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White House Press Briefing by Dana Perino 11/15/07 (President's Federalist Society)
— Thursday, November 15, 2007 — Q The President's Federalist Society remarks tonight, which you've sent us excerpts of -- I'm interested in his attack on those who advocate the living Constitution, and saying that in practice, the living Constitution means whatever these activists want it to mean. The President presumably is aware that Justice Stephen Breyer has a book out on this subject. Is he attacking Justice Breyer directly here? MS. PERINO: No, I don't think that there was anything specific, and I don't think -- in discussions, I don't believe it came up. But what I can say is that the President has for many years said that what his position is on judicial nominees is that he looks for someone who believes like he does; that the Constitution is the Constitution and it shouldn't evolve based on different public policy positions. I'm not aware -- I wasn't aware that Justice Breyer had a book. Q In a larger sense, though, does he believe that Justice Breyer and other advocates of this policy, to quote him from elsewhere in the speech, are -- pursue judicial lawlessness in a way that is a threat to our democracy? MS. PERINO: The President does not believe that we should have a living Constitution. He believes the Constitution is the Constitution. Dana Perino | Federalist Society | Judiciary | Justice Stephen Breyer | President Bush | Press Briefing | United States Constitution | White House Press Corps Labels: Dana Perino, Federalist Society, Judiciary, Justice Stephen Breyer, President Bush, Press Briefing, United States Constitution
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 4:58 PM  White House Press Briefing by Dana Perino 11/14/07 (Iraq Funding Bill) — Wednesday, November 14, 2007 —
 MS. PERINO: Mark.Q Yes, back to the Iraq funding bill, Dana. The legislation that I gather is going to pass this afternoon does not have a binding deadline in it; it's a goal, it sets a goal. The President has said he would like to bring U.S. troops home. And it's also -- MS. PERINO: And actually, the troops are coming -- are starting to come home. Q Well, and that's -- that was the other part of it. So why would you veto something that's basically what he is already doing? MS. PERINO: As I understand it, there is an -- the way we read it, there is an arbitrary date for withdrawal. And I would remind you that it was Senator Reid yesterday who said that if the President doesn't go along with this, then he's not going to get his money. This is not money for the President, this is money for the troops. And we are urging Congress not to play political games. Think about it -- they only have approximately nine legislative days left in their calendar in order to get all of this work done. And I think that I have a slide here. I've had this up here before; I'm going to show you again. There are 12 appropriations bills. They sent one to the President that he signed yesterday, and one that he vetoed. I don't know how many days have passed, legislative days have passed this past year, but they only have nine working days left, and it is unlikely that they'll be able to get all of this work done before that deadline. Q And by "appeasing radical groups," are you talking about MoveOn.org, et cetera? Or are you talking about the large numbers of Americans who tell interviewers and pollsters that they would like troops home as soon as possible? MS. PERINO: I am talking about MoveOn.org and CODEPINK, in particular. I would also say that they have held these same -- similar votes over and over again. Dozens of these votes have been held. And in fact, on the Senate side -- I realize this is a House bill -- but on the Senate side, resolutions were passed earlier this year that said that it is the sense of the Senate that we do not believe a withdrawal date is appropriate for this war. And in case they have missed it, our troops are fulfilling their mission in spectacular fashion. They are working to bring down that violence in Iraq, to establish political reconciliation, to improve the economy. People are starting to return to Baghdad and to their homes. Pulling the rug out from under our troops now is the height of irresponsibility. Congress | Dana Perino | Democrats | Iraq | President Bush | Press Briefing | White House Press Corps Labels: Congress, Dana Perino, Democrats, Iraq, President Bush, Press Briefing, White House Press Corps
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 5:52 PM White House Press Briefing by Dana Perino 11/6/07 (President Bush and President Musharraf) — Tuesday, November 06, 2007 — MS. PERINO: Helen. Q Why is the President dodging a personal phone call to Musharraf? MS. PERINO: The President has had his Secretary of State -- Q I'm asking you directly why doesn't he call him? MS. PERINO: The President feels very strongly that President Musharraf knows exactly how he feels about the situation. Q That isn't the point. MS. PERINO: It is the point. Q Dana, does the White House believe that Musharraf is now a dictator? MS. PERINO: Look, I think that that is -- it's premature to say that. This is a President -- Q Well, why is premature when the First Lady -- MS. PERINO: -- who has worked closely with an ally in the war on terror, President Musharraf. We're doing two things with them: on the one hand, working cooperatively to take the fight to the enemy, to fight against terrorists; and on the other hand, trying to help President Musharraf and