way ahead in Iraq. That's why the Secretaries and Chairman Pace are up there testifying today. And we think they will ask tough questions today. But these are the type of tough questions that we were asking as we were putting the policy together. And so we understand some of the concerns, but we want to work with them. White House Press Corps | Press Briefing | Tony Snow | News Media | Bush Administration | Iraq
Posted by WhiteHousePressCorps.org @ 11:56 PM Press Briefing by Tony Snow 1/9/07 (Topic: Iraq) — Wednesday, January 10, 2007 — Q Tony, as you said, a public debate will probably ensue here after the President's speech -- MR. SNOW: You think? (Laughter.) Q Yes. MR. SNOW: Good chance. Q And so often in debate, obviously, language is very important. To your mind, is there a difference between an increase in troops, an escalation in troops, a surge in troops? Because in the last 24, 48 hours these words have all started to become weighted. MR. SNOW: It just started to become weighted? I think a lot of times people are going to try to find a one-word characterization that allows them to make a political point without perhaps diving into the details in trying to give a proper -- Q Well, what's the difference between an escalation and a surge? MR. SNOW: Well, why don't we talk about characterizations once we have a plan? Q Because I think it's part of a conversation that's going on right now. MR. SNOW: I understand that, and, guess what -- it's a conversation, as I've said before, that is a bit in a vacuum and I'm not going to get into the business of preemptively characterizing something that we have not released in full detail. Q But, somehow, "escalation" has become this Democratic word -- the Democratic Party language. MR. SNOW: Well, ask the guys who do their focus groups. They're going to have an answer for it. Look, the President is talking about a way forward, and rather than getting involved in trying to assess a description of a plan that has yet to be released publicly and, therefore, about which I am not in a position to characterize publicly, it seems a little silly for me to start quibbling about adjectives without discussing what they purportedly describe, don't you think? White House Press Corps | Press Briefing | Tony Snow | News Media | Bush Administration | Iraq
Posted by WhiteHousePressCorps.org @ 12:45 AM Press Briefing by Tony Snow 1/8/07 (Topic: Iraq) — Monday, January 08, 2007 — Q At this stage -- you don't want to get into the details of the policy, so I won't press you on that -- but at this stage, the President's previous commanders on the ground who were just replaced said publicly they didn't think additional troops would help. Leaders of Congress who are Democrats don't think additional troops will help. A number of Republicans feel that way -- and there are some who don't, like McCain and Graham and others who support a troop surge. When you look at public opinion, you know where that stands. The President is isolated in terms of the Iraqi policy and he seems to be among the few who thinks that this step, or any step can actually result in victory. I'm wondering where his mind-set is, how he arrived at this point in doing something that remains quite unpopular? MR. SNOW: Again, I'm going to be able to give you a lot better answer -- I would warn against the theme that the President is isolated, or even -- if you go back, for instance, and you look at John Abizaid's testimony in December, saying, well, properly done, yes, we could use more troops. I mean, there have been a number of different characterizations by members of the military. I think what you have to do is to take a look at the whole package and how it fits together, because I think Americans are concerned -- they want to know questions that are often asked: What does it mean -- what is your military objective, precisely what is it? How do the Iraqis fit in? How does the international community fit in? How does it fit in with the war on terror? So a lot of those key questions I think are worth laying out for the American people. And, furthermore, even within the speech to the nation, there are going to be a lot of details that you're going to be interested in that we're not going to have time -- we're going to spend a lot of time, whatever time you need briefing you on background on that, as well. I think a full, informed debate allows people to get a sense of what's going on in Iraq and all the various forces that are at play, and how we think one needs to address them. It's going to be useful, and it's worth having a very thoughtful debate about the details and about how the President plans to move forward. Q I guess the challenge would be who besides the President thinks that the war is winnable at this stage? MR. SNOW: I think millions of Americans believe that this war is winnable, and I think, furthermore, that it's important to rebuild the sense of political unity. One of the things the President has often said is, the only way we lose if we lose our will. And it is clear that there have been political debates in this country. And it's also interesting because, again, I've heard a lot of Democrats saying, we want to succeed in Iraq. And, therefore, the question for them is, that's great, we agree, so let's find out what your ideas are, if you think you've got a different or a better idea; let's find out how you'll support the military in this endeavor. That's worth doing. And, frankly, done the right way will reassure the American people that all of Washington is serious about doing the right thing and doing it in the right way. And so we've got an opportunity here I think of getting thoughtful debate. White House Press Corps | Press Briefing | Tony Snow | News Media | Bush Administration | Iraq