the other members of the Pakistani government to move along the path to democracy, because ultimately what's going to help solve this problem is a free society, a democratic society. And yes, President Musharraf, we believe, has made a mistake. We are gravely concerned about the situation. We are calling for an immediate return back to -- Q But wait a minute, why are you calling it a mistake? You seem to be giving Musharraf the benefit of the doubt. MS. PERINO: -- we are calling for an immediate return to civilian rule, and we are in communication with them because we have a lot of cooperative interests. We have a broad relationship, and we cannot lose sight of the fact that we have very serious counterterrorism operations that are currently underway in Pakistan as well. Q Why did -- the First Lady was very clear in her op-ed in The Wall Street Journal about Burma, Myanmar, saying it's a military dictatorship; what they're doing is wrong. We're not hearing the First Lady, we're not hearing the President being that sharp either on Pakistan. Why do you seem to be giving Musharraf the -- MS. PERINO: And what you have heard -- what you have heard from the President and this administration is that we were made aware that this state of emergency could possibly be declared. We have averted it before, in trying to work cooperatively with President Musharraf. This time the President of Pakistan decided that this is the direction he wanted to go in. We disagree with it. We want him to return to civilian rule. We want the normalcy of the democracy to come back. We're in the early stages of this crisis, and it's going to evolve. We're assessing the situation, and we're reviewing our aid packages. Q But why is it evolving? It's been days that he basically said, no more constitution, and we're going to round up political -- MS. PERINO: We have condemned the action. We have condemned the action. We cannot support any means that are happening outside of the constitution. And that's why we are calling for him to return to the constitution. But remember, this is a country that we want to see democracy. There is a way to get them back on that path. It would be in the best interests of not just the Pakistani people but for people like those of us in the United States, who want to work with an ally in order to fight against terrorists. Q But why should Musharraf believe that you guys are really serious about what you're saying from this podium when the President doesn't actually pick up the phone and call him to let him know personally? That carries a lot more weight than having Condoleezza Rice or somebody else talk to him. MS. PERINO: Well, we disagree. The President has made his points very clear with Musharraf; he's had many meetings with President Musharraf. And Secretary Rice has delivered those messages. And we feel that we are going to keep pressuring them to get back to that rule of law, working with our Ambassador, Anne Patterson, who is in constant contact with President Musharraf. Q It still does not carry the same weight as the President having direct contact with Musharraf -- (inaudible). MS. PERINO: Well, I'll let you -- I'll let that be your opinion. I'll let that be your opinion. Q But what is the tactic? I mean, what is the strategic reason for President Bush not to actually pick up the phone and talk to him? MS. PERINO: I feel confident that the President is being well served and advised by his senior national security team. The decision has been made to have Secretary Rice be the one directed to have this communication. Q Why shouldn't we see this as double standard? I mean, it's not the same standard as applied to Burma. MS. PERINO: I can understand why that question would be asked, but I think everyone has to remember that we are in the early days of a crisis, looking at a country who had decided to try to move down the path to democracy in establishing freedom of the press, civil societies, improving the education system, the public health system, allowing for freedom of expression and assembly. Democracies take time to develop. It is not easy. And this is certainly a setback, and we're -- Q Well, they certainly don't have freedom of the press or assembly at the moment. MS. PERINO: And we have called for a return to it. Burma | Dana Perino | Democracy | First Lady | Helen | Musharraf | Pakistan | President Bush | Press Briefing | White House Press Corps Labels: Burma, Dana Perino, Democracy, First Lady, Helen, Musharraf, Pakistan, President Bush, Press Briefing, White House Press Corps
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 4:58 PM White House Press Briefing by Dana Perino 11/5/07 (Pakistan and Democracy) — Monday, November 05, 2007 — MS. PERINO: Kelly. Q For a long time the President has urged Musharraf to give up his military status, and he has not done so. And you cited a couple of reasons why we should all be mindful of Pakistan's assistance in the war on terror. Is the U.S. willing to accept a certain amount of Musharraf's lack of democracy in order to have his assistance? MS. PERINO: We are not in a give-and-take situation. We want democracy to work. We know that democracy had been working in Pakistan. People have been able to have press freedoms, they've been participating in civil society groups, education had started to reform, the public health system was starting to get better. So I think that if they can return quickly, as Secretary Rice said, return quickly to the rule of law, they can get back on that path to democracy and we won't face that situation, an either/or situation. Q Can you have a partner in the war on terror from a country that does not embrace these democratic institutions? MS. PERINO: I think that the most important thing is for them to get back to their stated goal of having a path to democracy, establishing that free and fair elections would take place in January. You'll hear from the President more. Right now we have a review underway of all of our programs that we are supporting. We have to keep in mind that it is important that we fight the terrorists there for all people, not just those there in Pakistan but for our national security interests as well. And the President has an obligation to protect Americans, to protect American assets. So all of these things are going to have to be taken into consideration as we review the situation. Q Is there any concern from the President that during this time of uncertainty that the work the Pakistani military was doing to try to root out al Qaeda in its border regions would be compromised, or that this could be an opening for bin Laden and his associates? MS. PERINO: I haven't heard that expressed, but I'm sure that since we've been cooperating with the Pakistani military to try to root out the terrorists I don't have any reason to believe that that would end. Q Why hasn't the President called Musharraf, who is, after all, a key ally, personally? Is he reserving that, is there a lack -- MS. PERINO: The President has directed his Secretary of State, Condoleezza Rice, to have that direct contact. And if there's more to update later today we will. Condeleezza Rice | Dana Perino | Musharraf | Pakistan | President Bush | Press Briefing | State Department | War on Terror | White House Press Corps Labels: Condeleezza Rice, Dana Perino, Musharraf, Pakistan, President Bush, Press Briefing, State Department, War on Terror, White House Press Corps
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 4:23 PM White House Press Briefing by Dana Perino 11/1/07 (Foreign Service Officers) — Thursday, November 01, 2007 — Q Dana, does the President believe that Foreign Service Officers should be compelled to serve in Iraq and Afghanistan even when they express fears about doing so? MS. PERINO: I understand that there is concern on behalf of many of the Foreign Service Officers at the State Department. As Secretary Rice has said, if there are volunteers to serve, then no one will have to be directed to go. The President understands that at a time of war it is distressing for some individuals to serve in those areas. The Secretary has the responsibility to make sure that when sending people into those areas that are difficult and dangerous, that they have all the tools that they need and all the protection they need in order to do their job to the best of their ability. Our Foreign Service Officers are the very best in the world. They do their jobs wonderfully. Many of them are serving on the provincial reconstruction teams. And Iraqis are benefiting greatly from all of their service. The President is concerned, but he also has confidence that Secretary Rice will handle this matter in a way that is caring for the people at the Foreign Service, but also ensures that the mission that the United States is on is supplemented by the Foreign Service Officers who took an oath in order to serve their country. Q Does that mean that it is a requirement for them to serve, much like active duty military are compelled to serve? Are you equating those? MS. PERINO: I don't know all the rules that go into the regulations for Foreign Service Officers; I'd have to refer you to the State Department for that. They do serve our country very well; they're in places all around the world. And obviously if there is a need to have additional people in -- from the State Department serving in positions, then Secretary Rice might have to take the measure of directing people to go, but the preference is to have volunteers. And there have been many volunteers that have been serving, and they've done an excellent job in helping build economies over in Iraq and Afghanistan in order to help build institutions; like they're helping for their interior ministry, their defense ministry, their rule of law -- these are the experts and so the President understands that there is concern. Secretary Rice knows there is concern. She has fought very hard on behalf of the State Department employees to have additional resources and to make sure that they are protected while they are over there, and they have a very good track record of doing so. Q One of those employees likened it to a "potential death sentence." Does the President think that's overstatement? MS. PERINO: The President is not going to question anybody's personal feelings about possible service in Iraq. If that's how the individual feels, then that's how he or she feels. The President understands that service in a war zone can be very difficult. It's distressing for the families, but they should be reassured, as well, that Secretary Rice takes this issue very seriously. She's concerned about their safety and that is why she has worked very hard to make sure that they have all the tools that they need and the protections that they need in order to get their job done. Condeleezza Rice | Dana Perino | Iraq | Press Briefing | State Department | White House Press Corps Labels: Condeleezza Rice, Dana Perino, Iraq, Press Briefing, State Department, White House Press Corps
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 9:42 PM
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