Posted by WhiteHousePressCorps.org @ 9:26 PM Press Briefing by Tony Snow 1/5/07 (Topic: Bush Impeachment) — Saturday, January 06, 2007 — Q I will. Last question: The Internet had a news release yesterday which announced that Cindy Sheehan would join Daniel Elsberg and Michael Ratner of the so-called Center for Constitutional Rights, in calling on the Congress to impeach the President. Does the White House know if that happened, and what was your reaction, if it did? MR. SNOW: No, I didn't know it had happened. And Speaker Pelosi has already said that no such proceedings will take place. We'll take her at her word. She is, after all, the Speaker of the House. White House Press Corps | Press Briefing | Tony Snow | News Media | Bush Administration | Nancy Pelosi
Posted by WhiteHousePressCorps.org @ 12:33 AM Press Briefing by Tony Snow 1/4/07 (Topic: Saddam Execution) — Friday, January 05, 2007 — Q Back to the Maliki conversation. Although you've told us the President has not seen the video, he has been fully briefed on the nature of the concern, about the taunting, things that were said -- MR. SNOW: Yes. Q Does he believe that the way that was handled is in any way an example of the Maliki government not having control over the institution -- MR. SNOW: No. No, and I think what you're seeing is the Prime Minister asserting control immediately, because he clearly was unhappy with it, as well. And he made it absolutely clear -- the phrase he used, again, I think is -- he said it was pained, the government was pained, and that they were going to punish those responsible. That seems to me to be the reaction of somebody who was surprised by what he saw and unhappy upon seeing it. Q Does the President see that as a setback to the forming of institutions that are necessary -- MR. SNOW: Again, if you take a look at what's been going on, the Prime Minister indicates that there does not seem to have been a rise in acts of violence or other sorts of activities within Iraq as a result of this, but he also understands the importance of reconciliation. And one of the interesting things is this does remove one of the arguments people have made, about what if Saddam comes back. It also creates -- not the video, but the fact that in that part of the world, a tyrant who killed hundreds of thousands with impunity and never was punished, to see a man brought to justice, granted the trial that he would not grant his fellow citizens, given an appeal that nobody ever got, and getting treated -- and being able to have full access to law, and being lawfully executed after legal processes that had passed international muster, that's a powerful signal that the rule of law does apply within Iraq. Q Concerns are not about Saddam's conduct. It's about the carrying out of justice in the final moments -- MR. SNOW: And the point I made yesterday is that there is -- at least among the American press, the fascination with the final moments and the relatively less description of the first 69 years. Q It's not about Saddam. MR. SNOW: There's -- well, no, of course, it's about Saddam. Q It's not about Saddam. It's about the carrying out of justice, and was he subjected to circumstances that are not in line with what the U.S. is hoping Iraq will do in an execution? MR. SNOW: Well, again, look, the Iraqis have made that point, Kelly. How many times do I have to point it out? The Prime Minister is unhappy with it. Q But you resort to talking about Saddam. And our questions are really about the President's view of how this was handled. MR. SNOW: I know. And as I've told you, the President thought it was appropriate to do a review. And the Prime Minister is doing a review. And I think we leave it at that. White House Press Corps | Press Briefing | Tony Snow | News Media | Bush Administration | Iraq
Posted by WhiteHousePressCorps.org @ 12:08 AM Press Briefing by Tony Snow 1/3/07 (Topic: Iraq) — Thursday, January 04, 2007 — Q I just want to ask one thing. Are you suggesting that "we may be out of touch with reality," do you mean "we" the press corps, "we" the American people -- I mean, in other words, is the picture that's emerging out of Iraq through reporting of the press corps there, does it not represent reality? MR. SNOW: I'm saying it's absolutely impossible for any reporting to capture fully the complexity of the situation like that. It's humanly impossible. I mean, you -- I've been a journalist, you're a journalist, you know that you make choices about what goes in and what goes out of any story. And this is no reflection on the people doing the business -- everybody in here knows, especially those of you in TV, when you've got a certain amount of time, you've got to figure out what goes in and what goes out. And the President has more time and has -- gets far more information than what is going to be able to shove into even the best and most thoughtfully produced news story or television report. White House Press Corps | Press Briefing | Tony Snow | News Media | Bush Administration | Iraq
Posted by WhiteHousePressCorps.org @ 12:04 AM
|
|